The Hardy Boys Mysteries and The Nancy Drew Mysteries began in 1977 as separate series alternating in the same time slot on ABC. Early the following year, the casts combined, and in the fall of 1978 the Nancy Drew thread was dropped and The Hardy Boys Mysteries continued on alone. This Season One boxed set captures the twin-series idea at its most ambitious, with adolescent brothers Frank and Joe Hardy, created by author Franklin W. Dixon, sleuthing for clues one week and Carolyn Keene's Nancy Drew investigating crimes the next.
Actually, as fans of the books know, Dixon and Keene were both pen names used by Edward Stratemeyer when he created those characters in 1927. Just as the young detectives have been updated in print every so often to accommodate successive generations of readers, so too did the TV show present Joe (Shaun Cassidy, brother of David Cassidy of The Partridge Family), Frank (Parker Stevenson), and Nancy (Pamela Sue Martin) as thoroughly 1970s kids. The boys are outfitted with motorcycles, Joe enjoys a retro-pop singing career, and Nancy has a certain freedom of movement only the hippest of dads in a permissive age would allow. Hardy Boys finds the always-amicable siblings following in the footsteps of their father, Fenton (Edmund Gilbert), a private detective, as they untangle capers that take them from haunted houses to Hawaii. The Hardy episodes make for brisk, family viewing, much better than the bubblegum reputation that built up, undeservedly, around the series. Slightly less interesting are the Nancy Drew programs (despite a more entertaining supporting cast), but only because the heroine is less focused and distractingly man-crazy, and the storylines are less exotic. An emphasis on the supernatural and science-fiction themes lends a Scooby-Doo vibe to several programs in both series, though the best stories are the ones with straightforward, meat-and-potatoes detective work. Among the directors on either series are Jack Arnold (The Creature from the Black Lagoon), Winrich Kolbe (Star Trek: The Next Generation), and actors Vince Edwards and Stuart Margolin. --Tom Keogh
The Hardy Boys Mysteries and
The Nancy Drew Mysteries Trivia
• Jamie Lee Curtis and Robert Englund, who
played the biker couple Mary and Gar in an
episode of this series, started acting in
horror films during this era.
Product Description
Follow the clues to mystery, adventure and
thrills as Season One of the The Hardy Boys
Nancy Drew Mysteries comes to DVD for the
first time ever! Teen sensations Shaun
Cassidy, Parker Stevenson and Pamela Sue
Martin star as brave super-sleuths in 14
spooky episodes loaded with spellbinding
action and smash-hit pop songs, including
Shaun Cassidy’s #1 hit "Da Doo Ron Ron."
Inspired by the hugely popular books and
with an amazing lineup of guest stars,
including Jamie Lee Curtis, Mark Harmon, Bob
Crane, Rick Nelson and more, it’s no
surprise that The Hardy Boys Nancy Drew
Mysteries is an open-and-shut case for fun!
First Season
During the first season individual episodes were entirely focused either on the Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew, and aired alternately.
| # | Original air date | Title |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | January 30, 1977 | The Mystery of the Haunted House |
| 2. | February 6, 1977 | The Mystery of Pirate's Cove |
| 3. | February 13, 1977 | The Mystery of Witch's Hollow |
| 4. | February 20, 1977 | The Mystery of the Diamond Triangle |
| 5. | March 6, 1977 | The Disappearing Floor |
| 6. | March 13, 1977 | The Secret of the Whispering Walls |
| 7. | March 27, 1977 | The Flickering Torch Mystery |
| 8. | April 3, 1977 | A Haunting We Will Go |
| 9. | April 10, 1977 | The Mystery of the Flying Courier |
| 10. | April 17, 1977 | Mystery of the Fallen Angels |
| 11. | April 24, 1977 | Wipe-Out |
| 12. | May 1, 1977 | The Mystery of the Ghostwriter's Cruise |
| 13. | May 15, 1977 | The Secret of the Jade Kwan Yin |
| 14. | May 22, 1977 | Mystery of the Solid Gold Kicker |
