Harry O | |
---|---|
Also known as | Harry-O |
Genre | Detective fiction |
Created by | Howard Rodman |
Written by | Robert C. Dennis Robert Dozier Larry Forrester Herman Groves Stephen Kandel Joanna Klasson John Meredyth Lucas Howard Rodman Michael Sloan Norman Strum Gene Thompson |
Directed by |
Richard Benedict Daryl Duke Harry Falk Richard Lang Jerry London Joseph Manduke Russ Mayberry John Newland Jerry Thorpe Paul Wendkos Don Weis |
Starring |
David Janssen Henry Darrow Anthony Zerbe Paul Tulley Farrah Fawcett-Majors Les Lannom Tom Atkins Bill Henderson |
Theme music composer | Billy Goldenberg |
Composers | Billy Goldenberg Kim Richmond J. J. Johnson John Rubinstein |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 2 |
No. of episodes | 44 |
Production | |
Executive producer | Jerry Thorpe |
Producers | Alex Beaton Robert Dozier Buck Houghton Robert E. Thompson |
Running time | 60 mins. (approx) |
Production company | Warner Bros. Television |
Original release | |
Network | ABC |
Release | September 12, 1974 April 29, 1976 | –
Related | |
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Harry O, sometimes spelled Harry-O, is an American private detective series that aired for two seasons on ABC from 1974 to 1976. The series starred David Janssen, and Jerry Thorpe was executive producer. Harry O followed the broadcast of two pilot films: firstly Such Dust as Dreams Are Made On (which aired on March 11, 1973) and secondly (with noticeable retooling) Smile Jenny, You're Dead (which aired on February 3, 1974), both starring Janssen. [1]
David Janssen starred as the title character Harry Orwell, a San Diego cop forced into retirement when he is shot in the back. To support himself, he sets up a private investigation practice out of his beach house on Coronado Island, in San Diego. Henry Darrow, (formerly of the 1967-71 NBC hit Western series, The High Chaparral), originally starred as Lt. Manny Quinlan, Harry's friend and police contact.
For the second half of the first season, the series was retooled, with the location of the series shifted to Los Angeles, California, due to the high production costs of filming in and around San Diego. [2] The retooling consisted of more than just a location change; a revised theme song and incidental music were composed and new supporting characters were added, notably the irascible Lt. Trench of the Santa Monica Police Department, who became Orwell's new foil/contact. (Henry Darrow's character, Lt. Quinlan, was killed off in a crossover episode.) Most noticeably, a lighter tone for the scripts and acting was adopted. Harry still lived in a beach cottage−this time somewhere along the Pacific Coast Highway between Malibu and Santa Monica. In "Reflections", episode five of season two, he gave the address as "1101 Coast Road" (this beach location was the same location used for the second pilot movie).
The second season had a further reworking of the opening credits and theme song, and recurring characters were added. Anthony Zerbe, who played Lt. Trench, won a Primetime Emmy Award for his role on the series. Recurring characters included Farrah Fawcett-Majors, as Harry's attractive next-door neighbor and sometime girlfriend Sue Ingram/Ingham; Paul Tulley as Sgt. Roberts, Lt. Trench's assistant; Les Lannom as Lester Hodges, a bumbling private-eye wannabe; Tom Atkins as Sgt. Frank Cole; and Bill Henderson as Spencer Johnson, Harry's frustrated car mechanic.
Harry's small Austin-Healey, which spent almost all of the first season in non-running condition, later had more time on the road as the series progressed, though it was never entirely reliable. Also, in the San Diego episodes, the bullet in Harry's back noticeably impeded his ability to get around; by the second season, though the bullet's existence was mentioned in passing, Harry was miraculously able to run, jump, and engage in strenuous physical activity with seemingly no issues.
Ratings for the series were initially fair, and they received a boost after the series was retooled in January 1975. Harry O was picked up for a second season and continued to gain viewership and critical acclaim. Then- ABC president Fred Silverman, though, decided to take the network in a different direction and cancelled the series in favor of Charlie's Angels. Farrah Fawcett-Majors, supporting player to Janssen's Harry O, was selected as one of the three stars of that new series.
The last original episode aired on April 29, 1976. [3] The series' cancellation greatly disenchanted its star Janssen, who had found and shaped probably his most ideal character ever in Harry Orwell; he thus vowed never again to participate in another television series. He did appear in the miniseries Centennial (1978–79), though.
The series' reputation has been burnished in the decades since its cancellation. Allen Glover noted in TV Noir: Dark Drama on the Small Screen (2019) "how thoroughly Janssen 'laid the bone-weary but persevering tally of his own life right on the counter, like a bar tab covered with too many cigarette burns and glass rings'."
The show was rerun late at night on CBS during 1979-1980. It was run in syndication in the late 1980s on a few stations around the US and had a short-lived run on GoodLife TV Network in the early 2000s. The first pilot movie still receives occasional airings.
The series is occasionally presented in weekend binges on the OTA television network Decades and on weekday afternoons on MeTV+.
