Product Description

Dr. Richard Kimble is accused to be the murder of his wife. The night before his execution, he escapes. The only chance to prove his innocence is to find the man who killed hi wife. Kimble, persecuted by the Lt. Gerard, risks his life several times when he shows his identity to help other people out of trouble.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #24322 in DVD
• Brand: Paramount
• Released on: 2007-08-14
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Box set, Color, Digital Sound, Subtitled
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 4
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
• Running time: 760 minutes

Amazon.com
The hunt for one of DVD's Most Wanted TV series is over! The Fugitive, ranked by TV Guide among the top 40 shows of all time, is just as gripping as when the falsely convicted Dr. Richard Kimble's "twisting and turning" odyssey to find his slain wife's real killer began nearly 45 years ago. David Janssen's Kimble is a TV icon (No. 22 on Bravo's list of the 100 Greatest TV Characters), the haunted, hunted man desperately trying to find the elusive one-armed man he witnessed fleeing his home on the night of the murder before the relentless Lt. Philip Gerard (Barry Morse) finds Kimble. But at the heart of these 15 inaugural black-and-white episodes is not so much the chase, but instead the compelling human dramas that convey "how it is" with Kimble, who moves from town to town, taking odd jobs, and reluctantly becoming involved in the lives of troubled strangers he meets. His presence is usually greeted with suspicion and hostility as in the episode "The Other Side of the Mountain," in which he no sooner enters a bar in a rundown mining town then the locals (led by a pre-Gomer Pyle Frank Sutton) rough him up.

The Fugitive has a palpable noir sensibility. In the first episode, an upstanding citizen (guest star Brian Keith) is actually an abusive husband, whose wife (Vera Miles) Kimble is compelled to protect. Acting at the husband's behest, two cops lean on Kimble to leave town. "Why would the average man be scared of the police?" one of them taunts Kimble. In "The Witch," Kimble nearly falls prey to mob justice after false accusations from a young girl. There are several Kimble-Gerard near misses, the most memorable occurring in the two-parter "Never Wave Goodbye," in which Kimble, tired of running, puts down roots as an apprentice sailmaker in Santa Barbara. In the storm-tossed climax, Kimble must decide whether to let Gerard drown or save his life. Essential to The Fugitive mythology is "The Girl from Little Egypt," in which Kimble, recuperating after being hit by a car, flashes back to the events preceding his wife's murder and his subsequent trial, conviction and escape from a Death Row-bound train. We also get our first, harrowing glimpse of the one-armed man (Bert Raisch). Another benchmark episode is "Home Is the Hunted," in which Kimble returns home following his father's heart attack and gets a less than warm welcome from his embittered brother (look for young Billy Mumy and Clint Howard as Kimble's nephews). The change of scenery in each episode allows for appearances by an impressive gallery of character actors, several at the beginning of their careers, including Sandy Dennis, Bruce Dern, Robert Duvall, Jack Klugman, and Jack Weston. No collector of classic TV can afford to let The Fugitive get away. --Donald Liebenson

Beyond The Fugitive

More Running From the Law on DVD

More 1960s TV

Customer Reviews

It's About Time..
I'll never understand why every terrible movie and television show that was ever made was released on DVD ages ago and perhaps the finest television series of the 60's - or perhaps of any decade - is only now being released.

I just don't get it, but better late than never.

I am so pleased that this series is finally being released. I was a young boy in the 60's and I recall getting hooked on this show early in the 1st season. Great story lines - great performances (both by David Janssen, Barry Morse and the guest stars) - excellent writing and wonderful suspense / drama at times.

I can't think of a single negative about this show. The first season was filmed entirely in black and white and this only contributed to the sometimes "dark" and serious tone to the series. The narration at the beginning and end of the series by William Conrad was a pleasure to listen to. And David J. was the perfect actor to play the part. He could be both strong and vulnerable at the same time and his character - Dr. Richard Kimble - was so honorable and admirable it was no wonder that so many people helped him to elude capture for so many years.

You look at the sorry state of television today - where networks continue to churn out the most stupid reality shows possible- and you wonder when it began to unravel. In fact, it's only getting worse. Is it any wonder that so many people are buying DVDs of classic tv shows and watching them over "America's Next Top Model" or whatever.

I'm getting ahead of myself here, but I sincerely hope the powers-that-be follow up season 1 with the release of season 2 and subsequent seasons as quickly as possible. I want to have the entire collection of this great show in my library as quickly as possible - before the idiots who make the decisions decide that maybe it would make more sense to issue some brainless tv show - instead of this classic..!

But for now - thanks for finally getting your act together - whatever caused you to get a grip on reality and decide to release it, I just hope you can stay lucid and smart enough for alittle while longer to release the other seasons.

Amazing Picture & Sound
I got my set a day early and wanted to let you guys know this DVD collection has amazing picture and sound. Transfers from the original camera negative and magnetic tracks and you can tell. No special features. Decent packaging with synopses inside the liner.

Box says some music has been changed and some episodes may be edited. I have only watched a couple and have found no changes thus far. It may be that CBS/Paramount simply puts this disclaimer on all their packaging, or it may have simply been on the template used for GOMER PYLE season two and someone forgot to change it.

In any event, this is a great series and we can only hope the next volume hits stores around Christmas.

By the way, it's a myth that you pay more for split season sets. You actually pay a couple of dollars less for a combined complete season than you would if you boiught the whole thing at once.

UPDATE - I have watched the set and found no scenes missing or music changed (that I remember). In fact, a few bits of scenes that did not air on the syndicated versions were restored for this release. I am 99.9% certain everything is here. If not for the disclaimer, I'd be 100%.

Even stock music is included unchanged, as well as local jukebox music.

The only problem...not enough episodes on the set.

Finally, Dr. Kimble Runs Toward Our DVD Player
At long last, the groundbreaking television series, "The Fugitive" comes to DVD. This show, which lasted from 1963-1967, was suspenseful, moving, engaging, and original. This was the first successful television show that took the dramatic formula of putting the hero with new characters and in new situations every week to another level. In previous shows such as Cheyenne, Maverick, and many others, the hero was a wanderer going from town to town to earn a living. In this show, the hero had no choice. He had to run to stay out of jail.

Charged with murdering his wife, a crime he did not commit, Dr. Richard Kimble, played by David Janssen, escapes from the law when the train taking him to his execution wrecks. Tracked doggedly by police inspector Gerard, Kimble wanders across the country running from the law while trying to track down the one-armed man he saw leaving his house the night his wife was murdered. As he wanders the country, he helps many people with their problems, all the while trying to find the one armed man and trying to avoid Gerard.

This classic show had all the goods - great acting by Janssen, Morse, and the many guest stars, fantastic narration by William Conrad, clever, well-written scripts, and taut direction. This show had it all, and made Dr. Richard Kimble one of the most famous and sympathetic characters television history. We can be glad that it has finally made it to DVD.