City of Angels (1976 TV series)

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City of Angels was a 1976 television series created by Stephen J. Cannell and produced by Roy Huggins. Wayne Rogers starred as the ethically-dubious private detective Jake Axminster, looking out for himself and sometimes for his clients, in an equally corrupt Los Angeles, California of the 1930s. Though the series only lasted thirteen episodes, it has been awarded some strong acclaim as well: Max Allan Collins called the show "The greatest of all P.I. series". [1]

Many saw similarities between City of Angels and the 1974 film Chinatown. Aside from both featuring private eyes named "Jake," they were set in the same city, during the 1930s, and both took a very cynical view of corruption as all-pervasive. However, much of the inspiration for the show came from real life as well: the three-part pilot episode "The November Plan", dealing with a plot by wealthy industrialists to overthrow the Presidency, was based on the real-life Business Plot which aimed to overthrow Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Another episode featured a brothel where the prostitutes were specially cast to resemble movie stars of the day; this was based on the real-life T&M Studio (later fictionalized in L.A. Confidential as the "Fleur de Lis Club".)

[edit] External links

• City of Angels at the Internet Movie Database