Burns, you see, had produced an early pilot for what would become Mister Ed, but his 1958 pilot, A Day in The Life of Wilbur Pope, with Scott McKay in the title role, didn't sell. Allan "Rocky" Lane voiced Ed here, too. Scope.
Edit, 12/11/2020: The video has been deleted. In its place is a screencap of Mister Ed:
Filmways co-produced the pilot, then made a few tweaks, including changing the human lead to Wilbur Post (played by Alan Young), and the rest is history.
No rating.
No rating.
Actually, George Burns didn't lose anything here: the Filmways deal was a partnership, in which Burns maintained equity for the whole of Mister Ed's TV run.
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It was George Burns who personally picked Alan Young for the part of Wilbur Post.
Burns's quote at the time: "He looks like someone a horse would talk to."
(Confirmed by a couple of books about the series.)
The things you learn. Thanks, Mike.
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