Dan Adams (COronado 9)

Created by Lawrence Kimble

Rugged and still studly Rod Cameron played DAN ADAMS, a retired naval intelligence officer turned soft spoken San Diego private eye in COronado 9, a short-lived syndicated show from 1960.

The title of the show came from Dan Adams’ street address on Coronado Island, the affluent San Diego suburb that was Dan’s stomping grounds, and the home of many of the rich and powerful who made up his client base, with the opening credits zooming past a few panning shots of the Island before zooming in on a rock on the ground with the numeral 9 superimposed on it, serving as a marker for Adams’ home (if he had an actual office, we never saw it). It was no doubt chosen as the title of the show in hopes of latching on to the popularity of, oh, say, 77 Sunset Strip?

But by all accounts, it was a far grittier show than what Warner Bros. was pumping out. Cameron was no pretty boy, for one thing — he was a big, beefy guy who looked like he’d taken more than a few punches in his life, but could definitely hit back — and he worked alone. Meanwhile, the cases themselves were tougher and harder (and more action-packed) than anything Stu, Jeff and Kookie were dealing with. The episode titles sounded like stories pulled from the old pulps: “I Came for the Funeral,” “Three’s a Shroud” and “The Groom Came D.O.A.”  could have lifted from Dime Detective, Black Mask or new kid on the block Manhunt. Another plus was that Adams got around, venturing not just to New Orleans, San Francisco and Hawaii but also to Mexico, Algiers and even Communist Cuba.

We’re not talking a long lost classic or anything here, but the show was good enough to warrant another look.

COronado 9 was the third syndicated show the 6’4″ ruggedly handsome Cameron starred in, following City Detective and State Trooper, although his chief claim to fame was the long list of westerns he played in during the forties and fifties. Born and raised in Alberta, Canada, he decided to pursue acting when his dreams of becoming a Mountie were dashed.

TELEVISION

• CORONADO 9 | Buy the complete series on DVD
  (1960, Revue Studios [syndicated])
  39 30-minute episodes
  Black & white
  Writers: Lawrence Kimble, Steven Thornley, David Herman, Emile Schurmacher
  Director: William Witney, Richard Irving, Frank Arrigo
  Producer: Richard Irving
  A Revue Production with Universal Television
  Starring Rod Cameron as DAN ADAMS
  Guest stars: Beverly Garland, Anthony Caruso, DeForest Kelley, Doug McClure,
  • Season One
  • “Widow of Kill Cove” (September 6, 1960)
  • “Stroll in the Park” (September 13, 1960)
  • “Doomtown” (September 20, 1960)
  • “Spinster of Nob Hill” (September 27, 1960)
  • “The Groom Came D.O.A.” (October 4, 1960)
  • “Day Chivalry Died” (October 11, 1960)
  • “I Came for the Funeral” (October 18, 1960)
  • “I Want to be Hated” (October 25, 1960)
  • “4 and 20 Buddhas” (November 1, 1960)
  • “Run Scared” (November 8, 1960)
  • “Alibi Bye” (November 15, 1960)
  • “A Bookie is Not a Bibliophile” (November 22, 1960)
  • “Careless Joe” (November 29, 1960)
  • “Remember the Alamo” (December 6, 1960)
  • “Blow Gabriella” (December 13, 1960)
  • “Loser’s Circle” (December 20, 1960)
  • “Obituary of a Small Ape” (December 27, 1960)
  • “Film Flam” (January 3, 1961)
  • “Londonderry Heiress” (January 10, 1961)
  • “Run Shep Run” (January 17, 1961)
  • “Wrong Odds” (January 24, 1961)
  • “Sincerely Yours Napoleon” (January 31, 1961)
  • “Man From Way Down Yonder” (February 7, 1961)
  • “Caribbean Chase” (February 14, 1961)
  • “Hunt Breakfast” (February 21, 1961)
  • “Excursion to Algiers” (February 28, 1961)
  • “Flight to La Paz” (March 7, 1961)
  • “Three’s A Shroud” (March 14, 1961)
  • “Come with Thy Loot” (March 21, 1961)
  • “The Day Ramon Fell” (March 28, 1961)
  • “Long Way to Detroit” (April 4, 1961)
  • “But the Patient Died” (April 11, 1961)
  • “Gone Goose” (April 18, 1961)
  • “The Anxious Murder” (April 25, 1961)
  • “Flee Now, Pay Later” (May 2, 1961)
  • “Daley Double” (May 9, 1961)
  • “Singapore Girl” (May 16, 1961)
  • “Blonde Herring” (May 23, 1961)
  • “They Met in Honolulu” (May 30, 1961)

FURTHER INVESTIGATION

• San Diego Eyes
  America’s Finest City’s Finest Eyes

Respectfully submitted by Kevin Burton Smith.