Dragnet: a 22 rifle for Christmas

Published: Dec. 30, 2022, 9:58 a.m.

In 2022, on months that have a fifth Friday, we have delved into the history of radio to bring back historical examples that let us hear unfiltered aspects of the world as it seemed to our grandparents; something tangentially related to ideas of cultural democracy. 

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In this episode we conclude with an episode of Dragnet: \u201cperhaps the most famous and influential police procedural drama in media history\u201d, and one that translated from radio to television with equally popular results.

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This episode, <em>A Twenty Two Rifle for Christmas</em>, broadcast on December 22, 1949, features Jack Webb as Sgt Joe Friday and Barton Yarborough as his partner, Sgt Ben Romero in a seasonal case. As always, it features an explicit, albeit paternalistic, moral (in this case, one still sadly applicable).