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The Coronet Blue Complete Series DVD holds all 13 episodes of Larry Cohen’s 1967 CBS mystery on 4 discs, including two that never aired. Frank Converse stars as an amnesiac searching for his identity, and the set adds an interview with Cohen. This is a brand-new copy, in stock and dispatched within 2 business days. Add it to your cart today.
| Format | DVD |
|---|---|
| Discs | 4 |
| Studio | Kl Studio Classics |
| Released | July 18, 2017 |
| Run time | 10 hours and 50 minutes |
| Condition | New |
| Availability | In stock |
The Coronet Blue Complete Series DVD set collects all 13 episodes of Larry Cohen's 1967 CBS mystery drama on four discs, including the two episodes CBS never aired. Kino Lorber released this set under its KL Studio Classics label on July 18, 2017.
You will receive a brand-new copy. These are DVDs, so they play in standard DVD players and in Blu-ray players. The episodes are presented in their original 1.33:1 full-frame ratio, with about 650 minutes of running time.
A wounded man is pulled from a river with no memory except two words: "Coronet Blue". He takes the name Michael Alden and sets out to learn who he really is, only to find that a mysterious group wants him dead.
Frank Converse stars as Alden, and Brian Bedford co-stars as Brother Anthony. Guest stars across the 13 episodes include Alan Alda, Candice Bergen, David Carradine, Jon Voight, Denholm Elliott, Sally Kellerman, Richard Kiley and Dick Clark. Lenny Welch performs the theme song.
The episodes were filmed in 1965 for the 1965 to 1966 season, but CBS shelved them. The network finally aired 11 of them as a summer replacement series in 1967, leaving two unseen until home video.
This four-disc set is the only way to see every produced episode, since two never made it to air. In his on-camera interview, Larry Cohen talks about how the show came about, reveals the ending he planned but never filmed, and explains the meaning of the title.
Classic TV fans who enjoy amnesia thrillers and 1960s spy stories will find this Coronet Blue TV series a rare and worthwhile addition to a collection.
Explore more vintage shows in our classic TV collection and our box sets. For more ideas, see our best TV series box sets guide, and read why physical media still beats streaming for hard-to-find shows. For the series history, see Coronet Blue on Wikipedia.
Coronet Blue Complete Series DVD: Questions Buyers Ask
How many episodes are included?
All 13 produced episodes on 4 DVDs, including the 2 that CBS never aired.
Is this on Blu-ray?
No. This Kino Lorber set is a DVD release. It plays in DVD and Blu-ray players.
Are there bonus features?
Yes. It includes an interview with creator Larry Cohen.
What condition is it in?
It is a brand-new copy.
The Coronet Blue Complete Series DVD is in stock, dispatched within 2 business days, and ships free within the US. See our 30-day return policy, then add the Coronet Blue Complete Series DVD to your cart.
Standard shipping is $4.99. Orders over $50 ship free.
You can still order it. Delivery may take 2–4 weeks because the item needs to be sourced from the manufacturer.
This is the DVD edition, 4 discs.
Ron Orbit –
Originally posted on Amazon.com · not a MarioShroomed purchase
Great Cult Show!
A cult favorite fondly remembered. Has a real ’60’s feel. Still holds up.
Steve D. –
Originally posted on Amazon.com · not a MarioShroomed purchase
A Unique Series That Deserves To Be Seen
I just finished watching the 13 episode run (11 broadcast episodes and two episodes that were never broadcast). Coronet Blue had, with the exception of a couple of episodes, very good writing with great dialog — so much so that you have to pay attention not to miss something said. The show also had wonderful guest stars — Dick Clark, Susan Hampshire, Alan Alda, John Voight, David Carradine, Candace Bergen, Richard Kiley (the last four in one episode!) and others. Also the semi-regulars, Joe Silver as Max and Brian Bedford as Anthony, are very good, and have great acting chemistry with star Frank Converse, who puts in a moving performance. The series plays with how memory and reality don’t always match, and also with the larger questions of identity and what does makes us who we are? There are word plays such as the club Max owns is called “The Searching I” — which is exactly what Alden is doing — searching for his Identity — it also taken from “the Hungry I” – a legendary 1960s club in San Francisco. By the way, the New York locations are fun, 5th Avenue, Central Park, Hofstra University, and others. I believe I saw a handful of episodes in 1967 as a ten year old, the same summer that The Prisoner — another series about identity — came out.
It is interesting to watch Coronet Blue and then see Unknown White Male (2003), a documentary about a man in New York who completely lost his memory/identity and found himself on a subway.
Some people write Coronet Blue off because we never discover who Michael Alden (Converse) really is. After watching the series, I can say that it really doesn’t matter that we don’t find out. The stories are about Michael Alden finding himself through the journey, not the destination. In the 13th and final episode Alden says that he learned that he finds who he really is within himself, not through information from other people. Although the series didn’t know it was ending, this last episode ends with Michael Alden sounding more at peace with himself than he ever had been. In that sense, it seems to me that it ended in a complete way. Bravo Mr. Converse & cast!
Mulroon –
Originally posted on Amazon.com · not a MarioShroomed purchase
Out Of The Blue
A very deftly made series, where Central Park and New York City are additional characters. Herbert Brodkin likely didn’t have a network in mind when he filmed it in color in 1965, when abc and NBC were already colorcasting dramas. CBS, who was showing sitcoms and variety hours in color, but not dramas, bought Coronet Blue and possibly shelved it until they had full color (1966). By the time they broadcast it in 1967, series star Frank Converse was committed to N.Y.P.D. (abc 1967-69), hence no second season. The series feels very real with exceptional dialogue and close-ups. Things move slightly slower than a Hollywood TV drama of the time, with no wasted space. The music is sensational and a bit underused, like real life. Most importantly, the show doesn’t exist long enough to become redundant. What happened to Michael Alden? Maybe we really don’t want to know, because if we know, they know.
gnome d. ploom –
Originally posted on Amazon.com · not a MarioShroomed purchase
What does it mean? Coronet blue?