No. overall |
No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pilot | 1 | "Such Dust as Dreams are Made On" | Jerry Thorpe | Howard Rodman | March 11, 1973 | |
Harlan Garrison (
Martin Sheen), a member of the gang that shot Harry in a drugstore robbery four years earlier, hires Harry to find Garrison's two accomplices. It stars
Sal Mineo,
Will Geer,
Margot Kidder and
Mel Stewart. Portions of this movie were re-edited and reused (in a very different context) in the first-season episode "Elegy For A Cop"; the two stories are not compatible within the same series continuity. | ||||||
Pilot | 2 | "Smile Jenny, You're Dead" | Jerry Thorpe | Howard Rodman | February 3, 1974 | |
Harry is hired to protect Jennifer English (
Andrea Marcovicci), a model being tailed by a deranged stalker who also appears to have murdered her estranged husband. It stars
Jodie Foster as Liberty Cole (a homeless girl who takes up residence in Harry's boat),
Clu Gulager, and
Zalman King. |
No. overall |
No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | "Gertrude" | Jerry Thorpe | Howard Rodman | September 12, 1974 | |
The sister of a sailor absent without leave, Gertrude (
Julie Sommars) hires Harry to find him, and the only clue is that his left shoe was mailed to her. However, another clue then arrives in the form of two fake
shore patrol officers. Les Lannom, later a series regular in the role of Lester Hodges, plays the AWOL sailor. Henry Darrow debuts as Lt. Quinlan. | ||||||
2 | 2 | "The Admiral's Lady" | Paul Wendkos | Del Reisman | September 19, 1974 | |
Harry is hired to find an admiral's wife, who is presumed dead by the police, but who turns out to be alive and in genuine danger. With
Leif Erickson and
Sharon Acker | ||||||
3 | 3 | "Guardian at the Gates" | Jerry Thorpe | Stephen Kandel | September 26, 1974 | |
Harry must protect an obnoxious, self-centered architect (
Barry Sullivan), who witnessed a murder and is oblivious to attempts on his own life. This was the first episode filmed for the regular series. With
Linda Evans,
Anne Archer,
Richard Kelton and
Gordon Jump | ||||||
4 | 4 | "Mortal Sin" | Paul Wendkos |
T : Stephen Kandel S/T : Robert Malcolm Young | October 3, 1974 | |
A man confesses to murder to a priest, and Harry is brought in to help stop the man from killing again. With
Laurence Luckinbill | ||||||
5 | 5 | "Coinage of the Realm" | Richard Lang | Elroy Schwartz | October 10, 1974 | |
Harry must find a man who is needed to donate a kidney to his daughter, and who also has two hired killers on his trail. With
Kenneth Mars,
Joan Darling, and
Florence Stanley | ||||||
6 | 6 | "Eyewitness" | Richard Lang | Herman Groves | October 17, 1974 | |
A blind teenager is the only witness to a murder. It stars
James McEachin and
Rosalind Cash.
Margaret Avery, later a series regular in a different role, plays the teenager's elder sister. Both
Hal Williams and
Bill Henderson, who later play Harry's mechanics in the Los Angeles episodes, also appear in this episode as different characters. | ||||||
7 | 7 | "Shadows At Noon" | Paul Wendkos | Robert Dozier | October 24, 1974 | |
Harry infiltrates a mental hospital that holds people as prisoners, and then finds that he cannot get out, either. With
Diana Ewing and
Guy Stockwell, it aired one year before the movie
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, but 12 years after the eponymous novel that inspired the movie. | ||||||
8 | 8 | "Ballinger's Choice" | Jerry Thorpe | Gene Thompson | October 31, 1974 | |
Harry is hired to track down a wealthy missing pal with a penchant for extramarital affairs, but the investigation soon reveals a number of sordid -- and deadly -- details. With
Juliet Mills,
Paul Burke, and
Lisa Gerritsen | ||||||
9 | 9 | "Second Sight" | John Newland |
T : Gene Thompson S/T : Barry Trivers | November 7, 1974 | |
Fay Conners (
Stefanie Powers), an apparent psychic, predicts a series of murders that all come true amid Harry's search for a missing psychiatrist. Also starring Robert Doyle. | ||||||
10 | 10 | "Material Witness" | Barry Crane | Richard Danus | November 14, 1974 | |
Dr. Noelle Kira witnesses the killing of a witness to crimes by one Joe Kiley. SDPD Captain Pete Jaklin, because of the killing of other witnesses, hires Harry to protect Kira. She dislikes Harry, but when they are followed to a beach house, Harry realizes a
mole is in the department, so Jaklin and he have to find the mole. With
Barbara Anderson,
James Olson, and
Mike Farrell | ||||||
11 | 11 | "Forty Reasons to Kill (Part 1)" | Daryl Duke | Stephen Kandel | December 5, 1974 | |
A friend of Harry's is framed for drug dealing when he tries to purchase a parcel of land. With
Joanna Pettet,
Broderick Crawford,
Craig Stevens, and
Paul Benedict | ||||||
12 | 12 | "Forty Reasons to Kill (Part 2)" | Daryl Duke | Stephen Kandel | December 12, 1974 | |
Harry finds himself framed for murder as his investigation of a 40-acre purchase continues. With Joanna Pettet, Craig Stevens and
Bill Quinn | ||||||
