The Rockford Files season 3

Last updated

The Rockford Files
Season 3
No. of episodes22
Release
Original network NBC
Original releaseSeptember 24, 1976 (1976-09-24) 
April 1, 1977 (1977-04-01)
Season chronology
 Previous
Season 2
Next 
Season 4
List of episodes

The third season of The Rockford Files originally aired Fridays at 9:00-10:00 pm on NBC from September 24, 1976 to April 1, 1977.

Episodes

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
461"The Fourth Man"William Wiard Juanita Bartlett September 24, 1976 (1976-09-24)
Rockford’s friend, airline booking agent Lori Jenivan (Sharon Gless), is convinced that respectable seeming coin dealer Timson Farrell (John McMartin) wants to kill her. Rockford gets both Angel (Stuart Margolin) and Dennis Becker (Joe Santos) on the case to no effect, and what could be the motive? With Michael Bell and Barbara Collentine.
472"The Oracle Wore a Cashmere Suit" Russ Mayberry David Chase October 1, 1976 (1976-10-01)
Unscrupulous Roman Clementi (Robert Webber), who bills himself as a psychic investigator, tells the police Rockford knows more about a missing record company executive than he has told. It gets Rockford in trouble with the police and also with the drug dealers the executive owed money to. With Robert Walden, Pepe Serna, James Hong, Bonnie Bartlett, Diane Sommerfield and John Furlong.
483"The Family Hour"William WiardGordon DawsonOctober 8, 1976 (1976-10-08)
Jim and Rocky bond with a young girl (Kim Richards) whose father is on the run from violent narcotics dealers who operate with apparent impunity. With Burt Young, Ken Swofford, Paul Koslo, Janice Carroll, Adrian Ricard, Fred Lerner and George Tracy.
494"Feeding Frenzy"Russ MayberryStory by: Lester Wm. Berke & Donald L. Gold
Teleplay by: Stephen J. Cannell
October 15, 1976 (1976-10-15)
The father (Eddie Firestone) of Sandy, a former flame of Rockford, asks Jim to return the half-million dollars the father stole three years ago. Jim mistakenly thinks the statute of limitations has run out on the crime, so gets in trouble with a police lieutenant still interested in the case. Then Sandy (Susan Howard) gets kidnapped by thugs wanting the money. With Luke Askew, William Edward Phipps, George Wyner, Pepper Martin, Roger Aaron Brown, Carmen Argenziano, John Dennis Johnston, Tony Epper, Jon Cedar and Richard LePore.
505"Drought at Indianhead River"Lawrence DohenyStephen J. CannellNovember 5, 1976 (1976-11-05)
Rockford gets wind that some mobsters are planning to kill Angel, and when he tracks Angel (Stuart Margolin) down to warn him finds him living the high life in a penthouse apartment. The mobsters frame them for murder, and then decide to kill them both. With Robert Loggia, Vincent Baggetta, Antony Carbone, Nicholas Georgiade, Jerome Guardino and Laurence Haddon.
516"Coulter City Wildcat"Russ MayberryDon Carlos DunawayNovember 12, 1976 (1976-11-12)
Rocky wins an oil rights lottery, but a couple of thugs assault him to force him to sign over the rights to them. With Dennis Burkley, John Anderson, Jerry Hardin, Noble Willingham, Hal Bokar, Richard Kennedy and Ed Deemer.
527"So Help Me God" Jeannot Szwarc Juanita BartlettNovember 19, 1976 (1976-11-19)

Rockford receives a subpoena to appear before a Grand Jury investigating the disappearance of Frank Sorvino. This episode exposes the unfairness of the Grand Jury system. Specifically

  • Once you answer any question, you can no longer take the 5th amendment.
  • If you refuse to testify (after the first question) you can be imprisoned for the duration of the Grand Jury.
  • Even if you invoke the 5th amendment properly, the prosecutor can still apply for "immunity" from the 5th amendment and subpoena you again and require you to testify.

Jim was asked about a telephone conversation he supposedly had with Frank Sorvino the day he disappeared, but Jim testified that the conversation never took place. But the Feds have a deposition from Sorvino's secretary saying she dialed the number and Jim answered, and Frank talked to him.

