Context

This line is spoken by Joe Friday, played by Jack Webb, in the TV show Dragnet (1951-1959).

This line pops up in the iconic introduction to the Dragnet series. After the announcer assures us that the story we're about to see is totally true (oooh!) Joe Friday comes on the scene. He begins by setting the scene—"This is the city: Los Angeles, California." Then he tells us exactly who he is and what the facts of the case are.

The voiceover for this show would become famous and be copied by all sort of folks who, like Joe Friday, are looking for "just the facts ma'am."

Where you've heard it

This line sets the scene for a gritty crime drama pretty well. But, it's also pretty good at introducing you to any new place. "This is the city: Cleveland, Ohio." Oh, so ominous.

Additional Notable References:

• An episode of the 1968 show It Takes a Thief opened with the line, "This is the city: Washington D.C. My name's Mundy. I'm a thief."
• This Las Vegas used car lot made reference to Dragnet's iconic line in a commercial for its "disappearing" cars.
• This line also made its way into the 1987 movie remake of Dragnet.

Pretentious Factor

If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.

Joe Friday wasn't exactly a laid back, down-to-earth guy, so you might come off a little stiff quoting him, too.