To all those people that continually ask The wonderful series The Rogues has been released on DVD but only in Germany. You can obtain 20 of the 30 episodes. The picture quality is excellent and you can hear the soundtrack in English.But beware the region coding is fine for any DVD players in Europe but not USA players. This was a wonderful show with a sparkle that is missing from shows today.The whole cast was perfection itself. I have just viewed the episode Mr. White's Christmas and it was superb. A wonderful re working of Dicken's A Christmas Carol, therefore perfect Christmas viewing.I thought the 3 leads were brilliant but the series was made so special by the excellent playing of Gladys Cooper and Robert Coote in almost every episode.The Real Russian Caviar stands as a highlight of the series.
21 Reviews
What fun, what fun, and some memories.
pensman13 September 2014
Warning: Spoilers
Thank you MeTV out of Tampa for running this series. You would have to be pretty much of a senior to remember the cast but Charles Boyer, Gig Young, Robert Coote and Gladys Cooper must have had some fun together on the sets. And of course there were the short appearances of David Niven to add to the fun. I had forgotten this series that was the forerunner of Checkmate, Mission, Impossible, Hustle, Leverage, et al. Obviously everyone enjoys a show that features characters who set out to right wrongs and do so through deception and duplicity; so if you hanker for a bit of nostalgia or just want to see some old movie pros doing their thing on TV then catch this series if possible. A few years after this series Gig Young was able to pull himself together long enough to win an Oscar for They Shoot Horses, Don't They; but he acquits himself well here as Tony Fleming who seems to be the central star. Gladys Cooper may be remembered by some as Mrs. Hamilton, the old lady charmed by Cary Grant in The Bishop's Wife. David Niven may be remembered for his portrayal of Sir Charles Lytton in The Pink Panther even though he had a considerable movie career. Charles Boyer and Robert Coote, I fear, are almost forgotten by modern audiences.
Wry, Witty Series, Ahead of it's Time...
cariart10 December 2003
'The Rogues' was my favorite television series, the season it was on the air. From the opening strains of Nelson Riddle's bouncy, hummable theme, and the introductory credits of stars Charles Boyer, David Niven, Gig Young, Robert Coote, and Gladys Cooper, I would be enthralled!
Certainly the program had faults; as with most television programs of that period, the sets tended to look sparse and generic, and the 'European' locales were all done on the studio backlot (it was amazing how often the same 'Town Square' would appear!), but plot-wise, the weekly 'sting', carried out by the St. Clair/Fleming clans against some nasty villain, were a joy (Picture 'Mission Impossible' with humor), and the appearances of Young (usually), Niven (occasionally), and Boyer (rarely) made each new episode a much-anticipated 'event'.
Some of the comments posted for this show have bemoaned how shallow American audiences were, in allowing this series to be canceled after a single season, while 'The Beverly Hillbillies' would run 'forever'. While I agree that 'The Rogues' was a far better program, the fault wasn't entirely because of audience's tastes. NBC placed the series in a 'suicide' timeslot, where it competed against a long-established 'hit' (much as ABC and CBS did to series on Thursdays in the 80s and 90s, when NBC dominated the evening with 'Cosby', 'Cheers', 'Friends', and 'ER'). Also, Four Star Productions (whose bosses included Niven, Boyer, and Dick Powell) created the series around the availability of the actors, between film assignments (none of the leads wanted to commit themselves 'exclusively' to television, which was still considered a 'step down' for an actor, despite the participation of Fred MacMurray, Robert Young, Donna Reed, and Loretta Young on the small screen), and scheduling conflicts were a problem, even during the single season 'run' (which was why a young Larry Hagman appeared, in place of Gig Young, for one 'caper'). Had 'The Rogues' been a 'hit', the series would have seen major changes in casting in subsequent seasons!
