Forum list
Full View

Home Theater

Entertainment & Streaming Content

Physical Media

Home Theater Equipment and Hardware

Other Diversions

Bargains and Classifieds

Home Theater Forum

Archives

Forum List What's new Dark Style Change width
What's new

Obscure Classic TV Shows - Post Your Favorites! (2 Viewers)

The 1960's

The 1960's

Premium
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2021
Messages
5,604
Location
New York
Real Name
Neal Rose
A man is found dead in the gutter. At first it seems as a hit-run case, but Friday and Smith become suspicious when all witnesses from the night before give exactly the same story. Usually witnesses are at variance in some respects.​
​

Joe Friday interrogates a local gardener who's been arrested for holding up a grocery store. While questioning the suspect, Friday begins to doubt the man's guilt, even though he's identified as the robber by the woman who manages the store, and sets out to discover why the gardener has confessed to a crime he apparently did not commit.​
​

Obscene literature and pictures are spread among youngster at a school in Los Angeles. The supplier of this illegal stuff turns out to be a former film producer from the days of silent movies.​
​

When two four year old twin girls turn up missing, Sgt. Friday and Officer Smith are called in. The girls are found, but were molested. The officers continue to investigate until they locate the perpetrator.​
​

A holdup man is sticking up bars. After he takes the money he kills many of his victims. Sargeant Friday has few leads other than that the holdup man likes a certain song on the jukebox and likes to drink scotch and water.​
​

 
ScottRE

ScottRE

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Feb 6, 2005
Messages
3,323
Location
New York, Planet Earth
Real Name
Scott
Rustifer said:
Episode Commentary
Hondo
"Hondo and the Mad Dog" (S1E8)

It stars Ralph Taeger (who?) as an ex-Confederate army officer which, along with his dog Sam, roams around the West as a quasi Johnny Yuma type--aimless but well meaning.
View attachment 137183
Click to expand...
Learn something new every day. I thought "Hondo" was the name of the dog...

Considering how much of a dog this series was, I guess I was sorta right.
 
Rustifer

Rustifer

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2017
Messages
2,996
Location
Carmel, Indiana
Real Name
Russ J.
The 1960's said:
LOL, still half asleep first thing I thought was am I in the wrong thread? Then I thought maybe Russ pulled a Marv and posted this here by mistake?

Good one and thank you! Certainly far superior to any episode from the Hondo series itself which btw has never been posted nor even mentioned here. I bought it back in 2018 watched a couple episodes and it’s been gathering cat dander ever since.

Ironic that you popped in here today of all days with a fine commentary because this morning as I was detailing the further adventures of Sgt. Friday from 1967, I was thinking boy is that series just full of parody content. I see you’ve done Adam-12. Perhaps Dragnet isn’t too far behind.
Click to expand...
Oh, I've done a Dragnet or two. Can't go wrong with making fun of Jack Webb's delivery, which rivals dryer lint in its excitement factor.
 
The 1960's

The 1960's

Premium
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2021
Messages
5,604
Location
New York
Real Name
Neal Rose
Executive leaves suicide note in his car with pistol, two bullets spent and no trace of the body. Friday and Smith working Homicide, Missing Persons Detail, begin their search for the man.​
​

Friday, Smith respond to a bank robbery in progress. Car description, partial plate leaves many cars to check.​
​

Sgt. Joe Friday and officer Smith struggle to crack a case involving a cat burglar. With all their leads going nowhere and evidence scarce the case seems to be leading to a dead end. Then their luck changes.​
​

Friday and his partner Smith race against time to stop a series of brutal beatings of women in the Hollywood area. Just when they think they have their man, things change and very quickly.​
​

The detectives take a report of valuables stolen from the home of a somewhat eccentric old lady. They begin to suspect something is amiss when she starts talking about how she gets the "scoop" on crimes by being the first to report them to the local newspaper.​
​


The Dragnet (1951-1959) series never received a proper official DVD release.​
 
Rustifer

Rustifer

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2017
Messages
2,996
Location
Carmel, Indiana
Real Name
Russ J.
The 1960's said:
Well perhaps you might consider finding them, updating and reposting them here tomorrow as the Joe Friday Friday Marathon will commence with Dragnet 1967 (1967-1970).
Click to expand...
I think I'd much prefer writing new commentaries, Neal. Although I don't think any would be ready in time for your marathon. My writing muse visits upon me in an unpredictable manner.
 
