… my contention is that producer and writers also presaged what’s been happening in western society in general for the past few decades, only really coming to a head now, in 2025/6. Life reflects art … art reflects life.

The episode itself was not their greatest, nor their worst … it was the usual fayre of baddies and goodies, entertaining … except that this one had an edge, seen from 2026 … it introduced an orphan into the mix. Until this point, a noir series about nightclubs, singers, gumshoes … usual 40s/50s thing … it did the job well but a point had to come where they jumped the shark.

The trouble with this particular jumping of the shark was the introduction of the child, as mentioned, in the form of the daughter of a character who was secretary to an utter villain and he (the secretary/general factotum) agreed, for money, to rub out the wife of the villain, now surpkus to requirements. Problem was as a widower, he had his innocent child in tow, and a sweet one at that (audience heartstrings).

Bear with me here. Compounding the issue, the sec had maybe weeks to live, wanting to provide for the soon to be orphan and in those days, that meant “fostering out”.

Now … Pete and Edie. Judge ages for yourself, they seemed ideally suited in the context of the plot, they loved one another … but he made his living taking dangerous cases on (insta-orphaning of any child, any issue from them both, within marriage in the 50s) … and she was a good nightclub singer, she had many talents, including loyalty to him, plus the tick tock, tick tock a woman eventually gets to.

Thus we got to the pictured scene above where he has saved the child after the father died, put her that evening with his Edie and the question of fostering arose … or else a state institution (anathema to both of them). Edie knew of a lady etc. etc. or else, Pete? He saw it all there and then, the whole human procreative nest biz. No prizes for what a 50s TV audience wanted … the producers were well aware.

And therein lay the tragedy, no better than today’s feminazism blighted situation for now unpleasant career women (unpleasant for today’s increasingly emasculated men). For me, the tragedy was series three, of three. Judging by the episodes in series three, they had not ended the series with the wedding … there was no wedding … the child, I assume, had been fostered out … they went back to the same old same old … with one exception.

Edie opened her own nightclub, where she still sang (her forte) … unmarried, childless, now grappling with the IRS and tax returns, both personal and business. And him? Still footloose and fancy free, though he still loved her, supposedly. And one added embellishment … a new maitre d at Edie’s … a charismatic youngish male.

The show ended with series three, reviews say public tastes had changed by 1961 … yes they had. The new, aspiring middle class of clipped lawns and certainty had overtaken the West Side story violence of the working class, also the Brit mods v rockers seaside clashes, foitball hooliganism … plus one more evil, inserted by Them …

… the “sexual revolution” for “the young”, in film, song, general parlance, in the media … here’s the song Kids! from Bye Bye Birdie … all designed to create a problem where that had not been one … plus add the drugs racket. I’m sure you’re getting the drift.

Add into the mix … the new, lured woman, promised “empowerment” in her single spinsterhood … welcome to your future, darling. Edie eternally in that nightclub … what a fulfilling existence, eh?

And him, sharp Pete … what for him? One woman after another forever? The viewing public still seemed to want the TV dream.