There was a loyal fan base for the series during it's run; the summer after it's cancellation, Gig Young toured the country in a 'road' production of 'The Music Man', which I had the good fortune to see. At one point in the show, a character pointed at 'Professor' Harold Hill (Young), and sputtered, "You...you...ROGUE!", which literally brought the house down, and caused Young to break character, momentarily, to take a bow, and flash his famous crooked grin. After the performance, I had an opportunity to meet the actor (whose later life would include an Oscar for THEY SHOOT HORSES, DON'T THEY?, yet, ultimately, end in tragedy, when, in a fit of depression, he would murder his wife, then commit suicide, in 1978), and Young expressed amazement at how popular the series was, and how gratifying the audience response to the 'Rogue' line was, each performance.
'The Rogues' had a glorious 'moment in the sun', and will always be cherished by those of us who loved it!
Certainly the program had faults; as with most television programs of that period, the sets tended to look sparse and generic, and the 'European' locales were all done on the studio backlot (it was amazing how often the same 'Town Square' would appear!), but plot-wise, the weekly 'sting', carried out by the St. Clair/Fleming clans against some nasty villain, were a joy (Picture 'Mission Impossible' with humor), and the appearances of Young (usually), Niven (occasionally), and Boyer (rarely) made each new episode a much-anticipated 'event'.
Some of the comments posted for this show have bemoaned how shallow American audiences were, in allowing this series to be canceled after a single season, while 'The Beverly Hillbillies' would run 'forever'. While I agree that 'The Rogues' was a far better program, the fault wasn't entirely because of audience's tastes. NBC placed the series in a 'suicide' timeslot, where it competed against a long-established 'hit' (much as ABC and CBS did to series on Thursdays in the 80s and 90s, when NBC dominated the evening with 'Cosby', 'Cheers', 'Friends', and 'ER'). Also, Four Star Productions (whose bosses included Niven, Boyer, and Dick Powell) created the series around the availability of the actors, between film assignments (none of the leads wanted to commit themselves 'exclusively' to television, which was still considered a 'step down' for an actor, despite the participation of Fred MacMurray, Robert Young, Donna Reed, and Loretta Young on the small screen), and scheduling conflicts were a problem, even during the single season 'run' (which was why a young Larry Hagman appeared, in place of Gig Young, for one 'caper'). Had 'The Rogues' been a 'hit', the series would have seen major changes in casting in subsequent seasons!
There was a loyal fan base for the series during it's run; the summer after it's cancellation, Gig Young toured the country in a 'road' production of 'The Music Man', which I had the good fortune to see. At one point in the show, a character pointed at 'Professor' Harold Hill (Young), and sputtered, "You...you...ROGUE!", which literally brought the house down, and caused Young to break character, momentarily, to take a bow, and flash his famous crooked grin. After the performance, I had an opportunity to meet the actor (whose later life would include an Oscar for THEY SHOOT HORSES, DON'T THEY?, yet, ultimately, end in tragedy, when, in a fit of depression, he would murder his wife, then commit suicide, in 1978), and Young expressed amazement at how popular the series was, and how gratifying the audience response to the 'Rogue' line was, each performance.
'The Rogues' had a glorious 'moment in the sun', and will always be cherished by those of us who loved it!
Cheering for The Rogues
adevrx14 March 2009
I have been looking for DVD's of The Rogues for several years now. I am happy to hear that at least someone has begun the process of making them available but only in Europe - I assume in PAL format. What a shame it's not available in the US. Hopefully the light will dawn that a small bit of money could be made by releasing the series US format. It was one of the truly great series broadcast during a time when prime time TV was not 90% mindless junk. Please someone bring back a most memorable series which featured imaginative writing and excellent acting. I would add in order to have the requisite number of lines that I suspect there are a great number of people who would jump from the woodwork to buy or rent The Rogues DVDs
A Wonderful Show-- compare to "Leverage" and 'The Persuaders"
zink-paul5 April 2009
This show was too short-lived, yet has always stuck in my memory as a rare treat and a wonderful example of some of the great TV shows that flourished in the 1960s. Urbane, witty, whimsical and well-acted by top drawer veterans like Charles Boyer and Dame Gladys Cooper, "The Rogues" pioneered the "crooks as good guys" formula later used by The Persuaders (Roger Moore, Tony Curtis) and currently "Leverage" (Timothy Hutton & Jane Alexander) on TNT. One can only imagine if this show could have been produced today with the 1960s restrictions on plot and language removed.. Could some kindly producer PLEASE bring this show to DVD?????????!!! Please?
