Stephen J. Cannell: Secret Architect of Our Saturday Afternoon Post-Cartoon Syndicated Action Show Childhoods

i do get the feeling steve's best days were behind him by the time george h.w. bush was inaugurated.

rockford files, which would probably make my top ten all time tv dramas

w/ wiseguy (which peaked sometime in ghwb's first 100 days) 2nd, and somewhere in my top twenty all time tv dramas

for some reason i had this idea that s.j.c. was also responsible for airwolf and finding out he wasn't has kinda broken a little piece of my heart

so wiseguy is good?? i never saw it when i was a kid but lately i've run out of good crime shows. and it's on hulu!

airwolf is donald p. (?) bellisario, which might be getting you into dangerous territory

no idea at all how it holds up but first season of wiseguy is legendary, definite ancestor to sopranos, breaking bad, etc. after that i recall it being solid but not nearly as special. if you enjoy the work of jonathan banks i highly recommend it.

wouldve voted airwolf

I have seen the first half of an episode of 21 Jump Street on youtube, commercials for both remakes and nothing else on this list of shows

there should be a separate poll just for frank lupo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7vo9cJhsXQ

love how he progressively gets more awards

lupo worked on battlestar galactica as did...donald bellisario

god, the internet is amazing

TV's Frank (Lupo): Stephen J. Cannell's Right-Hand Dude

A vote for anything other than Jimmy, Rocky, Angel and Dennis is fucked up and wrong.

man that clip is like if steve reich adapted the first part of up

the (thankfully brief) interludes where the music changes or (DEAR GOD WHY) you don't see the paper tower feel so wrong

jonathan banks popped up on the one episode of walker, texas ranger i watched the entirety of

Greatest American hero is the right answer u scum

Ha sorry apparently sjc makes me needlessly angry

Who did "the equalizer"? Because the equalizer is the fucking shit.

all of his different outfits...

popped collar!

Couldn't find this on YT, but here's Itchy & Scratchy Productions:

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xhq9k1_itchy-and-scratchy-productions_fun

Family guy version:

https://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1051742810147

man that clip is like if steve reich adapted the first part of up

dying

dammit, i can't find any clips of him on Adam Carolla's show. Adam has an extensive knowledge of all of his shows, iirc.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_qgjVwM7E6iQ/TFpkb483WHI/AAAAAAAAFGQ/3uu4R9-zYfw/s1600/Hat+Squad.JPG

Jesus Christ in Heaven, I haven't heard this song in 19? 20? years:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssN9cLnlahk

man, that 1991 video stutter/framedrop effect; that was some shit, huh?

--

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXtpoO_DlDM

Firebird Esprit

Familiar to viewers of the show was Jim Rockford's gold Pontiac Firebird Esprit automobile, which Rockford always took through its paces. One oft-recurring element of the show was the famous "Jim Rockford turn-around" (also known as a J-turn or "Rockford", and commonly employed as an evasive driving technique taught to Secret Service agents driving for the President of the United States).[7][8] When trying to evade someone tailing him or when otherwise cornered, Rockford would shift into reverse, speed up backwards in a straight line and sharply turn his wheels. This maneuver would spin his car around 180 degrees and he would then quickly shift back into forward gear, speeding off to escape while maintaining a straight course the whole time. James Garner claimed in a Season One DVD interview that he performed this stunt himself for the duration of the series. The car's license number, 853OKG is currently assigned to a look-alike Firebird driven in and around the city of Riverside, California.

-

[...]

On May 13, 2010, the Rockford Files remake was canceled by NBC, although it is possible that there may still be a redevelopment of the concept.[16]

In April 2012, it was announced that Vince Vaughn will be producing & starring in a theatrical version of Rockford Files.[17]

--

At the start of every episode of The Rockford Files a message was left on Jim Rockford's answering machine before the beginning of the title sequence. The phone would ring two or three times before Rockford's answering machine began with the following greeting:

“ This is Jim Rockford. At the tone, leave your name and message. I'll get back to you. [Beep] ”

The message would then begin. When it had ended, the show's theme music would start. The composers Mike Post and Pete Carpenter released "The Rockford Files" as a single in 1975. It went to #10 on the Billboard Hot 100, remaining on the chart for 44 weeks and won a Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement.[1][2][3]

we need a Mike Post poll.

the only ILM thread doesn't cover it:

Mike Post: S/D

when this man died it was like jim henson dying all over again

Ken Wahl from Wiseguy used that show to marry/shack-up with the Barbi Twins, right?

kingfish, start a mike post poll! i may even vote for something besides the law and order music.

oh man:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Booker_(TV_series)

A vote for anything other than Jimmy, Rocky, Angel and Dennis is fucked up and wrong.

― improvised explosive advice (WmC), Wednesday, April 25, 2012 8:47 PM (45 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

http://youtu.be/r4vnu9Igesc

oops

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4vnu9Igesc&feature=fvst

for strongo specifically:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f38zU6P42GM&feature=relmfu

DONE! GOD this took forever to edit down

Mike Post, Composer of the Greatest American TV Theme Songs

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

voting The Commish, I used to watch it with my grandma (in my memory, on the same night as Northern Exposure but that's probably BS)

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

2 for 2

James Garner is a muse.

man since going to bookmarks i keep missing good threads

who voted for silk stalkings?!

ned's a pretty big fan iirc