Dragnet (1951 Series)
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''Dragnet'' – later syndicated as ''Badge 714'' – is an American crime television series, based on the radio series of the same name, both created by their star,
Jack Webb John Randolph Webb (April 2, 1920 – December 23, 1982) was an American actor, television producer, Television director, director, and screenwriter, most famous for his role as Joe Friday in the Dragnet (franchise), ''Dragnet'' franchise ...
. The shows take their name from the police term '' dragnet'', a system of coordinated measures for apprehending criminals or suspects. Webb reprised his radio role of Los Angeles police detective Sergeant Joe Friday. Ben Alexander co-starred as Friday's partner, Officer Frank Smith. The ominous, four-note introduction to the
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and
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theme music Theme music is a musical composition which is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at ...
(titled "Danger Ahead"), composed by Walter Schumann, is instantly recognizable. It is derived from
Miklós Rózsa Miklós Rózsa (; April 18, 1907 – July 27, 1995) was a Hungarian-American composer trained in Germany (1925–1931) and active in France (1931–1935), the United Kingdom (1935–1940), and the United States (1940–1995), with extensi ...
's score for the 1946 film ''The Killers''. This was the first television series in the ''Dragnet'' media franchise encompassing film, television, books and comics. The series was filmed at Walt Disney Studios in
Burbank, California Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank had a Census-estimated population of 102,755 as of 2023. The city was ...
.


History

During its early success on radio, ''Dragnet'' was popular enough to move to television. More important was that it brought continuity between the television and radio series, using the same script devices and many of the same actors.
Liggett & Myers Liggett Group ( ), now JTI Ligget, formerly known as Liggett & Myers Tobacco Company, is the fourth largest tobacco company in the United States. As of 2014, Liggett Group was the fourth largest American tobacco company by gross revenue, though ...
sponsored ''Dragnet'', both on radio and on TV, during the 1950s, with Webb seen smoking Chesterfields. Webb was comfortable playing Joe Friday on radio but balked at the prospect of playing the role before the cameras; according to author-biographer Michael J. Hayde, Webb's choice for the TV Joe Friday was Hollywood actor
Lloyd Nolan Lloyd Benedict Nolan (August 11, 1902 – September 27, 1985) was an American stage, film and television actor who rose from a supporting player and B-movie lead early in his career to featured player status after creating the role of Captain Qu ...
, whose casual underplaying Webb admired. But Webb was too well established in the radio ''Dragnet'' and the network insisted that he continue in the leading role. The two familiar leads, Jack Webb and
Barton Yarborough William Barton Yarborough (October 2, 1900 – December 19, 1951) was an American actor who worked extensively in radio drama, primarily on the NBC Radio Network. He is famous for his roles in the Carlton E. Morse productions ''I Love a Mys ...
, settled in for the first season, disrupted when Yarborough suffered a fatal heart attack. Under Webb's authority, the writing staff worked his partner's demise into the storyline, and Sgt. Friday rode with various partners until settling on Ben Alexander as detective Frank Smith, providing some sporadic comic relief. Most of the episodes available to viewers today feature Webb and Alexander. Alexander was also an occasional writer on the show.


