The Lineup

I grew up on San Francisco Beat. It was a family event each week. It was the precursor to Streets of San Francisco, Dirty Harry, and Ironside. Besides Perry Mason (back in the day)it was the only compelling crime series on at the time. Shot in B&W it and mono it delivered fast passed gritty episodes on a weekly basis.

With local location shots as a SF native it delighted all who watched it. Although predictable story lines lead to obvious conclusion given the era the scenes along with the plot kept the audience captivated.

As the original San Francisco crime show it paved the way for the next generation of S.F. police dramas such as the aforementioned Raymond Burr series Ironside, The Streets of San Francisco with Karl Malden an Michael Douglas and Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry Series.

As a testimony to how well this movie/series was cast, many of the actors went on to perform in some of the later Crime Drama series on television. Warner Anderson as the hard driving Lt. Ben Guthrie delivered grounded performances as he did throughout his extensive career.

Marshall Reed as Inspector Fred Asher went on to roles in Dragnet, and Adam 12.

Does anyone know where I can get it on DVD?

I remember seeing this show on Friday nights. What I remember best is that they were not kids shows but were still very enjoyable for the whole family. They were very tight half hour shows, in other words, it went by very quick. I wish these shows would be on some cable channel that would show programs of the fifties like this one.

This series is a nostalgic monument to Old San Francisco;i.e., before the development of high rise buildings. One can hear the old fog horns and feel the dampness as Inspector Grebb and the Lt. walk about in Top Coats and Fedoras. They also frequently use the old Police Call Boxes(dedicated phone lines on the street), painted blue of course. After all, portable two-way radios were still less than reliable. The series also makes use of the old Hall of Justice building on Kearney Street. This elaborate old building was torn down to make way for a new hotel. It is a very different city depicted in this series than was shown in "The Streets of San Francisco" or the Harry Callahan/Clint Eastwood movies.

As a young boy,"San Francisco Beat" was my favorite TV show.I loved and still do, any film that uses pre-1970 San Francisco as a background.I still can remember the opening shot at the top of Hyde St. with the O'Farrell,Jones & Hyde cable car going down the hill as the old Ford squad car comes up and turns into Lombard St.Later when the show was renamed "Lineup" the scene was the same except a Dodge was used as the squad car and the cable car had changed to a Powell & Hyde car.Has anybody noticed the view outside their squad room window is not correct?It was impossible to get that view from the old "Hall of Justice".I think that shot was taken from the top of "Nob Hill".It was still a great show.I wish I could see this show again!!!

Growing up in the SF Bay area as a kid in the 50's I always looked forward to San Francisco Beat coming on the tube every Saturday night. All the SF locales such as the Japanese Tea Garden,the old Hall of Justice on Kearny Street, Playland at the Sea. Filmed before the "Manhatanization" of downtown SF when the highest point in the city was Coit Tower on Telegraph Hill. I can't remember any details of the episodes but clearly recall the "feel" of the show which encapsulate everything that was San Francisco just after WWII. Fog horns, sea gulls, the wharf, this show had it all with a real film noir feel. The two detectives would stop at the police call boxes to talk to headquarters.