''The Detectives'' (also known as ''The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor'', ''Captain of Detectives'', and ''Robert Taylor's Detectives'') is an American

crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and comb ...

series which ran on ABC during its first two seasons (sponsored by Procter & Gamble), and on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

during its third and final season. The series, starring motion picture star Robert Taylor, was produced by

Four Star Television Four Star Television, also called Four Star International, was an American television production company. Founded in 1952 as Four Star Productions by prominent Hollywood actors Dick Powell, David Niven, Charles Boyer, and Joel McCrea, it was insp ...

in association with Levy-Gardner-Laven Productions.

Synopsis

Taylor stars as Detective Captain Matt Holbrook, the tough, no-nonsense head of an elite

police The police are a Law enforcement organization, constituted body of Law enforcement officer, persons empowered by a State (polity), state, with the aim to law enforcement, enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citize ...

investigative unit in a major U.S.

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

. Ostensibly, each man in Holbrook's hand-picked squad of detectives came from a different division. Lt. Johnny Russo (

Tige Andrews Tige is a masculine given name and nickname which may refer to: People: * Tige Andrews (1920-2007), American actor * Tige Reynolds (1877–1931), American cartoonist * Tige Rodgers, co-host of the ''Tige and Daniel Show'' American radio program * ...

) was from burglary, Lt. Jim Conway ( Lee Farr) came from homicide, and Lt. Otto Lindstrom (

Russell Thorson Russell Thorson (October 14, 1906 – July 6, 1982 ) was an American actor, perhaps best known for his co-starring role as Det. Lt. Otto Lindstrom in ABC's 1959–1962 hit crime drama, '' The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor''. Backgro ...

) was from the bunco squad.

Production

In the series' second season, Farr left the series and was replaced by Mark Goddard as Detective Sgt. Chris Ballard. Future ''

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on March 30, 1939. I ...

'' star Adam West joined the cast during the third season as Sgt. Steve Nelson. The series moved to NBC for its third season and was increased from 30 to 60 minutes. The series was also retitled to ''Robert Taylor's Detectives''. A total of 97 episodes were produced before the series was cancelled in 1962. The series was produced for Four Star by Levy-Gardner-Laven Productions, which produced other successful Four Star series, such as ''

The Rifleman ''The Rifleman'' is an American Western television program starring Chuck Connors as rancher Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the fictional town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory. The sho ...

'' and ''

The Big Valley ''The Big Valley'' is an American Western drama television series that originally aired from September 15, 1965, to May 19, 1969 on ABC. The series is set on the fictional Barkley Ranch in Stockton, California, from 1884 to 1888. The one-hour ...

''. Future ''Star Trek'' creator

Gene Roddenberry Eugene Wesley Roddenberry Sr. (August 19, 1921 – October 24, 1991) was an American television screenwriter, producer, and creator of '' Star Trek: The Original Series'', its sequel spin-off series '' Star Trek: The Animated Series,'' and '' ...

was a contributing writer to the series.

Cast

* Robert Taylor as Det. Capt. Matt Holbrook *

as Lt. John "Johnny" Russo *

as Lt. Otto Lindstrom (1959-1961) * Lee Farr as Lt. James "Jimmy" Conway (1959-1960) * Mark Goddard as Sgt. Chris Ballard (1960-1962) * Ursula Thiess as Lisa Bonay (1960-1961) * Adam West as Sgt. Steve Nelson (1961-1962)

Guest stars

* Philip Abbott *

Ellen Burstyn Ellen Burstyn (born Edna Rae Gillooly; December 7, 1932) is an American actress. Known for her portrayals of complicated women in dramas, she is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and two Primetime Em ...

* Dyan Cannon *

James Coburn James Harrison Coburn III (August 31, 1928 – November 18, 2002) was an American film and television actor who was featured in more than 70 films, largely action roles, and made 100 television appearances during a 45-year career.AllmoviBi ...

* John Considine *

Yvonne Craig Yvonne Joyce Craig (May 16, 1937 – August 17, 2015) was an American actress and ballerina, who was renowned for her role as Batgirl in the 1960s television series '' Batman''. Other notable roles in her career include Dorothy Johnson in the 196 ...

* Robert Culp *

Ronnie Dapo Ronald L. Dapo (born May 8, 1952) is an American film and television actor. He is known for playing Flip Rose in the American sitcom television series '' Room for One More''. Life and career Dapo was born in Plattsburgh, New York. At the age ...

