8.0/1033 votes#1 - The Taste of Ashes
Season 1 Episode 1 - Aired 10/5/1959
A New Orleans private eye searches for the killers of his partner and turns to a local police officer for help bringing the murderers to justice.
Director: Leslie H. Martinson
Writer: Charles Hoffman
7.7/1019 votes#2 - The Mourning Cloak
Season 1 Episode 2 - Aired 10/12/1959
Rex and Melody Lee go to the decrepit Cavanagh plantation to investigate ghostly appearances that are driving a woman insane.
Director: James V. Kern
Writer: Sig Herzig
- 8.2/1021 votes
#3 - Torch Song for Trumpet
Season 1 Episode 3 - Aired 10/19/1959
Cal takes on a murder case to prove a hot-tempered ex-con didn't beat his boss to death with a trumpet.
Director: Leslie H. Martinson
Writer: James Barnett
- 8.5/1022 votes
#4 - Woman in the River
Season 1 Episode 4 - Aired 10/26/1959
Rex and Cal investigate a disappearance in a wealthy New Orleans family.
Director: William J. Hole Jr.
Writer: N/A
- 7.8/1017 votes
#5 - Girl in Trouble
Season 1 Episode 5 - Aired 11/2/1959
Cal sets out to prove a friend is innocent of murder and investigates a gangland killing.
Director: Reginald Le Borg
Writer: N/A
- 7.5/1015 votes
#6 - The Tiger Moth
Season 1 Episode 6 - Aired 11/9/1959
The investigators look into the apparent suicide of a jazz musician.
Director: James V. Kern
Writer: N/A
- 7.9/1017 votes
#7 - Secret of Hyacinth Bayou
Season 1 Episode 7 - Aired 11/16/1959
Cal becomes entangled in a blackmail/murder plot when he is savagely beaten and framed for murder by an old swamp-dweller hiding a secret.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 8.3/1017 votes
#8 - Invitation to a Murder
Season 1 Episode 8 - Aired 11/23/1959
Rex is invited to witness a murder by an enigmatic killer who switches victims and leaves the detectives trying to sort out a houseful of straying wives, night club operators, newsmen, and other New Orleans characters, each with a motive for the murder.
Director: Reginald Le Borg
Writer: Stephen Lord
- 8.0/1017 votes
#9 - Mrs. Viner Vanishes
Season 1 Episode 9 - Aired 11/30/1959
Hired to find a missing wife, Cal soon becomes caught up in a deadly game of hide-and-seek.
Director: Paul Henreid
Writer: N/A
- 7.4/1015 votes
#10 - Light Touch of Terror
Season 1 Episode 10 - Aired 12/7/1959
Kenny is convinced that a notorius New Orleans killer, the Axeman, has returned when a similar killing occurs.
Director: William J. Hole Jr., Leslie H. Martinson
Writer: N/A
- 7.7/1015 votes
#11 - The Golden Beetle
Season 1 Episode 11 - Aired 12/14/1959
A missing man, a stolen talisman and some vanished letters are all connected as the detectives search for answers and find pirate treasure.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 8.2/1019 votes
#12 - The Black Magnolia
Season 1 Episode 12 - Aired 12/21/1959
Cal uncovers a family's skeletons when he searches for a missing fortune and a secret killer.
Director: Reginald Le Borg
Writer: Earl Baldwin
- 9.1/1016 votes
#13 - Portrait of Lenore
Season 1 Episode 13 - Aired 12/28/1959
Rex searches for a stolen painting, becoming involved in a missing persons case and a murder.
Director: Robert Gordon
Writer: N/A
- 7.4/1011 votes
#14 - Kill with Kindness
Season 1 Episode 14 - Aired 1/4/1960
Cal poses as a handyman at a mansion to discover who's trying to poison a humanitarian.
Director: William J. Hole Jr.
Writer: N/A
- 7.9/1013 votes
#15 - Inside Man
Season 1 Episode 15 - Aired 1/11/1960
Rex goes undercover in a prison gang and joins a prison break.
Director: Leslie H. Martinson
Writer: Howard Browne
- 8.5/1016 votes
#16 - Find My Face
Season 1 Episode 16 - Aired 1/18/1960
Rex and Cal try to identify an accident victim, who refuses to accept his wife and doctor's assurances that he's a wealthy executive and instead claims to be someone else entirely.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 7.5/1015 votes
#17 - Knock on Any Tombstone
Season 1 Episode 17 - Aired 1/25/1960
Rex tangles with voodoo when he searches for the person using the New Orleans religion against a client's father.
Director: William J. Hole Jr.
Writer: N/A
- 7.6/1011 votes
#18 - Key to the City
Season 1 Episode 18 - Aired 2/1/1960
Cal and Kenny search for killers aboard a riverboat bound for New Orleans.
Director: James V. Kern
Writer: Robert C. Dennis, James Barnett
- 8.7/1014 votes
#19 - The 10% Blues
Season 1 Episode 19 - Aired 2/8/1960
Cal and Rex go up against imported killers to find the elusive power behind a talent agency using gangster tactics to get clients.
Director: William J. Hole Jr.
Writer: Dick Nelson
- 7.6/1011 votes
#20 - Melody in Diamonds
Season 1 Episode 20 - Aired 2/15/1960
Melody is targeted by a con artist when she borrows a valuable necklace for Mardi Gras.
Director: James V. Kern
Writer: N/A
- 8.1/1012 votes
#21 - The House of Ledezan
Season 1 Episode 21 - Aired 2/22/1960
Rex is hired to prove an heiress innocent of her father's murder.
Director: William J. Hole Jr.
Writer: N/A
- 8.4/1017 votes
#22 - Target of Hate
Season 1 Episode 22 - Aired 3/7/1960
An assassin uses Rex and Cal's office to set up a political killing. Trapped, the detectives try to goad the killer into a confession that could turn his crony against him.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 8.2/1014 votes
#23 - The Missing Queen
Season 1 Episode 23 - Aired 3/14/1960
Cal searches for a missing beauty contestant.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 8.1/1014 votes
#24 - Neon Nightmare
Season 1 Episode 24 - Aired 3/21/1960
Cal is hired to break up a political gang with a stranglehold on a small town, but must end his partnership with Rex to avoid suspicion.
Director: William J. Hole Jr.
Writer: Dean Riesner
- 8.4/1012 votes
#25 - Wall of Silence
Season 1 Episode 25 - Aired 3/28/1960
Investigating a client's suspicious suicide leads Rex to a strange island under the sway of a mysterious blackmailer.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
The Best Episodes of Bourbon Street Beat Season 1
Every episode of Bourbon Street Beat Season 1 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Bourbon Street Beat Season 1!
"Bourbon Street Beat" is a private detective series produced by Warner Brothers Television which aired on the ABC network from October 5, 1959, to July...
Genre:Drama
Network:ABC
Season 1 Ratings Summary
"The Taste of Ashes" is the best rated episode of "Bourbon Street Beat" season 1. It scored 8/10 based on 33 votes. Directed by Leslie H. Martinson and written by Charles Hoffman, it aired on 10/5/1959. This episode is rated 0.3 points higher than the second-best, "The Mourning Cloak".