Product Details

• Actors: James Garner, Noah Beery Jr., Joe Santos, Burt Young, Ken Swofford
• Directors: Bruce Kessler, Christian I. Nyby II, Jeannot Szwarc, Jerry London, Lawrence Dobkin
• Format: Box set, Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 5
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Universal Studios
• DVD Release Date: February 27, 2007
• Run Time: 1089 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000LXGXY8
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #6,840 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #5 in

  Movies & TV > Mystery & Suspense > Television > The Rockford Files

• For more information about "The Rockford Files - Season Three" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

• This is item 3 in The The Rockford Files Series.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Much like his trusty Pontiac Firebird, The Rockford Files was a particularly well-oiled machine by the third year. Everything was clicking into place, from the writing to the acting (writer/producer David Chase went on to create The Sopranos). Despite a terrific supporting cast, James Garner was always the main draw, and he received an Emmy for the series during year three (1976-1977). Considering that the show was carefully pitched between drama and comedy, it was well deserved as Garner excelled at both. Notable episodes include "Feeding Frenzy," in which Rockford returns stolen loot for a client; "Drought at Indian Head River," in which informant Angel (Stuart Margolin) reinvents himself as a real estate developer; and "Rattler's Class of '63," in which Angel ties the knot. Among the guest stars are such hip cats as Blazing Saddles's Cleavon Little ("Sticks and Stones May Break Your Bones...") and Cool Hand Luke's Strother Martin ("The Trees, the Bees, and T.T. Flowers"). Ned Beatty also drops by as a buddy from Korea ("Return to the 38th Parallel"), while R&B legend Isaac Hayes returns as prison pal Gandy Fitch ("Just Another Polish Wedding").

As usual, there are plenty of good lines, like Robert Loggia's "I expect him to tell me the truth. If he doesn't, he's gonna end up in the flower business--as a soil additive" ("Drought at Indian Head River") and Garner's "Stop batting your eyes like that or you're gonna get a muscle spasm" ("Return to the 38th Parallel"). The best part about season three is simply that it adds depth to Rockford's relationships with the four people most important to him: Angel, dad Rocky (Noah Beery Jr.), detective Becker (Joe Santos), and attorney Beth (Gretchen Corbett). The only extra feature is "Quickie Nirvana," an episode from the fourth season. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Product Description

Movie DVD

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It only gets better with age...., February 10, 2007

By	Terry L. Vinson (Nashville, TN United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Unlike most long-running (five years or more) TV shows, The Rockford Files only seemed to grow more entertaining as seasons passed. This is, of course, due to solid writing and acting, but also the fleshing out of many of the regular characters, including Angel, Beth and Dennis. It goes without saying that James Garners breezy characterization of Rockford rates as one of the best in TV history. I look forward to collecting the entire series, and hopefully the many TV movies that came in their wake.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rockford Files - The Best TV show ever!!, February 7, 2007

By	Johnoconnor "Jack ' ABBA NUT" (Wallingford CT USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

James Garner is a great actor and Jim Rockford is his greatest character. Backed by an excellent supporting cast and superlative writing, this show never gets old despite the fact that I've seen each episode a gazillion times. Whether he is peddling a slick con to a gullible, greedy crook. bailing sleazy Angel out for the umpteenth time, turning the tables on the bad guys in the end with Dennis and the cavalry coming in the door at the last minute, Jim, (Garner or Rockford - who knows?) makes an extremely appealing character who everyone would like to have as a friend or buddy. Add a number of beautiful woman who never seem to be able to corral Jim and you have a series for the ages.

31 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Season Three-"The Rockford Files" Develops a Social Concience, February 22, 2007

By	givbatam3 "givbatam3" (REHOVOT Israel) - See all my reviews

It was in this season that the series had many of its finest episodes.
Although there is no such thing as a "bad" episode of Rockford Files, and I would give five stars to each season, it was in this season that series really hit its stride. In the first season, most episodes were about Rockford helping some beautiful "damsel in distress", even ones who get involved with mobsters. In the second season, we see Jim getting into serious trouble frequently because he allows himself to be used as a patsy, even by close friends, and frankly, this sometimes gets on my nerves, even if it is by the otherwise lovable Angel Martin (it should be pointed out that the audience didn't care for this either since the ratings for the show declined during that season). However, in Season 3 there was a major turnaround. We now see stories about Jim encountering real problems and real abuses people have with the police and other institutions who often abuse their power. For example, there is the two-part episode "The Bees, the Trees and T T Flowers" where Strother Martin puts in a fine performance of a eccentric older man who is falsely declared senile and incompetant in order to gain control of his property. Another excellent two-parter is "To Protect and to Serve" where Joyce Van Patten plays a lonely, bitter woman who's only pleasure in life is hanging around the police (who mistakenly allow it) and secretly enjoying seeing other peoples' tragedies. Another episode, which is James Garner's favorite is one where he is jailed for contempt of court, showing the abuses of the District Attorney's powers to compel people to testify, in defiance of their concience. It was also in this season the Rockford's biggest police nemesis, Lt Chapman, is introduced.
If someone wants a good introduction to the series, I would recommend this as the first DVD set to purchase.