Why isn't this gem on DVD?
joebacon112 June 2008
Start with three popular actors, add in a classy supporting cast and then a lot of sparkling witty dialogue. Sadly, NBC in its infinite wisdom places this show in a suicide slot Sunday nights at 10 against ABC's Sunday Night Movie and CBS's Candid Camera and What's My Line. Even with Bonanza as a lead in, it didn't get the ratings needed to keep it on the air for more than one season, and that was very sad. I can remember a couple of episodes including David Niven fleecing Walter Matthau out of a million, yet giving it away to Dina Merrill's lady in distress. Gig Young coming to the aid of his pal by selling a Michael Millken type a company that he didn't own or Charles Boyer creating a diamond-making machine out of spare parts and selling the "secret formula" to a sleazy James Gregory. TV Land showed only a couple of the episodes years ago, I just wished they would have shown them all! It was a real class act, and it was a shame that this was the last try that Niven and Boyer did with a series. It was magic. PLEASE! Whomever has the rights to this, let it come out on DVD!
When can we see it?
wvmcl18 May 2006
As the comments indicate, a terrific show. But has anyone under the age of 50 seen it? I don't think it has ever been released on video or DVD or shown on US cable channels. I happened to catch a few episodes on a European cable channel in the late 90s, and it was just as good as I remembered it.
Considering all of the lame nonsense being released on DVD, surely they could bring this one out. There were actually about 30 episodes made, which is almost two seasons worth in today's terms.
(Why do we have to put in ten lines of text? Is IMDb trying to encourage verbosity?)
Considering all of the lame nonsense being released on DVD, surely they could bring this one out. There were actually about 30 episodes made, which is almost two seasons worth in today's terms.
(Why do we have to put in ten lines of text? Is IMDb trying to encourage verbosity?)
Ahead of its time...
gerbabys26 June 2006
This show was too advanced,i.e. sophisticated for the viewer in 1964-65 ? I was eighteen years old at the time. Here we are forty some years later and I for some reason still remember this Sunday night ...I was playing in a band in Rochester N.Y. we were "the" band of the time,doing all Beatles tunes. It was a hot summer night with a terrific thunder storm we were performing at a bar on the waterfront of Lake Ontario.Between every set I would go to the back room and watch the "Rogues" I remember a huge thunderbolt hitting a tree right outside the door of the saloon and the TV went off...Just a fond memory of my youth and that particular Sunday night. The feel of the show has been imitated ad nauseum ... I have wondered what happened to the film and if it would ever go into syndication.If anyone knows who has the rights to the Rogues please let me know.
A bit of irony here,I moved to Los Angles in 1967 and was a musical staff writer for Four Star which was owned by David Nivin and Charles Boyer( Dick Powell,Ida Lapino ) who were the producers of the Rogues. Lastly,it is difficult to comprehend the fact that three of the stars took their own lives.( Charles Boyer,Gig Young.? )Quelle Tragedy ...
A bit of irony here,I moved to Los Angles in 1967 and was a musical staff writer for Four Star which was owned by David Nivin and Charles Boyer( Dick Powell,Ida Lapino ) who were the producers of the Rogues. Lastly,it is difficult to comprehend the fact that three of the stars took their own lives.( Charles Boyer,Gig Young.? )Quelle Tragedy ...
One of the best Con-artist shows ever
higgins-gord16 January 2009
I was 16 -17 years old when this show aired on T.V. We (5 others) had a Rouges fan club. It was a poker night, but we stopped playing cards for The Rouges.