13 | 13 | "Accounts Balanced" | Robert Michael Lewis |
T : Herman Groves S/T : Michael Winder | December 26, 1974 | |
Harry is hired by a woman who believes her husband is having an affair. With
Robert Reed,
Gerrit Graham, and
Jerry Hardin, this was the last episode shot in San Diego, and the final episode for Lt. Quinlan as a regular. |
No. overall |
No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
14 | 14 | "The Last Heir" | Richard Lang | Gene Thompson | January 9, 1975 | |
Harry is hired to smoke out a killer of a woman's heirs. With
Jeanette Nolan,
Clifford David, and
Whit Bissell | ||||||
15 | 15 | "For the Love of Money" | John Newland |
S :
Skip Webster T : David P. Harmon | January 16, 1975 | |
A woman helps her boyfriend steal $25,000 and now the boyfriend has disappeared. This is the first episode with
Anthony Zerbe as Lt. Trench and Paul Tulley as Sgt. Roberts, and the first episode actually set in Los Angeles. The opening theme song is also completely reworked for this and all future season-one episodes. With
Mariclare Costello,
Bernie Kopell,
Sabrina Scharf, and
Sharon Farrell | ||||||
16 | 16 | "The Confetti People" | Richard Lang |
T : Herman Groves S/T : Mann Rubin | January 23, 1975 | |
An arthritic painter and his wife frame his brother, a mental patient, for murder, until the plan goes awry and the painter is shot dead by the brother. With
Diana Hyland,
Scott Hylands,
John Rubinstein, and
Marsha Hunt | ||||||
17 | 17 | "Sound of Trumpets" | John Newland |
T :
Larry Forrester S/T : Robert Pirosh | January 30, 1975 | |
A recently released jazz trumpeter is pursued by a vengeful record executive who has a left-handed knife killer take the trumpeter's daughter hostage. With
Julius Harris,
Brenda Sykes,
Jim Backus, and jazz legend
Cab Calloway | ||||||
18 | 18 | "Silent Kill" | Richard Lang |
S :
John Meredyth Lucas T : Steven Kandel | February 6, 1975 | |
A deaf-mute janitor is framed for arson. With
Kathleen Lloyd,
Gail Strickland,
Lawrence Pressman, and
Jack Riley | ||||||
19 | 19 | "Double Jeopardy" | John Newland | M. Gluck | February 13, 1975 | |
A former crime boss mistakenly believes Todd Conway, an aspiring actor, killed the man's daughter, and Harry smokes out the real killer when the girl was found to be pregnant. With
Kurt Russell,
Will Kuluva and
Ben Piazza,
Linda Dano appears very briefly as the murder victim. This is also the first episode with Farrah Fawcett-Majors, who plays the semiregular role of Orwell's neighbor, Sue. | ||||||
20 | 20 | "Lester" | Richard Lang | Robert C. Dennis | February 20, 1975 | |
A college student who wants to be a detective becomes a suspect in the murder of two female students. With
Richard Schaal and
Scott Newman, Les Lannom's character of Lester Hodges, who became a recurring character in the series' second season, makes his debut. | ||||||
21 | 21 | "Elegy for a Cop" | Jerry Thorpe | Howard Rodman | February 27, 1975 | |
Harry pursues the killer of his former police friend, Manny Quinlan. About 15 minutes of this episode (all contained in the show's second half) consists of reused and repurposed footage from the pilot film Such Dust as Dreams are Made On. Kathleen Lloyd and Sal Mineo appear in both newly shot and recycled footage; Henry Darrow receives "Special Guest Star" billing for his reprisal of the role of Lt. Quinlan (all in newly-shot footage). Also in newly-shot footage, Margaret Avery debuts as Ruby Dome, who will become a recurring character in season 2. | ||||||
22 | 22 | "Street Games" | Richard Lang | Herman Groves | March 2, 1975 | |
The mother of a teenaged girl who is an addict hires Harry to find her after her boyfriend is murdered by a narcotics dealer. With
Maureen McCormick and
Philip Sterling |
No. overall |
No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
23 | 1 | "Anatomy of a Frame" | Jerry Thorpe |
S : Herman Groves T : John Meredyth Lucas | September 11, 1975 | |
An informant for Lt. Trench is murdered; Trench himself is implicated and must hire Harry Orwell to clear his name. With
René Auberjonois,
James McEachin,
Gordon Jump,
James Hong,
Harold J. Stone, and an unbilled
Gary Sandy | ||||||
24 | 2 | "One for the Road" | Harry Falk | Norman Strum | September 18, 1975 | |
An alcoholic lawyer subject to memory blackouts hires Harry to investigate a hit-and-run incident, though she is aware that she may well have been the driver behind the wheel. With Carol Rossen,
Larry Hagman, and
Robert Loggia | ||||||
25 | 3 | "Lester Two" | Richard Lang | Robert C. Dennis | September 25, 1975 | |
Lester Hodges gets mixed up with Harry when diamond smugglers kidnap Harry's neighbor Sue Ingham. With
Ina Balin and—extremely briefly—
Loni Anderson | ||||||
26 | 4 | "Shades" | Richard Lang |
S : Eugene Crisci, Ron Jacoby T : Michael Sloan | October 2, 1975 | |
A housekeeper is accused of killing a small-time hood; Harry is hired to clear her name and must work with the hood's ex-partner to find the real killer. With
Lou Gossett, Jr.,
Linden Chiles and
Anjanette Comer.