This was a summer replacement when I was in college. The only thing I really remembered was the theme song and the fact that there was never a solution. In an interview the man who brought it to the screen gave his explanation of what the final outcome was to be. It was a fitting ending. I’m sorry it was not continued to that ending. I will say that the story line became a bit skewed after the first few episodes. I reckon they found out it was not going to be brought to a conclusion so they just began to toss in stories to fill the few weeks it was to run. It began great with actors new then but well known now. It was fun to go back to that era. I enjoyed the feeling of being back in the days of college.
Tim Lukeman –
Originally posted on Amazon.com · not a MarioShroomed purchase
“Who am I?”
Fans of this nearly lost & forgotten series never really expected to see a legitimate DVD release of its 13 episodes (2 of them never even aired). But here it is at last! This review is currently just for the series itself, which I remember from my youth; once the set is officially released, I’ll add comments on the quality of the image & any extras.
A man is thrown overboard from a docked ship & presumed dead. When he somehow drags himself to safety, he remembers nothing — not his name, not his past — only one cryptic phrase: “Coronet Blue.” Taking his new name of Michael Alden from the hospital where he was treated & the doctor who treated him, he sets out to discover his lost identity. Along the way, he’ll find friends to aid him, enemies who want to kill him, and those who simply want to use him.
Just as the premise for an ongoing series, this is familiar but good stuff. Frank Converse is a strong lead, projecting both his character’s confusion & his strength of will & determination. As the series progresses, he discovers unsuspected talents — a facility with languages, an ability to fight — that offer tantalizing hints to his past. And he continually pursues any reference to that mysterious phrase: “Coronet Blue.”
So far, all solid mystery & suspense … but what makes the series even more interesting is the undercurrent of questions that ran through the 1960s: “Who am I? What’s my purpose in the world? Where do I belong?” This is obvious from the first episode, when Max (the always wonderful Joe Silver) takes Michael in, giving him a job & a home base of sorts in his coffee house, The Searching i. And then there’s his second friend, Brother Anthony (Brian Bedford), a monk who leaves his monastery to find himself, while aiding Michael to search for his own “I” in the world.
Like many “road” series of the time, this is in part an anthology show with recurring characters, like “Route 66” or “The Fugitive” or “Then Came Bronson” — the leads encounter a wide range of people & lives over time, dealing with personal dramas & existential questions — but never at the expense of basic entertainment. It’s a series that can be enjoyed on more than one level.
A little online searching will reveal the planned secret of Michael Alden’s identity, as envisioned by series creator Larry Cohen. I won’t give it away here, but it fits with the clues offered along the way & is quite satisfying for those who want a definite answer. But while the series ended without revealing that secret, it changed under the hand of producer Herbert Brodkin, emphasizing the search for identity on that deeper level as well. For those like myself, who found that even more compelling than the mystery aspect of the series, there’s another answer that’s equally satisfying: Whoever he might have been, he IS Michael Alden — he IS himself. Take it either way you like.
Again, I’ll add technical details to this review when the set is officially released. For now, I just want to call attention to a fine show that deserved better than it got when it was sadly cut short. There’s a slew of future stars in their youth in these episodes, which is great fun to see; and the theme song is pure, glorious 1960s pop in the vein of the “Secret Agent” theme. But the real draw for me is the question of identity & personal meaning, which remains relevant today — most highly recommended!
June 16, 2018 – Having rewatched the series on disc, I have to say that it looks quite good for being from that era of television, with bold color & a clear image. Yes, there is a snippet of poetry missing from “A Dozen Demons” which is a pity, as it’s the sort of little detail that adds so much to a story. But that’s the only missing piece that I can spot.
Far more interesting to me is just how strong the theme if identity, authenticity, and finding one’s place the world is in every episode — not just for lead Michael Alden, but for many of the people he encounters along the way. The sometimes frenetic, whipsaw dialogue & quick cuts to new scenes may well frustrate younger viewers, who expect lengthier exposition & build-up over the length of an entire season, perhaps many seasons. This is definitely 1960s storytelling, which expected its audience to read between the lines & to be comfortable with a more allegorical, symbolic style of narrative, one that owes much to then-current theater (particularly of the avant-garde & the absurd, as well as the overall explosion of creativity of the times, with its immediacy, immersion in experience, rather than the style of spoon-feeding geek minutia to the viewers that’s popular now.
Personally, I find that older, far more energetic & wild style invigorating & exciting — in many ways, it’s similar to that of a series like “The Prisoner” — a series that also dealt with identity & personal authenticity– but it won’t be for everyone, many of whom have mistakenly called it “dated.” Well, the style may be out of fashion nowadays, but the questions posed aren’t. In fact, in an increasingly faster paced, data-drenched world that requires people to run at top speed in order to simply stay in one place (a la the Red Queen), questions of one’s true place & purpose in such a world are all the more pressing … and all the less encouraged or supported.
So, while there was indeed a literal solution to the series planned, to me it’s obvious that whoever Michael Alden may have been once upon a time, the series is about his finding himself in the here & now: not who he was, but who he becomes. Who is he, really? Michael Alden & no other! And who are any of us … really? The world won’t tell us, although it tries to — we must tell ourselves.