Wally Cox Day On The OTN.

Homage must be paid to "Mister Peepers", which, of course, is never shown anywhere.
I have a hefty collection of them on DVD.
They are all priceless.
It was pretty much everyone's first exposure to Wally Cox, and his unique brand of hilarious underplaying.
According to IMDB, there were only 32 episodes of it, aired in 1952 and 1953.
It seems like there were more.
IMDB also indicates that it ran through 1955.
So your guess is as good as mine.
I hope that there is someone out there who's better at guessing.
It was also pretty much everyone's first exposure to Marion Lorne, who broke in her babbling and stuttering style, which she later used on the Garry Moore Show, and "Bewitched"
But the writing served her much better on "Mister Peepers"
It was also pretty much everyone's first exposure to Tony Randall, who broke in the character that he usually played in those Doris Day-Rock Hudson movies, as Rock's best friend.
It was an expertly crafted show, and the writing was brilliant.
If we can't get the OTN off the ground, seek out the DVDs.

Wally Cox had another series, just barely remembered, called "The Adventures of Hiram Holliday"
Only 26 episodes were made of that.
I think it was a summer replacement show, and it spanned the years 1956 through 1959. I remember watching it when I was a kid and thoroughly enjoying it and Wally.

Here is a description of the premise, as provided by IMDB:

"Hiram, thought to be a meek-little nobody by everyone around him, is one day discovered to have a range of skills that would make James Bond green with envy. The publisher of the newspaper where he works as a proofreader, recognizing the sales potential of Hiram's story, sends the young man on a trip around the world along with reporter Joel Smith to document his adventures for readers back home."

There is an episode of it on YouTube which I just watched.
It is, as I remember it was, loaded with charm, and terrific underplaying by Cox.
All the episodes took place in exotic locales that gave you the impression that they never left the backlot.
But it didn't matter.
The more exotic the locale, the more out of place Wally seemed in it.
And the more entertaining it was.

Wally Cox is just another one of those greats that a not-too-much-younger generation could not pick out of a police lineup.
More's the pity.

Mark Rothman, CEO of the OTN.


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My books ,"Show Runner" and it's sequel,"Show Runner Two", can be found at the Amazon Kindle Store.
Along with the newer ones, "The Man Is Dead", and "Report Cards".
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And now, we've got my reading of my "Laverne & Shirley Movie" screenplay on YouTube.

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