Petrocelli is an American legal drama that ran for two seasons on NBC from September 11, 1974, to March 31, 1976.[1]

Petrocelli
Barry Newman as Tony Petrocelli
Created byHarold Buchman
Sidney J. Furie
Developed byE. Jack Neuman
Directed byIrving J. Moore
StarringBarry Newman
Susan Howard
Albert Salmi
David Huddleston
ComposersLalo Schifrin (pilot, 2.2)
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes45 (4 unaired) (and one pilot movie) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producersEdward K. Milkis
Thomas L. Miller
ProducerLeonard Katzman
Camera setupSingle-camera
Running time48 minutes
Production companiesMiller-Milkis Productions
Paramount Network Television
Original release
NetworkNBC
ReleaseSeptember 11, 1974 (1974-09-11) –
March 3, 1976 (1976-03-03)

Plot

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Tony Petrocelli is an Italian-American, Harvard-educated lawyer, who grew up in South Boston and gave up the big money and frenetic pace of major-metropolitan life to practice in a sleepy city in Arizona named San Remo (filmed in Tucson, Arizona). His wife Maggie and he live in a house trailer in the country while waiting for their new home to be built (it never was completed over the course of the series). Tony drives an old pickup truck, always a little too fast. Petrocelli hired Pete Ritter, a local cowboy and ex-cop, as his investigator.

Format

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Petrocelli works as a defense lawyer, and each episode follows a similar format, with the clients apparently certain to be convicted of a crime of which they were innocent until a late-emerging piece of evidence allows the protagonist to suggest to the jury an alternative possibility. These alternatives never were established as absolute fact, and the trial of the persons onto whom Petrocelli turned the accusation never occurred, but the doubt raised was sufficient to secure the release of his clients.

A technique used in the TV series was showing the actual crime in flashbacks from the perspective of various people involved. The flashbacks differed depending on whose recollections were being shown. To maximize the drama, the prosecution's version was always the first flashback shown (i.e. what supposedly happened), then the client's version was presented (what the client remembered happening), then, finally, after finishing his investigation, Petrocelli presented his version (generally meant to be what, in fact, occurred). This final flashback always contained elements of the prosecution's and his client's versions, but with his newfound evidence; it showed both the client's innocence and an explanation as to how and why the prosecution and client's versions differed. In other words, neither side was meant to be corrupt or lying, rather, without Petrocelli's information, both previous versions appeared to be accurate from their respective points of view.

Adaptation

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Newman created the role of Petrocelli in the 1970 movie The Lawyer, loosely based on the Sam Sheppard murder case. Petrocelli was produced by Leonard Katzman.

Cast

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Actor Role
Barry Newman Anthony J. Petrocelli
Susan Howard Maggie Petrocelli
Albert Salmi Pete Ritter
David Huddleston Lt. John Ponce

Episodes

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Pilot (1974)

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A 90-minute TV movie aired as a pilot on March 16, 1974.[2][3]

TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
"Night Games"Don TaylorE. Jack NeumanMarch 16, 1974 (March 16, 1974)

Season 1 (1974–75)

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No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
11"The Golden Cage"Joseph PevneyStory by : Eric Bercovici
Teleplay by : Dan Ullman
September 11, 1974 (1974-09-11)
22"Music to Die By"Paul StanleyOliver CrawfordSeptember 18, 1974 (1974-09-18)
33"By Reason of Madness"James SheldonWilliam KelleySeptember 25, 1974 (1974-09-25)
44"Edge of Evil"Irving J. MooreStory by : Mel Goldberg
Teleplay by : Dan Ullman
October 2, 1974 (1974-10-02)
55"A Life for a Life"Allen ReisnerWilliam D. Gordon & James DohertyOctober 9, 1974 (1974-10-09)
66"Death in High Places"Richard DonnerLeo PipkinOctober 23, 1974 (1974-10-23)
77"The Double Negative"Herb WallersteinRobert C. DennisOctober 30, 1974 (1974-10-30)
88"Mirror, Mirror on the Wall..."Irving J. MooreLeonard KatzmanNovember 6, 1974 (1974-11-06)
99"An Act of Love"Paul StanleyLeonard KatzmanNovember 13, 1974 (1974-11-13)
1010"A Very Lonely Lady"Vincent McEveetyRobert StullNovember 27, 1974 (1974-11-27)
1111"Counterploy"James SheldonEdward J. LaksoDecember 4, 1974 (1974-12-04)
1212"A Covenant with Evil"James SheldonStory by : Bob Green & Bill Harley
Teleplay by : Bob Green & Bill Harley & William Kelley
December 18, 1974 (1974-12-18)
1313"The Sleep of Reason"Irving J. MooreWilliam KelleyJanuary 15, 1975 (1975-01-15)
1414"A Fallen Idol"Herb WallersteinLeonard KatzmanJanuary 22, 1975 (1975-01-22)
1515"Once Upon a Victim"Herschel DaughertyStory by : Stanley Roberts
Teleplay by : Leonard Katzman & Stanley Roberts
January 29, 1975 (1975-01-29)
1616"The Kidnapping"Gunnar HellstromRobert C. DennisFebruary 5, 1975 (1975-02-05)
1717"A Lonely Victim"Irving J. MooreLeonard KatzmanFebruary 19, 1975 (1975-02-19)
1818"The Outsiders"Irving J. MooreLeonard Katzman & Thomas L. MillerFebruary 26, 1975 (1975-02-26)
1919"Vengeance in White"Leonard KatzmanRobert StullMarch 5, 1975 (1975-03-05)
2020"Four the Hard Way"Joseph PevneyWilliam KelleyMarch 13, 1975 (1975-03-13)
2121"Death in Small Doses"Don TaylorAl Reynolds & John DawsonMarch 27, 1975 (1975-03-27)
2222"A Night of Terror"Bernard McEveetyWilliam KelleyApril 2, 1975 (1975-04-02)

