Dragnet Radio - Starring the Great Jack Webb
Listen to the first and final episodes of Dragnet on radio.
Dragnet is one of my favorite old time radio shows. And Jack Webb was a tremendous actor and producer. He was also a person who loved his work and did it perfectly.
I have collected all of the Dragnet radio shows. I'm sharing the first and last episodes with you here. You'll notice a good deal of evolution between the two.
The photo is of Dragnet stars, Jack Webb and Barton Yarborough. The photo to your left is an ad for Fatima cigarettes, which was the first sponsor of the show. Webb got free cigarettes from the company and made full use of them --- much to his final dismay.
Dragnet ran for 382 episodes over 7 1/2 years from June 3, 1949 to February 26, 1957 on the NBC radio network! It was the first police series that detailed every single step involved in police work. Sometimes Webb seemed to get carried away with the job and made the cops look much better than they probably were in reality.
Jack Webb played the main character (Detective Sergeant Joe Friday). His partners changed throughout the series from Barton Yarborough as Sergeant Ben Romero to Barney Phillips as Officer Ed Jacobs and finaly to Ben Alexander as Officer Frank Smith. There were two announcers; George Fenneman and Hal Gibney. The show was produced by Bill Rousseau. Writers included Frank Burt, James E. Moser, and John Robinson. Those terrific sound effects were done by Wayne Kenworthy and Bud Tollefson. The series theme music was titled, "Dragnet March" and was written by Walter Schumann. The show's sponsor was Fatima Cigarettes through September 14, 1952 and then Chesterfield Cigarettes took up the sponsorship.
Webb was a perfectionist. Working in radio, sound was everything. Webb took the time to go out on patrol with real cops and he listened to all the sounds. The sounds used on the show are real sounds. He wanted even the simplist thing, such as a phone call, to sound real. This set him apart from many others in radio.
Webb hated the way so many detective shows of the time made cops seem stupid and the detective the smart one. He wanted a show that proved cops were smart and caring. Whether or not this is true, it came across in the show and he achieved his goal, winning the love of the LAPD and other police departments.
The Dragnet radio show was the inspiration for a Dragnet TV Show, also starring Jack Webb as Sergeant Joe Friday. Ben Alexander, Barton Yarborough, and Barney Phillips all also joined Webb on television in their same roles. The TV series ran for another 275 episodes over eight seasons. The radio show and its TV version were on the air at the same time from December 16, 1951 to February 26, 1957. In those days, it was common to do that. Gun Smoke did the same thing when making the transition from radio to television. The Dragnet television series went on for another 2 1/2 years. It ended August 16, 1959.
Now, sit back and enjoy Dragnet.
First Episode: June 3, 1949
Last Episode: February 26, 1957
Number of Episodes: 318 Original Episodes, 64 repeats (starting 9-27-1955), 382 total broadcasts
Network: NBC Radio Network
Cast Members: Jack Webb, Barton Yarborough
Producers/Directors: Bill Rousseau, Jack Webb
Announcers: George Fenneman, Hal Gibney
Sound Effects: Wayne Kenworthy, Bud Tollefson
Theme Music: "Dragnet March" scored by Walter Schumann
Writers: Frank Burt, James E. Moser, John Robinson
Sponsor: Fatima Cigarettes (10/06/1949 thru 9/11/1952), Chesterfield Cigarettes (9/14/1952 to show end)
Typical Episode Length: 30 Minutes
The First Episode - June 3, 1949