Dan August#Relation to earlier works

Police lieutenant Dan August investigates homicide cases in his (fictional) hometown of Santa Luisa, California. The town is supposedly based on Santa Barbara, California, but was filmed in Oxnard in Ventura County.

• Burt Reynolds as police lieutenant Dan August
• Norman Fell as Sergeant Charles Wilentz, August's partner
• Richard Anderson as Police Chief Untermeyer
• Ned Romero as Sergeant Joe Rivera
• Ena Hartman as Katie Grant

Barney Phillips had a recurring role as Mike Golden, the medical examiner. John Lasell also had a recurring role as Benjamin Wedlock.

Guest stars including Diana Muldaur in the pilot episode "Murder by Proxy"; Martin Sheen in "Dead Witness to a Killing"; Dabney Coleman in "The King Is Dead"; Larry Hagman in "The Law"; John Ritter in "Quadrangle of Death"; and Harrison Ford, Billy Dee Williams, Mickey Rooney, David Soul and Gary Busey in "The Manufactured Man". Ahna Capri played Linda Perry in "Death Chain" and "Prognosis: Homicide".

Other guest actors to appear on the show include Michael Ontkean, Joan Hackett, Vera Miles, Annette O'Toole, Gary Collins, Ricardo Montalbán, Ford Rainey, Carolyn Jones, Fritz Weaver, John Marley, Janice Rule, Alexandra Hay, Norman Alden, Joan Van Ark, Bradford Dillman, Geraldine Brooks, Donna Mills, Victor French, Richard Basehart, Sherry Lansing, Monte Markham, Jan-Michael Vincent, Stephen Collins, Laurence Luckinbill, Lee Meriwether, Sal Mineo, Anna Navarro, Richard O'Brien, Fernando Lamas, Ellen Corby, Susan Oliver, John Beck, Michael Pataki, Diana Hyland and Simon Scott.

{{Episode table |total_width= |background=#DAA520 |overall= |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |episodes=

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 1

| Title = Murder by Proxy

| DirectedBy = George Mc Cowan

| WrittenBy = Robert C. Dennis

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1970|9|23}}

|ShortSummary= With guest stars Diana Muldaur.

Burr DeBenning.

Roger Perry.

and special guest star Anne Francis.

Co-Starring Milton Selzer as Dr. Albert Ziegler, Ford Rainey as David Lyle, Mark Roberts as Spence.

With Burke Byrnes as Officer Halsey, John Hudson as Dr. Cooper, James Devine as Peterson, Judy Strangis as Susie, Robert Wolders as Redfern.

A well-known race car driver is driving recklessly, and at a very high speed. When a police car gives chase, Gabe Redfern loses control and drives into the lake. The first officer on the scene finds that the driver is naked, and that he has been shot. Dan August knew the race car driver personally. He suspects that the killer is someone close to Gabe, but everyone has an alibi.

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 2

| Title = The Murder of a Small Town

| DirectedBy = Harvey Hart

| WrittenBy = Robert Dozier

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1970|9|30}}

|ShortSummary= With guest star Ricardo Montalbán.

and special guest star John Marley.

Co-Starring Anna Navarro as Consuela, Cal Bellini as Jose, Corinne Comacho as Carlotta, Mark Roberts as Spence.

With Val Avery, Bart La Rue, Joaquin Martinez, Ray Martel, Peter Hobbs, Stan Barrett, Dort Clark, Michele Salerno.

A sabotaged school bus is involved in an accident that kills Sgt. Joe Rivera's niece. Dan wonders if a migrant worker's strike is connected and races to find the killer before violence breaks out.

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 3

| Title = Love Is a Nickel Bag

| DirectedBy = George Mc Cowan

| WrittenBy = Arthur Weingarten

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1970|10|7}}

|ShortSummary= With guest stars Brad David.

Annette O'Toole.

June Dayton.

Co-Starring Don Dubbins as Arnold Cane, Morgan Paull as Gibbs, Morgan Sterne as Mr. Corman, Eldon Quick as Dr. Joelson.

With Joyce Ames as Tara Mayson, Florence MacMichael as Mrs. Goodson, Paul Camen as Connors, Darrell Larson as Bernie Kahn, Bill Ewing as Joe Goodson.

A teenage boy fatally overdoses at a wild party. In order to find the drug supplier, Dan 'sweats out' the heroin-addicted host of the party in an attempt to gain information.

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 4

| Title = The King Is Dead

| DirectedBy = Gene Nelson

| WrittenBy = Jack Turley

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1970|10|14}}

|ShortSummary= With guest stars Dabney Coleman.

Fred Beir.

