[Quirky Quokka]

Personal Note, I consider Julie London the female equivalent of Frank Sinatra,discovering her music was a revelation. 

I love the rabbit holes we go down in this group. I had never heard of Julie London, so looked her up. Here's a clip of Julie singing 'Cry Me a River'. Picture quality is not great, but she does move closer to the camera.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXg6UB9Qk0o

We also watched all of the old Peter Gunn episodes on Amazon Prime. I'd never seen them before. I really liked all of Lola Albright's caberet numbers, of which there were many. For example:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GioorXkInA

Cheers

QQ

[Quirky Quokka]

The movie He Walked By Night (IMDB entry https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040427/ ) was an important step in the creation of Dragnet, to quote the trivia section at IMDB "Technical advisor for the film was Sgt. Marty Wynn of the Los Angeles Police Dept. During the course of shooting, he fell into conversation with Jack Webb, then the star of radio's "Jeff Regan, Private Investigator", who had a small part in the film. Wynn suggested that Webb do a radio series based on actual police files. Thus was born the idea for "Dragnet," which debuted on NBC radio about four months after this film was released."

Thanks for that info, SuperScrounge. We have that movie on a box set of 20 noir movies, but it would be a while since I've watched it. Will have to refresh my memory in light of this new revelation 

Cheers

QQ

[Quirky Quokka]

Hi everyone

I've been enjoying all of your comments about the books and the rabbit holes it has opened up. Just letting you know that I will be away all of next week and won't have access to my main computer. Just a little holiday to clear the brain cells. I'll have my iPad with me and will still check in, but I won't be able to write long comments. Also I'm not sure how good internet will be while I'm away, so I may be a little late with my wrap-up. Keep chatting up a storm while I'm away 

Cheers

QQ

[Morgus]

Q.Q.; this is a nice trio to work with.
If you want ONE MORE Jack Webb rabbit hole, try out PAT NOVAK FOR HIRE. Old radio show you can dial up right here on the site, and a fave of ‘Crash and I. Wait until you hear the narration dialogue!! Glad his version of TRY A LITTLE TENDERNESS is getting heard by everybody. It was one of a very few things that could make a boss of mine at the time, who had a terminal illness, laugh. That and THE OLD PHILOSOPHER from Eddie Lawrence.
Julie London, (Mrs. Webb Mach One) turned up in EMERGENCY as Dixie McCall, an RN. Amazing uniform. It was totally regulation, but at all times also totally fascinating.

The comic strip DOES sound like an episode, despite the science fiction of Joe Friday, freshman. What’s way cool is the way the Webb’s face changes from day to day. Transmorpho comics. One day it looks more like Frank Sinatra, the next day, Joey Bishop, Ray Romano, Joe E Brown, it just goes on. The art is okay, but just okay.

There is less Transmorpho going on in THE UNTOUCHABLES, and I give the credit to Dan Spiegle. He also drew the adaptation to DOG OF FLANDERS, my brothers’ fave movie adaptation. Good writing, too. I don’t think it IS but it could easily fit into one of the episodes. Somebody should have given the guy a movie camera. By the way, cool story. Robert Stack came back for a hit with UNSOLVED MYSTERIES. (Lasted longer than UNTOUCHABLES, in fact.) Anyway, he’s in Mexico, catches a cab and the driver takes one look at him and nearly cries. THE UNTOUCHABLES had been a re-run bonanza down there and the cabbie started to give him a lecture about how he should knock off the booze and late nights because at THIS rate he would not be able to keep playing Elliot Ness.

