Ryan (TV series)

1973 Australian TV series or program

Ryan

Created by| Crawford Productions
Starring|

* Rod Mullinar
* Pamela Stephenson
* Luigi Villani
* Colin McEwan

Music by| Garry Hardman
Country of origin| Australia
No. of seasons| 1
No. of episodes| 39
Production
Executive producer| Terry Stapleton
Camera setup| Single-camera
Running time| 60 minutes
Production company| Crawford Productions
Original release
Network| Seven Network
Release| 25 May 1973 (1973-05-25) –
13 April 1974 (1974-04-13)

Ryan is an Australian adventure television series screened by the Seven Network from 27 May 1973. The series was produced by Crawford Productions and had a run of 39 one-hour episodes.[1]

## Synopsis

[edit]

The series title relates to the character of Michael Ryan, a dashing private investigator played by Rod Mullinar. A few years prior Mullinar had briefly taken the lead role in similar Crawford's series Hunter (1967) in its closing episodes after the original lead actor Tony Ward left the show.

Ryan's secretary Julie King was played by New Zealand-born actor Pamela Stephenson, soon to leave for England and a successful television career. Some storylines were built around the character of Julie.[2] Tony Angelini (Luigi Villani), a taxi driver and Ryan's regular informant and assistant was the third key player in every episode while Detective Cullen (Colin McEwan) was Ryan's main liaison with the police force.[3] When McEwan appeared in an episode, he would be credited as one of the four main cast members.

## Production

[edit]

Ryan was shot entirely on film and in colour with an eye to potential international sales. Hector Crawford told the Sydney Morning Herald that the show was 'probably the most significant breakthrough for us, and for the Australian television industry, since we first produced Homicide eight years ago.' [4] An initial sale of 39 episodes to the Seven Network recouped only 55% of the series' relatively high production costs. An international sale was therefore crucial to the show's continued feasibility.[3]

Australian television was still in the process of transitioning to colour broadcasting in 1973, while key international markets were already in colour and would more readily purchase a colour series. Though many Australian series shot their interior scenes on videotape in the studio using a multiple-camera setup with only outdoor scenes shot on film, many television studios were not yet equipped with colour equipment. This meant Ryan had to be shot entirely on film. In another concession to international marketability Mullinar was instructed to play the role using a Mid-Atlantic American accent.[3]

One of Crawfords' directors, David Lee, designed a gun, in collaboration with Melbourne CIB ballistics, specifically for Mullinar to use in the show: 'a Colt with a 4-inch barrel.'[5]

## Broadcast

[edit]

### Locally

[edit]

Ryan premiered in May 1973, rating well in Brisbane and Adelaide, but failing in the crucial Melbourne and Sydney markets. A key reason for low ratings was the fact that the Nine Network had moved the highly popular police drama Division 4 to a new night to compete with the much-hyped new series. Ryan was moved around the schedules in order to find an audience, but ratings remained mediocre. After the initial 39 episodes were in the can the Ryan crew were, in expectation of a second series, retained by Crawfords and put to work on Homicide \- whose output was increased to two episodes a week - on that show's second weekly episode. This resulted in one cross-over episode, with the Ryan regular characters appearing in an episode of Homicide with the exception of Pamela Stephenson, who had opted to leave the series during the recess.[3] Ultimately Ryan was not renewed by the Seven Network due to insufficient ratings.[3] The Homicide production reverted to one episode a week. While some of the crew were rolled into the new Crawfords serial The Box. However, that show featured little outdoors filming so inevitably some of the Ryan crew were retrenched - the first time Crawfords had ever retrenched staff.[3]

### Internationally

[edit]

Ryan debuted in Canada in September 1975,[6] in the US eleven days later on 27 September 1975[7] and in the UK on the 6 July 1976.[8]

## Cast

[edit]

### Main

[edit]

* Rod Mullinar as Michael Ryan
* Pamela Stephenson as Julie King
* Luigi Villani as Tony Angelini
* Colin McEwan as Detective Sergeant Dan Cullen

### Guests

[edit]

This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

|

Actor  | Role  | Eps.

