The Fugitive (1963 TV series)

The Fugitive
GenreCrime
Drama
Created byRoy Huggins
StarringDavid Janssen
Barry Morse
Narrated byWilliam Conrad
Dick Wesson (episode credits)
Theme music composerPeter Rugolo
Country of originUnited States
No. of seasons4
No. of episodes120 (90 in black-and-white, 30 in color) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producerQuinn Martin
ProducersAlan Armer (1963–1966)
Wilton Schiller (1966–1967)
Running time51 minutes
Production companiesQuinn Martin Productions
United Artists Television
Original release
NetworkABC
ReleaseSeptember 17, 1963 (1963-09-17) –
August 30, 1967 (1967-08-30)
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

The Fugitive is an American crime drama television series created by Roy Huggins and produced by QM Productions and United Artists Television. It aired on ABC from September 17, 1963, to August 29, 1967. David Janssen starred as Dr. Richard Kimble, a physician who is wrongfully convicted of his wife's murder, and unjustly sentenced to death. While Dr. Kimble is en route to death row, the train derails over a track defect, allowing him to escape and begin a cross-country search for the real killer, a "one-armed man" (played by Bill Raisch). At the same time, Richard Kimble is hounded by the authorities, most notably by Police Lieutenant Philip Gerard (Barry Morse).

The Fugitive aired for four seasons, with 120 51-minute episodes produced. The first three seasons were filmed in black-and-white, while the fourth and final season was filmed in color.[1]

The series was nominated for five Emmy Awards and won the Emmy for Outstanding Dramatic Series in 1966.[2] In 2002, it was ranked number 36 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time. TV Guide named the one-armed man number five in their 2013 list of the 60 Nastiest Villains of All Time.

The popularity of the series led to various adaptations, and the realization of a titular franchise.

  1. ^ Harris, Jay S., ed. (1978). TV Guide: The First 25 Years. New York: New American Library. p. 123. ISBN 0-452-25225-3.
  2. ^ "Nominations Search". Television Academy. Archived from the original on 2015-05-27. Retrieved 2015-05-26.