Characters

* Sgt. (later Lt.) Joe Friday (Jack Webb): The focal character, who narrates all episodes. Friday is a dedicated police officer, and pretty much a straight-arrow type, though occasional flashes of a dry, mordant sense of humor show through. He can be sympathetic towards victims, or even towards some criminals whose crimes are a result of difficult circumstances, but he has little patience with those he thinks are lying to him. His personal life is rarely discussed, but he lives with his mother and is known to date infrequently. Friday is promoted to lieutenant in season 8. * Sgt. Ben Romero (
Barton Yarborough William Barton Yarborough (October 2, 1900 – December 19, 1951) was an American actor who worked extensively in radio drama, primarily on the NBC Radio Network. He is famous for his roles in the Carlton E. Morse productions ''I Love a Mys ...
): Friday's original partner. Married, but not much else is revealed about him. Romero is only seen in the first two episodes, as actor Yarborough died unexpectedly shortly after completing his second episode. An episode in which Friday deals with Romero's offstage death takes place early in the second season. In terms of series continuity, this episode can be assumed to take place directly after episode two, though it was not filmed or shown until numerous other episodes had been completed and aired. * Sgt. Ed Jacobs (
Barney Phillips Bernard Philip Ofner (October 20, 1913 – August 17, 1982), better known by his stage name Barney Phillips, was an American film, television, and radio actor. His roles include that of Sgt. Ed Jacobs on the 1950s '' Dragnet'' television ser ...
): Friday's partner in episodes 4–14. (Friday had a one-shot partner in episode 3.) The slight, bow-tied and bespectacled Jacobs was generally taciturn, focused and far more serious than his eventual replacement. * Officer (later Sgt.) Frank Smith (
Herb Ellis Mitchell Herbert Ellis (August 4, 1921 – March 28, 2010) was an American jazz guitarist. During the 1950s, he was in a trio with pianist Oscar Peterson. Biography Born in Farmersville, Texas, Ellis grew up on a farm. He was first exposed ...
, then Ben Alexander): Friday's partner from early in season 2. After a very few episodes with Ellis as Smith, Alexander took over, essentially defining the role through the rest of the series. A dedicated and competent officer, Frank Smith also serves as light comic relief, as many episodes feature a moment or two with Frank wryly discussing a minor inconvenience or small triumph in his life. Amongst the many recurring discussion topics are Frank's generally warm but occasionally comically-strained relationship with his wife Fay; his sincere but sometimes bumbling attempts to relate to his children; his pride in his cooking (especially his "famous" omelettes); his somewhat dubious health advice; and his long-running frustration with his mooching, ne'er-do-well brother-in-law Armand. (None of Frank's family were ever seen on the show; they remained oft-discussed offstage characters throughout.) Despite the humorous nature of Frank's comic asides, though, he is shown to be hard-working and effective as an officer, and his occasional "friendly chatterbox" routine is quickly (and willingly) put aside whenever there is serious work to tackle. Smith is promoted to sergeant in season 8. * Lt. Lee Jones (
Herb Butterfield Herbert Butterfield (October 28, 1895 – May 2, 1957) was an actor best known for his work in American radio. Early life and career Born in Providence, Rhode Island, Butterfield graduated with a BA from Brown University before serving in Worl ...
): Seen only in season 1, Lt. Jones works as part of LAPD's crime lab. He is seen in several first season episodes examining crime scenes and performing detailed forensic investigations. Though mentioned after season 1, Jones became an offstage character as the series progressed, and was essentially replaced as an on-camera character by Ray Pinker, below. Jones was based on the real-life assistant commander of the Scientific Investigation Division, of the same name. * Ray Pinker (
Olan Soule Olan Soule (February 28, 1909 – February 1, 1994) was an American actor, who had professional credits in nearly 7,000 radio shows and commercials, appearances in 200 television series and television films, and in over 60 films. He was the ...
): After being seen in two first-season episodes as Sgt. Harlan Stall (a precinct co-worker), beginning in season 2, Olan Soule took on the role of Ray Pinker. Pinker was based on the LAPD's real-life forensic chemist of the same name. Pinker is seen in numerous episodes from seasons 2 through 8, helping to examine crime scenes and offering various forensically obtained clues to the detectives. * Ann Baker (
Dorothy Abbott Dorothy Abbott (December 16, 1920 – December 15, 1968) was an American actress. Career Born in Kansas City, Missouri, Abbott acted in Little Theater productions to gain experience before she ventured into films. She appeared in many fil ...
): Joe Friday's occasionally-glimpsed girlfriend, seen in seasons 2 and 3. * Detective Lopez ( George Sawaya): A rarely seen Hispanic detective. His first episode was in "The Big September Man". * Capt. Harry Didion (
Art Gilmore Arthur Wells Gilmore, known as Art Gilmore (March 18, 1912 – September 25, 2010) was an American actor and announcer heard on radio and television programs, children's records, movies, trailers, radio commercials, and documentary films. He also ...
): Friday and Smith rotated through various departments from episode to episode. When they were posted to Robbery detail, seen occasionally in seasons 2 to 5 was the captain of that department, the milk-drinking Harry Didion. The milk-drinking was suggestive of an ulcer, perhaps due to the pressures of the job, but Didion (based on a real LAPD captain of the same name) did not show any weakness or indecision in the performance of his duties. In his first appearance, Didion was played by Dan Riss; Gilmore quickly assumed the role thereafter. Captains of other divisions had consistent names, but they were seen infrequently—and on the rare occasions they were present on-screen, their performers changed from episode to episode. Thad Brown was the chief of detectives (played by
Raymond Burr Raymond William Stacy Burr (May 21, 1917September 12, 1993) was a Canadian actor who had a lengthy Hollywood film career and portrayed the title roles in the television dramas '' Perry Mason'' and '' Ironside''. Burr's early acting career inclu ...
in the pilot, thereafter by several other one-shot actors); R. A. Lohrman was the head of the homicide squad. Both Brown and Lohrman were based on, and named for, their real-life LAPD counterparts.


