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 USS
Appleby
- Naval destroyer on the military comedy ENSIGN
O'TOOLE/NBC/ABC/1962-64. Its peacetime crew members included Ensign
O'Toole (Dean Jones), who was an expert at avoiding work; the
cantankerous Chief Petty Officer Homer Nelson (Jay C. Flippen); vain Supply Officer Lt.
(j.g.) Rex St. John (Jack Mullaney); Executive
Officer Lt. Cmd. Virgil Stoner (Jack Albertson) who delivered orders
from the ship's unseen Captain (only heard over speakers); Seaman Howard
Spicer (Beau Bridges); Seaman Claude White (Bob Sorrells); and
Seaman Gabby Di Julio (Harvey Lembeck).
During its tour of duty, the USS Appleby found its way to such
exotic locations as Hong Kong, Korea, the Arctic, San Diego, and, of
course, the South Pacific.
On one such South Pacific Island, the crew of the Appleby found
four stranded soldiers (two American, two Japanese) who were still
fighting World War II.
While in Korea, Ensign O'Toole and the crew put on the "Foster
Father's Follies" to raise money to adopt Korean orphans. The
Singing Kim Sisters provided the entertainment.
And when in Hong Kong, Ensign O'Toole volunteered to help Scotland
Yard find a jewel thief by going undercover.
One of O'Toole's best shenanigans dealt with an antique Model T
automobile found on a French island in the South Pacific. Looking to
make a quick profit, O'Toole disassembled the car and smuggled it
onboard ship with the help of his crew. Unfortunately, just about
the time O'Toole was to connect with a car collector in California,
an Admiral with a love for old cars foils his plan.
On a day-to-day basis, O'Toole's duties onboard ship might entail
forging leave papers for a crewman so he could travel to see his
pregnant wife; learning there was a young girl stowed away on
onboard; nursing crewman Seaman DiJulio when he got the measles;
helping Seaman Mason control his weight before he gets shipped out
of the navy; taking bets on the outcome of a mystery film when the
last reel of the film turned up missing; or taking orders from a
visiting dignitary like Prince Pussik of Tiboria, a pushy, 12 year
old who turns out to be the Grand Admiral of the Tiborian Navy.
On the lighter side, O'Toole tried to solve the mystery of why
somebody would send him a dress while in port in Washington, DC. The
unsolicited gift inspired lots of ribbing from his fellow crew
members. Eventually, O'Toole learned the dress was actually for a
female naval officer with the same name assigned to the same
installation.
TRIVIA NOTE: The
ship used as the USS Appleby was in reality the USS Frank E Evans
(DD754). It was launched October 3 1944 and commissioned February 3
1945. The USS Evans was cut in half June 3, 1969 in a collision with
the Australian aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne. The ship's bow and
stern sections were sunk as targets in Subic Bay October 10 1969.
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