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{{Short description|American drama adventure series (1959–60)}}
{{other uses|5 Fingers (disambiguation)}}
{{more citations needed|date=September 2009}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox television
| image =
| caption =
| creator =
| based_on = {{based on|''Operation Cicero''|[[Ludwig Carl Moyzisch]]}}
| director=Andrew McCullough [[Montgomery Pittman]] [[Lamont Johnson]]
| teleplay = Richard Berg
| writer = [[Ludwig Carl Moyzisch]] [[William Templeton (screenwriter)|William Templeton]]
| starring = [[David Hedison]] [[Luciana Paluzzi]] [[Paul Burke (actor)|Paul Burke]]
| theme_music_composer=
| country = United States
| num_seasons = 1
| num_episodes = 16
| executive_producer=
| producer=[[Martin Manulis]] Herbert B. Swope, Jr.
| location=[[Europe]]
| runtime = 60 minutes
| company = [[20th Century Fox Television]] Martin Manulis Productions
| network = [[NBC]]
| first_aired = {{Start date|1959|10|03}}
| last_aired = {{End date|1960|01|08}}
| related=
}}

'''''Five Fingers''''' is an [[NBC]] [[adventure]]/[[drama]] [[television series|series]] set in [[Europe]] during the [[Cold War]].<ref name="tt" /> It was based on L. C. Moyzich's story "Operation Cicero".<ref name="dh">{{cite news |title=New Shows Appear On Fall TeeVee Lineup |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/112396830/the-daily-herald/ |access-date=November 2, 2022 |work=The Daily Herald |date=September 28, 1959 |location=Utah, Provo |page=16|via = [[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref> It ran from October 3, 1959, to January 9, 1960.<ref name=tt>{{cite book|last1=McNeil|first1=Alex|title=Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present |date=1996|publisher=Penguin Books USA, Inc.|location=New York, New York|isbn=0-14-02-4916-8|page= 288|edition=4th}}</ref>

== Premise ==
[[David Hedison]] starred as Victor Sebastian, a counter-intelligence agent for the United States. His mission was to infiltrate a Soviet espionage ring; Five Fingers was his code name. [[Luciana Paluzzi]] co-starred as Simone Genet, a fashion model.<ref name="dh" /> [[Paul Burke (actor)|Paul Burke]] portrayed Robertson, who was the contact person for Sebastian.<ref name="tt" />

Representing the Wembly and Sebastian Ltd. theatrical agency,<ref name="etvs">{{cite book |last1=Terrace |first1=Vincent |title=Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010, 2d ed. |date=January 10, 2014 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-0-7864-8641-0 |page=347 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YX_daEhlnbsC&dq=%22Five+Fingers%22+NBC&pg=PA347 |access-date=February 10, 2024 |language=en}}</ref> Sebastian posed as a booking agent who sought musical talent to place in clubs across continental Europe. Genet hoped to become a singer. As they traveled together, a romantic relationship developed, while she knew nothing about his secret spy activities.<ref name="brooks" />

==Episodes and guest stars==

Episodes and notable guest stars include:

*"Station Break" ([[Eva Gabor]] and [[Tyler McVey]]) – October 3, 1959
*"Dossier" ([[Edgar Bergen]]) – October 10, 1959
*"The Moment of Truth" ([[Nehemiah Persoff]] and [[Jack Warden]]) – October 17, 1959
*"The Unknown Town" ([[Michael J. Pollard]]) – October 24, 1959
*"The Men with Triangle Heads" – ([[Alfred Ryder]]) October 31, 1959
*"The Assassin" ([[John McGiver]]) – November 7, 1959
*"The Man Who Got Away" ([[Arlene Francis]]) – November 14, 1959
*"The Emerald Curtain" – November 21, 1959
*"The Temple of the Swinging Doll" ([[Viveca Lindfors]], [[Clu Gulager]], [[Rodolfo Hoyos, Jr.]], and [[Sterling Holloway]]) – November 28, 1959
*"The Final Dream" ([[Cesare Danova]] and [[John Banner]]) – December 5, 1959
*"Thin Ice" ([[Peter Lorre]], [[Brett Halsey]], and [[Alan Young]]) – December 19, 1959<ref>{{cite book |last1=Youngkin |first1=Stephen |title=The Lost One: A Life of Peter Lorre |date=September 30, 2005 |publisher=University Press of Kentucky |isbn=978-0-8131-7185-2 |page=490 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TgmVH7aaOtEC&dq=%22Five+Fingers%22+NBC&pg=PA490 |access-date=February 10, 2024 |language=en}}</ref>
*"Operation Ramrod" ([[Ray Anthony]]) – December 26, 1959
*"The Judas Goat" ([[Frank de Kova]]) – January 2, 1960
*"The Search for Edvard Stoyan" ([[Martin Balsam]]) – January 9, 1960

