Peter Gunn

Do you remember Peter Gunn?

I recently mentioned the name "Peter Gunn" to some teenagers and people in their twenties. Only one knew the name. He said he has a CD by a contemporary rock group that has a side called The Theme from Peter Gunn, but he didn't know anything about Peter Gunn.

If you're like my young friend, let me tell you about Peter Gunn. This was a film noir television detective series filmed in black and white in the early days of color television that ran from 1958 to 1961. It was a half-hour show, carrying a lot of punch. Actor Craig Stevens played Peter Gunn, a debonair private investigator who wore Brooks Brothers suits. He hung out at a jazz club named Mother's where his girlfriend, Edie Hart, played by the beautiful actress Lola Albright, sang with a small jazz group.

Yes, a jazz group. On network TV. Can you imagine?

Produced by Blake Edwards, Peter Gunn featured jazz from the beginning to the end of each show. It was written and arranged by Henry Mancini. The show soon became one of the most popular in the nation. The two soundtrack albums earned Grammy Awards for Mancini, and gave his career a tremendous boost.

So close your eyes, imagine your're in a small, smoky jazz club in L.A, where Shelly Manne and his Men are taking stage. At a red-and-white checkered-covered table up front sit a suave, impeccably dressed man and his girlfriend, waiting for her turn to sing. Then a Runyonesque-looking character named Oddball whispers in Peter Gunn's ear....

Peter Gunn, and Henry Mancini, brouht jazz to television and became the model for some later shows, including one from about 20 years ago named Miami Vice.

To hear some of the great music from Peter Gunn right now, click on either of these links:

Music from Peter Gunn

More Music from Peter Gunn

Let me know how you like it!