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Father Dowling Mysteries
| Father Dowling Mysteries | |
 | |
| Premiere | pilot November 30, 1987 series January 20, 1989 |
| Finale | May 2, 1991 |
| Based on | characters created by Ralph McInerny |
| Developed by | Dean Hargrove & Joel Steiger |
| Network/Provider | NBC (season 1) ABC (seasons 2-3) |
| Style | 60-minute mystery crime drama |
| Company | Dean Hargrove Productions, The Fred Silverman Company, Viacom Productions Inc. |
| Seasons | 3 |
| Episodes | 43 + pilot movie (List of episodes) |
| Origin | USA |
Father Dowling Mysteries is a mystery crime drama that aired on NBC for one season and ABC for two seasons.
Father Francis "Frank" Dowling is a Catholic priest who continually stumbles over murders, abductions, and other high crimes in his hometown, Chicago, Illinois. He is assisted by Sister Stephanie "Steve" Oskowski, who does much of the legwork for Frank. Sister Steve is a streetwise nun who grew up in a rough housing project nearby, so she can hotwire a car and handle firearms with ease. She knows the language of the streets and converses in it fluently. The name Francis was revealed in the Episode "The Movie Mystery" when he is talking to the Detective in charge of the case and the Detective calls him Francis.
Father Philip Prestwick is the ladder-climbing assistant to the Archbishop, who just happens to drop in before meals, prepared by housekeeper Marie Murkin, who provides comic relief.
Father Dowling has a brother, Blaine, who is his twin brother and looks exactly like him (also played by Tom Bosley). Blaine appeared in only three episodes: "The Face in the Mirror Mystery," "The Woman Scorned Mystery," and "The Fugitive Priest Mystery." Blaine Dowling is a thief and con artist who isn't above framing his brother for his crimes.
A famous catchphrase of Father Dowling is when he is recorded asking Father Phil: "Father Phil, could you take 10 o'clock Mass? I've got a murder to solve."
Contents |
Cast
| Actor | Character | Duration | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Main Cast | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Tom Bosley | Father Frank Dowling | * | * | * |
| Tracy Nelson | Sister Stephanie "Steve" Laskowsky | * | * | * |
| James Stephens | Father Philip Prestwick | * | * | * |
| Mary Wickes | Marie Murkin | * | * | * |
| Regina Krueger | Sgt. Clancy | * | * | * |
Pilots
| Title | Network | Airdate | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fatal Confession | NBC | November 30, 1987 | ||||
Seasons
| Season | Premiere | Finale | # | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NBC | ||||||
| Season One | January 20, 1989 | March 10, 1989 | 8 | |||
| ABC | ||||||
| Season Two | January 4, 1990 | April 26, 1990 | 13 | |||
| Season Three | September 20, 1990 | May 2, 1991 | 22 | |||
In-Depth
- At a Glance: Additional information about the series
DVD Releases
| Title | Release | Discs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Complete Series (Region 1) | ||||||
| The Complete Series | June 6, 2017 | purchase | 10 | |||
| Season Sets (Region 1) | ||||||
| The First Season | February 7, 2012 | purchase | 2 | |||
| The Second Season | July 10, 2012 | purchase | 3 | |||
| The Final Season | March 12, 2013 | purchase | 5 | |||
