i relish - highly - the old Dragnet episodes, especially when Joe Friday deems it fit to unload on one of his captive stable of con-atists, hippies, punks, or drug gurus. unfortunate that these days its creator, Jack Webb, is best remembered as a clitche' chain-smoking cop, for there was a time when he was hailed (and rightfully so) as one of the most innovative and exciting new talents in the biz. by the time he was tracking down "Blue Boy" (The LSD Story, 1967), however, Webb was slowly nearing his decline, and soon to begin churning out his TV shows by the pound (with a lack of spontaneity and passion that would have done Broderick Crawford proud). only hardcore fans were aware that some of the most popular episodes were recycled from his earlier 50's programs, which, in turn, had occasionally been lifted from even earlier radio incarnations. one example: the Dragnet 1967 episode of The Christmas Story, earlier titled The Big Baby Jesus (1953), both of which were based on an original Dragnet radio drama.

THE BIG BABY JESUS :: DRAGNET, 1953 (TV)

THE BIG BABY JESUS :: DRAGNET, 1952 (RADIO)

THE LSD STORY :: BRIEF CLIP, DRAGNET 1967