G.W. Bailey, seen occasionally as Officer Remsen during the San Diego episodes, also plays a police officer in this episode, identified in the credits as "Garner". | ||||||
27 | 5 | "Portrait of a Murder" | Richard Lang | Robert C. Dennis | October 9, 1975 | |
Harry attempts to clear a developmentally disabled young man accused of a series of murders he says were committed by "a lion"—a clue to the murderer's actual identity. With
Adam Arkin and
Katherine Helmond | ||||||
28 | 6 | "The Acolyte" | Harry Falk |
T : Larry Forrester S/T : Robert Blees, Dorothy Robinson | October 16, 1975 | |
Harry must rescue a woman taken in by a religious cult. With
Bettye Ackerman,
Severn Darden,
Barry Atwater,
Clyde Kusatsu, and
Sam Jaffe | ||||||
29 | 7 | "Mayday" | Jerry London | John Meredyth Lucas | October 23, 1975 | |
A pilot friend of Harry's dies in a plane crash, and Harry discovers he was involved in an attempted murder. With
Bruce Kirby,
Maggie Blye,
Linda Kelsey, and
Geoffrey Lewis | ||||||
30 | 8 | "Tender Killing Care" | Richard Lang | Norman Strum | October 30, 1975 | |
Harry investigates the shady nursing home where Spencer's parents live, while Sue has Harry look for the missing father of three children who have just arrived from Hong Kong. With
Kenneth Mars,
Howard Hesseman,
Jester Hairston, and
Robert Ito | ||||||
31 | 9 | "APB Harry Orwell" | Richard Lang |
S : Alfred Brenner T : William R. Stratton | November 6, 1975 | |
Harry is framed for murder, and must escape his cell to find the real guilty party. With
Lesley Ann Warren, and
Michael C. Gwynne | ||||||
32 | 10 | "Group Terror" | Russ Mayberry | Dennis Landa | November 13, 1975 | |
A psychiatrist hires Harry to pose as a patient, to help smoke out a killer among the members of her therapy group. With Joanna Pettet and
Linda Lavin | ||||||
33 | 11 | "Reflections" | Richard Lang | Michael Sloan | November 20, 1975 | |
Harry is forced to relive his bitter divorce when his ex-wife is involved in a murder. With
Felicia Farr,
Andrew Robinson, and
Peter Donat | ||||||
34 | 12 | "Exercise In Fatality" | Russ Mayberry | Kenneth Realman | December 4, 1975 | |
A hotheaded policeman is accused of murder when the boyfriend who fathered his daughter's unborn child is found dead; making it worse for Harry, a former lover returns to his life and gets swept into the case. With
Ralph Meeker | ||||||
35 | 13 | "The Madonna Legacy" | Richard Bennett | Michael Sloan | December 11, 1975 | |
One of Harry's former police colleagues is killed while reinvestigating an old murder, and Harry learns that a violent man convicted of the murder was recently released. With
John Colicos,
Christine Belford, and Jack Riley | ||||||
36 | 14 | "Mister Five and Dime" | Richard Lang | Robert C. Dennis | January 8, 1976 | |
Harry, Lester, and Lt. Trench run into repeated cases of mistaken identity as they pursue a gang of armored-car thieves. Harry mentions Lester's mentor Dr. Creighton Fong for the first time in the series. With
Glynnis O'Connor, Michael McGuire,
J. Pat O'Malley, and
Michael Pataki | ||||||
37 | 15 | "Book of Changes" | Russ Mayberry |
T : Michael Sloan S/T : Michael Adams | January 15, 1976 | |
A witness to the murder of a gambling club owner hires Harry to find the club owner's book of clients, which has been stolen by extortionists. With
Barbara Rhoades and
Barbara Cason | ||||||
38 | 16 | "Past Imperfect" | Richard Lang | Stephen Kandel | January 22, 1976 | |
A con artist takes his ex-partner and Harry hostage to get back a suitcase he claims contains several thousand dollars, and they are themselves pursued by two mob hitmen. With
Susan Strasberg,
Tim McIntire,
Granville Van Dusen, and
David Opatoshu | ||||||
39 | 17 | "Hostage" | Jerry London | Michael Sloan | February 19, 1976 | |
Lt. Trench is called to a hostage situation at a local liquor store, and soon calls on Harry to act as the nonpolice intermediary the hostage-taker has demanded. With
John Rubinstein,
George Murdock,
Quinn Redeker,
Colleen Camp, and
Tim Thomerson. Guest star Rubinstein also composed the score for this episode. | ||||||
40 | 18 | "Forbidden City" | Richard Lang | Robert C. Dennis | February 26, 1976 | |
Harry investigates the killing of a private detective in Chinatown. With
Tina Chen,
Ramon Bieri,
Benson Fong,
James Hong, and Jerry Hardin | ||||||
41 | 19 | "Victim" | Richard Lang |
T : Michael Sloan S/T : John Meredyth Lucas | March 4, 1976 | |
A rape victim hires Harry. With
Eugene Roche,
Michael Lerner, and Cynthia Avila, this was the last episode of the series to be filmed. | ||||||
42 | 20 | "Ruby" | Richard Lang |
S : Susan Glasgow S/T : Michael Sloan | March 11, 1976 | |
Harry must help one of his informants after a youth gets mixed up in a car theft that results in the death of a policeman. With
Joe Ruskin | ||||||
43 | 21 | "The Mysterious Case of Lester and Dr. Fong" | Jerry Thorpe | Robert Dozier | March 18, 1976 | |
Lester Hodges and his mentor, Dr. Creighton Fong (
Keye Luke), work together to find the murderer of members of Lester's family. Harry is seen only in a supporting role, and is absent for long stretches of screen time, as this episode was a
backdoor pilot intended to launch a spin-off series titled Fong and Hodges. With
Anne Archer,
Barry Atwater,
Sorrell Booke,
Dean Jagger, and
Roddy McDowall | ||||||
44 | 22 | "Death Certificate" | Russ Mayberry | John Meredyth Lucas | April 29, 1976 | |
Harry investigates a doctor suspected by two women of fatal malpractice. With
Ruth Roman and
Kiel Martin |
Year | Award | Category | Recipient | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1975 | Edgar Allan Poe Awards | Best Episode in a TV Series | Howard Rodman (for "Gertrude") | Nominated | [6] |
1976 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Anthony Zerbe | Won | [7] |
