Guest Who: I'm on "Patrol" Today!

I was yesterday years old when I caught my first glimpse of any episode of Highway Patrol, the 1955-59 syndicated series which starred Oscar-winning actor Broderick Crawford. One of the all-time most popular syndicated shows ever made, particularly in its day, it nonetheless never held so much as an ounce of appeal to me as a potential viewer. Still, when a cable station recently acquired the show and began airing it on April 1st, I finally decided to at least look at a synopsis or two and see if any of the installments might be intriguing. I feel like I hit the jackpot on my very first go 'round (and also feel like there is precious little left in the till afterwards. I'm not in a huge hurry to watch any more!) 

Crawford was the child of Vaudevillians Helen Broderick and Lester Crawford (get it?) He was actually born William Broderick Crawford. His first film came in 1937 and by 1939 he was beginning to land some notable parts in movies like Beau Geste and The Real Glory, among others. After many bad guys and toughies, he won the Oscar for All the King's Men (1949) as a bullying political candidate.

Seen here (number 56), in his second picture Start Cheering (1938), he was one of those people who never looked young even when he was. Though the Oscar made him famous and led to other projects, he lacked the sort of leading man looks and vibe that leads to lasting stardom in movies.

He also had a very hearty appetite as well as a fondness for the bottle, both of which led to some weight gain. Thus, when the offer came to play the head honcho on Patrol, he leapt at the chance. The show was done on a very low budget and he had to film two episodes per week (!), but he also was granted 10% of the gross intake for the show.

This is old-school TV, with trim plots, old cars, lots of fast filming with few takes, but at least offers the occasional handsome cop.

Apart from the rotating guests, Crawford is Highway Patrol and most of the other participants are lucky if they land anything like a closeup and are generally relegated to a position behind him in the remnants of the light!

This performer looked familiar to me, though he often has to jockey for an unobstructed spot near the camera...

...and was often seen in profile...

...or even with most of his back to the camera!

The actor was John Hart, in the first of two Patrol appearances. He was a nice-looking, though perhaps not particularly dynamic, actor.

Hart is likely best-known for having portrayed The Lone Ranger in over 50 episodes when the producers temporarily off-loaded Clayton Moore. (They later brought him back when the public made it clear they weren't being fooled by an unfamiliar actor under that familiar mask!) Nonetheless, he enjoyed a long, busy career, including the series Hawkeye and the Last of the Mohicans, which I've posted a bit about here. 

Anyway, back to the episode ("Harbor Story" - season one, episode nineteen, if you're interested.) These three men are bank robbers who have a fairly effective escape method from their crimes. They dump their rental car, change into fisherman drag and are picked up by a boat on a secluded stretch of beach.

None of these three actors enjoyed any substantial career, but the one on the right had a sort of "bring daddy a beer" appeal! Ha ha!

Just as the boat is due, though, they spot something startling out in the ocean!

Hmmm...

HHMMMM....!

::Insert Jim Carrey reaction shot from The Mask:: Ha ha!!

I was NOT expecting an entrance like this from anyone on Highway Patrol... Turns out the white thing swinging around was merely a belt, but still.

Do we recognize this young man?

I'll give you a closer look.

It's chesty leading man Stuart Whitman.

Whitman had been kicking around in movies, generally small roles, since 1951. He'd been floundering to make a living, actually working part-time in a slaughterhouse (!) to make ends meet, when he took this guest role.

It was fortuitous, however, because he and Crawford hit it off and Whitman proceeded to return to the show more than a dozen times, those instances as a fellow police officer. (It's alleged that Crawford agreed to bring Whitman on to handle the bulk of the dialogue so that he could drink a little more than usual without having to memorize all those pesky lines!)

Whitman finally landed his first leading part in 1957's Johnny Trouble. Here he gives fellow performer Jack Larson one of his more thrilling days on a film set! LOL Wherever Larson's other leg went, we can hardly tell. Whitman proceeded to a decent film career, including an Oscar nomination for 1961's The Mark. You can read all about Whitman here and here.

Though I had noticeable difficulty following the plot line once Stu showed up, I gather that the robbers wanted him out of the way so that he wouldn't see them escape to their getaway boat.

One of them maneuvers his way behind the young man and proceeds to conk him on the head!

Next, they pick up his lifeless body...

...and plan to dump him back into the ocean.

I was disappointed to later see a patrolman covering up Whitman's prone body with a blanket. I thought he must be dead!

Turns out they were just helping to warm him up after he was fished out of the drink.

Thus ended the beefcake portion of this episode, with Whitman now looking more like a leading character out of one of his later films, Francis of Assisi (1961), though it was Bradford Dillman who essayed the title part.

At least we still got to glimpse him for a little while longer.

Whitman was able to repay the career kindness shown by Crawford by helping the older actor land a substantial part in The Decks Ran Red (1958.)

You may think we've run out of notable guest stars from this thin, 30-minute show, but I assure you there is yet one more! Seen here in silhouette as Crawford takes part in his soon-to-be iconic car radio banter, we have our last name brand guest.

Recognize this handsome hunk?

How 'bout now?

As Broderick's right-hand man for most of the episode, we find Guy Williams! This was the first of four appearances he made on the show.

Not long after, in 1957, he became a household name with Zorro, which ran until 1961.

Not long after I made the prior collage, I found this un-cropped rendition of the main photo, which makes a bigger impression, I think. I've written about Williams (who still later headed the cast of Lost in Space) several times, including here and here.

In these early days, though, Williams had to settle for being mostly in the background.

And being in the background behind Crawford meant that sometimes you were all but wiped out of the shot!

Still, you can see hints of the rakish charm that would later come to light on Zorro. But even this was not what really caught my eye.

It was this pendulous moment by the beach!

Sorry, Brod, but this time the background performer is the one who's getting the attention.

This brings us almost to the end.

Now. The End! Till next time.