Premiering in 2004, the TV series Veronica Mars is not, at first look, that incredibly unusual. The mystery series starred actress Kristen Bell in the title role, a high school student and Nancy-Drew-esque sleuth who was the daughter off a county sheriff. The show followed Veronica's adventures as she began her career as a private investigator, while also trying to uncover the truth behind the murder of her best friend. Cancelled after a three-season run, the show had a devoted cult following that never quite translated into the ratings.
But Veronica Mars recently made internet history, when an online campaign for the show raised nearly $6 million in fan donations and, in doing so, guaranteed a Veronica Mars movie release. With Kristen Bell's 33rd birthday on the horizon (July 18), and a Veronica Mars movie on the way, it seemed like a great time to check out some of our other favorite TV gumshoes:
- Nancy Drew
from The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries (1977-1979) and Nancy Drew (2002)
Created by publisher Edward Stratemeyer, Nancy Drew -- amateur teenage sleuth -- first appeared in 1930 as the star of her own book series. Her adventures were written by a variety of a different authors, all who took on the pen name "Carolyn Keene" for the series. Hugely popular, the Nancy Drew books have remained popular to this day, and have resulted in spin-off offerings such as video games, films -- and television.
In the 1970s, Nancy started in the ABC series The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, played by Pamela Sue Martin and Janet Louise Johnson. There was another, short-lived series in 1995 (which lasted only half a season) ... and then, in 2002, ABC aired the TV movie Nancy Drew. In the title role as Nancy was Maggie Lawson -- who would go on to play another TV sleuth, Detective Juliette O'Hara in the hit show Psych.
- Laura Holt
Remington Steele is probably best remembered as the series that launched Pierce Brosnan's career. But credit must also go to Stephanie Zimbalist, who played licensed private detective Laura Holt. Setting up shop as a private eye, Holt discovers that clients are reluctant to hire a female detective.
So Holt hatches a scheme. She creates a fake (male) business partner for herself: Remington Steele, the man in charge who Holt "works" for. She always intended to keep Steele an unseen, fictitious business partner -- until she gets tangled up with a former con man (played by Brosnan) who ultimately ends up assuming the identity of Remington Steele. The two start working together -- but it's Holt, not "Steele," who remains the P.I. in charge.
- Cagney & Lacey
This long-running 80s police procedural took the unique step of making its two leads female detectives. Sharon Gless played Christine Cagney, a single woman intent on her career; Tyne Daly played Mary Beth Lacey, a working wife and mother. Set in Manhattan, the show followed the cases and lives of its star characters.
With an unusual and bumpy ride to the screen (the show was cancelled twice, being renewed in the end both times), Cagney and Lacey ultimately ran for seven seasons.
- Sergeant Lucy Bates
The seven-season police drama Hill Street Blues is remembered by fans as one of the first police shows to carry multi-episode story arcs and long-ranging plotlines throughout its seasons. Dealing with real-life issues -- and shot in a more documentary-like style than the average series -- the show first aired in 1981 and quickly became beloved by critics and fans alike.
Betty Thomas starred as Sgt. Lucy Bates -- as gritty, tough, and real as all the other cop characters on the show. Committed to the police force, with her own personal struggles to overcome, Bates was capable at her job and a force to be reckoned with.
- Jessica Fletcher
Long before Richard Castle, there was Jessica Fletcher, star of the long-running series Murder, She Wrote. Played to perfection by Angela Lansbury, Jessica Fletcher is a murder mystery author who ultimately becomes an amateur detective. A former English teacher, the now-retired (and widowed) Fletcher has become a best-selling mystery writer. Living in a small town on the coast of Maine, Jessica Fletcher becomes a Miss-Marple-like figure to the local police, picking up clues they miss and always solving the crime.
With a 12-season run, Lansbury was nominated for 10 Golden Globes and 12 Emmys, holding the record to this day for the most Best Dramatic Actress Golden Globe and Emmy nominations.