|
|

Alfred Sandor | Miklos / Knight | 2
Alister Smart | Colin Brown |
Anne Scott-Pendlebury | Katrina |
Anthony Hawkins | Adler | 1
Ben Gabriel | Vedat Avdi | 1
Brian Moll | Warburton / Topley |
Bruce Spence | Wally Scott | 1
Carmen Duncan | Anne | 1
Carole Skinner | Jane Moore | 1
Cecily Polson | Gail Scott / Vicki | 2
Christine Amor | Jennifer | 1
Danny Adcock | Harry Fisher | 1
Diane Craig | Lacey Glen | 1
Dina Mann | Nikki | 1
Elspeth Ballantyne | Rhoda Bitov | 1
Graeme Blundell | Flip Mitchell / Slade | 2
Jack Thompson | John Mitchell / Brian Duncan | 2
Jane Clifton | Jenny | 1
Jeanie Drynan | Tricia | 1
John Clayton | Hunt / Harry | 2
John Stanton | Johnson | 1
Jon Finlayson | Smith | 1
Judy Lynne | Barbara | 1
Judy Morris | Jan Taylor | 1
Kate Sheil | Ellen Cornell | 1
Kevin Golsby | Trevor Armstrong | 1
Kevin Miles | John Hiller | 1
Maurie Fields | Bob Clark | 1
Michael Aitkens | Bernie Wood | 1
Michael Long | Squib | 1
Michele Fawdon | Susan Morrison / Mia Sinclair | 2
Norman Kaye | Florist | 1
Norman Yemm | Carl Hoffman / Max Miller | 2
Pat Bishop | Elaine Duncan | 1
Penne Hackforth-Jones | Jana / Helen | 2
Peter Gwynne | Raymond Fitch | 1
Peter Whitford | Billy Maxwell | 1
Roger Ward | Don | 1
Rowena Wallace | Kate / Sue Ogilvie / Zita / Holly Beckett | 4
Serge Lazareff | Patrick |
Sheila Florance | Lorna Russell | 1
Simon Chilvers | Joe / Fat man / Henderson | 3
Terry McDermott | Matt | 1
Walter Pym | Professor Melton | 1

## Episodes

[edit]

No.
overall| No. in
season| Title| Directed by| Written by| Original release date

