Straightaway

Straightaway

John Ashley as Clipper Hamilton in "A Moment in the Sun" episode of Straightaway (1962)
Starring John Ashley
Brian Kelly
Theme music composer Maynard Ferguson
Country of origin United States
No. of seasons 1
No. of episodes 26
Production
Running time 30 minutes
Release
Original network ABC
Picture format Black-and-white
Original release October 6, 1961 –
April 4, 1962

Straightaway is a 26-week half-hour adventure/drama television series which aired on ABC during the 1961–1962 season – the story of two young men who operate a garage and engage in auto racing.[1][2] John Ashley and Brian Kelly played race car designers Clipper Hamilton and Scott Ross, respectively. Scott designs the vehicles, and Clipper is the mechanic. Asa Maynor was cast in four episodes as Dixie. Most episodes center on the clients who bring a race car to the Straightaway Garage.[3] The series was originally planned to be named "The Racers", but the title had to be altered because of sponsor problems. The pilot was entitled "The Racer and the Lady".[4]

Straightaway ran at 7:30 Eastern on Fridays opposite CBS’s Rawhide with Clint Eastwood and Eric Fleming.[5] Straightaway was moved to Wednesdays effective January 10, 1962, for the remainder of its brief run.[6]

Selected episodes

The premiere episode, “The Leather Dollar”, aired on October 6, 1961; in the story line, Scott and Clipper agree to sponsor a young boxer, but the manager is betting against his client. New episodes ended on April 4, but ABC re-ran the program until July 4.

Other segments include:

“The Tin Caesar” on October 13 - Clipper picks ups a hitchhiker and drops him off at a gasoline station. The next day the sheriff (Neville Brand) arrests Clipper for the murder of the station owner who described Clipper’s car with his dying words.

“Die Laughing” on November 3 - Night-club comedian Buddy Conway (Jack Klugman) is accused by son Les (Scott Marlowe) of being responsible for the death of Les’ mother.

“The Stranger” on November 17 – Scott’s friend Jeanne (Bethel Leslie) receives threatening telephone calls.

“A Moment in the Sun” on January 17, 1962 – Scott and Clipper introduce a girl named Jennifer (Adrienne Ellis) to a wealthy and charming young man, Paul (Robert Blake), who claims to be of an aristocratic background. But doubts persist.

“The Drag Strip” on January 24 – Scott and Clipper are caught in the middle of a feud when they help a rich young man build a racing car.

“Crossroad” on January 31—Scott and Clipper hire a young man with a criminal record and are unaware that his friend is planning a bank robbery.

“The Longest Night” on March 7 – The garage harbors an escaped killer played by Paul Richards.

“The Craziest Race in Town” on March 21 – Scott and Clipper build a special engine for an important race, but their competition thinks it quaint and humorous. Barbara Bain appears in this episode as Melody.

"The Hoax" - the series finale - Scott tries to free a young heiress (Myrna Hansen) who has fallen under the influence of a charlatan (Tod Andrews).[3]

Other guest stars

In addition to the aforementioned, other guest stars on Straightaway include:

References

  1. ↑ Wisehart, Bob. (December 31, 1993) The Sacramento BeeBeware: "Viper' is a lemon futuristic supercar isn't enough to carry new series. Section: Scene. Page 1.
  2. ↑ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054565/maindetails
  3. 1 2 http://www.tv.com/straightaway/show/4392/summary.html
  4. ↑ Broadcasting 1960 "In production 0 ABC Films, N.Y.. reports production started March 9 at Paramount's Hollywood studios on the new Albert J. Cohen production of The Racer, starring Brian Kelly and John Ashley. The pilot film is entitled “The Racer and the Lady."
  5. ↑ 1961-62_American_network_television_schedule
  6. ↑ http://ctva.biz/US/Adventure/Straightaway.htm
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