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Hunter (1984 American TV series)

Hunter is an American crime drama television series created by Frank Lupo, which ran on NBC from September 18, 1984, to April 26, 1991. It stars Fred Dryer as Sgt. Rick Hunter and Stepfanie Kramer as Sgt. Dee Dee McCall. The title character Sgt. Rick Hunter is a wily, physically imposing, often rule-breaking homicide detective with the Los Angeles Police Department.

Hunter
Title card Season 1 (1984-85) to Season 3 (1986-87)
GenreCrime drama
Action
Thriller
Mystery
Created byFrank Lupo
StarringFred Dryer
Stepfanie Kramer
Charles Hallahan
John Amos
Bruce Davison
Darlanne Fluegel
Lauren Lane
Arthur Rosenberg
John Shearin
Garrett Morris
James Whitmore Jr.
Rudy Ramos
Perry Cook
Richard Beauchamp
Courtney Barilla
ComposersMike Post (1984–90)
Pete Carpenter (1984–90)
Walter Murphy (1990–91)
Christopher Franke (2003)
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons7
No. of episodes153 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producersStephen J. Cannell (1984–85, 2003)
Roy Huggins (1985–88)
George Geiger (1988–89)
Fred Dryer (1989–91, 2003)
Lawrence Kubik (1989–91)
Frank Lupo (2003)
Stu Segall (2003)
Running time45-49 minutes
Production companiesStephen J. Cannell Productions
Stu Segall Productions (2003)
20th Century Fox Television (2003)
NBC Studios (2003)
Release
Original networkNBC
Picture formatNTSC
Audio formatMonaural
Original releaseSeptember 18, 1984 (1984-09-18) –
May 3, 2003 (2003-05-03)

The show's executive producer during the first season was Stephen J. Cannell, whose company produced the series. Stepfanie Kramer left after the sixth season (1990) to pursue other acting and musical opportunities. In the seventh season, Hunter partnered with two different female officers.

Episodes

SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
120September 18, 1984May 18, 1985
223September 21, 1985May 13, 1986
322September 27, 1986May 9, 1987
422September 24, 1987May 7, 1988
522October 29, 1988May 21, 1989
622October 14, 1989May 7, 1990
722September 19, 1990April 26, 1991
TV MoviesMarch 6, 1995April 12, 2003
Revival5April 19, 2003May 3, 2003

Season one (1984–85)

The show began in a Tuesday night time slot with the two-part pilot episodes of "Hunter" initially broadcast in a time slot on a Friday night, competing for ratings against the popular Dallas. The show struggled to attract an audience and drew criticism for its often graphic depiction of violence. In the first season, the producers sought to create a hook by giving the main character a catchphrase, "Works for me", which was sometimes used two or three times in an episode and was even added to the end of Mike Post and Pete Carpenter's opening theme music. Several early episodes featured montages set to popular songs from the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, in a style similar to Miami Vice.

 
Fred Dryer and Stepfanie Kramer in a 1988 promotional photo

Midway through the first season, with low ratings still, Cannell gave network chief Brandon Tartikoff a private screening of a two-part episode ("The Snow Queen") that had not yet aired, and asked him to give the show more time to attract viewers. Tartikoff agreed and put the show on hiatus until a better time slot could be found. Two months later, Hunter resumed, this time on Saturday nights, and viewership slowly started to rise. The first season finished in 65th place.

Season two (1985–86)

For its second season, Cannell brought in his mentor, Roy Huggins, best known for his work on Maverick and The Rockford Files, to refine the show. As the new executive producer, Huggins pushed up the violence but softened the main character's fractious relationship with his superiors, dropped a backstory concerning Hunter's family ties to the mob, and emphasized the chemistry between Hunter and McCall. Huggins also moved the show's setting out of the back streets and into the more desirable areas of Los Angeles. Emboldened, Dryer and Kramer frequently improvised the scripts, and the Hunter character broke the fourth wall for the first time with an aside to viewers at the end of the episode "The Beautiful and the Dead".

Probably the most memorable aspect to the second season was the two-part episode "Rape and Revenge", which may have drawn from some diplomatic-immunity scandals that were prominent in the news. A psychopathic foreign diplomat meets McCall and wants to have a relationship with her, and after she declines, he brutally rapes her in her home. Hunter is badly shot in the shoulder and must recover quickly, then go to the diplomat's home country to dispense justice, Hunter-style. This episode was considered very controversial for its realistic and shocking depiction of a violent rape, which was not common in TV shows at the time. Because of the controversial plot and acting, "Rape and Revenge" is one of the most remembered and popular episodes of the series.

Another important aspect to the second season was towards its end (in the episode "The Return of Typhoon Thompson"), when viewers were first introduced to Hunter and McCall's favorite street informant—the humorous Arnold "Sporty" James, played by Garrett Morris.

Viewers also responded to Huggins' changes, and the show's second season ended in 38th place in the Nielsen ratings. Hunter continued this progress to become a mainstay of NBC's Saturday-night schedule.

In syndication, the season-two introduction was replaced by the season-one introduction. The former showed Hunter entering a women's locker room in one scene, and McCall and him pointing their guns at each other with the bathroom light on in another scene.

Season three (1986–87)

Just before work on the third season began, Dryer threatened to quit unless his salary, reportedly US$21,000 per episode, was raised and creative changes were made. Cannell responded with a US$20 million breach-of-contract lawsuit. A compromise was reached, a new deal with Dryer reportedly earning US$50,000 per episode. The third season, again led by Huggins, added Charles Hallahan as Captain Charlie Devane, who remained Hunter and McCall's captain for the rest of the show, eventually included in the opening credits of the show and becoming one of the show's main stars (none of the previous captains in the series had achieved this). This was the show's first season in the top 30, coming in at 25th.

