Hong Kong (TV series)

Did You Know?

• Rod Taylor was rumored to be the highest-paid actor on television that season.
• Evans' regular drive was a white Series 1 Sunbeam Alpine.

Inception

Buckner had pitched the concept to Fox executive Peter Levathes. Levathes then convinced Henry J. Kaiser to have his Kaiser Industries sponsor the show. Key figures—including Edgar F. Kaiser, ABC president Oliver Treyz, Levathes, and ad executive Mort Werner—met in Honolulu to finalize the deal.

Production

Most of the series was shot on the 20th Century Fox lot, where Tully’s Bar stood on Midwestern Street and the Hong Kong slums were built on Algeria Street. Jack Kruschen left after the twelfth episode, “The Dragon Cup,” unhappy with his character Tully’s arc. Roy Huggins then took over as overall producer, and the Golden Dragon Supper Club replaced Tully’s Bar, with Mai Tai Sing cast as owner-performer Ching Mei.

Reception

The premiere episode faced counterprogramming from NBC, which aired an hourlong Fred Astaire special instead of the Wagon Train season opener, drawing critical attention away from Hong Kong. General critical consensus praised the production values and acting, while finding the stories adequate for an adventure series. John P. Shanley in The New York Times wrote that although it sometimes trifled with credibility, it looked like another audience winner and had the virtue of not taking itself too seriously. Dwight Newton noted that the cast were skilled artisans who might make the series popular if they received scripts to match their talents.

Broadcast History

Henry J. Kaiser dropped Hong Kong in favor of Follow the Sun, another 20th Century Fox Television series. The cancellation provoked protest letters from fans.