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Peter Gunn was an American private eye television series which aired on the NBC and later ABC television networks from 1958 to 1961. The show's creator (and also writer and director on occasion) was Blake Edwards.

Contents 1 Peter Gunn 2 Music 3 Adaptations 4 Selected songs from the series 5 External links

The title character (played by Craig Stevens) is a private investigator in the classic film noir tradition, which was a popular genre on American TV in the late 1950s. However, a few traits differentiate him from the standard hard-boiled detectives, such as Sam Spade or Philip Marlowe. Gunn was a sophisticated "hipster", a dapper dresser who loved cool jazz; where other gumshoes were often coarse, Peter Gunn was portrayed as the epitome of "cool". He operated in a nameless waterfront city, and was a regular patron of Mother's, a wharfside club; his girlfriend, Edie Hart (Lola Albright), was a sultry singer employed there. Herschel Bernardi played Lieutenant Jacoby, a police detective.

The show's use of modern jazz music, at a time when most television shows used a generic, uninspired orchestra for the background, was another distinctive touch that set the standard for many years to come. Innovative jazz themes seemed to accompany every move Gunn made, ably rendered by Henry Mancini and his orchestra (which at that time included John Williams), lending the character even more of an air of suave sophistication. Most memorable of all was the show's opening (and closing) theme, composed and performed by Mancini. A hip, bluesy, brassy number with an insistent piano-and-bass line, the song became an instant hit for Mancini, earning him an Emmy Award and two Grammys, and became as associated with crime fiction as Monty Norman's theme to the James Bond films is associated with espionage. The harmonies fit the mood of the show, which was a key to success. The Peter Gunn Theme has been covered by numerous jazz, blues, and rock artists since, including Ray Anthony, the Blues Brothers, Brian Setzer, The Cramps, Jimi Hendrix, Aerosmith, ELP, Pulp and many, many others. A version by Art of Noise, with guest artist Duane Eddy on twang guitar (taking the piano riff) earned a Grammy Award in 1987. Furthermore, the riff has been incorporated into many blues and jazz songs. The theme is also used as the background music for the 1983 arcade game Spy Hunter. Today, many people with no knowledge of the original show still can identify the theme.

After the two-season run on NBC and the single season on ABC, Edwards made numerous attempts to revive the character in other media. A novel and a comic book were released in 1960. A feature film, Gunn, was made in 1967, and ABC carried a pilot in 1989 with Peter Strauss in the lead role, but they failed to catch on. In 2004 the "Peter Gunn Theme" was used in The Lion King 1½ when Timon and Pumbaa try to break up Simba and Nala.

In 2002, A&E Home Video released the first two seasons of Peter Gunn on DVD.

• "Peter Gunn Theme"
• "The Brothers Go to Mother's"
• "Dreamsville"
• "Blues for Mother's"
• "Sorta Blue"
• "Slow and Easy"

• Peter Gunn at the Internet Movie Database

Blake Edwards
The Pink Panther	The Pink Panther (1963) | A Shot in the Dark (1964) | The Return of the Pink Panther (1975) | The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976) | Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978) | Trail of the Pink Panther (1982) | Curse of the Pink Panther (1983) | Son of the Pink Panther (1993) | The Pink Panther Show (1964)
1950s	Bring Your Smile Along | He Laughed Last | Mister Cory | This Happy Feeling | The Perfect Furlough | Operation Petticoat
1960s	High Time | Breakfast at Tiffany's | Experiment in Terror | Days of Wine and Roses | The Great Race | What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? | Gunn | The Party
1970s	Darling Lili | Wild Rovers | The Carey Treatment | The Tamarind Seed | 10
1980s	S.O.B. | Victor/Victoria | The Man Who Loved Women | Micki + Maude | A Fine Mess | That's Life! | Blind Date | Sunset | Skin Deep
1990s	Switch
Productions	Panhandle (1948) | Soldier in the Rain (1963)
Television	Four Star Playhouse (1952–1956) | Peter Gunn (1958–1961) | Mr. Lucky (1959–1960) | The Dick Powell Show (1961–1963) | Justin Case (1988) | Peter Gunn (1989) | Julie (1992) | Victor/Victoria (1995)