The World According to Freedom (7 Jan. 1982)

Following a gruesome murder perpetrated by a gang at a night club, Furillo is determined to take any means necessary to find the people responsible. Belker runs in a guy who thinks that he ... See full summary »

Director:

Jeff Bleckner

Writer:

Michael I. Wagner

Stars:

Daniel J. Travanti, Michael Conrad, Michael Warren

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Daniel J. Travanti	...	Capt. Frank Furillo
Michael Conrad	...	Sgt. Phil Esterhaus
Michael Warren	...	Officer Robert 'Bobby' Hill
Bruce Weitz	...	Sgt. Mick Belker
James Sikking	...	Lt. Howard Hunter (as James B. Sikking)
Joe Spano	...	Det. Henry Goldblume
Barbara Bosson	...	Fay Furillo
Taurean Blacque	...	Det. Neal Washington
Kiel Martin	...	Officer John 'J.D.' LaRue
René Enríquez	...	Lt. Ray Calletano
Betty Thomas	...	Officer Lucy Bates
Ed Marinaro	...	Officer Joe Coffey
Charles Haid	...	Officer Andrew Renko
Veronica Hamel	...	Joyce Davenport
Dennis Dugan	...	Captain Freedom

Storyline

Following a gruesome murder perpetrated by a gang at a night club, Furillo is determined to take any means necessary to find the people responsible. Belker runs in a guy who thinks that he is a superhero. LaRue goes undercover inside a holding cell to try and get a confession.

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Plot Keywords:

character name in title

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 January 1982 (USA)

Filming Locations:

CBS Studio Center - 4024 Radford Avenue, Studio City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

MTM Enterprises

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Dennis Dugan refused to talk to the other cast members and stayed in his trailer until he was called to do his scenes so he could get into character as Captain Freedom. Moreover, he insisted that everyone refer to him as Captain Freedom instead of his real name.

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Goofs

When Hill is looking at the car engine to fix the horn, his jacket sleeve is ripped. However, if you look closely (in frame-by-frame) at the quick shot of him walking around the car to get to the engine, his sleeve is already ripped.

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Quotes

Captain Freedom: Stop this criminal act, or I shall be forced to use violence!

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Connections

References The World According to Garp (1982)

User Reviews

Captain Freedom rules!

Furillo (a fantastic Daniel J. Travanti) rounds up a slew of street gang leaders following a brutal and bloody barroom massacre at a sleazy nightclub. LaRue (nice work from Kiel Martin) goes undercover in a holding cell in order to get a confession out of fearsome arsonist Murray the Torch (a formidable portrayal by Richard Foronjy). Belker (Bruce Weitz in fine fierce form) befriends the loopy Captain Freedom (delightfully played by Dennis Dugan), a self-styled caped and costumed superhero crimefighter. This particular episode is notable for the introduction of Captain Freedom, who was without a doubt one of the single most colorful and memorable minor comic relief characters to ever appear on the show. Sure, this dude is totally bonkers, but Dugan brings a sweet innocence and wide-eyed optimism to Captain Freedom that's both amusing and endearing in equal measure (Captain Freedom's batty big speech to Belker about his mission to rid the world of wrongdoers is absolutely priceless). Moreover, it's really something to see an irate Furillo in full-blown aggressive no-nonsense mode; his sense of frustration over things going violently awry is quite powerful and affecting. The stuff about the barroom bloodbath is very potent and upsetting: In a truly startling twist, the perpetrators of the appalling bloodbath turn out to be three sociopathic teenage boys who did it simply for kicks. Lucy Bates (an excellent Betty Thomas) has some strong scenes consoling a female rape victim and Hunter (a deliciously droll James B. Sikking) has a few funny moments proposing to Furillo his typically gung-ho approach to handling the barroom massacre. Victor Campos contributes a sterling turn as the crime scene investigator who gives Furillo the thorough rundown on all the horrible facts about the bar massacre. A superior episode.