In the episode "Shades" (which was the season finale, but aired later in the summer, in July 1987) when Hunter went missing, McCall teamed with a somewhat ditzy Columbo-like Detective Kitty O'Hearn (Shelley Taylor Morgan). O'Hearn reappeared during the season-four three-part episode "City of Passion". Another remembered episode from season three was "Requiem For Sergeant McCall", which was a contradiction to a storyline from the beginning of the show. When the show first started, McCall's husband (Steven McCall) was supposedly killed five years before, in 1979, by a "punk" kid during a routine stop. At that time, Steven and Dee Dee were newly married and starting out as rookie uniform cops. However, in 1987, in "Requiem", just five years before (which would be around 1982 instead of 1979), Steven was a homicide detective (while Dee Dee was still just a rookie) and he was working on a big murder case that resulted in him being killed. In "Requiem", Steven's killer is getting paroled, and Dee Dee McCall is doing everything she can to get him back in prison—plus trying to solve the original murder case that her husband died trying to solve five years earlier.

Another notable episode was "Any Second Now", in which Theresa Saldana played a pianist being stalked by a psychotic fan. This was based on the real-life incident Saldana herself was a victim of when she was stalked and brutally stabbed by Scottish immigrant and drifter, Arthur Richard Jackson outside her Los Angeles home in 1982. The violent attack later became the subject of the 1984 TV film, Victims for Victims: The Theresa Saldana Story, and Jackson was then extradited to England to be tried for a 1966 robbery and murder. He was committed to a psychiatric hospital and remained there until 2004 when he died of heart failure.

Season four (1987–88)

Huggins retired at the end of the fourth season, which placed 18th in the Nielsen ratings. A three-part storyline, "City of Passion", teamed Hunter and Dee Dee with detective O'Hearn (Morgan) and her new partner, Sgt. Brad Navarro (Erik Estrada). Together, they captured the serial rapist called Big Foot. Originally, the plot of "City of Passion" involved McCall getting raped again—this time by Big Foot, and she had to deal with the pain and emotions as she did in the second season's "Rape and Revenge". However, Stepfanie Kramer immediately balked at this and argued the rape idea had already been done, and to repeat it, as well as having her character put in a situation to get raped again, was ridiculous. Kramer threatened to quit unless the script was changed. Producers and writers agreed, and a compromise was made: Big Foot attacked and attempted to rape McCall, but she fought him and prevented the rape.

Also known as one of the more memorable episodes for fourth season was "The Black Dahlia". The real-life infamous unsolved Black Dahlia LA murder case from 1947 is thrust back into headlines as bones with identical cuts to the historical case are discovered under an old building being demolished. In the episode, Hunter and McCall solve the famous murder case 41 years to the day (1947–88) as the episode aired on the anniversary date of the real-life murder. As a special message at the end states, the real-life case is still open, and the real killer has never been found.

Opening Credits changed, most notably removal of the gun and car "action" clips used in previous seasons. This reflected a change in the format where the frequent car chases and shootouts from the first three seasons were dropped and the show became more of a standard police procedural, with only occasional action scenes.

Season five (1988–89)

For the fifth season, George Geiger took on the role of executive producer, having worked in the same capacity on Scarecrow and Mrs. King, as well as a brief stint as co-executive producer on Miami Vice. In the first four seasons, Hunter and McCall typically worked on cases together, allowing the producers to showcase the chemistry between the actors, but the fifth season increasingly had them working apart, ostensibly to lessen the workload of Dryer and Kramer and to allow richer, more complex stories. So instead of jeans and an old sports jacket, Hunter often was seen in a full suit and tie.

One of the most memorable episodes of the fifth season was the special three-part episode "City Under Siege", which had a special introduction for each of the three parts. It dealt with a psychotic woman named Iris Smith (Cec Verrell) and her crazy boyfriend, Billy Joe Powell (Daniel Quinn), who terrorized the city of Los Angeles, committing multiple murders against people who the woman felt had "wronged" her in some way.

Hunter was one of the intended victims, having arrested Billy Joe years earlier for a series of murders in which he killed his female victims with a straight razor. One sub-plot focused on the huge crime spree throughout the city and the pressure the police department was under to get it under control. Another sub-plot involved a corrupt Deputy Chief named Curtis Moorehead (Robert Vaughn), who continually hamstrung the entire police department's efforts to find Iris and Billy Joe in order to further his own ends.

Further compounding the problem was Jack Small (James Sikking), a local resident who aggressively took the law into his own hands to combat the local crime wave, earning him a reputation in his neighborhood as an urban vigilante. He had a teenage daughter, Debbie (Brynn Horrocks) who was a good-hearted but troubled young woman whom McCall befriended while she was working undercover at her high school investigating the murder of one of the teachers named Sandra Clemens. Sandra was Iris' old teacher whom she had a grudge against for stopping her from stealing lunch money from a fellow student. Another subplot of the story revolved around Johnny Youngblood (Craig Hurley), a mover and shaker at the school who dealt in various shady enterprises. Also appearing in a guest-starring role was real-life journalist, Saida Pagan as television reporter, Saida Rodrigues Pagan. In part two, Laurelle Brooks guest-starred as Allison, a naive high-school cheerleader who falls under Johnny's charms and unknown to her, make a videotape of them having sex. At the end of the episode, statistics were presented showing a reduction of crime in Los Angeles that year. The fifth season placed 17th in the Nielsen ratings.

Uniformed officers costumes changed, dropping the Metro Police shoulder patch of previous four seasons, leaving the uniforms looking more the real LAPD. Door shields on patrol cars also changed to look like those of LAPD.

Season six (1989–90)

By the sixth season, Dryer's growing influence had won him the role of executive producer. Probably the most remembered episode of the sixth season was "Unfinished Business". During this episode, the audience learns that Hunter and McCall had actually once slept together, causing a rift in their working relationship. Fred Dryer stated that this episode was filmed to try to appease fans and the network, who were constantly wanting Hunter and McCall to get together. However, Fred Dryer and Stepfanie Kramer stated they did not want that to happen, because once it did, Hunter would become Hart To Hart.

Another memorable episode this season was "Yesterday's Child". In this episode, a Vietnamese man visits Hunter and pleads with him to take on the case of a robbery and murder at an upscale car dealership, of which his son was the main suspect. Over the course of the conversation, Hunter discovers that the 17-year-old suspect was actually his own son. The boy is revealed to be the product of a relationship Hunter had with a woman while he was in Vietnam.

