PopSyndicate.com

Very popular Polish-American.

Imagine my pleasure at sitting down once again to watch an old series become new again on DVD with Banacek, the Polish-American detective.  He always solves the case and gets the reward money from the insurance company.  It’s a delightful reminder of what I was doing with my life in 1973 when season two premiered on NBC.  That was the second and last season of the show.

George Peppard makes a wonderful detective with his dapper clothing, slick one-liners and the ever-present long, thin cigars.  There is always some alcohol nearby, too.  Ladies parade in and out of his life like a steady flow of bountiful babes at a sorority house.  He never lacks for words and always foils the police and insurance company in their attempts to outdo him in his escapades.

He’s from Boston and stays in shape by rowing on the river.  Some of his gadgets, like the wide screen TV in his den, were ahead of the times .  He even had a phone in his chauffeur-driven car.  His dress would be outdated by today’s standards but were “in” in the 70s: a dickie and blazer.  He’s always fighting a verbal battle with the insurance company because they want their money instead of paying out to some detective.  But, he’s always right and they always pay.

I can’t reminisce about Boston because I know very little about the city.  I “can” think about what I was doing at the time, however.  I was in the military and stationed in Colorado Springs.  Banacek was always on the menu regardless of what the wife wanted to watch.  Remote in hand, I tuned in and turned off the outside world for an hour’s worth of whodunit in the hands of the wily detective.  He could do no wrong and his living room became my fortress.  I didn’t light up a cigar and wasn’t into drinking at that time.  I was, however, into watching a good crime drama.  Banacek was one of the best.

There was nothing to dislike about the program except for interruptions by the wife and that thing they called the fifteen minute break:  the commercial.  I tolerated both and got more used to the commercials as time went by.  I’m so glad they’re put Season 2 on DVD so a whole new generation can learn to love Banacek. 

The bonus on the third of the three-DVD set is the premiere show from season one.  That was a joy to watch.  I can’t remember when I had so much fun.

3