Jane Elliot.

and special guest star Janice Rule.

Co-Starring Richard Van Vleet as Robert Gage, Mark Roberts as Spence.

With Walter Coy as Alex Venable, Rose Hobart as Servant, Bill Erwin as Coroner, Warren Parker as Doctor, Douglas Mitchell as Patrolman.

The philanthropist Alex Venable, who put Dan through college, is found shot to death and he doesn't buy the 'scared burglar' theory. Dan soon discovers that Venable wasn't the man he thought he was and finding the guilty party among the growing group of the old man's enemies will take all his detecting skills.

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 5

| Title = In the Eyes of God

| DirectedBy = Harvey Hart

| WrittenBy = Barry Trivers

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1970|10|21}}

|ShortSummary= With guest stars Bradford Dillman.

James Best.

Donna Mills.

Co-Starring Thomas Gomez as Hector Costa, Russell Thorson as Bishop MacAlister, Mark Roberts as Spence.

With Joshua Bryant, Queenie Smith, Claudia Bryar, Robert Cleaves, Pat O'Hara, Iris Korn, Don Phelps, Irene Gilbert, Matthew Knox, Bob Pickett, Martin Priest, Steve Benson, Bernadette Brookes.

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 6

| Title = The Color of Fury

| DirectedBy =Harvey Hart

| WrittenBy = William Wood

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1970|10|28}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 7

| Title = Invitation to Murder

| DirectedBy =Robert Douglas

| WrittenBy = Mel Goldberg

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1970|11|4}}

| ShortSummary = The spoiled brat of a daughter of a famous newspaper columnist is found dead on the beach. Dan's investigation is complicated by the columnist, who uses his forum to virtually convict the girl's hippie boyfriend.

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 8

| Title = The Union Forever

| DirectedBy = George McCowan

| WrittenBy = Chester Krumholz

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1970|11|11}}

| ShortSummary = With guest stars Vic Morrow,

Andrew Prine.

A corrupt union official is murdered and Dan's main suspect is his opponent in an upcoming election. Despite the man's claims of innocence, the evidence continues to mount that he hired hit men to kill the only person standing in his way.

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 9

| Title = Epitaph for a Swinger

| DirectedBy = Lewis Allen

| WrittenBy = Nicholas E. Baehr

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1970|11|18}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 10

| Title = When the Shouting Dies

| DirectedBy = Robert Totten

| WrittenBy = Robert Dozier ({{abbr|t|teleplay}}),
Robert L. Goodwin ({{abbr|s|story}})

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1970|11|25}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 11

| Title = The Soldier

| DirectedBy = Lewis Allen

| WrittenBy = Stephen Kandel

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1970|12|2}}

| ShortSummary = With guest stars Michael Ontkean, Lynne Marta, Larry Ward, Jack Ging.

Dan's attempt to clear an AWOL soldier of an MP's murder is hampered by the suspect's uncooperative friends and the victim's wife, whose motivations are murky.

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 12

| Title = Quadrangle for Death

| DirectedBy = Nicholas Webster

| WrittenBy = Norman Katkov ({{abbr|s/t|story and teleplay}}),
Stephen Kandel ({{abbr|t|teleplay}}),
Roland Wolpert ({{abbr|s|story}})

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1970|12|16}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 13

| Title = Passing Fair

| DirectedBy = Arnold Laven

| WrittenBy = Warren Duff

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1970|12|30}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 14

| Title = The Titan

| DirectedBy = George McCowan

| WrittenBy = Richard Carr ({{abbr|s/t|story and teleplay}}),
Robert C. Dennis ({{abbr|t|teleplay}})

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1971|1|7}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 15

| Title = Death Chain

| DirectedBy = Ralph Senensky

| WrittenBy = Robert C. Dennis

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1971|1|21}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 16

| Title = Dead Witness to a Killing

| DirectedBy = Ralph Senensky

| WrittenBy = Arthur Weingarten

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1971|1|28}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 17

| Title = The Law

| DirectedBy = Ralph Senensky

| WrittenBy = Mel Goldberg

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1971|2|4}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 18

| Title = The Worst Crime

| DirectedBy = Gerald Mayer

| WrittenBy = Richard Landau

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1971|2|11}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 19

| Title = Circle of Lies

| DirectedBy = Richard Benedict

| WrittenBy = Harry Kronman

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1971|2|18}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 20

| Title = Trackdown

| DirectedBy = Jerry Jameson

| WrittenBy = Rick Husky

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1971|2|25}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 21

| Title = Bullet for a Hero

| DirectedBy = Ralph Senensky

| WrittenBy = Nicholas E. Baehr

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1971|3|4}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 22

| Title = The Manufactured Man

| DirectedBy = Richard Benedict

| WrittenBy = Arthur Dales ({{abbr|s|story}}),
Robert C. Dennis ({{abbr|t|teleplay}})

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1971|3|11}}

| ShortSummary = A young woman returns to town after having been away for a year, and she's murdered just a few minutes after getting off the bus. Suspects include a popular candidate for governor, members of his campaign staff, and his son.

