Judd, for the Defense

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Judd, for the Defense
Carl Betz Katharine Houghton Judd for the Defense.JPG
Carl Betz as Judd with guest star Katharine Houghton, 1968.
Genre Legal drama
Starring Carl Betz
Stephen Young
Composer(s) Alexander Courage
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 2
No. of episodes 50
Production
Executive producer(s) Paul Monash
Running time 45–48 minutes
Production company(s) 20th Century Fox Television
Distributor 20th Century Fox Television
Fox Television Studios (current)
Release
Original network ABC
Original release September 8, 1967 (1967-09-08) –
September 19, 1969 (1969-09-19)
External links
[{{#property:P856}} Website]

Judd, for the Defense is an American legal drama originally broadcast on the ABC network on Friday nights from September 8, 1967, to September 19, 1969.

Synopsis

The show stars Carl Betz, who had previously spent eight years in the role of Dr. Alex Stone, husband of Donna Reed in ABC's The Donna Reed Show. In his new role, reportedly based on high-profile lawyers such as F. Lee Bailey and Percy Foreman,[1] Betz played Clinton Judd, a flamboyant attorney based in Houston, who often took on controversial cases across the country. Playing his top assistant, Ben Caldwell, was Stephen Young.

Even before the show premiered, Foreman threatened a lawsuit by saying that the program was "appropriating for commercial purposes my career as a lawyer." Throughout the course of the two-year run of the show, there were never enough viewers to establish Foreman's claim, although critics gave it positive reviews. Undoubtedly the skittishness of viewers was a result of the program's dealing with then-taboo (though contemporary) subjects such as homosexuality, blacklisting, and draft dodgers, with open-ended conclusions in many episodes.

The show's producer, Harold Gast, sought to break new ground with the program, using a number of new writers for scripts that veered away from previous television conventions. In addition, one personal experience involving credit card problems caused by computers became the basis for an episode entitled, "Epitaph on a Computer Card." In 1968, Gast and writer Leon Tokatyan won an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for the episode "Tempest in a Texas Town".

In an attempt to boost the low ratings of the hour-long program, the episode which aired on January 31, 1969, combined the Judd cast with that of another ABC series, Felony Squad, starring Dennis Cole. The idea did not salvage either program, as both were soon cancelled.

Betz's portrayal of a lawyer was enough to provide him paid opportunities to speak before groups of attorneys, and also helped him win both Golden Globe and Emmy Awards after the show's final season. Additionally, screenwriter Robert Lewin won a Writer's Guild award for the episode, "To Kill a Madman."

Other actors appearing on episodes of the show included Ed Asner, Karen Black, Scott Brady, Len Birman, Russ Conway, Richard Dreyfuss, Robert Duvall, Lee Grant, Rodolfo Hoyos, Jr., Ron Howard, Wright King, Ida Lupino, Jessica Tandy, Lurene Tuttle, and William Windom.[2]

Episode guide

Season 1 (1967–1968)

Ep. Title Airdate
1 1 Tempest in a Texas Town September 8, 1967
2 2 The Deep End September 15, 1967
3 3 The Other Face of the Law September 22, 1967
4 4 A Civil Case of Murder September 29, 1967
5 5 Shadow of a Killer October 6, 1967
6 6 Conspiracy October 13, 1967
7 7 Confessional October 20, 1967
8 8 Death from a Flower Girl November 3, 1967
9 9 Citizen Ritter November 10, 1967
10 10 The Money Farm November 17, 1967
11 11 To Kill a Madman November 24, 1967
12 12 Commitment December 1, 1967
13 13 To Love and Stand Mute December 8, 1967
14 14 The Living Victim December 15, 1967
15 15 Firebrand December 22, 1967
16 16 Everybody Loved Harlan Except His Wife December 29, 1967
17 17 Fall of a Skylark: Part 1 - The Trial January 5, 1968
18 18 Fall of a Skylark: Part 2 - The Appeal January 12, 1968
19 19 No Law Against Murder January 19, 1968
20 20 The Grand Old Man January 26, 1968
21 21 What You Can Do with Money February 2, 1968
22 22 Kingdom of the Blind February 9, 1968
23 23 The Devil's Surrogate February 23, 1968
24 24 Square House March 1, 1968
25 25 The Worst of Both Worlds March 15, 1968
26 26 You Remember Joe Maddox March 22, 1968

Season 2 (1968-1969)

Ep. Title Airdate
1 27 In a Puff of Smoke September 27, 1968
2 28 Transplant October 4, 1968
3 29 The Ends of Justice October 11, 1968
4 30 The Name of This Game Is Acquittal October 18, 1968
5 31 The Sound of the Plastic Axe October 25, 1968
6 32 The Death Farm November 1, 1968
7 33 Weep the Hunter Home November 8, 1968
8 34 The Gates of Cerberus November 15, 1968
9 35 My Client, the Fool November 22, 1968
10 36 Punishment, Cruel and Unusual December 6, 1968
11 37 Thou Shalt Not Suffer a Witch to Live December 13, 1968
12 38 A Swim with Sharks December 20, 1968
13 39 The Crystal Maze January 3, 1969
14 40 Borderline Girl January 10, 1969
15 41 Epitaph on a Computer Card January 17, 1969
16 42 The Poisoned Tree January 24, 1969
17 43 The Law and Order Blues January 31, 1969
18 44 Between the Dark and the Daylight February 7, 1969
19 45 The Holy Ground: Part 1 - The Killing February 14, 1969
20 46 The Holy Ground: Part 2 - The Killers February 21, 1969
21 47 An Elephant in a Cigar Box February 28, 1969
22 48 The View from the Ivory Tower March 7, 1969
23 49 Runaway March 14, 1969
24 50 Visitation March 21, 1969

Notes

  1. Jamail Center for Legal Research, Tarlton Law Library, University of Texas Law School.[1]
  2. Id.

External links