McHale's Navy

Ernest Borgnine first played Quinton McHale in a serious hour-long PT boat drama called 'Seven Against the Sea,' broadcast in 1962 as part of the Alcoa Premiere anthology series, which is considered the pilot for the sitcom despite its much darker tone.

According to Borgnine, the original pilot was actually meant as a vehicle for actor Ron Foster, who was to be signed to a contract with Universal Pictures, but that deal fell through.

Producer Jennings Lang said the idea for a half-hour PT boat comedy was inspired by the 1953 film Destination Gobi, whose lead character, played by Richard Widmark, was already named McHale.

Producer Edward Montagne, who had previously worked on The Phil Silvers Show (Sergeant Bilko), transformed the dramatic pilot into a 'Bilko in the Navy' style sitcom and recruited several Sergeant Bilko actors and writers for the series.

The series aired during the same period that President John F. Kennedy's wartime service as commander of PT-109 was widely publicized, and the show's episode 'Send Us A Hero' directly referenced PT-109.

Ernest Borgnine played a dual role in two episodes as McHale's lookalike Italian-speaking cousin Giuseppe, drawing on the fact that both of Borgnine's own parents were Italian immigrants.

Tim Conway's character Ensign Parker also hails from Chagrin Falls, Ohio, the actor's own hometown.

The Pacific Ocean naval base set was built on the Universal Studios back lot and remained a popular attraction on the studio tour for years after the show ended, with the lagoon later reused for the Jaws shark attack segment of the tour.

Because almost no real World War II PT boats survived, the production had to use three different vessels to portray PT-73: a converted Vosper motor torpedo boat originally built for the Soviet Union (bought by Howard Hughes as a chase boat for his Spruce Goose flight before Universal purchased it) for sea shots, plus two reconfigured 63-foot air-sea rescue boats for studio use.

The boats used for PT-73 took significant liberties with historical accuracy, including mismatched gun turrets, an anachronistic pseudo-radar mast, and mock torpedo tubes that did not match the real Vosper configuration.

The series ended in 1966 after four seasons due to declining ratings and increasingly repetitive storylines.