"Follow the Sun" (1961) TV series 1961-1962

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

17 September 1961 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure

Plot:

The show follows the adventures of two free-lance magazine writers based in Hawaii.

Plot Keywords:

Hawaii | Magazine Writer | Secretary | Honolulu Hawaii | Investigative Reporter

Cast

Gary Lockwood	...	Eric Jason (16 episodes, 1961-1962)
Barry Coe	...	Ben Gregory (15 episodes, 1961-1962)
Brett Halsey	...	Paul Templin (12 episodes, 1961-1962)
Jay Lanin	...	Lt. Frank Roper (8 episodes, 1961-1962)

Runtime:

60 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

20th Century Fox Television

Two dashing young journalists in Hawaii during the Kennedy years

Brett Halsey ("Paul Templin") and Barry Coe ("Ben Gregory") were free-lance magazine writers who worked out of a beautiful office in Honolulu. Gigi Perreau ("Kathy Richards") was their pretty secretary. Gary Lockwood ("Eric Jason") was their 20-year old legman (or researcher), who was born on December 7, 1941. Jay Lanin ("Lt. Roper") was their handsome friend on the force.

This show had an unending supply of attractive, shapely, talented female guest stars: Rhonda Fleming, Julie London, Joanna Moore, Tuesday Weld, Joanna Barnes, Stella Stevens, Yvonne DeCarlo, Anne Helm, Yvonne Craig, Dyan Cannon, Pippa Scott and Diane Baker.

Male guest stars included Keith Andes, Dennis O'Keefe, Keenan Wynn, Robert Vaughn, William Bendix, Skip Homeier and Jack Klugman.

This series from 20th Century Fox was somewhat a reworking of "Hong Kong", which they did the previous season, with a lot of "Hawaiian Eye" thrown in for good measure. Rod Taylor could have easily brought his foreign correspondent character from "Hong Kong" and put him to work on this show as a magazine writer. Glenn Evans would have fit right in.

Roy Huggins ("Maverick", "77 Sunset Strip", "The Rockford Files") was the head of TV production at 20th Century Fox at the time, and "Follow the Sun" probably bears his stamp. For the great Huggins, foreign correspondents and magazine journalists were basically just high class private eyes. We didn't spend much time watching the guys write.

Anthony Wilson was the producer. The previous season he had produced "Dan Raven" with Skip Homeier. He would go to be executive producer of "The Immortal" with Christopher George and "Paper Moon" with Christopher Connelly and Jodie Foster. Wilson was also the creator of "Banacek" with George Peppard.

Gary Lockwood's episodes of "Follow the Sun" tended to get better ratings, so he became as prominent as his two bosses.

One episode had David Janssen as a retired 30-something prize fighter who enters the Universiy of Hawaii as a freshman. Another episode had Bethel Leslie as a beautiful, devious woman who gets Brett Halsey convicted of murdering her, even though she is still alive. Inger Stevens was impressive as a refugee from East Germany in "The Girl from the Brandenberg Gate." Brian Keith and Jayne Mansfied were in an episode that reworked the "Born Yesterday" plot, with Barry Coe as a stand-in for the William Holden character.

Heros Brett, Barry and Gary proved that if you were young, attractive, athletic and intelligent, had glamorous jobs, and if you lived in Hawaii, life could be exhilarating. Brett and Barry never got another show even though they were attractive, appealing actors who made convincing heroes. Gary Lockwood returned in a year as "The Lieutenant", an excellent Gene Roddenberry series about the peace time Marine Corps.