Inspiration for "The Adventures of Pine Knot"

(Click little triangle above for theme song)

Adventures In Paradise - Words by Dorcas Cochran, Music by Lionel Newman

I have known adventures in paradise I followed a dream to many a shore All alone in harbors of pearl and spice I searched for a face A face to adore While the tender stars high in the blue Made love to the night I have begged the stars to lead me To that one lovely shore called “Evermore” Then you walked into my paradise And my happy heart adventures no more                                         ***

Before starting this weblog, I racked my brain trying to remember exactly what might have sparked my interest in boating; just why is boating something I always felt I was meant to do.

I couldn't come up with it and had about given up on discovering the reason. Some time later, I ran across a website about 1950's TV shows.  The writer mentioned the old series "Adventures in Paradise."  When I read that name, the theme song began playing in my mind just as clearly as when I first heard it as a six-year-old back in 1959. (And just as clearly as you hear it, no doubt, if you clicked on the little triangle as instructed.)  I now believe that show, "Adventures in Paradise," planted the seed in my brain for the future "Adventures of Pine Knot." 

Set in the South Pacific, but filmed on the back-lot of 20th Century-Fox, "Adventures in Paradise" starred a little-known actor Gardner McKay.  His character, Captain Adam Troy was an American Korean War veteran who carried cargo and passengers from port to port aboard his schooner "Tiki."  The scripts were a bit cheesy, but good enough for a three year run and 91 episodes on ABC.

[Captain Adam Troy and the Debonair-Yet-Sinister Vincent Price]

[Captain Troy on the bowsprit of the Tiki]

The handsome sea captain, the alluring native girls, the exotic locations, and the hauntingly beautiful theme made a lasting impression on me.  I wonder if other baby boomers have been drawn to the seas by "Adventures in Paradise."

There is a warning here:  Be careful what your kids watch on TV!

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Gardner McKay died in 2001 at the age of 69.

[Click tombstone for a larger view]

See this website for everything you might want to know about "Adventures in Paradise."