''Missing Persons'' is an American

crime drama 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 combin ...

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

, set in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. It followed a fictitious missing persons unit; each episode usually following the investigation into three or more cases. It ran on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

from August 30, 1993 to February 17, 1994. It was produced by Gary Sherman Productions in association with Stephen J. Cannell Productions, and often used local Chicago-based actors, as well as occasional guest stars such as

Nina Foch Nina Foch ( ; born Nina Consuelo Maud Fock; April 20, 1924 – December 5, 2008) was a Dutch-born American actress who later became an instructor. Her career spanned six decades, consisting of over 50 feature films and over 100 television appea ...

Eddie Bracken Edward Vincent Bracken (February 7, 1915 – November 14, 2002) was an American actor. Bracken became a Hollywood comedy legend with lead performances in the films '' Hail the Conquering Hero'' and '' The Miracle of Morgan's Creek'' both from ...

, and

Lois Smith Lois Arlene Smith (née Humbert; born November 3, 1930) is an American character actress whose career spans eight decades. She made her film debut in the 1955 drama film ''East of Eden (film), East of Eden'', and later played supporting roles i ...

. Semi-regulars included

Ian Gomez Ian Braque Gomez (born December 27, 1964) is an American actor known for his comedic TV work, which include series-regular roles as Javier on '' Felicity'' and Andy on ''Cougar Town''. Early life He was born in New York City, New York, to an ar ...

Irma P. Hall Irma Dolores Player Hall (born June 3, 1935) is an American actress who has appeared in films and television shows since the early 1970s. Hall often played matriarchal figures in films including '' A Family Thing'', '' The Ladykillers'' and ''Soul ...

Laura Cerón Laura Cerón (born September 28, 1964) is an Alma Award-winning Mexican-born American actress. Her most recognizable role is that of Nurse Chuny Marquez on the television series '' ER''. Early life Cerón was born in Mexico City, Mexico. She ...

and

Valerie Harper Valerie Kathryn Harper (August 22, 1939 – August 30, 2019) was an American actress. She began her career as a dancer on Broadway, making her debut as a replacement in the musical ''Li'l Abner''. She is best remembered for her role as Rho ...

. Unlike most series from Cannell's company, he did not create or co-create this series.

Regular cast

Daniel J. Travanti Daniel J. Travanti (born Danielo Giovanni Travanti; March 7, 1940) is an American actor. He is best known for playing police captain Frank Furillo in the television drama series '' Hill Street Blues'' (1981–1987) for which he received a Gol ...

: Lieutenant who heads the Missing Persons Unit, Ray McAuliffe *

Erik King Erik King (born April 21, 1963) is an American actor, best known for his portrayal of Sergeant James Doakes on Showtime's television series '' Dexter''. He is also known for his roles as Moses Deyell on '' Oz''., and as Bobby Davidson in ''Mis ...

: Missing Persons Unit Investigator, Bobby Davison *Juan Ramírez: Missing Persons Unit Sergeant, Carlos Marrone *

Frederick Weller Frederick Weller (born April 18, 1966) is an American actor known for portraying Johnny Sandowski on ''Missing Persons,'' Shane Mungitt in '' Take Me Out'' and Marshall Mann on ''In Plain Sight''. Early life Weller was born in New Orleans, Lou ...

: Missing Persons Unit Investigator, Johnny Sandowski *

Jorja Fox Jorja-An Fox ( ) is an American actress and producer. She first came to prominence with a recurring role in the NBC medical drama '' ER'' as Dr. Maggie Doyle from 1996 to 1999. This was followed by another critical success in the recurring ro ...

: Missing Persons Unit Police Officer, Connie Karadzic *Robert Swan: Missing Persons Unit Secretary, Dan Manaher *Paty Lombard: Wife of Ray McAuliffe, Barbara McAuliffe *Al Hoffman: core-group, detective, Justin McCarthy (un-credited) Among the guest stars was

Stephen Colbert Stephen Tyrone Colbert ( ; born May 13, 1964) is an American comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actor, and television host. He is best known for hosting the satirical Comedy Central program '' The Colbert Report'' from 2005 ...

in episode 2.

Episodes

Home media

On July 27, 2010, Mill Creek Entertainment released ''Prime Time Crime: The Stephen J. Cannell Collection'' on DVD in Region 1. This special collection contains 54 episodes from 13 different shows produced by Stephen J. Cannell Productions, including all episodes of Missing Persons.

References

External links

* {{Stephen J Cannell shows American Broadcasting Company original programming 1993 American television series debuts 1994 American television series endings 1990s American crime drama television series Television shows set in Chicago Television series by Stephen J. Cannell Productions