The second time Jim invokes the 5th correctly and the prosecutor, Gary Bevins (William Daniels), dismisses Rockford and says he will apply for immunity from the 5th. Jim makes an angry speech attacking Bevins personally for violating his rights and having more contempt for the law than anyone Jim did time with. (Bevins told the Grand Jury that Jim had a record, but wouldn't acknowledge the fact that he received a full pardon.) Jim was cited for contempt and ends up back in the slammer. Angel visits Jim there with a photograph of the camera shy Frank Sorvino for which he charges $50, and Jim recognizes Sorvino as his client George Capmann, and all becomes clear. Jim is viciously attacked in prison by Sorvino's goons to stop him testifying and ends up in hospital. All charges are dropped and Jim testifies to what he now knows, which is probably enough to indict Sorvino, but Gary Bevins is ungrateful. Rockford is dismissed, but the foreman allows him to make a final statement in which he quotes from an article he read in prison to the effect that any injustice, no matter how small, hurts all of us. When Bevins doesn't get the point, Jim reveals that the article was quoting him.

A printed statement appears on the screen to the effect that the laws regarding Grand Juries allow the injustices portrayed here to occur.

538"Rattlers' Class of '63"Meta RosenbergDavid ChaseNovember 26, 1976 (1976-11-26)
Rockford is best man at Angel’s wedding, but Angel (Stuart Margolin) is only getting married because he needs his new wife (Elayne Heilveil) to defend him from her brothers after he and an associate scammed them out of $5,000. When the associate and one of the brothers turn up dead and Rockford is implicated in the con, Jim has no choice but to solve the case himself. With Avery Schreiber, James Wainwright, Rudy Ramos, Sandra Kerns, Stacy Keach Sr., Stanley Brock, Gerald McRaney and John Durren.
549"Return to the Thirty-Eighth Parallel" Bruce Kessler Walter DallenbachDecember 10, 1976 (1976-12-10)
Unemployed old army buddy Brennan (Ned Beatty) urges a reluctant Rockford to accept a case searching for a woman’s missing sister, then talks Jim into allowing him to assist in the investigation. On the first day Brennan assaults a man and gets Jim in trouble with the IRS. Their relationship gets more strained when Brennan turns out to be a fellow private investigator on a case involving a stolen $3 million vase that a devious art collector (Paul Stevens) is also interested in. With Veronica Hamel, Norman Burton, Robert Karnes, Bart Burns, James Congdon, Jeff David and John Mahon.
5510"Piece Work"Lawrence DohenyJuanita BartlettDecember 17, 1976 (1976-12-17)
Rockford is hired to investigate an accident at a health club, but the place is a hangout for illegal arms dealers, and Murray Rosner (Michael Lerner), the pivotal figure in the buying and selling of the weapons, thinks Jim is a police officer and wants him out of the picture. With Ben Frank, Frank Maxwell, Jack Bannon, Simon Scott, Harvey Vernon and Ned Wilson.
5611"The Trouble with Warren" Christian I. Nyby II Juanita BartlettDecember 24, 1976 (1976-12-24)
Everybody loves Beth’s clean-cut cousin, Warren Weeks (Ron Rifkin), but when his boss is murdered Jim racks up felonies trying to help him. Later a second executive at the multinational corporation where Weeks worked is killed, and Warren was having an affair with his wife. When he flees the scene with Jim in tow, the charges against Rockford keep mounting. With Paul Jenkins, Joe Maross, Tom Bower, Anne Randall and John Dullaghan.
5712"There's One in Every Port"Meta RosenbergStephen J. CannellJanuary 7, 1977 (1977-01-07)
An old prison buddy (Howard Duff) and his daughter (Joan Van Ark) trick Rockford into inadvertently setting up a mob-run poker game to get robbed. To get the money back Rockford co-opts their next con, involving the sale of a yacht they do not own. But Rockford only has a few days to make it work, and mobsters and crooks do not respect maritime law. With John Dehner, Steve Landesberg, Jack Riley, George Memmoli, Michael DeLano, Byron Morrow and John Mahon.
5813"Sticks and Stones May Break Your Bones, but Waterbury Will Bury You"Jerry LondonDavid ChaseJanuary 14, 1977 (1977-01-14)
When several independent private investigators (Cleavon Little, Simon Oakland and Val Bisoglio) get set up so that they do something that gets their licences revoked, Rockford takes up their cause. With James Karen, Jim Storm, Linda Dano, Fritzi Burr, George Pentecost, Anthony Costello and Robert Riesel.
5914"The Trees, the Bees and T.T. Flowers: Part 1"Jerry LondonGordon DawsonJanuary 21, 1977 (1977-01-21)
