''Dragnet'' is a 1954 American

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

directed by

Jack Webb John Randolph Webb (April 2, 1920 – December 23, 1982) was an American actor, television producer, Television director, director, and screenwriter, who is most famous for his role as Joe Friday, Sgt. Joe Friday in the Dragnet (franchise) ...

and written by Richard L. Breen. The film stars Webb, Ben Alexander, Richard Boone, Ann Robinson,

Stacy Harris Stacy Harris (July 26, 1918 – March 13, 1973) was an American actor with hundreds of film and television appearances. His name is sometimes found misspelled Stacey Harris. Early years Harris was an Army pilot whose leg was injured in a ...

, Virginia Gregg and Vic Perrin. The film was adapted from the radio series of the same name, and is part of the wider ''Dragnet'' media franchise. The film was released by Warner Bros. on September 4, 1954.

Plot

The film uses the inverted detective story format. Los Angeles police detective Sergeant Joe Friday hunts down the killer of a mobster, Miller Starkie, focusing on West Coast mafia second-in-command Max Troy (played by Harris). The film depicts illegal police harassment against a suspect cleared by a grand jury. The vendetta between Friday and Troy becomes increasingly bitter and personal as the film proceeds, leading to a brawl at a private card game between Friday, Frank Smith, and several of Troy's henchmen. A policewoman (Robinson) infiltrates Troy's nightclub and is able to obtain vital information on the Starkie killing; Friday then gets additional evidence when an accomplice of Troy is sent out of state and killed, and the man’s wife breaks down and gives the police what they need to convict Troy. The gangster, though, winds up never being prosecuted.

Cast

as Sergeant Joe Friday * Ben Alexander as Officer Frank Smith * Richard Boone as Capt. James E. Hamilton * Ann Robinson as Officer Grace Downey *

as Max Troy * Virginia Gregg as Ethel Starkie * Vic Perrin as Deputy D.A. Adolph Alexander *

Georgia Ellis Georgia Ellis (March 12, 1917 – March 30, 1988) was an American actress who is best known for her recurring role of Kitty in the Western radio drama ''Gunsmoke''. She was the daughter of John R. Hawkins and Blanche E. Sparling. She married K ...

as Belle Davitt * James Griffith as Jesse Quinn * Dick Cathcart as Roy Cleaver * Malcolm Atterbury as Lee Reinhard *

Willard Sage James Willard Sage (August 13, 1922 – March 17, 1974) was a Canadian-American film and television actor. Born in London, Ontario. Sage began his career in 1951, where he appeared in the film ''The Butler's Night Off'', playing the role of a ...

as Chester Davitt * Olan Soule as Ray Pinker

References

External links

* * 1954 films 1954 crime films American crime films Films based on radio series Films based on television series Films directed by Jack Webb Films scored by Walter Schumann American police detective films Warner Bros. films 1950s police films 1950s police procedural films Films set in Los Angeles 1950s English-language films 1950s American films {{1950s-crime-film-stub