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Editorial Reviews
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With his impressive girth and balding pate, no one will mistake insurance investigator Frank Cannon (William Conrad) for, say, Jim Rockford, or any other of TV’s more conventionally handsome PIs. But with his imposing size and resonant growl of a voice, Cannon could throw his weight around with the best of them as he so ably demonstrates in these 13 episodes that concluded Cannon's impressive first season. The pipe-smoking gourmand has a style all his own. In one episode, he quotes famed critic Alexander Wolcott’s classic bon mot that everything he likes is either "illegal, immoral, or fattening." But underestimate him at your peril; The tough-talking Cannon can dish it out as well. He threatens an uncooperative biker in "Devil’s Playground" with hospitalization, and in "Death is a Double Cross," he nimbly gets the drop on a hit man. Cannon’s salary is as ample as he is, but he doesn’t let that influence his investigation. To an acquaintance who wants Cannon to learn the truth about her husband’s death (which the insurance company has ruled a suicide), he states, "The truth is like rain. It doesn’t care who gets wet." He is also thorough. "When I look at a picture straight on and don't get it, I try looking at it sideways," he tells another client. Cannon boasts solid writing ("Double Cross" is adapted from the Thomas B. Dewey novel, Every Bet’s a Sure Thing) and some great guests before they were stars. Martin Sheen is featured in "Devil’s Playground" as a vengeful disabled ex-cop who wants Cannon to help him prove that the supposedly dead thief who shot him during an armored car robbery actually faked his demise (this episode also costars future Hill Street Blues costars Daniel Travanti and James Sikking). Just as Cannon performs a fireman’s carry on one injured party, so does Conrad bear the weight of this tailor-made series that provided the character actor (who voiced Matt Dillon on the radio incarnation of Gunsmoke) with a long overdue leading role. --Donald Liebenson
Product Description
The weekly adventures of Frank Cannon, an overweight, balding ex-cop with a deep voice and expensive tastes in culinary pleasures, who becomes a high-priced private investigator. Since Cannon's girth didn't allow for many fist-fights and gun battles (although there were many), the series substituted car chases and high production values in their place.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Heavyweight in More Ways Than One!,
This review is from: Cannon - Season One, Vol. 2 (DVD)
I had been waiting for years for the release of Cannon on dvd. William Conrad is an affable, yet tough connoisseur / detective. In the series, he is always underestimated by the villains. They inevitably learn, too late, that, while, short in stature and stout in figure, he will work through the case and come out on top. By the way, it is great that he got this gig, because, after playing a terrific Matt Dillon on the radio series for many years, he was rejected for the television role (Gunsmoke) because of his appearance. Anyway, great, well crafted detective series that will be worth the price.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Mediocre Film Print Quality For A Great Show,
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This review is from: Cannon - Season One, Vol. 2 (DVD)
Cannon season one print quality was not remastered by Paramount/CBS, who did a superb job on The Streets Of San Francisco, another early '70's Quinn Martin series, when it was presented on DVD. Cannon itself had progressed, with better stories and acting for volume 2, then was seen in volume 1.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
"...don't ever ask a man that looks like me, if he knows what it means to let himself go"(Frank Cannon in 'Flight Plan'),
This review is from: Cannon - Season One, Vol. 2 (DVD)
William Conrad, got his first lead in a television series in 1971, as an ex-LA cop turned private eye, Frank Cannon. At the time, police and crime dramas were big, and were about to explode in popularity. Following in the wake of late 60's programs like Dragnet, Mannix, Colombo, The Mod Squad, Adam-12, and Ironside (just to name a few), Cannon was part of the early wave of a genre that would soon flood the airwaves in the 70's. A Quinn-Martin Production, the program has the familiar basic packaging of the company's previous prime time successes, The Fugitive, The FBI, and The Invaders.Bill Conrad was a big man, an obvious fact that the series' writers made a point of emphasis, and humor, for the character Frank Cannon. They put Conrad's obesity out in the open, with frequent references his size and weight, or being on a diet. Cannon blames himself for his weight problem, and being something of a gourmet cook, doesn't make things any easier. It all seems unkind, but this was a different era, and Bill Conrad appears to have taken it all in stride. He may not have had the ideal body type, but Conrad was certainly up to the physical demands of being the lead in an action series. There are plenty of fights, chases, shootouts, and car crashes, and Mr. Conrad proves to be very light on his feet, and quite a scrapper, with the muscle power to fling attackers around with ease. Among the highlights in the second half of the first season, are `A Flight of Hawks", where Cannon is hired by an insurance company to look into the death of a man killed in a car wreck. The investigation leads to a group of mercenaries. Cannon is quite impressive, assembling and firing a machine gun, then challenging a P51 Mustang fighter plane. It's not realistic, but it sure is fun. In `The Torch', Cannon investigates a fire that claims a life. Anthony Zerbe impresses playing a high tech expert in arson, who gets tangled up in murder. `The Island Caper' provides a change of pace, as Cannon is sent to a tropical island to check into the security of a bank. In `Flight Plan', Cannon is hired by a devious and ruthless criminal (Cesare Danova), who wants to disappear, and nearly falls victim to his own ingenuity. Smart, capable, tough as iron, and big of heart, Frank Cannon is a true pro, who operates with a unique flair. Conrad brings humanity and warmth to the character, which is a plus, as the writing is generally adequate, rather than outstanding, and Conrad's ability to win the audience over with charm and humor helps make some of the weaker stories still pretty enjoyable. William Conrad, who had a long career in films and television as an actor, director, and producer, got his start in radio. With a powerful and distinctive voice, he was Marshall Matt Dillon on the long running radio serial version of Gunsmoke, and appeared in thousands of other radio dramas. He also did narration for numerous films, and television productions like The Fugitive, as well as voice work for cartoons like Rocky and Bullwinkle. He was posthumously elected to the Radio Hall of Fame, in 1997. Besides Cannon, Conrad also starred in the television series Nero Wolf, and Jake and the Fat Man. This very talented man, passed away in 1994 at the age of 73.
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