Assignment: Underwater (1960)

The synopsis of this series is based on viewing only six episodes from 1960, which are among the eight included on two DVDs issued by Alpha Video. As of this writing, no plans for a complete season DVD release have been announced, but should the full series be released to DVD, or if additional episodes are made available, this synopsis will be updated with the additional information.

Assignment: Underwater was a scuba-themed action/adventure series much in the same mold as Lloyd Bridges' popular Sea Hunt program, though here Bill Williams played the primary role as former Marine and scuba expert for hire Bill Greer, who owns and lives on a boat named The Lively Lady with his daughter Patty. Like many leading male characters from the time, Greer is a widower, though in the episodes viewed for this post, there is no mention of his deceased wife's name or how she died. The syndicated series lasted for only one full season of 39 episodes from the fall of 1960 until June of 1961.

Though at times episodes of the show use a long buildup to get to the inevitable underwater scuba scenes (much like David Carradine's Kung Fu offered superficial setups for his ass-kicking kung fu scenes), Assignment: Underwater often attempts to demonstrate the conflicting loyalties of Greer's multiple roles as civilian/government employee and professional expert/father. In "Operation Betrayal" (September 16, 1960), Greer is called upon as a Navy reservist to help track down which of his former war buddies has been hired to fish out some old Nazi counterfeit U.S. currency plates from San Francisco bay. At first Greer balks at the assignment, which he sees as a betrayal of loyalty to his former comrades in arms, until he is lectured by police investigator Sam Arnett on the importance of eliminating any doubt about the validity of U.S. currency. In "Panic Off Punta Banda" (September 30, 1960), Greer has to choose between continuing a diving mission to retrieve a dangerous sunken radioactive canister after learning that his daughter may have been poisoned by eating tainted fish. His impulse as a father is to abandon the mission, at the risk of exposing possibly hundreds of residents to radioactive contamination, but he is persuaded by Coast Guard Capt. Wilson to entrust Patty's care to a doctor while he completes the mission.

But his judgment is often inferior to that of his daughter, as in "Charlie Noble's Pearl" (October 21, 1960) when he falls for a frame-up on an old buddy by a pair of slippery robbers, whereas Patty stays true to their old friend and helps him solve the crime. And in "The Portrait" (November 18, 1960), Greer is ready to disbelieve Patty's claim that she saw his supposedly deceased diving pupil J.L. Simmons, until her persistence forces him to recognize some clues and take action to reveal the scam perpetrated by Simmons and his wife.

As a parent, Greer dishes out his share of sermons to Patty, but he also makes his share of mistakes--leaving her alone on the beach in "Panic Off Punta Banda" to face possible exposure to contaminated fish, and leaving her unsupervised in "A Message to Mulligan" (November 25, 1960), which results in her sneaking onto a boat that is about to be blown up in the harbor as part of a movie scene. Of course, leaving children unsupervised was more common in 1960 than it is today, but on this program, such laxness often leads to danger.

Greer's missteps and conflicts are, of course, deliberately scripted to heighten the suspense for dramatic effect, but they also make him a more realistic character than an unwavering hero who never goes astray.

At least two of the episodes from 1960 have music composed and arranged by Alec Compinsky, a virtuoso cellist whose brother was violinist and film composer Manuel Compinsky and whose sister was pianist Sara Compinsky. Together they performed as the Compinsky Trio, and Alec and Manuel worked on film scores together. Alec also composed the theme music for the TV series How to Marry a Millionaire and provided music for the children's TV shows Sky King and Bozo: The World's Most Famous Clown. He also served as music supervisor on several other TV shows in the 1950s, including Broken Arrow, Pony Express, and The Third Man. He died in June 1960.

The two DVDs released by Alpha Video containing a total of eight episodes--six from 1960 and two from 1961--have not been remastered or cleaned up in any way, with video quality about the same as an average youtube.com video, that is, watchable but substandard.

The Actors

Bill Williams

Born Herman August Wilhelm Katt to German immigrant parents in Brooklyn, Williams was a junior national champion swimmer in his teens, then became a professional swimmer, performing in underwater shows before joining the Army during World War II, which made him eminently qualified to play a military veteran scuba expert on Assignment: Underwater. He was discharged from the military before the war ended and took up acting, having some prior experience in vaudeville and stock shows. His first credited film role was in Murder in the Blue Room in 1944. A year later he appeared in West of the Pecos with Robert Mitchum and Barbara Hale, whom he married in 1946. They then also appeared together in A Likely Story (1947) and The Clay Pigeon (1949). She would go on to play Perry Mason's secretary Della Street on the successful TV show, and the couple had two daughters and a son, William Katt, Jr., who became a successful actor himself, starring in Carrie and the 1980s TV show The Greatest American Hero.

