Posted on 12/21/2012 7:03:09 AM PST by bestintxas
Dragnet’s Jack Webb died thirty years ago, and a lot of America has been dead ever since.
Jack Webb, who died thirty years ago this weekend, arrived at the right time. “After the war, people were much more realistic,” notes Peggy Webber, star of more than 100 Dragnet episodes. “They wanted things to be as honest as possible. And he filled the bill.”
Dragnet, as the just-the-facts catchphrase it inspired indicates, depicted police work without the frills. Whereas other detective stories attracted listeners through the promise of a weekly shootout, Dragnet snagged them by keeping the weapons holstered. The iconic music, gimmicky teasers promising to reveal case results, and insistence that the show dramatized real-life events joined with the deadpan deliveries to provide the program an audience and authenticity.
My favorite radio episode involved a disturbed old man who for thrills made emergency phone calls for fake car accidents and the like. Typical broadcasts included bunco swindles of Korean War widows, juvenile delinquent rumbles, and small-time robberies of mom-and-pop outlets. Occasionally, the radio run tackled heroin, pornography, and other (im?)mature themes. The hustlers argued their innocence. They never, unlike their counterparts in the ’60s-era television version, argued the innocence of hustling. Crime hadn’t changed. Criminals had.
This became startlingly evident on the January 12, 1967 premiere episode of Dragnet 1967, which depicts a blue-faced teenager tripping on acid. Blue Boy memorably makes numerous non sequitur observations: “Brown, blue, yellow, green, green, orange, red. Red! Red! Red! I can hear them! I can hear them all!” Fifties, meet the sixties.
We remember this post-Miranda incarnation of Dragnet, despite it
(Excerpt) Read more at spectator.org ...
really? I didn’t know that. Great radio voices.
He was the bad guy in “Appointment with Danger.” Freaked me out when he clubbed Harry Morgan to death with a pair of bronzed baby shoes.
During his divorce, Jack Webb had the LAPD wiretape Julie London’s phone. So much for the myth.
Never saw that movie. I’ll have to see if I can find it.
Wasn’t there also a Dragnet movie from that era? I thought I might have seen it advertised on one of the retro stations recently.
Chickenhawk is the term used by homosexuals to describe adult men who chase young boys.
Might as well call him a teabagger.
It may be this one it is also at Internet Archive.
He Walked By Night - Bryan Foy
Gripping film noir crime drama about a manhunt for a ruthless killer who plays a deadly cat and mouse game with the police. Starring Richard Basehart, Scott Brady, Whit Bissell, and Jack Webb, this movie was the basis for “Dragnet”. Watch for Whit Bissell, the unsung but solid bit player who has appeared in hundreds of films and TV shows
Keywords: crime drama; manhunt; film noir
Downloads: 46,524
Average rating: 4.11 stars (18 reviews)
Maybe. But I thought the ad for the movie I referred to called it “Dragnet” or something. When I get a minute, I’ll do some research.
Thanks though. Another movie to see
I may have found it. From 1954:
http:/imdb.com/title/tt0046931/
There was also another movie done in 1966. Apparently, it was favorably received by the network that the series was revived. The movie, however, wasn’t shown to the public till 1969.
But as I understand, the United States military lets you claim hardship under circumstances like Webb's. I'm sure it gets abused by some, and Webb's multiple marriages make him sound like a mixed bag, integrity-wise, but I'm prepared to cut him a little slack, since I know nothing about this case and he did honorable work in his professional life.
Merry Christmas and thank you for your service.
SS
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