The Fugitive (1963) (1 Viewer)

[oscar_merkx]

I have yet to buy any TV dvds especially because there is so much out there, with this news and Dallas later in the year, the time has come to get this

 

[Harry-N]

As I recall, A&E ran some kind of specially edited versions on their network. I remember something funny about the titling of the episodes not being the way they were originally broadcast.

After A&E's run, which I didn't tape, a strange cable-only version of New York's WOR ran them nightly, and these had the correct titling format, though they were a bit speeded up to allow more commercials. These I managed to tape on VHS, and between those and all of the available-for-purchase tapes that came out from Nu Ventures Video (20 tapes, 40 episodes), I've been able to satisfy my occasional craving for the series. But truly, I'd love to have these remastered onto DVD.

Favorite episodes: "Nightmare At Northoak" where Kimble is injured saving some kids in a schoolbus accident.
The mother of one of the kids, after helping nurse him back to health, discovers who he is and turns him over to her husnad, the sheriff. He calls Gerard and Kimble is nearly finished his run.


"The Ivy Maze" - a fourth season color episode where Kimble is contacted by an old professor buddy of his.
The professor knows that the one-armed man is on campus, and has a way using sleep deprivation to get him to confess to Helen Kimble's murder.


"Landscape With Running Figures" - a two-parter where a weary Kimble is being squeezed in by Gerard.
After managing another miraculous escape from this town, Kimble ends up caring for a woman blinded in an accident on the bus he's escaping in. The woman turns out to be Mrs. Gerard, trying to run out on Lt. Gerard after he gave up their vacation to chase Kimble.


The afore-mentioned "Never Wave Goodbye" two-parter is also a favorite. There are so many good ones, it's hard to pick out the best.

Though I remember the ten or so episodes that made it to LaserDisc, I only managed to get the final two-parter on that format. I wish I had bought the others, but now hopefully DVD will come to the rescue.

I'd also like to see the sister series from Quinn Martin make it to DVD, THE INVADERS.

[Oh yeah, forgot to mention. The Nu Ventures videos had custom introductions on each episode by Barry Morse, where he'd comment on that specific episode or other memories he had of the series.]

Harry

 

[David Von Pein]

The third-season episode "Ill Wind" is also a fave, featuring both John and Tim McInitire -- the latter went on to portray Alan Freed in 1978's "American Hot Wax", which also is in need of DVD treatment.

"Ill Wind" has Gerard (again) catching up with Kimble, and Kimble (again ) saving the life of his pursuer, with the best Gerard "KIMBLLLLLLLLLLLLE!!!" cry of the series.

 

[David Von Pein]

Yes, you are indeed correct about the "titling".
A&E's versions utilized a "silent" title card as the episode began, rather than the "original" title card and voiceover (e.g.: "Tonight's episode: Fear In A Desert City."). There were multiple title sequences produced for each show.

One thought as to why they might have done this alternate (silent) titling with syndicated prints of the show -- Possibly to remove the spoken word "Tonight's" during the original voiceover (since, in syndication, the program might very well NOT run at nighttime). In fact, as I recall, A&E *did* indeed used to run the show during the afternoon at some point.

 

[David Von Pein]

Hi Harry.

Glad to hear from another "Fervent Fuge Fan".

The episodes you mentioned (above) are indeed "Classics", as are many/(most) of the 120 eps.

A show like "The Fugitive" (where the main character is constantly running from one town to another) is great for watching the many guest-star appearances by some fine 1960s-era actors. It's a regular laundry list, that no doubt kept the casting director(s) hopping 7 days a week during the show's run. When the DVDs come, we'll see all these stars appearing in "The Fugitive" (many of them appear in multiple episodes) .......

Brian Keith (who was as evil as all get out in the pilot ep.), Eileen Heckart, Carroll O'Connor, Bruce Dern (in his usual repulsive-type role), Ed Begley (as a Professor in a fantastic performance, and episode), Vera Miles, Pat Crowley, Barbara Rush (as Mrs. Gerard), Kurt Russell, Robert Duvall, Dean Jagger, Roy Thinnes, Gilbert Roland, Mickey Rooney, Charles Bronson, Murray Hamilton, Frank Sutton, Lee Grant, Jack Weston, John McGiver, Leslie Nielsen, Martin Balsam, Angie Dickinson, Jack Klugman, Jessica Walter, Warren Oates, Betty Garrett, Ellen Corby, Lynda Day George, Claude Akins, Michael Constantine, Ossie Davis, John Fiedler, Diane Ladd, Strother Martin, Kim Darby, William Windom, Dabney Coleman, Slim Pickens, Sandy Dennis, Tuesday Weld, James Daly, Lois Nettleton, Ronny Howard, Jack Warden, Brock Peters, Dabbs Greer, Beau Bridges, Hope Lange, John McIntire, Anne Francis, Telly Savalas, Fritz Weaver, Ed Asner, Jack Lord, Celeste Holm, Steve Forrest, Greg Morris, Marion Ross, Arthur O'Connell, Joanna Moore, William Shatner, Earl Holliman, Lee Meriwether, Andrew Duggan, Ned Glass, Donald Pleasence, Melvyn Douglas, ....