Also for this season, homicide was moved to the more updated Parker Center, instead of the old downtown division building. However, at the end of the sixth season, which placed 26th in the Nielsen ratings, Stepfanie Kramer decided to leave the series to pursue a career in music. Kramer's character was written out in the season's two-part finale showing the McCall character marrying an old flame and moving out of Los Angeles.

Season seven (1990–91)

For the seventh and final season, NBC shifted the show to 10 pm on Wednesdays. A new female co-star, Darlanne Fluegel as Officer Joanne Molenski, was brought in. However, she reportedly had creative differences with Fred Dryer, and halfway through the season, she decided she wanted out. Her character was murdered by a female serial killer in the two-part episode "Fatal Obsession". Her replacement for the second half of the season was Lauren Lane as Sgt. Chris Novak, supposedly a former girlfriend of Hunter's. Hunter's signature unmarked vehicle, a moss green 1977 Dodge Monaco, was also finally replaced (after an accident with Molenski's cruiser in the season's first episode) by an updated new silver 1990 Ford LTD Crown Victoria. Hunter was now also back to wearing jeans and a shirt. Also for the first time (aside from the sixth-season finale), Hunter made sporadic appearances in uniform.

However, the new partners and changes did little to boost ratings (47th in the Nielsen standings). A salary dispute involving Dryer led to the show being discontinued at the end of the season.[1]

Reunions and revivals

Four years after the original series ended, a reunion NBC TV movie, The Return of Hunter: Everyone Walks in L.A., had Dryer and Charles Hallahan reprise their roles as Rick Hunter and Charlie Devane. Hunter had now also been promoted to lieutenant. Airing on March 6, 1995, the movie seemed to take the Dirty Harry idea as the plot—a psycho wants fame and/or to be noticed and begins terrorizing the city to gain media attention. Along the way, he becomes infatuated with attention from Hunter, eventually wanting to kill him. Stepfanie Kramer, pregnant at the time, did not reprise her role as Dee Dee McCall. The TV-movie co-starred Barry Bostwick, Miguel Ferrer, and John C. McGinley.

Seven years later in November 2002, 11 years after the original series ended, the reunion TV movie Hunter: Return to Justice made its premiere to strong ratings. This time, Stepfanie Kramer returned to her role as McCall, and the show's setting switched from Los Angeles to San Diego—as Hunter's current L.A. partner is killed in the line of duty.

Given the success of the TV movie, Cannell, Dryer, and NBC attempted to bring back Hunter as a regular series: the April 2003 airing of another TV movie, Hunter: Back in Force, served as the pilot for the new series. The network decided to broadcast three new one-hour episodes of Hunter ("Vaya Sin Dios", "Untouchable", and "Dead Heat"). Another two episodes were filmed (as originally five episodes were to be aired), but never shown in the U.S, as NBC decided to cancel the new series. Fred Dryer later cited "creative difficulties" and budget constraints as the reasons for the revival's unexpected end.

Cast and crew

Original series

  • Fred Dryer ... Det. Sgt. Richard "Rick" Hunter
  • Stepfanie Kramer ... Det. Sgt. Dee Dee McCall (1984–90)
  • Darlanne Fluegel ... Off. Joanne Molenski (1990–91)
  • Lauren Lane ... Sgt. Chris Novak (1991)
  • Michael Cavanaugh ... Capt. Lester D. Cain ("Pilot" Only)
  • Arthur Rosenberg ... Capt. Lester D. Cain/Commander Lester D. Cain (1984/1987)
  • John Amos ... Capt. Dolan (1984–85)
  • Bruce Davison ... Capt. Wyler/Dep. Chief Wyler (1985–86/1987)
  • Charles Hallahan ... Capt. Charles "Charlie" Devane (1986–91)
  • John Shearin ... Lt. Ambrose Finn (1985–88)
  • James Whitmore Jr. ... Sgt. Bernie Terwilliger (1984–86)
  • Garrett Morris ... Arnold "Sporty" James (1986–89)
  • Richard Beauchamp ... Carlos (Asst. M.E.) (1985–87)
  • Perry Cook ... Barney Udall (Coroner) (1986–90)
  • Stanley Kamel ... Gov. Agent Brad Wilkes (Occasional) (1987–88)
  • Paul Mantee ... Commander Tom Clayton (Occasional) (1989-1991)
  • Courtney Barilla ... Allison Novak (1991)
  • Robert Firth ... Det. Riley Causland (1986)

Revival series

  • Fred Dryer ... Det. Lt. Richard "Rick" Hunter
  • Stepfanie Kramer ... Det. Sgt. Dee Dee McCall
  • Mike Gomez ... Capt. Roberto Gallardo
  • Michelle Gold ... Off./Det. Cynthia Monetti
  • Sid Sham ... Off./Det. Sid Keyes
  • Meredyth Hunt ... Det. Krysta Carson (TV movies only) (2002–2003)
  • Frank Grillo ... Det. Terence Gillette (TV movies only) (2002–2003)
  • Kenneth Taylor ... Off. Mueller (TV movies only) (2002–2003)
  • Robert Crow ... Off. Wilcher (TV movies only) (2002–2003)
  • Alex Mendoza ... Det. Anthony Santiago (series episodes only) (2003)

Production

Vehicles

In the pilot television film, Hunter drove a blue 1977 Dodge Monaco and a 1970 Ford LTD. Because Hunter constantly was getting into wrecks chasing suspects and regularly "busted" up any police car he was given, the department would only issue him older model cars that would barely run. Once the series started (fall 1984), during the first season, Hunter drove a 1972 Chevrolet Impala, a 1971 Chevrolet Nova, a 1974 Plymouth Satellite, and a 1979 Chevrolet Caprice Classic. A 1971 Impala was actually shown exploding to end the episodes using Chevrolets. Monacos seemed to be the police car of choice, as the second season had Hunter occasionally driving a junker multiple-colored side panel 1977 Monaco (jokingly referred to as the "Partridge Family" Monaco), as well as other '77 models in yellow, brown, and black. After the show was more "established" and starting with the third season and through the first episode of seventh season, Hunter drove a moss green 1977 Monaco. This car was in better condition than the previous Monacos and became Hunter's trademark vehicle — to the point that when it was destroyed in the third season, it was replaced with an identical one. During the seventh and last season, Detective Hunter drove a new silver 1990 Ford LTD Crown Victoria.

