- THE DARK AND BLOODY GROUND
Original Air Date: September 20, 1974
Synopsis. This episode introduces Gretchen Corbett as Rockford’s attorney Beth Davenport, who (as Becker puts it) “collects lost causes like they were rare coins.” Beth’s client Ann Calhoun has been accused of the murder of her husband, poet Kevin Calhoun. Jim would rather pass on the case, since the evidence linking Ann to the crime seems insurmountable (not to mention the fact that Ann has no money), and he becomes less inclined to pursue the matter after two attempts are made on his life. But the case takes an interesting turn after Rockford uncovers a connection between the murder victim and the legal rights to the novel The Dark and Bloody Ground.
LEARN MORE about this episode in the revised third edition of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, featuring more than sixty new pages of never before published information about both the original Rockford Files and the CBS reunion movies, including twenty new interviews and six new appendices. 25 percent of the net proceeds from the sales of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES will be donated to The James Garner Animal Rescue Fund, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds to help rescue organizations, shelters, individuals, fosters, and veterans with emergencies, evacuations, medical care, adoptions, training, pet supplies, shelter, rehabilitation, boarding, transportation, food, and other pressing needs. JGARF is one way for Garner fans to honor Jim’s memory and extend his legacy. Plus… if you order 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES directly from Black Pawn Press, you will receive an exclusive bonus gift. Go to Rockford45.com for more details
Ed Robertson
Author ● Journalist ● Radio Host ● Collaborative Writer
Juanita Bartlett
This Date in ROCKFORD FILES History: Linda Evans and H.M. Wynant star in “The Farnsworth Stratagem,” airing Sept. 19, 1975. LEARN MORE about this episode in 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, available in softcover paperback and now as an eBook through Black Pawn Press
- THE FARNSWORTH STRATAGEM
Original Air Date: September 19, 1975
Synopsis. Dennis and Peggy Becker purchase 2½-percent ownership of a posh hotel resort in a deal brokered by Simon Lloyd, a flim-flam artist who doesn’t tell the Beckers that the “hotel” actually houses condominiums, all of which are fully owned. To their embarrassment, the Beckers discover that they not only spent $7,500 (on a lobby!!), they’re also indentured into paying a $700,000 trust deed. Dennis hires Jim to win back their money. Drawing on his vast grifting skills, Rockford concocts an elaborate scheme designed to beat Lloyd at his own game.
In this episode, we learn that Becker’s rank is Investigator, 2nd Grade. Later in the series, he’ll be promoted to Investigator, 3rd Level (in the third-year episode “Piece Work”) and finally to Lieutenant (in the fifth season’s “Kill the Messenger”).
LEARN MORE about this episode in the revised third edition of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, featuring more than sixty new pages of never before published information about both the original Rockford Files and the CBS reunion movies, including twenty new interviews and six new appendices. 25 percent of the net proceeds from the sales of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES will be donated to The James Garner Animal Rescue Fund, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds to help rescue organizations, shelters, individuals, fosters, and veterans with emergencies, evacuations, medical care, adoptions, training, pet supplies, shelter, rehabilitation, boarding, transportation, food, and other pressing needs. JGARF is one way for Garner fans to honor Jim’s memory and extend his legacy. Plus… if you order 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES directly from Black Pawn Press, you will receive an exclusive bonus gift. Go to Rockford45.com for more details
This Date in ROCKFORD FILES History: Richard Kiley, Kathryn Harrold, and Bryan Cranston star in “Punishment and Crime,” the sixth of the eight CBS ROCKFORD FILES reunion movies, airing Sept. 18, 1996. LEARN MORE in 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, available in softcover paperback and now as an eBook through Black Pawn Press
- PUNISHMENT AND CRIME
Original Air Date: September 18, 1996
TV Guide ad for Punishment and Crime Synopsis. Rockford’s renewed romance with old flame Megan Dougherty (Kathryn Harrold, reprising her role from the NBC series) takes a treacherous turn when he learns that her arrogant playboy cousin Patrick (played by a pre-Breaking Bad, pre-Malcolm in the Middle Bryan Cranston) is in over his head with deadly Russian mobsters.