.... and (in two of the best shows) the fabulous Suzanne Pleshette.

 

[David Lambert]

My info stems from a different source than that panel. And that's all I will say on the matter.

 

[Harry-N]

It was more than likely done for A&E's presentations. The show, as presented on ABC, was edited so that there was a prologue, then the opening credits, with the announcer proclaiming, "Tonight's episode, Fear In A Desert City...brought to you by...", at which point the network would insert the sponsor billboard.

This makes for some awkward editing if simply chopped early, as can be witnessed by many syndicated showings of the series. A&E probably attempted to class it up a bit (from their perspective) by chopping that whole section out, editing tightly to the first main program segment while superimposing their own episode title over top of it. This provided them with a more seamless intro, and postponed the first commercial break to around :15 into the show.

Harry

 

[David Von Pein]

Thanks, David L.

(I was hoping your source was a different one. Ex-cell-ent. )

 

[David Von Pein]

You're probably correct, Harry.

The episode title was normally inserted right after the "Directed By:" text left the screen. There's nearly always enough room to place the title at that point (before anybody starts talking and "steps" on the on-screen text), and while Mr. Rugolo's fabulous musical intro (whichever one of the many great cues he recorded for the show) is still playing, leading into "Act I".

I must say, A&E (if it was done exclusively by them for *just* their presentations of the show) did a fine seamless job on the alternate titles. To the point of the "font" of the lettering looking exactly like the other lettering shown on screen.


Harry .... Just curious about this: Did the "Nu Ventures Video" 20-Tape VHS set of Fugitives include any of the following episodes: "Nemesis", "World's End", "Man In A Chariot", "Ill Wind", or "Search In A Windy City"?

 

[Harry-N]

Here's the listing of the episodes that Nu Ventures video released. They weren't a box set, just individually released tapes. Thefirst ten were easy to find -- the second ten I had to special order through Suncoast - back in the days before the Internet. Here they are, two to a tape:

01aGIRL FROM LITTLE EGYPT, THE
01bEND IS BUT THE BEGINNING, THE
02aNEVER WAVE GOODBYE, PART I
02bNEVER WAVE GOODBYE, PART II
03aSEARCH IN A WINDY CITY
03bWIFE KILLER
04aCRY UNCLE
04bTHIS'LL KILL YOU
05aNEMESIS
05bILL WIND
06aNIGHTMARE AT NORTHOAK
06bESCAPE INTO BLACK
07aLANDSCAPE WITH RUNNING FIGURES, PART I
07bLANDSCAPE WITH RUNNING FIGURES, PART II
08aHOME IS THE HUNTED
08bSURVIVORS, THE
09aWORLD'S END
09bBRASS RING
10aMAY GOD HAVE MERCY
10bTRIAL BY FIRE
11aTEN THOUSAND PIECES OF SILVER
11bEVIL MEN DO, THE
12aLAST OASIS, THE
12bWALLS OF NIGHT, THE
13aRUN THE MAN DOWN
13bDEVIL'S DISCIPLES, THE
14aOTHER SIDE OF THE COIN, THE
14bONE THAT GOT AWAY, THE
15aNOBODY LOSES ALL THE TIME
15bIVY MAZE, THE
16aSTROKE OF GENIUS
16bIN A PLAIN WRAPPER
17aFATSO
17bSTRANGER IN THE MIRROR
18aMAN IN A CHARIOT
18bTHE 2130
19aPASSAGE TO HELENA
19bDOSSIER ON A DIPLOMAT
20aCORNER OF HELL
20bEND GAME, THE

 

[David Von Pein]

Thanks, Harry, for the comprehensive list.

 

[Pal_Dramstad]

Thanks for moving the thread. Can't wait for the release of this show.