Jake and the Fatman

Why was this series cancelled? With the exception of Hunter, it was probably the best detective show since William Conrad starred in Cannon. Conrad played the eccentric district attorney, J. L. McCabe, with his ever-present dog Max to the hilt, and Joe Penny played detective Jake Styles just as well. The interplay of McCabe's and Styles's personalities added much to the mix.

This was an OK show. William Conrad, notable for being one of the greatest actors in radio history--certainly among the top ten on any list--adds his memorable presence. Penney gets a lot of screen time as he runs around doing legwork and handling the action aspects. To me, Penney was always a fairly generic sleek good-looking type. I thought he was about adequate in the role, but I also thought any of three dozen actors could have done it as well. But William Conrad! He was a talent for the ages.

I agree to my previous speaker: "Jake And The Fatman" was one of the best TV crime dramas, and surely on top of the list during the late 1980's. I would say it lines up nicely with the great TV crime series like The Streets of San Francisco, Cannon, Petrocelli, Vega$, and Miami Vice - all quite different and individual, but all classic. By the way, I had the impression that William Conrad had his good days and less good days during the Jake And The Fatman series, especially in later episodes filmed on Hawaii. Does anyone know if William Conrad suffered from (a beginning) Parkinson's disease?

This is probably the only other character besides Frank Cannon that William Conrad will always be associated with (other than his portrayal of Matt Dillon on the radio version of Gunsmoke). This was a good mixture of action and humor and the chemistry between William Conrad, Joe Penny and Alan Campbell was what made it so fun. Also, the best years of the show was when the locale was switched from Los Angeles to Honolulu. This seemed to add a little something to the show. Unfortunately, they had to move the show back to L.A. and that seemed to take the edge off the show. However, this show still will be one of the most underrated shows of the late-1980's.

Jake & The Fatman was a great experience for me, to participate in many episodes as an extra gave me the opportunity to meet so many talented actors and make many new friends. I truly enjoyed the times that I was asked to be part of all episodes of this great show, I truly enjoyed very much and learned a lot about the TV industry...and the experience led me to more participation in other TV shows shot in Hawaii! Jake & The Fatman was an exciting and wonderful experience for many of us...meeting, socializin and just being next to so many great actors, actresses, and fellow extras were unique moments to treasure Looking forwards to more TV shows in the Future!! Thank you for the Opportunity to have been part of TV history in Hawaii Rolando Sanchez