THE DETECTIVE SERIES
(Includes Private Eyes, Bodyguards and Amateur Sleuths)

BOSTON BLACKIE/SYN/1951-53
[Shadowy figure appears in an alleyway - then Narrator speaks] "Danger. Excitement. Adventure. Boston Blackie. Enemy to those who make him an enemy; friend to those who have no friends."

CHARLIE'S ANGELS/ABC/1976-81

[Revised opening] "Once upon there were three little girls who went to the police academy. Two in Los Angeles. The other in San Francisco. And they were each assigned very hazardous duties. But I took them away from all that. And now they work for me. My name...is Charlie."

THE CHEATERS/SYN/1961
[Voice of John Ireland] "These and hundreds of other legitimate claims are paid by insurance companies. Once in a while some joker comes along with an attempt to defraud. By any other name, they are still THE CHEATERS. That's where I come in. I'm John Hunter, investigator for the Eastern Insurance Company."

CITY OF ANGELS/NBC/1976
[Narrator] "This is Los Angeles, one of the least corrupt cities in the United States. And its police force is one of the most honest and efficient in the world. But it wasn't always so."

CRAZY LIKE A FOX/CBS/1984-86

HART TO HART/ABC/1979-84
[Voice of Lionel Stander] "This is my boss, Jonathan Hart, a self-made millionaire. He's quite a guy. This is Mrs. H, she's gorgeous. What a terrific lady. By the way, My name's Max. I take care of both of 'em, which ain't easy, 'cause their hobby is murder."

[2nd Season Opening] "This is my boss, Jonathan Hart, a self-made millionaire, he's quite a guy. This is Mrs H., she's gorgeous, she's one lady who knows how to take care of herself. By the way my name is Max. I take care of both of them, which ain't easy cause when they met it was murder"

[TV Movie Opening]"This is my boss Jonathan Hart, he's a millionaire self-made, and this is his wife Jennifer she's quite a lady. Oh, and that's me. My name is Max. I take care of them which ain't easy cause when they met it was murder."

[1983 Print Annual] "Hi, I'm Max, and I look after the Harts...which ain't easy as when they met it was MURDER! Mr. Hart, Jonathan, is a self-made millionaire who excels at everything, skiing, driving, deep sea diving, horse riding, racing ... gee, I could go on and on...but let me say that he has the extremely good sense...and great taste to choose as his wife, the gorgeous Mrs. H, Jennifer, a lady who can really take care of herself. Well, actually, that's just as well, because their hobby seems to be MURDER!. Trouble seems to just follow them, and poor Freeway, that's Mrs. Hart's delectable little pooch, and a real pal of mine, and sometimes I have to lead a helping hand...after all, that's what friends are for isn't it? Anyway, I must get on as I have to prepare lunch now, just for Freeway and me of course, Mr. and Mrs. Hart are off detecting as usual."

HOLLYWOOD OFF BEAT/SYN/1952-53
[Voice of Melvyn Douglas] "This is Hollywood. It is a town like any other town. There may be a few more pretty girls because of the pull of the motion picture studios, but otherwise just another American town. And there is Steve Randall, who knows Hollywood like the palm of his hand. Steve Randall is in his own way a composite of Hollywood. He's seen everything a man can see anywhere and has been disillusioned by most of it. And he belongs in Hollywood, for its fame and so-called glamour are magnets for the money-hungry riffraff of the outside world. They bring their greed to Steve Randall's town, and greed's companion is trouble. And that's fine for Steve Randall because trouble is his business."

MARTIN KANE, PRIVATE EYE/NBC/1949-54
[Narrator] "Martin Kane, Private Eye...presented by Model...Dill's Best...Old Briar Pipe Tobacco...and their new teammate...Sano cigarettes for full smoking pleasure, yet only one percent nicotine." (Voice of William Gargan as Kane) "This is Martin Kane with a story about a dime-a-dance girl, a Broadway joint, a niece named Irma Field, and her uncle, a distinguished old gent named Brooks Field who currently has his Brooks Brothers parked in my guest chair."

MEET MCGRAW/NBC/ABC/1957-59
[Voice of Frank Lovejoy] "This is McGraw, just McGraw. It's enough of a name for a man like McGraw."

THE MOST DEADLY GAME/ABC/1970-71
[Narrator with deep voice] "Murder is the most deadly game. These three criminologists play it."

REMINGTON STEELE/NBC/1982-87
[Voice of Stephanie Zimbalist as Laura Holt] "Try this for a deep dark secret: The great detective Remington Steele-he doesn't exist. I invented him. Follow: I always loved excitement and so I studied and apprenticed and put my name on an office. But absolutely nobody knocked down my door. A female private investigator seemed so...feminine. So I invented a superior, a decidedly masculine superior. Suddenly there were cases around the block. It was working like a charm. Until the day he walked in, with his blue eyes and mysterious past. And before I knew it, he assumed Remington Steele's identity. Now I do the work and he takes the bows. Its a dangerous way to live, but as long as people buy it, I can get the job done. We never mix business with pleasure. Well, almost never. I don't even know his real name."

THE ROCKFORD FILES/NBC/1974-80

77 SUNSET STRIP/ABC/1958-64
[Narrator] "Sunset Strip is a body of county territory entirely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles, a mile and half of relentlessly contemporary architecture housing restaurants, bistros, Hollywood agents, and shops where the sell is as soft as snowflake and just as cold."

T & T/SYN/1988-90
[Narrator] "T. S. Turner was a city smart kid fighting his way off the street [as a boxer] until he was framed for a crime he didn't commit. Amy Taler was a young crusading lawyer. She mounted an appeal to put Turner back on the street, this time in a suit and tie, working as a private detective. Together they are ...T & T."

UNSOLVED MYSTERIES/NBC/1988-99
[Narrator] "What your are about to see is not a news broadcast. Whenever possible, the actual family members and police officers have participated in recreating the events."

VERONICA MARS/UPN/2004+
[Voice of Kristen Bell] (First Episode) "This is my school. If you go here, your parents are either millionaires or they work for millionaires. Neptune, California. A town without a middle class. If you're in the second group, you get a job: fast food, movie theaters, mini-marts. Or you could be me. My after-school job means tailing philandering spouses or investigating false injury claims....(closing voiceover) Okay, it's a long shot, but I can't help myself. I used to think I knew what tore our family apart. Now I'm sure I don't. But I promise this: I will find out what really happened, and I will bring this family back together again. I'm sorry, is that mushy? Well, you know what they say. Veronica Mars, she's a marshmallow."

VIP/SYN/1998-2002

Revised second season opening:

[Narrator] "The beautiful and lethal Valerie Irons plucked from obscurity to head an elite Los Angeles bodyguard agency. They know how to get things done...eventually"

Back to Top