McMillan & Wife (1971–1977)

San Francisco attorney Stuart McMillan is named Commissioner of the San Francisco Police Department. With his pretty, but somewhat kooky, wife Sally, her hard-drinking housekeeper Mildred, ... See full summary »

Creator:

Leonard Stern

Stars:

Rock Hudson, John Schuck, Susan Saint James

Nominated for 5 Golden Globes. Another 3 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Rock Hudson	...	Police Commissioner Stewart 'Mac' McMillan (40 episodes, 1971-1977)
John Schuck	...	Sgt. Charles Enright (39 episodes, 1971-1977)
Susan Saint James	...	Sally McMillan (34 episodes, 1971-1976)
Nancy Walker	...	Mildred (32 episodes, 1971-1976)

Storyline

San Francisco attorney Stuart McMillan is named Commissioner of the San Francisco Police Department. With his pretty, but somewhat kooky, wife Sally, her hard-drinking housekeeper Mildred, and his assistant, the dimwitted Seargent Charlie Enright, Mac manages to solve some of San Francisco's most baffling crimes.

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Plot Keywords:

police | sergeant | san francisco california | character name in title

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Taglines:

When it comes to solving crime, two heads are better than one.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

29 September 1971 (USA)

Also Known As:

McMillan

Filming Locations:

San Francisco, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Talent Associates, Norton Simon Inc., Universal TV

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min 120 min (15 episodes) 90 min (24 episodes) 120 min (pilot)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

4:3

Did You Know?

Trivia

Both Susan Saint James and Nancy Walker left the show at the end of the 1975-1976 season. St. James because of a contract dispute, and Walker because she had just signed a contract with A.B.C..

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Connections

Referenced in Mystery Science Theater 3000: Gamera vs. Gaos (1991)

User Reviews

Double Mac

Ahh, memories of watching this series aged about 11 and having a crush on Susan St James, her pushing Judy Carne to one side in the process. Of course the early 70's was a great time for classic US 'tec series, Kojak, Columbo (to quote Harry Nilsson) and many others, but this show doesn't appear to have gone into the permanent re-run rotation like so many of its contemporaries. There could be any number of reasons for this, some clear (it has dated quite a lot) and some perhaps not so clear, although its template has been reused since, most notably in "Hart To Hart".

Naturally it's not as good as the child in me remembers, the story, at least of this early episode being somewhat formulaic and the direction very flat and reactionary.

That said, I liked Hudson in the part and he doesn't appear to be coasting as much as his history might have entitled him to, while St James still has that quirky charm going for her, even if she does scream a lot. There's a nice frisson between them, loved-up as we say here in the UK, whch added some spice to proceedings. Nancy Walker, later Rhoda's mum, is watchable as ever as their feisty house-maid and moon-faced John Schuck is Hudson's runabout foot-soldier.

The Frisco locations are fine, the humour is gentle and while I guess there's not a lot of dramatic tension on show, it still reminds me fondly of Sunday afternoons as a kid in from the rain, with nothing better to do.