- Special Agent Dana Scully
This no-nonsense FBI agent had her work cut out for her when she got partnered with fellow agent Fox Mulder. The two are assigned to X-Files cases (hence the name of their nine-season television series): those unsolved cases that may or may not have a paranormal cause behind them.
The practical, skeptical Scully was often at odds with her more intuitively-minded partner, who believed in such phenomena as aliens and the paranormal. Like all iconic partnerships, however, their opposing viewpoints were often precisely what made them such a great team.
- Catherine Willows & Sara Sidle
When it premiered in 2000, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation reinvented the crime procedural. With a unique emphasis on physical evidence and the science behind solving crimes, the show was a unique and instant hit.
Catherine Willows, who ultimately becomes head supervisor of the CSI night shift, originally made her living as a Vegas showgirl until a friend encouraged her to return to school. Sharp and intelligent, Willows became interested in crime-solving and earned a degree in Medical Science before joining the CSIs. And Sara Sidle, a materials and elements analyst, is perhaps the CSI most devoted to the job, her determined and skeptical nature making her a natural fit for the position. As long-standing characters in the show, Willows and Sidle have both had plenty of time to become some of the most layered and memorable characters in the series.
- Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson
Heading up the Major Crimes Division of the Los Angeles Police Department, Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson is known as "The Closer" due to her ability to deduce the facts and compel confessions -- closing out her cases.
The daughter of a captain in the U.S. Army, Brenda has worked for the CIA, the Metropolitan Police Department in D.C., and the Atlanta Police Department. Portrayed by actress Kyra Sedgwick, Brenda -- with her Southern accent, sloppy habits, and obsessive commitment to her job -- is a complex, complicated character that makes her both engaging and relatable.
- Dr. Temperance "Bones" Brennan
Dr. Temperance Brennan and her FBI partner Special Agent Seeley Booth have always put me in mind of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson (at least until the romance starts!). But despite some similarities between Holmes and Bones, Dr. Brennan is actually based loosely on real-life forensic anthropologist (and best-selling author) Kathy Reichs.
Nicknamed "Bones" by her new partner, Brennan holds three doctorates and has the brain power to match. Detached, clinical, and with genius-level intelligence, Bones speaks seven languages, is trained in three martial arts, is a bestselling author -- and is somewhat socially inept. Her partnership and friendship with Agent Booth go a long way towards helping her discover how to identify and share her emotions.
Fun fact: Temperance Brennan gets her name from real-life author Kathy Reichs's best-selling mystery novels (which feature a character named Temperance Brennan). In the show Bones, however, Brennan has her own best-selling series of mystery novels, starring a forensic anthropologist character named ... Kathy Reichs.
- Rizzoli & Isles
Another show coming from a series of novels (these by author Tess Gerritsen), the show stars Angie Harmon as Detective Jane Rizzoli and Sasha Alexander as Dr. Maura Isles. Set in Boston, the series follows the practical, street-savvy Rizzoli and the book-smart Isles, best friends despite their polar-opposite personalities.
From highly different backgrounds -- and with different approaches to solving crimes -- this modern-day Cagney & Lacey duo have gone on to be original characters in their own right.
- Joan Watson
When it comes to shaking up the original Sherlock Holmes stories, modern-day adaptation Elementary didn't really break the mold so much by making Dr. John Watson into Joan. (After all, a female Watson has been done before.) What really makes Joan Watson stand out from her fellow onscreen Watsons is her character journey. This Watson may have started out as a surgeon, but as the show progresses, so does she, moving from a second career as a sober companion to recovering addicts to another new profession: detective.
Hired as a sober companion to recovering addict Sherlock Holmes, it isn't long before Sherlock notices that his Watson has an aptitude for solving mysteries. Holmes promptly takes her under his wing, and by the end of the first season, Watson has become both apprentice and partner to Sherlock himself. It's a unique take on the Holmes-Watson friendship that has left this Sherlockian eager for Season Two.
-- Post by Ms. B
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