Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsWelcome to the 60's
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 28, 2022
I'm a boomer, so this show is one that our whole family anticipated every week. Right up there with "The Fugitive" and many others. Each episode is based on an actual FBI case, but with dramatic license and diverse locations. There's no swearing, but lots of smoking, and everyone is wearing suits, even the bad guys. The series was sponsored by The Ford Motor Company, and stated as such at the beginning of each episode, and that's been edited out, so there's a little "jump" at the opening where the sponsorship was deleted. But they couldn't edit out the overwhelming abundance of Fords in every episode. Every parking lot is filled with Fords, and every agent drives a Ford. There's an occasional Mercury, or a Lincoln or a Thunderbird sprinkled here and there, but it's definitely a world of Fords. Even when they push one over a cliff, it's an old Ford. The episodes all deal with serious Federal crimes committed by really bad people who are either career criminals or sometimes good people who get dragged into situations not of their making. The stories are all riveting. The nature of the crimes can be kidnapping, extortion, bank robbery, securities theft, embezzlement, espionage, crimes on the high seas, interstate transportation, crimes on government reservations or properties, white collar crimes, and other Federal crimes. The acting is first rate, with Efrem Zimbalist Jr. playing the part of Inspector Lewis Erskine, as do other regulars, Phillip Abbott as Assistant Director Arthur Ward, and Steven Brooks as Tom Colby, Inspector Erskin's faithful squeaky clean sidekick. Director Ward is constantly on the phone with F.B.I. Director Hoover, who you never see. A special treat is that you get to see a huge number of up and coming actors who later hit the big time. The list is too long to mention all of them, but believe me, they're in every episode. The Producer, Quinn Martin, was highly adept at picking talent, and giving those folks a big boost to their careers. So if you're into crime dramas from days gone by, you've met a real winner. You won't be disappointed.