During the first two seasons, McCall drove a garnet red and silver 1984 Dodge Daytona Turbo Z. Then starting with season three and on through season five, McCall drove a bright red 1987 Daytona Shelby Z (Sometimes though, a "Turbo Z" badge on this Daytona is also clearly visible). During the sixth season - her final season, she drove a gold-colored 1990 Dodge Dynasty. (An episode during the fourth or fifth season showed the outside of what was supposedly McCall's house and a yellow 1987 Ford Mustang was out front. However, McCall is only shown driving it once and then it was never shown again.)

Both Officer Joanne Molenski and Sgt. Chris Novak, during last season, drove a tan/beige 1990 LTD Crown Victoria.

In the first reunion film, The Return of Hunter: Everyone Walks in L.A., Hunter drove a black 1995 Ford Crown Victoria. In Hunter: Return to Justice, McCall drove a silver 2002 Mercedes Benz CLK320 convertible. In Hunter: Back in Force and the subsequent new series, Hunter drove a black 2003 Crown Victoria Police Interceptor and McCall occasionally drove a black 2003 Ford Expedition.

Film

In 2009, a film adaptation was announced to be in development with a screenplay by Frank Lupo and Fred Dryer, to be directed by Lupo for Columbia Pictures, Anchor Bay Films, and Warner Bros. Pictures.

Home media

Anchor Bay Entertainment released the first three seasons of Hunter on Region 1 DVD between January 2005 and January 2006.[2][3][4] Due to poor sales, no further seasons were released.

On October 14, 2009, Mill Creek Entertainment was announced to have acquired the rights to several Stephen J. Cannell series, including Hunter.[5] They subsequently re-released the first two seasons on DVD.[6][7]

On July 27, 2010, Mill Creek released Hunter - The Complete Series, a 28-disc collection featuring all 152 episodes of the series.[8]

On November 10, 2011, Mill Creek Entertainment released The Return of Hunter TV special on DVD in a four-pack.[9]

On November 12, 2015, Tiberius Film in Germany released Hunter - The Complete Series, a 42-disc collection featuring all 152 episodes of the series in a special edition case, complete with an episode guide and collector's cards. The same collection was released as a standard edition on May 4, 2017. These releases are encoded Region 2.

Due to music rights issues, on both the Anchor Bay Entertainment and Mill Creek Home Entertainment, certain original songs throughout the series have been replaced with newer recordings. The German releases from Tiberius Film are complete and uncut, featuring the original broadcast soundtracks.

On April 29, 2022, Visual Entertainment released Hunter - The Complete TV Series, a special collection featuring all 152 episodes of the series plus the TV movie The Return of Hunter.[10]

DVD Name Ep# Release Date
The Complete First Season 19 January 11, 2005
January 19, 2010 (re-release)
The Complete Second Season 23 July 12, 2005
May 18, 2010 (re-release)
The Complete Third Season 22 January 3, 2006
The Complete Series 152 July 27, 2010
April 29, 2022 (re-release)
The Return of Hunter 1 November 10, 2011

International airings

See also

References

  1. ^ Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith, M. (1991, May 22). SILVERMAN THROWN BY 'MATLOCK' SHELVING. Daily News of Los Angeles (CA), p. L17. Available from NewsBank: Access World News: https://infoweb-newsbank-com.ccclez.idm.oclc.org/apps/news/document-view?p=AWNB&docref=news/0EF612B101985E14.
  2. ^ . www.tvshowsondvd.com. Archived from the original on November 12, 2013.
  3. ^ . www.tvshowsondvd.com. Archived from the original on November 12, 2013.
  4. ^ . www.tvshowsondvd.com. Archived from the original on November 12, 2013.
  5. ^ . Archived from the original on November 23, 2011. Retrieved June 18, 2011. Mill Creek Gets DVD Rights to 14 More Classic Stephen J. Cannell TV Programs!
  6. ^ . www.tvshowsondvd.com. Archived from the original on December 15, 2009.
  7. ^ . www.tvshowsondvd.com. Archived from the original on March 22, 2010.
  8. ^ . www.tvshowsondvd.com. Archived from the original on October 1, 2012.
  9. ^ . Archived from the original on May 13, 2013. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
  10. ^ "Hunter: The Complete Series".
  11. ^ 上海国际电影电视节如约而至 三十而立“白玉兰”再迎绽放时刻
  12. ^ . www.shtong.gov.cn. Archived from the original on January 9, 2007.

