There had never been a show quite like "Coronet Blue"; the 'hero' (Frank Converse) emerges, half-dead, from a watery 'grave', with no recollection of his past, and only the phrase 'Coronet Blue' to guide him. Soon it becomes obvious that some very mysterious and powerful people would prefer him dead, and his life, much as Jason Bourne, in THE BOURNE IDENTITY, becomes a race to pick up clues about himself, while trying to stay alive. Each week would introduce a new piece to the jigsaw puzzle, offering a glimpse of a possible past, while asking even more questions...Who does "Michael Alden" (a name created when he could not remember his own) work for? Is he a hero or a criminal? And why is it so important to silence him?
CBS thought the premise was worth taking a chance on, and had green-lighted 13 episodes, but then decided it was too 'intellectual' (this WAS the network of "The Beverly Hillbillies" and "Gilligan's Island"), and condemned the series to a summer run, when TV viewing plummeted, and the regular series were 'between seasons'. Many 'failed' programs debuted during the summer, giving the networks a chance to recoup production costs by advertising revenue, and to brag that they were offering more than just endless reruns to TV viewers.
Then something remarkable happened; TV critics, previewing the first episode, were universally in praise of the quirky drama, making the show's debut an 'event'. And viewers, tuning in, were introduced to the Robert Redford-like charisma of blond, 29-year old Converse, making him an instant sex symbol. CBS was astonished and pleased by the response, but unprepared for the word-of-mouth that soon made the series a 'Must See' for fans. Hastily, the network attempted to revive the program for the fall season, but Plautus Productions, who created the series, had folded after CBS axed the show, and Converse had signed as a regular on "N.Y.P.D." (the ground-breaking cop show that would pave the way for "N.Y.P.D. Blue", and "Law and Order"). The 13 episodes would become the legacy of a show that would have been a long-running hit, had CBS been willing to gamble on viewers' intelligence!