The 1960's

The 1960's

Premium
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2021
Messages
5,604
Location
New York
Real Name
Neal Rose
​


Jack Webb’s final Appearance as Sgt. Joe Friday.​
​



​

 
The 1960's

The 1960's

Premium
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2021
Messages
5,604
Location
New York
Real Name
Neal Rose
This is the beginning of The Sgt. Joe Friday “Friday” Marathon

Dragnet 1967 (1967-1970)
Stars Jack Webb Harry Morgan Don Ross​
A television show asks the question - who needs the police? Friday and Gannon are invited to sit on the panel to defend the police department from others that think the police are not needed.​
​

Friday and Gannon are at a community college to recruit potential new police officers. With race relations a little tense in late '60s Los Angeles, a majority of the men in the room are African-American. A few of them are dubious about joining the police service. But a few are open to the idea.​
​

On an April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King was assassinated in Memphis, Tennesee. With riots erupting all over the United States, the Los Angeles Police Department braces for worse case scenarios such as rioting and bomb threats. Friday and Gannon are assigned to the command post and monitor the situation from there and wait for the first sign of trouble. However, as the weekend progresses Friday notes that Los Angeles is quieter than normal and that many of the people are doing their best to remember that Dr. King stood for peace.​
​

Friday and Gannon are assigned to investigate complaints from motorists about a tow truck driver who takes advantage of those who are in trouble on the highway.​
​

The LAPD has just been informed that The President of the United States will be making a trip to LA. They have only been given a few hours to prepare. They work with The Secret Service to secure the location at which The President will be holding a press conference.​
​

 
The 1960's

The 1960's

Premium
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2021
Messages
5,604
Location
New York
Real Name
Neal Rose
A reporter for a New York magazine wants to do a piece on female police cadets. She's known for not making the people she writes about very attractive. Friday is assigned to escort her around the Academy.​
​

Friday and Gannon are sent to meet with a group of business owners who are looking to organize a crime prevention group to help cut crime in their neighborhood. While doing a cursory inspection they identify a number of problems that may encourage burglaries. Most of the business owners don't feel that they are vulnerable to crime.​
​

A business man helps Friday and Gannon get the teens involved in stopping the use of drugs. The teens form a club and make a promise not to use drugs and encourage others to stop using them.​
​

Friday and Gannon work the Internal Affairs Division concerning an arrested man's accusation of police brutality by one of the officers. The main characters from Adam-12 appear as witnesses.​
​

While investigating the murder of a pretty young career girl, (brutal opening) Friday and Gannon meet a little old man named Calvin Lampe who is more than a little interested in their investigation. In fact, he even is looked at as a suspect because of his attention to every detail in the case. However, the two detectives are in for a big shock when they find out that Mr. Lampe is a retired chief of detectives and that he is a good friend of their boss, Captain Hugh Brown. Lampe's know how and good old fashioned detective work are a big help as Joe and Bill try to solve a very difficult case.​
​

 
The 1960's

The 1960's

Premium
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2021
Messages
5,604
Location
New York
Real Name
Neal Rose
Friday and Gannon man the desk at the Business Office Division and deal with radicals, a threatened suicide, a lost child, a diabetic drunk, and an impending tidal wave.​
​

Friday and Gannon come up with the idea of using dogs to sniff out marijuana smugglers. They'll have to find a dog and demonstrate it works while enduring their colleagues' skepticism of the wild idea.​
​

Friday has a temporary partner when Gannon is out for the day. The new partner is from the Vice Department. He tests Friday by offering a bribe.​
​

A teenager is caught after taking a car for joy riding. Friday and Gannon try to help the boy realize he is on the wrong path for life, and should change his way.​
​

A woman invites Friday and Gannon to talk to her Woman's Club about battered children. They train the women to be on the lookout for children who might be abused, and how they can help by becoming foster parents.​
​

