Oh wow!! you really know how to make me smile!!
First the book about JC...(which I am still reading very slowly, because I don't want to rush it!) and now this!
I have all 27 episodes on vhs...but some of them are very poor quality. They were very difficult to find but I managed to get them all. But on some of them I can barely make out Johnny's face!! I would love to be able to tape the ones that Bravo airs.
Johnny Staccato was a fantastic show! It had great night time scenes of NYC and it was just so cool with all the beat generation stuff and all the jazz!! It was probably the coolest show that ever aired on tv...except for Columbo of course!
I would urge anyone to check this show out...it is from another era but it is sooooooooooooo cool.
Thanks Joe, once again for alerting me to my not-so-secret obsession. You are the bestest!

"Episodes of BrilliantButCancelled.com shows will also be available at Apple Computer's iTunes Music Store and on DVD collections released by Universal Studios Home Entertainment."

Hey Cassa! You're probably aware of this, but I'll post it anyway for others who might like to know.

"Johnny Staccato - Televisions Jazz Detective" is being released on DVD on October 12th, 2010. All 27 episodes on 3 DVDs.

Now THAT is Swingin' Cool, Cat!

you're such a hep cat, headache!

actually i hadn't heard about this, so thanks for the heads-up.

I just watched the first episode of Johnny Staccato which someone had posted on Youtube. I had never seen it before and I thought it was great. Makes me think of some early Danger Man eps in a way. Of course Patrick McGoohan and John Cassevetes are very different but both are great. I was then dissapointed to discover that only the first episode has been posted, and as far as I have been able to discover the whole series is about to be released, but only on region 1 DVDs which I can't watch here in Scotland! Oh well, maybe if it sells well they might release it over here on region 2. I'll cross my fingers and keep hoping.

yeah gregg, i think the only way to describe the show is that it was so COOL!
it showed new york city how it really was back then.
i believe the episode you saw was 'the naked truth' which featured michael landon and ruta lee.

the show had so many future columbo stars..the list is a long one.
and there was eduardo ciannelli who played waldo, the owner of the club which was often johnny's 'office'. i think peter falk paid a bit of a homage to ciannelli on purpose in 'forgotten lady'. it's when columbo is talking to ned diamond at grace's house, and columbo is rattling off a list of actors that he enjoyed back in the day. he actually mentions ciannelli's name twice.

Yeah, that's the episode I saw, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I like the music theme which runs through it too. Just occured to me John Cassavetes plays a musician (sort of!) in both Johnny Staccato and Columbo. Probably more coincidental than deliberate. A Short episode but I don't mind that; it keeps things moving along at a nice rate. Are all the episodes the same length, Cassa, or was that one a special pilot different from the others? Shame there was only 27, but, hey! At least thats 27 more than there could have been!

yes, the music throughout the whole series was so cool. (sorry to use the word 'cool' once again, but i really don't know how to describe it any other way...the whole thing was just cool.)
the jazz music was something i could understand without it going too far.

and all the episodes were only a half hour long. for some reason, i think that was probably a good thing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDUiws5Z95g

what i like about this clip is that at the end they show the beginning of the show where johnny smashes his hand in the window, and then the words 'john cassavetes' appear across his face in the same way it does in 'etude in black'...i just always found it eerily coincidental.

i've said this here before, but i guess i'll just repeat myself...it won't be the first time.
cassavetes wanted to end the series because he wanted to go on and make some movies of his own. he somehow found an 'out' by claiming that one of the sponsor's, a deodorant company, had used a greek bust sculpture in their commercials, and john being greek himself, said he was offended by it, and did not want to continue with the show with that sponsor...he found it an insult...or he claimed that it was.

he found a bizarre way out of his contract, and i guess that's one of the reasons i love him so.

Cool is the perfect word for it. John is so suave in the role, and I love the clip you posted of the opening. And I do agree aboout the half hour being a good length for them. Same as with the early 1959 Danger Man episodes I mentioned. They just get straight to the point. Just as cool I think, but in a different kind of way. What I didn't know about before was the fact you mention about John leaving by choice to pursue his own movies. I had assumed it had been cancelled by the network as many good shows have been over the years. And that is certainly an inovative way to get out of a contract! A unique man.

john was assuredly a unique man, just like patrick mcgoohan was also. i loved both of them for their talents, and especially for their personalities.
i don't think i've ever seen an episode of 'danger man', but i'll try and look for it on the interwebs. i have watched a number of episodes of 'the prisoner' and i really enjoyed them.

Patrick McGoohan is usually remembered first for The Prisoner partly because it was so unusual, and caused such an uproar at the time. It certainly makes viewers think more and is remembered far more than Danger Man, but I love Danger Man too. I think if you enjoy Johnny Staccato you would almost certainly enjoy Danger Man too, so give it a try if you can find it, Cassa.

well, gregg, i tried, but i couldn't find 'danger man' on imdb or hulu.
BUT i did find some stuff on youtube. i LOVE the theme music! it was just wonderful, just like the music from 'johnny staccato'. so jazzy!
there's a few more on youtube that i want to check out. they're not full episodes but they'll give me the flavor of the show, which i can already see is so much like the staccato series.
thanks for hooking me up with this.
and of course patrick mcgoohan was 'the bomb' once again!

Sorry you couldn't find any full episodes, Cassa. I'm sure you would love them. I'm glad you managed to see a few and bits and pieces of it at least. Both Johnny and Patrick have such a marvelous coolness (if that's a word !) about them which is very much of it's time, but is also, somehow, timeless. They just don't make shows like that anymore. Or actors for that matter. Both McGoohan and Cassavetes had such integrity. They both were more interested in making films/shows in their own unique way, rather than becoming superstars and simply gaining money or fame. And I love the theme music too.

gregg, i can't add to anything you said...you captured it all so wonderfully.

(and 'coolness' is indeed a word. )