Ben Casey
The Big Trouble with Charlie
TV Flash files “The Big Trouble with Charlie” as hour 17 of 153 in the TV Flash guide — Ben Casey (1961–1966) on ABC, season 1, episode 17, aired 1962-01-29, 60 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S01E17: listed hour 17 of 153 in the Ben Casey guide, hour 17 of 32 in season 1. It aired 1962-01-29 (60 min). The listed hour before it is “A Story to Be Softly Told” (S01E16). Next is “Give My Hands an Epitaph” (S01E18).
Viewer FAQ
Where does The Big Trouble with Charlie sit in the Ben Casey guide?
S01E17 is listed hour 17 of 153 — hour 17 of 32 in season 1, season 1 episode 17.
When did Ben Casey S01E17 air?
The Big Trouble with Charlie aired 1962-01-29 and is listed at 60 minutes.
Where should I start?
The chalkboard creed is the cold open you want: then Edwards's Casey under Jaffe's Zorba on a surgical-stakes hour. Intensity is the brand.
In the series
Why this series still plays
Ben Casey is the grim twin of Kildare: Vince Edwards's intense neurosurgeon, Sam Jaffe's Dr. Zorba, and that chalkboard creed — man, woman, birth, death, infinity. ABC wanted adult hospital drama, not just bedside charm. The starker medical hour of the early sixties, when a brooding lead and surgical stakes sold as seriousness.
The look is a chalkboard creed before a white coat: man, woman, birth, death, infinity. *Hospital corridor as moral arena, no magazine smile, surgical stakes as the silhouette.* Ben Casey is the grim twin of Kildare — Vince Edwards's intense neurosurgeon, Sam Jaffe's Dr. Zorba, Bettye Ackerman's Dr. Maggie Graham in the orbit. James Moser's ABC medical drama (1961–1966; five seasons) wanted adult hospital drama, not bedside charm. **This was not intern couture; this was a staring contest in scrubs.**
Filed against
- Vince Edwards as Dr. Ben Casey
Vince Edwards’s Dr. Ben Casey was the grim twin of bedside charm — intense neurosurgeon, Sam Jaffe’s Dr. Zorba, the chalkboard creed of man, woman, birth, death, infinity. ABC wanted adult hospital drama, not just a smile in scrubs. TV…
- Sam Jaffe as Dr. David Zorba
Sam Jaffe's Dr. David Zorba chalked Ben Casey as the grim twin of Kildare — Vince Edwards's intense neurosurgeon, the creed of man, woman, birth, death, infinity. ABC wanted adult hospital drama, not just bedside charm. TV Flash files him…
- Bettye Ackerman as Dr. Maggie Graham
Bettye Ackerman’s Dr. Maggie Graham walked Ben Casey as the grim twin of Kildare — Vince Edwards’s intense neurosurgeon, Sam Jaffe’s Dr. Zorba, the chalkboard creed of man, woman, birth, death, infinity. ABC wanting adult hospital drama,…