Highway Patrol (TV series)
Encyclopedia
Highway Patrol is a syndicated
action crime drama series
produced 1955-1959.
as Dan Mathews, the gruff and dedicated head of a police force in an unidentified Western state. A signature shot of the series is fedora-wearing Mathews barking rapid-fire dialogue into a radio microphone as he leans against the door of his black and white patrol car. Mathews growls "21-50 to headquarters" and the invariable response is "Headquarters by" (as in, standing by).
Highway Patrol premiered October 3, 1955 with Prison Break, filmed April 11-13, 1955. Ziv Television Programs
produced 156 episodes spanning four TV seasons, 1955-1959. It is a quality show, not glossy but always crisp and fast-paced -- notable considering how a typical episode was filmed: two days on location and one day at the studio. The budget for an episode range from $20,000 to $25,000, somewhat higher when a Bell 47 helicopter was used. Producer Frederic W. Ziv said the show moved fast to match Broderick Crawford's acting pace. Ziv said Highway Patrol introduced quick cutting to television, which started a new trend.
Highway Patrol is famous for its location shooting around the San Fernando Valley
and Simi Valley
, then mostly rural. Other notable Los Angeles area locations include Griffith Park
, and Bronson Canyon
just above Hollywood. Today the show provides a historic look at mid-50s California, cars, fashion (men wear fedoras), and lifestyle. For example, train travel is a common show element; the second-season episode "Hired Killer" prominently features the Chatsworth, California train station in its opening scene. The show also filmed at railroad stations at Glendale, California
(identified by a large sign) and Santa Susana, California
.
While back lots were not used for exteriors, interior scenes were often filmed on sets at ZIV Studios, 7950 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood. Over the years the Highway Patrol office set changed several times: rearranged activities, improved set decoration, added background actors -- presumably because, as the show gained popularity, the production budget expanded.
ZIV Television Productions was started by Frederic W. Ziv in the 1950s. In 1960 ZIV was acquired by United Artists
, which later merged with MGM. ZIV was a major producer of what are today considered "classic" 1950s TV series, including:
Bat Masterson
, The Cisco Kid
, Highway Patrol, Science Fiction Theater and Sea Hunt
.
Highway Patrol was created by ZIV in response to California Highway Patrol
(CHP) wanting to be featured in a TV series. However, because ZIV felt the show needed to have a broader police scope than the real CHP, the generic show name was adopted.
Unlike the California Highway Patrol, the agency featured in the TV series was more concerned with chasing criminals than enforcing driving laws. There were very few car chases, crashes, and other motor mayhem than is more common in modern police dramas; perhaps the production budget did not allow for expensive stunts and wrecks. Excitement was mainly generated by Crawford's urgent style, including police cars blasting sirens, and guns often being waved about.
In the first two seasons the series received technical assistance from the California Highway Patrol, which is the model police agency in several ways. The patrol cars in early episodes are actual CHP vehicles with the show's car door emblem covering the CHP emblem (sometimes a real CHP star is briefly visible). For instance, the Buick Century 1955 two-door patrol car seen in early episodes was built exclusively for CHP. Eventually California Highway Patrol dropped its support, reportedly dissatisfied with how the show had evolved. At that point the show had to create its own patrol cars using non-police models, but still outfitted in CHP-style, distinctly subdued compared with many police agencies. Notably, CHP cars did not have roof lights, instead using only a solid-red driver-side spotlight in front, and a flashing-yellow light in the rear window; these are barely noticeable in the black-and-white TV show.
Officer uniforms are the CHP style of the day. In seasons one to three, the shoulder patch is essentially the CHP patch with "California" and "Eureka" (state motto) removed; the California bear and other California state seal elements are retained. In season four the show adopted a uniform patch that matches its patrol car emblem. Highway Patrol chief Dan Mathews usually wears a suit and fedora, but not to be undercover -- he generally drives a black-and-white patrol car.