 
The 1960's

The 1960's

Premium
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2021
Messages
5,604
Location
New York
Real Name
Neal Rose
Several stores report theft of comic books, posters, and pictures about superheroes. The stores say the thief is in costume. CLASSIC CRIMSON CRUSADER EPISODE!!!!​
​

Friday and Gannon work in the Frauds Department. Disability payments are being sent to deceased persons, and evidence suggests an insider is involved.​
​

Friday and Gannon work in the fraud department. Payroll checks are stolen from a studio, as well as driver licenses and credit cards so the checks can be cashed. After they find a suspect, Friday & Gannon realize there is more to the case.​
​

Friday and Gannon have less than two hours to find the dog that bit a little girl five days earlier. Normally, treatment consists of serum injections followed by vaccine inoculations, but in this case the girl is highly allergic to the anti-rabies serum and it could kill her.​
​

When an audit of a department store chain shows a loss of $100k in merchandise, the Credit Manager asks Friday and Gannon to investigate who may have been responsible.​
​

 
Rustifer

Rustifer

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2017
Messages
2,996
Location
Carmel, Indiana
Real Name
Russ J.
Okay, I promised Neal I'd try to find one of my past Dragnet commentaries (July 2020) to add to his Friday marathon. After much searching, I found this one, albeit out of sequence with what Neal is currently displaying. This post is not re-edited or re-tooled, although I'd dearly like to...

Episode Commentary
Dragnet
"The Fur Job" (S1E9)

After years of watching the likes of forensic giants like CSI, Law & Order, NCIS, Line of Duty, etc., it's kind of nice to fall back on the tech level displayed on Dragnet-- about equal to that of Fred Flintstone's foot-pedaled logmobile. But where else would one ever hear the iconic line "Just the fact's ma'am"? This was always a superlative form of questioning since it's widely believed that no one ever lies to the police. As if proof of its procedural verity, each episode ends with a sweaty metal-flecked fist stamping out a mark of approval. Signed, sealed and delivered.

The opening scene in this episode is underscored by Jack Webb's cigarette-raspy narrative. The critical morning briefing consists of office Bill Gannon (Harry Morgan) and Sgt. Joe Friday (Jack Webb) making coffee in the squad's break room. This will act as the diesel fuel that will propel the officers to go out and face crime in the streets of Los Angeles--a city described as one of thick air and deep disquiets, where even the shadows have fidgets. We must all give thanks to Folgers for maintaining public safety in such a place.

Furrier Emile Hartman (Henry Corden) has reported $100,000 worth of mink stoles (remember those?) having been stolen from his Beverly Hills store. Sgt. Joe and Officer Gannon interview Emile, who could not be more stereotypical of a Jewish merchandiser if Tevye from Fiddler on the Roof played the part. Joe's questioning consists of his patented five-but-no-more-than-seven word clipped sentences. There's no wasted verbal gymnastics in Joe's approach. Emile is sure the robbery has been executed by fur specialists. "No seal, wolf or split squirrel skins taken--oh, they knew quality merchandise all right."
"I see", nods Bill Gannon, without really seeing at all.

1596029929964.png
1596029969220.png
1596030043611.png

Sgt. Joe points out a particularly spectacular streetwalker; Joe utilizes the latest in file folder tech; murdering the squad room wall clock

Joe and Bill return to their office desks, populated with black rotary dial phones and note pads. There will be no complex computer databases, closed caption tv cameras or listening devices to assist in cracking open the case. Only a cork bulletin board with Wanted notices and a hand-written recipe of Grandma's tasty Ham Hock Soup.
A clue arrives via an insurance man who has been contacted by a "fishy" individual offering to sell him a mink coat--for the little lady, of course. At 3:05 p.m. (it's always necessary to note the time in Dragnet's world), Joe and Bill hatch a sting operation idea. But first the boys must learn the fur trade so as to appear as credible buyers. This training consists mainly of ogling fashion models parading around in mink coats. Armed with this level of knowledge--about as useful as swim fins on a cat--who wouldn't be fooled by their expertise?