Two additional episodes, "A Shot in the Dark" ([[Neile Adams]] and [[Joanna Cook Moore]]) and "Counterfeit" ([[Cesar Romero]]), were unaired.{{Citation needed |date=November 2022}}

== UK theatrical runs ==
In 1960/61 in the UK, 20th Century Fox used nine episodes as supporting films for circuit releases, all but one of their own main features:-
* "Final Dream" (BBFC "U" cert Nov. 21 1960) Supporting Rank's ''[[The Bulldog Breed]]'', Rank circuit release Dec. 26th 1960
* "Counterfeit" (BBFC "U" cert Nov. 14 1960) Supporting ''[[North to Alaska]]'', National circuit release Jan. 1st 1961.
* "The Moment of Truth" (BBFC "U" cert Feb. 23rd 1961). Supporting ''[[Five Golden Hours]]'', National circuit release Mar. 12 1961.
* "The Emerald Curtain" (BBFC "U" cert Mar. 20 1961). Supporting ''[[All Hands on Deck (1961 film)|All Hands on Deck]]'', National circuit release May 7, 1961.
* "Shot in the Dark" (BBFC "U" cert May 29, 1961). Supporting ''[[Return to Peyton Place (film)|Return to Peyton Place]]'', Rank circuit release June 26, 1961.
* "Thin Ice" (BBFC "U" cert Jun. 1 1961). Supporting ''[[Wild in the Country]]'', Rank circuit release Jul. 30 1961.
* "Dossier" (BBFC "U" cert Jul. 25 1961). Supporting ''[[Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea]]'', National circuit release Aug. 28 1961.
* "The Judas Goat" (BBFC "U" cert Oct. 3 1961). Supporting ''[[The Queen's Guards (film)|The Queen's Guards]]'', Rank circuit release Oct. 22 1961.
* "Temple of the Swinging Doll" (BBFC "U" cert Nov. 13 1961), Supporting ''[[Francis of Assisi (film)|Francis of Assisi]]'', Rank circuit release Dec. 3 1961.
The Rank release played at the prime Odeon and Gaumont cinemas. The National release played at Rank's secondary outlets, although at this time it still was allocated the odd decent booking.

==Production==
Herbert Bayard Swope Jr. was the producer of the show, which was based on the film ''[[5 Fingers]]'' (1952).<ref name=tt/> Robert Stevens was the director, and Richard Berg was the writer.<ref name="slts" /> The program was broadcast on Saturdays from 9:30 to 10:30 p.m. Eastern Time.<ref name="brooks">{{cite book |last1=Brooks |first1=Tim |last2=Marsh |first2=Earle F. |title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present |date=June 24, 2009 |publisher=Random House Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-307-48320-1 |page=479 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w8KztFy6QYwC&dq=%22Five+Fingers%22+NBC&pg=PA479 |access-date=February 11, 2024 |language=en}}</ref> Its competition included ''[[The Lawrence Welk Show]]'' and ''[[Ozark Jubilee]]'' on ABC and ''[[Have Gun – Will Travel]]'' and ''[[Gunsmoke]]'' on CBS.<ref name="slts">{{cite book |last1=Hyatt |first1=Wesley |title=Short-Lived Television Series, 1948-1978: Thirty Years of More Than 1,000 Flops |date=October 6, 2015 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-1-4766-0515-9 |pages=100–101 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ty21CgAAQBAJ&dq=%22Five+Fingers%22+NBC&pg=PA100 |access-date=February 10, 2024 |language=en}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{IMDb title|0052466|Five Fingers}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Five Fingers (Tv Series)}}
[[Category:American adventure drama television series]]
[[Category:1950s American crime drama television series]]
[[Category:1960s American crime drama television series]]
[[Category:1959 American television series debuts]]
[[Category:1960 American television series endings]]
[[Category:Television series by 20th Century Fox Television]]
[[Category:Black-and-white American television shows]]
[[Category:Television series about the Cold War]]
[[Category:Television shows set in Europe]]
[[Category:NBC television dramas]]

Five Fingers (American TV series) - Revision history

imported>Ser Amantio di Nicolao: add {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}