Dragnet (franchise)

Dragnet
Dragnet opening frame from the 1950s television series
Created by	Jack Webb
Original work	Radio series
Owners	Mark VII Limited Universal Pictures
Years	1949 – 2004
Films and television
Film(s)	1954 film (1954) 1987 film (1987)
Television series	List 1951 television series (1951 – 1959) 1967 television series (1967 – 1970) 1989 television series (1989 – 1991) 2003 television series (2003 – 2004)
Television film(s)	1969 television film (1969)
Audio
Radio program(s)	1949 radio drama (1949 – 1957)
Original music	"Dragnet"

Dragnet is an American media franchise created by actor and producer Jack Webb and owned by his company Mark VII Limited and Universal Pictures. It follows Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Detective Joe Friday and his partners as they conduct by-the-book police work and solve crimes in Los Angeles. Originating as a radio drama on NBC in 1949, Dragnet has been adapted into several successful television shows and films, though the franchise's popularity has reduced since Webb's death in 1982. Its name is derived from the police term "dragnet", a system of coordinated measures for apprehending criminals or suspects.

Dragnet is perhaps the most famous and influential police procedural crime drama in American media history. Webb's aims in Dragnet were for unpretentious acting and a realistic depiction of policing. The series portrayed police work as dangerous and heroic, and helped shape public perception of law enforcement in the 20th century, improving the public's opinion of police officers.^[1]

Dragnet remains a key influence on the police procedural genre. Its cultural impact is such that seven decades after its debut, elements of Dragnet are familiar to those who are otherwise unfamiliar with the franchise itself:

• "Dragnet", the four-note introduction to the franchise's brass and timpani theme music (though its origins date to Miklós Rózsa's score for the 1946 film version of The Killers).
• The opening narration common across the franchise's series: "Ladies and gentlemen: the story you are about to hear is true. Only the names have been changed to protect the innocent." Over time, the "only" and "ladies and gentlemen" were eventually dropped. The television version used in the 1950s and 1960s series replaced "hear" with "see" and had a backdrop of Joe Friday's badge, number 714.
• "Just the facts, ma'am", a catchphrase and misquotation often attributed to Joe Friday and popularly used to reference or evoke Dragnet, though Webb's portrayal of Joe Friday never said that exact phrase.