Barnaby Jones (TV Series) Requiem for a Son (1973) User Reviews

Two private dicks for the price of one!

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 8 September 2018]

"Requiem for a Son" is the first episode of "Barnaby Jones". Because this show and "Cannon" were both Quinn-Martin productions, it's not surprising they'd bring Cannon into the episode in order to boost ratings. Ironically, "Barnaby Jones" did quite well...lasting several more seasons than "Cannon"! And, incidentally, the pair would return in 1975 for a two-part episode...one of which was aired on "Cannon" and the follow-up on "Barnaby Jones".

When the story begins, an old friend of Cannon's calls and tells him it is important he see Frank as soon as possible. Cannon invites him to dinner...but the man never shows. It turns out he was murdered before he could talk to Cannon about his case...and Cannon learns of the man's death when he phones and talks with his father, Barnaby Jones. It seems that Jones retired some time ago but has come out of retirement to work with Cannon on this case.

When they start investigating, one strange thing turns up....that the dead man is not the only one close to a local politician who recently died. The politician's secretary reportedly committed suicide a few days earlier....and what are the odds?!

Overall, this is a very interesting episode--especially for kids of the 60s and 70s like me. The plot is good and seeing Jones and Cannon working together was pretty exciting...or at least as exciting you can get with a retired man teaming up with a very overweight guy to fight crimes! Well worth seeing.

By the way, Barnaby's daughter-in-law (the man who was murdered at the beginning of the show) later went on to be a regular on the show. Lee Meriwether played this role in this episode and throughout the series.

ENTER A DETECTIVE NAMED JONES? HUH?

[tcchelsey · 10/10 · 21 May 2022]

First episode of the "mature" private detective, as Buddy Ebsen described his character. If you're old enough, you may remember BARNABY JONES first aired Sunday nights, following MANNIX, which was a pretty good lineup against COLUMBO, MCCLOUD and MCMILLAN AND WIFE, which used to have us teens jumping back from NBC to CBS. It had the mysterious CBS black cat slinking around between shows, wearing a gold collar. It was a clever trick.

BARNABY JONES had some outstanding stories, though more mystery than action. It borrowed a bit from HAWAII FIVE-0 as there was also a psychological slant at play during the early years. He was truly up against some diabolical types, and played to the hilt.

Special guest star William Conrad as CANNON helps Barnaby solve the case as he was old pals with his son, found shot to death carrying a bag full of cold cash. There's a lot more to the case, with surprising results.

A very good cast lead by Bradford Dillman, who played both bad guys and good guys extremely well. Both shows were produced by Quinn Martin (king of detective shows) who reunited them for another episode a few years later. This was a lot of fun to watch because Cannon and Barnaby made a pretty good team and this particular episode is quite popular by itself for that reason.

Classic gag scene has Cannon, the gourmet cook, watch Barnaby chow down some greasy ribs at a drive-in in Hollywood. "How can you eat that stuff!" Cannon asks. "As long as I can wash it all down a glass of cold milk!" Barnaby replies. MILK was his trademark. You know darn well the crew had to be laughing. I really do not know how the crew reacted on BARNABY JONES, but the CANNON people were always up to practical jokes.

It was a fun show to work on.

A lot of memories at play here and these two must have had a blast putting this together. Wait for the ending, showing Barnaby as THE sly old fox! Filmed around Hollywood. Barnaby's office was close to Hollywood and Vine (the building is still there). Cannon's place was at the legendary Sunset Towers (yes, still there and glowing at sunset) in West Hollywood. Also shot at the palatial Gulls Estate at Malibu.

An episode not be missed by true tv detective fans. SEASON 1 CBS dvd box set, which was finally released after many years.

Requiem for a Son

[Prismark10 · 5/10 · 13 September 2022]

After The Beverly Hillbillies finished. Buddy Ebsen did not have to wait long for another long running series.

The American television landscape had young cops, bald cops, fat cops, disabled cops. They did not have an old cop.

Barnaby Jones was an elderly private investigator brought out of retirement after the death of his son Hal, also a private eye.

Hal Jones was working on a case for rising politician Terry McCormack. Just before he was shot death, Hal rang old friend Frank Cannon.

With Cannon's help. Barnaby Jones discovers that there is a dark side to McCormack. He had a mistress that committed suicide. A bad tempered bit part actor is also causing problems for the politician.

Barnaby Jones was a Quinn Martin production which was a big name in US television in the 1960s and 1970s. It shows were unmercifully parodied in The Police Squad series in 1982.

Having Frank Cannon as a guest star from a sister show was a big help. The opening episode was solid but unremarkable. There was nothing here that indicated the show would last for eight seasons.