So if luck is the residue of endeavor, Sgt. Joe and Officer Bill are ready to hit the streets--or at least set up shop as fur buyers in a suite at the Bel Air Hotel. Contact is made in the hotel bar, where Sgt. Friday is nursing his usual root beer float. The robbery ring leader--who has the intellectual depth of mayonnaise--and his goons are soon apprehended. "We demand our lawyers", claims the group.
"You're gonna need them" snaps Sgt. Joe. Case closed.
 
Jeff Flugel

Jeff Flugel

Premium
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jan 7, 1999
Messages
3,863
Location
Osaka, Japan
Real Name
Jeff Flugel
It's rare for me to recycle reviews, but to join in Neal's Jack Webb fun, I'll echo Russ and offer some brief capsule reviews of the '60s color version of Dragnet, the first two from 2020 and the last one from August last year:

Dragnet 1967
2.1 “The Grenade”
2.2 “The Shooting Board”
A couple of good episodes here, especially “The Shooting Board,” which puts phlegmatic Sgt. Joe Friday (Jack Webb) through a nerve-wracking couple of days, as he undergoes a departmental investigation after he exchanges gunfire with a young man attempting to steal coins from a laundromat. The crook flees with his runaway girlfriend and eventually dies from a wound from Friday’s gun. But when the scene of crime officers can’t find the bullet Friday claims was fired at him first, things start looking bleak for our hero, who obviously lives for his job and would be bereft if he lost it. Of course, we the viewer witnessed the shootout and know Friday is telling the truth, and in the comforting universe of Dragnet, we know that the truth will out.

“The Grenade” is fun also, as Friday and Gannon deal with an angry, unpopular teenager whose crimes escalate from pouring acid on the leather jacket of an arrogant cool kid (a very young Jan-Michael Vincent) at a movie theater, to holding a party hostage with a live grenade. There’s some weird feedback noise during this scene which I at first thought was a fault in the DVD audio, but appears to be part of the episode’s soundtrack...maybe representing the humming amp at the patio party where the tense final showdown takes place.

MV5BM2Q5ZGQ4NDctZjFkMS00YTU4LThiYzMtYjAwNDU2MTAzODgzXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjIyMzMxMTk@._V1_.jpg


Dragnet 1968 – 2.20 “The Starlet”
Sergeant Friday (Jack Webb) and Officer Gannon (Harry Morgan) are doing a tour in vice, on the case of a teenage runaway from Medford, OR, who’s come to the City of Angels to break into movies and ends up in the sleazy underworld of the porn biz. This show is way too square to lean into truly salacious territory, but, as if to compensate for all the finger-wagging and disapproving speeches about obscenity laws, ends on a surprisingly grim note. Aimzee Strickland, Lyle Talbot, Jo Ann Harris and brunette hottie Susan Seaforth (in her first of four appearances on the show) co-star.

MV5BYmYzYjQ1ZTEtYzRjNS00ZDFlLWE5ODYtZDAzOTE3ZjEyYmQxXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjIyMzMxMTk@._V1_.jpg
 
Last edited:
The 1960's

The 1960's

Premium
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2021
Messages
5,604
Location
New York
Real Name
Neal Rose
Rustifer said:
Okay, I promised Neal I'd try to find one of my past Dragnet commentaries (July 2020) to add to his Friday marathon. After much searching, I found this one, albeit out of sequence with what Neal is currently displaying. This post is not re-edited or re-tooled, although I'd dearly like to...

Episode Commentary
Dragnet
"The Fur Job" (S1E9)

After years of watching the likes of forensic giants like CSI, Law & Order, NCIS, Line of Duty, etc., it's kind of nice to fall back on the tech level displayed on Dragnet-- about equal to that of Fred Flintstone's foot-pedaled logmobile. But where else would one ever hear the iconic line "Just the fact's ma'am"? This was always a superlative form of questioning since it's widely believed that no one ever lies to the police. As if proof of its procedural verity, each episode ends with a sweaty metal-flecked fist stamping out a mark of approval. Signed, sealed and delivered.

