| Emergency! | |
|---|---|
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| Also known as | Emergency One! |
| Created by | |
| Starring | |
| Theme music composer | Nelson Riddle |
| Composers | |
| No. of seasons | 6 |
| No. of episodes | 122 + 6 TV movies (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Producers |
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| Editor | Richard Belding |
| Running time | approx. 50 minutes |
| Production companies | |
| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | January 15, 1972 – May 28, 1977 |
| Related | |
| Infobox instructions (only shown in preview) | |
Emergency! is an American action-adventure medical drama television series jointly produced by Mark VII Limited and Universal Television. Debuting on NBC as a midseason replacement on January 15, 1972, replacing two situation comedy series, The Partners and The Good Life, it ran for a total of 122 episodes until May 28, 1977, with six additional two-hour television films in 1978 and 1979.
The series stars Randolph Mantooth and Kevin Tighe as two rescuers, who work as paramedics and firefighters in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The duo formed Squad 51, a medical and rescue unit of the Los Angeles County Fire Department, working together with the fictional Rampart General Hospital medical staff (portrayed by Robert Fuller, Julie London and Bobby Troup), and with the firefighter engine company at Station 51.
Emergency! was produced by Jack Webb and created by Robert A. Cinader, who had also created the police dramas Adam-12 and Dragnet. Harold Jack Bloom is also credited as a creator; Webb does not receive screen credit as a creator. In the show's original TV-movie pilot, Webb was credited only as its director. However, the series aimed to be much more realistic than its predecessors as it portrayed emergency medical services (EMS). Pioneering EMS leader James O. Page served as a technical advisor, and the two main actors underwent some paramedic training.
The series aired at a time when ambulance coverage in the United States was rapidly expanding and changing, and the role of a paramedic was emerging as a profession, and is credited with popularizing the concepts of EMS and paramedics in American society, and even inspiring other states and municipalities to expand the service.[1][2]
Nearly 30 years after Emergency! debuted, the Smithsonian Institution accepted Emergency! memorabilia into its National Museum of American History's public-service section,[3] including the firefighters' helmets, turnouts, Biophone, and defibrillator.[4] The vehicles of Station 51 are a part of the collection of the Los Angeles County Fire Museum.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
BehindTheSceneswas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Bergman, Paul (Spring 2007). "EMERGENCY!: Send a TV Show to Rescue Paramedic Services!". University of Baltimore Law Review. 36 (3).
- ^ Reiner, Jonathan (May 15, 2000). "Emergency! at the Smithsonian". TVGuide.com. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
- ^ Ames, Denise (December 12, 2013). "One-on-One with Randolph Mantooth". The Tolucan Times. Archived from the original on December 17, 2013. Retrieved January 7, 2014.