The Old Fox

The Old Fox (original German title "Der Alte", lit. "The Old One") is a German crime drama series created by Helmut Ringelmann. It premiered on April 11, 1977 on ZDF. Since 1978 the series is part of the Friday Crime Night of the network.

The Old Fox (Der Alte)
Starring	Siegfried Lowitz Rolf Schimpf Walter Kreye Jan-Gregor Kremp
Country of origin	Germany
No. of episodes	417
Production
Executive producers	Helmut Ringelmann (episodes 1-356) Susanne Porsche (episodes 357-present)
Running time	60 Minutes
Release
Original network	ZDF
Original release	April 11, 1977 (1977-04-11) – present

It depicts the crime solving activities of four police detectives: until 1985, Chief Inspector Erwin Köster, played by Siegfried Lowitz; from 1986 to 2007, Chief Inspector Leo Kress, played by Rolf Schimpf; from 2008 to 2012, Chief Inspector Rolf Herzog, played by Walter Kreye; and from 2012, Chief Inspector Richard Voss, played by Jan-Gregor Kremp.

Humble and unassuming in appearance, chief detective Köster is the "Old Fox". By understanding the psychological make-up of his suspect, the "Old Fox" craftily leads the criminal into his own trap, to the great surprise of his often perplexed staff. The "Old Fox" has his own way of working. Wearied by the negative elements he has witnessed so often in society, the "Old Fox" provides a unique insight into human nature.

Armed with the wisdom of age and experience, the "Old Fox" hunts down criminals in Munich, assisted by his colleagues, most notably Gerd Heymann, played by Michael Ande between 1977 and 2016 in 401 episodes. The actors of other assistant characters over the years include Jan Hendriks, Markus Böttcher, Pierre Sanoussi-Bliss, Ludwig Blochberger and Stephanie Stumph.[1]