History Series / Banacek

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

Also featured were Ralph Manza as Banacek's chauffeur Jay Drury, Murray Matheson as rare-bookstore owner and information source Felix Mulholland and Christine Belford as Carlie Kirkland, Banacek's sometime-lover and always-rival.

* ComputerEqualsTapedrive: In "If Max Is So Smart, Why Doesn't He Tell Us Where He Is?", the object stolen is Max; a 1970s supercomputer with spinning tape drives and blinking lights that takes up half a room. [[spoiler:It's a justified trope in this case as the computer was a fake. All the lights, dials and spinning reels were for show. The cabinets that the components were mounted to had wood paneling on the back that were designed to be reversed and fitted to look like the far wall.]]

* ComputerEqualsTapedrive: In "If Max Is So Smart, Why Doesn't He Tell Us Where He Is?", the object stolen is Max; a 1970s supercomputer with spinning tape drives and blinking lights that takes up half a room.

* InsuranceFraud: The thefts are frequently orchestrated by the owner.

* NoPronunciationGuide: Banacek has to correct someone's pronunciation of his name in ''every'' episode. Not Banna-seck but Banna-check. (And sometimes he corrects the spelling: "B-A-N-A-C-E-K, just like it sounds.")

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: In the pilot, Carlie sarcastically guesses that a battery-powered device Banacek is fiddling with is a Polish vibrator.

''Banacek'' (one of the [[WheelProgram rotating]] elements of ''Series/TheNBCMysteryMovie'') is a short-lived, light-hearted detective TV series starring Creator/GeorgePeppard which aired on NBC from 1972 to 1974. Peppard played Thomas Banacek, a suave, Polish-American freelance investigator based in UsefulNotes/{{Boston}}, who solved seemingly impossible thefts. He then collected from the insurance companies 10% of the insured value of the recovered property.

''Banacek'' (one of the [[WheelProgram rotating]] elements of ''Series/TheNBCMysteryMovie'') is a short-lived, light-hearted detective TV series starring George Peppard which aired on NBC from 1972 to 1974. Peppard played Thomas Banacek, a suave, Polish-American freelance investigator based in UsefulNotes/{{Boston}}, who solved seemingly impossible thefts. He then collected from the insurance companies 10% of the insured value of the recovered property.

Banacek (one of the [[WheelProgram rotating]] elements of ''Series/TheNBCMysteryMovie'') is a short-lived, light-hearted detective TV series starring George Peppard which aired on NBC from 1972 to 1974. Peppard played Thomas Banacek, a suave, Polish-American freelance investigator based in UsefulNotes/{{Boston}}, who solved seemingly impossible thefts. He then collected from the insurance companies 10% of the insured value of the recovered property.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/banacek_dvd.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:"A truly wise man never plays leapfrog with a unicorn."]]

* AnimalAssassin: In "Horse Of A Slightly Different Color", a jockey is murdered by being knocked unconscious and dumped in a stall with a wild stallion that tramples him to death.
* BellyDancer: Little Egypt shakes her hips in "[[http://gorillavid.in/rpw75snxy856 The Vanishing Chalice]]".
* CasinoEpisode: One episode is "A Million The Hard Way" in which a casino put $1 million in cash in a display case for patrons to pose beside. The money disappears while an elderly couple are being photographed beside it.

* AHandfulForAnEye: In "Horse Of A Slightly Different Color", Banacek is able to disarm a gunman by flinging a soapy cloth into his eyes.

* PrettyInMink: The girl Banacek brings back to his house at the start of "Horse Of A Slightly Different Color" is wearing a fur coat, which she takes off as she she drapes herself seductively in front of the fireplace.

* TapOnTheHead: Banacek gets floored by a tap on the head in "Horse Of A Slightly Different Color".

* ForkliftFu: A thief uses a forklift to kill Banacek on the docks in "The Three Million Dollar Piracy".

* ImpossibleTheft: Every episode involves Banacek investigating some sort of impossible theft; whether that is due to size (e.g. a 3 ton sculpture, location (e.g. a car stolen off a moving train), or security (e.g. a book from a sealed case ringed with alarm systems).

* InsuranceFraud: The only type of crime investigated.

* CoolCar: The AMX-400 from the second episode.

* DeliveryGuyInfiltration: In "If Max Is So Smart, Why Doesn't He Tell Us Where He Is?", various flunkies are preventing Banacek from getting into a hospital room to talk to the owner of the stolen supercomputer. Banacek dons a white coat, picks up two bunches of flowers and waltzes into her room unnoticed. Bonus points for him proceeding to arrange the flowers in a vase while conducting his interrogation.

* [[BaseballEpisode Football Episode]]: "Lets Hear It For a Living Legend"

* ToyotaTripwire: In "Now You See Me, Now You Don't", a gunman forces Banacek to get into his car and then goes to climb in the passenger side. As he does so, Banacek reserves and knocks him down with the open door.

Banacek (one of the [[WheelProgram rotating]] elements of ''Series/TheNBCMysteryMovie'') is a short-lived, light-hearted detective TV series starring George Peppard which aired on NBC from 1972 to 1974. Peppard played Thomas Banacek, a suave, Polish-American freelance investigator based in Boston, who solved seemingly impossible thefts. He then collected from the insurance companies 10% of the insured value of the recovered property.

** In "Ten Thousand Dollars a Page", a valuable book is stolen by having it drop into a specially constructed niche in it display case. It seems to vanish and the display shows no sign having being opened because it hasn't.

* TechnologyMarchesOn: The room sized computer in "If Max Is So Smart, Why Doesn't HE Tell Us Where He Is?"; Banacek's car phone.

* SmartPeoplePlayChess: Banacek and Felix are often shown playing chess. Banacek can mentally recreate the position of the board ffor a game he played several days ago.

* LovelyAssistant: In "Now You See Me, Now You Don't", the vanishing StageMagician was using his daughter as his lovely assistant.

* FallOfTheHouseOfCards: In "Fly Me -- If You Can Find Me", Felix is attempting to break the world record for the tallest house of cards. The whole thing comes tumbling down when Banacek calls him, and Felix realises that he has built the house cards over the top of the phone.