External links

hunter, 1984, american, series, this, article, about, 1984, 1991, american, television, series, that, aired, 1977, american, television, series, that, aired, hunter, 1977, series, other, television, series, hunter, disambiguation, this, article, needs, additio. This article is about the 1984 1991 American television series that aired on NBC For the 1977 American television series that aired on CBS see Hunter 1977 TV series For other television series see Hunter disambiguation This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Hunter 1984 American TV series news newspapers books scholar JSTOR September 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message Hunter is an American crime drama television series created by Frank Lupo which ran on NBC from September 18 1984 to April 26 1991 It stars Fred Dryer as Sgt Rick Hunter and Stepfanie Kramer as Sgt Dee Dee McCall The title character Sgt Rick Hunter is a wily physically imposing often rule breaking homicide detective with the Los Angeles Police Department HunterTitle card Season 1 1984 85 to Season 3 1986 87 GenreCrime dramaActionThrillerMysteryCreated byFrank LupoStarringFred DryerStepfanie KramerCharles HallahanJohn AmosBruce DavisonDarlanne FluegelLauren LaneArthur RosenbergJohn ShearinGarrett MorrisJames Whitmore Jr Rudy RamosPerry CookRichard BeauchampCourtney BarillaComposersMike Post 1984 90 Pete Carpenter 1984 90 Walter Murphy 1990 91 Christopher Franke 2003 Country of originUnited StatesOriginal languageEnglishNo of seasons7No of episodes153 list of episodes ProductionExecutive producersStephen J Cannell 1984 85 2003 Roy Huggins 1985 88 George Geiger 1988 89 Fred Dryer 1989 91 2003 Lawrence Kubik 1989 91 Frank Lupo 2003 Stu Segall 2003 Running time45 49 minutesProduction companiesStephen J Cannell ProductionsStu Segall Productions 2003 20th Century Fox Television 2003 NBC Studios 2003 ReleaseOriginal networkNBCPicture formatNTSCAudio formatMonauralOriginal releaseSeptember 18 1984 1984 09 18 May 3 2003 2003 05 03 The show s executive producer during the first season was Stephen J Cannell whose company produced the series Stepfanie Kramer left after the sixth season 1990 to pursue other acting and musical opportunities In the seventh season Hunter partnered with two different female officers Contents 1 Episodes 1 1 Season one 1984 85 1 2 Season two 1985 86 1 3 Season three 1986 87 1 4 Season four 1987 88 1 5 Season five 1988 89 1 6 Season six 1989 90 1 7 Season seven 1990 91 1 8 Reunions and revivals 2 Cast and crew 2 1 Original series 2 2 Revival series 3 Production 3 1 Vehicles 4 Film 5 Home media 6 International airings 7 See also 8 References 9 External linksEpisodes EditMain article List of Hunter episodes SeasonEpisodesOriginally airedFirst airedLast aired120September 18 1984May 18 1985223September 21 1985May 13 1986322September 27 1986May 9 1987422September 24 1987May 7 1988522October 29 1988May 21 1989622October 14 1989May 7 1990722September 19 1990April 26 1991TV MoviesMarch 6 1995April 12 2003Revival5April 19 2003May 3 2003 Season one 1984 85 Edit The show began in a Tuesday night time slot with the two part pilot episodes of Hunter initially broadcast in a time slot on a Friday night competing for ratings against the popular Dallas The show struggled to attract an audience and drew criticism for its often graphic depiction of violence In the first season the producers sought to create a hook by giving the main character a catchphrase Works for me which was sometimes used two or three times in an episode and was even added to the end of Mike Post and Pete Carpenter s opening theme music Several early episodes featured montages set to popular songs from the 1960s 1970s and 1980s in a style similar to Miami Vice Fred Dryer and Stepfanie Kramer in a 1988 promotional photo Midway through the first season with low ratings still Cannell gave network chief Brandon Tartikoff a private screening of a two part episode The Snow Queen that had not yet aired and asked him to give the show more time to attract viewers Tartikoff agreed and put the show on hiatus until a better time slot could be found Two months later Hunter resumed this time on Saturday nights and viewership slowly started to rise The first season finished in 65th place Season two 1985 86 Edit For its second season Cannell brought in his mentor Roy Huggins best known for his work on Maverick and The Rockford Files to refine the show As the new executive producer Huggins pushed up the violence but softened the main character s fractious relationship with his superiors dropped a backstory concerning Hunter s family ties to the mob and emphasized the chemistry between Hunter and McCall Huggins also moved the show s setting out of the back streets and into the more desirable areas of Los Angeles Emboldened Dryer and Kramer frequently improvised the scripts and the Hunter character broke the fourth wall for the first time with an aside to viewers at the end of the episode The Beautiful and the Dead Probably the most memorable aspect to the second season was the two part episode Rape and Revenge which may have drawn from some diplomatic immunity scandals that were prominent in the news A psychopathic foreign diplomat meets McCall and wants to have a relationship with her and after she declines he brutally rapes her in her home Hunter is badly shot in the shoulder and must recover quickly then go to the diplomat s home country to dispense justice Hunter style This episode was considered very controversial for its realistic and shocking depiction of a violent rape which was not common in TV shows at the time Because of the controversial plot and acting Rape and Revenge is one of the most remembered and popular episodes of the series Another important aspect to the second season was towards its end in the episode The Return of Typhoon Thompson when viewers were first introduced to Hunter and McCall s favorite street informant the humorous Arnold Sporty James played by Garrett Morris Viewers also responded to Huggins changes and the show s second season ended in 38th place in the Nielsen ratings Hunter continued this progress to become a mainstay of NBC s Saturday night schedule In syndication the season two introduction was replaced by the season one introduction The former showed Hunter entering a women s locker room in one scene and McCall and him pointing their guns at each other with the bathroom light on in another scene Season three 1986 87 Edit Just before work on the third season began Dryer threatened to quit unless his salary reportedly US 21 000 per episode was raised and creative changes were made Cannell responded with a US 20 million breach of contract lawsuit A compromise was reached a new deal with Dryer reportedly earning US 50 000 per episode The third season again led by Huggins added Charles Hallahan as Captain Charlie Devane who remained Hunter and McCall s captain for the rest of the show eventually included in the opening credits of the show and becoming one of the show s main stars none of the previous captains