Art Gilmore's narration gives Highway Patrol a documentary feel, but several details are never mentioned. While described as a state police agency, the actual state is never stated. It is said to be a western state, but only eastern state Rhode Island is small enough to allow Dan Mathews to regularly drive from headquarters to every crime scene in just minutes. Towns have simple names like "Midvale", though sometimes a real place name is used because of a prominent sign. In some episodes Mathews uses an unlabeled wall map that appears to be central-east Oregon, with the towns of Bend and Redmond on the map's left. Cars in the show are always described by color and model, but never by brand name: "blue coupe", "gray sedan". Cars have the black-on-yellow California license plate of the time, but with a piece of tape covering the name of the state (usually, but sometimes CALIFORNIA is briefly visible).
Gun handling is typical of TV shows of the time -- unrealistic and sometimes absurd. Police officers often shoot from the hip, usually with amazing accuracy, even from moving cars and a helicopter. Once in a while, a character aims correctly; perhaps the actor had experience with real guns. The Smith & Wesson
six-round revolvers used by actor officers sometimes emit more than six shots without reloading.
A key element of the show is two-way radio communication among patrol cars and headquarters, with heavy use of police code "10-4" (meaning "acknowledged"). While 10-4 adds a feeling of authenticity, real police use many radio codes for brevity and clarity. The Highway Patrol show radio call signs are CHP-style, except California Highway Patrol uses the first part to indicate the geographic region/office. Dan Mathews unit "21-50" would be a CHP unit at office 21, which is in Napa County, California
. (Some reports claim it was the call-sign of the CHP Commissioner of the time.) The show mixes a variety of CHP office prefixes; one episode has "21-50" working with "34-27" (CHP for San Francisco) and "36-32" (CHP for Red Bluff) to chase the bad guys around a single valley.
The show's brassy music made such an impact that it was featured on record albums of popular TV show themes, and released as a single (45) by various artists. The theme is credited to Ray Llewellyn, a pseudonym for composer/conductor David Rose
(married to Judy Garland
1941-1945).
Highway Patrol was an international phenomenon, aired in 17 languages in 71 countries, including Argentina, Germany, Italy, Japan, Portugal, Spain, UK. The show spawned toys, games, costumes, comic books and fan clubs.
Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry
is credited with writing five episodes, sometimes using pseudonym "Robert Wesley". Future producer Quinn Martin
is sound supervisor in the show's early years; style elements of "Highway Patrol" are evident his later productions: (The Untouchables
, The Fugitive
, Barnaby Jones
, The FBI, The Streets of San Francisco
).
Highway Patrol was produced for four TV seasons. ZIV reportedly desired a fifth season, but Crawford declined. He later starred in the ZIV series King of Diamonds playing diamond insurance investigator John King.
When asked why the popular show ended, Broderick Crawford said, "We ran out of crimes."
In 1977, CHiPs
hit the airwaves, explicitly identifying its TV cops as California Highway Patrol. In one memorable first season episode, CHP motorcycle cops pull over a car that ran through a STOP sign, and discover Broderick Crawford at the wheel. Playing himself, Crawford says "You know, I was making those Highway Patrol shows long before you guys were born." Actor
Larry Wilcox
, as CHP officer Jon Baker, replies "Yeah, they don't make TV shows like that anymore." Certainly, lightweight CHiPs is nothing like intense Highway Patrol.
Like most ZIV series, Highway Patrol repeats were syndicated for many years, sometimes with name Ten-4. In 2010 the original episodes went back on the air on ThisTV network.
, each episode ended with a thank-you from the star for watching and an invitation to view again next week. Highway Patrols style was different, however, in that Crawford would deliver an aphoristic comment on traffic safety, including these:
The style of these closings evolved slightly over time. In early episodes, Crawford promised next week's viewers a "different", "unusual", or "exciting" case; toward the end of the series this verbiage was dropped.
(1911-1986) as Dan Mathews. Crawford won an Academy Award for Best Actor
in 1949 for All the King's Men
.
Another constant is the voice of Art Gilmore
as the never-seen narrator. Gilmore later played Lieutenant (later Captain) Moore on Adam-12.
The show does not feature other actors, but some appear several times, sometimes in different roles. A few actors appear somewhat regularly as officers, but often their character names are not stated, or they have different names in different episodes.
The names of actors with speaking roles are listed equally on a single screen at the end of the episode. Presumably none were considered "names" at the time, but many familiar faces can be spotted -- often, very young faces of actors who later became stars.