On July 11, 2012, Warner Bros. released Harry O: The Complete First Season on DVD in region 1 via their Warner Archive Collection. This is a manufacture-on-demand (MOD) release, available exclusively through Warner's online store and only in the US. [8] The 6-disc set features all 22 episodes of the season as well as the original pilot tele-film Such Dust as Dreams Are Made On. The second and final season was released by Warner Archive on February 5, 2013. [9]
Harry O | |
---|---|
Also known as | Harry-O |
Genre | Detective fiction |
Created by | Howard Rodman |
Written by | Robert C. Dennis Robert Dozier Larry Forrester Herman Groves Stephen Kandel Joanna Klasson John Meredyth Lucas Howard Rodman Michael Sloan Norman Strum Gene Thompson |
Directed by |
Richard Benedict Daryl Duke Harry Falk Richard Lang Jerry London Joseph Manduke Russ Mayberry John Newland Jerry Thorpe Paul Wendkos Don Weis |
Starring |
David Janssen Henry Darrow Anthony Zerbe Paul Tulley Farrah Fawcett-Majors Les Lannom Tom Atkins Bill Henderson |
Theme music composer | Billy Goldenberg |
Composers | Billy Goldenberg Kim Richmond J. J. Johnson John Rubinstein |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 2 |
No. of episodes | 44 |
Production | |
Executive producer | Jerry Thorpe |
Producers | Alex Beaton Robert Dozier Buck Houghton Robert E. Thompson |
Running time | 60 mins. (approx) |
Production company | Warner Bros. Television |
Original release | |
Network | ABC |
Release | September 12, 1974 April 29, 1976 | –
Related | |
|
Harry O, sometimes spelled Harry-O, is an American private detective series that aired for two seasons on ABC from 1974 to 1976. The series starred David Janssen, and Jerry Thorpe was executive producer. Harry O followed the broadcast of two pilot films: firstly Such Dust as Dreams Are Made On (which aired on March 11, 1973) and secondly (with noticeable retooling) Smile Jenny, You're Dead (which aired on February 3, 1974), both starring Janssen. [1]
David Janssen starred as the title character Harry Orwell, a San Diego cop forced into retirement when he is shot in the back. To support himself, he sets up a private investigation practice out of his beach house on Coronado Island, in San Diego. Henry Darrow, (formerly of the 1967-71 NBC hit Western series, The High Chaparral), originally starred as Lt. Manny Quinlan, Harry's friend and police contact.
For the second half of the first season, the series was retooled, with the location of the series shifted to Los Angeles, California, due to the high production costs of filming in and around San Diego. [2] The retooling consisted of more than just a location change; a revised theme song and incidental music were composed and new supporting characters were added, notably the irascible Lt. Trench of the Santa Monica Police Department, who became Orwell's new foil/contact. (Henry Darrow's character, Lt. Quinlan, was killed off in a crossover episode.) Most noticeably, a lighter tone for the scripts and acting was adopted. Harry still lived in a beach cottage−this time somewhere along the Pacific Coast Highway between Malibu and Santa Monica. In "Reflections", episode five of season two, he gave the address as "1101 Coast Road" (this beach location was the same location used for the second pilot movie).
The second season had a further reworking of the opening credits and theme song, and recurring characters were added. Anthony Zerbe, who played Lt. Trench, won a Primetime Emmy Award for his role on the series. Recurring characters included Farrah Fawcett-Majors, as Harry's attractive next-door neighbor and sometime girlfriend Sue Ingram/Ingham; Paul Tulley as Sgt. Roberts, Lt. Trench's assistant; Les Lannom as Lester Hodges, a bumbling private-eye wannabe; Tom Atkins as Sgt. Frank Cole; and Bill Henderson as Spencer Johnson, Harry's frustrated car mechanic.
Harry's small Austin-Healey, which spent almost all of the first season in non-running condition, later had more time on the road as the series progressed, though it was never entirely reliable. Also, in the San Diego episodes, the bullet in Harry's back noticeably impeded his ability to get around; by the second season, though the bullet's existence was mentioned in passing, Harry was miraculously able to run, jump, and engage in strenuous physical activity with seemingly no issues.
Ratings for the series were initially fair, and they received a boost after the series was retooled in January 1975. Harry O was picked up for a second season and continued to gain viewership and critical acclaim. Then- ABC president Fred Silverman, though, decided to take the network in a different direction and cancelled the series in favor of Charlie's Angels. Farrah Fawcett-Majors, supporting player to Janssen's Harry O, was selected as one of the three stars of that new series.
The last original episode aired on April 29, 1976. [3] The series' cancellation greatly disenchanted its star Janssen, who had found and shaped probably his most ideal character ever in Harry Orwell; he thus vowed never again to participate in another television series. He did appear in the miniseries Centennial (1978–79), though.
The series' reputation has been burnished in the decades since its cancellation. Allen Glover noted in TV Noir: Dark Drama on the Small Screen (2019) "how thoroughly Janssen 'laid the bone-weary but persevering tally of his own life right on the counter, like a bar tab covered with too many cigarette burns and glass rings'."
The show was rerun late at night on CBS during 1979-1980. It was run in syndication in the late 1980s on a few stations around the US and had a short-lived run on GoodLife TV Network in the early 2000s. The first pilot movie still receives occasional airings.
The series is occasionally presented in weekend binges on the OTA television network Decades and on weekday afternoons on MeTV+.
