The Green Hornet (1966–1967)

A newspaper publisher and his Asian valet/martial arts expert battle crime as the feared Green Hornet and Kato.

Creator:

George W. Trendle

Stars:

Van Williams, Bruce Lee, Wende Wagner

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Van Williams	...	Britt Reid (26 episodes, 1966-1967)
Bruce Lee	...	Kato (26 episodes, 1966-1967)
Wende Wagner	...	Lenore 'Casey' Case (26 episodes, 1966-1967)
Lloyd Gough	...	Mike Axford (26 episodes, 1966-1967)
Walter Brooke	...	D.A. Frank Scanlon (26 episodes, 1966-1967)

Storyline

Britt Reid, daring young owner/publisher of "The Daily Sentinel," dons a mask and fights crime as The Green Hornet. While the police and public believe the Hornet to be a ruthless criminal, the District Attorney knows Reid's secret identity, and welcomes his assistance in fighting racketeers and criminals. Also assisting Reid in his crusade are his secretary, Lenore Case, and his faithful valet, Kato, who is a kung fu expert and who drives the sleek "Black Beauty," the Hornet's well armed car.

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Plot Keywords:

kato | fighting | kung fu | secret identity | mask | 

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 September 1966 (USA)

Also Known As:

El avispón verde

Filming Locations:

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

Company Credits

Production Co:

20th Century Fox Television, Greenway Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min 30 min (26 episodes) 99 min (movie)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Three Black Beauty cars were built from 440-CID 1966 Chrysler Imperials. After restyling with steel panels and a custom grille, each was painted with black lacquer and fitted with custom wheels. When the series ended, both were sent on tour. After that one was sold to a studio employee and the other was sold to a private collector. There were only two cars built for the series and both are around today. One in the Petersen Museum in LA and the other is in a private collection in South Carolina.

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Quotes

The Green Hornet: [taking routine inventory on his gadgetry before cruising into action] Hornet gun... check. Hornet sting... check. Let's roll, Kato!

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Connections

Referenced in Revealed: Dolph Lundgren (2013)

User Reviews

Surprisingly high production value

Just because the main characters (Notice the plural) are wearing masks doesn't mean that the program is camp. This is the show that introduced the martial arts legend Bruce Lee to the world, and he probably was the first actor that made people think "Gee I didn't know human beings can move like that". I mean seeing Lee for the first time had that much shock value to the audience, and the attraction of the show had much to do with what's Lee going to do this week ? But I'd like to point out the superb acting that was done by Van Williams too. He looked so good as the main character, and he had a chameleon like method acting capability that made his acting fit the scene's mood perfectly every time. If he was British, I wouldn't be surprised if he was recruited to play James Bond after Sean Connery. Keeping in mind that this was a 30 minute show made in the '60s, this series still scores high in its production value. I would say that it's right up there with other '60s popular action show such as Mission Impossible. The only regret is that this show didn't last longer than a season. Audiences wanted more but for some odd reason, it was canned. They should have made at least two more seasons followed by a movie. I would say that it was a monumental blunder on the network's part to not see what a dynamite show they had in hand. Bruce Lee and Van Williams' talent should have been exploited to its max with this show and who knows what other shows they might have stared in.