There's a secret love triangle hidden in this Adam-12 episode

The Emergency! crossover episode gives us an excuse to unpack how Julie London was married to Jack Webb before Bobby Troup.

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One of the rare cross-over episodes of Jack Webb's two brilliant series Adam-12 and Emergency! is called "Lost and Found."

It features a young boy who gives his parents a real fright when he runs away from the hospital, causing them to call in officers Pete Malloy and Jim Reed. And it gives us an excuse to see favorite characters from Emergency! like Dr. Joe Early and head nurse Dixie McCall visit Adam-12 and interact with its stars.

Which then gives us an excuse to talk about the romantic entanglements of Jack Webb's world.

It's possible that you are aware that the actors who play Dr. Joe and nurse Dixie were married in the real world.

Bobby Troup and Julie London met in 1954. He saw her performing as a jazz singer in nightclubs and he knew he wanted to produce a record for her. Boy, did he fall hard for London in the process, and soon after, he helped her record her debut album Julie Is Her Name with the hit song "Cry me a River."

Troup's helping hand made sure she landed a record deal with Liberty that made her even more famous. After five years of being sweethearts, they tied the knot in 1959.

This was not London's first marriage, however. In fact, the story goes that just two weeks before that fateful meeting with Bobby in the jazz club, London had just finalized the divorce from her first marriage — to Jack Webb.

Webb married London in 1947, just after she had turned 21 and was beginning to turn heads as a rising star. You can see the two together that year in the photograph on the upper left. She'd been acting while still in high school, taking uncredited parts in movies after gaining notice through a modeling gig with Esquire.

Like any beautiful, talented actor of this era, for London those bit parts added up and after a few years, Warner Bros. actually offered her a contract. That led to bigger roles until she landed a lead role across from Rock Hudson in 1951.

London meets Malloy and Reed on 'Adam-12' / London collaborated with Troup on her album 'Julie Is Her Name'

By then, Warner was done with her, but Universal offered to sign her. At that point four years into her marriage, London decided to turn down Universal. She wanted to focus on putting her all into her relationship with Webb, but by that point, it seemed to be too late. The couple divorced in 1954.

They remained amicable, though, with Webb clearly still casting London in his shows and even using her songs to score dramatic moments he penned for the screen.

Troup ended up being London's true love, and the cross-over episode of Adam-12 is one of three times they appeared onscreen together outside of Emergency!

The first time we saw the married couple together was in the Rawhide episode "Incident at Rojo Canyon." It featured London as a singer performing in a roadshow. Troup appears alongside her as her manager. (These roles really weren't too different from the dynamic between the couple in the recording studio!)

Then in 1968, they appeared making music together in The Big Valley episode "They Called Her Delilah." London appears as another beautiful singer, and this time Troup plays a piano player.

It was her singing that had made Troup swoon and fall in love at first sight. He could barely contain his admiration five decades later when he told The New York Times, "She sure could sing. She has perfect intonation. Hits the note right on the head. It's just gorgeous."

We saw the couple share the screen the most watching Emergency!, though, and on that show, they even invited the kids along. Their daughters Ronne and Kelly both appeared in episodes and together in "Saddled." Were you aware of this family affair?

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20 Comments

RedSamRackham 14 months ago
* Ronne Troup was Chip's wife Polly on My 3 Sons!
34 months ago
I always felt Jack Webb carried a torch for her, all the rest of his life. I had a problem with her never-ending attempts to look "sultry." It made her seem humorless, unapproachable.
kimmer 40 months ago
As kids we knew Bobby and Julie as jazz musicians. So it was great to see them cast in a show together. Jack and the background notes are a bonus. So great to know that there are some great Hollywood stories that weren't always so dramatic, and filled with such distain.
Rick 41 months ago
Jack Webb was a class act. He was very loyal to his friends. He respect for Julie and Bobby is an example that many can learn from. And Julie’s ability to get over whatever broke up their marriage and Bobby’s ability to work with her ex-husband is a sign of what great people they all were. I also found it ironic that on Emergency, Julie’s character was involved with Robert Fullers character and NOT Bobby Troups character.
41 months ago
Jack Webb sounds like a very generous man, hiring both London & Troup many times on his shows.
ELEANOR 41 months ago
And let's not forget that he appeared in several episodes of Perry Mason, and in one he played an original composition on the piano.
daDoctah 41 months ago
Bobby also appeared in several episodes of "77 Sunset Strip", playing (essentially) himself: a pianist named Bobby. That's before Webb took over the show for the ill-advised season six.
Deleted 41 months ago
This comment has been removed.
41 months ago
It is INTERMINABLE! Between that commercial, Joe Namath & Mike Lindell, I am soooo grateful for the invention of the remote control & fast-forwarding!
justjeff 41 months ago
Joe Namath, a weathy retired sports jock telling us about Medicare benefits is like asking a proctologist to give you advice about your toothache... and don't get me started on Mike Lindell. Does he *ever* change his shirt???

I sometimes like to read customer reviews of "as seen on TV" products to either back up or correct my suspicions of the product(s)... and "MyPillow" has been reamed for being overpriced, underperforming and a total waste of time and money. "If it seems too good to be true...it usually is"...

This is why I DO NOT have any air fry convection ovens, ceramic cookware, special sunglasses, ginsu knives, "his" pillows or any other the kajillions of items that are hot today, but forgotten tomorrow.

Anyone remember the Buttoneer, Popeil Pocket Fisherman, Discwasher (to clean LPs), and all the other hokum advertised on 70s TV? MeTV showcased a few of them a while back...
Jdelks72 41 months ago
Totally fed up. It's better to dvr the shows so I can fast forward those away.
nerakr 41 months ago
Jack and Bobby must've gotten along, too. Bobby guest-starred on Dragnet several times.
justjeff nerakr 41 months ago
...and lest we forget, Bobby Troup wrote what became one of Nat 'King' Cole's earliest and most popular hits with his King Cole Trio... "(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66"...
Dlaws justjeff 33 months ago
One of my absolute faves and, of course, recalls another vintage TV show, Route 66! Too bad Troup's tune wasn't that show's theme. :)
RedSamRackham justjeff 14 months ago
* Later recorded by Rolling Stones!
BrittReid 41 months ago
Always loved Julie's voice..........and everything else.
justjeff 41 months ago
Julie London possesed a smoky, sultry voice that not only typified the "Bachelor Pad" era music of the 1950s, but of the "lounge" jazz genre of that era. Add to this, she was drop-dead gorgeous!

Jack Webb was a true gentleman - despite whatever failures of their marriage, and no matter who carried more of the blame for its demise, Webb still saw the unique talents his ex-wife possessed and did not let his personal emotions stand in the way of casting her (or using her voice) in various productions.

Most of us could take note and learn that lesson in life before we immerse ourselves into relationships - you both were friends at first... if things don't work out, at least maintain that freindship and respect for each other.

Sometimes a life-long friend is better than a short-term love affair...
justjeff 41 months ago
Julie London didn't sing. She whispered.
justjeff Pilaf 41 months ago
I've got a number of tracks by her... her voice was more than a whisper. She just wasn't a "belter"...
Dlaws justjeff 33 months ago
Amen to that philosophy.
Kenner 41 months ago
She even sang the Marlboro song, I remember. I read she smoked 3 packs a day.
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