McClain's Law
Encyclopedia
McClain's Law is an American
crime drama
television series that aired on NBC
during the 1981-1982 season. New episodes ended on March 20, and rebroadcasts continued until August 24, 1982.
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 thirteen 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.
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 and Wesson .44 caliber revolver when most of his fellow officers carry .38 Special caliber sidearms. His new coworkers come to respect McClain as a consumate 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 the late George DiCenzo
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
crime drama
Police procedural
The police procedural is a subgenre of detective fiction which attempts to convincingly depict the activities of a police force as they investigate crimes. While traditional detective novels usually concentrate on a single crime, police procedurals frequently depict investigations into several...
television series that aired on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
during the 1981-1982 season. New episodes ended on March 20, and rebroadcasts continued until August 24, 1982.
Summary
The series starred former GunsmokeGunsmoke
Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West....
lead James Arness
James Arness
James King Arness was an American actor, best known for portraying Marshal Matt Dillon in the television series Gunsmoke for 20 years...
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 thirteen 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.
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 and Wesson .44 caliber revolver when most of his fellow officers carry .38 Special caliber sidearms. His new coworkers come to respect McClain as a consumate 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
Marshall Colt
Marshall N. Colt is a marriage, family, and life enhancement therapist in San Diego, California, who was an actor of film and television from 1976 to 1995...
and the late George DiCenzo
George DiCenzo
George Ralph DiCenzo was an American character actor and one-time associate producer for Dark Shadows. He was in show business for more than 30 years, with extensive film, TV, stage and commercial credits.-Life and career:...
.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| James Arness | Detective Jim McClain |
| George DiCenzo | Lieutenant Edward DeNisco |
| Marshall Colt | Detective Harry Gates |
| Conchata Ferrell Conchata Ferrell Conchata Galen Ferrell is an American actress. She is best known for playing Berta the housekeeper in the CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men, for which she received two Emmy Award nominations in 2005 and 2007.-Personal life:... |
Vangie Cruise |
| Carl Franklin Carl Franklin Carl Franklin is an American actor, screenwriter and film and television director. Franklin is a graduate of University of California, Berkeley and continued his education at the AFI Conservatory, where he graduated with an M.F.A. degree in directing in 1986... |
Detective Jerry Cross |
Notable Guest stars
- Barbara BabcockBarbara BabcockBarbara Babcock is an American character actress. She is perhaps best known for her roles as Grace Gardner on Hill Street Blues for which she won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress—Drama Series in 1981 and her role as Dorothy Jennings on Dr...
- Bibi BeschBibi BeschBibiana "Bibi" Besch was an Austrian/American actress.-Early life:Besch was born in Vienna, Austria, the daughter of theater actress Gusti Huber, who starred in German films during World War II and left Austria in the mid 1940s. Besch had a stepfather, Joseph Besch, a radio executive and former...
- Scott BradyScott BradyScott Brady was an American film and television actor.Born as Gerard Kenneth Tierney, he was the younger brother of fellow actor Lawrence Tierney. Brady served in the Navy during World War II, where he was a boxing champ...
- Julie CarmenJulie CarmenJulie Carmen is an American actress, dancer and a licensed psychotherapist.She came to prominence onscreen in the 1980s, winning the Venice Film Festival Best Supporting Actress Award for her role in John Cassavetes' film, Gloria. Her acting training was with Sanford Meisner at Neighborhood...
- Pat CorleyPat CorleyPat Corley was an American actor. He was known for his role as bar owner Phil on the CBS sitcom Murphy Brown from 1988–1996. He also had a recurring role as Chief Coroner Wally Nydorf on the television drama Hill Street Blues...
- Richard JaeckelRichard JaeckelRichard Hanley Jaeckel was an American actor of film and television.-Life and career:Jaeckel was born in Long Beach, New York. A short, but tough guy, he played a variety of characters during his fifty years in movies & television and became one of Hollywood's best known character actors...
- Arte JohnsonArte JohnsonArthur Stanton Eric "Arte" Johnson is an American comic actor. Johnson was a regular on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In. His best-remembered "character" was that of a German soldier with the catchphrase: "Verrrry interesting, but...['stupid', 'not very funny', and other variations]".-Early life:Johnson...
- Henry JonesHenry Jones (actor)Henry Burk Jones was an American actor of stage, film and television.Jones was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of Helen and John Francis Xavier Jones. He was the grandson of Pennsylvania Representative Henry Burk...
- Art LundArt LundArt Lund was an American baritone singer, initially with bandleaders Benny Goodman and Harry James, and was also a television and stage actor.-Biography:...
- Richard Lynch
Episodes
| Ep # | Title | Airdate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot (Part 1) | November 20, 1981 |
| 2 | Pilot (Part 2) | November 20, 1981 |
| 3 | "Requiem for a Narc" | November 27, 1981 |
| 4 | "A Time of Peril" | December 4, 1981 |
| 5 | "Let the Victims Beware" | December 11, 1981 |
| 6 | "Portrait of a Playmate" | December 18, 1981 |
| 7 | "To Save the Queen" | January 8, 1982 |
| 8 | "A Matter of Honor" | January 15, 1982 |
| 9 | "The Sign of the Beast" (Part 1) | January 22, 1982 |
| 10 | "The Sign of the Beast" (Part 2) | January 29, 1982 |
| 11 | "What Patric Doesn't Know" | February 5, 1982 |
| 12 | "Green Light" | February 12, 1982 |
| 13 | "Use of Deadly Force" | February 19, 1982 |
| 14 | "Takeover" | March 6, 1982 |
| 15 | "From the Mouths of Babes" | March 13, 1982 |
| 16 | "The Last Hero" | March 20, 1982 |