There were so many great actors in this show, T.V. series, that went on to fame. And some old ones that still showed how great acting is all about. The characters played by St. Clair, Fleming, Charles Boyer, Robert Coote and Gladys Cooper were superb.
It was the best con artist show I have ever seen, even to this day. I would love to see it again, re-aired or on DVD or video. Thanks for this Great Web-Site.
There were so many great actors in this show, T.V. series, that went on to fame. And some old ones that still showed how great acting is all about. The characters played by St. Clair, Fleming, Charles Boyer, Robert Coote and Gladys Cooper were superb.
It was the best con artist show I have ever seen, even to this day. I would love to see it again, re-aired or on DVD or video. Thanks for this Great Web-Site.
The Rouges
jl_rnc10 October 2008
Where even today can their ever be a gathering of such true Hollywood Stars as these, It was at at time they were still stars and still at the top of box office, " Round the World in 80 Days" "Wuthering Heights", "Please Don't Eat The Daisys" well ay got to love him David Niven Oh my gosh on a T.V show before his book before Pink Panther. Charles Boyer from "Gaslight" the classic. Gig Young " Teachers Pet" "They Shoot Horses Don't They ? " his Academy Award he didn't realize how good was he and proves depression is , was a serious problem, glad there was no Tom Cruise then.
And Gladys Cooper name a movie that forever will be known and there she is right dab in the center. "Bishop's Wife", " My Fair Lady "," Separate Tables". Doing the tube and in your home On Wednesday nights. And they where well written true the sets had there limits, I wonder what their salaries were ? Maybe that's why the sets were on the Salvation Army side of the street.
If anyone ever finds out that some very intelligent person who found the master film of these and decided to make DVD's contact me PLease!! I'll make the Popcorn.
And Gladys Cooper name a movie that forever will be known and there she is right dab in the center. "Bishop's Wife", " My Fair Lady "," Separate Tables". Doing the tube and in your home On Wednesday nights. And they where well written true the sets had there limits, I wonder what their salaries were ? Maybe that's why the sets were on the Salvation Army side of the street.
If anyone ever finds out that some very intelligent person who found the master film of these and decided to make DVD's contact me PLease!! I'll make the Popcorn.
Witty, wonderful, wry, well-acted comedy series
zinkster5 July 2003
The Rogues was one of the best comedy series ever to appear on US television, being a blend (in spirit) of a good Blake Edwards comedy film, "The Avengers," and any number of David Niven's 1950s comedies ("Bedtime Story" with Marlon Brando of course comes to mind). It's a great shame we can't have TV like this today, with actors the caliber of Charles Boyer, David Niven and Dame Gladys Cooper, supported by the fine skills of Gig Young and the always fine John Williams. The only series later to attempt a simulation of the jet-setting, witty skulduggery of "The Rogues" was perhaps "The Persuaders" (Roger Moore, Tony Curtis). It's a great disappointment that as of this revised comment (December 2005) this fine series isn't even available on VHS, let alone DVD. If you ever have a chance to see it in rerun somewhere, don't miss it.
Should be seen again!
mrwahl8 August 2023
This short-lived series appeared as a summer replacement, I believe, on Sunday night just before "Bonanza." It was sophisticated and delightful, and just too good for families watching "Wonderful World of Disney" and other Sunday night fare. I'd absolutely love to see it again. Very much similar to "The Pink Panther" - elegant international cast, doings of the rich folk....which made it fascinating viewing for us peasants! It must have been an expensive series to produce, with its top-drawer stars, gorgeous sets, pricey cars and glamourous wardrobe. I was only 11 when it appeared. That was an era of Euro-centered comedies. Andi t appeared only weeks after a new musical quartet from England appeared on the "Ed Sullivan Show."