The opening scene in this episode is underscored by Jack Webb's cigarette-raspy narrative. The critical morning briefing consists of office Bill Gannon (Harry Morgan) and Sgt. Joe Friday (Jack Webb) making coffee in the squad's break room. This will act as the diesel fuel that will propel the officers to go out and face crime in the streets of Los Angeles--a city described as one of thick air and deep disquiets, where even the shadows have fidgets. We must all give thanks to Folgers for maintaining public safety in such a place.

Furrier Emile Hartman (Henry Corden) has reported $100,000 worth of mink stoles (remember those?) having been stolen from his Beverly Hills store. Sgt. Joe and Officer Gannon interview Emile, who could not be more stereotypical of a Jewish merchandiser if Tevye from Fiddler on the Roof played the part. Joe's questioning consists of his patented five-but-no-more-than-seven word clipped sentences. There's no wasted verbal gymnastics in Joe's approach. Emile is sure the robbery has been executed by fur specialists. "No seal, wolf or split squirrel skins taken--oh, they knew quality merchandise all right."
"I see", nods Bill Gannon, without really seeing at all.

1596029929964.png
1596029969220.png
1596030043611.png

Sgt. Joe points out a particularly spectacular streetwalker; Joe utilizes the latest in file folder tech; murdering the squad room wall clock

Joe and Bill return to their office desks, populated with black rotary dial phones and note pads. There will be no complex computer databases, closed caption tv cameras or listening devices to assist in cracking open the case. Only a cork bulletin board with Wanted notices and a hand-written recipe of Grandma's tasty Ham Hock Soup.
A clue arrives via an insurance man who has been contacted by a "fishy" individual offering to sell him a mink coat--for the little lady, of course. At 3:05 p.m. (it's always necessary to note the time in Dragnet's world), Joe and Bill hatch a sting operation idea. But first the boys must learn the fur trade so as to appear as credible buyers. This training consists mainly of ogling fashion models parading around in mink coats. Armed with this level of knowledge--about as useful as swim fins on a cat--who wouldn't be fooled by their expertise?

So if luck is the residue of endeavor, Sgt. Joe and Officer Bill are ready to hit the streets--or at least set up shop as fur buyers in a suite at the Bel Air Hotel. Contact is made in the hotel bar, where Sgt. Friday is nursing his usual root beer float. The robbery ring leader--who has the intellectual depth of mayonnaise--and his goons are soon apprehended. "We demand our lawyers", claims the group.
"You're gonna need them" snaps Sgt. Joe. Case closed.
Click to expand...
Wow great suprises guys, thank you both!!

Russ a special thanks for taking the time to find this really funny Dragnet parody. You couldn’t have been more spot-on in regards to Emile being the stereotypical Jewish merchandiser. Sounds just like a relative from my childhood, haha. There are many holes in my marathon today because the episode quality from a number of seasons just wasn’t good enough to post. But I did locate this one and broke out the Emile segment below.
Jeff Flugel said:
It's rare for me to recycle reviews, but to join in Neal's Jack Webb fun, I'll echo Russ and offer some brief capsules review of the '60s color version of Dragnet, the first two from 2020 and the last one from August last year:

Dragnet 1967
2.1 “The Grenade”
2.2 “The Shooting Board”
A couple of good episodes here, especially “The Shooting Board,” which puts phlegmatic Sgt. Joe Friday (Jack Webb) through a nerve-wracking couple of days, as he undergoes a departmental investigation after he exchanges gunfire with a young man attempting to steal coins from a laundromat. The crook flees with his runaway girlfriend and eventually dies from a wound from Friday’s gun. But when the scene of crime officers can’t find the bullet Friday claims was fired at him first, things start looking bleak for our hero, who obviously lives for his job and would be bereft if he lost it. Of course, we the viewer witnessed the shootout and know Friday is telling the truth, and in the comforting universe of Dragnet, we know that the truth will out.

“The Grenade” is fun also, as Friday and Gannon deal with an angry, unpopular teenage whose crimes escalate from pouring acid on the leather jacket of an arrogant cool kid (a very young Jan-Michael Vincent) at a movie theater, to holding a party hostage with a live grenade. There’s some weird feedback noise during this scene which I at first thought was a fault in the DVD audio, but appears to be part of the episode’s soundtrack...maybe representing the humming amp at the patio party where the tense final showdown takes place.