Season 2 (1975–76)

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No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
231"Death Ride"Irving J. MooreLeonard KatzmanSeptember 10, 1975 (1975-09-10)
242"The Mark of Cain"Leonard KatzmanLeonard KatzmanSeptember 17, 1975 (1975-09-17)
253"Five Yards of Trouble"Joseph PevneyWilliam KeysSeptember 24, 1975 (1975-09-24)
264"Shadow of Fear"Irving J. MooreLeonard KatzmanOctober 1, 1975 (1975-10-01)
275"Chain of Command"Herb WallersteinKatharyn & Michael MichaelianOctober 8, 1975 (1975-10-08)
286"To See No Evil"Irving J. MooreLeonard Katzman & Thomas L. MillerOctober 29, 1975 (1975-10-29)
297"Terror on Wheels"Herb WallersteinStory by : Peter Lefcourt
Teleplay by : Peter Lefcourt & Leonard Katzman
November 5, 1975 (1975-11-05)
308"The Gamblers"Herb WallersteinJohn HudockNovember 12, 1975 (1975-11-12)
319"Shadow of Doubt"Irving J. MooreStory by : Deena Silver-Kramer
Teleplay by : Jeff Myrow
November 19, 1975 (1975-11-19)
3210"Terror by Book"Irving J. MooreThomas L. MillerDecember 10, 1975 (1975-12-10)
3311"Face of Evil"Herb WallersteinFred FreibergerDecember 17, 1975 (1975-12-17)
3412"Too Many Alibis"Irving J. MooreLeonard KatzmanDecember 24, 1975 (1975-12-24)
3513"A Deadly Vow"Russ MayberryLeonard KatzmanDecember 31, 1975 (1975-12-31)
3614"Jubilee Jones"Art FisherLeonard KatzmanJanuary 14, 1976 (1976-01-14)
3715"The Falling Star"Robert ScheererLeonard KatzmanJanuary 21, 1976 (1976-01-21)
3816"Survival"Irving J. MooreStory by : Norman Lessing
Teleplay by : Leonard Katzman
January 28, 1976 (1976-01-28)
3917"The Night Visitor"Leonard KatzmanJeff Myrow & Leonard KatzmanFebruary 4, 1976 (1976-02-04)
4018"Blood Money"Don WeisJohn HudockFebruary 11, 1976 (1976-02-11)
4119"Any Number Can Die"Paul LynchKathy Donnell & Madeline DiMaggioFebruary 18, 1976 (1976-02-18)
4220"Six Strings of Guilt"Joseph PevneyMann RubinFebruary 25, 1976 (1976-02-25)[failed verification]
4321"Deadly Journey"Jerry LondonSean ForestalMarch 3, 1976 (1976-03-03)[failed verification]
4422"The Pay Off"Victor FrenchJohn HudockApril 4, 1976 (1976-04-04)[failed verification]

Guest stars

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Home media

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Visual Entertainment released the complete series on DVD in Region 1 on December 16, 2016.[4]

Books about the series

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  • Petrocelli: San Remo Justice: An Episode Guide and Much More by Sandra Grabman, published 2018 by BearManor Media. ISBN 978-1-62933-205-5

References

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