The Felony Squad

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The Felony Squad
Howard Duff working in front of the camera and behind it, 1967.
GenreCrime drama
Created byRichard Murphy
StarringHoward Duff
Dennis Cole
Ben Alexander
Theme music composerPete Rugolo
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes73
Production
Executive producerWalter Grauman
ProducersRichard Newton (1966–1967)
Philip Saltzman (1967–1969)
Running time30 mins.
Production company20th Century-Fox Television
Original release
NetworkABC
ReleaseSeptember 12, 1966 (1966-09-12) –
January 31, 1969 (1969-01-31)

The Felony Squad is a half-hour television crime drama originally broadcast on the ABC network from September 12, 1966, to January 31, 1969.[1]

Overview

Sergeant Sam Stone and Detective Jim Briggs are investigators in a major crimes unit in an unidentified West Coast city.[2] (L.A. City Hall is shown at dusk in the final scene of the opening credits). Duff's character was the veteran who was teaching his younger partner the nuances of life in this new facet of police work.[citation needed] Another main character was desk sergeant Dan Briggs, the father of Cole's character.[2]

Originally titled Men Against Evil,[3] the show was set to be a soap opera-type program that would have been broadcast two nights per week. By March 1966 Stone's alcoholic wife and other "main female characters" were removed, with the focus of the program changed from personal lives of policemen to the work of the police.[4] In addition, following primary sponsor Liggett & Myers' objection about being associated with the word "evil," the show's title was changed.[citation needed]

Regular Cast

Guest Stars

Episodes

Season 1: 1966–67

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
11"The Streets Are Paved with Quicksand"Michael RitchieHarold GastSeptember 12, 1966 (1966-09-12)
22"A Walk to Oblivion"Michael RitchieFranklin BartonSeptember 19, 1966 (1966-09-19)
33"The Broken Badge"Vincent McEveetyGeorge EcksteinSeptember 26, 1966 (1966-09-26)
44"Strike Out"Andrew McCulloughDonald S. SanfordOctober 3, 1966 (1966-10-03)
55"A Date with Terror"Richard DonnerHank SearlesOctober 10, 1966 (1966-10-10)
66"Flame Out"Thomas CarrDonald S. SanfordOctober 17, 1966 (1966-10-17)
77"The Immaculate Killer"Seymour RobbieAlfred BrennerOctober 24, 1966 (1966-10-24)
88"The Death of a Dream"Richard DonnerAdrian SpiesOctober 31, 1966 (1966-10-31)
99"Prologue to Murder"Allen ReisnerJohn KneubuhlNovember 7, 1966 (1966-11-07)
1010"Killer with a Badge"Jud TaylorDonald S. SanfordNovember 14, 1966 (1966-11-14)
1111"Between Two Fires"László BenedekHarold GastNovember 21, 1966 (1966-11-21)
1212"The Terror Trap"Tom GriesAlvin BoretzNovember 28, 1966 (1966-11-28)
1313"The Killer Instinct"Robert ButlerMann RubinDecember 5, 1966 (1966-12-05)
1414"Fear Below"Walter GraumanS : Franklin Barton;
T : Donald S. Sanford
December 12, 1966 (1966-12-12)
1515"A Penny Game, a Two-Bit Murder"Richard DonnerAdrian SpiesDecember 19, 1966 (1966-12-19)
1616"Miss Reilly's Revenge"Michael RitchieT : George Eckstein;
S/T : Leonard Kantor
December 26, 1966 (1966-12-26)
1717"A Death for a Death"Herschel DaughertyS : Harry Kronman;
S/T : Donald S. Sanford
January 2, 1967 (1967-01-02)
1818"The Deadly Partner"Lawrence DobkinDonald S. SanfordJanuary 9, 1967 (1967-01-09)
1919"The Night of the Shark: Part 1"Allen ReisnerHarold GastJanuary 16, 1967 (1967-01-16)
2020"The Night of the Shark: Part 2"Allen ReisnerHarold GastJanuary 23, 1967 (1967-01-23)
2121"The Strangler"Lee H. KatzinS : Lee Erwin;
S/T : Tony Barrett
January 30, 1967 (1967-01-30)
2222"Breakout"Larry PeerceBarry OringerFebruary 6, 1967 (1967-02-06)
2323"The Desperate Silence"Allen ReisnerGwen Bagni & Paul DubovFebruary 13, 1967 (1967-02-13)
2424"Target!"Allen ReisnerFrank L. MossFebruary 20, 1967 (1967-02-20)
2525"Echo of a Killing"Gene NelsonDan UllmanFebruary 27, 1967 (1967-02-27)
2626"Live Coward, Dead Hero"Robert ButlerT : Franklin Barton;
S/T : Jay Simms
March 13, 1967 (1967-03-13)
2727"A Blueprint for Dying"Lee H. KatzinTony BarrettMarch 20, 1967 (1967-03-20)
2828"The Fear Merchant"Lawrence DobkinS : Quentin Sparr;
T : Tony Barrett
March 27, 1967 (1967-03-27)
2929"The Savage Streets"Seymour RobbieT : Philip Saltzman;
S/T : L.T. Bentwood
April 3, 1967 (1967-04-03)
3030"Debt of Fear"Lawrence DobkinJohn Furia Jr. (as "John Joseph")April 10, 1967 (1967-04-10)

