City Detective is a half-hour syndicated crime drama starring Rod Cameron as 43-year-old Bart Grant, a tough 1950s New York City police lieutenant. The first of three consecutive Rod Cameron series, City Detective aired between January 1, 1953 and May 10, 1955. Late in 1953, the publication Variety noted that the series had been sold to 1,971 television stations, a then syndication record. Numerous actors who appeared on City Detective later landed roles on established network series, including Barbara Billingsley and Hugh Beaumont, who appeared in separate episodes some three years before they were cast as the concerned parents in the sitcom Leave It to Beaver. Madge Blake, a peripheral figure in Leave It to Beaver as well as the Walter Brennan series The Real McCoys, also guest starred on City Detective. Andy Clyde, who played Madge Blake's brother on The Real McCoys, appeared as Pop in the 1955 episode "Desert Ice". Doris Packer of Leave It to Beaver and The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis appeared as Florence in the episode "Sixteen Vertical". Frances Bavier, later "Aunt Bee" on CBS's The Andy Griffith Show, appeared three times on City Detective. Lloyd Corrigan, a co-star of the future NBC sitcom Happy, appeared as Shoreham in the 1954 episode "A Safe Combination". Jean Byron, the mother on ABC's The Patty Duke Show appeared twice on City Detective.