No. overall |
No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pilot | 1 | "Such Dust as Dreams are Made On" | Jerry Thorpe | Howard Rodman | March 11, 1973 | |
Harlan Garrison (
Martin Sheen), a member of the gang that shot Harry in a drugstore robbery four years earlier, hires Harry to find Garrison's two accomplices. It stars
Sal Mineo,
Will Geer,
Margot Kidder and
Mel Stewart. Portions of this movie were re-edited and reused (in a very different context) in the first-season episode "Elegy For A Cop"; the two stories are not compatible within the same series continuity. | ||||||
Pilot | 2 | "Smile Jenny, You're Dead" | Jerry Thorpe | Howard Rodman | February 3, 1974 | |
Harry is hired to protect Jennifer English (
Andrea Marcovicci), a model being tailed by a deranged stalker who also appears to have murdered her estranged husband. It stars
Jodie Foster as Liberty Cole (a homeless girl who takes up residence in Harry's boat),
Clu Gulager, and
Zalman King. |
No. overall |
No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | "Gertrude" | Jerry Thorpe | Howard Rodman | September 12, 1974 | |
The sister of a sailor absent without leave, Gertrude (
Julie Sommars) hires Harry to find him, and the only clue is that his left shoe was mailed to her. However, another clue then arrives in the form of two fake
shore patrol officers. Les Lannom, later a series regular in the role of Lester Hodges, plays the AWOL sailor. Henry Darrow debuts as Lt. Quinlan. | ||||||
2 | 2 | "The Admiral's Lady" | Paul Wendkos | Del Reisman | September 19, 1974 | |
Harry is hired to find an admiral's wife, who is presumed dead by the police, but who turns out to be alive and in genuine danger. With
Leif Erickson and
Sharon Acker | ||||||
3 | 3 | "Guardian at the Gates" | Jerry Thorpe | Stephen Kandel | September 26, 1974 | |
Harry must protect an obnoxious, self-centered architect (
Barry Sullivan), who witnessed a murder and is oblivious to attempts on his own life. This was the first episode filmed for the regular series. With
Linda Evans,
Anne Archer,
Richard Kelton and
Gordon Jump | ||||||
4 | 4 | "Mortal Sin" | Paul Wendkos |
T : Stephen Kandel S/T : Robert Malcolm Young | October 3, 1974 | |
A man confesses to murder to a priest, and Harry is brought in to help stop the man from killing again. With
Laurence Luckinbill | ||||||
5 | 5 | "Coinage of the Realm" | Richard Lang | Elroy Schwartz | October 10, 1974 | |
Harry must find a man who is needed to donate a kidney to his daughter, and who also has two hired killers on his trail. With
Kenneth Mars,
Joan Darling, and
Florence Stanley | ||||||
6 | 6 | "Eyewitness" | Richard Lang | Herman Groves | October 17, 1974 | |
A blind teenager is the only witness to a murder. It stars
James McEachin and
Rosalind Cash.
Margaret Avery, later a series regular in a different role, plays the teenager's elder sister. Both
Hal Williams and
Bill Henderson, who later play Harry's mechanics in the Los Angeles episodes, also appear in this episode as different characters. | ||||||
7 | 7 | "Shadows At Noon" | Paul Wendkos | Robert Dozier | October 24, 1974 | |
Harry infiltrates a mental hospital that holds people as prisoners, and then finds that he cannot get out, either. With
Diana Ewing and
Guy Stockwell, it aired one year before the movie
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, but 12 years after the eponymous novel that inspired the movie. | ||||||
8 | 8 | "Ballinger's Choice" | Jerry Thorpe | Gene Thompson | October 31, 1974 | |
Harry is hired to track down a wealthy missing pal with a penchant for extramarital affairs, but the investigation soon reveals a number of sordid -- and deadly -- details. With
Juliet Mills,
Paul Burke, and
Lisa Gerritsen | ||||||
9 | 9 | "Second Sight" | John Newland |
T : Gene Thompson S/T : Barry Trivers | November 7, 1974 | |
Fay Conners (
Stefanie Powers), an apparent psychic, predicts a series of murders that all come true amid Harry's search for a missing psychiatrist. Also starring Robert Doyle. | ||||||
10 | 10 | "Material Witness" | Barry Crane | Richard Danus | November 14, 1974 | |
Dr. Noelle Kira witnesses the killing of a witness to crimes by one Joe Kiley. SDPD Captain Pete Jaklin, because of the killing of other witnesses, hires Harry to protect Kira. She dislikes Harry, but when they are followed to a beach house, Harry realizes a
mole is in the department, so Jaklin and he have to find the mole. With
Barbara Anderson,
James Olson, and
Mike Farrell | ||||||
11 | 11 | "Forty Reasons to Kill (Part 1)" | Daryl Duke | Stephen Kandel | December 5, 1974 | |
A friend of Harry's is framed for drug dealing when he tries to purchase a parcel of land. With
Joanna Pettet,
Broderick Crawford,
Craig Stevens, and
Paul Benedict | ||||||
12 | 12 | "Forty Reasons to Kill (Part 2)" | Daryl Duke | Stephen Kandel | December 12, 1974 | |
Harry finds himself framed for murder as his investigation of a 40-acre purchase continues. With Joanna Pettet, Craig Stevens and
Bill Quinn | ||||||
