My Friend Tony

Not a classic lost series but a very entertaining show that certainly deserved a better fate. As Leonard talked about in his book, Cerusico appealed to a young audience. However, an NBC executive was mad at him for not agreeing to do a fourth season of I Spy so to get even with him they scheduled the show Sunday night at 10PM when the young viewers wouldn't be watching. So the show ran 16 episodes and hasn't been seen in the US again. Easily could have had a nice 3 year run. The scripts were about equal to a typical I Spy episode and Cerusico was extremely likable in his role. Whitmore was solid as always in the role of mentor/father figure. As with Leonard's previous show, there was a nice mix of drama with touches of humor to lighten the mood.

James Whitmore starred as a college professor teaching criminology. together with Tony they would solve crimes out of the classroom and in the courtroom. It was a diagnosis murder type plot for its time. The crime solving was based on actual scientific principals. The episode I remember was a car accident and revolved around whether the car headlights were on or off when the accident occurred. The professor took several headlights into the lab and broke them before the were turned on,after they were turned on as controls to determine if the residue on the inside of the light would indicate if the lights were on or off when the accident occurred. Wish i could find this episode on DVD

A young man comes to America and goes to live with an elderly man (James Whitmore). The humor, though probably out-dated by today's standards, was fresh and very funny when the show was new. The escapades of the young, sweet and helpless Tony ... as he struggled to do everything right and the "American Way" had him in more scrapes than out. Think of "I Love Lucy" with Tony as Lucy and you have "My Friend Tony."

I remember this series and how much I loved it. Though not on for long, Enzo captured many a young American girl's heart with his portrayal of Tony.

His smiling face appeared in every teen magazine on the newsstand and it was a sad day when the series ended and Enzo went back to Italy.