User Reviews

OUR STORY……………………..A finely regarded neighborhood general practitioner , Dr. Anna Chaloupka (Jo Van Fleet) has troubles with a neighbor's boy and his growing pains problems. The college aged boy, Joey Selken (Peter Fonda) is the son of local druggist, Jack Selken (George Voskovec) who is a widower. Dr. Chaloupka helps to fill in the gaps in their lives by having meals with them and helping financially; including aiding in the financial a$pect$ of his College Education. In turn, this arrangement serves well in negating the void in the good Doctor's life also. The Family Practice she maintains is indeed her life: as Dr. Chaloupka is a middle-aged, unmarried woman.

Joey Selken still sees one of the old gang from the neighborhood, Phillip (Martin Sheen), who has gone directly into the workforce following the matriculation after their commencement from their P.S. whatever it was. Phillip is employed as a truck driver but has certain tendencies that would seem to be those of a street gang member.

One night, while the two are driving around Phillip gets the idea to get back at one of Joey's old employer's and, with Joey stand watch outside, The unknown presence of a watchman inside of the building led to Phillip's getting shot and wounded in his leg.

Joey takes him to Dr. Chaloupka, who treats his wound, but fails to inform the Police. The two then flee and attempt to hide out; while the traumatized limb heals. They attempt some short-term rentals; including a most bizarre and amusing interaction with an unscrupulous former circus performing dwarf, turned landlord.

Meanwhile, the Detective Squad, represented by Lt. Parker (Horace McMahon), Sgt. Arcaro (Harry Bellaver) and Det. Adam Flint (Paul Burke), shows up and distills a strictly B.S. story from the Watchman (Eli Mintz) down to the truth. Apparently Detective Flint is familiar with the neighborhood, the Family Practice of Dr. Chaloupka and the Drug Store. He surmises sort of just what has gone down; extending his hypothesis to involvement by Dr. Anna.

The meandering storyline finally culminates with the truth coming to the foreground and the result being what is sometimes referred to in Police Department jargon as a "Station Adjustment". No one gets arrested, no charges placed, no one is compelled to stand trial and no "going up the river!" NAKED CITY: The Night the Saints Lost Their Halos is a fine drama; being highly realistic from this perspective. It has a Working Class and therefore quite Blue Collar setting. It also reminds us of days of not so long ago when we all basically lived in our own ethnic conclaves. In this case it is in a predominantly Jewish neighborhood. This universal truth persists to this day; but not to the extent of former years.

This episode is truthfully and unspectacularly constructed so as to bring us a look into what sort of an incident really might become a Police incident.

In looking at the hour drama from a retrospective of 40 + years, we find it to be just chock-full of surprise. Just as so many of the Series' other installments are found to have guest stars from the both Film and the Broadway Stage. In this case we have the pleasure of seeing two future Film Stars who would certainly never be accused of being too low profile. The 2 young men who got into trouble were the real thing; the real Peter Fonda and Martin Sheen.

NOTE: * Wasn't that "Bagdad on the Trolley" what O. Henry called New York City? POODLE SCHNITZ!!

***SPOILERS*** It's when the straight as an arrow and law abiding collage boy Joey Selken,Peter Fonda, runs into an old chum of his from the old neighborhood,the Lower East Side of Manhattan, part time truck driver and full time hoodlum Philly Kosnik,Martin Sheen, that his simple and non involving life, in avoiding the mean streets of NYC, came to a sudden end. Encouraged to go with Philly on a night raid of a local clothing store where Joey works at Philly is shot by the reluctant night watchman Harry, Eli Mitz, who would rather be asleep then watching out for burglars.

With his not too bright friend Philly now in danger of bleeding to death Joey has no choice but to get him medical help from and old family friend of his Dr. Anna Chaloupka,Jo Van Fleet, who's been over the years like a mother to him. It's Dr. Choloupka who has a practice not far where Joey and his windowed dad, who's having an affair with the doctor,the local druggist Jack Selken, George Voskovec, lives! It becomes very evident that the badly injured Philly needs to be hospitalized but in him doing in fear that he's to be reported by his attending physician Dr. Chaloupka to the NYPD in suffering from a gunshot wound! Not waiting to end up both in the hospital and later in jail, for the attempted robbery of the clothing store, after he recovers Philly gets his friend Joey to drive him down to Coney Island in Brooklyn where he can chill out in a fleabag hotel on the boardwalk until the heat's off! He'll chill out all right when he goes into shock and ends up stone cold dead from loss of blood!

***SPOILERS*** It's Joey who finally gets enough courage to do the right thing in not cow towing to everything that his friend Philly tells him by getting him the help, at a local hospital emergency ward,that he so desperately needs to save his life. As for Dr.Chaloupka she puts her doctor's licenses to practice medicine on the line, by treating Philly, to finally reporting Philly's injury with the encouragement of the kindly understanding and with it,in being an expert in his deep knowledge of the workings of the human mind, Det. Flint, Paul Burke. It was as usual Det. Flint in his almost if not always on target deep and penetrating observations of human behavior that turned out to be dead on! Philly's life was saved and Joey got his confidence and self respect back with Dr. Chaloupka and Joeys pop Mr.Selken finally trying the knot.