Barbary Coast (TV series)

in Barbary Coast With an 1870s setting, Barbary Coast features the adventures of government agent Jeff Cable (played by William Shatner), and his pal, conman and gambler Cash ("Cash makes no enemies") Conover (Doug McClure; played by Dennis Cole in the pilot) who is the owner of the Golden Gate Casino. The title was taken from the setting, "a square-mile section of San Francisco called the Barbary Coast, a wide-open, rip-roaring district whose inhabitants ranged from flashy ladies to sourdoughs." This was Shatner's first live-action series since Star Trek (also produced by Paramount Television). Cable and Conover battled against various criminals, and Cable frequently donned disguises in the course of his investigations. == Cast ==

In addition to Shatner and McClure, regulars on the series included: • Richard Kiel - Moose Moran, the bouncer • Dave Turner - Thumbs, the piano player • Bobbi Jordan - Flame, the croupier • Francine York - Brandy, a dance-hall girl • Brooke Mills - Rusty, a dance-hall girl == Schedule and production ==

Barbary Coast was broadcast initially on Mondays from 8 to 9 p.m. Eastern Time. Beginning October 31, 1975, it moved to Fridays from 8 to 9 p.m. ET and stayed there for the rest of its run. Its competition included Rhoda, Phyllis, Big Eddie, M*A*S*H, and films on CBS. Competing shows on NBC were The Invisible Man, Sanford and Son and Chico and the Man. Because the show was broadcast during the Family Viewing Hour, on-screen violence was kept to a minimum. Reduction of shootings and visible deaths required revisions in scripts. At one point before it went on the air, ABC changed the title to Cash and Cable because "ABC decided the name conjured up a violent image," Shatner said. After some testing, however, executives determined that people preferred Barbary Coast. Douglas Heyes was the series's creator. Cy Chermak was the executive producer. ==Critical response==

Alex McNeil, in the book Total Television, described the program as a "limpid" Western. ==Episodes==

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The pilot episode, an ABC Sunday Night Movie, was nominated for an Emmy Award for Art Direction for Jack De Shields and set decorator Reg Allen. ==References==