Punishment and Crime received some of the best reviews of the eight CBS Rockford Files movies—and yet it had gathered dust for more than a year before the network finally aired it. Originally completed in May 1995, the film was held back for broadcast because CBS executives thought it was somber, slow, and too much of a character piece—
not exactly the kind of freewheeling fare that most viewers typically come to expect when they tune in to see Jim Rockford. Other guest stars include Tony Award-winning and Emmy Award-winning actor Richard Kiley.LEARN MORE about this episode in the revised third edition of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, featuring more than sixty new pages of never before published information about both the original Rockford Files and the CBS reunion movies, including twenty new interviews and six new appendices. 25 percent of the net proceeds from the sales of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES will be donated to The James Garner Animal Rescue Fund, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds to help rescue organizations, shelters, individuals, fosters, and veterans with emergencies, evacuations, medical care, adoptions, training, pet supplies, shelter, rehabilitation, boarding, transportation, food, and other pressing needs. JGARF is one way for Garner fans to honor Jim’s memory and extend his legacy. Plus… if you order 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES directly from Black Pawn Press, you will receive an exclusive bonus gift. Go to Rockford45.com for more details
This Date in ROCKFORD FILES History: Rita Moreno wins an Emmy for her performance as Rita Capkovic in “The Paper Palace” at the thirtieth Emmy Awards ceremony, held Sept. 17, 1978. THE ROCKFORD FILES also won an Emmy that night as Best Dramatic Series of the 1977-1978 television season. LEARN MORE in 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, available in softcover paperback and now as an eBook through Black Pawn Press
In accepting the Emmy for “The Paper Palace,” Moreno thanked James Garner, executive producer Meta Rosenberg, producer Charles Floyd Johnson, and particularly singled out the writer of the episode—Juanita Bartlett—as “a lady who really knows how to write about ladies.”
LEARN MORE about this episode in the revised third edition of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, featuring more than sixty new pages of never before published information about both the original Rockford Files and the CBS reunion movies, including twenty new interviews and six new appendices. 25 percent of the net proceeds from the sales of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES will be donated to The James Garner Animal Rescue Fund, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds to help rescue organizations, shelters, individuals, fosters, and veterans with emergencies, evacuations, medical care, adoptions, training, pet supplies, shelter, rehabilitation, boarding, transportation, food, and other pressing needs. JGARF is one way for Garner fans to honor Jim’s memory and extend his legacy. Plus… if you order 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES directly from Black Pawn Press, you will receive an exclusive bonus gift. Go to Rockford45.com for more details
This Date in ROCKFORD FILES History: James Whitmore Jr. makes his first appearance as Rockford wannabe Fred Beamer in “Beamer’s Last Case,” airing Sept. 16, 1977. LEARN MORE about this episode in 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, available in softcover paperback and now as an eBook through Black Pawn Press
- BEAMER’S LAST CASE
Original Air Date: September 16, 1977
Synopsis. Rockford returns from an aborted fishing vacation in the Caribbean to find that someone has wrecked his car, disturbed his home, used his credit card to purchase several expensive detection devices, and even impersonated him. The culprit: Freddie Beamer, a mechanic at Tony’s Body Shop—and a private detective wannabe. Not only must Rockford clean up the mess Freddie made of his own life, he finds himself having to rescue Beamer (played by James Whitmore Jr.) after Freddie stumbles onto a taxicab company owner’s plot to sabotage his own business.In this episode, writer/director Stephen J. Cannell borrows a concept from the classic Maverick episode “The Saga of Waco Williams” by pairing Rockford with a character, Freddie Beamer, with a penchant for landing in the middle of situations that Rockford would normally avoid. James Whitmore Jr., who plays Beamer, had just finished production of the first season of the World War II drama Baa Baa Black Sheep (NBC, 1976-1978) at the time he filmed this episode. Baa Baa Black Sheep was Cannell’s first series as an executive producer.
LEARN MORE about this episode in the revised third edition of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, featuring more than sixty new pages of never before published information about both the original Rockford Files and the CBS reunion movies, including twenty new interviews and six new appendices. 25 percent of the net proceeds from the sales of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES will be donated to The James Garner Animal Rescue Fund, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds to help rescue organizations, shelters, individuals, fosters, and veterans with emergencies, evacuations, medical care, adoptions, training, pet supplies, shelter, rehabilitation, boarding, transportation, food, and other pressing needs. JGARF is one way for Garner fans to honor Jim’s memory and extend his legacy. Plus… if you order 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES directly from Black Pawn Press, you will receive an exclusive bonus gift. Go to Rockford45.com for more details
This Date in ROCKFORD FILES History: James Woods, Julie Sommars, and Abe Vigoda star in “The Kirkoff Case,” the premiere episode of the ROCKFORD FILES series, airing Sept. 13, 1974. LEARN MORE about this episode in 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, available in softcover paperback and now as an eBook through Black Pawn Press
- THE KIRKOFF CASE
Original Air Date: September 13, 1974
Synopsis. Larry Kirkoff (played by James Woods) was indicted for the double murder of his parents. However, he was never convicted because the prosecution couldn’t place him at the scene of the crime, and the police never found the murder weapon. Larry hires Rockford to find evidence that would clear him of both crimes. Although Jim believes Kirkoff is guilty, he can’t quite resist the potential payoff: a $20,000 fee if he cracks the case. Rockford discovers that the Kirkoff murders may be linked to a real estate fraud. But he also finds that his investigation could have fatal ramifications after mobsters work him over and warn him to drop the case.
