mike robson Mr Lucky was one of a series of half hour crime shows of the late 50's and early 60's.But unlike "Peter Gunn" "Richard Diamond" etc,the hero is not a detective,but a vaguely shady, but basically honest,club owner.The series "Dante" with Howard Duff is probably Mr Lucky's closest relation(that show began the season after "Mr Lucky")."Mr Lucky" is a smooth, enjoyable show with a lot of comedy mixed in the dramatics.John Vivyan,as Lucky is suave and likable. The ever reliable Ross Martin is his sidekick Andamo.It seems strange that Vivyan's career never went anywhere after this show. Martin went on to greater fame in "The Wild Wild West".The shows title sequence, featuring cats,and Henry Mancini's music are great.Interestingly, Mr Lucky's gambling boat,"The Fortuna",turned into just a restaurant about half way through the series-probably in response to the moral criticisms then being directed at some TV shows.

schappe1 TV actors, at least in the old days when they were placed in a separate class from movie actors, often seemed to be clones of their movie brethren. Some were singular in their associations. Nehemiah Persoff seemed to be the Edward G. Robinson of television, getting similar roles and acting them in a very similar manner. Carolyn Jones was the Bette Davis of TV, even to the point of playing a set of sisters one of whom is a murderer on Burke's Law. Other's had company in their pursuits. The western stars were all either John Wayne or Gary Cooper, with an occasional Jimmy Stewart or Henry Fonda thrown in, (including the real thing on "The Deputy"). There were a whole selection of Clark Gables, including John Russell, Rory Calhoun, Richard Egan , Robert Lowery and others. There were plenty of Brandos, including Burt Reynolds, George Maharis and John Saxon. There were enough Rock Hudsons to fill a theater, with John Gavin, Tom Tryon and Gardner McKay coming immediately to mind. The blonde versions I call the "Redfords", a group of thoughtful , well educated types of which Robert Redford was one along with James Franciscus, Richard Chamberlain and William Shatner. They had varying degrees of success with Redford emerging as the head of the class. Perhaps the most successful strain, however were the Cary Grants. Grant made an ideal model for the suave detective hero, able to be charming or tough as the occasion demanded. Craig Stevens was hired to play Peter Gunn specifically because of a strong resemblance to Grant. His tightlipped performance was not really very charming but it's surely how Cary would have played that character. Latern-jawed John Vivyan played a role that Grant had actually essayed in the movies, Mr. Lucky. He was competent at best. The heroes of the Warner Brother's detective shows were largely based on Cary Grant. Ephram Zimbelist Jr.'s Stu Bailey was a grant-style role with a lot more charm than Peter Gunn. Richard Long's Rex Randolph on Bourbon Street Beat was much the same. Anthony Eisley's Tracy Steele was a less convincing version of the same character on Hawaiian Eye. But the best of the Grant clones was Gene Barry. He was male-model handsome, had good breeding and seductive whiskey voice. He was also TV's greatest reactors. He had a series of comic takes that was perfect for Amos Burke, who had to confront an unending series of eccentric subjects. Yet he could turn around and romance the ladies or get tough with the tough guys. And he was a good enough actor to hold up his end when the heavy dramatics intervened. One wonders what the originals of these clones must have thought as they watched the boob tube in it's infancy.

CSchwarck I was nine-years old (and living in New York) when this show premiered, and it quickly became my favorite series. Friday nights meant "77-Sunset-Strip" and then staying up to watch "Mr. Lucky" with a big bottle of Coke and a bag of Fritos. I can still remember the car he drove -- a black 1959 Chrysler Imperial. To me, Mr. Lucky was the epitome of "class."

Rockstar-5 Quad Cities, IL-IA "Mr. Lucky" was a half-hour television series attempting to cash in on "Peter Gunn"'s success. Based on an old '40's feature film that had starred Cary Grant, the t.v. "Mr. Lucky" starred John Vivyan as the title character, Ross Martin as his partner Andamo, Pippa Scott as Mr. Lucky's girlfriend, Maggie, and Tom Brown as Lt. Rovaks of the police department, Lucky's sometimes friend, sometimes adversary. Mr. Lucky was the owner of the ship Fortuna, a floating gambling casino moored off of the California coast's 12 mile limit. Each week Lucky and Andamo would become entangled with an assortment of con-men, gamblers, fugitives, even entertainers working for Lucky aboard the gambling casino. Inevitably it would appear that Lucky was either involved in some type of illegal activity or at the least aiding those involved with the activities. This was all done to a modern jazz musical score supplied by "Peter Gunn"'s Henry Mancini.The series ran one season (during the '59-'60 season) and is probably best remembered for spawning two hit record albums from Henry Mancini, "Theme from Mr. Lucky" and "Mr Lucky Goes Latin".