Mickey (TV series)
Encyclopedia
Mickey is an American situation comedy
that aired on ABC
from September 1964 to January 1965. Created and produced by Bob Fisher and Arthur Marx, the series stars Mickey Rooney
.
. The program costarred Emmaline Henry
as Mickey's wife, Nora, and Rooney's second son, Tim
, as 17-year-old Timmy Grady. Brian Nash played the younger son, Buddy Grady. Sammee Tong
played Sammy Ling. Alan Reed
was cast as Mr. Swidler.
Rooney won a Golden Globe Award
for "Best Actor in a Television Series" at the 21st Annual Golden Globe Awards ceremonies in 1964.
on CBS. NBC
ran television movies at the time. Another reason, according to Arthur Marx, was that the network was willing to renew the series for a full season because they liked Sammee Tong
. But Tong found out that Mickey was in danger of being cancelled, and was depending on his salary to pay off heavy gambling debts. Distraught, Tong committed suicide on October 27, 1964, effectively ending any further discussion of the show's future.
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
that aired on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
from September 1964 to January 1965. Created and produced by Bob Fisher and Arthur Marx, the series stars Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney is an American film actor and entertainer whose film, television, and stage appearances span nearly his entire lifetime. He has won multiple awards, including an Honorary Academy Award, a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award...
.
Synopsis
Rooney stars as Mickey Grady, the owner of the luxury Newport Arms Hotel in Newport Beach, CaliforniaNewport Beach, California
Newport Beach, incorporated in 1906, is a city in Orange County, California, south of downtown Santa Ana. The population was 85,186 at the 2010 census.The city's median family income and property values consistently place high in national rankings...
. The program costarred Emmaline Henry
Emmaline Henry
Emmaline Henry was an American actress perhaps best known for playing Amanda Bellows, wife of Dr. Bellows, on the hit 1960s situation comedy I Dream of Jeannie....
as Mickey's wife, Nora, and Rooney's second son, Tim
Tim Rooney
Timothy Hayes Yule was an American actor and voice actor. He was the second son of actor Mickey Rooney and suffered from a muscle disease known as dermatomyositis....
, as 17-year-old Timmy Grady. Brian Nash played the younger son, Buddy Grady. Sammee Tong
Sammee Tong
Sammee Tong was an American film and television character actor.He appeared in more than thirty films and some forty television programs between 1935 and 1965. He first appeared in an uncredited role as a waiter in Charlie Chan in Shanghai , and later as Cheela, the houseboy, in Think Fast, Mr....
played Sammy Ling. Alan Reed
Alan Reed
Alan Reed was an American actor and voice actor, best known as the original voice of Fred Flintstone on The Flintstones and various spinoff series...
was cast as Mr. Swidler.
Rooney won a Golden Globe Award
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
for "Best Actor in a Television Series" at the 21st Annual Golden Globe Awards ceremonies in 1964.
Notable guest stars
- Dina MerrillDina Merrill-Early life:Merrill was born Nedenia Marjorie Hutton in New York City, New York, the only child of Post Cereals heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post and her second husband, Wall Street stockbroker Edward Francis Hutton...
- Frank De VolFrank De VolFrank Denny De Vol, also known simply as De Vol was an American arranger, composer and actor.-Early life and career:...
- Keith AndesKeith AndesKeith Andes was an American film, radio, musical theatre, stage and television actor.-Early life:John Charles Andes was born in Ocean City, New Jersey on July 12, 1920. By the age of 12, he was featured on the radio....
- Walter BurkeWalter BurkeWalter Burke was a prolific Irish-American character actor, of stage, film, and television. His small stature, and distinctive voice and face, made him easily recognizable in even the most minor of roles.- Early life :...
- Peter Deuel
- Parley BaerParley BaerParley Edward Baer was an American actor in film, television, and radio.-Radio:Born in Salt Lake City, Utah, Baer had a circus background, but began his radio career at Utah station KSL...
- Jesse WhiteJesse White (actor)Jesse White was an American television, film, and stage character actor. He is best remembered for portraying the Maytag repairman in television commercials, a role he played from 1967 to 1988.-Life and career:...
- Burt MustinBurt MustinBurton Hill "Burt" Mustin was an American character actor.-Early life:Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to W. I. and Sadie Mustin, Mustin was a 1903 graduate of the Pennsylvania Military College , earning his degree in civil engineering...
- Donald Barry
Reception and cancellation
The series failed to sustain ratings to survive the full season in its 9 p.m. Eastern time slot on Wednesdays. Its principal competition was another sitcom, The Dick Van Dyke ShowThe Dick Van Dyke Show
The Dick Van Dyke Show is an American television sitcom that initially aired on the Columbia Broadcasting System from October 3, 1961, until June 1, 1966. The show was created by Carl Reiner and starred Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore. It was produced by Reiner with Bill Persky and Sam Denoff....
on CBS. NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
ran television movies at the time. Another reason, according to Arthur Marx, was that the network was willing to renew the series for a full season because they liked Sammee Tong
Sammee Tong
Sammee Tong was an American film and television character actor.He appeared in more than thirty films and some forty television programs between 1935 and 1965. He first appeared in an uncredited role as a waiter in Charlie Chan in Shanghai , and later as Cheela, the houseboy, in Think Fast, Mr....
. But Tong found out that Mickey was in danger of being cancelled, and was depending on his salary to pay off heavy gambling debts. Distraught, Tong committed suicide on October 27, 1964, effectively ending any further discussion of the show's future.