Dragnet (TV Series) The Big Frame (1954) User Reviews

Alcohol, Late Nite Both Add to Deadly Trouble

[biorngm · 7/10 · 20 February 2018]

Review - The Big Frame Aired 4-22-54 Mediocre story of a very old scenario with alcohol, late night, some guy shooting off his mouth and another closing it for him; permanently. The story ends with an admission of guilt and all too familiar scenario for police.

Friday, Smith get their information by getting the same responses from bar patrons when normally no two stories are the same recounting events. The girlfriend is useless, the bartender, tavern-owner withholds information for fear of risking his bar's reputation, finally a patron speaks up fingering the killer. Friday jumps all over the guy for not telling all the fight details.

People saw what happened, only one person came forward to tell the complete story. The actual killer admitted to a couple what happened, but they ignored him. Friday, Smith talk to a patron telling them who was fighting the victim, the bartender owns up corroborating the patron's story, Friday, Smith head to the place when they hear the suspect is in the bar.

Arrested without much incident, admission to the crime given as they are leading the cuffed man out the door of the tavern. Procedural policework is shown throughout the story as details become clearer once people start to tell the truth. There was no hit-and-run; it was murder, well, manslaughter charged to the convicted suspect. On to San Quentin for the guilty party and on to the dentist for Friday, thanks to partner Smith.

A look at some of the more mundane aspects of police work.

[planktonrules · 6/10 · 16 November 2013]

While this isn't one of the more exciting episodes of "Dragnet", it is worth seeing simply because it shows more of the mundane work a policeman might do.

Friday and Smith are working the hit and run division. However, the autopsy is rather odd and inconsistent with a hit and run. The more they investigate the more they feel that the witnesses are hiding something and that the man did NOT die as a result of the car accident. It might just be that the man was beaten to death and folks just want to sweep the case under the rug.

As I said, this one seems a lot more routine as far as the type of police work you'll see. However, it's handled well and is worth your time even if it lacks the thrills of many of the other episodes.

One for the Road

[dougdoepke · 17 May 2007]

Routine entry, but one that shows how the creators could take a highly unglamorous crime and turn it into an entertaining half-hour. A bar-fly is found dead in a downtown gutter. Was it an accident or murder. Friday and Smith follow the leads, including an interview with a very hung-over girlfriend of the deceased. Carolyn Jones again shines in a tacky role showing why she was a Dragnet favorite. Good procedure episode, especially since our two cops take back-up with them for the arrest-- an often neglected aspect of police work in the series, maybe because of the additional expense. The segue from Friday's snarling arrest to a humorous wrap-up is, nevertheless, clumsily handled. Even so, an impacted wisdom tooth is never self-correcting. Friday should listen to Frank's nagging.