Actors appearing in the show include:
and beginning late 2010, pristine quality episodes are shown on its ThisTV a network, which features classic shows and movies. ThisTV is broadcast by many local television stations on a subchannel, but subchannels are rarely carried on cable systems. In most cities, subchannels must be received using an antenna, which few viewers still have connected to their TVs.
Some episodes of Highway Patrol have been provided online via Hulu.com.
MGM Home Entertainment
began offering the first season of Highway Patrol on DVD in 2010. The show is provided via MGM's "Manufacture-on-demand" service where ordered copies are manufactured as needed using DVD-R discs.
Television syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
action crime drama series
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...
produced 1955-1959.
Overview
Highway Patrol stars Broderick CrawfordBroderick Crawford
Broderick Crawford was an Academy Award-winning American stage, film, radio and TV actor, often cast in tough-guy roles and best known for his starring role in the television series "Highway Patrol."-Early life:...
as Dan Mathews, the gruff and dedicated head of a police force in an unidentified Western state. A signature shot of the series is fedora-wearing Mathews barking rapid-fire dialogue into a radio microphone as he leans against the door of his black and white patrol car. Mathews growls "21-50 to headquarters" and the invariable response is "Headquarters by" (as in, standing by).
Highway Patrol premiered October 3, 1955 with Prison Break, filmed April 11-13, 1955. Ziv Television Programs
Ziv Television Programs
Ziv Television Programs, Inc. was an American television syndication and production company, producer of popular syndicated TV programs in the 1950s.- History :...
produced 156 episodes spanning four TV seasons, 1955-1959. It is a quality show, not glossy but always crisp and fast-paced -- notable considering how a typical episode was filmed: two days on location and one day at the studio. The budget for an episode range from $20,000 to $25,000, somewhat higher when a Bell 47 helicopter was used. Producer Frederic W. Ziv said the show moved fast to match Broderick Crawford's acting pace. Ziv said Highway Patrol introduced quick cutting to television, which started a new trend.
Highway Patrol is famous for its location shooting around the San Fernando Valley
San Fernando Valley
The San Fernando Valley is an urbanized valley located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area of southern California, United States, defined by the dramatic mountains of the Transverse Ranges circling it...
and Simi Valley
Simi Valley
Simi Valley is a synclinal valley in Southern California in the United States. It is an enclosed or hidden valley surrounded by mountains and hills. It is connected to the San Fernando Valley to the east by the Santa Susana Pass & 118 freeway, and in the west the narrows of the Arroyo Simi and 118...
, then mostly rural. Other notable Los Angeles area locations include Griffith Park
Griffith Park
Griffith Park is a large municipal park at the eastern end of the Santa Monica Mountains in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. The park covers of land, making it one of the largest urban parks in North America...
, and Bronson Canyon
Bronson Canyon
Bronson Canyon, or Bronson Caves, is a section of Griffith Park in Los Angeles, California that has become famous as a filming location for a very large number of movies and TV shows, especially westerns and science fiction, from the early days of motion pictures to the present...
just above Hollywood. Today the show provides a historic look at mid-50s California, cars, fashion (men wear fedoras), and lifestyle. For example, train travel is a common show element; the second-season episode "Hired Killer" prominently features the Chatsworth, California train station in its opening scene. The show also filmed at railroad stations at Glendale, California
Glendale, California
Glendale is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the city population is 191,719, down from 194,973 at the 2000 census. making it the third largest city in Los Angeles County and the 22nd largest city in the state of California...
(identified by a large sign) and Santa Susana, California
Santa Susana, California
Santa Susana is a census-designated place in Ventura County, California. Santa Susana sits at an elevation of . The 2010 United States census reported Santa Susana's population was 1,037.-Geography:...
.
While back lots were not used for exteriors, interior scenes were often filmed on sets at ZIV Studios, 7950 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood. Over the years the Highway Patrol office set changed several times: rearranged activities, improved set decoration, added background actors -- presumably because, as the show gained popularity, the production budget expanded.
ZIV Television Productions was started by Frederic W. Ziv in the 1950s. In 1960 ZIV was acquired by United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
, which later merged with MGM. ZIV was a major producer of what are today considered "classic" 1950s TV series, including:
Bat Masterson
Bat Masterson (TV series)
Bat Masterson is an American Western television series which showed a fictionalized account of the life of real-life marshal/gambler/dandy Bat Masterson. The title character was played by Gene Barry and the half-hour black and white shows ran on NBC from 1958 to 1961...