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I would love to see the Rogues one more time.
robertfarrell13 January 2006
My brothers and I used to watch this show religiously during it's one and only season on the air. The three of us still consider it our favorite television show of all time. Does anyone even have a clue as to who one would beg to release this show onto DVD? Does it ever appear anymore on television? I consider this show to have had more top acting talent then any other show I can think of. I'm not sure there is even a close second. All three stars-- Charles Boyer, Gig Young, and David Niven were highly successful screen actors--Academy Award caliber performers. Most contemporary TV shows don't have even one established big screen star. The supporting cast alone would have made a great show.
It should have gone on for years!
AlAnn17 July 2001
This was one of our favorite shows during the one brief season it was on. I've taken every opportunity to watch reruns, but they are almost never available. I would watch every episode many times over again, and hope to be able to at some time. The writing was clever and sharply witty, delivered by actors who knew exactly how to speak the lines and how to fit their expressions and actions to the words. I could take each one and say his or her performance was priceless. It's sad that it did not receive the audience in the U.S. to keep it running for many seasons.
What a loss when this series was cancelled.
smyrna-38 August 2002
This was a great series. I was so disappointed when it canceled so prematurely. There just is no accounting for American tastes (the Osbournes, etc.). Anyways, I'd enjoy watching them again.. altho it occurs to me that in so doing I might have to relive my disappointment over the limited number of episodes. Oh well..
A series that failed to get an audience
theowinthrop15 December 2004
David Niven and Charles Boyer were two of the stars who formed FOUR STARS in the 1950s, and did many television programs as stars or producers. THE ROGUES was to be a series for them and Gig Young to alternate the leading role each week as the hero/anti-hero of the episode. Gig Young joined them to do the episodes, but as time passed he was the lead in most of the episodes (occasionally Boyer would appear). Larry Hagman (not yet on I DREAM OF JEANNIE, and decades from DALLAS and "J.R.Ewing") substituted for Young on several later episodes. And Dame Gladys Cooper and Robert Coote rounded out the family of regulars - the Fleming/St.Claire clan - who took on the greedy and cruel of the world.
They had great villains: Walter Matthau (before his "Whiplash Willy" performance catapulted him to stardom), George Sanders, John McGiver, Robert Webber, Everett Sloane, Telly Savalas (before THE DIRTY DOZEN and before he discovered lollipops in Kojack), J.D.Cannon, and others. In every episode the clan would manipulate the antagonist at his weak spot and remove a sizable amount of his (occasionally her) cash. Webber is a pretentious sex-magazine publisher (actually it is not fair to Bob Guiccione or Hugh Hefner to compare him to them - they have more class), who they convince to buy the original "Shakespearean" manuscript of THE AWFUL TRAGEDY OF KING HAROLD THE FAIR. It is neatly denounced as a forgery by Shakespearean critic and expert John Abbott at the episode's end.
Sanders is left with the ruins of his couturier business (based on stolen fashion ideas) when he is manipulated into cornering the marabou market. Before he does he has a choice moment of near apoplexy dealing with a call from an hysterical woman (Dame Gladys, trying to slow down Sanders for the plot) demanding he produce her philandering husband "Harry". Sanders ends up telling her he fully sympathizes with "Harry" for his philandering before slamming the phone down. Coote scares the hell out of selfish Horatio T. White (John McGiver), shipping tycoon, by dressing up as McGiver's dead partner appearing at a window on a stormy night. Young tells a corrupt Arab sheik that he has the weapons he ordered (and gives the "ace of spades" as his calling card. The sheik turns red in the face claiming he has no knowledge of the man. The memories of the bits from the shows warm me...I wish the shows would be revived one day. Or put on DVD
They had great villains: Walter Matthau (before his "Whiplash Willy" performance catapulted him to stardom), George Sanders, John McGiver, Robert Webber, Everett Sloane, Telly Savalas (before THE DIRTY DOZEN and before he discovered lollipops in Kojack), J.D.Cannon, and others. In every episode the clan would manipulate the antagonist at his weak spot and remove a sizable amount of his (occasionally her) cash. Webber is a pretentious sex-magazine publisher (actually it is not fair to Bob Guiccione or Hugh Hefner to compare him to them - they have more class), who they convince to buy the original "Shakespearean" manuscript of THE AWFUL TRAGEDY OF KING HAROLD THE FAIR. It is neatly denounced as a forgery by Shakespearean critic and expert John Abbott at the episode's end.