Other guest stars include Julie Sommars (The Governor and J.J., Matlock), Roger Davis (Dark Shadows, Alias Smith and Jones), and Abe Vigoda (Barney Miller). Vigoda, as mob kingpin Al Dancer, has one of the funniest lines in the episode in his lone scene with Garner. After Rockford refers to Muzzy Vinette as a “goon,” Dancer corrects him: “This is the age of public relations. Mr. Vinette is not a ‘goon.’ He is a ‘labor organizer.’”
LEARN MORE about this episode in the revised third edition of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, featuring more than sixty new pages of never before published information about both the original Rockford Files and the CBS reunion movies, including twenty new interviews and six new appendices. 25 percent of the net proceeds from the sales of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES will be donated to The James Garner Animal Rescue Fund, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds to help rescue organizations, shelters, individuals, fosters, and veterans with emergencies, evacuations, medical care, adoptions, training, pet supplies, shelter, rehabilitation, boarding, transportation, food, and other pressing needs. JGARF is one way for Garner fans to honor Jim’s memory and extend his legacy. Plus… if you order 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES directly from Black Pawn Press, you will receive an exclusive bonus gift. Go to Rockford45.com for more details
This Date in ROCKFORD FILES History: James Garner wins the Emmy for Best Actor in a Dramatic Series for his performance in “So Help Me God” at the twenty-ninth Emmy Awards ceremony, held Sept. 11, 1977. LEARN MORE in 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, available in softcover paperback and now as an eBook through Black Pawn Press
A searing indictment of the federal judicial system at its worst, “So Help Me God” (original airdate: Nov. 19, 1976) remains a stellar example of how dramatic television can inform as well as entertain. “We were very proud of that show,” said James Garner on The Ronn Owens Program in 1996. “It brought to light the inequities of the grand jury system, and they have changed those laws since then. And as I understand, our show had something to do with that.”
“So Help Me God” also held a special place in Garner’s heart on two counts. Not only was the show among his personal favorites, it was the episode for which he won the Emmy for Best Dramatic Actor for the 1976-1977 season.
LEARN MORE about this episode in the revised third edition of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, featuring more than sixty new pages of never before published information about both the original Rockford Files and the CBS reunion movies, including twenty new interviews and six new appendices. 25 percent of the net proceeds from the sales of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES will be donated to The James Garner Animal Rescue Fund, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds to help rescue organizations, shelters, individuals, fosters, and veterans with emergencies, evacuations, medical care, adoptions, training, pet supplies, shelter, rehabilitation, boarding, transportation, food, and other pressing needs. JGARF is one way for Garner fans to honor Jim’s memory and extend his legacy. Plus… if you order 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES directly from Black Pawn Press, you will receive an exclusive bonus gift. Go to Rockford45.com for more details
This Date in MAVERICK TV History: James Garner, Jack Kelly, and Charles Frank star in THE NEW MAVERICK, airing Sept. 3, 1978 on The ABC Sunday Night Movie. MAVERICK: LEGEND OF THE WEST: Revised Third Edition is now available both as an eBook and in softcover paperback through Black Pawn Press
THE NEW MAVERICK
Original Airdate: September 3, 1978
Synopsis. Bret Maverick rides into New Las Vegas to collect a $1,000 debt from brother Bart, who has owed him the money for nine years. Although Bret is told that his brother was shot to death, he quickly determines from the size of the coffin that Bart is still alive. Bret soon learns Bart is running from three men who lost money from him in a poker game the night before.
The New Maverick was the pilot for a possible updated Maverick series starring Charles Frank as Ben Maverick, but the movie itself clearly focuses on James Garner as Bret. So when The New Maverick drew a respectable audience share, ABC had a problem: It couldn’t design a new series around Garner because he was still busy filming The Rockford Files, while Frank hadn’t exactly established himself in the pivotal role of Ben. Though ABC eventually passed on The New Maverick, Warner Bros. kept the project in development for another year. In the summer of 1979, CBS ordered another two-hour pilot, again starring Frank. The new series, now called Young Maverick, debuted as a mid-season replacement on Nov. 28, 1979.