in the series had achieved this This was the show s first season in the top 30 coming in at 25th In the episode Shades which was the season finale but aired later in the summer in July 1987 when Hunter went missing McCall teamed with a somewhat ditzy Columbo like Detective Kitty O Hearn Shelley Taylor Morgan O Hearn reappeared during the season four three part episode City of Passion Another remembered episode from season three was Requiem For Sergeant McCall which was a contradiction to a storyline from the beginning of the show When the show first started McCall s husband Steven McCall was supposedly killed five years before in 1979 by a punk kid during a routine stop At that time Steven and Dee Dee were newly married and starting out as rookie uniform cops However in 1987 in Requiem just five years before which would be around 1982 instead of 1979 Steven was a homicide detective while Dee Dee was still just a rookie and he was working on a big murder case that resulted in him being killed In Requiem Steven s killer is getting paroled and Dee Dee McCall is doing everything she can to get him back in prison plus trying to solve the original murder case that her husband died trying to solve five years earlier Another notable episode was Any Second Now in which Theresa Saldana played a pianist being stalked by a psychotic fan This was based on the real life incident Saldana herself was a victim of when she was stalked and brutally stabbed by Scottish immigrant and drifter Arthur Richard Jackson outside her Los Angeles home in 1982 The violent attack later became the subject of the 1984 TV film Victims for Victims The Theresa Saldana Story and Jackson was then extradited to England to be tried for a 1966 robbery and murder He was committed to a psychiatric hospital and remained there until 2004 when he died of heart failure Season four 1987 88 Edit Huggins retired at the end of the fourth season which placed 18th in the Nielsen ratings A three part storyline City of Passion teamed Hunter and Dee Dee with detective O Hearn Morgan and her new partner Sgt Brad Navarro Erik Estrada Together they captured the serial rapist called Big Foot Originally the plot of City of Passion involved McCall getting raped again this time by Big Foot and she had to deal with the pain and emotions as she did in the second season s Rape and Revenge However Stepfanie Kramer immediately balked at this and argued the rape idea had already been done and to repeat it as well as having her character put in a situation to get raped again was ridiculous Kramer threatened to quit unless the script was changed Producers and writers agreed and a compromise was made Big Foot attacked and attempted to rape McCall but she fought him and prevented the rape Also known as one of the more memorable episodes for fourth season was The Black Dahlia The real life infamous unsolved Black Dahlia LA murder case from 1947 is thrust back into headlines as bones with identical cuts to the historical case are discovered under an old building being demolished In the episode Hunter and McCall solve the famous murder case 41 years to the day 1947 88 as the episode aired on the anniversary date of the real life murder As a special message at the end states the real life case is still open and the real killer has never been found Opening Credits changed most notably removal of the gun and car action clips used in previous seasons This reflected a change in the format where the frequent car chases and shootouts from the first three seasons were dropped and the show became more of a standard police procedural with only occasional action scenes Season five 1988 89 Edit For the fifth season George Geiger took on the role of executive producer having worked in the same capacity on Scarecrow and Mrs King as well as a brief stint as co executive producer on Miami Vice In the first four seasons Hunter and McCall typically worked on cases together allowing the producers to showcase the chemistry between the actors but the fifth season increasingly had them working apart ostensibly to lessen the workload of Dryer and Kramer and to allow richer more complex stories So instead of jeans and an old sports jacket Hunter often was seen in a full suit and tie One of the most memorable episodes of the fifth season was the special three part episode City Under Siege which had a special introduction for each of the three parts It dealt with a psychotic woman named Iris Smith Cec Verrell and her crazy boyfriend Billy Joe Powell Daniel Quinn who terrorized the city of Los Angeles committing multiple murders against people who the woman felt had wronged her in some way Hunter was one of the intended victims having arrested Billy Joe years earlier for a series of murders in which he killed his female victims with a straight razor One sub plot focused on the huge crime spree throughout the city and the pressure the police department was under to get it under control Another sub plot involved a corrupt Deputy Chief named Curtis Moorehead Robert Vaughn who continually hamstrung the entire police department s efforts to find Iris and Billy Joe in order to further his own ends Further compounding the problem was Jack Small James Sikking a local resident who aggressively took the law into his own hands to combat the local crime wave earning him a reputation in his neighborhood as an urban vigilante He had a teenage daughter Debbie Brynn Horrocks who was a good hearted but troubled young woman whom McCall befriended while she was working undercover at her high school investigating the murder of one of the teachers named Sandra Clemens Sandra was Iris old teacher whom she had a grudge against for stopping her from stealing lunch money from a fellow student Another subplot of the story revolved around Johnny Youngblood Craig Hurley a mover and shaker at the school who dealt in various shady enterprises Also appearing in a guest starring role was real life journalist Saida Pagan as television reporter Saida Rodrigues Pagan In part two Laurelle Brooks guest starred as Allison a naive high school cheerleader who falls under Johnny s charms and unknown to her make a videotape of them having sex At the end of the episode statistics were presented showing a reduction of crime in Los Angeles that year The fifth season placed 17th in the Nielsen ratings Uniformed officers costumes changed dropping the Metro Police shoulder patch of previous four seasons leaving the uniforms looking more the real LAPD Door shields on patrol cars also changed to look like those of LAPD Season six 1989 90 Edit By the sixth season Dryer s growing influence had won him the role of executive producer Probably the most remembered episode of the sixth season was Unfinished Business During this episode the audience learns that Hunter and McCall had actually once slept together causing a rift in their working relationship Fred Dryer stated that this episode was filmed to try to appease fans and the network who were constantly wanting Hunter and McCall to get together However Fred Dryer and Stepfanie