13 | 13 | "Accounts Balanced" | Robert Michael Lewis |
T : Herman Groves S/T : Michael Winder | December 26, 1974 | |
Harry is hired by a woman who believes her husband is having an affair. With
Robert Reed,
Gerrit Graham, and
Jerry Hardin, this was the last episode shot in San Diego, and the final episode for Lt. Quinlan as a regular. |
No. overall |
No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
14 | 14 | "The Last Heir" | Richard Lang | Gene Thompson | January 9, 1975 | |
Harry is hired to smoke out a killer of a woman's heirs. With
Jeanette Nolan,
Clifford David, and
Whit Bissell | ||||||
15 | 15 | "For the Love of Money" | John Newland |
S :
Skip Webster T : David P. Harmon | January 16, 1975 | |
A woman helps her boyfriend steal $25,000 and now the boyfriend has disappeared. This is the first episode with
Anthony Zerbe as Lt. Trench and Paul Tulley as Sgt. Roberts, and the first episode actually set in Los Angeles. The opening theme song is also completely reworked for this and all future season-one episodes. With
Mariclare Costello,
Bernie Kopell,
Sabrina Scharf, and
Sharon Farrell | ||||||
16 | 16 | "The Confetti People" | Richard Lang |
T : Herman Groves S/T : Mann Rubin | January 23, 1975 | |
An arthritic painter and his wife frame his brother, a mental patient, for murder, until the plan goes awry and the painter is shot dead by the brother. With
Diana Hyland,
Scott Hylands,
John Rubinstein, and
Marsha Hunt | ||||||
17 | 17 | "Sound of Trumpets" | John Newland |
T :
Larry Forrester S/T : Robert Pirosh | January 30, 1975 | |
A recently released jazz trumpeter is pursued by a vengeful record executive who has a left-handed knife killer take the trumpeter's daughter hostage. With
Julius Harris,
Brenda Sykes,
Jim Backus, and jazz legend
Cab Calloway | ||||||
18 | 18 | "Silent Kill" | Richard Lang |
S :
John Meredyth Lucas T : Steven Kandel | February 6, 1975 | |
A deaf-mute janitor is framed for arson. With
Kathleen Lloyd,
Gail Strickland,
Lawrence Pressman, and
Jack Riley | ||||||
19 | 19 | "Double Jeopardy" | John Newland | M. Gluck | February 13, 1975 | |
A former crime boss mistakenly believes Todd Conway, an aspiring actor, killed the man's daughter, and Harry smokes out the real killer when the girl was found to be pregnant. With
Kurt Russell,
Will Kuluva and
Ben Piazza,
Linda Dano appears very briefly as the murder victim. This is also the first episode with Farrah Fawcett-Majors, who plays the semiregular role of Orwell's neighbor, Sue. | ||||||
20 | 20 | "Lester" | Richard Lang | Robert C. Dennis | February 20, 1975 | |
A college student who wants to be a detective becomes a suspect in the murder of two female students. With
Richard Schaal and
Scott Newman, Les Lannom's character of Lester Hodges, who became a recurring character in the series' second season, makes his debut. | ||||||
21 | 21 | "Elegy for a Cop" | Jerry Thorpe | Howard Rodman | February 27, 1975 | |
Harry pursues the killer of his former police friend, Manny Quinlan. About 15 minutes of this episode (all contained in the show's second half) consists of reused and repurposed footage from the pilot film Such Dust as Dreams are Made On. Kathleen Lloyd and Sal Mineo appear in both newly shot and recycled footage; Henry Darrow receives "Special Guest Star" billing for his reprisal of the role of Lt. Quinlan (all in newly-shot footage). Also in newly-shot footage, Margaret Avery debuts as Ruby Dome, who will become a recurring character in season 2. | ||||||
22 | 22 | "Street Games" | Richard Lang | Herman Groves | March 2, 1975 | |
The mother of a teenaged girl who is an addict hires Harry to find her after her boyfriend is murdered by a narcotics dealer. With
Maureen McCormick and
Philip Sterling |
No. overall |
No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
23 | 1 | "Anatomy of a Frame" | Jerry Thorpe |
S : Herman Groves T : John Meredyth Lucas | September 11, 1975 | |
An informant for Lt. Trench is murdered; Trench himself is implicated and must hire Harry Orwell to clear his name. With
René Auberjonois,
James McEachin,
Gordon Jump,
James Hong,
Harold J. Stone, and an unbilled
Gary Sandy | ||||||
24 | 2 | "One for the Road" | Harry Falk | Norman Strum | September 18, 1975 | |
An alcoholic lawyer subject to memory blackouts hires Harry to investigate a hit-and-run incident, though she is aware that she may well have been the driver behind the wheel. With Carol Rossen,
Larry Hagman, and
Robert Loggia | ||||||
25 | 3 | "Lester Two" | Richard Lang | Robert C. Dennis | September 25, 1975 | |
Lester Hodges gets mixed up with Harry when diamond smugglers kidnap Harry's neighbor Sue Ingham. With
Ina Balin and—extremely briefly—
Loni Anderson | ||||||
26 | 4 | "Shades" | Richard Lang |
S : Eugene Crisci, Ron Jacoby T : Michael Sloan | October 2, 1975 | |
A housekeeper is accused of killing a small-time hood; Harry is hired to clear her name and must work with the hood's ex-partner to find the real killer. With
Lou Gossett, Jr.,
Linden Chiles and
Anjanette Comer.