CAIN’S HUNDRED has a cult following that overshadows its one season. Theme song reminds me a bit of Mission Impossible.  There’s the guest stars like Nimoy and Robert Culp, but also some good directors like Robert Altman. Peter Mark Richman is drawn well, there is no transphormo drift, but ‘crash is right when he observes there can be ‘distortions’. Page 15 has three guys in the background who look just like Dick Tracy villains. The story line of having a mob lawyer good enough to play pro ball is nearly as wacky as having Jack Webb back in college.
The whole series is based what I called a ‘fork in the road’ premise. SOMETHING big happens, and the lead character has to adapt. LONGSTREET went blind from a blast. IRONSIDES was crippled by a sniper’s bullet. There was one series I forget the name of where the hero is terminal and puts his life on the line for people. Used as recently as THE MENTALIST. (Psychic incurs the wrath of a serial killer who takes out his family. Psychic hunts serial killer down.)
Peter Mark Richman had a long career as a supporting player but was good in this one. Determined and serious most of the time, he shines in this one when his old associates run into him and they take a second to talk shop.
(They have more in common with each other than they do with most other people.)  One ex client he’s been away from says he's lost weight. Cain smiles back and says he has to ‘move around’ a lot more now. The ex client smirks, enjoying the irony.

[The Australian Panther]

Dragnet (1952) – Newspaper strip from the Single and Small Run section
https://comicbookplus.com/?dlid=73198
1/ I can see why Webb was disappointed about his visual likeness in the comic strip.
This artist doesn't even make any attempt to be accurate with his appearance.
However the art is as good as any strip I have ever seen. In every daily strip, every panel is from a different perspective or angle. Great detail for a daily strip too.
2/ The subject matter. Makes me wonder if this wasn't a special - one created to deal with the problem of drug addictiion. Sobering to realize that the problem was already that bad in 1952.
The subject wasn't dealt with in comic books until the 70's when Marvel did a Spiderman special (in defiance of the comic code) and DC did their 'Speedy is a junkie' storyline in the Green Arrow/ Green Lantern series. Tlhe subject was controversial then, so I can't image it didn't make waves in 1952.
3/ The Narrative.
Given how old Webb was when he did Dragnet and what he actually looked like. No way he would pass, even for a soldier on GI Bill, as a student in a high school. ['Just ouf of the army' in 1952. Korea?]  And sorry, I simply can't imagine Joe Friday in a Tshirt and Jeans. 
Curiously, consequences don't come much into the narrative.
The boy who drove the car isn't told that the girl passenger would likely die and that is wrapped up in one word balloon. No remorse. She is never mentioned again.
Joe goes undercover again in a working class (unskilled) job and is undetected. This is writer [Particulaly Hollywood] laziness.
As someone who has worked in quite a few 'unskilled' jobs including in a hospital i know that everybody is known to everybody else. and someone trying to 'go undercover' or putting on a uniform to 'pass' would stick out like a sore thumb. That trope really annoys me.   
Webbs military background accounts for the constant reference to the date and time.
[Friday October 28th at 3:00 pm] I guess this is intended to heightened the realism.
I can't imagine that this narrative appeared in newspapers without being noticed and causing a bit of a stir.                 
Regulars on the show included Harry Morgan and Dennis Weaver. [1967]
Dick Wolf teamed with Webb in 2003-4 for a revival where Ed O'Neil played Joe Friday. In 1987 Dan Ackroyd and Tom Hanks made a parady movie.
Cheers

[SuperScrounge]

2/ The subject matter. Makes me wonder if this wasn't a special - one created to deal with the problem of drug addictiion. Sobering to realize that the problem was already that bad in 1952.

Every generation thinks they invented drug addiction. 

Years ago I recall an editor introducing an unpublished Frank Belknap Long (I think) story and he guessed Frank had written it in the 1960s because of drug use in the story, but Frank had actually written it in the 1920s.

Heck the reason why the Comics Code had a thing against drug addiction stories was because of 1950s crime comics, and it didn't completely eliminate drug references as there were stories that had drug dealers after the Code and before they loosened it up after the Spider-Man story, I think their main concern was potentially glorifying drug use.

Of course the people approving comic stories could be arbitrary with their judgements too, so one could argue that they weren't paying attention with one story while they were in a bad mood with another.

