(1953) Dragnet The Big Thief

[@alexandraashland2981]

I wish I could tell these wonderful actors how much I appreciate them.

[@benniebritt5705]

I think they know 🙏

[@bigtalk2598]

I was definitely born in the wrong era. This episode is hands down the best of the 50s episodes. Frank willing to do all the paperwork to help his buddy, Ann commiserating with Joe, Friday feeling so horrible about killing a man that shot at him. TV gold.

[@anthonygreen7978]

Dragnet set the Standard for the start of Police Shows!

[@anthonygreen7978]

My 3 Police Shows is Dragnet,The Untouchables,and Kojak.

[@spartandodge6034]

True stories, so we live with these decisions. Five years? For each count? I hope she got cleaned up in prison, and learned something. The damage she did to so many people, and it's hard to get a house call these days. Ruination and bad karma.

[@joshuaanothereraseddad]

Dragnet, Highway Patrol, Car 54, The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Rifleman, and a handful of others are absolute gems. Ain't never gonna be nothin that good again...

[@bobsaturday4273]

Gunsmoke , Beverly Hillbillies , even a few into the color days , Hawaii 5-0 , Mission Impossible , didn't have time to watch em back then but do now

[@spartandodge6034]

We are so lucky to see these again.

[@heyoldman2003]

@@bobsaturday4273 Hill Street Blues 😎

[@slumpyb]

This was one of the first 50's Dragnets I ever saw, after watching the 60's version in re-runs for years it's amazing how different the feel of the 50's version is. I love all of them of course.

[@shirtless6934]

By the 1960s suspects had acquired constitutional rights.

[@michaelmorgan7893]

Word was, shortly before Jack Webb passed in 1982, they had planned to do a reboot of the original Dragnet, but with Kent McCord in the lead role, with Friday as his supervisor. Would've been nice to see.

[@antonmoric1469]

@@shirtless6934 Nah. They acquired "rights" that had nothing to do with the Constitution, and much to do with lawyers and pro-criminal groups.

[@Beadbud5000]

One of Webb's nice acting performances.

[@marbanak]

Well done. Jack Webb Rocks!

[@kjm4422]

Her bangs are perfect

[@patsysmothermon7861]

Dr's Making House calls ! That was back in The Day ! Im 78 and as a newly married lady in the mid 60 's the Dr in our tiny town, still made house calls. 😊😊

[@brucemoose9587]

yep😢cant get that kind of service anymore from medical field

[@KNT.63]

Man man that was good one of the best ones I've seen over all these years seems like it anyway daggone good one

[@mbellizia75]

Great episode.. Pretty big heroes, them men and women who do that job. And sometimes it leaves them scarred and damaged, even when they go home safe.

[@bobsaturday4273]

they weren't nasty psycho bullies who can dish it out but couldn't take it like so many are now who shoot unarmed people for fun and get away with it most of the time

[@feralbluee]

scene with Friday and his girlfriend - very well done. guess it was before cops had to get counseling for this kind of problem. Jack Webb handled it beautifully.

[@Tedybear315]

They both did. Loved the comment about finding your way in the dark...

[@KNT.63]

@@Tedybear315 teddy bear one of the best ones I've seen

[@barbaralefler6764]

Love all episodes of Dragnet.Love the show.

[@MikeBurks-w3i]

Loved when they all crawled under the table....LOL ❤

[@magarac99]

Well written show

[@bovnycccoperalover3579]

Excellent episode with an unusual MO.

[@joyceyagoda4207]

Clothing are the days gone by!

[@steelwheels327]

The episodes from the 50's have Joe's character showing a bit more feelings

[@KNT.63]

one of the best ones I've ever saw

[@fromthesidelines]

Originally telecast on December 17, 1953, and adapted from a radio script by Ben Alexander {"Officer Frank Smith"} and John Robinson {Jack Webb}.

[@KNT.63]

I don't know if I saw a reply from 10 years ago dang what about the show that was a good one one of the best ones emotional

[@davidlium9338]

Damn that was beautiful! Especially the very last part!

[@heyoldman2003]

I guess my troubles are over, no they just started ha ha ha ha ha

[@doctorartphd6463]

Love their sense of humor !! 😄

[@spartandodge6034]

True that.

[@Mprator]

I never saw a 50's one before, glad this is up here. Too bad Joe didn't keep that GF!