, The Cisco Kid
The Cisco Kid (TV series)
The Cisco Kid is a half-hour American Western television series starring Duncan Renaldo in the title role, The Cisco Kid, and Leo Carrillo as the jovial sidekick, Pancho...
, Highway Patrol, Science Fiction Theater and Sea Hunt
Sea Hunt
Sea Hunt was an American adventure television series that was aired in syndication by Ziv Television Programs from 1958 to 1961 and was popular in syndication for decades afterwards. The series originally aired for four seasons, with 155 episodes produced...
.
Highway Patrol was created by ZIV in response to California Highway Patrol
California Highway Patrol
The California Highway Patrol is a law enforcement agency of the U.S. state of California. The CHP has patrol jurisdiction over all California highways and also acts as the state police....
(CHP) wanting to be featured in a TV series. However, because ZIV felt the show needed to have a broader police scope than the real CHP, the generic show name was adopted.
Unlike the California Highway Patrol, the agency featured in the TV series was more concerned with chasing criminals than enforcing driving laws. There were very few car chases, crashes, and other motor mayhem than is more common in modern police dramas; perhaps the production budget did not allow for expensive stunts and wrecks. Excitement was mainly generated by Crawford's urgent style, including police cars blasting sirens, and guns often being waved about.
In the first two seasons the series received technical assistance from the California Highway Patrol, which is the model police agency in several ways. The patrol cars in early episodes are actual CHP vehicles with the show's car door emblem covering the CHP emblem (sometimes a real CHP star is briefly visible). For instance, the Buick Century 1955 two-door patrol car seen in early episodes was built exclusively for CHP. Eventually California Highway Patrol dropped its support, reportedly dissatisfied with how the show had evolved. At that point the show had to create its own patrol cars using non-police models, but still outfitted in CHP-style, distinctly subdued compared with many police agencies. Notably, CHP cars did not have roof lights, instead using only a solid-red driver-side spotlight in front, and a flashing-yellow light in the rear window; these are barely noticeable in the black-and-white TV show.
Officer uniforms are the CHP style of the day. In seasons one to three, the shoulder patch is essentially the CHP patch with "California" and "Eureka" (state motto) removed; the California bear and other California state seal elements are retained. In season four the show adopted a uniform patch that matches its patrol car emblem. Highway Patrol chief Dan Mathews usually wears a suit and fedora, but not to be undercover -- he generally drives a black-and-white patrol car.
Art Gilmore's narration gives Highway Patrol a documentary feel, but several details are never mentioned. While described as a state police agency, the actual state is never stated. It is said to be a western state, but only eastern state Rhode Island is small enough to allow Dan Mathews to regularly drive from headquarters to every crime scene in just minutes. Towns have simple names like "Midvale", though sometimes a real place name is used because of a prominent sign. In some episodes Mathews uses an unlabeled wall map that appears to be central-east Oregon, with the towns of Bend and Redmond on the map's left. Cars in the show are always described by color and model, but never by brand name: "blue coupe", "gray sedan". Cars have the black-on-yellow California license plate of the time, but with a piece of tape covering the name of the state (usually, but sometimes CALIFORNIA is briefly visible).
Gun handling is typical of TV shows of the time -- unrealistic and sometimes absurd. Police officers often shoot from the hip, usually with amazing accuracy, even from moving cars and a helicopter. Once in a while, a character aims correctly; perhaps the actor had experience with real guns. The Smith & Wesson
Smith & Wesson
Smith & Wesson is the largest manufacturer of handguns in the United States. The corporate headquarters is in Springfield, Massachusetts. Founded in 1852, Smith & Wesson's pistols and revolvers have become standard issue to police and armed forces throughout the world...
six-round revolvers used by actor officers sometimes emit more than six shots without reloading.
A key element of the show is two-way radio communication among patrol cars and headquarters, with heavy use of police code "10-4" (meaning "acknowledged"). While 10-4 adds a feeling of authenticity, real police use many radio codes for brevity and clarity. The Highway Patrol show radio call signs are CHP-style, except California Highway Patrol uses the first part to indicate the geographic region/office. Dan Mathews unit "21-50" would be a CHP unit at office 21, which is in Napa County, California
Napa County, California
Napa County is a county located north of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is coterminous with the Napa, California, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010 the population is 136,484. The county seat is Napa....