Kramer stated they did not want that to happen because once it did Hunter would become Hart To Hart Another memorable episode this season was Yesterday s Child In this episode a Vietnamese man visits Hunter and pleads with him to take on the case of a robbery and murder at an upscale car dealership of which his son was the main suspect Over the course of the conversation Hunter discovers that the 17 year old suspect was actually his own son The boy is revealed to be the product of a relationship Hunter had with a woman while he was in Vietnam Also for this season homicide was moved to the more updated Parker Center instead of the old downtown division building However at the end of the sixth season which placed 26th in the Nielsen ratings Stepfanie Kramer decided to leave the series to pursue a career in music Kramer s character was written out in the season s two part finale showing the McCall character marrying an old flame and moving out of Los Angeles Season seven 1990 91 Edit For the seventh and final season NBC shifted the show to 10 pm on Wednesdays A new female co star Darlanne Fluegel as Officer Joanne Molenski was brought in However she reportedly had creative differences with Fred Dryer and halfway through the season she decided she wanted out Her character was murdered by a female serial killer in the two part episode Fatal Obsession Her replacement for the second half of the season was Lauren Lane as Sgt Chris Novak supposedly a former girlfriend of Hunter s Hunter s signature unmarked vehicle a moss green 1977 Dodge Monaco was also finally replaced after an accident with Molenski s cruiser in the season s first episode by an updated new silver 1990 Ford LTD Crown Victoria Hunter was now also back to wearing jeans and a shirt Also for the first time aside from the sixth season finale Hunter made sporadic appearances in uniform However the new partners and changes did little to boost ratings 47th in the Nielsen standings A salary dispute involving Dryer led to the show being discontinued at the end of the season 1 Reunions and revivals Edit Four years after the original series ended a reunion NBC TV movie The Return of Hunter Everyone Walks in L A had Dryer and Charles Hallahan reprise their roles as Rick Hunter and Charlie Devane Hunter had now also been promoted to lieutenant Airing on March 6 1995 the movie seemed to take the Dirty Harry idea as the plot a psycho wants fame and or to be noticed and begins terrorizing the city to gain media attention Along the way he becomes infatuated with attention from Hunter eventually wanting to kill him Stepfanie Kramer pregnant at the time did not reprise her role as Dee Dee McCall The TV movie co starred Barry Bostwick Miguel Ferrer and John C McGinley Seven years later in November 2002 11 years after the original series ended the reunion TV movie Hunter Return to Justice made its premiere to strong ratings This time Stepfanie Kramer returned to her role as McCall and the show s setting switched from Los Angeles to San Diego as Hunter s current L A partner is killed in the line of duty Given the success of the TV movie Cannell Dryer and NBC attempted to bring back Hunter as a regular series the April 2003 airing of another TV movie Hunter Back in Force served as the pilot for the new series The network decided to broadcast three new one hour episodes of Hunter Vaya Sin Dios Untouchable and Dead Heat Another two episodes were filmed as originally five episodes were to be aired but never shown in the U S as NBC decided to cancel the new series Fred Dryer later cited creative difficulties and budget constraints as the reasons for the revival s unexpected end Cast and crew EditMain article List of Hunter characters Original series Edit Fred Dryer Det Sgt Richard Rick Hunter Stepfanie Kramer Det Sgt Dee Dee McCall 1984 90 Darlanne Fluegel Off Joanne Molenski 1990 91 Lauren Lane Sgt Chris Novak 1991 Michael Cavanaugh Capt Lester D Cain Pilot Only Arthur Rosenberg Capt Lester D Cain Commander Lester D Cain 1984 1987 John Amos Capt Dolan 1984 85 Bruce Davison Capt Wyler Dep Chief Wyler 1985 86 1987 Charles Hallahan Capt Charles Charlie Devane 1986 91 John Shearin Lt Ambrose Finn 1985 88 James Whitmore Jr Sgt Bernie Terwilliger 1984 86 Garrett Morris Arnold Sporty James 1986 89 Richard Beauchamp Carlos Asst M E 1985 87 Perry Cook Barney Udall Coroner 1986 90 Stanley Kamel Gov Agent Brad Wilkes Occasional 1987 88 Paul Mantee Commander Tom Clayton Occasional 1989 1991 Courtney Barilla Allison Novak 1991 Robert Firth Det Riley Causland 1986 Revival series Edit Fred Dryer Det Lt Richard Rick Hunter Stepfanie Kramer Det Sgt Dee Dee McCall Mike Gomez Capt Roberto Gallardo Michelle Gold Off Det Cynthia Monetti Sid Sham Off Det Sid Keyes Meredyth Hunt Det Krysta Carson TV movies only 2002 2003 Frank Grillo Det Terence Gillette TV movies only 2002 2003 Kenneth Taylor Off Mueller TV movies only 2002 2003 Robert Crow Off Wilcher TV movies only 2002 2003 Alex Mendoza Det Anthony Santiago series episodes only 2003 Production EditVehicles Edit In the pilot television film Hunter drove a blue 1977 Dodge Monaco and a 1970 Ford LTD Because Hunter constantly was getting into wrecks chasing suspects and regularly busted up any police car he was given the department would only issue him older model cars that would barely run Once the series started fall 1984 during the first season Hunter drove a 1972 Chevrolet Impala a 1971 Chevrolet Nova a 1974 Plymouth Satellite and a 1979 Chevrolet Caprice Classic A 1971 Impala was actually shown exploding to end the episodes using Chevrolets Monacos seemed to be the police car of choice as the second season had Hunter occasionally driving a junker multiple colored side panel 1977 Monaco jokingly referred to as the Partridge Family Monaco as well as other 77 models in yellow brown and black After the show was more established and starting with the third season and through the first episode of seventh season Hunter drove a moss green 1977 Monaco This car was in better condition than the previous Monacos and became Hunter s trademark vehicle to the point that when it was destroyed in the third season it was replaced with an identical one During the seventh and last season Detective Hunter drove a new silver 1990 Ford LTD Crown Victoria During the first two seasons McCall drove a garnet red and silver 1984 Dodge Daytona Turbo Z Then starting with season three and on through season five McCall drove a bright red 1987 Daytona Shelby Z Sometimes though a Turbo Z badge on this Daytona is also clearly visible During the sixth season her final season she drove a gold colored 1990 Dodge Dynasty An episode during the fourth or fifth season showed the outside of what was supposedly McCall s house and a yellow 1987 Ford Mustang was out front However McCall is only shown driving it once and then it was never shown again Both Officer Joanne Molenski and Sgt Chris Novak during last season drove a tan beige 1990 LTD Crown Victoria In the first reunion film The Return of Hunter Everyone Walks in L A Hunter drove a black 1995 