Writing staff and production

The template for the TV show was simply the proven radio formula, embellished with visuals. Most early episodes were directly adapted from earlier ''Dragnet'' radio shows, and writer James E. Moser wrote the vast majority of the show's episodes through the end of 1954. Webb directed every episode of ''Dragnet'', and was also an occasional writer on the show, writing or co-writing 14 episodes (mostly in the early seasons). While working on the radio drama, Webb formed a friendship with
LAPD The City of Los Angeles Police Department, commonly referred to as Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), is the primary law enforcement agency of Los Angeles, California, United States. With 8,832 officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the th ...
chief William Parker, and agreed to allow the police department to censor ''Dragnet'' in exchange for story ideas. Scripts were formally approved by the LAPD's Public Information Division before filming, with episodes potentially being discarded entirely if the department objected to an aspect of the script. The LAPD then gave Webb story ideas and financial help, such as actual police vehicles and equipment for props and real police officers as extras. John Robinson joined the writing staff in 1953, and by 1955 (after Moser left the show for a time to create and run the TV series ''
Medic A medic is a person trained to provide medical care, encompassing a wide range of individuals involved in the diagnosis, treatment, and management of health conditions. The term can refer to fully qualified medical practitioners, such as physic ...
''), Robinson became ''Dragnets most frequent script contributor. Note that despite some sources claiming that Robinson was a pen-name of Jack Webb, it was not; Robinson was a separate individual with a long and well-documented scriptwriting career. (Webb, whose full legal name was "John Randolph Webb", ''did'' occasionally write under the similar pen name of "John Randolph".) Frank Burt joined the staff in 1955, and along with Robinson wrote most of the mid-period ''Dragnet'' episodes. Moser returned for the final two seasons, while Robinson and Burt reduced their participation in these final years. Overall, well over 200 of the 276 episodes of ''Dragnet'' were written (or co-written) by at least one of Moser, Robinson or Burt. There were other less frequent contributors; co-star Ben Alexander co-wrote 6 episodes (all in season 3), and Michael Cramoy was a frequent writer in seasons 6 through 8, penning over 20 episodes. Amongst the handful of writers who wrote only an episode or two, two notable ''Star Trek'' writers caught an early break, each writing a very late-running ''Dragnet'' installment: Gene L. Coon and
John Meredyth Lucas John Meredyth Lucas (May 1, 1919 – October 19, 2002) was an American Television writer, writer, Television director, director and Television producer, producer, primarily for television. Career Son of screenwriter Bess Meredyth and writer/dir ...
. The 1950s ''Dragnet'' episodes in black-and-white differ significantly from the 1960s '' Dragnet'' episodes in color. This first TV series took a documentary approach, with Sgt. Friday and the police force often encountering the seedy side of Los Angeles, with a steady succession of callous fugitives, desperate gunmen, slippery swindlers, and hard bitten women. Most of the cast members were veteran radio actors who could be relied upon to read the matter-of-fact dialogue naturally. Webb used most of his ensemble players again and again in different roles:
Jack Kruschen Jacob "Jack" Kruschen (March 20, 1922 – April 2, 2002) was a Canadian character actor who worked primarily in American film, television and radio. Kruschen was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Dr. Dreyf ...
,
Vic Perrin Victor Herbert Perrin (April 26, 1916 – July 4, 1989)Cox, Jim (2007). ''Radio Speakers: Narrators, News Junkies, Sports Jockeys, Tattletales, Tipsters, Toastmasters and Coffee Klatch Couples Who Verbalized the Jargon of the Aural Ether fr ...
,
Harry Bartell Harry Alfred Bartell (November 29, 1913 – February 26, 2004)Aaker, Everett (2006). ''Encyclopedia of Early Television Crime Fighters''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . p. 34. was an American actor and announcer in radio programming, radio, televisio ...
,
Art Gilmore Arthur Wells Gilmore, known as Art Gilmore (March 18, 1912 – September 25, 2010) was an American actor and announcer heard on radio and television programs, children's records, movies, trailers, radio commercials, and documentary films. He also ...
,
Peggy Webber Peggy Webber (born September 15, 1925) is an American actress and writer who has worked in film, stage, television, and radio. Early years The daughter of a wildcat oil driller, Webber was born in Laredo, Texas. Before she was 3 years old, she ...
,
Barney Phillips Bernard Philip Ofner (October 20, 1913 – August 17, 1982), better known by his stage name Barney Phillips, was an American film, television, and radio actor. His roles include that of Sgt. Ed Jacobs on the 1950s '' Dragnet'' television ser ...
,
Herb Ellis Mitchell Herbert Ellis (August 4, 1921 – March 28, 2010) was an American jazz guitarist. During the 1950s, he was in a trio with pianist Oscar Peterson. Biography Born in Farmersville, Texas, Ellis grew up on a farm. He was first exposed ...
,
