At first glance these Detective Dramas seem to have little in common except that they both present
crimes for the sake of entertainment. The tone of the shows is
completely different. A large portion of Dragnet's appeal is Sgt
Friday's very business like, although not passionless, reporting of
the fact of the case. Crime Classics' "Connoisseur of Murder",
Thomas Hyland, played by Lou Merrill, isn't as playful or flippant as
Raymond from Inner Sanctum or Paul Frees' The Man in Black, but he
does seem to be genuinely amused by the grisly tales he presents.
Both programs use supposedly true
stories.
Dragnet famously uses the "only the names have been
changed" approach; the stories on Crime Classics, while
dramatized, are based on court records and historical reference, and
the facts can all be checked by the listener if they so desire. Sgt
Friday deals with all sort of crimes, from the spectacular such as
murders, missing persons, and armed robbers, to the mundane like
shoplifting and check fraud.
Crime Classics limits itself to the high
crime of murder, and historically significant murders at that. The
murders range from jealous lovers to victims of blackmail to
psychopaths to political assassins; from ancient Greece through
modern America.
The sounds at the beginning of each
program are important. The trademark "Dum de Dum Dum" of
Dragnet' immediately sets the mood (the title of the theme music is
"Danger Ahead".) Thomas Hyland introduces each of his
stories with a unique sound, perhaps drops of rain, horses hooves,
pebbles being dropped in a well, or, ominously, a rope stretching.
These sounds raise the listeners curiosity, because we know they will
be an important part of the upcoming story.
The role of the narrator is markedly
different in both shows. Sgt Friday's narration simply sets the scene
and connects bits of the story. The story itself sets the mood and
tone of the episode. Thomas Hyland is a bit more editorial, but he is
dealing with history.
The one element that is most common
between the two shows is the high quality of the productions.
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