''Photocrime'' is an American television crime drama that was broadcast on

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from September 28, 1949, until December 14, 1949. The program was also known as ''Look Photocrime''. The program's title and premise -- "that photographs often possess clues that are often overlooked" initially -- came from an illustrated fictional crime series that ran in '' Look'' magazine, and the program was produced in association with ''Look''. However, the concept of an illustrated mystery began with Denis Horton, an insurance clerk in England. The ''Weekly Illustrated'' published the first Photocrime in 1935. By 1937, Photocrime was also printed in a number of American newspapers. Chuck Webster portrayed police inspector Hannibal Cobb. Murray Burnett was the producer and writer.

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was the director, and Mildred Fenton was the producer. ''Photocrime'' originated from

WJZ-TV WJZ-TV (channel 13) is a television station in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, serving as the market's CBS outlet. It is owned and operated by the network's CBS News and Stations division, and maintains studios and offices on Woodberry, B ...

. Lack of a sponsor brought the program to an end after 13 weeks.

Critical reaction

In a review in the trade publication ''

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'', Leon Morse wrote that the program's premiere episode "represented a measure of noticeable but not spectacular progress in bringing mysteries to the video screen." The "Television Daily" section of the trade publication ''Radio Daily'' welcomed the program's main character as "a near-anomaly, a quiet police detective with enough ability and intelligence to get his man."

Other versions

An unsuccessful pilot episode of a program dramatizing material from the Photocrimes in ''Look'' was broadcast on CBS on October 2, 1945. In 1958, Teleworld, Inc., announced plans to produce a series of 5-minute television programs titled ''Photocrimes'' and based on the magazine feature of the same name. Plans called for 260 episodes to be produced.

References

{{Reflist 1949 American television series debuts 1949 American television series endings American Broadcasting Company crime dramas Black-and-white American television shows Fictional private investigators 1940s American crime drama television series