Norman Reilly Raine's stories about Annie Brennan, the widowed captain of the tugboat "Narcissus," which appeared in The Saturday Evening Post from 1931 to 1961 (with a posthumous appearance in 1981), were some of the most popular stories the magazine published, leading to the character's depiction in three films by three different actresses -- Marie Dressler, Marjorie Rambeau, and Jane Darwell. A television series was commissioned in 1954 that took two years to develop, finally airing in Canada min 1957 with strong enough ratings to interest American television. Sadly, the show did not attract a large American audience, presumably because of its simplistic humor. (Although I remember one elderly neighbor when I was a child who thought it was one of the best things on television; he also loved the television show Life with Father, so his opinion may have to be taken with a grain of salt.)
Annie (Minerva Urecal), who had formerly skippered a garbage scow, now sails the Pacific Northwest in a ship owned b y the Severn Tugboat Company. The kind-hearted Annie seems to always find time to assist people in trouble. Her rival is fellow tugboat captain Horatio Bullwinkle (Walter Sande); throughout the 39 episodes of the series, they trade barbs and attempt to steal jobs from one another. Other regulars included Eric Clavering as Shiftless, Annie's deckhand, and Don Orlando as Pinto, Annie's cook.
"Operation Hotcake" was directed by Sam Newfield and written by Bill Freeman and Larry Rhine. I could not find an official air date for this episode but the previous episode aired on May 26, so I think it's safe to place this in June, most likely June 2.
When Pinto asks for a raise, the company fires him, so with backing from Annie and Shiftless, he opens up a diner -- Pinto's Hotcakes Haven. And the laugh tracks keep on comin'...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kYy7Ft6O3E
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