Dragnet (radio series)

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Dragnet (radio series) is a pioneering American police procedural drama that followed the realistic investigations of LAPD Sergeant Joe Friday and helped define the crime genre in mid-20th-century broadcasting.

All labels observed (6)

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Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf crime drama
police procedural
radio series
aimedFor realistic depiction of law enforcement procedures
announcer George Fenneman
Hal Gibney
basedOn “Dragnet” (1948 radio series audition program “Joe Friday, Detective”) by Jack Webb
broadcastMedium network radio
characterPortrayed Sergeant Joe Friday
closingNarrationBy Hal Gibney
countryOfOrigin United States
creator Jack Webb
developer Jack Webb
firstAired 1949-06-03
format half-hour episodic drama
genre crime drama
detective fiction
police procedural
helpedDefine mid-20th-century American crime genre in broadcasting
influenced Dragnet (1951 TV series)
later American police procedural dramas
lastAired 1957-02-26
mainCharacter Officer Ben Romero
Officer Bill Lockwood
Officer Frank Smith
Sergeant Joe Friday
musicBy Walter Schumann
narrativeStyle semi-documentary
notableCatchphrase “Just the facts, ma’am.”
openingNarrationBy Jack Webb
originalLanguage English
originalNetwork NBC Radio
policeDepartmentDepicted Los Angeles Police Department
portrayedBy Jack Webb
portrays day-to-day investigations of LAPD detectives
producedBy Jack Webb
productionCompany Mark VII Limited
setIn Los Angeles
style realistic portrayal of police work
use of documentary-style narration
tagline “The story you are about to hear is true.”
themeMusic “Danger Ahead”
themeMusicComposer Walter Schumann
timePeriodOfPopularity 1950s
typicalEpisodeStructure investigation from crime report to arrest and trial outcome
writtenBy Jack Webb
James E. Moser
Richard L. Breen

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (11)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Dragnet (television series) adaptationOf Dragnet (radio series)
Dan Aykroyd notableWork Dragnet
linked to: Dragnet (radio series)
Jack Webb notableWork Dragnet (radio series)
Joe Friday firstAppearanceWork Dragnet radio series
subject linked to: LAPD Sergeant Joe Friday
linked to: Dragnet (radio series)
Jack Webb as Sergeant Joe Friday notableWork Dragnet (radio series)
Jack Webb as Sergeant Joe Friday firstAppearance Dragnet radio series
linked to: Dragnet (radio series)
Jack Webb as Sergeant Joe Friday fictionalUniverse Dragnet universe
linked to: Dragnet (radio series)
Dragnet (film, 1987) basedOn Dragnet (radio and television series)
linked to: Dragnet (radio series)
Dragnet (film, 1987) parodies Dragnet (radio and television series)
linked to: Dragnet (radio series)
Dragnet (radio series) basedOn “Dragnet” (1948 radio series audition program “Joe Friday, Detective”) by Jack Webb
linked to: Dragnet (radio series)
Jack Kruschen notableWork Dragnet (radio series)