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The Fugitive


The Fugitive
Photo Information
Copyright: Tom O'Donnell (gunbud) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 4098 W: 3 N: 3491] (16243)
Genre: Places
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2007-07-10
Categories: Event
Photo Version: Original Version
Date Submitted: 2008-04-06 19:06
Viewed: 451
Points: 32
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
TV's Most Compelling Drama, 21 November 2002


Author: Michael Daly (fanstp43@aol.com) from United States

It was called "the most repulsive concept ever for television" when Roy Huggins pitched it to ABC in 1960, until Leonard Goldenson of ABC called it the best idea he'd ever heard.

Such summarizes the huge effort Roy Huggins invested to get The Fugitive to television. Teaming with producer Quinn Martin, Huggins' concept was made flesh with the casting of David Janssen as Dr. Richard Kimble and British-born Canadian Barry Morse as his nemesis, Lt. Philip Gerard. Huggins and Martin worked to make a compelling weekly drama via superb scripts, top-notch guest casts, and enticing music by Peter Rugolo, and succeeded perhaps more than they ever dared to hope.

The Fugitive remains compelling television 40 years later. Janssen and Morse imbue tremendous sympathy into their roles and make their characters so compelling that audiences even went too far, assailing Morse by saying, "You dumb cop, don't you realize he's innocent?" It even extended to the one-armed vagrant who was key to the drama, played by stuntman Bill Raisch, who in one incident was even picked up by the real LAPD because they thought he was "wanted for something," before they realized he was just an actor.

If The Fugitive had a drawback, it was because it worked too well - it is emotionally draining watching the show because the sympathy enticed for the characters is so great that seeing them suffer is painful, such as in the two-part episode "Never Wave Goodbye" - the audience is put through the emotional wringer every bit as much as Kimble, Gerard, and the story's supporting players (in this case played by Susan Oliver, Will Kuliva, Robert Duvall, and Lee Phillips).

The series was shot in black and white in its first three seasons, but for the fourth season came the replacement of producer Alan Armer with Wilton Schiller and the switch to color. The quality of the series remained high, but it is a measure of the show's quality that early fourth-season episodes are considered disappointing, and yet are still excellent stories with genuine emotional pull. The fourth-season settled down when writer-producer George Eckstein was brought in early on to help out Schiller, and it helped bring about some of the series' best moments, notably in the episode "The Ivy Maze," where for the first time in the series, all three protagonists (Kimble, Gerard, and Fred Johnson, the one-armed man) confront each other.

The performances and all else within made The Fugitive TV's most compelling drama, then and forever.

gneufeld, evanrizo, John_F_Kennedy, dareco, Dyerco, scobert, mpb001, kiwi_explorer, cfreire, Charo, Didi has marked this note useful
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Critiques [Translate]

Hi tom,
So the police are just around the corner? Good shot and title. Well composed and good colors and light. TFs. Gerald

Superb composed Tom, especial with the notice.
Very idyllic places around there to spent great times.
Best regards.
Evangelos

Interesting story. Good composition and very sharp colours. Very nice shot.
Best wishes,
Achim

Helo Tom
Intresthing and lovely day life scene and the place is realy nice
Good sharpnes
Ciao,Braca

  • Great 
  • Rosa Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 586 W: 140 N: 863] (3832)
  • [2008-04-07 4:29]

Helle Tom,
Excellent POV, belle capture sur cette fugitive en movement,
Bien vus.
Amitiés,
Rosa.

Hi Tom
superbe cliché de ce bateau d pêche qui semble revenir au port après une journée de travail, belle composition aux couleurs naturelles
Amitiés
Jean-Pierre

The boat in the foreground looks really great. A pretty scene and a most interesting note. TFS

Hi Tom
I see you and I are of the same vintage. Great storyline. Well done.
Phil

Excellent compo and framing, I like the blue tones and those white boats on the shining water.

TFS,
Andreea

Hi Tom,
You are correct about the Fugitive being one of the greatest tv dramas of all time. Everything about it was exceptional, the script writing, the acting and the photography. The Movie "The Fugitive" starring tommy Lee Jones and Harrison Ford is one of my favorite movies and my wife won't let me watch this too often (I am addicted to it). I have the entire dialogue of the movie memorized. I love the scene in the tunnel when Richard Kimble was telling U.S. Marshall Gerard the he was innocent, and he replied, "I don't care!" (he cared later on). Excellent photograph! I had better quit writing about this series and movie or I will write an 20,000 word essay.
Stan

  • Great 
  • mpb001 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 681 W: 125 N: 368] (4491)
  • [2008-04-07 19:36]

Hi Tom,
Cool shot of the boat pulling out of the harbor. I can almost imagine David Janssen on the boat, again, on the run. Great note too. Incidently, as I grew up watching the original The Fugitive, it became my favorite all time TV series and I'm finally enjoying it again on DVD.
Mike

Hi Tom,
I was at first perplexed with the title and the boat ... I thought at first it was used in the set :) So you like action packed shows too ... same here ... coincidentally, I like the show too. Anyway, you've composed this well with the boat coming into the image.... making it an effective foreground which leads ones focus towards the end of the photo. Well done! tfs\
Cheers,
Renier

Hi tom
Beautiful scene followed by interesting note. Beautiful lights, colors and framing. I guess that this place is amazing for us to take some minutes for spend the time. Well done, regards, Consuelo

  • Great 
  • Charo Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2177 W: 14 N: 4042] (15938)
  • [2008-04-09 7:49]

Hola Tom,
Simpático nombre para un barco. Excelente encuadre y buen dinamismo.
Cordialmente
Charo

Ola Tom ,
Bonita composição com o Fugitive a fugir , gostei muito da paisagem de fundo as casas bem interessante , um lugar muito belo , parabéns!!
Um abraço Gonçalo

  • Great 
  • Didi Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 6159 W: 3196 N: 7475] (27842)
  • [2008-04-18 9:37]

Hi Tom
I remember very well the Fugitive with David Jansen in the sixties.
Very interesting dominant point of view on the boat with soft lights.
Cheers.

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