I feel that I should mention first of all that apart from watching the movie-length pilot for this series recently, I never got the chance to watch the regular show, being much too young when it was first broadcast and the fact that Paramount seems to have permanently shelved the actual series. While I do think that the production was more than inspired by the TV show "Ironside" - another show about an investigator who was handicapped - from what I saw there was some promise. In this pilot, the scenes showing the title protagonist investigating are very interesting, and show that someone investigating without the use of sight could have lead to some very interesting investigation. However, since what I saw was a pilot, there is far more stuff involving the hero learning how to cope without sight, and this leads the actual investigation to be very little of the movie. Worst of all, the hero is never given the opportunity to confront the criminals that made him blind - their trackdown and arrest happen offscreen! I'm sure that the subsequent series didn't have these problems, so I would have given the show a chance had I been around to - ahem - see it.

A series that truly had depth and got you into the character more then any series today. Brilliantly scripted, directed and acted. Anyone having issues coping with life on any level will find the show inspiring. Yes the mystery aspect was well done, but more well done is the portrayal of a man overcoming impossible odds to strive and persevere. Add to this some bonus episodes of the incomparable Bruce Lee and you have a winner of a series. It's a true crime that the series did not continue, because it had a depth rarely found in series of the time, or in fact on TV today. Longstreet is one of those rare treasures waiting to be found by those who wish to dig.

I remember that for the fall of 1971 NBC moved "Ironside" from its longtime Thursday slot to Tuesday, and ABC decided that another show about a physically-challenged detective could fill the Thursday slot. As it turned out, "Ironside" ran into ratings problems against "Mod Squad," also on ABC, while "Longstreet" got as high as fifth in the Nielsen ratings. NBC quickly put "Ironside" back on Thursdays. Maybe Raymond Burr's snarling, intimidating personality made more of an impression than the more laid-back James Franciscus, best known at the time as English teacher Mr. Novak.But that doesn't change the fact that "Longstreet" was a good show that happened to meet an early end; not only did we get to see the hero, who was blind, at work, but also learning how to cope with his new handicap. Maybe people didn't tune in week after week to get lessons on how to cope with blindness but I think it added a dimension to the show. And add to that the great supporting cast: Marlyn Mason as Longstreet's Braille teacher and assistant; Peter Mark Richman as his co-worker at the insurance company; Bruce Lee on the few occasions he appeared; and one of the most beautiful dogs I've ever seen--Pax, Longstreet's German shepherd guide dog. The characters on this show are likable, the violence is held to a minimum, and it's a shame ABC didn't give it a second season, maybe on a different night.And just how does a sighted actor play a sightless character? Franciscus once said he had to learn to unfocus his eyes, and I remember an article in the Atlanta Constitution shortly after the series ended that said he suffered from real vision problems for a time because of this.The only question I've always had is how Longstreet, even with the use of an electronic cane, always knew when to tell Pax to make a left or right turn.Definitely well-written, well-acted, and a winner no matter if ABC didn't give it a second chance.

This series was a cut above the rest of the TV detective series of the day but somehow didn't find an audience.The idea of a blind detective may not be totally new but added so much to the story. And who could forget Pax, the beautiful guide dog in the series!Whilst the stories themselves may have been no better than the average series, the settings , in New Orleans, the acting and the music (I note the comment about the music score in other comments ...I remember that clearly) all work to make a good television series even better!Well you never know ...one day Paramount might just dig into its archives and release it on DVD!