Cannonball (TV series)

Cannonball

Company type	Television series
Industry	Television production
Founded	1958 (1958)
Headquarters	Toronto , Canada
Area served	United Kingdom, Canada, United States
Products	Television drama series

Cannonball is an adventure drama television series produced collaboratively by British and Canadian companies, featuring lead performances from Paul Birch and William Campbell. The show was broadcast on CBC Television in Canada, ABC Weekend TV in the United Kingdom, and was syndicated across the United States. Production was handled by Normandie Productions alongside ITC Entertainment, with interior scenes filmed at Canadian Film Industries Limited studios in Canada and outdoor sequences captured in the vicinity of Toronto.

Significantly, Cannonball was one of the rare ITC series to air on ABC Weekend TV within the UK. Since Associated TeleVision (ATV), which owned ITC, controlled the London weekend and Midlands weekday ITV franchises, they generally retained broadcasting rights for ITC programs to show them during weekdays in the Midlands region. The series consisted of 39 episodes in black-and-white, running from October 6, 1958, through July 13, 1959.

Synopsis

The narrative centers on Mike Malone (portrayed by Paul Birch), known by his nickname Cannonball, and Jerry Austin (played by William Campbell), two truck drivers responsible for transporting freight across Canada and the United States under the fictional C&A Transport Company Ltd., headquartered in Toronto. The truck depicted is a GMC Model 950 COE (cab-over engine) diesel tractor manufactured by General Motors. The supporting cast includes Beth Lockerbie as Mary Malone, Mike's spouse; Beth Morris as Ginny Malone; Steve Barringer as Butch Malone, their children; and Howard Milsom in the role of dispatcher Harry Butler.

The concluding episode titled "Tunnel Eyes" wraps up the protagonists' journey. Austin receives an opportunity to complete his college education but struggles with leaving their business partnership behind. To enable Austin’s departure, Malone pretends to suffer from tunnel vision during his medical examination, resulting in his disqualification from driving and allowing Austin to pursue his academic ambitions.

Main cast

• Paul Birch as Cannonball Mike Malone
• William Campbell as Jerry Austin
• Beth Lockerbie as Mary Malone
• Beth Morris as Ginny Malone
• Steve Barringer as Butch Malone
• Howard Milsom as Harry Butler

Episode list

The original sequence of episode production has been lost; available episode titles are derived from air dates on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and ITV networks. Some titles may be conjectural.

• "The Runaway Truck"
• "Pills"
• "Nitro Haul"
• "Small Cargo"
• "The Big Ambulance"
• "Mark Time"
• "The Necklace"
• "Shock"
• "The Attack"
• "The Girl Reporter"
• "Butch"
• "Little Old Man"
• "Sauce for the Goose"

• "The Girl at Joe's Place"
• "Nanette"
• "Lil's Cafe"
• "The Hostage"
• "Fallout"
• "Marooned"
• "Undercover"
• "Vendetta"
• "The Has-been"
• "The Flying Dutchman"
• "Rodeo"
• "Trip to Buffalo"
• "Wild Party"

• "Driving School"
• "Eyewitness"
• "Ginny"
• "Racket"
• "Green-eyed Monster"
• "Sights on Safety"
• "Moose Hunt"
• "Big Buck"
• "Willy"
• "The Dog"
• "Snake Eyes"
• "The Iron Lung"
• "Tunnel Eyes"

Theme music

The theme for Cannonball was composed by Joseph Hooven, Marilyn Hooven, and Raoul Kraushaar. Despite IMDb attributing the theme to American country musician Merle Haggard, he was incarcerated during the show's production period and therefore unable to participate.

External links

• TV.com listing
• Classic TV Archive details
• Cannonball opening sequence
• Cannonball – Canadian Communication Foundation resource
• Queen's University CBC Television Series Directory: Cannonball
• Full episodes of Cannonball on YouTube – Featuring Paul Birch and William Campbell