T.T. Flowers (Strother Martin) is an eccentric older friend of Rocky. Flowers is committed against his will to a psychiatric institution and given drugs by a complicit doctor to make him paranoid and delusional, so that his daughter (Karen Machon) and son-in-law (Alex Rocco) can take control of his estate, which includes ten acres of prime development property. When Rockford intervenes they try to kill him. Out of options and desperate, Jim's last resort is to break Flowers out of the institution. With Scott Brady, Richard Venture, Roy Jenson, Jack Stauffer, Bob Hastings, Paul Sylvan and Fred Stuthman.
6015"The Trees, the Bees and T.T. Flowers: Part 2"Jerry LondonGordon DawsonJanuary 28, 1977 (1977-01-28)
T.T. Flowers (Strother Martin) arms himself and threatens to shoot anyone who sets foot on his property. A SWAT team is called in but eventually cooler heads prevail, and then T.T’s daughter is persuaded to reconsider institutionalizing him. This so frustrates Jack Muellard (Scott Brady), the developer who wants to take possession of the land, who had been the prime mover in everything, that he plans murder and other violence to secure his ends. With Alex Rocco, Karen Machon, Roy Jenson, Jack Stauffer, Robert DoQui, Tom Rosqui, Fred Stuthman and Dave Shelley.
6116"The Becker Connection" Reza Badiyi Story by: Chas. Floyd Johnson and Ted Harris
Teleplay by: Juanita Bartlett
February 11, 1977 (1977-02-11)
Drug dealers steal confiscated heroin from a police property room and frame financially strapped Dennis Becker (Joe Santos) for it. Things get worse for Dennis when Rockford tries to clear him. With James Luisi, Jack Carter, Bert Kramer, William Jordan, Pat Finley, Jack Kelly and James Sikking.
6217"Just Another Polish Wedding"William WiardStephen J. CannellFebruary 18, 1977 (1977-02-18)
Jim's ex-con buddy Gandolph Fitch (Isaac Hayes) is looking for a new line of work. Jim teams Fitch with the slick P.I. Marcus Aurelius Hayes (Louis Gossett Jr.), who learns from Fitch that Rockford has been hired by the county to do a probate heir search for a man who has inherited a fortune. Hayes decides to take up the case, confident that he can beat Rockford to the man and then trick him out of a chunk of the inheritance. They do not know the money is dirty and the mob is also after it. With Dennis Burkley, George Wyner, Pepper Martin, Walter Brooke, Jack Collins, Melendy Britt, Raymond Singer, Anthony Charnota, Sidney Clute, George Skaff, Barney McFadden and Fred Koska.
6318"New Life, Old Dragons"Jeannot SzwarcStory by: Bernard Rollins & Leroy Robinson
Teleplay by: David C. Taylor
February 25, 1977 (1977-02-25)
A Vietnamese woman (Irene Yah-Ling Sun) hires Rockford to find her missing brother, who, like her, came to America as a refugee. The case becomes one of abduction and assault and then murder, and there are multiple military veterans from the Vietnam War involved. With Charles Napier, Kathleen Nolan, James T. Callahan, Luke Askew, Clyde Kusatsu, Jim Ishida and Charles Siebert.
6419"To Protect and Serve: Part 1"William WiardDavid ChaseMarch 11, 1977 (1977-03-11)
Rockford is hired by east coast attorney Michael Kelly (Jon Cypher) to track down his fiancée, Patsy Fossler (Leslie Charleson). Unbeknownst to Rockford two hired killers (George Loros and Luke Andreas) are after her as well, and the L.A. police are interested in Kelly. Meanwhile a lonely police groupie, Lianne Sweeny (Joyce Van Patten), has attached herself to Denis Becker and her attempts to get closer to him is causing a strain on his personal and professional relationships.
6520"To Protect and Serve: Part 2"William WiardDavid ChaseMarch 18, 1977 (1977-03-18)
Rockford hides Patsy Fossler (Leslie Charleson) with a friend (Lou Frizzell) and fools Michael Kelly (Jon Cypher) with a story that convinces him to fly back east right away. However Lianne Sweeny (Joyce Van Patten) has learned the details of Fossler’s hideout, and the killers (George Loros and Luke Andreas) have no trouble getting the information out of her. With Charles Bateman and Angus Duncan.
6621"Crack Back"Reza BadiyiJuanita BartlettMarch 25, 1977 (1977-03-25)
Beth’s client is a football player, David Woodhull (Howard McGillin), accused of murder. She hires Rockford to locate his alibi, a married woman, Doreen Carpenter (Sondra Blake). During Woodhull’s trial, which takes place while Jim is doing his search, Beth (Gretchen Corbett) is receiving increasingly disturbing telephone calls and gifts. With Joseph Mascolo, Conchata Ferrell, Norman Bartold and John Calvin.
6722"Dirty Money, Black Light" Stuart Margolin David C. TaylorApril 1, 1977 (1977-04-01)
Rocky, on vacation in Hawaii, is sent $44,000 dollars in cash, which Jim has to deal with when he checks Rocky's mail for bills. The windfall forces Jim to deal with Federal agents, organized hoods, a loan shark operation, and the moral failings of Angel Martin (Stuart Margolin). With John P. Ryan, Roger E. Mosley, Wesley Addy, Joshua Bryant, Martin Kove, Diana Ewing and Victor Argo.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ISO 8601</span> International standards for dates and times

