The Fugitive: A Classic Kimble-Gerard Episode

Lt. Philip Gerard and Dr. Richard Kimble.

The similarities between The Fugitive's detective Lieutenant Philip Gerard and Inspector Javert from Les Misérables were there from the beginning. Mel Proctor, author of The Official Fan's Guide to The Fugitive wrote that series creator Roy Huggins intentionally borrowed from Victor Hugo's novel: "Huggins described Kimble's pursuer as a man from the state attorney's office and said the chase would embody the characteristics of Javert's pursuit of Jean Valjean."

Barbara Rush as Marie Gerard.

Some of the series' best episodes are those that pair Richard Kimble (David Janssen) with his dogged pursuer (Barry Morse). Sometimes, their interaction is centered around another member of the Gerard family. In the excellent season 3 two-part episode "Landscape with Running Figures," Kimble comes to the aid of Mrs. Gerard (Barbara Rush), who has become temporarily blind following a bus accident. And in "Nemesis," Kimble steals a sheriff's car in which Philip Gerard, Jr. (a young Kurt Russell) is hiding in the backseat. These episodes and others cause Gerard to reflect--if only for a moment--that Kimble may indeed be innocent of murdering his wife. But in the end, that's a moot point, for Gerard is only concerned with capturing the man that escaped while in his custody.

The best episode that focuses solely on the Kimble-Gerard relationship is "Corner of Hell" from season 2, which William Conrad describes in his opening narrative as a "grim encounter with truth and irony." The episode starts with Gerard in hot pursuit of Kimble (who's driving a truck, perhaps his most frequent occupation during the series' run). When Kimble comes upon a police barricade, he smashes through it, drives down the road, and runs off into the woods. He doesn't see a rickety wooden sign stating: "Keep out! This means you."

The sheriff refuses to pursue Kimble any further, explaining to Gerard that the woods are full of moonshiners, whom the local law officials choose to ignore. When Gerard insists on a manhunt, even if he goes on it alone, the sheriff replies: "Them people hate a stranger. They hate a lawman. They hate a man in a store-bought suit. You're all three."

Guest star R.G. Armstrong.

Meanwhile, Kimble encounters a family of moonshiners led by the tobacco-chewing Tully (R.G. Armstrong). When Cody (Bruce Dern), the clan's resident trouble-maker, gets injured in a fight with Kimble, the former physician tends to Cody's wound. That earns him a little respect, which only grows when Tully learns that Kimble is running from the law (it helps too that Tully's daughter has taken a shine to the good doctor).When Gerard appears at the moonshiners' camp, Tully assures Kimble: "You'll be safe. You can watch how we get shed of somebody we don't really want around here."

The moonshiners scuff up Gerard and vandalize his car, but the real trouble starts when the detective is falsely accused of assaulting Tully's daughter (the real culprit is Cody, of course). The moonshiners are prepared to lynch Gerard, when--in a touch of brilliant irony--Kimble has to intervene to save his pursuer.

Barry Morse and Bruce Dern.

GERARD (who's tied to a chair and sounding desperate):  Our system of justice may not be perfect, but it does give every man a fair chance to defend himself.

TULLY:  How 'bout that, Doc? You get a fair chance in court?

KIMBLE:  Yes.

TULLY:  You mean he's speakin' the truth. You're a killer?"

KIMBLE:  No, I couldn't prove my innocence--but they let me try.

The outcome of "Corner of Hell" is obvious, not only from a practical series standpoint, but also because the viewer knows Kimble to be a noble man. Still, the episode turns the tables for once and lets Gerard experience the horror of telling the truth when no one will listen.

In the episode's closing scene, Gerard proves that--despite this experience--nothing has changed. His final words to Kimble are: "The truth is you're still guilty before the law."

And Kimble understands what that means, that Gerard will continue his relentless pursuit--just like Javert. "He'll keep trying," Kimble confides to Tully. "As long as there's a chance, he'll keep trying."

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This post is part of Me-TV's Summer of Classic TV Blogathon, hosted by the Classic TV Blog Association. Go to http://classic-tv-blog-assoc.blogspot.com to view more posts in this blogathon. You can also go to www.metvnetwork.com to learn more about Me-TV and its summer line-up of classic TV shows.

A Tribute to Lieutenant Philip Gerard

Barry Morse as Philip Gerard.

A supporting character in The Fugitive, police Lieutenant Philip Gerard was one of the first TV detectives to portray the mundane aspects of his job. And, in two key episodes, he also showed how his job impacted his family, to the point of almost breaking up his marriage.


British actor Barry Morse played the stoic, driven Lt. Gerard in 37 of the 120 episodes. Fugitive creator Roy Huggins based the character loosely on Javert in Victor Hugo's Les Miserables. Gerard gets only two lines in Huggin's original treatment of The Fugitive and isn't even given a name. In most of the episodes, Gerard's presence serves merely to move the plots along. He almost captures convicted murderer Richard Kimble on numerous occasions, but his prey always slips through his fingers--typically because law-abiding citizens aid the fugitive.



Lt. Gerard and Richard Kimble.

The source of Gerard's obsession with Kimble is established in the opening credits. Gerard, who investigated the murder of Kimble's wife in Stafford, Indiana, is shown aboard a train escorting Kimble to death row. However, their train derails and Kimble escapes. Knowing that he has failed to execute his task, Gerard becomes obsessed with recapturing the fugitive. It doesn't matter whether Kimble is innocent or not. He was found guilty in a court of law and therefore must be apprehended.

The impact on Gerard's family life is first shown in episode 35 "Nemesis," in which Gerard abandons a fishing trip with his young son (Kurt Russell) to pursue a lead on Kimble. When Phil, Jr. (that's actually his name) hides in the backseat of a car, the vehicle is stolen--by Kimble. The irony is that Kimble and the boy eventually form a bond, one strong enough to convince young Phil to help him escape. This unexpected outcome reminds Gerard how he has lost touch with his own son, something he vows to rectify.

Barbara Rush as Marie Gerard.

Likewise, in the season 3 two-part episode "Landscape with Running Figures," Gerard abandons a vacation with his wife to follow another lead on the fugitive. The "vacation" turns out to be an attempt by the Gerards to repair a marriage weakened by Philip’s obsession with bringing Kimble to justice. Tired of fighting for her husband's attention, Marie Gerard (Barbara Rush) leaves her husband. As befits a dramatic television series, she has an encounter with Kimble, too--though the results are different from the one with Gerard's son. And in the end, there is a glimmer of hope for the Gerards' marriage.

Humorless, detailed, and driven, Lt. Philip Gerard may not have succeeded as a lead character in a 1960s TV series. But as a supporting character in a popular show, he showed the less glamorous side of detective work and made a significant contribution to the classic TV detective genre.