Williams broke into TV himself in 1951 playing the title role in The Adventures of Kit Carson in 103 episodes, running until 1955. He was particularly suited to western roles, both on TV and feature films such as The Great Missouri Raid and Oklahoma Territory, because he could do his own riding and stunts. He and Hale also lived on a working ranch in the desert. In 1957-58 he co-starred as Betty White's husband on the situation comedy A Date With the Angels, but in 1958 he turned down an offer to star in Sea Hunt because he didn't think an underwater series could work. After Lloyd Bridges made that series a hit, Williams agreed to do his own series two years later with considerably less success. He also appeared in the pilot of The Untouchables as federal agent Martin Flaherty, a role give to Jerry Paris in the regular series. After Assignment: Underwater he continued making guest appearances on various TV shows, including Lassie, Batman, and four turns on his wife's Perry Mason, as well as feature-length films, including two more appearances with Hale in Buckskin (1968) and The Giant Spider Invasion (1975). His last role was in the TV movie Goldie and the Boxer Go to Hollywood in 1981. He died from a brain tumor at the age of 77 on September 21, 1992. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6161 Hollywood Blvd.

Diane Mountford

Not much is known about child actress Diane Mountford, other than her birth year of 1948 and her extensive filmography, ending with appearances on Family Affair and My Three Sons when she was 21. Her career began with an appearance on the TV show Fury in 1958 and included an appearance on The Ann Sothern Show and the film The Incredible Mr. Pennypacker before she was cast as Patty Greer on Assignment: Underwater.

After the show's 1-year run, she appeared in the Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine thriller The Children's Hour, but after that stuck to TV show guest spots on Bonanza, Gunsmoke, Leave It to Beaver, Wagon Train, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., and a pair of appearances on Perry Mason, as well as five appearances on Family Affair and three on My Three Sons. In 2010 it was reported that she appeared at the annual Oscar party hosted by former actress Lori Anderson-Scherrer in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (http://www.banderasnews.com/1003/vl-hollywoodtopv.htm), so she still seems to be out and about.

Notable Guest Stars

Season 1, Episode 2, "Operation Betrayal": Carleton Young (shown on the left, starred in Dick Tracy (1937), The Brigand, Thunderhead - Son of Flicka, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and played Harry Steeger on The Court of Last Resort) plays police investigator Sam Arnett. Gregg Martell (starred in Ma and Pa Kettle Go to Town, I Was a Shoplifter, Leave It to the Marines, and The Sergeant Was a Lady) plays bartender Mike Santori. Don Kennedy (voice of Tansut on Space Ghost Coast to Coast and Marlon on The Brak Show) plays former diver Johnny Beaudry.

Season 1, Episode 4, "Panic Off Punta Banda": Rodolfo Hoyos, Jr. (Luis Valdez on Viva Valdez) plays Mexican father Pepe.

Season 1, Episode 7, "Charlie Noble's Pearl": Edgar Buchanan (shown on the right, played Uncle Joe Carson on The Beverly Hillbillies, Green Acres, and Petticoat Junction, Red Connors on Hopalong Cassidy, Judge Roy Bean on Judge Roy Bean, and J.J. Jackson on Cade's County) plays crusty old seaman Charlie Noble. Wayne Heffley (Officer Dennis on Highway Patrol and Vern Scofield on Days of Our Lives) plays police Lt. Crane.

Season 1, Episode 10, "A Matter of Honor": George Takei (shown on the left, played Sulu on Star Trek and Kaito Nakamura on Heroes) plays young Japanese-American in trouble Kenji Kitigawa. Stanley Adams (Lt. Morse on Not for Hire) plays mobster Joe Corelli. Barbara Luna (Maria on One Life to Live) plays exotic dancer Ruby Lee.

Season 1, Episode 11, "The Portrait": Alan Hale, Jr. (shown on the right, played Biff Baker on Biff Baker U.S.A., Casey Jones on Casey Jones, Sculley on The Texan, and The Skipper on Gilligan's Island) plays toymaker J.L. Simmons. Stanja Lowe (Mrs. Thomas on Peyton Place) plays his wife. Hugh Lawrence (Lt. Mike O'Malley on Miami Undercover) plays police Det. Carl Dodge.