Carolyn Jones Carolyn Sue Jones (April 28, 1930 – August 3, 1983) was an American actress of television and film. She began her film career in the early 1950s, and by the end of the decade had achieved recognition with a nomination for an Academy Awa ...
(then billed as Caroline Jones), Clarence Cassell,
Virginia Christine Virginia Christine (born Virginia Christine Ricketts; March 5, 1920 – July 24, 1996) was an American stage, radio, film, television, and voice actress. Though Christine had a long career as a character actor, character actress in film and ...
, Ralph Moody,
Kathleen Freeman Kathleen Freeman (February 17, 1923August 23, 2001) was an American actress. In a career that spanned more than 50 years, she portrayed acerbic maids, secretaries, teachers, busybodies, nurses, and battle-axe neighbors and relatives, almost i ...
, Stacy Harris, Natalie Masters,
Virginia Gregg Virginia Lee Gregg (March 6, 1916 – September 15, 1986) was an American actress known for her many roles in radio dramas and television series. Early life Born in Harrisburg, Illinois, she was the daughter of musician Dewey Alphaleta (née T ...
,
Olan Soule Olan Soule (February 28, 1909 – February 1, 1994) was an American actor, who had professional credits in nearly 7,000 radio shows and commercials, appearances in 200 television series and television films, and in over 60 films. He was the ...
, Herb Vigran,
Peter Leeds Peter Leeds (May 30, 1917 – November 12, 1996) was an American actor who appeared on television more than 8,000 times and also had many film, Broadway, and radio credits. The majority of his work took place in the 1950s and 1960s. Workin ...
, Sarah Selby, and many others.
Martin Milner Martin Sam Milner (December 28, 1931 – September 6, 2015) was an American actor and radio host. He is best known for his performances on two television series: '' Route 66'', which aired on CBS from 1960 to 1964, and '' Adam-12'', which ...
and
Lee Marvin Lee Marvin (February 19, 1924August 29, 1987) was an American film and television actor. Known for his bass voice and prematurely white hair, he is best remembered for playing hardboiled "tough guy" characters. Although initially typecast as th ...
made one of their earliest TV appearances on the series; and at the time, going against type playing heavies,
Raymond Burr Raymond William Stacy Burr (May 21, 1917September 12, 1993) was a Canadian actor who had a lengthy Hollywood film career and portrayed the title roles in the television dramas '' Perry Mason'' and '' Ironside''. Burr's early acting career inclu ...
(billed as Ray Burr) appeared in the series' first episode, as Sgt. Friday's superior, Captain Thad Mumford. Webb staged each story with
newsreel A newsreel is a form of short documentary film, containing news, news stories and items of topical interest, that was prevalent between the 1910s and the mid 1970s. Typically presented in a Movie theater, cinema, newsreels were a source of cu ...
-like authenticity, enhancing the visual action with extremely tight close-ups (unheard of in the days of tiny television screens), location photography, and unusual camera angles. Much of this inventiveness went unused in the 1960s revival. Although still using convincing dialogue readings, the new ''Dragnet'' lost much of the documentary appearance, and film noir ambience. Just before the show took its final commercial break, the show's announcer would inform the audience of something related to the case, usually the opening date on which the perpetrator's trial would take place in the Los Angeles County Superior Court (this would be accompanied by an onscreen card so the viewer could read along). After the break the camera faded in for what was presumably the perpetrator's
mug shot A mug shot or mugshot (an informal term for police photograph or booking photograph) is a Portrait photography, photographic portrait of a person from the shoulders up, typically taken after a person is placed under arrest. The primary purpose ...
, consisting of the perpetrator standing uncomfortably against the wall, while the results of the trial, including the sentencing, were announced. The perpetrator's name and fate were then superimposed over the screen. In most cases, this superimposed material specifically stated in what prison the perpetrator had been incarcerated, or, in the case of perpetrators deemed unfit to stand trial, to what state mental hospital or psychiatric facility they were committed. Occasionally, there were multiple perpetrators. Usually all would be shown at once during this closing sequence, but sometimes some perps would be shown separately, particularly if they received different sentencing from others in the group. In rare cases, where the perpetrator was found guilty of murder and the death penalty was applied, the place and method of execution was noted on screen. In even rarer cases, such as in the episodes "The Big Show" or "The Big Little Jesus", there was no trial. In the episode "The Big Little Jesus", the content of the episode made it clear that no trial was to be held, and there was no final announcement. In the very rare other ''Dragnet'' episodes that did not result in a trial, the narrator would briefly explain why there was no trial, and the on-screen superimposition would describe the fate of the episode's perpetrator. While one early episode of ''Dragnet'' centered around a criminal who was found "not guilty" by a jury at the ''start'' of the episode, no episode ''ended'' with a perpetrator caught by Friday and his partner being found "not guilty" by a court.