. (Some reports claim it was the call-sign of the CHP Commissioner of the time.) The show mixes a variety of CHP office prefixes; one episode has "21-50" working with "34-27" (CHP for San Francisco) and "36-32" (CHP for Red Bluff) to chase the bad guys around a single valley.
The show's brassy music made such an impact that it was featured on record albums of popular TV show themes, and released as a single (45) by various artists. The theme is credited to Ray Llewellyn, a pseudonym for composer/conductor David Rose
David Rose
David Rose was a British-born American songwriter, composer, arranger, pianist, and orchestra leader. His most famous compositions were "The Stripper", "Holiday for Strings", and "Calypso Melody"...
(married to Judy Garland
Judy Garland
Judy Garland was an American actress and singer. Through a career that spanned 45 of her 47 years and for her renowned contralto voice, she attained international stardom as an actress in musical and dramatic roles, as a recording artist and on the concert stage...
1941-1945).
Highway Patrol was an international phenomenon, aired in 17 languages in 71 countries, including Argentina, Germany, Italy, Japan, Portugal, Spain, UK. The show spawned toys, games, costumes, comic books and fan clubs.
Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry
Gene Roddenberry
Eugene Wesley "Gene" Roddenberry was an American television screenwriter, producer and futurist, best known for creating the American science fiction series Star Trek. Born in El Paso, Texas, Roddenberry grew up in Los Angeles, California where his father worked as a police officer...
is credited with writing five episodes, sometimes using pseudonym "Robert Wesley". Future producer Quinn Martin
Quinn Martin
Quinn Martin was one of the most successful American television producers. He had at least one television series running in prime time for 21 straight years , an industry record.-Early life:...
is sound supervisor in the show's early years; style elements of "Highway Patrol" are evident his later productions: (The Untouchables
The Untouchables (1959 TV series)
The Untouchables is an American crime drama that ran from 1959 to 1963 on ABC. Based on the memoir of the same name by Eliot Ness and Oscar Fraley, it fictionalized the experiences of Eliot Ness, a real-life Prohibition agent, as he fought crime in Chicago during the 1930s with the help of a...
, The Fugitive
The Fugitive (TV series)
The Fugitive is an American drama series produced by QM Productions and United Artists Television that aired on ABC from 1963 to 1967. David Janssen stars as Richard Kimble, a doctor from the fictional town of Stafford, Indiana, who is falsely convicted of his wife's murder and given the death...
, Barnaby Jones
Barnaby Jones
Barnaby Jones is a television detective series starring Buddy Ebsen and Lee Meriwether as father- and daughter-in-law who run a private detective firm in Los Angeles. A spin-off from Cannon, the show ran on CBS from January 28, 1973 to April 3, 1980, beginning as a midseason replacement...
, The FBI, The Streets of San Francisco
The Streets of San Francisco
The Streets of San Francisco is a 1970s television police drama filmed on location in San Francisco, California, and produced by Quinn Martin Productions, with the first season produced in association with Warner Bros...
).
Highway Patrol was produced for four TV seasons. ZIV reportedly desired a fifth season, but Crawford declined. He later starred in the ZIV series King of Diamonds playing diamond insurance investigator John King.
When asked why the popular show ended, Broderick Crawford said, "We ran out of crimes."
In 1977, CHiPs
CHiPs
CHiPs is an American television drama series produced by MGM Studios that originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to July 17, 1983. CHiPs followed the lives of two motorcycle police officers of the California Highway Patrol...
hit the airwaves, explicitly identifying its TV cops as California Highway Patrol. In one memorable first season episode, CHP motorcycle cops pull over a car that ran through a STOP sign, and discover Broderick Crawford at the wheel. Playing himself, Crawford says "You know, I was making those Highway Patrol shows long before you guys were born." Actor
Larry Wilcox
Larry Wilcox
Larry Wilcox is an American actor, best known for his role as Officer Jonathan "Jon" Baker in CHiPs, an American television series.-Military service:...
, as CHP officer Jon Baker, replies "Yeah, they don't make TV shows like that anymore." Certainly, lightweight CHiPs is nothing like intense Highway Patrol.
