A fictional account of Hoover’s G-men, as seen through the eyes of prolific television producer Quinn Martin, it was a pretty safe bet that The F.B.I. wasn’t going to be a lighthearted whimsical romp. Make no mistake - fighting crime is serious business and these men, each of them squeaky-clean, flag-loving federal agents, stood ready to arrest anyone who dared break the law.

Considering their differing political views, it is a wonder that Quinn Martin and J. Edgar Hoover were able to see eye to eye and collaborate on a television series. Their pairing came at the urging of both ABC and the Ford Motor Company, who managed to get the two in a room together to work out the details. Hoover would serve as an advisor throughout the series and even allowed scenes to be filmed at the real F.B.I. Headquarters in Washington D.C.

Debuting in 1965, The F.B.I. featured Efrem Zimbalist Jr. in the starring role as the no-nonsense Inspector Lewis Erskine. Following the tragic loss of his wife as the result of a gun battle, Erskine devoted all of his tireless energy to the Bureau, burying his emotions and taking on a soft-as-granite persona that was literally impenetrable. His men followed his lead, each of them clean cut defenders of justice and the American way. At Erskine's side were Agent Jim Rhodes and Tom Colby,  capable men who spent their days investigating perpetrators, apprehending them, and reprimanding at every opportunity. Each episode would end with Zimbalist breaking character (at least as much as he was able) to present viewers with information about real-life fugitives that the F.B.I. hoped to bring to justice. One such person spotlighted in 1968 was James Earl Jones, who had just recently assassinated the Rev. Martin Luther King.

The F.B.I. kept its distance from such hotbed topics as the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War, preferring to focus on kidnappers, bank robbers and the like. It’s no-nonsense cold depiction of the Government agency was often criticized but that didn’t keep the show from remaining in the Top 20 for each of the nine years that it aired. And much to the surprise of the show’s production team, Hoover actually didn’t meddle at all with scripts or storylines. His only demand was that the shows always depict the agents using proper procedure.

They did so without fault, never lapsing into dereliction of duty or getting sidetracked with a sappy love interest. There was no bumbling, no goofing around, no Huggy Bear to lighten the mood. Hoover wanted America to know that crime fighting wasn't a joking matter and The F.B.I. served his purposes well, all while entertaining the masses each week for almost a decade.