McClain's Law is an American crime drama television series that aired on NBC during the 1981–82 season. New episodes ended on March 20, and rebroadcasts continued until August 24, 1982.
| McClain's Law | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Crime drama |
| Created by | Eric Bercovici |
| Written by | Frank Abatemarco Eric Bercovici Walter Dallenbach Stephen Downing Allison Hock Mark Rodgers Frank Telford Gerald Sanford |
| Directed by | Corey Allen Kerry Feltham Bruce Kessler Vincent McEveety Gary Nelson James Sheldon |
| Starring | James Arness George DiCenzo Marshall Colt |
| Composers | James Di Pasquale (all other episodes and theme) Michael Melvoin ("A Time of Peril") Angela Morley (four: 1.6, 1.10, 1.12, 1.14) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 16 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Eric Bercovici Richard R. St. Johns |
| Producers | Robert H. Justman Mark Rodgers |
| Running time | 44 minutes |
| Production companies | Eric Bercovici Productions MGM Television |
| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | November 20, 1981 – August 24, 1982 |
Summary
editThe series starred former Gunsmoke lead James Arness in a rare non-western role as Jim McClain, a former police detective who was medically retired after being wounded in the leg in a gun battle in the line of duty. He returns to duty fifteen years later to avenge the murder and robbery of a friend, and ends up coming out of retirement in order to share his expertise with a younger generation of police officers.[1]
At first, his request to be returned to active duty is met with resistance by police department supervisors. McClain is made to undergo physical fitness tests and a requalification and training program at the police academy. He handily passes all tests and is returned to active duty on the department at his former rank of detective. McClain is tough but compassionate. He is regarded by his colleagues as being an "Old School" cop. He carries a Smith & Wesson .44 caliber revolver when most of his fellow officers carry .38 Special caliber sidearms. His new coworkers come to respect McClain as a consummate professional of unyielding courage. McClain's Law, like several other series from this period, was criticized for its level of violence. The co-stars were Marshall Colt and George DiCenzo. Shaaron Claridge also played a dispatcher. This was Arness' final TV series; hereafter he primarily appeared in a series of made-for-TV movies reprising Gunsmoke.
Cast
edit- James Arness as Detective Jim McClain
- George DiCenzo as Lieutenant Edward DeNisco
- Marshall Colt as Detective Harry Gates
- Conchata Ferrell as Vangie Cruise
- Carl Franklin as Detective Jerry Cross
Notable guest stars
editEpisodes
edit| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pilot" | Vincent McEveety | Eric Bercovici | November 20, 1981 |
| 2 | ||||
| 3 | "Requiem for a Narc" | Alan Smithee | Stephen Downing | November 27, 1981 |
| 4 | "A Time of Peril" | James Sheldon | Frank Telford | December 4, 1981 |
| 5 | "Let the Victims Beware" | Paul Krasny | Frank Abatemarco | December 11, 1981 |
| 6 | "Portrait of a Playmate" | Michael O'Herlihy | Gerald Sanford | December 18, 1981 |
| 7 | "To Save the Queen" | Bruce Kesler | Mark Rodgers | January 8, 1982 |
| 8 | "A Matter of Honor" | Chrisman I. Nyby II | Walter Dallenbach | January 15, 1982 |
| 9 | "The Sign of the Beast: Part 1" | Gary Nelson | Stephen Downing | January 22, 1982 |
| 10 | "The Sign of the Beast: Part 2" | Gary Nelson | Stephen Downing | January 29, 1982 |
| 11 | "What Patric Doesn't Know" | Larry Elikann | Frank Abatemarco | February 5, 1982 |
| 12 | "Green Light" | Corey Allen | Mark Rodgers | February 12, 1982 |
| 13 | "Use of Deadly Force" | James Sheldon | Gerald Sanford | February 19, 1982 |
| 14 | "Takeover" | Lee H. Katzan | Frank Abatemarco | March 6, 1982 |
| 15 | "From the Mouths of Babes" | Bernard McEveety | Joe Viola | March 13, 1982 |
| 16 | "The Last Hero" | Corey Allen | Frank Abatemarco | March 20, 1982 |
DVD release
editOn June 21, 2016, Warner Archive Collection released McClain's Law - The Complete Series on DVD in Region 1 for the very first time.[2] This is a manufacture-on-demand (MOD) release, available exclusively through Warner's online store and Amazon.com.
References
edit- ^ Tim Brooks and Earle Marsh, The Comprehensive Directory to Prime Time Network TV Shows 1946-Present, New York: Ballantine Publishers, 1992, p. 570
- ^ Official 'The Complete Series' on DVD: Date, Cost, Package Art Archived 2016-05-30 at the Wayback Machine