Season 1, Episode 12, "A Message to Mulligan": William Boyett (Sgt. Ken Williams on Highway Patrol and Sgt. MacDonald on Adam-12) plays former Navy man Joe Mulligan. Buck Young (Deputy Sheriff Buck Johnson on U.S. Marshal and Sgt. Whipple on Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.) plays an unnamed assistant movie director. Ralph Moody (Doc Burrage on The Rifleman) plays boatyard worker Mr. Farber.

The Blue Angels (1960)

The synopsis of this series is based on viewing only two episodes. Given the show's obscurity and short lifespan, it is unlikely that additional episodes will be made available, but if they are, this synopsis will be updated with the additional information.

The Blue Angels was an action-adventure series based on the real-life exploits of the U.S. Navy's flight demonstration squadron. These stunt pilots would often perform at air shows and other public events. Like Men Into Space, the series was made in collaboration with the U.S. military, in this case the Navy, who, it is reported, wanted the episodes to be as realistic as possible, even if they suffered dramatically as a result. It is interesting to note that the five actors who comprised the main cast that appeared in 33 of the show's 39 episodes, were all World War II veterans from various branches of the military. The show ran for a single season from September 26, 1960 until July 3, 1961. The show did not feature many well-known guest stars, but up-and-coming Burt Reynolds, who at the time had a regular role on Riverboat, appeared in two episodes and Ernest Borgnine appeared in one.

Also like Men Into Space, the show seemed more of a propaganda vehicle for the Navy than a serious dramatic effort. There seems to be more attention paid to the details of each mission than to character development, and the two episodes viewed are heavily interspersed with actual footage of Navy planes and aircraft carriers, the sort of footage that would appeal to military enthusiasts and pre-teen boys. However, both of the episodes viewed also dealt with actual historic events. In "The Lebanon Incident," the Blue Angels are sent on a hurried mission to make aerial photographs of Lebanon, with full cooperation from the Lebanese government. The photos will then be immediately flown to Washington. After the mission is completed, the crew learns that the Marines will land on the beach in Lebanon the day after the photos arrive in Washington. Although not explicitly stated, the episode seems tied to the Lebanon Crisis of 1958 in which pro-western Lebanese President Camille Chamoun, a Maronite Christian, requested help from the United States to fend off an anticipated civil war from the Muslim population in response to western intervention in Egypt. President Eisenhower did send 14,000 men, including over 5,000 Marines, to defuse the tensions. The last episode of 1960, "The Diamond Goes to War" (December 26, 1960) details a mission from the Korean War in which the Angels bomb a North Korean dam near the Chinese border. During the actual war, the United Nations Command bombed a series of 13 hydroelectric dams in June of 1952 in an attempt to weaken the North Korean economy and hasten the progress of stalled truce negotiations. Though the mission succeeded in destroying 90% of the facilities, it had little effect on the negotiations. As for the propaganda angle, the end of this episode has the flavor of a kitschy western: After the Angels return to their base and a wounded member is hauled off on a stretcher, an anonymous airman standing nearby asks the ground-based chief, "Who were those men?" as if he had just witnessed the Lone Ranger riding off into the sunset.

At this time, two episodes ("The Lebanon Incident" and "The Diamond Goes to War") from December 1960 are available on youtube.com, courtesy of the San Diego Air and Space Museum, though the video quality is substandard.

The Actors

Dennis Cross

Born in Helena, Montana, Cross served in the Marines during World War II and fought in the Battle of Guadalcanal. After the war, he studied at The Actors Lab in Hollywood before moving to New York in 1950 and appearing on live TV programs there. He began appearing in films and TV shows beginning in the mid 50s, but being cast as Commander Arthur Richards on The Blue Angels was his only regular role on television. He appeared 6 times on The Rifleman and Rawhide and 13 times on Gunsmoke as well as fewer times on many other shows throughout the 60s and into the 70s. After retiring from acting, Cross served as Vice President of the Doctors Insurance Company in Santa Monica, CA. He died in Los Angeles at age 66 on April 6, 1991.

His son Randy Cross was an NFL lineman for the San Francisco 49ers and later became a TV commentator on NFL games. 

Don Gordon

A native of Los Angeles, Gordon served in the Navy during World War II, including time on the aircraft carriers the USS Saratoga and the USS Yorktown. He began appearing in films in 1949 and in television shows two years later. He made occasional appearances on a number of shows throughout the 50s but probably most significant were his two turns on Wanted: Dead or Alive, which starred Steve McQueen, with whom he became good friends and would later appear in three McQueen movies--Bullitt, Papillon, and The Towering Inferno. His role as Lt. Hank Bertelli on The Blue Angels was his only regular role during a long and prolific career, but he did play the character of Richard Jensen in five episodes of Peyton Place in 1966. He continued mixing TV appearances and roles in feature films throughout his career, including films such as Cannon for Cordoba, Slaughter, Omen III: The Final Conflict, Lethal Weapon, and The Exorcist III. His last acting appearance was in an episode of Diagnosis Murder in 1993, though he was also interviewed for and appeared in the Steve McQueen documentary Steve McQueen - The Essence of Cool in 2005. At this writing, he is 85 years old and living with his fourth wife Denise Farr, to whom he has been married since 1979.