[Morgus]

Hey, ‘Panther...best story from the Dan Aykroyd/ Tom Hanks movie. Joe busts the villian in a men’s room and Aykroyd did this long involved speech that made the cast break out in spontaneous applause. When he filmed the TV series, Jack Webb would just read it from the teleprompter, HE didn’t care. Aykroyd insisted on memorizing the whole thing. They had to do a second take.

[The Australian Panther]

The Untouchables 3 (1 of 3)
https://comicbookplus.com/?dlid=38900

I loved thsi show. Dont think I watched when it was forst broadcast, bui there were reruns for years.
I like gritty BnW Noir so this was right up my alley, as they say.
Desilu studios, anong their comedy shows, produced The Untouchables, Mission Impossible and Mannix.
So, this story.
Excellent Dan Speigle art, I was introduced to his work via the Dell Lost in Space' series. Didn't realize till recently how much other work he did for Dell.
The show was unusual because the narrative was driven by a voice-over, something not really common in Hollywod productions.
The same device is used here. So, it feels like a documentary.
Thinking about it, Dragnet and Untouchables are both actually police procedurals and very 'Just the facts, Ma'm' I wonder if Dragnet had any influence on the Untouchables. I think Radio had a strong influence on both shows.   
Speigle's half-page splash on (our) page 19 and the half-page on (our) page 31 are masterly.
Great stuff. Great to bee able to see what I missied out on back in the day.
This has been the quietest week for the Reading Group for a long time.
I guess denizens of the Northern hemisphere are on Vacation.       

[The Australian Panther]

Cain's Hundred 1
https://comicbookplus.com/?dlid=34274
I was aware of the existence of this show but only vaguely. Don't think it was broadcast on Aussie TV.
But looking it up on IMDB has blown me away.
I'm going to have to see if I can get this on DVD. There are no full episdes on YouTube. 
First the Creator of the show. Paul Monash. This guy  produced 'Big Trouble in Little China' 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid' and 'Carrie' among other things.
He had an eye for talent and/or he earned the respecct of people in the industry.
Because.
Directors included Sydney Pollack and Robert Altman.
Actors? Unbelievable!
Here we go;-
Gavin McCloud, Robert Culp, Telly Savalas, Ed Begley, Bruce Dern, Ted Knight, Jack Lord, Pat Hingle, Jim Backus, James Coburn, Ricardo Montalban, Jack Klugman, Neville Brand, David Jansson, Simon Oakland, Fritz Weaver, Harry Guardino, Robert Vaughn, Susasn Oliver, Robert Duvall, Don Rickles, DeForest Kelly, Leonard Nimoy, Majel Barett - and at that point I quit, I could list at least another half-dozen now well-known actors. I know most of these people were at that time (62-63)  up-and-coming actors, but I have never seen a list of so many actors that are now of note, in one show. (It only ran 2 years apparently) So yeah, going to have to track it down. 
So, this book.
Art - Ed (Eddie) Robbins.
Looks like it might have been inked by Vince Coletta.
But to my eyes the work looks odd, like Robbins was experimenting or something.
Narrative -Any comic that starts with 3 pages of a bunch of suits in a visually boring office - talking, is not off to a good start. 
An Artist illustrates a script he is given. This script doesn't give the artist much space to draw action. If I want to read dialogue, I'll read a book, not a comic. Sorry, Ed, but even the baseball scenes are disappointing. Not that the story is a bad story, the final product is just dull. Was it an original TV script? But I do want to watch the Show. 
Thanks QQ
And now for something completely different Tomorrow!
Cheers!     

[SuperScrounge]

And now for something completely different Tomorrow!

There was a Monty Python comic??? 

[Quirky Quokka]

I'm baacckk!!!!!!! Sorry I've been MIA. As I mentioned, I was away for the last week. I was still reading your comments but only had my iPad with me, so that wasn't conducive to long comments. Thanks for continuing the conversation while I was gone. Here are my thoughts on the first couple.

