dearlenbaugh wrote:
Watching Burke's Law now after so many years I summarize it this way: Total nonsense, but great, great fun!

The "murder mysteries" are a joke. Burke interviews about five people, usually only two of these offer any real information, and the rest are just shoehorned in as roles for guest stars. There ultimately is only one or two actual clues dug up before Burke mostly intuits who the murderer is.




What you say, about the murder mysteries being fairly vapid, is true. But the show was, indeed, fun to watch. One of the lesser-remarked-upon characteristics of the show was the remarkable chemistry between the show's four regulars. Besides Barry as Burke, you had Gary Conway, who played young detective Tim Tilson, who, unlike most tyros, was extremely efficient and able to anticipate Captain Burke's instructions . . . .


BURKE: First, let's get a list of all the people who had access to the dead man's private elevator . . . .

TILSON: Here it is, captain.

BURKE: And then find out the name of the elevator operator . . . .

TILSON: Joe Lobsterman. He lives at 2845 San Manteo Drive, in the valley.

BURKE: We'll need to interview Lobsterman as soon as possible . . . .

TILSON: He's waiting in your office, sir.


And then you had old, reliable character actor Regis Toomey as Sergeant Les Hart, who obviously went way back with Burke, since he got away with calling him "Amos". The world-weary Hart had retirement almost in his grasp and always groaned at the extra work Burke required of him on a case, but he was a sharp as a tack and a keen interrogator.


Lastly, there was Henry, Burke's chauffeur and general factotum, portrayed by Leon Lontoc. Whenever Burke got one of those calls in the middle of the night, notifying him of a murder, Henry always had to get up out of bed to drive his boss to the crime scene---in a Rolls Royce, no less. (The Rolls was something of an unofficial fifth regular.) As an outsider (i.e., not a cop), Henry provided the wry commentary.


With regard to Burke's team, one of the more interesting chapterplays is the second-season episode "Who Killed Mr. Colby in Ladies' Lingerie?". In this episode, Captain Burke is in Chicago, addressing a convention of police chiefs, so Hart and Tilson carry the episode. Henry gets plenty of airtime, too, as Burke allows his detectives to use the Rolls. For once, we see how well the team works without the presence of their debonair leader, and Les and Tim acquit themselves quite admirably.


It even more starkly underscores the "What were they thinking?" aspect of the third season, when the show shifted to a spy format. Hart and Tilson and Henry all got the heave-ho (the Rolls stayed, but Burke drove it himself) and all of that wonderful chemistry was lost.