Peter Gunn The Blind Pianist (1958–1961) Online

PETER GUNN – "The Blind Pianist" – 1958 It is closing time at the, "Blue Funnel" jazz club. The only people left are club bartender, Ned Glass, the blind piano player, Barney Phillips and a drunken blonde socialite, Elisabeth Talbot-Martin.

Glass step out to grab a sandwich down the street. A man, Richard Ney, steps out of the shadows and enters the club. He walks up behind Talbot- Martin, takes a scarf and strangles the woman. He leaves her face down on the table. Ivory pounder, Phillips, has been playing a slow tune as all this is happening. Ney looks at Phillips and laughs to himself. No witnesses here, he quickly exits the scene.

When Glass returns with his food, he discovers the dead woman and calls the boys in blue. He also calls in his buddy, P.I. Peter Gunn. Gunn is played by Cary Grant look a like, Craig Stevens. After the Police have left, Stevens has a word with Phillips about the murder. Did he hear anything at least? When the two are alone, Phillips removes his dark glasses and smiles. He is not blind. He had been to Europe for a cornea transplant. He just never told anyone about it when he returned to the States. He figured the blind piano player angle got him work.

He had played it cool during the murder and the killer had ignored him. He gives Stevens a full description of Ney. He also asks Stevens not to reveal to the Police or anyone that he can see. Stevens is not happy with withholding vital info from the Police. Phillips then tells Stevens that if he has not caught the man inside 24 hours, he will come clean to the Police. Stevens agrees and heads off to see what he can do.

First Stevens digs into the dead woman's background etc. He finds that she is a regular on the jazz club scene. He checks out several clubs and beatnik coffee house spots. At one of the Beat places, he finds that she was a regular with a man who fits the murderer's description. Steven is told that he hangs with a stripper, Barbara Stuart, who sometimes works the club.

Stevens pays a visit to Stuart's apartment for a spot of face to face. Stevens tells Stuart that he knows it was her squeeze, Ney who killed Talbot-Martin. There had been a witness to the killing Stevens tells Stuart. Stevens now exits and heads back to his apartment. He expects Stuart to contact Ney who most likely will come a calling.

Stevens finds his girl, Lola Albright, waiting at his apartment. He tells her she needs to leave and shuffles her to the door. Unfortunately, when he opens the door, Ney is standing on the other side with a drawn pistol. "A word or two Mr. Gunn." Says Ney as he backs them into the apartment.

Ney asks Stevens how much cash does he want? It seems that Ney had "borrowed" 100 grand from the wealthy Talbot- Martin. Not wanting to pay the cash back, he had disposed of the woman. Ney figures Stevens must know about the cash. "Were you hiding in the back at the Blue Funnel Club? Now you want a piece of the action?" Ney now points to the door and nods, "time for a little ride to the country." As they all exit the apartment, a cab pulls up and out climbs Barney Phillips. He sees what is happening and lets out a shout, which distracts Ney. Stevens makes a play for Ney's pistol and the two wrestle over it. A shot rings out and Ney drops dead.

Phillips joins Albright and Stevens as they stand over Ney. He says to Stevens. "I was coming over to tell you I had decided to go to the Police."

Another cracker-jack episode of the top-flight series, PETER GUNN!

Series creator and producer, Blake Edwards also directed the episode. The writer was George W. George. His film work included the noir, THE BODYGUARD, THE WOMAN ON PIER 13 and BIGHOUSE USA. He also had a hand in the westerns, SMOKE SIGNAL, APACHE TERRITORY, CITY OF BAD MEN, THE NEVADAN and THE HALLIDAY BRAND. (B/W)

Here's another memorable beginning, with some nice film-noir camera angles as we see a blind piano player sitting at the keys while a well-dressed man sneaks up on a woman at the bar a few feet away and strangles here with his scarf.

We soon find out - this is not one of those shows with a twist at the end - that the pianist can see. He had been to Antwerp recently for a special operation and had gotten his eyesight back. Being a successful blind pianist, he "didn't want to hurt his act," he tells Pete, who is impressed he didn't blow his cover during the killing but not impressed the man didn't go to the police right afterward.

Gunn gives the pianist 24 hours to go to the police, or he will, and the musician will be charged with accessory-after-the-fact. So, the piano-man gives our man a vague description of the killer (Gunn never needs much) and Pete goes to work.

Later, we get a dose of the "beatnik" scene and lingo of the day as one of Gunn's pals (he has them all over town) tells him what he knows using every hip phrase of the day. It's fun at first, but goes on a little long. It picks up a little when a femme fatale of sorts "Shirley Blaze," enters the picture.

Overall, this episode isn't as intense as it looked it was going to be after that unique opening, but it was decent.

I'm guessing you've read the other User Reviews Of "The Blind Pianist". And yes, as compared to other "Gunn" outings, this one "breaks format" a bit, in that we see whodunit right at the top of the show. However, despite that fact, under the expert Direction of Blake Edwards (and if you haven't been paying atttention, Edwards INVENTED "The Pink Panther" films, again using the great Henry Mancini, who was highly adept at writing music in ANY style - as he often did for the "Gunn" series, as well as "Mr. Lucky") even though we see the crime up front, Edwards cleverly holds a few surprises back, to be sprinkled throughout the rest of this one. And BE HONEST, boys and girls. Let's see a show of hands - How many of you knew the definition of the word "ecdysiast"? And I mean those who were NOT already fans of the musical, "Gypsy"?

The murderer confesses on screen, and we saw him kill Mrs. Stanfield, thus consuming some of the mystery out the episode, but intrigue is present nonetheless as the script is written for the viewer to watch Pete bring justice to the perpetrator. Come on people when the intrigue remains throughout as your attention is to focus on what Pete finds, who he doesn't trust along with the actual perp. Nice touch sending us to the beatnik club to meet the other cast members in order for the plot to move toward a suspenseful conclusion. Pete wouldn't know to go to the stripper's apartment if it wasn't for Wilbur. What the blind piano player did see was the light not to obstruct justice. We should have suspected a stripper would be part of this caper, and money, and overall deceit from the guilty parties. The murderer's excuse for committing the crime is acceptable, but the real action is at the end for the viewer to enjoy. My favorite was the blind piano player, but all cast members were well placed in the storyline, even Capri.