The Thin Man (TV series) The Thin Man (TV series) The Thin Man is a half-hour weekly television series based on the mystery novel "The Thin Man" (1933) by Dashiell Hammett. The 72 episodes were produced by MGM Television and broadcast by NBC for two seasons from 1957–1959 on Friday evening. It was the first TV series produced by MGM. The series starred Peter Lawford and Phyllis Kirk as Nick and Nora Charles. The dog, Asta, was played by three identical wire-hair terriers. Jack Albertson, Patricia Donahue, and Nita Talbot had recurring roles during the show's second season. Albertson played Lieutenant Harry Evans of the
The Thin Man Hammett's papers in 2011, together with instructions by Hammett for incorporation of additional elements written by screenwriters Albert Hackett and Frances Goodrich, were edited by Hammett's biographer Richard Layman in collaboration with Hammett's granddaughter Julie M. Rivett and published as novellas in "Return of the Thin Man" in 2012. The story is set in New York City in December 1932, in the last days of Prohibition. The main characters are a former private detective, Nick Charles and Nora his clever young wife. Nick, son of a Greek immigrant, has given up his career since marrying Nora, a wealthy socialite and