''America's Dumbest Criminals'' is an American

reality series Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

that aired in

syndication Syndication may refer to: * Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system * Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips * Web syndication, ...

from September 21, 1996, to May 27, 2000, for a total of 104 episodes. For international syndication the show was titled ''Everyone's Dumbest Criminals''. The show ultimately aired in 30 countries. The show was hosted by Daniel Butler during all four seasons. Butler was a co-author of the book ''America's Dumbest Criminals'', which spent four months on ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' bestseller list. Beaumont Bacon co-hosted during season 2, and Debbie Alan joined for seasons 3 and 4. The series features surveillance footage, news reports and dramatic reenactments of particularly foolish

criminal In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...

behavior. Also highlighted are "

dumb laws Strange laws, also called weird laws, dumb laws, futile laws, unusual laws, unnecessary laws, legal oddities, or legal curiosities, are laws that are perceived to be useless, humorous or obsolete, i.e. no longer applicable (in regard to current cu ...

", featuring various trivialities passed into

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

. Francopolitan Mercury Anastassacos was voted the "World's Dumbest Criminal" for the world tour phase. The show's disclaimer partially parodies the radio and TV series '' Dragnet'' by stating that each segment was a real-life occurrence, but that "only the names have been changed...to protect the ignorant".

Overview

While some captures featured in the show were easy and straightforward due to obvious oversights or mistakes by the offenders, many others were much tougher and sometimes required greater resources. Many criminals put together their game plan beautifully but were tripped up by a simple oversight (such as forgetting to fill the tank of the getaway car). Others actually got away clean, but without the goods, while others were captured because the arresting officers were not fooled by them.

Production notes

The show was directed by Steve Angus. The executive producer was Florida businessman

John Palumbo John Anthony Palumbo (born 1956 in Birmingham, Alabama) is an American author, businessman and professional speaker who writes and lectures internationally on consumer behavior, sales psychology, and personal development. He is based in Jacksonvil ...

. Allison Nathe was a showrunner and writer on Seasons 2 and 3. Season 3 was shot in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

and was directed by Andrew Maisner. A short-lived Australian version of the show called ''World's Dumbest Criminals'', hosted by

Gordon Elliott Gordon Elliott may refer to: * Gordon Elliott (journalist) Gordon Elliott (born 30 September 1956) is a British Australian journalist and producer, radio and television personality, based now in the United States. He was the executive produc ...

, aired in 1997.

References

External links

* * 1996 American television series debuts 2000 American television series endings 1990s American crime television series 2000s American crime television series 1990s American reality television series 2000s American reality television series English-language television shows First-run syndicated television programs in the United States Television series by CBS Studios {{US-reality-tv-stub

Overview

Production notes

See also

Further reading

References

External links