G.W. Bailey, seen occasionally as Officer Remsen during the San Diego episodes, also plays a police officer in this episode, identified in the credits as "Garner". | ||||||
27 | 5 | "Portrait of a Murder" | Richard Lang | Robert C. Dennis | October 9, 1975 | |
Harry attempts to clear a developmentally disabled young man accused of a series of murders he says were committed by "a lion"—a clue to the murderer's actual identity. With
Adam Arkin and
Katherine Helmond | ||||||
28 | 6 | "The Acolyte" | Harry Falk |
T : Larry Forrester S/T : Robert Blees, Dorothy Robinson | October 16, 1975 | |
Harry must rescue a woman taken in by a religious cult. With
Bettye Ackerman,
Severn Darden,
Barry Atwater,
Clyde Kusatsu, and
Sam Jaffe | ||||||
29 | 7 | "Mayday" | Jerry London | John Meredyth Lucas | October 23, 1975 | |
A pilot friend of Harry's dies in a plane crash, and Harry discovers he was involved in an attempted murder. With
Bruce Kirby,
Maggie Blye,
Linda Kelsey, and
Geoffrey Lewis | ||||||
30 | 8 | "Tender Killing Care" | Richard Lang | Norman Strum | October 30, 1975 | |
Harry investigates the shady nursing home where Spencer's parents live, while Sue has Harry look for the missing father of three children who have just arrived from Hong Kong. With
Kenneth Mars,
Howard Hesseman,
Jester Hairston, and
Robert Ito | ||||||
31 | 9 | "APB Harry Orwell" | Richard Lang |
S : Alfred Brenner T : William R. Stratton | November 6, 1975 | |
Harry is framed for murder, and must escape his cell to find the real guilty party. With
Lesley Ann Warren, and
Michael C. Gwynne | ||||||
32 | 10 | "Group Terror" | Russ Mayberry | Dennis Landa | November 13, 1975 | |
A psychiatrist hires Harry to pose as a patient, to help smoke out a killer among the members of her therapy group. With Joanna Pettet and
Linda Lavin | ||||||
33 | 11 | "Reflections" | Richard Lang | Michael Sloan | November 20, 1975 | |
Harry is forced to relive his bitter divorce when his ex-wife is involved in a murder. With
Felicia Farr,
Andrew Robinson, and
Peter Donat | ||||||
34 | 12 | "Exercise In Fatality" | Russ Mayberry | Kenneth Realman | December 4, 1975 | |
A hotheaded policeman is accused of murder when the boyfriend who fathered his daughter's unborn child is found dead; making it worse for Harry, a former lover returns to his life and gets swept into the case. With
Ralph Meeker | ||||||
35 | 13 | "The Madonna Legacy" | Richard Bennett | Michael Sloan | December 11, 1975 | |
One of Harry's former police colleagues is killed while reinvestigating an old murder, and Harry learns that a violent man convicted of the murder was recently released. With
John Colicos,
Christine Belford, and Jack Riley | ||||||
36 | 14 | "Mister Five and Dime" | Richard Lang | Robert C. Dennis | January 8, 1976 | |
Harry, Lester, and Lt. Trench run into repeated cases of mistaken identity as they pursue a gang of armored-car thieves. Harry mentions Lester's mentor Dr. Creighton Fong for the first time in the series. With
Glynnis O'Connor, Michael McGuire,
J. Pat O'Malley, and
Michael Pataki | ||||||
37 | 15 | "Book of Changes" | Russ Mayberry |
T : Michael Sloan S/T : Michael Adams | January 15, 1976 | |
A witness to the murder of a gambling club owner hires Harry to find the club owner's book of clients, which has been stolen by extortionists. With
Barbara Rhoades and
Barbara Cason | ||||||
38 | 16 | "Past Imperfect" | Richard Lang | Stephen Kandel | January 22, 1976 | |
A con artist takes his ex-partner and Harry hostage to get back a suitcase he claims contains several thousand dollars, and they are themselves pursued by two mob hitmen. With
Susan Strasberg,
Tim McIntire,
Granville Van Dusen, and
David Opatoshu | ||||||
39 | 17 | "Hostage" | Jerry London | Michael Sloan | February 19, 1976 | |
Lt. Trench is called to a hostage situation at a local liquor store, and soon calls on Harry to act as the nonpolice intermediary the hostage-taker has demanded. With
John Rubinstein,
George Murdock,
Quinn Redeker,
Colleen Camp, and
Tim Thomerson. Guest star Rubinstein also composed the score for this episode. | ||||||
40 | 18 | "Forbidden City" | Richard Lang | Robert C. Dennis | February 26, 1976 | |
Harry investigates the killing of a private detective in Chinatown. With
Tina Chen,
Ramon Bieri,
Benson Fong,
James Hong, and Jerry Hardin | ||||||
41 | 19 | "Victim" | Richard Lang |
T : Michael Sloan S/T : John Meredyth Lucas | March 4, 1976 | |
A rape victim hires Harry. With
Eugene Roche,
Michael Lerner, and Cynthia Avila, this was the last episode of the series to be filmed. | ||||||
42 | 20 | "Ruby" | Richard Lang |
S : Susan Glasgow S/T : Michael Sloan | March 11, 1976 | |
Harry must help one of his informants after a youth gets mixed up in a car theft that results in the death of a policeman. With
Joe Ruskin | ||||||
43 | 21 | "The Mysterious Case of Lester and Dr. Fong" | Jerry Thorpe | Robert Dozier | March 18, 1976 | |
Lester Hodges and his mentor, Dr. Creighton Fong (
Keye Luke), work together to find the murderer of members of Lester's family. Harry is seen only in a supporting role, and is absent for long stretches of screen time, as this episode was a
backdoor pilot intended to launch a spin-off series titled Fong and Hodges. With
Anne Archer,
Barry Atwater,
Sorrell Booke,
Dean Jagger, and
Roddy McDowall | ||||||
44 | 22 | "Death Certificate" | Russ Mayberry | John Meredyth Lucas | April 29, 1976 | |
Harry investigates a doctor suspected by two women of fatal malpractice. With
Ruth Roman and
Kiel Martin |
Year | Award | Category | Recipient | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1975 | Edgar Allan Poe Awards | Best Episode in a TV Series | Howard Rodman (for "Gertrude") | Nominated | [6] |
1976 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Anthony Zerbe | Won | [7] |
On July 11, 2012, Warner Bros. released Harry O: The Complete First Season on DVD in region 1 via their Warner Archive Collection. This is a manufacture-on-demand (MOD) release, available exclusively through Warner's online store and only in the US. [8] The 6-disc set features all 22 episodes of the season as well as the original pilot tele-film Such Dust as Dreams Are Made On. The second and final season was released by Warner Archive on February 5, 2013. [9]