Like most ZIV series, Highway Patrol repeats were syndicated for many years, sometimes with name Ten-4. In 2010 the original episodes went back on the air on ThisTV network.
Episode closings
Similar to another contemporary ZIV Television program, Sea HuntSea Hunt
Sea Hunt was an American adventure television series that was aired in syndication by Ziv Television Programs from 1958 to 1961 and was popular in syndication for decades afterwards. The series originally aired for four seasons, with 155 episodes produced...
, each episode ended with a thank-you from the star for watching and an invitation to view again next week. Highway Patrols style was different, however, in that Crawford would deliver an aphoristic comment on traffic safety, including these:
- Those clowns, they're real funny at the circus … but on the highway, they're murder.
- If you care to drive, drive with care.
- Leave your blood at the Red Cross, not on the highway (in later episodes, the phrase would amend to "Leave your blood at the Red Cross or your community blood bank …").
- Reckless driving doesn't determine who's right … only who's left.
- A drunk driver doesn't drive their car … they aim it.
- No matter how new, the safest part of your car is you.
The style of these closings evolved slightly over time. In early episodes, Crawford promised next week's viewers a "different", "unusual", or "exciting" case; toward the end of the series this verbiage was dropped.
Actors
The only constant face on Highway Patrol is star Broderick CrawfordBroderick Crawford
Broderick Crawford was an Academy Award-winning American stage, film, radio and TV actor, often cast in tough-guy roles and best known for his starring role in the television series "Highway Patrol."-Early life:...
(1911-1986) as Dan Mathews. Crawford won an Academy Award for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
in 1949 for All the King's Men
All the King's Men (1949 film)
All the King's Men is a 1949 drama film based on the Robert Penn Warren novel of the same name. It was directed by Robert Rossen and starred Broderick Crawford in the role of Willie Stark.-Plot:...
.
Another constant is the voice of Art Gilmore
Art Gilmore
Arthur Wells "Art" Gilmore was an American voice actor and announcer whose voice has been heard in radio and television programs, movies, trailers, advertising promotions and documentary films.-Biography:...
as the never-seen narrator. Gilmore later played Lieutenant (later Captain) Moore on Adam-12.
The show does not feature other actors, but some appear several times, sometimes in different roles. A few actors appear somewhat regularly as officers, but often their character names are not stated, or they have different names in different episodes.
The names of actors with speaking roles are listed equally on a single screen at the end of the episode. Presumably none were considered "names" at the time, but many familiar faces can be spotted -- often, very young faces of actors who later became stars.
Actors appearing in the show include:
- Kirk AlynKirk Alyn-External links:...
played (SupermanSupermanSuperman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
in movie serialsSerial (film)Serials, more specifically known as Movie serials, Film serials or Chapter plays, were short subjects originally shown in theaters in conjunction with a feature film. They were related to pulp magazine serialized fiction...
). - William BoyettWilliam BoyettWilliam Boyett was an American actor best known for his work as the low-key but authoritative Sergeant William 'Mac' MacDonald on the police drama Adam-12...
makes numerous appearances. In 21 early episodes he is Officer Johnson. Later he appears frequently as Sgt. Ken Williams. Boyett went on to play Sgt. MacDonald in Adam-12Adam-12Adam-12 was a television police drama which followed two police officers of the Los Angeles Police Department, Pete Malloy and Jim Reed, as they patrolled the streets of Los Angeles in their patrol unit, 1-Adam-12. Created by Jack Webb who is known for creating Dragnet, the series captured a...
. - Diane BrewsterDiane BrewsterDiane Brewster was an American television actress most noted for playing three distinctively different roles in US TV series of the 1950s and 60s: confidence trickster Samantha Crawford in Maverick; pretty young second-grade teacher Miss Canfield in Leave It to Beaver; and doomed wife Helen...
, also known as second-grade teacher "Miss Canfield" in Leave It to BeaverLeave It to BeaverLeave It to Beaver is an American television situation comedy about an inquisitive but often naïve boy named Theodore "The Beaver" Cleaver and his adventures at home, in school, and around his suburban neighborhood...
