''Johnny Midnight'' is an American

crime drama Crime film is a film belonging to the crime fiction genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and fiction. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine with many other genres, such as Drama (film and television), dr ...

that aired for one season in syndication from January 3, 1960, to September 21, 1960. The series stars

Edmond O'Brien Eamon Joseph O'Brien (; September 10, 1915 – May 9, 1985) was an American actor of stage, screen, and television, and film director. His career spanned almost 40 years, and he won one Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and two stars on th ...

as the titular character.

Synopsis

O'Brien portrayed Johnny Midnight, a New York City actor turned

private detective A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI; also known as a private detective, an inquiry agent or informally a private eye) is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigat ...

. Midnight's cases frequently focused upon

Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and Neighborhoods in New York City, neighborhood in the Midtown Manhattan section of New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway (Manhattan), ...

and

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

, where he had triumphed earlier on stage. Midnight lives in a

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

penthouse Penthouse most often refers to: *Penthouse apartment, a special apartment on the top floor of a building * ''Penthouse'' (magazine), a British-founded men's magazine *Mechanical penthouse, a floor, typically located directly under a flat-roof, tha ...

at Broadway and West 41st Street and owns The Midnight Theater. He often eats at Lindy's Bar, which enables him to maintain contact with his friends from show business. In addition to taking on individual clients, he often investigates cases for the Mutual Insurance Company. His acting experience sometimes helps when he uses a disguise during an investigation. O'Brien said that he took the role after turning down other offers to star in TV series because the show "had a concept and setting totally different from anything in the mystery-adventure field. It was a story about the real drama of life as contrasted with Broadway play life." The theme song of the series is " Lullaby of Broadway", performed by

Joe Bushkin Joseph "Joe" Bushkin (November 7, 1916 – November 3, 2004) was an American jazz pianist. Life and career Born in New York City, Bushkin began his career by playing trumpet and piano with New York City dance bands, including Frank LaMare ...

. The supporting cast included

Arthur Batanides Arthur Batanides (April 9, 1923 – January 10, 2000) was an American film and television actor, originally from Tacoma, Washington. Life and career Arthur Batanides was born in Tacoma, Washington on April 9, 1923. He became enamored with actin ...

as Sergeant Lupo Olvera,

Barney Phillips Bernard Philip Ofner (October 20, 1913 – August 17, 1982), better known by his stage name Barney Phillips, was an American film, television, and radio actor. His roles include that of Sgt. Ed Jacobs on the 1950s '' Dragnet'' television ser ...

as Lieutenant Sam Geller, and

Yuki Shimoda Yuki Shimoda (August 10, 1921 – May 21, 1981) was an American actor best known for his starring role as Ko Wakatsuki in the NBC movie of the week '' Farewell to Manzanar'' in 1976. He also co-starred in the 1960s television series '' Johnny M ...

as Uki, Midnight's wise-cracking Japanese

manservant A domestic worker is a person who works within a residence and performs a variety of household services for an individual, from providing cleaning and household maintenance, or cooking, laundry and ironing, or care for children and elderly de ...

Production notes

Jack Chertok Jack Chertok (July 13, 1906 – June 14, 1995) was an American film and television producer perhaps best known to modern viewers as producer for the 182 black and white episodes of ''The Lone Ranger''. Career Born in Atlanta, Georgia, to Russi ...

produced the program, prior to his association with the

sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

My Favorite Martian ''My Favorite Martian'' is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from September 29, 1963, to May 1, 1966, for 107 episodes. The show stars Ray Walston as "Uncle Martin" (the Martian) and Bill Bixby as Tim O'Hara. ''My Favorite Martian'' was th ...

''. O'Brien's brother, Liam, originated the premise for the program.

References

External links

* 1960 American television series debuts 1960 American television series endings 1960s American crime drama television series Black-and-white American television shows American English-language television shows First-run syndicated television programs in the United States Television series by Universal Television Television shows set in New York City {{US-drama-tv-prog-stub