LEARN MORE about this episode in the revised third edition of Maverick: Legend of the West, featuring more than 100 pages of new information about the show that made James Garner a star. 25 percent of the net proceeds from the sales of the third edition will be donated to The James Garner Animal Rescue Fund, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds to help rescue organizations, shelters, individuals, fosters, and veterans with emergencies, evacuations, medical care, adoptions, training, pet supplies, shelter, rehabilitation, boarding, transportation, food, and other pressing needs. JGARF is one way for Garner fans to honor Jim’s memory and extend his legacy. The revised third edition of Maverick: Legend of the West is available through Black Pawn Press, Amazon.com, and wherever books are sold online.
This date in ROCKFORD FILES history: Joseph Mascolo and Conchata Farrell star in “Crack Back,” airing Mar. 25, 1977. LEARN MORE about this episode in 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, available in softcover paperback and now as an eBook through Black Pawn Press
- CRACK BACK
Original Air Date: March 25, 1977
Synopsis. Beth hires Jim to find a woman who allegedly could clear her client, pro football player Davey Woodhull, of first-degree murder charges. Meanwhile, just as Woodhull’s trial begins, Beth is harassed by crank phone calls, stalkings, and a series of sexually explicit gifts sent to her through the mail. When Woodhull’s mystery woman is murdered shortly after Rockford locates her, Jim suspects Woodhull of masterminding an insidious scheme that covers all bets in case he’s convicted—by showing that Beth was distracted, Woodhull could appeal on the basis that she could not render an effective defense. Rockford must prove that Woodhull orchestrated the harassment.We mentioned earlier that James Garner was an avid fan of the NFL’s Oakland Raiders. As a teenager, he played linebacker and punter for Norman High School in Norman, Oklahoma.LEARN MORE about this episode in the revised third edition of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, featuring more than sixty new pages of never before published information about both the original Rockford Files and the CBS reunion movies, including twenty new interviews and six new appendices. 25 percent of the net proceeds from the sales of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES will be donated to The James Garner Animal Rescue Fund, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds to help rescue organizations, shelters, individuals, fosters, and veterans with emergencies, evacuations, medical care, adoptions, training, pet supplies, shelter, rehabilitation, boarding, transportation, food, and other pressing needs. JGARF is one way for Garner fans to honor Jim’s memory and extend his legacy. Plus… if you order 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES directly from Black Pawn Press, you will receive an exclusive bonus gift. Go to Rockford45.com for more details.
This date in ROCKFORD FILES history: Susan Strasberg stars in “A Bad Deal in the Valley,” airing Mar. 19, 1976. LEARN MORE about this episode in 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, available in softcover paperback and now as an eBook through Black Pawn Press
- A BAD DEAL IN THE VALLEY
Original Air Date: March 19, 1976
Synopsis. Rockford dates Karen Stiles (played by Susan Strasberg), whose father Sam Stiles served time with him at San Quentin. Karen, a real estate agent, asks Rockford to deliver a suitcase containing escrow papers for a major property transaction—but doesn’t tell him that the suitcase actually contains $100,000 in phony money. Later, after Rockford’s release from jail, Karen is apparently abducted. But when Jim learns that Karen’s father was a premier plate artist, he deduces that Karen staged her abduction so that the authorities would not suspect her of the counterfeit money fiasco. After linking Karen’s real estate deal to a $500,000 jewel theft, Rockford tries to trip up Karen by recovering the jewels himself and collecting the finder’s fee.LEARN MORE about this episode in the revised third edition of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES, featuring more than sixty new pages of never before published information about both the original Rockford Files and the CBS reunion movies, including twenty new interviews and six new appendices. 25 percent of the net proceeds from the sales of 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES will be donated to The James Garner Animal Rescue Fund, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds to help rescue organizations, shelters, individuals, fosters, and veterans with emergencies, evacuations, medical care, adoptions, training, pet supplies, shelter, rehabilitation, boarding, transportation, food, and other pressing needs. JGARF is one way for Garner fans to honor Jim’s memory and extend his legacy. Plus… if you order 45 YEARS OF THE ROCKFORD FILES directly from Black Pawn Press, you will receive an exclusive bonus gift. Go to Rockford45.com for more details.