Introduction

McHale’s Navy is an American sitcom starring Ernest Borgnine that aired 138 half-hour episodes over four seasons, from 11 October 1962 to 12 April 1966 on the ABC television network.

The series was filmed in black and white and originated from a one-hour drama titled “Seven Against the Sea”, broadcast on 03 April 1962. The ABC series spawned three feature films: McHale’s Navy (1964); a sequel, McHale’s Navy Joins the Air Force (1965); and a 1997 sequel-remake of the original series. A documentary, McHale’s Navy: The Crew Remembers, was aired in 2007.

Producer Edward Montagne set up a female version of McHale’s Navy entitled Broadside, which ran for 32 episodes in the 1964-1965 ABC season.

Background

Washington insider, Frank Templeton (Stanley Adams), is making a visit to Italy to see how the war effort is advancing. Mr. Templeton is a political big-wig with a reputation for turning war heroes into politicians. Binghamton is thinking about running for Congress if he can get the backing of Mr. Templeton. Binghamton must quickly change from a “desk jockey” into a fearless, battle-hardened commander in order to try to become the boss’s next project after the war. So he becomes part of PT 73 crew and goes out hunting for Germans. When no Germans can be found, Binghamton blackmails the boys into staging a German ambush. His plan backfires when an army unit captures the crew in their German uniforms.

McHale’s Navy Series

You can find a full index and overview of McHale’s Navy here.

Production & Filming Details

• Release Date: 12 April 1966.
• Rating: TV-PG/TV-G.
• Running Time: 60 minutes.
• Country: US.
• Language: English.

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