Amy Prentiss (1974–1975)

San Francisco's first female Chief of Detectives!

Creator:

Francine Carroll

Stars:

Jessica Walter, Art Metrano, Johnny Seven

Won 1 Primetime Emmy.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Jessica Walter	...	Amy Prentiss (3 episodes, 1974-1975)
Art Metrano	...	Detective Rod Pena (3 episodes, 1974-1975)
Johnny Seven	...	Detective Contreras (3 episodes, 1974-1975)
Steve Sandor	...	Detective Tony Russell (3 episodes, 1974-1975)
Helen Hunt	...	Jill Prentiss (3 episodes, 1974-1975)
Gwenn Mitchell	...	Joan Carter (3 episodes, 1974-1975)

Storyline

Amy Prentiss is a beautiful thirty-something detective on the San Francisco police force who was unexpectedly promoted to chief following the sudden death of her predecessor. Between solving the city's most perplexing crimes and battling sexism within the department, Amy raises her pre-teen daughter Jill.

---

Plot Keywords:

police | character name in title

---

Genres:

Drama | Crime

---

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 December 1974 (USA)

Filming Locations:

San Francisco, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Francy Productions, Universal TV

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min 120 min (3 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The character of Amy Prentiss first appeared on an episode of Ironside.

---

Connections

Spun-off from Ironside: Amy Prentiss: Part 2 (1974)

User Reviews

Prime Suspect

'Prime Suspect' is the title of the video I found this series on, this a cut down version of the first episode, 'Baptism of Fire.'

Any film or TV show has to have believability, no matter how far fetched but this show doesn't. Jessica Walter plays Amy Prentis, the new head of a San Francisco police department,she faces chauvinism and prejudice from the mostly male detectives and the press,plus a conniving city councillor. Trouble is, she doesn't seem tough enough or commanding in the role and just seems to wander from scene to scene while the actual cops do the work. So,it doesn't work for me and while the storyline isn't too bad, it could be any episode of Streets of San Francisco, Kojak, or any other generic cop show.

William Shatner in a guest spot as a obsessed cop, steals the acting honours,even with his over the top style,which actually works in this part.

In conclusion, I'm not too surprised the series only lasted for three episodes. Better female orientated detective shows are out there with Cagney & Lacey to name but one.