The Big 17

The Big Lease

Originally Aired: November 1, 1951 Dragnet #125, "The Big Lease," finds Sergeant Joe Friday and his partner Ben Romero investigating the mysterious disappearance of Chester Dillon, a wealthy retired businessman. When Dillon's sister Gladys contacts the Los Angeles Police Department from New York, worried that she hasn't heard from her brother in weeks, Friday and Romero begin piecing together the puzzle. They interview Lucille Banner, who holds a two-year lease on Dillon's home on Rolston Avenue. Banner reveals that Dillon left for New York eight weeks ago without leaving a forwarding address, telling her he'd collect the rent checks when he returned. As the interview progresses, a troubling picture emerges. Dillon's wife died just months earlier, and he never recovered from the loss. Banner describes him as profoundly depressed, brooding constantly, and unable to remain in the home he shared with his late wife. Most disturbing is Dillon's parting comment when Banner offered to send his rent money: "Where I'm going, I won't need the money." Friday and Romero now face two grim possibilities—suicide or foul play—with virtually no leads to follow in finding the missing man.

The Big Market

Originally Aired: October 25, 1951 Dragnet #124, "The Big Market," finds Sergeant Joe Friday and his partner Ben Romero hunting a pair of elusive bandits who have terrorized eleven food markets in just 21 days. The methodical criminals have a well-established pattern: they strike supermarkets on main thoroughfares during morning hours, always using stolen Pontiacs or Nashes taken from the industrial area. One man stays behind the wheel while his partner enters the store holding a white handkerchief to his face, goes directly to the manager with a nickel-plated revolver, and demands money in a brown paper sack. Despite weeks of investigation and multiple bulletins, the suspects remain unidentified and the holdups continue. When the bandits strike again at a supermarket on Slauson near South Broadway, Friday and Romero finally catch their first break. A customer, Mrs. Thomas Swanson, sees the holdup man's face when his car door sticks and he drops the handkerchief to pull it open with both hands. Downtown at headquarters, she works through mug books trying to identify the suspect, picking out photographs that match individual features but struggling to find one complete match.

The Big Story Man

Originally Aired: October 18, 1951 Dragnet #123, "The Big Story Man," Sergeant Joe Friday and his partner Ben Romero interrogate three suspects in a string of church burglaries that has plagued Los Angeles. Charles Bryson, a two-time loser with a lengthy criminal record, spins an elaborate tale to explain his presence at the latest crime scene. He claims he was trying to stop his future brother-in-law, Tony Miller, from breaking into the church, insisting he arrived too late and only witnessed Miller and accomplice Henderson working on the safe. Despite his desperate attempts to appear innocent, Bryson's story unravels under Friday's methodical questioning, particularly when he admits no one can corroborate his account. Friday and Romero methodically build their case against all three men, relying on physical evidence collected at the scene and checking the suspects' criminal histories through Records and Identification. As Friday reflects on Bryson's extensive criminal past—13 years spent in various correctional facilities despite numerous rehabilitation efforts—the detectives remain unconvinced by his protestations of innocence. With all three suspects booked and evidence being processed at the crime lab, the investigation moves toward building an airtight case for prosecution.

The Big Shoplift

Originally Aired: October 11, 1951 Dragnet #122, "The Big Shoplift," Sergeant Joe Friday and Officer Ben Romero are called to Anthony's store for women to investigate a wave of shoplifting that has escalated to the theft of an expensive silver blue mink stole. General manager Mr. Elliott explains that the store has been hemorrhaging merchandise for weeks, but this latest theft is the most brazen yet. The stole vanished from a locked display cabinet during the busy pre-winter fur showing, despite store detectives and sales staff being present. Elliott points Friday and Romero toward a suspicious pattern involving former employee Dorothy Kirkman, a seemingly model worker whose departments consistently suffered the heaviest losses before she abruptly quit. As Friday and Romero dig deeper, they discover that Kirkman was transferred from the upstairs suite shop to cosmetics after the first wave of thefts, only to have the stealing follow her to the new location. When they attempt to question her, they learn she has already moved on to a new position at the House of Raymond, an exclusive cosmetics shop just three blocks away on the same Wilshire Boulevard strip where the shoplifting epidemic continues to spread. The detectives must determine whether Kirkman is their thief or simply an unfortunate coincidence.

The Big Want Ad

Originally Aired: October 4, 1951 Dragnet #121, "The Big Want Ad," finds Sergeant Joe Friday and Officer Ben Romero investigating a sophisticated auto theft ring that's been plaguing Los Angeles for over a month. The criminals, posing as representatives of a legitimate car dealership, target private citizens who advertise their vehicles for sale in the newspaper. Their latest victim is Mrs. Palmer, who runs the Greenleaf Day Nursery School. A well-dressed man calling himself Joseph Newhall approached her about her advertised car, claiming to work as a buyer for Dan Barton's Used Car Lot. He left her what appeared to be a legitimate fifty-dollar company check as a deposit, promising to return with full payment. The scheme unfolds when a second man in mechanic's coveralls arrives to pick up Mrs. Palmer's car, presenting her with a check for the full eight hundred dollars and driving away with her vehicle. When she contacts the real Dan Barton dealership the next day, she discovers nobody named Joseph Newhall works there and the checks are worthless forgeries. Friday and Romero recognize the gang's consistent method of operation, but despite having good descriptions of both suspects, the thieves have successfully victimized a dozen people in thirty-three days and remain frustratingly elusive.