Peter Gunn

Peter Gunn is an American private eye television series, starring Craig Stevens as Peter Gunn with Lola Albright as his girlfriend, Edie Hart. The series was broadcast by NBC from September 22, 1958, to 1960 and by ABC in 1960–1961. The series was created by Blake Edwards, who, on occasion, was also writer (for 39 episodes) and director (for 9 episodes). Peter Gunn is notable for being the first detective series whose character was created especially for television, instead of adapted from other media. The series is probably best remembered today for its music, including the iconic "Peter Gunn Theme", which was nominated for an Emmy Award and two Grammys for Henry Mancini. Subsequently it has been performed and recorded by many jazz, rock and blues musicians. The progressive rock band Emerson, Lake & Palmer recorded the song adding synthesizers. The series was number 17 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1958–1959 TV season and number 29 for the 1960-61 TV season. Plot Peter Gunn is a suave, well-dressed private investigator whose hair is always in place and who loves cool jazz. Whereas other gumshoes are often coarse and vulgar, Gunn is a sophisticate with expensive tastes. A contemporary article in Life noted that Edwards "deliberately tailored the part after the famous movie smoothie Cary Grant".