''Peter Gunn'' is a 1989 American

made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

crime drama film In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...

directed by

Blake Edwards Blake Edwards (born William Blake Crump; July 26, 1922 – December 15, 2010) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Edwards began his career in the 1940s as an actor, but he soon began writing screenplays and radio s ...

. It was intended as a

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

to relaunch the ''

Peter Gunn ''Peter Gunn'' is an American private eye television series, starring Craig Stevens as Peter Gunn with Lola Albright as his girlfriend, Edie Hart. The series aired on NBC from September 22, 1958, to 1960 and on ABC in 1960–1961. The seri ...

'' franchise starring

Peter Strauss Peter Lawrence Strauss (born February 20, 1947) is an American television and film actor, known for his roles in several television miniseries in the 1970s and 1980s. He is five-time Golden Globe Awards nominee. Early life Strauss was born in C ...

in the role of private detective Peter Gunn. The pilot was aired on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

on April 23, 1989, but a TV series was not commissioned. The idea of a revival began in 1977 when

E. Jack Neuman Ernest Jack Neuman (February 27, 1921 – January 15, 1998) was an Edgar and Peabody award-winning American writer and producer. Early years Neuman was born in Toledo, Ohio. He moved to Denver, Colorado, as a child and graduated from Regis Je ...

was approached to write a made-for-TV movie to bring back the original Peter Gunn, Craig Stevens to the role. The project ended because of Blake Edwards' film shooting schedule. Edwards once again announced a TV movie version in 1984 which was intended to star

Robert Wagner Robert John Wagner Jr. (born February 10, 1930) is an American actor of stage, screen, and television. He is known for starring in the television shows '' It Takes a Thief'' (1968–1970), ''Switch'' (1975–1978), and ''Hart to Hart'' (1979– ...

as Gunn. This eventually became the 1989 TV movie starring Peter Strauss.

Plot

Detective Peter Gunn is asked by a mob boss to find the murderer of a friend's brother. Although he is working outside from the mob, Gunn is nonetheless pursued by mobsters, the cops and interested women. The story heats up when Gunn finds information that suggests the cops are being framed.

Cast

as Peter Gunn *

Peter Jurasik Peter Jurasik ( ; born April 25, 1950) is an American actor known for his television roles as Londo Mollari in the 1990s science fiction series ''Babylon 5'' and Sid the Snitch on the 1980s series ''Hill Street Blues'' and its short-lived spin ...

as Lt. Jacoby * Barbara Williams as Edie Hart * Jennifer Edwards as Maggie *

Pearl Bailey Pearl Mae Bailey (March 29, 1918 – August 17, 1990) was an American actress, singer and author. After appearing in vaudeville, she made her Broadway debut in '' St. Louis Woman'' in 1946. She received a Special Tony Award for the title role i ...

as Mother *

David Rappaport David Stephen Rappaport (23 November 1951 – 2 May 1990) was an English actor with achondroplasia. He appeared in the films ''Time Bandits'' and '' The Bride'', and television series ''L.A. Law'', ''The Wizard'' and ''Captain Planet and the Pl ...

as Speck *

Charles Cioffi Charles M. Cioffi (born October 31, 1935) is an American film and television actor best known as Lt. Matt Reardon in ''Get Christie Love!'' opposite co-star Teresa Graves. Born in New York City, he attended Michigan State University, where he ...

as Tony Amatti *

Richard Portnow Richard Portnow (born January 26, 1947) is an American actor known for such films and television series as ''Good Morning, Vietnam'', ''Barton Fink'', ''Kindergarten Cop'', ''Seven'', '' Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai'', ''The Spirit'', ''Law ...

as Spiros *

Debra Sandlund Debra Sandlund (Debra Stipe) (born May 29, 1962, in Geneseo, Illinois) is an American television and film actress. She's a graduate of Northwestern University where she studied both Opera & Theatre. She won the Miss Dream Girl USA 1987 Pageant a ...

as Sheila *

Leo Rossi Leo Rossi (born June 26, 1946) is an American actor, writer and producer. A character actor with over 100 credits to his name, he is known for his role as foul-mouthed EMT Vincent "Budd" Scarlotti in the 1981 horror film '' Halloween II'', a ...

as Det. Russo *

Tony Longo Tony Longo (August 19, 1961 – June 21, 2015) was an American actor. Longo appeared in numerous television series, including ''Family Matters'', '' The Facts of Life'', '' Laverne & Shirley'', ''Simon & Simon'', '' Alice'', '' Perfect Strang ...

as Sergeant Holstead *

Chazz Palminteri Calogero Lorenzo "Chazz" Palminteri (born May 15, 1952)
Chazzpalminteri.net. Retrieved on November 19, 2013. is an American ...

as Soldier

External links

* * 1989 television films 1989 films 1989 crime drama films American crime drama films Television films as pilots Television pilots not picked up as a series Films based on television series Films directed by Blake Edwards Films scored by Henry Mancini Television films based on television series Films with screenplays by Blake Edwards 1980s English-language films American drama television films 1980s American films {{US-tv-drama-film-stub