Matlock: The Sixth Season

The legal drama-cum-mystery series MATLOCK originally debuted on NBC in late September 1986. Produced on the heels of the popular telemovie RETURN TO MAYBERRY (which had aired to record-breaking Nielsen ratings the preceding April), it brought Andy Griffith's folksy charm back to prime-time in a much different capacity. This time around, in lieu of playing small-town sheriff Andy Taylor, Griffith portrayed Ben Matlock, a well-to-do, Harvard-educated Atlanta defense attorney who combined the deductive skills of a legal shark with the same sort of folksy, down-home southern charm seen in Mayberry. Episodes (which frequently earned comparisons in the press to Perry Mason) found Ben typically working for individuals unjustly accused of criminal activity, and attempting to prove their innocence in court - which he often did via astonishing last minute evidence inducted into the proceedings. Season Six of MATLOCK (of Nine) originally ran from the fall of 1991 through the spring of 1992; it began with a two-hour telemovie and wrapped with a two-hour finale. This is the season that found Ben targeted by a serial strangler, investigating a murder in his hometown, considering giving up the legal profession altogether, and much more; it was also the season that wrapped up the appearances of Don Knotts's character, Les Calhoun. This box set of MATLOCK contains all 18 episodes from Season Six, including the feature-length opener and closer.