History Series / HIghwayPatrol

* TheyFightCrime: Just like ''Dragnet''.

* TheNameIsBondJamesBond: A pre-Bond example ... Mathews frequently introduced himself by just his last name, although his close friends and co-workers do address him by his first name.

''Highway Patrol'' was a police drama that, much in the vein of '''''Series/{{Dragnet}}''''' focused on the life and activities of American law enforcement officers.

The series, which aired form 1955-1959 and like '''''Series/TheAdventuresOfSuperman''''' was syndicated (rather than airing in prime-time), starred character actor Broderick Crawford as the main protagonist, Capt. Dan Mathews, head of a highway patrol unit in a regional area that -- although never stated -- is implied to be in central California. (Indeed, the series was filmed with the cooperation of the California Highway Patrol.) Like ''Dragnet'', episodes were introduced with a short opening monologue about the episode's main plot, after which the story played out. Usually but not always, this was criminals planning and (to varying degrees of success) carrying out a series of crimes, before Matthews and his officers would begin their investigation and ultimately stop the bad guys. The degree of urgency often varied widely, particularly when a hostage situation or other danger/loss of life was imminent. At episode's end, Crawford would deliver a short moral before inviting viewers to tune in again next week.

!! ''Highway Patrol'' provides examples of the following tropes:

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hwpatrolseriesus.JPG]

The series, which aired form 1955-1959 and like '''''Series/TheAdventuresOfSuperman''''' was syndicated (rather than airing in prime-time), starred character actor Broderick Crawford as the main protagonist, Capt. Dan Mathews, head of a highway patrol unit in a regional area that -- although never stated -- is implied to be in central California. (Indeed, the series was filmed with the cooperation of the California Highway Patrol.) Like ''Dragnet'', episodes were introduced with a short opening monologue about the episode's main plot, after which the story played out. Usually but not always, this was criminals planning and (to varying degrees of success) carrying out a series of crimes, before Andrews and his officers would begin their investigation and ultimately stop the bad guys. The degree of urgency often varied widely, particularly when a hostage situation or other danger/loss of life was imminent. At episode's end, Crawford would deliver a short moral before inviting viewers to tune in again next week.

* SpiritualSuccessor: In a roundabout way, ''Series/CHiPs'' ... it was implied (though not outright stated) that ''Highway Patrol'' took place in California (and in fact, at least for the first year or so, the show's assistance from the California Highway Patrol bore this out). The latter series did take place in southern California, and in fact one episode early in ''[=CHiPs=]'' run had a guest cameo by Broderick Crawford. Both series are distributed by MGM, too.

* TypeCasting: William Boyett, who became best known for playing police officers. Here, he played two different officers, both subordinates under Mathews: Officer Stanley "Gus" Johnson (1955-1958) and Officer Ken Williams (1958-1959), for a total of 65 episodes. Boyett would become best known as Sgt. [=McDonald=] on ''Series/AdamTwelve'' a decade after ''Highway Patrol'' ended.

* TypeCasting: William Boyett, who became best known for playing police officers. Here, he played two different officers, both subordinates under Mathews: Officer Stanley "Gus" Johnson (1955-1958) and Officer Ken Williams (1958-1959), for a total of 65 episodes. Boyett would become best known as Sgt. [=McDonald=] on ''Series/AdamTwelve'' a decade after ''Highway Patrol'' ended.

'''''Highway Patrol''''' was a police drama that, much in the vein of '''''Series/{{Dragnet}}''''' focused on the life and activities of American law enforcement officers.

!! '''''Highway Patrol''''' provides examples of the following tropes:

* [[HeyItsThatGuy Hey It's That Voice]]: Art Gilmore, the narrator of all 156 episodes, was also the man familiar to millions as the announcer for Red Skelton's comedy programs from the 1950s through early 1970s; beforehand, he was the voice that introduced us to RoyRogers every week.

The series, which aired form 1955-1959 and like '''''Series/TheAdventuresOfSuperman''''' was syndicated (rather than airing in prime-time), starred character actor Broderick Crawford as the main protagonist, Lt. Dan Mathews, head of a highway patrol unit in a regional area that -- although never stated -- is implied to be in central California. (Indeed, the series was filmed with the cooperation of the California Highway Patrol.) Like ''Dragnet'', episodes were introduced with a short opening monologue about the episode's main plot, after which the story played out. Usually but not always, this was criminals planning and (to varying degrees of success) carrying out a series of crimes, before Andrews and his officers would begin their investigation and ultimately stopping the bad guys. The degree of urgency often varied widely, particularly when a hostage situation or other danger/loss of life was imminent. At episode's end, Crawford would deliver a short moral or recap of the episode's events before inviting viewers to tune in again next week.

While crime and stopping criminals were the primary focus, a few episodes each season focused on traffic enforcement, with plots focusing on such things as reckless driving and habitual offenders.

* [[HeyItsThatGuy Hey It's That Voice]]: Art Gilmore, the narrator of all 156 episodes, was also the man familiar to millions as the announcer for RedSkelton's comedy programs from the 1950s through early 1970s; beforehand, he was the voice that introduced us to RoyRogers every week.

* SpeakIllOfTheDead: Several times, by the bad guys, claiming their victims had it coming or something. One example is the early second-season episode "Hot Rod," where the dominant partner of a criminal duo of brothers insists that the woman killed in a hit-and-run accident was just stupid enough to have been standing on the roadway[[note]] (the younger brother, a skilled hot rod driver, was driving at more than 100 mph and she never had a chance)[[/note]].

* MotiveRant: A frequent staple.

* TheyFightCrime: Just like ''Dragnet''.

* TheGoodGuysAlwaysWin: Without fail, by episode's end.

The series, which aired form 1955-1959 and like ''Series/TheAdventuresOfSuperman''''' was syndicated (rather than airing in prime-time), starred character actor Broderick Crawford as the main protagonist, Lt. Dan Mathews, head of a highway patrol unit in a regional area that -- although never stated -- is implied to be in central California. (Indeed, the series was filmed with the cooperation of the California Highway Patrol.) Like ''Dragnet'', episodes were introduced with a short opening monologue about the episode's main plot, after which the story played out. Usually but not always, this was criminals planning and (to varying degrees of success) carrying out a series of crimes, before Andrews and his officers would begin their investigation and ultimately stopping the bad guys. The degree of urgency often varied widely, particularly when a hostage situation or other danger/loss of life was imminent. At episode's end, Crawford would deliver a short moral or recap of the episode's events before inviting viewers to tune in again next week.

* BadCopIncompetentCop and DirtyCop: Overwhelmingly, police officers were depicted as the good guys. But on occasion, Lt. Mathews had to work with officers who, because of poor skill, limited abilities or other bad and/or reckless habits, put other officers in danger, result in jeopardizing an investigation and so forth. A couple of episodes depicted officers who either used the badge as a way to engage in criminal activity or police brutality, something that Mathews would put a stop to in short order.

!! '''''Highway Patrol''''' provides examples of the following tropes:!!

Considered realistic for the time and because of its fast-paced action style, ''Highway Patrol'' (like ''Dragnet'') would inspire thousands of young men and women to pursue careers in law enforcement. Following its four-year run (depending on the market, "new" episodes sometimes aired in a given area as late as early 1961, two years after production ended), reruns would air throughout the 1960s and into the early 1970s; ''Highway Patrol'' can still be seen today on the digital TV channel [=ThisTV=].