Mickey (TV series)

Mickey is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from September 1964 to January 1965. Created and produced by Bob Fisher and Arthur Marx, the series stars Mickey Rooney, and was filmed at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios.

Mickey
GenreSitcom
Created byBob Fisher
Arthur Marx
Directed byRichard Whorf
StarringMickey Rooney
Emmaline Henry
Tim Rooney
Bobby Van
ComposerRobert Hammack
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes17 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producerSelig J. Seligman
ProducersBob Fisher
Arthur Marx
CinematographyFleet Southcott
EditorFloyd Knudtson
Camera setupMulti-camera
Running time30 minutes
Production companiesSelmur Productions
Four K's, Inc.
ABC Television Network
DistributorMGM Television
Release
Original networkABC
Picture formatBlack-and-white
Audio formatMonaural
Original releaseSeptember 16, 1964 (1964-09-16) –
January 13, 1965 (1965-01-13)
Chronology
Preceded byThe Mickey Rooney Show
Followed byOne of the Boys

Synopsis

Mickey Grady (Mickey Rooney), a retired businessman from Omaha, Nebraska, inherits the luxury Newport Arms Hotel in Newport Beach, California, and decides to run it.

Cast

Recurring

Awards

Rooney won a Golden Globe Award for "Best Actor in a Television Series" at the 21st Annual Golden Globe Awards ceremonies in 1964.[1]

Notable guest stars

Rooney said he would have liked Judy Garland to guest star.

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 Show on CBS. NBC ran television movies at the time.[2]

Due to low ratings, ABC was considering canceling Mickey. The network was hesitant to cancel the series due to the popularity of Sammee Tong's character who had a solid fanbase thanks to his role in Bachelor Father. In his 1991 autobiography, Life Is Too Short, Mickey Rooney wrote that Tong was upset by the news that the series faced cancellation. Tong, who was a heavy gambler and owed money to the mafia, needed the money from the series to pay off his debts. On October 27, 1964, Tong took an overdose of barbiturates and died at his home. Tong's death effectively ended any chance for the series' survival, and ABC canceled Mickey.[3] The series' last episode aired on January 13, 1965.

Episode list
No. Title Directed by Written by Original air date
1"Seaside, Westside"TBATBASeptember 16, 1964 (1964-09-16)
2"The Big Jump"TBATBASeptember 23, 1964 (1964-09-23)
3"The Case of the Slippery Slipsy"TBATBASeptember 30, 1964 (1964-09-30)
4"How to Raise Children Without Really Trying"TBATBAOctober 7, 1964 (1964-10-07)
5"Mickey Crashes the Movies"TBATBAOctober 14, 1964 (1964-10-14)
6"The Way the Fortune Cookie Crumbles"TBATBAOctober 21, 1964 (1964-10-21)
7"Goodnight, Whoever You Are"TBATBAOctober 28, 1964 (1964-10-28)
Note: Sammee Tong died of a drug overdose the day before this episode aired.
8"Nobody Buys Retail"TBATBANovember 4, 1964 (1964-11-04)
9"Hard Work Never Hurt Anyone"TBATBANovember 11, 1964 (1964-11-11)
10"Honest Injun"TBATBANovember 25, 1964 (1964-11-25)
11"Somebody's Been Sleeping in My Bed"Richard WhorfJohn Fenton MurrayDecember 2, 1964 (1964-12-02)
12"For the Love of Grandpa Toddie"Richard WhorfJohn Fenton MurrayDecember 9, 1964 (1964-12-09)
13"One More Kiss"TBATBADecember 16, 1964 (1964-12-16)
14"Luck O'the Irish"TBATBADecember 23, 1964 (1964-12-23)
15"The Elephant Mickey Won't Forget"Richard WhorfBob Fisher & Arthur MarxDecember 30, 1964 (1964-12-30)
16"Be My Guest"TBATBAJanuary 6, 1965 (1965-01-06)
17"Mickey Takes Over"TBATBAJanuary 13, 1965 (1965-01-13)

References
  1. The 21st Annual Golden Globe Awards (1964) Archived 2010-11-24 at the Wayback Machine, Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Accessed October 25, 2008.
  2. 1964-1965 American network television schedule
  3. Rooney, Mickey (1991). Life Is Too Short. Villard Books. p. 266.
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