#1 Dragnet

I felt they could have made more of Friday's undercover back story. He was a vet on the GI bill, so maybe he needed a fix because he was suffering PTSD from what he'd seen and done in the war. My quick google search tells me that the term PTSD wasn't in common usage until the 1980s, but some of the symptoms would have been known and people would have been aware of the problems experienced by some returning servicemen. It would have made him more believable.

Sam seemed happy to help them, though they didn't specifically offer him any protection. Wouldn't the drug lord want revenge on the guy who ratted him out? They also manage to 'break' Brady pretty easily to get the gas station lead. And if the police chief contacts the gas company to see if they neeed another man 'down there', how do they know that guy isn't the crook?

In the second last strip, Friday says that the product was no good. So does that meant the drugs weren't good quality or is it just a general comment that drugs are no good? Did Ann recover? Did Sam and Ann give up drugs and become model citizens?

Well, there were a few bits that stretched credibility, but my main problem was that it just wasn't written in a very exciting way. It was more of a police pocedural than a gripping story. I guess it's not always easy to convey everything when you only have three panels a day, though some writers and artists manage it (e.g., the Modesty Blaise strips). I thought the art was good. Fairly realistic noir style.

As I've never watched an episode of 'Dragnet', I wasn't really sure what to expect but I thought there would be more drama.

#2 The Untouchables

Interesting that it began with a two-frame summary of each story. One frame in each summary involves an attack with a weapon, so I guess that was meant to show there would be action and danger ahead.

The Escape of 'Avenger' Jory

So it only took a rope ladder to escape? When did they start putting barbed wire or cut glass on top of prison walls? The storytelling isn't the most riveting. Crim escapes and wants revenge on the guy who put him behind bars. Crim gets revenge but is recaptured. The art was good though. I especially liked some of the close-up facial expressions in both stories.

The Seventh Man

The case is wrapped up with no real suspense. I had to smile at the frame where the knife whizzes past Ness. He hardly moves or changes his expression, though again I liked the close-up shots of faces. Also some great perspective shots with some of the backgrounds.

Educational Pages

I know comics could get cheaper postage if they included a couple of pages of educational content, but I had to smile at the educational pages about Molls and Speak-easies. Probably not your usual curricula material. Though I did learn something from it myswelf (e.g., where the names come from), so it served its purpose.

Overall - I know I picked these ones, but I was a little disappointed. I like noir and I thought these would be more interesting stories, but they're not told in very engaging ways. Neither of them made me feel like I wanted to check out the TV series.  But you shouldn't judge a TV series by its comic book or vice versa. The art was good though.

It will probably be tomorrow before I can get my comments up for 'Cain's Hundred'.

Cheers

QQ

[Quirky Quokka]

Panther said:

Excellent Dan Speigle art, I was introduced to his work via the Dell Lost in Space' series. Didn't realize till recently how much other work he did for Dell.

Oh, I hope CB+ can get some copies of those when the copyright runs out. Loved that show as a kid. The recent series had all the bells and whistles, but I gave up after seven episodes. The robot was all wrong and I didn't really like any of the Robinsons. The clunky TV show with bad costumes and special effects had more heart.

This has been the quietest week for the Reading Group for a long time.
I guess denizens of the Northern hemisphere are on Vacation.

Me too! On vacation, I mean. Sorry I didn't throw in as many bits and pieces as usual. Though I enjoyed reading everyone's comments.

Directors included Sydney Pollack and Robert Altman.
Actors? Unbelievable!
Here we go;-
Gavin McCloud, Robert Culp, Telly Savalas, Ed Begley, Bruce Dern, Ted Knight, Jack Lord, Pat Hingle, Jim Backus, James Coburn, Ricardo Montalban, Jack Klugman, Neville Brand, David Jansson, Simon Oakland, Fritz Weaver, Harry Guardino, Robert Vaughn, Susasn Oliver, Robert Duvall, Don Rickles, DeForest Kelly, Leonard Nimoy, Majel Barett - and at that point I quit, I could list at least another half-dozen now well-known actors. I know most of these people were at that time (62-63)  up-and-coming actors, but I have never seen a list of so many actors that are now of note, in one show. (It only ran 2 years apparently) So yeah, going to have to track it down.