Donna Douglas Donna Douglas (born Doris Ione Smith; September 26, 1932 – January 1, 2015) was an American actress and singer, known for her role as Elly May Clampett on ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' (1962–1971). Following her acting career, Douglas becam ...

Jena Engstrom Jena Engstrom (born Liana Jeanne Moon) is an American former television actress. Born June 30, 1942, in Los Angeles, California. She appeared in more than three dozen episodes of various television series between 1960 and 1964. Career Jena Engs ...

Bill Erwin William Lindsey Erwin (December 2, 1914 – December 29, 2010) was an American film, stage and television actor and cartoonist with over 250 television and film credits. A veteran character actor, he is widely known for his 1993 Emmy Award-nomi ...

* Eva Gabor * Bruce Gordon *

Frank Gorshin Frank John Gorshin Jr. (April 5, 1933 – May 17, 2005) was an American actor, comedian and impressionist. He made many guest appearances on '' The Ed Sullivan Show'' and '' Tonight Starring Steve Allen''. As an actor, he played the Riddler on ...

* Marianna Hill * Marsha Hunt *

Martin Landau Martin James Landau (; June 20, 1928 – July 15, 2017) was an American actor, acting coach, producer, and editorial cartoonist. His career began in the 1950s, with early film appearances including a supporting role in Alfred Hitchcock's ''North ...

Scott Marlowe Scott Gregory Marlowe (born Ronald Richard DeLeo; June 24, 1932 – January 6, 2001)''Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014''. Social Security Administration was an American actor who had a starring role in the 1957 teen exploitation film '' ...

Vera Miles Vera June Miles (née Ralston, born August 23, 1929) is an American retired actress who worked closely with Alfred Hitchcock, most notably as Lila Crane in the classic 1960 film '' Psycho'', reprising the role in the 1983 sequel '' Psycho II'' ...

* George Mitchell * Mary Murphy * Jay North *

Cathy O'Donnell Cathy O'Donnell (born Ann Steely, July 6, 1923 – April 11, 1970) was an American actor who appeared in '' The Best Years of Our Lives,'' '' Ben-Hur,'' and films noir such as ''Detective Story'' and '' They Live by Night''. Early life O' ...

Jerry Paris William Gerald Paris (July 25, 1925 – March 31, 1986) was an American actor and director best known for playing Jerry Helper, the dentist and next-door neighbor of Rob and Laura Petrie, on ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'', and for directing the majo ...

Pernell Roberts Pernell Elven Roberts Jr. (May 18, 1928 – January 24, 2010) was an American stage, film, and television actor, activist, and singer. In addition to guest-starring in over 60 television series, he was best known for his roles as Ben Cartw ...

* Chris Robinson *

Edward G. Robinson Edward G. Robinson (born Emanuel Goldenberg; December 12, 1893January 26, 1973) was a Romanian-American actor of stage and screen, who was popular during the Hollywood's Golden Age. He appeared in 30 Broadway plays and more than 100 films duri ...

Fay Spain Lona Fay Spain (October 6, 1932 – May 8, 1983) was an American actress in motion pictures and television. Early years Born in Phoenix, Arizona, Fay Spain was the younger of two daughters born to Robert C. Spain and Arminta Frances "Mick ...

* Inger Stevens *

William Tannen William Tannen (November 17, 1911 – December 2, 1976) was an American actor originally from New York City, who was best known for his role of Deputy Hal Norton in fifty-six episodes from 1956 to 1958 of the ABC/Desilu western television ser ...

* Joan Taylor * Lawrence Tierney *

Dawn Wells Dawn Elberta Wells (October 18, 1938 – December 30, 2020) was an American actress known for her role as Mary Ann Summers on the CBS sitcom ''Gilligan's Island''. Early life Wells was born to Evelyn (née Steinbrenner) and Joe Wesley Wells ...

* Adam West * William Windom * Dianne Foster

Episodes

Season 1: 1959–60

Season 2: 1960–61

Season 3: 1961–62

Release

Syndication

In syndication, the series was rebroadcast for a time under the name, ''Captain of Detectives''. Rebroadcasts were shown in the early 2000s on cable's

TV Land TV Land is an American pay television channel owned by Paramount Global through its networks division. Originally a spinoff of Nick at Nite consisting exclusively of classic television shows, the channel now airs a combination of recent and cl ...

network.

Home media

''The Detectives'' has been released in Germany (in dubbed German language only) under the name "Kein Fall für FBI

As of 2019, there has been no official release of Robert Taylor's "The Detectives" on DVD in the U.S.