Morgan Jones

Another Navy veteran, Jones was born in Wooster, OH and stationed at the Naval Base Coronado during his military service. He went into acting after leaving the service and had his first appearance as an audience member in Singin' in the Rain in 1952. He also had supporting roles in Forbidden Planet, Not of This Earth, and The Giant Claw. His TV career began in 1953, and he made eight appearances as Sgt. Corey on Highway Patrol in 1955-56. He had occasional appearances in a variety of other television programs before being cast as Commander Donovan on The Blue Angels. Thereafter, he appeared four times as Sgt. Charlie Phillips on Arrest and Trial in 1963, three appearances as Keller on Daniel Boone in 1967, six appearances as Howard Pender on Mannix in 1967-68, three appearances as Capt. Boggs on Rat Patrol in 1967-68, and four appearances as Sgt. Boggs on The Young Rebels in 1970. He continued landing occasional TV roles into the mid-80s, the last being on Murder She Wrote in 1986. He died January 13, 2012 in Tarzana, CA at the age of 84.

Michael Galloway

Hailing from Boise, Idaho, Galloway served in the Air Force in World War II, then spent time at both the University of Idaho and USC on basketball scholarships until an auto accident ended his athletic career and forced him to pursue acting. Most of his appearances in film and television were in the 1950s, and his role as Lt. Russ MacDonald on The Blue Angels was his only regular TV role. After the show ended, he appeared in only two more films and one TV program, the last being the show Tales of the Unexpected in 1984. He died October 12, 2010 at the age of 85.

Warner Jones

Not much is known about Warner Jones, ironic in that in his obituary published January 5, 2011 in the Eureka Times-Standard, the author twice mentions that rather than regale others about his Hollywood past, Jones would tell them to Google him. His role playing Capt. Wilbur Scott on The Blue Angels was the most significant of his career. He also had five appearances as Harry McGill on the TV series Window on Main Street in 1961 and one appearance each on The Rifleman, Mr. Lucky, and The Andy Griffith Show. According to the Times-Standard obituary, he moved around a lot after his acting career ended, trying his hand at selling insurance and teaching before settling in Houston, TX and working for the VA for 16 years. But then a vacation trip to Eureka convinced him to retire there, where he spent the last 20 years of his life.

Other Actors

According to imdb.com, the above listed actors appeared in 33 of the 39 episodes for the show. Other than two appearances each by William Bryant and Burt Reynolds, no other actors are listed as regular characters. However, in the episode "The Diamond Goes to War," an entirely different cast plays the four Blue Angel pilots--Robert Knapp as Commander Zeke Martin, Eddie Foy III as Lt. Lefty Doyle, Jimmy Murphy as Lt. Nello Bruzzi, and Edward Kemmer as Capt. Doc Hathaway. Because of imdb's incomplete information and the unavailability of additional episodes for viewing, it is unknown whether this cast appeared in the other five episodes that do not contain the five actors listed above.

Notable Guest Stars

Season 1, Episode 11, "The Lebanon Incident": Francis de Sales (Lt. Bill Weigand on Mr. & Mrs. North, Ralph Dobson on The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet, Sheriff Maddox on Two Faces West, and Rusty Lincoln on Days of Our Lives) plays an unnamed aircraft carrier captain. Nelson Leigh (Pastor Martin on This Is the Life and the judge 9 times on Perry Mason) plays an unnamed admiral. Karl Held (David Gideon on Perry Mason, Philip Mervish on The Lotus Eaters, Travis on The Aphrodite Inheritance, and Garth on Falcon Crest) plays the unnamed L.S.O. 

Season 1, Episode 14, "The Diamond Goes to War": Carleton Young (starred in Dick Tracy (1937), The Brigand, Thunderhead - Son of Flicka, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and played Harry Steeger on The Court of Last Resort) plays an unnamed aircraft carrier captain. Douglas Henderson (appeared in From Here to Eternity, Invasion of the Saucer Men, and The Manchurian Candidate and played Col. James Richmond on The Wild, Wild West) plays C.I.C. Commander Bill Stein. Richard Wessell (Carney Kohler on Riverboat) plays ground-based Chief Wessell.