Pick One: The Great TV Detectives of the 1970s

Back in the 1970s, tele­vi­sion detec­tives weren’t just char­ac­ters on a screen — they were part of the fam­i­ly. Every week, mil­lions of us tuned in after din­ner, set­tled into our favorite chair, and joined them as they cracked cas­es with noth­ing but intu­ition, a notepad, and a whole lot of charm.

The image above is a roll call of the greats — the unfor­get­table faces who defined an era of clever sto­ry­telling and larg­er-than-life per­son­al­i­ties. Each detec­tive had their own way of doing things.

There was Lt. Colum­bo, shuf­fling into crime scenes in that wrin­kled rain­coat, look­ing half-asleep — until he hit the sus­pect with “Just one more thing…” and the truth came tum­bling out. Then there was Jim Rock­ford, played by James Gar­ner — the easy­go­ing pri­vate inves­ti­ga­tor who lived in a trail­er by the beach, always jug­gling unpaid bills and bad luck, but some­how out­smart­ing every­one in the end.

And who could for­get Thomas Mag­num in his red Fer­rari, chas­ing bad guys through the Hawai­ian sun­shine while keep­ing that mus­tache per­fect­ly in place? Or Kojak, with his lol­lipop and trade­mark line, “Who loves ya, baby?” — a detec­tive so cool he made bald look fash­ion­able.

We also had Barn­a­by Jones, the old­er, wise inves­ti­ga­tor who proved you don’t have to be young to be sharp. Starsky & Hutch brought us friend­ship, fast cars, and action, while Man­nix, Can­non, and Baret­ta gave us that clas­sic mix of grit, tough­ness, and heart that only 70s TV could deliv­er.

These shows were more than mys­ter­ies — they were com­fort. They remind­ed us that the good guys still exist­ed, that smarts and per­sis­tence could over­come even the slick­est vil­lains. They reflect­ed a time when TV was sim­ple, yet full of per­son­al­i­ty. No high-tech gad­gets, no com­put­er data­bas­es — just a detective’s instincts and a moral com­pass.

And the best part? Every week end­ed with jus­tice served, and maybe a smile.

So go ahead — pick one.
Who was your favorite 70s TV detec­tive?
Was it Columbo’s qui­et bril­liance? Rockford’s charm? Magnum’s swag­ger? Or Kojak’s unfor­get­table atti­tude?

Share your choice below 👇 and tell us why. Let’s keep these leg­ends alive — because they weren’t just solv­ing crimes… they were shap­ing an era we’ll nev­er for­get.