Episodes


Broadcast history

* January 3, 1952 – December 29, 1955: Thursday at 9:00 pm on NBC * January 5, 1956 – June 26, 1958: Thursday at 8:30 pm on NBC * September 23, 1958 – April 28, 1959: Tuesday at 7:30 pm on NBC * July 7, 1959 – August 23, 1959: Sunday at 8:30 pm on NBC


Ratings

* October 1951 – April 1952: #20/36.3 (tied with ''
All Star Revue ''Four Star Revue'' (also known as ''All Star Revue'' and ''All Star Summer Revue'') is an American variety/comedy program that aired on NBC from October 4, 1950, to December 26, 1953. The series originally starred four celebrities, Ed Wynn, D ...
'') * October 1952 – April 1953: #4/46.8 * October 1953 – April 1954: #2/53.2 * October 1954 – April 1955: #3/42.1 * October 1955 – April 1956: #8/35.0 * October 1956 – April 1957: #11/32.1 * October 1957 – April 1958: Not in the Top 30 * October 1958 – April 1959: Not in the Top 30


Preservation status

Over 200 of the 276 episodes of ''Dragnet'' have not seen broadcast since the late 1960s, or received any kind of home video or DVD release. It is unclear if these 'missing' episodes are lost, destroyed, or are being withheld from distribution for some reason. Approximately 64 episodes of ''Dragnet'' are known to exist in some form or another, including episodes held in the collection of
The Paley Center for Media The Paley Center for Media, formerly the Museum of Television & Radio (MT&R) and the Museum of Broadcasting, founded in 1975 by William S. Paley, is an American cultural institution in New York City with a branch office in Los Angeles. It is de ...
.


DVD releases

Half of the episodes of this series are in the
public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no Exclusive exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly Waiver, waived, or may be inapplicable. Because no one holds ...
, with an estimated fifty-two episodes released on many DVD labels. A number of these collections recycle the same fifty-two episodes. Often some are mislabeled as there are no onscreen titles; as well, many episodes are sourced from film prints which are somewhat damaged, worn, or faded. Eclectic DVD released a collection of three episodes. Platinum Video released seven episodes from the original series in 2002. The two disc set also includes episodes from '' Burke's Law''; ''
Peter Gunn ''Peter Gunn'' is an American detective fiction, private eye television series, starring Craig Stevens (actor), Craig Stevens as Peter Gunn with Lola Albright as his girlfriend, lounge singer Edie Hart. The series was broadcast by NBC from Sept ...
''; ''
Richard Diamond, Private Detective ''Richard Diamond, Private Detective'' is an American detective drama, created by Blake Edwards, which aired on radio from 1949 to 1953, and on television from 1957 to 1960. Radio Dick Powell starred in the ''Richard Diamond, Private Detective' ...
''; ''Mr. Wong, Detective''; and ''
Bulldog Drummond Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond is a fictional character, created by H. C. McNeile and published under his pen name "Sapper". Following McNeile's death in 1937, the novels were continued by Gerard Fairlie. Drummond is a First World War veteran who ...
.''


Citations


General and cited sources

*
Jason Mittell Jason Mittell (born 1970) is a professor of American studies and film and media culture at Middlebury College whose research interests include the history of television, media, pop culture, culture, new media, and digital humanities. He is author ...
(2004). ''Genre and Television: From Cop Shows to Cartoons in American Culture''. Routledge. .


External links

* {{EmmyAward DramaSeries Dragnet (franchise) television series 1951 American television series debuts 1959 American television series endings 1950s American police procedural television series 1950s American crime drama television series American English-language television shows Television series about the Los Angeles Police Department Television shows set in Los Angeles Television shows filmed in Los Angeles Black-and-white American television shows Edgar Award–winning works Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series winners Television series by Universal Television Television series by Mark VII Limited Television series based on radio series NBC crime dramas Propaganda in the United States