ISO 8601 is an international standard covering the worldwide exchange and communication of date and time-related data. It is maintained by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and was first published in 1988, with updates in 1991, 2000, 2004, and 2019, and an amendment in 2022. The standard provides a well-defined, unambiguous method of representing calendar dates and times in worldwide communications, especially to avoid misinterpreting numeric dates and times when such data is transferred between countries with different conventions for writing numeric dates and times.

Prime time, or peak time, is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for television shows. It is mostly targeted towards adults. It is used by the major television networks to broadcast their season's nightly programming. The term prime time is often defined in terms of a fixed time period—for example, from 8:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. or 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.. In India and some Middle Eastern countries, prime time consists of the programmes that are aired on Television between 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. local time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Time zone</span> Area that observes a uniform standard time

A time zone is an area which observes a uniform standard time for legal, commercial and social purposes. Time zones tend to follow the boundaries between countries and their subdivisions instead of strictly following longitude, because it is convenient for areas in frequent communication to keep the same time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nickelodeon</span> American childrens pay television channel

Nickelodeon, occasionally shortened to Nick, is an American pay television channel owned by Paramount Global through Paramount Media Networks’ subdivision, Nickelodeon Group. Launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children, the channel is primarily aimed at children and adolescents aged 2 to 17, along with a broader family audience through its program blocks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1986 FIFA World Cup</span> Association football tournament in Mexico

The 1986 FIFA World Cup was the 13th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June 1986. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format. Colombia had been originally chosen to host the competition by FIFA but, largely due to economic reasons, was not able to do so, and resigned in 1982. Mexico was selected as the new host in May 1983, and became the first country to host the World Cup more than once, after previously hosting the 1970 edition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2006 FIFA World Cup</span> Association football tournament in Germany

The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six populated continents participated in the qualification process which began in September 2003. Thirty-one teams qualified from this process along with hosts Germany for the finals tournament. It was the second time that Germany staged the competition and the first as a unified country along with the former East Germany with Leipzig as a host city, and the 10th time that the tournament was held in Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">24-hour clock</span> Timekeeping convention

The modern 24-hour clock is the convention of timekeeping in which the day runs from midnight to midnight and is divided into 24 hours. This is indicated by the hours passed since midnight, from 00(:00) to 23(:59), with 24(:00) as an option to indicate the end of the day. This system, as opposed to the 12-hour clock, is the most commonly used time notation in the world today, and is used by the international standard ISO 8601.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastern Time Zone</span> North American time zone (UTC−5 and UTC−4)

