The Big Try

Friday - The Dragnet Podcast · Oct 4, 2026 · 31m

Originally Aired: September 29, 1953

Dragnet #215, "The Big Try," Friday and Smith's quiet morning at homicide is interrupted when reporter Sid Hughes calls with an urgent case. A man named Jan Patachek has phoned the newspaper saying he's going to kill himself and has barricaded himself in his apartment. Hughes is convinced this isn't a crank call, something in Patachek's voice tells him the threat is real. The man has given them until 11:05 to arrive at his address on North Hardmore, warning them not to try anything. As rain begins to fall over Los Angeles, Friday and Smith race against the…