[@teresas8173]

In real life the actress Dorothy Abbott who played Joes gf committed suicide after a difficult divorce. Her ex-husband was a LAPD homicide detective who later went onto acting.

[@sylviaroberts8103]

@@teresas8173 Good grief - stranger than fiction. Always extremely sad to learn that a person commits suicide because of - what? - a relationship with ONE person living on this earth, when they could have dozens of better, more fulfilling relationships, if only they knew!

[@dan4894]

Old Joe shouldn't have let Ann go. She really understood him.

[@michaelmorgan7893]

Ann kinda reminds me of Policewoman Dorothy Miller (Merry Anders) in the 67-71 series. That's about as close to a date as Joe ever had.

[@moxievintage1390]

@@michaelmorgan7893I remember when Frank said YOU LIKE WOMEN , DON’T YA JOE? 🙃

[@michaelmorgan7893]

@@moxievintage1390 yeah, Friday made several references to the fact many cops didn't get married, or stay married, due to the possibility of the wife being left widowed if the husband died while on duty.

[@conniecrawford5231]

The doctor asks for a cigarette. How times have changed! INone of my doctors smoke anymore!

[@mountainman5025]

No hospital will hire a doctor who smokes

[@DCShaneTours]

They were told to light up a certain amount of times during the episode, they were sponsored by Big Tobacco killers.

[@BETTERWORLDSGT]

Back then everybody smoked, both of My Parents smoked, everybody smoked everywhere basically, it was considered normal and acceptable, I'm glad I quit Young, I Don't think I would be around now if I didn't quit, or else I'd be hacking my guts out and on Oxygen or something by now if I was alive still.

[@jacknakash2677]

Connie Crawford yeah how times have indeed changed. A doctor smoking wouldn't "fly" in today's society. Even smoking in hospitals was allowed wow!!

[@ajjackson1526]

@@jacknakash2677 I bet the maternity wards were pretty smoky in those days

[@ernestclements7398]

Oh for the days when women dressed up to go out, and men wore suits and hats, there was a civility in those days, that is sadly lacking these days!

[@MIKECNW]

Ah shut up!

[@jossetteking4967]

How right you are!

[@flapjackfae]

And doctors made house calls.

[@michaelphelan423]

I just said the same thing to my wife last night, except that by Dragnet 1967, hats were out

[@michaelmohrle1773]

It also shows that there was horrible crimes in those days as well, murders, hard drugs, rapes, etc.

[@brianoleary4386]

Every title has the big in it

[@asullivan4047]

Interesting/informative/entertaining. Realistically portrayed citizens/criminals/law enforcement officials. Enjoyed viewing the automobiles/phones/furniture/of that era🤗. Nice having reruns to view-!!!😉.

[@RogerArthur-z2v]

The old days of home doctors visits

[@jamesrobinson4908]

"Kind of dark, can you find your way" "Yes. Can you?" Terrible writing but just the kind of cornball that keeps me coming back for more. DUN DUN DUN DUN, DUNNNNN!

[@KNT.63]

I hear you brother me to one of the best ones I've seen I like them all

[@KNT.63]

One more thing I grew up on Dunn Street dun dun dun dun dun dun

[@andrewvelonis5940]

I disagree. I thought it was poetic.

[@bigtalk2598]

With that comment you wouldn’t know corny from cornbread. This is one of the most iconic scenes ever recorded in TV history.

[@jamesrobinson4908]

That's pretty big talk coming from...oh. Well, ...@@bigtalk2598 Hardly "...😆most iconic" regardless of who's saying it.

[@teresas8173]

@ 7:00 when Joe picks up the phone he doesn’t speak at all to whomever called.

[@squitzy]

Hey! The Doc wants a smoke!

[@JohnW1711stock]

Tim Allen! LOL! Tool Time! Now the Doc has an autopsy to perform.

[@shirtless6934]

Now we know why doctors no longer make house calls. Today a person is told to call 911.

[@michaelphelan423]

Back in the day, our doctor had to travel 16 miles to come see us

[@andrewvelonis5940]

That wasn't the reason, by a long shot.

[@jesusapolicarpio-delacruz3851]

Today's Medics no more make House Calls alright and, neither do they smoke!!

[@bovnycccoperalover3579]

Ann was in another episode, "The Big Frank". That was also a good episode.