Season 2: 1967–68

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
311"Let Him Die!"George McCowanTony BarrettSeptember 11, 1967 (1967-09-11)
322"The Counterfeit Cop"Walter GraumanArt WallaceSeptember 18, 1967 (1967-09-18)
333"A Most Proper Killing"Walter GraumanFranklin BartonSeptember 25, 1967 (1967-09-25)
344"The 30-Gram Kill"George McCowanS : Don Tait & Willian Koenig;
T : Tony Bennett
October 2, 1967 (1967-10-02)
355"The Death Bag"Charles RondeauTony BarrettOctober 9, 1967 (1967-10-09)
366"The Deadly Junkman"William HaleDon BrinkleyOctober 16, 1967 (1967-10-16)
377"The Pat Hand of Death"Sutton RoleyTony BarrettOctober 30, 1967 (1967-10-30)
388"Hit and Run, Run, Run"Seymour RobbieDan UllmanNovember 6, 1967 (1967-11-06)
399"Time of Trial"Gerd OswaldRobert E. ThompsonNovember 13, 1967 (1967-11-13)
4010"Who'll Take Care of Joey"Herbert HirschmanTony BarrettNovember 20, 1967 (1967-11-20)
4111"My Mommy Got Lost"George McCowanRobert HeverlyNovember 27, 1967 (1967-11-27)
4212"Ordeal by Terror"Lawrence DobkinS : William Kayden;
T : Philip Saltzman
December 4, 1967 (1967-12-04)
4313"An Arrangement with Death: Part 1"George McCowanFranklin BartonDecember 11, 1967 (1967-12-11)
4414"An Arrangement with Death: Part 2"George McCowanFranklin BartonDecember 18, 1967 (1967-12-18)
4515"No Sad Songs for Charlie"Gerd OswaldEarl FeltonDecember 25, 1967 (1967-12-25)
4616"Bed of Strangers"James SheldonJack TurleyJanuary 1, 1968 (1968-01-01)
4717"Killing, Country Style"George McCowanS : Judith & Robert Guy Barrows;
T : Robert Heverly
January 8, 1968 (1968-01-08)
4818"The Flip Side of Fear: Part 1"George McCowanDon BrinkleyJanuary 15, 1968 (1968-01-15)
4919"The Flip Side of Fear: Part 2"George McCowanDon BrinkleyJanuary 22, 1968 (1968-01-22)
5020"The Love Victim"Nicholas ColasantoT : Robert Heverly;
S/T : Anthony Lawrence
February 5, 1968 (1968-02-05)
5121"The Deadly Abductors"Howard DuffJerry DevineFebruary 12, 1968 (1968-02-12)
5222"Nightmare on a Dead-End Street"Ron KellyRichard LandauFebruary 19, 1968 (1968-02-19)
5323"Epitaph for a Cop"George McCowanS : Jack Morton;
T : Jack Morton & Norman Klenman
February 26, 1968 (1968-02-26)
5424"Man on Fire"George McCowanJerome RossMarch 4, 1968 (1968-03-04)
5525"Image of Evil"Lawrence DobkinBob BarbashMarch 11, 1968 (1968-03-11)
5626"The Human Target"Herbert HirschmanS : Ellis Kadison & Joel Kane;
T : Norman Klenman
March 18, 1968 (1968-03-18)

