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One of the most memorable of the early television police dramas, M Squad, debuted in 1957 and ran for 3 seasons There were many black and white crime dramas competing for viewers in the late fifties. M Squad stands apart because of its unique combination of story, production values, musical score and a great cast portraying crime fighters getting down and dirty on the mean streets. Starring Lee Marvin & Paul Newlan Lee Marvin, stars as Lt. Frank Ballinger, a no-nonsense Chicago plainclothes cop in the elite M-Squad Division. The Squad's (M-for Murder) task is to root out organized crime and corruption in Americas Second City. Marvin's portrayal of a tough undercover officer gave Marvin name recognition with the public, and did much to make him a star. He would go on to many starring roles (The Dirty Dozen, Cat Ballou) and to win a coveted Oscar? for Best Actor. M Squad was shot in gritty, film noir style black and white. The excellent high contrast cinematography brings Chicago to life, with all of its easily recognizable landmarks, swanky penthouses on Lake Michigan, and the seedy darker side of the city. The musical score in keeping with the film noir look of the series, the producers enlisted conductor Stanley Wilson to lead the orchestra in arrangements by legendary jazz men Benny Carter, and a young John Williams (Star Wars). For the second season, the great jazz artist Count Basie wrote the enduring "M Squad Theme." Guest stars included: Charles Bronson Mike Connors Paul Burke James Coburn Angie Dickinson Joe Flynn Alan Hale, Jr. Werner Klemperer Robert Knapp DeForest Kelley Ed Nelson Leonard Nimoy J. Pat O'Malley Burt Reynolds Don Rickles Janice Rule Barbara Stuart And many others Experience the complete TV series, all 117 Episodes on 15 DVDs from the Out of Print 2008 release
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