[@wandahall4435]

Jack Webb is A Savage!!!

[@KNT.63]

You got that right lady chickiepoo Ruff ruff how how me too Wanda

[@andrewvelonis5940]

I disagee. He showed the vulnerable side of Friday, deeply regretting the result of his action, even though he made the right decision.

[@howardg5934]

Doctor asking for a cigarette seems humorous now.

[@michaelhewitt258]

The 50's Women wore skirts and high heels

[@MIKECNW]

Big deal!

[@mowlessbeemore2107]

And men wore Fedoras and a coat and tie.

[@ToniA5555]

Today, the woman might have been charged with murder in her accomplice's death.

[@michaelshaffer8451]

Not to mention that she would’ve been taken to the ground and cuffed as soon as she came towards Friday or Smith.

[@charlesmoore456]

11:42 It's Cookie from Stalag 17!

[@ministerbarrythomas6603]

😁😁😁😁 GOOD JOB👍👍👍

[@ministerbarrythomas6603]

Gil Stratton -as Clarence Harvey "Cookie" Cook (Narrator)

[@charlesmoore456]

@@ministerbarrythomas6603 One of the best movies of all time. Sprechen Sie Deutsch?

[@steverhodesvideos6244]

Jack Webb was the best friend the tobacco companies ever had 18:15

[@patsysmothermon7861]

The Woman Criminal didn't want to Blame herself; but wanted to blame the Officer. She caused that !! She was the Leader of the "Gang of 2". The Criminals Never think they are to blame. 😮👿👿

[@PeterMaranci]

...and this is why no doctor anywhere has ever made a house call since then.

[@cynic2all]

I remember a doctor making a house call for me wgen I was in the 2nd grade, 1966-67.

[@rickmiller1429]

Dorothy Abbott, played Joes's girlfriend, did marry a cop and when they divorsed she committed suicide one day before her 48th birthday. Art Gilmore, Captian Didion, narrated all the Highway Patrol episodeds of Brodrick Crawford.

[@georgemartinez9414]

Oh oh Sargeant Friday @ 8 :25 through his cigarette butt out the window, litterbug.....

[@vexer2942]

Friday's boss is shown drinking milk. In 1953, doing so was recommended for ulcers. Not these days!

[@jamesreichardt7573]

I quit smoking over a year ago , I told GOD I would quit and I had been smoking since I was 13 I am 67 now and it was easy , I had tried Before but I just couldn't stop after a day I would be smoking again , but I never Promised GOD I would quit after I Finish the Pack and I did and it didn't bother me at all ! I keep seeing these People smoking on Dragnet and I kind of want to but it doesn't bother me , even when People smoke around me I have even been offered cigarettes and I turned them down because I promised Almighty GOD And I can't break my promise to HIM so I don't And it's easy , if you smoke and want to quit try it , but don't ever break a promise To Almighty GOD !

[@mbellizia75]

while youre talking to GOD , maybe ask him to stop giving cancer to people

[@fepeerreview3150]

18:20 I absolutely love Dragnet. But my god there are cigarettes everywhere. I'm glad we finally got past that and realize how wrong it was.

[@bovnycccoperalover3579]

Now they are poisoning us with ultra processed food plus added sugar.

[@ramonasp4989]

Wow, a time when most doctors had integrity still ! It is rare in 2023, but we have some left like this one.

[@thomashugus5686]

News flash:most doctors still have integrity!!

[@jessiejames7492]

police administering first aid. A lifesaver! Nowadays with so many lawsuites and malpractices, they send you straight to emergency. Then the victim has to fork out $$$$ hundreds sometimes...

[@Hotrod6045]

Those are LA Fire Dept personnel doing the first aid

[@DCShaneTours]

Ambulance personnel wore uniforms similar to pigs. I mean cops.

[@booklover6753]

@@DCShaneTours I hope that if you ever need them they don't show up.

[@KNT.63]

@@booklover6753 now now,we know not what we do, Sometimes

[@m.w.wilson234]

@7:59 - first hotel 2 occupants for $5.00 per night, @8:02 second hotel 2 occupants for $7.00 per night

[@bffs4lifeliz]

Nice

[@Richard-ur1uh]

yep

[@markhughes7927]

That composer! - did he come from ancient Sparta😂❤!

