Martin Kane Private Eye 2 / (B&W)

The world's first television private detective, MARTIN KANE PRIVATE EYE gradually became a big hit as America tuned in to watch the affable yet street-smart detective take on the crooks of New York City. The show ran for five seasons with several different actors playing the role of Kane. Each manifestation of the gumshoe had a different style and attitude, but all, invariably, spent a lot of time in Happy McMann's Tobacco Shop (the show was sponsored by U.S. Tobacco). Like much of early television, the sets, props, plots and extras left much to be desired, but Kane's wisecracking mix of cynicism and sentimentality, and the juicy nature of the crimes, kept people coming back for more. Volume Two features four vintage Kane cases: when his wealthy client is murdered Kane himself is fingered for the crime, everyone has a motive to kill a nightclub singer, a crooked jockey gets iced, and a rich patient in an insane asylum dies under mysterious circumstances.