A Quick Look at TV: THE GREEN HORNET

   The producers of television's wacko high pop Batman series branched off into another series based on the popular crime-fighter of radio's golden era. The Green Hornet was in reality Britt Reid, young owner of a media empire spearheaded by the Sentinel newspaper. By night, he would don the trenchcoat of The Green Hornet and cause trouble for the underworld. Officially, the police thought him another criminal, though the chief of police was in on the secret. Of course, his nocturnal crusades were joined in by his crime-busting sidekick Kato, who fronted as Reid's Oriental houseboy. Back at the Sentinel, Britt would be aided by his beautiful secretary Lenore Case and be bothered by gung-ho elder reporter Michael Axford -who may've been the most eager of all citizens to see the Hornet behind bars! In bringing the franchise to television, the producers surprised audiences by not going the pop camp route of Batman. Instead, The Green Hornet was a somber crime series which foreshadowed the 90's show Batman, The Animated Series. A lot of credit goes to the cast, of course. Van Williams was Britt Reid, the adorable Wende Wagner was Miss Case, and vet character actor Lloyd Gough made Axford a much more memorable part than his limited screentime would imply. Obviously, the breakout star here was Bruce Lee as Kato. Word has it Van Williams immediately noticed how vital Kato was to the series and insisted on Lee being an equal star. The human demolition machine quickly became the most popular element of the series. He would go on to become one of the biggest stars in the movies, due to a series of Kung Fu action films. Sadly, The Green Hornet was fairly short-lived on television, but it was a memorable visit.