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 23

| Title = The Meal Ticket

| DirectedBy = Seymour Robbie

| WrittenBy = Robert Collins

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1971|3|18}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 24

| Title = Days of Rage

| DirectedBy = Ralph Senensky

| WrittenBy = Stephen Kandel ({{abbr|s|story}}),
Richard Landau ({{abbr|s/t|story and teleplay}})

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1971|3|25}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 25

| Title = Prognosis: Homicide

| DirectedBy = Virgil W. Vogel

| WrittenBy = Robert C. Dennis

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1971|4|1}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

{{Episode list

| EpisodeNumber = 26

| Title = The Assassin

| DirectedBy = Gene Nelson

| WrittenBy = Mel Goldberg

| OriginalAirDate = {{start date|1971|4|8}}

| ShortSummary =

| LineColor = DAA520

}}

}}

Reynolds later recalled "I swore I'd never play a cop on TV because you can't make jokes or have a broad. You wind up loving your car a lot. I was halfway out the door when Quinn said the magic words – $15,000 a week."Burt Prelutsky: Two Centerfolds. Los Angeles Times December 24, 1972, p. K14.

The series was based on Quinn Martin's 1970 TV movie House on Greenapple Road, starring Janet Leigh, which was based on Harold R. Daniels' 1966 mystery novel of the same name. It was directed by Robert Day from a script by George Eckstein. Christopher George played Dan August, with Keenan Wynn as Sergeant Wilentz and Barry Sullivan as Chief Untermeyer. Ned Romero was the only actor in the film who reprised his role in the series.Marill, Alvin H. Movies Made for Television: The Telefeature and the Mini-Series 1964-1986. Page 190.

While not initially popular enough to be renewed for a second season, Dan August became a fan favorite in reruns, particularly after Reynolds' popularity surged in the mid-1970s with his escalating movie career. CBS re-aired the series both on The CBS Late Movie and in prime time during summer "rerun seasons" of both 1973 and 1975 to larger audiences.Brooks, Tim and Marsh, Earle. The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network TV Shows 1946-Present (4th edition). New York, Ballantine Books, 1988. pp. 181-182.

In 1980, a television movie titled Dan August: Once Is Never Enough aired on ABC on January 4. The film consisted of footage from episode 15, "Death Chain" and episode 25, "Prognosis: Homicide," cut together to television film length. At the time, ABC and Quinn Martin productions were looking to capitalize on the popularity of star Burt Reynolds, who was in the public eye due to Smokey and the Bandit.

Four further television films were produced, all of which comprised edits of existing episodes into film-length narratives. The Diana Muldaur and Dabney Coleman episodes ("Murder by Proxy" and "The King Is Dead") were edited into the second film Dan August: The Jealousy Factor, which aired later the same year on February 4, and was followed by three more compilations, of selected episodes Dan August: The Trouble with Women ("Epitaph for a Swinger" and "The Titan"), which aired on June 1, then Dan August: The Lady Killers ("When the Shouting Dies" and "The Worst Crime") and Dan August: Murder, My Friend ("Trackdown" and "Bullet for a Hero"), both which aired in November, 1980, between November 10th and 30th, respectively, at the end of the 1980 television season.{{cite web|url=http://www.epixhd.com/dan-august-the-jealousy-factor |title=EpixHD - Dan August: The Jealousy Factor |access-date=January 22, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140530083617/http://www.epixhd.com/dan-august-the-jealousy-factor/ |archive-date=May 30, 2014 }}

On December 7, 2018, Visual Entertainment released the complete series on DVD in Region 1. The set includes "House on Greenapple Road" with Christopher George as August.{{cite web |url=https://www.visualentertainment.tv/products/dan-august-the-complete-collection-7109 |title=Dan August - The Complete Collection |access-date=October 12, 2018}}

{{reflist}}

• {{IMDb title|id=0065286|title=Dan August}}

Category:1970 American television series debuts

Category:1971 American television series endings

Category:CBS television dramas

Category:1970s American crime drama television series

Category:Television shows based on American novels

Category:Television series by CBS Studios

Category:Television shows set in Santa Barbara County, California

August, Dan

Category:American English-language television shows

Category:American detective television series

Category:American Broadcasting Company television dramas