Sanders is left with the ruins of his couturier business (based on stolen fashion ideas) when he is manipulated into cornering the marabou market. Before he does he has a choice moment of near apoplexy dealing with a call from an hysterical woman (Dame Gladys, trying to slow down Sanders for the plot) demanding he produce her philandering husband "Harry". Sanders ends up telling her he fully sympathizes with "Harry" for his philandering before slamming the phone down. Coote scares the hell out of selfish Horatio T. White (John McGiver), shipping tycoon, by dressing up as McGiver's dead partner appearing at a window on a stormy night. Young tells a corrupt Arab sheik that he has the weapons he ordered (and gives the "ace of spades" as his calling card. The sheik turns red in the face claiming he has no knowledge of the man. The memories of the bits from the shows warm me...I wish the shows would be revived one day. Or put on DVD
too good to last
rupie22 February 2000
Obviously a show as deliciously witty and as sparklingly clever as this, with such a magnificent cast - David Niven, Gladys Cooper, Charles Boyer, Robert Coote, Gig Young, Larry Hagman, and John Williams - was too good for the tastes of the American public. It lasted just one season. On the other hand, the execrable "Beverly Hillbillies" - a more accurate barometer of the American public's sense of humor - marched on in glory for nine tedious years.
Just the perfect group
bss-38 August 2000
No kidding!
ldyrynn24 March 2006
I saw this series as a preteen and agree with the previous reviewer -- it was wonderful! With such suave men as David Niven and Gig Young, how could it fail. My mother was British, so perhaps my sense of humor was a bit perverse, but then, look at the success of Monty Python! I'd love to know where you can find this for purchase or to watch in syndication.
If you're a fan of great comedy, this is definitely the series for you. Too bad the American audience didn't see it that way. I'm pretty sure most (or all) of the primary characters are gone now, alas, so this will be a lesson for some in 'when actors were really actors.'
If you're a fan of great comedy, this is definitely the series for you. Too bad the American audience didn't see it that way. I'm pretty sure most (or all) of the primary characters are gone now, alas, so this will be a lesson for some in 'when actors were really actors.'
Some 'euroscenes' were actually filmed in Europe
attrebates23 November 2006
Just a brief, if delayed comment on 'Euroscenes being filmed in a back lot'. I do remember the series and in one episode a 'castle on a bald hill' was featured. The 'castle on a bald hill' IS the remains of a real castle that Oliver Cromwell knocked about a bit and it's near my home town. The episode featured a car chase around the back streets of Newbury in the Royal County of Berkshire (pronounced "BARKSHURE") in good old England. It will be familiar to any service person who has been stationed at RAF Greenham Common.
Local knowledge detracted from the car chase as vehicles went up one way streets the wrong way and made impossible jumps in continuity. Nevertheless an excellent series,and as you say well ahead of it's time.
Local knowledge detracted from the car chase as vehicles went up one way streets the wrong way and made impossible jumps in continuity. Nevertheless an excellent series,and as you say well ahead of it's time.
This was a short lived classic.
KEITH-LANCASTER16 November 2002
The very fact that this excellent series did`nt last long is a testimony to the FACT that the North Americans (the T.V. addicts) are somewhat lacking in mental stability. I`ve always been of the opinion that it is possible to estimate a persons intellect by their choice of entertainment. Some of the trash prefered strongly underlines this conclusion. Mr. Ruplenas made a more than apt comment when he mentioned the popularity of The Beverly Hillbillies ( an execrable series to say the least). The line up of stars and the diversity of the plots in The Rogues should have ensured longevity for this series, unfortunately for the viewers who like class , it did`nt.
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