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The Silent Force (TV series)
1970 American TV series or program From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Silent Force is a 1970–1971 United States police drama television series about three United States Government undercover agents who fight organized crime starring Ed Nelson, Percy Rodriguez, and Lynda Day. It aired from September 21, 1970, to January 11, 1971.[1][2] Unusually for a program of this type, it had only a thirty-minute run-time (including commercials) per episode.
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Cast
- Ed Nelson...Ward Fuller
- Percy Rodriguez...Jason Hart
- Lynda Day...Amelia Cole
Synopsis
Ward Fuller, Jason Hart, and Amelia Cole make up the Silent Force, a team of U.S. government agents assigned to work undercover to infiltrate organized crime in Southern California. Their various operations involve them with companies and individuals victimized by or taking part in organized crime.[1][2][3]
Each episode of The Silent Force opens with this narrative: "'If you do not, on a national scale, attack organized criminals with weapons and techniques as effective as their own, they will destroy us'...Robert F. Kennedy. An attack has been mounted from Washington; an undercover team of federal agents is the spearhead of that attack: The Silent Force."[3]
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Production
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Luther Davis created The Silent Force, and Walter Grauman was its executive producer.[3][note 1] Grauman and Philip Barry, Jr. produced the show.[4] Episode directors included Arnold Laven, George McCowan, and Gene Nelson.[3][4] Writers included Davis, John Meredyth Lucas, Mark Rodgers, Donald S. Sanford, Jack Turley and the team of James D. Buchanan and Ronald Austin.[4] Aaron Spelling Productions produced the show and Dominic Frontiere composed its music.[3]
The show was filmed on the Paramount Pictures lot.[5]
The Silent Force bore similarities to the hit CBS series Mission: Impossible.[3][5] Coincidentally, Lynda Day (billed as Lynda Day George after her 1970 marriage to actor Christopher George)[3] joined the cast of Mission: Impossible in 1971 after the cancellation of The Silent Force, and both Percy Rodriguez and Ed Nelson made guest appearances on the series (Rodriguez in season four's "Chico" and Nelson in season seven's "The Western").
In later interviews Day was dismissive of The Silent Force, calling it pre-Monday Night Football filler. In particular, she felt the short running time (The Silent Force occupied a half-hour time slot) was unsuitable for a show of its type and that her character Amelia Cole had little personality or background, though she spoke fondly of her two co-stars and the show's crew.[5]
A "novelization" of the series, also entitled The Silent Force and written by Harry Goddard, was published in 1971.[6]
Broadcast history
The Silent Force premiered on ABC on September 21, 1970.[2] It was panned by critics,[5] and was cancelled after the broadcast of its fifteenth episode on January 11, 1971.[1][2][3] It aired on Monday at 8:30 p.m. throughout its run.[2]
Episodes
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Notes
- According to The Classic TV Archive, Bruce Geller may have been an executive producer for The Silent Force in addition to or instead of Walter Grauman.
- According to The Classic TV Archive, it is nor clear whether the actor who guest-starred in the episode "The Courier" was Edward G. Robinson or his son, Edward G. Robinson Jr.
References
External links
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