[@davidedwards4720]

Terrific episode. It’s amazing to see how much faster people aged back then, largely from tobacco use. Webb was 33 when this was made but looks 53. His life was already more than half over.

[@adamschwartz3449]

Also, people grew up faster then. Adults acted like adults, unlike now.

[@ricardocantoral7672]

​@@adamschwartz3449 30 is the new 18!

[@macmcleod1188]

Yes. Dead of heart disease (aka too much smoking and drinking) at age 62.

[@billhinton9787]

Everyone smoked, I mean Everyone.

[@macmcleod1188]

You were born with two packs and a box of matches.

[@plunkervillerr1529]

They got a new FORD every year. Unlike Rod Cameron in State Trooper who drove the same 56 Ford for three years.

[@johnrudy9404]

Have cop pose as an MD, other 2 as orderly(s). Shenanigans? Instant arrest.

[@robertplatt643]

Note to young people. When they talk about the AMA, it's American Medical Association, not Ask Me Anything.

[@kittygonzalez2827]

Wow ...JOE had a girlfriend! A First for me!

[@MarshaCarrington-k6n]

In this episode Friday is out of character. Friday is a policeman with no feelings. That’s the way Webb played him.

[@voraciousreader3341]

It’s too bad that the beautiful Dorothy Abbott (Anne, Friday’s girlfriend) killed herself in 1968 because her ex-husband-an LAPD homicide director-dumped her for actress Ann Southern. He had an affair with Southern who urged him to become an actor, so he dumped his day job and did what she said. I don’t think it went well.

[@joyceyagoda4207]

What is the guilt? That guy would have killed him and today she would have been charged with his murder!

[@jacobdickinson7372]

Am surprised that the DA didn’t press a manslaughter charge against that woman. She was a contributory factor in that dude’s death.

[@chillydawgg4354]

The way to a man's heart is through his lungs, so give him cigarettes

[@stuartdryer1352]

$6 a month extra for being a good marksman. Not bad! Why, not bad at all.

[@PattMcCrotch]

0:34 Chateau Marmont.

[@sarahmariah100]

8:29 Lol but why the milk? Bc it's a refreshing, nutrient-dense beverage? OK - so it may be. But why's he drinking shots of milk, then? Why is he pouring it two fingers at a tune? Why not pour a full, frothy, 8-oz glassful and enjoy?

[@macmcleod1188]

Ulcer?

[@macmcleod1188]

@@mikeh.7499 In the end, we found many stomach ulcers were caused by a bacteria that could be treated with antibiotics.

[@letsgobrandon6281]

The girl gets him killed then blames the police. Hey ,sounds familiar

[@joinrocknation9618]

Joe Friday killed 2 people, this was the first one, the second one was in a laundromat in color. 😂

[@taggartlawfirm]

Why didn’t Joe marry Ann?

[@joyceyagoda4207]

Drs no longer smoke!

[@joeaarsen0]

In the radio version. They shot people all the time

[@judyoram999]

Year I was born

[@macmcleod1188]

Wow! 1500 Osteopaths! They apparently used to be a lot more common.

[@KahawaSQ]

9:27pm, 10:27pm hmmmm

[@igotstoknow2]

It was a time when 'science based' doctors said smoking was not bad and their cars used leaded gasoline.

[@booklover6753]

Suck it up and put on your mask and get vaccinated rube. The science behind the dangers of tobacco and leaded gas well established in those days. Science evolves with time and improves, as opposed to your thinking.

[@louissparks2496]

Another cigarette commercial.

[@DCShaneTours]

Hand someone a joint of cannabis, not a deadly cigarette. Since this episode aired, tobacco has killed maybe 10 million people, cannabis has killed ZERO.

[@calbrit54]

@@MS-uq2tm Plus, the lives lost when marijuana gives way to cocaine, meth, heroin. Few decide all of a sudden to just start shooting up. Usually, they get acclimated to using dope by first starting with marijuana. The hippies popularized that crap and America has gone down the toilet ever since.

[@macmcleod1188]

A million every two years since then on average.

[@pigalleycatemanresu7321]

Except Bob Marley.

[@bobsaturday4273]

times sure have changed , these guys are in a panic over a few vials of morphine back then and now the dope 100 times as strong is running free on the streets , the addicts wouldn't even look at that WEAK stuff