MV5BM2Q5ZGQ4NDctZjFkMS00YTU4LThiYzMtYjAwNDU2MTAzODgzXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjIyMzMxMTk@._V1_.jpg


Dragnet 1968 – 2.20 “The Starlet”
Sergeant Friday (Jack Webb) and Officer Gannon (Harry Morgan) are doing a tour in vice, on the case of a teenage runaway from Medford, OR, who’s come to the City of Angels to break into movies and ends up in the sleazy underworld of the porn biz. This show is way too square to lean into truly salacious territory, but, as if to compensate for all the finger-wagging and disapproving speeches about obscenity laws, ends on a surprisingly grim note. Aimzee Strickland, Lyle Talbot, Jo Ann Harris and brunette hottie Susan Seaforth (in her first of four appearances on the show) co-star.

MV5BYmYzYjQ1ZTEtYzRjNS00ZDFlLWE5ODYtZDAzOTE3ZjEyYmQxXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjIyMzMxMTk@._V1_.jpg
Click to expand...
Jeff thank you for your photo essay commentaries, again both great representitives of episodes from seasons that were unavailble in good enough quality.

Jack Webb has got to be looking down at this and smiling today!!
 
The 1960's

The 1960's

Premium
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2021
Messages
5,604
Location
New York
Real Name
Neal Rose
Friday and Gannon are working day watch and must go to the hospital when a veteran police officer and his young partner are seriously wounded in a liquor store holdup where they deal with very different reactions of the wives.​
​

The detectives investigate an especially creepy college freshman suspected of the sniper-rifle deaths of two people, for no apparent reason than the sport of killing.​
​

An informant known as Black Ten turns Friday and Gannon onto a known burglar who is trying to sell an expensive ring that had been reported as stolen. They enlist the aid of a policewoman just out of the academy to help them undercover.​
​

Friday and Gannon work the hospital round. They are called to talk to a mentally-challenged man who threatens to blow up a radio station.​
​

A woman reports her husband robbed her grandmother's home, taking everything, even the cane for the blind grandmother. The husband demands respect, saying everyone has to call him Mr Lumis.​
​

 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

C
Submitted for Your Approval: The Long Overdue Release of “Slow Fade to Black” (AKA “Movie Maker”) on DVD/BD
Replies
5
Views
511
cineescape
C
The 1960's
Tributes To Your Favorite Classic TV Stars
42 43 44
Replies
875
Views
70K
Doug Wallen
Doug Wallen
The 1960's
Classic TV Promos, Commercials and Bloopers - Post ‘Em!
27 28 29
Replies
571
Views
42K
The 1960's
The 1960's
Desslar
Can anyone recommend any classic TV show conventions?
2
Replies
25
Views
6K
tsodcollector
T
MishaLauenstein
2024 Track the TV Episodes You Watched
Replies
1
Views
362
MishaLauenstein
MishaLauenstein

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 2 (members: 0, guests: 2)

Sign up for our newsletter

and receive essential news, curated deals, and much more







You will only receive emails from us. We will never sell or distribute your email address to third party companies at any time.

Similar Threads

  • Top 10 Favourite 70s films that haven't been released in Blu-ray
  • Blu-ray Review  The Rodgers and Hammerstein Collection Blu-ray Review
  • Interview  Bruce Campbell on EVIL DEAD: An Exclusive HTF Interview With Bruce Campbell
  • Interview  Interview with Twilight Time: Nick Redman on who they are, their business model and more.
  • DVD Review  HTF DVD REVIEW: Watchmen: The Ultimate Cut: The Complete Story

    • Latest posts

    Latest Articles

    View more

    Staff online

    Members online

    Total: 1,181 (members: 38, guests: 1,143)

    Forum statistics

    Threads
    357,068
    Messages
    5,129,958
    Members
    144,284
    Latest member
    khuranatech
    Recent bookmarks
    0
    Top