Ford Crown Victoria In Hunter Return to Justice McCall drove a silver 2002 Mercedes Benz CLK320 convertible In Hunter Back in Force and the subsequent new series Hunter drove a black 2003 Crown Victoria Police Interceptor and McCall occasionally drove a black 2003 Ford Expedition Film EditIn 2009 a film adaptation was announced to be in development with a screenplay by Frank Lupo and Fred Dryer to be directed by Lupo for Columbia Pictures Anchor Bay Films and Warner Bros Pictures Home media EditAnchor Bay Entertainment released the first three seasons of Hunter on Region 1 DVD between January 2005 and January 2006 2 3 4 Due to poor sales no further seasons were released On October 14 2009 Mill Creek Entertainment was announced to have acquired the rights to several Stephen J Cannell series including Hunter 5 They subsequently re released the first two seasons on DVD 6 7 On July 27 2010 Mill Creek released Hunter The Complete Series a 28 disc collection featuring all 152 episodes of the series 8 On November 10 2011 Mill Creek Entertainment released The Return of Hunter TV special on DVD in a four pack 9 On November 12 2015 Tiberius Film in Germany released Hunter The Complete Series a 42 disc collection featuring all 152 episodes of the series in a special edition case complete with an episode guide and collector s cards The same collection was released as a standard edition on May 4 2017 These releases are encoded Region 2 Due to music rights issues on both the Anchor Bay Entertainment and Mill Creek Home Entertainment certain original songs throughout the series have been replaced with newer recordings The German releases from Tiberius Film are complete and uncut featuring the original broadcast soundtracks On April 29 2022 Visual Entertainment released Hunter The Complete TV Series a special collection featuring all 152 episodes of the series plus the TV movie The Return of Hunter 10 DVD Name Ep Release DateThe Complete First Season 19 January 11 2005January 19 2010 re release The Complete Second Season 23 July 12 2005May 18 2010 re release The Complete Third Season 22 January 3 2006The Complete Series 152 July 27 2010April 29 2022 re release The Return of Hunter 1 November 10 2011International airings EditIn Australia the show was shown on the regional station GTS BKN and PRIME It also screened on Thursday nights at 9 30 on STW 9 in Perth in the 80s and ATN 7 in Sydney in the 80s In Barbados the show was shown on CBC TV 8 In Brazil the show was shown on Rede Globo dubbed in Portuguese In Canada the show was shown on the Global Television Network In China the show was dubbed in Standard Chinese and aired on STV Hunter was one of the first US series to air regularly in China Kramer was invited to China to sing at the Shanghai TV amp Film Festival 11 Both Dryer and Kramer are still widely recognized in China Dryer s efforts to set a Hunter movie there in the late 1990s did not bear fruit 12 The Hunter TV series is a favorite of the disgraced former Beijing Mayor Chen Xitong who had quoted the name character and events of the TV series in various speeches he delivered In Mexico the series was shown as El Cazador It was broadcast by Televisa Network on Canal Cinco In Chile the series was shown until the sixth season as Hunter on TVN In Croatia the show was shown on HRT In Colombia the series was presented as El Cazador It was broadcast by Producciones JES on Cadena Uno every Saturday night at 21 45 from 1987 to 1991 The final season was never aired in Colombia In Costa Rica the show was shown on Teletica Canal 7 as El cazador In Czech Republic the show was shown on TV Prima In Denmark the show was shown on DR1 In Egypt the show was shown on القناة الثانية Channel 2 a lot during the 90s In Estonia the show was shown on TV3 In Finland the show was shown on MTV3 Sarja In France the show was shown on TF1 as Rick Hunter In Germany the show was shown on Sat 1 In Greece the show was shown on Star Channel In Hungary the show was shown on Viasat 3 In Gibraltar the show was shown on GBC TV Gibraltar Broadcasting Corporation In Hong Kong ATV broadcast the show In Indonesia the show was shown on TVRI In India the show was shown on Star Plus In Ireland the show was shown on RTE One In Israel the show was shown on Israel 10 In Italy the show was shown on Rai Due In Japan the show was shown on TBS and TV Tokyo In Lebanon the show was shown on the Lebanese tv station LBCI In South Korea the show was shown on SBS In Macedonia the show was shown on MRT In Norway the show was shown on NRK in 1986 In Pakistan the show was aired on Pakistan Television PTV In the Philippines the show was aired on RPN 9 In Portugal the show was aired on RTP 1 In Russia the show was aired on NTV In Serbia the show was aired on FOX Crime In Slovakia the show was aired on Markiza In Sweden the show was shown on TV4 In Thailand the show was shown on Channel 3 In Turkey the show was shown on Star TV and Kanal D In the United Kingdom the first two seasons aired regionally on terrestrial broadcaster ITV the remainder on satellite cable channel Sky One See also EditSledge Hammer a parody show with a similar lead characterReferences Edit Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith M 1991 May 22 SILVERMAN THROWN BY MATLOCK SHELVING Daily News of Los Angeles CA p L17 Available from NewsBank Access World News https infoweb newsbank com ccclez idm oclc org apps news document view p AWNB amp docref news 0EF612B101985E14 Hunter DVD news Very cool cover art amp correct price for 1st season TVShowsOnDVD com www tvshowsondvd com Archived from the original on November 12 2013 Hunter DVD news 3 D Box Art For 2nd Season Set TVShowsOnDVD com www tvshowsondvd com Archived from the original on November 12 2013 Hunter DVD news 3 D Box Art and New Info for Hunter Season 3 TVShowsOnDVD com www tvshowsondvd com Archived from the original on November 12 2013 Site News DVD news Cannell and Mill Creek Ink New Distribution Deal TVShowsOnDVD com Archived from the original on November 23 2011 Retrieved June 18 2011 Mill Creek Gets DVD Rights to 14 More Classic Stephen J Cannell TV Programs Hunter DVD news Announcement for Hunter The Complete 1st Season TVShowsOnDVD com www tvshowsondvd com Archived from the original on December 15 2009 Hunter DVD news Re issue of Hunter The Complete 2nd Season TVShowsOnDVD com www tvshowsondvd com Archived from the original on March 22 2010 Hunter DVD news Announcement for Hunter The Complete Series TVShowsOnDVD com www tvshowsondvd com Archived from the original on October 1 2012 GREATEST AMERICAN RETURN OF HUNTER JAKE LASSITER THE GREAT PRETENDER Archived from the original on May 13 2013 Retrieved February 4 2013 Hunter The Complete Series 上海国际电影电视节如约而至 三十而立 白玉兰 再迎绽放时刻 Ϻ eط 칫 www shtong gov cn Archived from the original on January 9 2007 External links EditHunter at IMDb Hunter at IMDb revival Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Hunter 1984 American TV series amp oldid 1149012510, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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