The Eastern Time Zone (ET) is a time zone encompassing part or all of 23 states in the eastern part of the United States, parts of eastern Canada, and the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central European Time</span> Standard time (UTC+01:00)

Central European Time (CET) is a standard time of Central, and parts of Western Europe, which is one hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). The time offset from UTC can be written as UTC+01:00. It is used in most parts of Europe and in a few North African countries. CET is also known as Middle European Time and by colloquial names such as Amsterdam Time, Berlin Time, Brussels Time, Budapest Time, Madrid Time, Paris Time, Rome Time, Prague time, Warsaw Time or Romance Standard Time (RST).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Turkish Radio and Television Corporation</span> Turkish national public broadcaster

The Turkish Radio and Television Corporation is the national public broadcaster of Turkey, founded in 1964. TRT was for many years the only television and radio provider in Turkey. Before the introduction of commercial radio in 1990, and subsequently commercial television in 1992, it held a monopoly on broadcasting. More recent deregulation of the Turkish television broadcasting market produced analogue cable television. Today, TRT broadcasts around the world, including in Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia, the United States, and Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 FIFA World Cup</span> Association football tournament in Brazil

The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting rights in 2007. It was the second time that Brazil staged the competition, the first being in 1950, and the fifth time that it was held in South America. Fans and pundits alike consider this edition of the World Cup to be one of the best ever held.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central European Summer Time</span> Daylight savings time in the central European time zone

Central European Summer Time, sometimes referred to as Central European Daylight Time (CEDT), is the standard clock time observed during the period of summer daylight-saving in those European countries which observe Central European Time during the other part of the year. It corresponds to UTC+02:00, which makes it the same as Eastern European Time, Central Africa Time, South African Standard Time, Egypt Standard Time and Kaliningrad Time in Russia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moscow Time</span> Time zone in western Russia (UTC+3)

Moscow Time is the time zone for the city of Moscow, Russia, and most of western Russia, including Saint Petersburg. It is the second-westernmost of the eleven time zones of Russia. It has been set to UTC+03:00 without DST since 26 October 2014; before that date it had been set to UTC+04:00 year-round on 27 March 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UTC+08:00</span> Identifier for a time offset from UTC of +8

UTC+08:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of +08:00.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UTC+03:00</span> Identifier for a time offset from UTC of +3

UTC+03:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of +03:00. In areas using this time offset, the time is three hours later than the Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). Following the ISO 8601 standard, a time with this offset would be written as, for example, 2019-02-08T23:36:06+03:00.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UTC+07:00</span> Identifier for a time offset from UTC of +7 hours

UTC+07:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of +07:00. In ISO 8601 the associated time would be written as 2024-04-02T15:36:55+07:00. It is 7 hours ahead of UTC, meaning that when the time in UTC areas is midnight (00:00), the time in UTC+07:00 areas would be 7:00 in the morning.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UTC+00:00</span> Identifier for the UTC +0 offset

UTC+00:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of +00:00. This time zone is the basis of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) and all other time zones are based on it. In ISO 8601, an example of the associated time would be written as 2069-01-01T12:12:34+00:00. It is also known by the following geographical or historical names:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UEFA Euro 2016</span> 15th edition of the association football championship

The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe organised by UEFA. It was held in France from 10 June to 10 July 2016. Spain were the two-time defending champions, having won the 2008 and 2012 tournaments, but were eliminated in the round of 16 by Italy. Portugal won the tournament for the first time, following a 1–0 victory after extra time over the host team, France, in the final played at the Stade de France.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UEFA Euro 2020</span> 16th edition of the quadrennial football championship

The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UEFA Euro 2024</span> 17th edition of the UEFA European Football Championship

The 2024 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2024 or simply Euro 2024, will be the 17th edition of the UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international football championship organised by UEFA for the European men's national teams of its member associations. Germany will host the tournament, which is scheduled to take place from 14 June to 14 July 2024 and the winner will later compete in the 2025 CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions against the 2024 Copa América winner. 24 teams will compete, with Georgia as the only team making their first appearance in a UEFA European Championship finals tournament.