|
|
|
|
|

1| 1| "Liz"| Simon Wincer| Morton S. Fine
Terry Stapleton| 25 May 1973 (1973-05-25)
2| 2| "This Little Piggy Went to Pieces"| Andrew Swanson| Peter Schreck| 1 June 1973 (1973-06-01)
3| 3| "Firing Squad"| Gary Conway| Colin Eggleston| 8 June 1973 (1973-06-08)
4| 4| "Nut File"| Gary Conway| Neil Atkinson
Terry Stapleton| 15 June 1973 (1973-06-15)
5| 5| "King's Bishop to Queen Three"| Gary Conway| Peter Schreck| 22 June 1973 (1973-06-22)
6| 6| "Catalyst"| Gary Conway| Ron McLean| 29 June 1973 (1973-06-29)
7| 7| "Death Watch"| Ian Bennett| Phil Freedman| 6 July 1973 (1973-07-06)
8| 8| "Come the Liberation"| Simon Wincer| William Froug| 13 July 1973 (1973-07-13)
9| 9| "Messenger Birds"| Ian Crawford
Andrew Swanson| James Wulf Simmonds| 20 July 1973 (1973-07-20)
10| 10| "Tribe"| Simon Wincer| Dennis Paul
Peter Schreck| 27 July 1973 (1973-07-27)
11| 11| "The Girl with the Golden Slippers"| Simon Wincer| David Boutland| 3 August 1973 (1973-08-03)
12| 12| "Miss Ogilvie Repents"| Andrew Swanson| Dennis Paul| 10 August 1973 (1973-08-10)
13| 13| "Man with a Mission"| Simon Wincer| James Wulf Simmonds| 17 August 1973 (1973-08-17)
14| 14| "But When She Was Bad"| Gary Conway| David Boutland| 24 August 1973 (1973-08-24)
15| 15| "Moon Monkey"| Gary Conway| Everett De Roche| 31 August 1973 (1973-08-31)
16| 16| "Nobody's Perfect"| Ian Bennett| José Luis Bayonas| 8 September 1973 (1973-09-08)
17| 17| "Person or Persons Unknown"| David Johnstone| David Boutland| 15 September 1973 (1973-09-15)
18| 18| "Fibber the Dancing Galah"| Simon Wincer| Everett De Roche| 22 September 1973 (1973-09-22)
19| 19| "Hamlet's Horse"| Simon Wincer| Dennis Paul| 29 September 1973 (1973-09-29)
20| 20| "Where Thunder Sleeps"| Simon Wincer| Ian Jones| 6 October 1973 (1973-10-06)
21| 21| "The Far Away Girl"| Simon Wincer| John Blair| 13 October 1973 (1973-10-13)
22| 22| "Hickory Dickory Dock"| Ian Bennett| José Luis Bayonas| 20 October 1973 (1973-10-20)
23| 23| "Pipeline"| Gary Conway| Michael Harvey| 27 October 1973 (1973-10-27)
24| 24| "Three-Legged Duck"| Gary Conway| Everett De Roche| 3 November 1973 (1973-11-03)
25| 25| "A Bag Full of Miracles"| Ian Bennett| José Luis Bayonas| 10 November 1973 (1973-11-10)
26| 26| "Giant, Giant Had a Great Fall"| Simon Wincer| Neil Atkinson| 17 November 1973 (1973-11-17)
27| 27| "Way Back"| Simon Wincer| Terry Stapleton| 24 November 1973 (1973-11-24)
28| 28| "Negative Proof"| Gary Conway| John Edwards| 1 December 1973 (1973-12-01)
29| 29| "A Little Something Special"| George Miller| William Froug| 8 December 1973 (1973-12-08)
30| 30| "Red Alert"| Ian Bennett| John Blair| 15 December 1973 (1973-12-15)
31| 31| "A Deep Dark Place"| Gary Conway| David Boutland| 25 January 1974 (1974-01-25)
32| 32| "A Song for Julie"| Ian Bennett| Everett De Roche| 1 February 1974 (1974-02-01)
33| 33| "The Man in Room 16"| Andrew Swanson| Ian Jones| 18 February 1974 (1974-02-18)
34| 34| "Give Them the World"| Simon Wincer| David Boutland| 2 March 1974 (1974-03-02)
35| 35| "Wild About Harry"| Simon Wincer| Ian Jones| 9 March 1974 (1974-03-09)
36| 36| "King Hit"| Gary Conway| José Luis Bayonas| 16 March 1974 (1974-03-16)
37| 37| "Goodbye Holly Beckett"| Ian Bennett| John Blair
Terry Stapleton| 23 March 1974 (1974-03-23)
38| 38| "There's Going to Be a War"| Gary Conway| David Boutland| 30 March 1974 (1974-03-30)
39| 39| "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Altar"| Gary Conway| Neil Atkinson
Terry Stapleton| 13 April 1974 (1974-04-13)

## DVD release

[edit]

The complete series was released on DVD in June 2018. It and other Crawford Productions series are available to international viewers from Eaton Films in the UK and Australia and New Zealand based buyers from Crawfords DVD. As well as the full run of 39 episodes, the DVD set includes the Homicide crossover episode "As Simple As ABZ".

Title  | Format  | Ep #  | Discs  | Region 2 (UK)  | Region 4 (Australia)  | Special Features  | Distributors

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Ryan (Complete Collection)  | DVD  | 39  | 10  | June 2018  | June 2018  | HOMICIDE - Episode 408 featuring Ryan  | Crawford Productions

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Moran, Albert. Moran's Guide to Australian TV Series, Allen & Unwin, 1993. ISBN 0-642-18462-3 p 398
2. ^ Moran, Albert 1993. p 398
3. ^ a b c d e f Storey, Don. TV Eye - Classic Australian Television, TV Eye - Classic Australian Television
4. ^ 'Ryan, newest private eye here on Sunday' Sydney Sunday Sun-Herald 10 June 1973 p. 82
5. ^ 'Jamie on TV Show' Sydney "Sun-Herald" 17 September 1972 p. 128
6. ^ 'TV Timetable' Calgary Albertan 16 September 1975 p. 21
7. ^ 'Monday Evening Television' Buffalo Evening News, 27 September 1975 p. 54
8. ^ 'Radio and Television', London Daily Telegraph 6 July 1976 p. 27

## External links

[edit]

* Ryan at Crawford Productions
* Ryan at IMDb
* Ryan at AustLit
* episode "Catalyst" at AustLit

*[No.]: Number