, played the role of the dispatcher in Prison Break (1955). - Dyan CannonDyan CannonDyan Cannon is an American film and television actress, director, screenwriter, editor, and producer.-Early life:...
(in credits written as Diane Cannon) plays a girlfriend. - Robert ConradRobert ConradRobert Conrad is an American actor. He is best known for his role in the 1965 CBS television series The Wild Wild West, in which he played the sophisticated Secret Service agent James T. West, and his portrayal of World War II ace Pappy Boyington in the television series Baa Baa Black Sheep...
, later of Wild Wild WestWild Wild WestWild Wild West is a 1999 American steampunk action-comedy film directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, and starring Will Smith, Kevin Kline , Kenneth Branagh and Salma Hayek.Similar to the original TV series it was based on, The Wild Wild West, the film features a large amount of gadgetry...
and Black Sheep Squadron, plays a murderer in 1959; later that year he became a star of Hawaiian EyeHawaiian EyeHawaiian Eye is an American television series that ran from October 1959 to September 1963 on the American Broadcasting Company television network.-Premise:...
. - Pat ConwayPat ConwayPatrick Douglas Conway, known as Pat Conway , was an American actor best known for his role as young but tough Sheriff Clay Hollister on the ABC and then syndicated western television series Tombstone Territory . He was a maternal grandson of silent film star Francis X...
, later SheriffSheriffA sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
Clay Hollister on westernWestern (genre)The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
series Tombstone TerritoryTombstone TerritoryTombstone Territory is an American Western series starring Pat Conway and Richard Eastham. The series' first two seasons aired on ABC from 1957 to 1959...
, appears as Mel in "Radioactive" (1955). - Clint EastwoodClint EastwoodClinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
appears in a 1955 first season episode called "Motorcycle A"; he was paid $80.00. - Barbara EdenBarbara EdenBarbara Eden is an American film and television actress and singer who is best known for her starring role in the sitcom I Dream of Jeannie.-Early years:...
of "I Dream of JeannieI Dream of JeannieI Dream of Jeannie is a 1960s American sitcom with a fantasy premise. The show starred Barbara Eden as a 2,000-year-old genie, and Larry Hagman as an astronaut who becomes her master, with whom she falls in love and eventually marries...
" fame is in episode "Hostage Copter" (1957). - Ron FosterRon Foster (actor)Ronald R. Foster, known as Ron Foster , is an American actor, whose longest-running role was as Dr. Charles Grant from 1991-1995 in the defunct CBS soap opera The Guiding Light....
appears twenty-four times, mostly as young Officer Garvey. - Joe FlynnJoe Flynn (US actor)Joseph A. Flynn was an American character actor. He was best known for his role in the 1960s ABC television situation comedy, McHale's Navy. He was also a frequent guest star on 1960s TV shows such as Batman and appeared in several Walt Disney film comedies...
later of McHale's NavyMcHale's NavyMcHale's Navy is an American television sitcom series which ran for 138 half-hour episodes from October 11,1962, to August 31, 1966, on the ABC network. The series was filmed in black and white and originated in a one-hour drama called Seven Against the Sea, broadcast on April 3, 1962...
, appears in "Taxi" (1956). - Ted KnightTed KnightTed Knight was an American actor best known for playing the comedic role of Ted Baxter on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Henry Rush on Too Close for Comfort, and Judge Elihu Smails in Caddyshack.- Early years :...
later played TV news anchor Ted Baxter in The Mary Tyler Moore ShowThe Mary Tyler Moore ShowThe Mary Tyler Moore Show is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns that aired on CBS from 1970 to 1977...
. - Tyler McVeyTyler McVeyTyler McVey was an American character actor.-Early life and career:McVey was born in Bay City on Saginaw Bay in the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. His first screen role, uncredited, came at the age of 39 in 1951, when he portrayed Brady in the The Day the Earth Stood Still...
portrays an engineerEngineerAn engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
in "Blast Area Copter" (1956). - Joyce MeadowsJoyce MeadowsJoyce Meadows is a Canadian-American actress. From 1960-1961, she co-starred as Stacy in the syndicated western series Two Faces West with Charles Bateman and Francis De Sales...
is Ella McKay in "Suspected Cop" (1957). - Ed NelsonEd NelsonEdwin Stafford Nelson is an American actor.Nelson has appeared in numerous television shows, more than fifty motion pictures, and hundreds of stage productions. Until 2005, he was teaching acting and screenwriting in his native New Orleans at two local universities there...