Season 3: 1968–69

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
571"A Fashion for Dying"Nicholas ColasantoDon BrinkleySeptember 27, 1968 (1968-09-27)
582"Jury of One"Gene NelsonJack TurleyOctober 4, 1968 (1968-10-04)
593"Underground Nightmare"Nicholas ColasantoDon BrinkleyOctober 11, 1968 (1968-10-11)
604"The Deadly Innocents"George McCowanJack TurleyOctober 18, 1968 (1968-10-18)
615"Kiss Me, Kill You"George McCowanFranklin BartonNovember 1, 1968 (1968-11-01)
626"The Nowhere Man: Part 1"George McCowanPhilip SaltzmanNovember 8, 1968 (1968-11-08)
637"The Nowhere Man: Part 2"George McCowanPhilip SaltzmanNovember 15, 1968 (1968-11-15)
648"Matched for Murder"Robert ButlerRobert HeverlyNovember 22, 1968 (1968-11-22)
659"The Fatal Hours"Otto LangFranklin BartonNovember 29, 1968 (1968-11-29)
6610"Hostage"Gerd OswaldMark RodgersDecember 13, 1968 (1968-12-13)
6711"The Distant Shore"George McCowanMark RodgersDecember 20, 1968 (1968-12-20)
6812"Dark Memory"George McCowanMark RodgersDecember 27, 1968 (1968-12-27)
6913"The Last Man in the World"Harvey HartRobert HeverlyJanuary 3, 1969 (1969-01-03)
7014"Conspiracy of Power: Part 1"George McCowanUnknownJanuary 10, 1969 (1969-01-10)
7115"Conspiracy of Power: Part 2"George McCowanUnknownJanuary 17, 1969 (1969-01-17)
7216"Blind Terror"George McCowanS : Hank Searls;
T : Robert Heverly
January 24, 1969 (1969-01-24)
7317"The Law and Order Blues"George McCowanHarold GastJanuary 31, 1969 (1969-01-31)
This episode was a crossover with Judd, for the Defense.

Production

The show was filmed in Los Angeles locations.[2]

From the show's debut until September 1968, it was broadcast on Monday nights from 9 to 9:30 Eastern Time. In the Fall of 1968 it was switched to Fridays from 8:30 to 9 E.T.[2] The program was cancelled at midseason after just thirteen aired episodes. The final episode of the series was part of a crossover with the ABC legal drama Judd, for the Defense, starring Carl Betz, which was cancelled at the end of its season after a two-year run.

Alexander's role in the series was not only onscreen but also offscreen as a technical adviser. His earlier work with Jack Webb in Dragnet was the basis for this added position,[citation needed] but resulted in his inability to reprise his role of Officer Frank Smith when Webb revived Dragnet in late 1966.[4] He died of a heart attack less than six months after The Felony Squad left the air.[citation needed]

The Felony Squad was sponsored by L&M cigarettes, as seen on the 1967 episode "The Day of the Shark Part 1".

20th-Century Fox supplied the series.[1] Pete Rugolo composed Felony Squad Theme.[2]

Critical response

Jack Gould wrote in The New York Times that the debut episode was "a very old-fashioned and conventional yarn about tight-lipped detectives doing a day's work."[5]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present (4th ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 283. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle (1999). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present (7th ed.). New York: The Ballentine Publishing Group. p. 341. ISBN 0-345-42923-0.
  3. ^ Adams, Val (July 17, 1966). "Friday's Friend On the Felony Squad". The New York Times. p. 85. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  4. ^ a b Shubilla, Thom “Beefstew” (April 21, 2022). Primetime 1966–1967: The Full Spectrum of Television's First All-Color Season. McFarland. pp. 68–69. ISBN 978-1-4766-8344-7. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  5. ^ Gould, Jack (September 20, 1966). "TV: 'Rat Patrol' Takes On Rommel: 4 Commandos Display Jeep-Driving Skill 'Felony Squad' and 'Iron Horse' Bow". The New York Times. p. 93. Retrieved May 11, 2023.

External links