"77 Sunset Strip" (1958) TV series 1958-1964

Creator:

Roy Huggins

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

Release Date:

10 October 1958 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama

Plot:

Stu Bailey and Jeff Spencer were the wisecracking, womanizing private detective heroes of this Warner Brothers drama...

Plot Keywords:

Detective | Private | Thief | Racetrack | Male Female Relationship

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Primetime Emmys. Another 2 wins

Cast

Efrem Zimbalist Jr.	...	Stuart Bailey / ... (162 episodes, 1958-1964)
Roger Smith	...	Jeff Spencer (81 episodes, 1958-1963)
Edd Byrnes	...	Kookie / ... (80 episodes, 1958-1963)
Jacqueline Beer	...	Suzanne Fabray / ... (66 episodes, 1958-1963)

Also Known As:

Sunset 77 (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

60 min (206 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Television

Trivia:

The restaurant, Dino's Lodge, used in the TV series was then owned by Dean Martin. Before it was torn down in 1989, it was located at 8524 Sunset (near Alta Loma) in Los Angeles.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Eegah! (#6.6)" (1993)

Definitely NOT routine

77 Sunset Strip was a most unique series, it was only the Warners cookie-cutter mentality that makes it seem routine in retrospect. "Strip" was the first hour-long contemporary drama series with continuing characters, and caused a flood of copycats - Bourbon St. Beat, Hawaiian Eye, Surfside Six, Follow The Sun, its trio of characters set a pattern still used in the 70s and 80s for shows such as Charlie's Angels and Ripide. Series star Roger Smith contributed several scripts, perhaps another first, way before Michael Landon and Alan Alda made the practice commonplace. One was "The Silent Caper" which featured no dialogue, another featured just one character on-screen (Stu Bailey), although there was an off-screen voice, which was uncredited, but sounded like Robert Colbert, the last Maverick brother and later on Time Tunnel. I remember one episode was based on "Strangers On a Train" with Richard Long as the villain a year before he joined as a regular. Another used the same plot line as "White Heat" - Warner's was great at recycling old scripts, a practice as old as the studio that made 3 versions of "High Sierra" within 15 years. "Strip" had a unique blend of humor and drama, much of it provoded by Kookie and Roscoe (Louis Quinn was great in the part). It's a shame that this B&W chestnut will probably never again see the light of day unless TV Land does a marathon weekend, and I'll certainly have my VCR set for that if it happens.