Cannon - Season One, Vol. 2

Heavyweight in More Ways Than One!
I had been waiting for years for the release of Cannon on dvd. William Conrad is an affable, yet tough connoisseur / detective. In the series, he is always underestimated by the villains. They inevitably learn, too late, that, while, short in stature and stout in figure, he will work through the case and come out on top. By the way, it is great that he got this gig, because, after playing a terrific Matt Dillon on the radio series for many years, he was rejected for the television role (Gunsmoke) because of his appearance. Anyway, great, well crafted detective series that will be worth the price.

Mediocre Film Print Quality For A Great Show
Cannon season one print quality was not remastered by Paramount/CBS, who did a superb job on The Streets Of San Francisco, another early '70's Quinn Martin series, when it was presented on DVD. Cannon itself had progressed, with better stories and acting for volume 2, then was seen in volume 1.

"...don't ever ask a man that looks like me, if he knows what it means to let himself go"(Frank Cannon in 'Flight Plan')
William Conrad, got his first lead in a television series in 1971, as an ex-LA cop turned private eye, Frank Cannon. At the time, police and crime dramas were big, and were about to explode in popularity. Following in the wake of late 60's programs like Dragnet, Mannix, Colombo, The Mod Squad, Adam-12, and Ironside (just to name a few), Cannon was part of the early wave of a genre that would soon flood the airwaves in the 70's. A Quinn-Martin Production, the program has the familiar basic packaging of the company's previous prime time successes, The Fugitive, The FBI, and The Invaders.

Bill Conrad was a big man, an obvious fact that the series' writers made a point of emphasis, and humor, for the character Frank Cannon. They put Conrad's obesity out in the open, with frequent references his size and weight, or being on a diet. Cannon blames himself for his weight problem, and being something of a gourmet cook, doesn't make things any easier. It all seems unkind, but...

Click to Editorial Reviews