is a bad guy in Highway Patrol. Star of Peyton PlacePeyton Place (TV series)Peyton Place is an American prime-time soap opera which aired on ABC in half-hour episodes from September 15, 1964 to June 2, 1969.Based upon the 1956 novel of the same name by Grace Metalious, the series was preceded by a 1957 film adaptation. A total of 514 episodes were broadcast, in...
and a TV regular, he was more often a good guy. - Leonard NimoyLeonard NimoyLeonard Simon Nimoy is an American actor, film director, poet, musician and photographer. Nimoy's most famous role is that of Spock in the original Star Trek series , multiple films, television and video game sequels....
, Mr. Spock of Star TrekStar TrekStar Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
, plays Harry Wells in "Hot Dust" (1957) and Ray in "Blood Money" (1958). - Gregg PalmerGregg PalmerGregg Palmer, originally Palmer Lee is an American actor, known primarily for his prolific work in television westerns...
appears in a 1955 episode. - Gilman RankinGilman RankinGilman W. Rankin was a Massachusetts-born actor who appeared primarily in television westerns between 1956 and 1975. Between 1957 and 1959, he had a supporting role as Deputy Charlie Riggs in seven episodes of the series Tombstone Territory...
of Tombstone Territory appeared as Vince in "Prison Break" (1955). - Quintin SondergaardQuintin SondergaardQuentin Charles Sondergaard, known primarily as Quintin Sondergaard , was an American actor principally active on television westerns from 1957-1970...
of Tombstone Territory appeared in Highway Patrol. - John VivyanJohn VivyanJohn Vivyan was an American actor active primarily between 1957 and 1970. He was known for his starring role as the honest debonair gambler in the CBS adventure series Mr. Lucky.-Early life and career:Born John C...
was later television's Mr. Lucky. - Diane WebberDiane WebberDiane Marguerite Webber AKA Marguerite Empey was an American model, dancer and actress.Empey was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Marguerite and screen writer Arthur Guy Empey....
is "Woman" in Episode 18, "Coptor Cave-In" (February 1959). - Stuart WhitmanStuart WhitmanStuart Maxwell Whitman is an American actor.Stuart Whitman is arguably best-known for playing Marshal Jim Crown in the western television series Cimarron Strip in 1967...
appears in 13 episodes as Sergeant Walters, and went on to star in television and movies. - Guy Williams was ZorroZorroZorro is a fictional character created in 1919 by New York-based pulp writer Johnston McCulley. The character has been featured in numerous books, films, television series, and other media....
in Disney's 1957 TV series, and starred in 1960s TV series Lost in SpaceLost in SpaceLost in Space is a science fiction TV series created and produced by Irwin Allen, filmed by 20th Century Fox Television, and broadcast on CBS. The show ran for three seasons, with 83 episodes airing between September 15, 1965, and March 6, 1968...
. - Ruta LeeRuta LeeRuta Lee is a Canadian actress and dancer who appeared as one of the brides in the film Seven Brides for Seven Brothers...
is "Lea Franklin" in a 1957 episode of "Armored Car" and starred in many movies and TV shows
Show availability
The rights to all 156 episodes are held by MGM TelevisionMGM Television
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television is an American television production/distribution launched in 1955 and a subsidiary of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc....
and beginning late 2010, pristine quality episodes are shown on its ThisTV a network, which features classic shows and movies. ThisTV is broadcast by many local television stations on a subchannel, but subchannels are rarely carried on cable systems. In most cities, subchannels must be received using an antenna, which few viewers still have connected to their TVs.
Some episodes of Highway Patrol have been provided online via Hulu.com.
MGM Home Entertainment
MGM Home Entertainment
MGM Home Entertainment is the home video and DVD arm of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.-History:The home video division of MGM started in 1979 as MGM Home Video, releasing all the movies and TV shows by MGM. In 1980, MGM joined forces with CBS Video Enterprises, the home video division of the CBS television...
began offering the first season of Highway Patrol on DVD in 2010. The show is provided via MGM's "Manufacture-on-demand" service where ordered copies are manufactured as needed using DVD-R discs.