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Tales of the Gold Monkey

Angel4576

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Anyone else remember this Indiana Jones cash-in from the early to mid 80s?

I vaguely remember watching it as a nipper and loving it.

It's just been released onto DVD in the UK by Fabulous Films, through HMV.

Typical FF release with plenty of extras (new making of, commentaries, booklet etc).

Never thought that this would see the light of day, now I'm wondering if we won't get everything eventually!

Anyone else picked this up?
 
I stumbled across the intro credits on youtube once, and thought it loked pretty fun. Is it worth checking out?
 
I'll let you know. I bought it based on my vague recollections from when I was about 5 years old. I remember loving it at the time, but I haven't seen it since then.

It sounds and looks like fun so I'm hoping that it lives up to the nostalgic expectations I've placed upon it.....
 
I remember it, it was a lot of fun, I think it had a sort of Magnum PI tone to it. I would love for a US release, I'd watch it again.

And there was Bring 'Em Back Alive, another Indy cash in show...
 
I loved Tales of the Gold Monkey, as previously mentioned it was a cross between Magnum PI and Indiana Jones. The main character Jack Cutter (?) was the pilot of a Grumman Goose, which is a beautiful plane.
I remember Roddy McDowell was in it and that one guy who was a regular on Baa Baa Blacksheep, and a recurring character on Magnum, I can remember his name off the top of my head.

When this becomes available in the US, I will certainly get it.
 
On a Star Trek board, I can't believe that not one person yet has commented on the fact the main star of this show was Captain Willard Decker himself!
 
I loved Tales of the Gold Monkey, as previously mentioned it was a cross between Magnum PI and Indiana Jones. The main character Jack Cutter (?) was the pilot of a Grumman Goose, which is a beautiful plane.
I remember Roddy McDowell was in it and that one guy who was a regular on Baa Baa Blacksheep, and a recurring character on Magnum, I can remember his name off the top of my head.

That was Jeff MacKay. Sadly, he died last year of liver failure. :(

He was a great character actor.
 
I remember it, it was a lot of fun, I think it had a sort of Magnum PI tone to it. I would love for a US release, I'd watch it again.

I heard it's scheduled for a US release in the second quarter of next year. Don't know how true this is though.
 
Anyone else remember this Indiana Jones cash-in from the early to mid 80s?

It was actually conceived by Donald Bellisario before Raiders of the Lost Ark came out, but ABC just shelved the idea, thinking audiences would have little interest in a period adventure piece. Then Raiders became a big hit and ABC brushed the dust off of Gold Monkey and ran with it.

The main character was named Jake Cutter, not Jack. When he first introduced himself to the leading lady after doing something to upset her, he said "It's Jake," i.e. "My name is Jake." And she replied "It is not jake!" interpreting it in the '30s slang sense of "jake" to mean "okay." That was something I needed my father to explain to me.

It was an okay show, but like a lot of Bellisario stuff, it occasionally took an awkward turn toward the religious. There was one episode where Jake fell ill while flying the plane and it was on the verge of crashing, and the female lead prayed for rescue and the plane miraculously straightened out. Now, I'm tolerant of others' religious beliefs, but deus ex machina just isn't a good storytelling device. It wasn't even a climactic moment in the episode. It just got shoved in there and served no larger story purpose.

Perhaps the most bizarre thing about Tales of the Gold Monkey is that some years later, Disney plagiarized the hell out of it in TaleSpin. That show was basically the same premise as TotGM with Jungle Book characters plugged into it.
 
^^ I remember that scene. I always took it to be a little bit of camp directed at the time period; I'm not that familiar with Bellisario's work in general.

I really loved Tales Of The Gold Monkey, and I can't wait for the DVDs. It got on the air because of Raiders, but it really had more of a Terry & The Pirates feel, right down to the Dragon Lady (who was also in Trek, in a TNG episode). The casting was very strong (Roddy McDowall was amazing, as always, especially in the episode that featured his daughter), the stories were great, and the sets were wonderfuly evocative. It was pure Saturday Morning Serial.

One of the minor characters was a guy named Gushi, who was Bon Chance Louie's (Roddy McDowall) assistant. He had no legs and was in a wheelchair. The actor made his own period wheelchair for the part; he also got to do some cool stuntwork that you seldom get to see from disabled people. He also brought some humor to the part. Once, Louie calls down the stairs for Gushi to bring his medical bag; when he rolls in with it a couple of minutes later, Louie admonishes him for taking so long. He replies, "There's no elevator!"

And, despite being a campy homage to old serials, this show had some nice, moving drama. The aforementioned episode with Louie's daughter was one example. Another is the episode where Corky, Jake's assistant, is believed to have fallen off the wagon and burned up Jake's plane. There are a couple of moments in that story that can bring tears to your eyes.

The only real weakness I can think of is that Louie is played by a different actor in the pilot, which is unfortunate (and I think the pilot is also probably the weakest episode, though still very good).

All in all, I give this series my highest recommendation. Blind buy it, even if you've never heard of it; you won't be sorry. :bolian:
 
Perhaps the most bizarre thing about Tales of the Gold Monkey is that some years later, Disney plagiarized the hell out of it in TaleSpin. That show was basically the same premise as TotGM with Jungle Book characters plugged into it.

I knew there had to be some reason why TaleSpin seemed so familiar. It's all coming back to me now.
 
I also loved Gold Monkey when it ran way back when, mainly due to the Indiana Jones-ish vibe, though I haven't seen it since then. It's cool that it's coming out on DVD. Any word on who's on the commentaries?
 
I really loved Tales Of The Gold Monkey, and I can't wait for the DVDs. It got on the air because of Raiders, but it really had more of a Terry & The Pirates feel, right down to the Dragon Lady (who was also in Trek, in a TNG episode).

Marta DuBois. She also played Magnum's lost love Michelle on Magnum P.I.
 
I also loved Gold Monkey when it ran way back when, mainly due to the Indiana Jones-ish vibe, though I haven't seen it since then. It's cool that it's coming out on DVD. Any word on who's on the commentaries?

Go to TV Shows on DVD.com and check out the post for November 13. All the info you want to know is there. I tried to provide a direct link, but it's not letting me for some reason.
 
I remember watching this but not too much about it. Did it feature a priest who was really a German spy, or am I misremembering?
 
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