That's certainly a line-up. Would be worth watching for the cameos alone. The original Avengers series was a bit like that (the Brit bowler-hatted one, not the Marvel one). Lots of young British actors in bit parts before they were well-known.

Cheers

QQ

[The Australian Panther]

Loved that show as a kid.

Nope QQ. The Dell [oops! Gold Key.] comic series was completely different from the TV show.
In my opinion and many others - the Gold Key series was better. 
All about it!
The Unofficial SPACE FAMILY ROBINSON Home Page
https://www.oocities.org/r_bryant42/ish-one.html
And no! I didn't know about the Carl Barks connection.
There was also a British 'Family Robinson in space' comic which is also completely different.
But yes, there was a short-lived TV SFR comic but in the 80's so not PD for a while.
That was actually scripted by Billy Mumy.

n the 1980s, Bill Mumy (who played Will Robinson on the series) had tried, and failed, to convince Irwin Allen to allow production of a Lost in Space film for theatres or TV. In 1991, a fledgling publisher called Innovation Comics began to produce an ambitious, high-quality Lost in Space comic, which was authorized and licensed. It was scripted by Mumy himself, and his intention was to reflect the more serious tone of the first season episodes 

Lost in Space (comics)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_in_Space_(comics)
The Art was by Australian Artist Michael Dutkiewicz who is a friend of mine.
Mumy was not a good scriptwriter in my opiniion and its not a fun read.
But because it was 'Lost in Space' it sold well.
I didn't enjoy it, and probably neither would you.
Oh Yeah, just this week I rewatched the 1998 movie which I had watched about 15 years ago,
Liked it better, but neither the new show or the movie is a replacement for the original.   

[SuperScrounge]

Loved that show as a kid.

Nope QQ. The Dell comic series was completely different from the TV show.

Yep. Although Space Family Robinson was Gold Key not Dell. The comic book came first and the TV show later. Gold Key considered sueing Irwin Allen for Copyright infringement, but decided against it since they did so many licensed titles, a number of which were Irwin Allen shows, that it would have cost them even if they won. They added a subtitle Lost In Space on the covers of Space Family Robinson as a take that to Irwin Allen.

Innovation published a comic based on the TV show, although the tone was much darker than the series.

[Quirky Quokka]

Panther and SuperScrounge, thanks for the extra info about the 'Space Family Robinson' comic books. I didn't realise there was a comic, nor that it appeared before the TV show. I hope CB+ can find some of those.

Cain's Hundred

Sorry I'm late with my wrap-up of this one.

As with 'The Untouchables' book, there are some interesting info pages--one on lawyers at the beginning, and two at the back covering crime syndicates and government agencies. That would have been great for Monday's show-and-tell at school.

'What did you learn on the weekend, Jimmy?'
'I learned how to start a gambling crime syndicate, Miss.'   

Now for the main story. I'm sorry if I missed it somewhere, but do we ever find out why it's called 'Cain's Hundred'? Are 'the hundred' the underworld criminals he has to bring to justice?

From the opening page, is deportation really the only way to stop Martucci? As we saw in 'The Untouchables', they can find ways back into the country and it doesn't really stop the crimes. It just moves their activities to another country.

As others have said, it's a bit far-fetched that Cain could just turn up and start playing for the crook's baseball team, and that the team would show him such loyalty after just a brief tryout. I thought hiding the drugs in the souvenir baseballs was an interesting idea, but then I wondered how they managed to get them in there and still have it look like a normal baseball? A baseball is a fairly specialised piece of equipment and not something you could easily take apart and put back together. But it was an original idea.

But in spite of those little quandaries, I liked the overall story better than the other two books. The full length gave more scope for storytelling and I felt it was better written. The art was also good, especially the close-ups of faces and interesting angles and perspectives.

Thanks for an interesting fortnight everyone. Now I'd better get cracking on all of Panther's westerns for next fortnight 

Cheers

QQ