TV series
Jake and the Fatman is a television crime drama starring William Conrad as prosecutor J. L. "Fatman" McCabe and Joe Penny as investigator Jake Styles. The series ran on CBS for five seasons from 1987 to 1992. Diagnosis: Murder was a spin-off of this series.
Availability
Checked Jul 22, 2026
Jake and the Fatman premiered September 26, 1987. We don't have a confirmed streaming, rental or purchase option yet.
Jake and the Fatman is a television crime drama starring William Conrad as prosecutor J. L. "Fatman" McCabe and Joe Penny as investigator Jake Styles. The series ran on CBS for five seasons from 1987 to 1992. Diagnosis: Murder was a spin-off of this series.
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Episode 1
Senator candidate Kyle Williams' lover is killed after she threatens to reveal their affair. His speechwriter admits to him that he was the murderer, but threatens to frame him unless he cooperates.
Where to watch Jake and the Fatman
Episode 2
Carson Warfield is having an affair with his stepmother, and together they kill his father and frame a thief who used to work for them. When things don't add up McCabe gets suspicious, and starts nosing around.
Where to watch Jake and the Fatman
Episode 3
Carson Warfield is having an affair with his stepmother, and together they kill his father and frame a thief who used to work for them. When things don't add up McCabe gets suspicious, and starts nosing around.
Where to watch Jake and the Fatman
Episode 4
Jake's former partner is killed by his fiancée in an alley. She blames the murder on a Latin kid she saw stealing a VCR just before she pulled the trigger.
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Episode 5
A wealthy lawyer kills his ex-wife's new man and frames her for the murder. She is arrested, and he takes the job of being her lawyer.
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Episode 6
A call girl discovers that her pimp uses her to smuggle drugs. She contacts McCabe, but is killed just as they meet.
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Episode 7
For some time David Thompson has gone out and killed bums, so that the police believe a serial killer is loose. Then when he lures his brother to an alley and kills him the same way, he won't be a suspect.
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Episode 8
""Mad"" Marvin Michaels, the owner of an electronics store, is killed, and ex-con Bradford Long is the main suspect. McCabe assigns the case to the cop Karen Stetson, whose father was killed by Long.
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Episode 9
Glen Latimer pushes his newly married rich wife Nancy of their boat, but she survives and is brought to a hospital. She is unsure if it was just an accident, so Jake goes befriends Glen posing as Nancy's brother.
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Episode 10
Ed Galvin escapes while he is being transported to prison, after threatening the life of McCabe and Andy Harmon (the cop who arrested him) during his trial.
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Episode 11
A burglar kills a woman and blinds her nurse before fleeing. The police catch him, but have to let him go because the nurse can't identify him. When she is scheduled for an operation that could restore her eyesight, they fear he'll try to kill her.
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Episode 12
One of the deputy DAs finally gets her first murder case when a man she was investigating for skipping alimony payments turns up dead.
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Episode 13
Jake spots the hit man Sagittarius at the airport and follows him, but he spots Jake and is fatally wounded in the following gunfight. Jake takes his place to try to find out who the target was.
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Episode 14
Leslie Randall, a former PR manager for McCabe is raped. The rapist, a psychiatrist, frames one of his patients with an anonymous tip to the police.
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Episode 15
A known mob man is killed in the home of star reporter Candace Morgan. She says he was shot through the window while she was interviewing him, but McCabe gets suspicious when there is one too many bullets.
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Episode 16
A man takes a courtroom hostage - with Derek and McCabe in it.
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Episode 17
A friend of McCabe is murdered just as he is about to fake his own death so his wife can collect a 4.5 million-dollar life insurance.
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Episode 18
A small time crook comes to McCabe offering to testify against the crime boss O'Rourke, after laying low for ten years. McCabe is suspicious, but is more than willing to go along with anything that can get O'Rourke behind bars.
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Episode 19
The daughter of the wealthy Amos Banning arranges her own kidnapping, and murders her accomplice once she has the ransom.
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Episode 20
Jennifer Wilding gets a surprise when her identical twin sister turns up wanting to resume their previous partnership - one steals jewelry and the other provides an alibi.
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Episode 21
A friend of Jake, Matthew Hammond, is having an affair with a rich lady. They decide to marry, but when she asks her husband for a divorce, he kills her and frames Hammond.
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Episode 22
A former cop who is now a crime writer commits a clever murder so that he can write a book about it that is likely to become a best seller.
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Episode 23
Ned Covington and his wife plan to kill his boss, Phil Duncan, when he is passed over for promotion, but they kill another employee by mistake. Realizing this they try to frame Duncan for the murder.
Where to watch Jake and the FatmanEpisode information updated Jul 22, 2026
Available now in United States
These shows are available now and closely match Jake and the Fatman.
William ConradJason McCabe
Joe PennyJake Styles
Alan CampbellDerek Mitchell
Bert Remsen
Kurt Fuller
Kathryn Leigh Scott
Mary-Margaret Humes
Amy Steel
CBSUnited States
Viacom ProductionsUnited States
Dean Hargrove ProductionsUnited States
Fred Silverman CompanyUnited States
Strathmore ProductionsUnited States