Other media

Paperback Novel

Prolific pulpsmith Norman A. Daniels was tapped by

Lancer Books Lancer Books was a publisher of paperback books founded by Irwin Stein and Walter Zacharius that operated from 1961 through 1973. While it published stories of a number of genres, it was noted most for its science fiction and fantasy, particularl ...

to write an original novel based on the series' concept and characters, and the book, named for the series, was released in 1962, with a cover price of 35¢, its copyright assigned to the author. It manages to sport all three iterations of the title: The cover, beneath a close-up photo of the star's eyes, says ''Robert Taylor starring in The Detectives''; the spine says merely ''The Detectives'' and then cites the author; the title page proclaims ''Robert Taylor's Detectives''.

Comic book

Dell Comics Dell Comics was the comic book publishing arm of Dell Publishing, which got its start in pulp magazines. It published comics from 1929 to 1974. At its peak, it was the most prominent and successful American company in the medium.Evanier, Mark" ...

issued a comic book rendition of Robert Taylor's ''"The Detectives"'' during the series run .

A few years after ''The Detectives'' ended,

Barbara Stanwyck Barbara Stanwyck (; born Ruby Catherine Stevens; July 16, 1907 – January 20, 1990) was an American actress, model and dancer. A stage, film, and television star, during her 60-year professional career she was known for her strong, realistic sc ...

, Robert Taylor's ex-wife, had ''her'' very own successful series also produced by Four Star/ Levy-Gardner-Laven Productions, ''

'', which also aired on ABC. Several cast members on ''The Detectives'' went on to major TV roles after the series ended: *Robert Taylor, series star of ''The Detectives,'' who played Det.Capt. Matt Holbrook, went on to star in the successful syndicated TV series ''

Death Valley Days ''Death Valley Days'' is an American old-time radio and television anthology series featuring true accounts of the American Old West, particularly the Death Valley country of southeastern California. Created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman, the program ...

'', where he remained until his death in 1969. He had enjoyed a long and successful film career as a leading man in over 70 films- prior to starring in ''The Detectives''. * Adam West, who was added to the cast in ''The Detectives final season as Det. Steve Nelson, went on to play the lead role in the ABC series ''

''. * Tige Andrews, who played Det. Johnny Russo, went on to play as Police Detective Captain Adam Greer in ABC's ''

The Mod Squad ''The Mod Squad'' is an American crime drama series, originally broadcast for five seasons on ABC from September 24, 1968, to March 1, 1973. It starred Michael Cole as Peter "Pete" Cochran, Peggy Lipton as Julie Barnes, Clarence Williams III ...

''. He also appeared in the original ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...

'' as Klingon officer Kras in the episode " Friday's Child". * Mark Goddard, who played Det. Chris Ballard, went on to star in the CBS sci-fi series ''

Lost In Space ''Lost in Space'' is an American science fiction television series, created and produced by Irwin Allen, which originally aired between 1965 and 1968 on CBS. The series was inspired by the 1812 novel ''The Swiss Family Robinson.'' The series fo ...

''. Prior to the Detectives, Goddard co-starred in the popular (but cancelled after one season), CBS-TV series, ''

Johnny Ringo John Peters Ringo (May 3, 1850 – July 13, 1882), known as Johnny Ringo, was an American Old West outlaw loosely associated with the Cochise County Cowboys in frontier boomtown Tombstone, Arizona Territory. He took part in the Mason County ...

'', also produced by Four Star. * Russell Thorson, who played Det. Otto Lindstrom, had a long list of film and TV credits before and after ''The Detectives'', including the TV movie "Cocoon", the pilot episode of the original TV series Hawaii Five-O starring Jack Lord .

References

External links

*
''The Detectives starring Robert Taylor''
- Series Info and Episode Guide
Amazon Customer Discussions- ''The Detectives-Starring Robert Taylor''

''The Detectives'' opening sequence
(with syndicated name/logo "Captain Of Detectives"- YouTube
''The Detectives'' closing sequence
as originally broadcast - YouTube
''The Shuttle''
''The Detectives'' complete season 2 episode
''Terror on Ice''
The Detectives: with Robert Taylor, Russell Thorson, Tige Andrews, and Mark Goddard
Audio Narrative of ''The Detectives''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Detectives Starring Robert Taylor 1950s American crime drama television series 1960s American crime drama television series 1959 American television series debuts 1962 American television series endings American Broadcasting Company original programming Black-and-white American television shows English-language television shows NBC original programming Television series by Four Star Television Television series by 20th Century Fox Television American detective television series