RANK 'EM! Top 5 '80s Private Detective TV Shows ...

[Lance Mannion]

Too many to do a Poll ... Okay assuming everyone here's #1 is MPI - Pick 4 ... With a quick reason, if you care to give one ...

Or just mention another show you enjoyed (but in keeping with this Thread's theme, you should mention why MPI is still your favorite ) - For those shows I missed (please post) & I will update the list ...

Booker (1989-90)
Charlie's Angels (1976-81)
Father Dowling Mysteries (1987-91)
Hart to Hart (1979-84)
Jake and the Fatman (1987-92)
Knight Rider (1982-86)
Magnum, P.I. (1980-88)
Matt Houston (1982-85)
MacGyver (1985-92)
Moonlighting (1985-89)
Murder, She Wrote (1984-96)
Remington Steele (1982-87)
Riptide (1983-86)
Simon & Simon (1981-89)
Spenser: For Hire (1985-88)
Stingray (1986-87)
The Equalizer (1985-89)

Grey area shows:
Fall Guy (1981-86)
Hardcastle & McCormick (1983-86)
Matlock (1986-95)
Quincy M.E. (1976-83)
The A-Team (1983-87)

Really not comparable - being Police Shows ex. Rockford - but note worthy:

Hill Street Blues (1981-1987), 21 Jump Street, T.J. Hooker w/ William Shatner and Heather Locklear (1982-1986), The Rockford Files (1974-1980), Chips (1977-1983), Hawaii Five-0 (1968-1980), Miami Vice (1984-1990). *** Input Vega$ ran until 1981 and Mannix from the 60's ***

[Lance Mannion]

#2 Moonlighting (1985-89) -Bruce Willis ...
#3 MacGyver (1985-92)- The guy makes bombs out of bubble gum
#4 Riptide (1983-86) - Very iffy show, loved that Helo though - Plus I didn't think anyone else would plug them ...
#5 Miami Vice, Hill Street - Not PI shows, but the cultural impact ... Nuff said

[Higgins (aka Bondtoys)]

For me:

1. Miami Vice: Changed TV and my lifestyle. Captured the 80s like no other series
2. Magnum PI: I enjoy the "Happy Episodes"
3. Charlies Angels: 3 pretty ladies, beautiful locations and some Action.
4. Moonlighting: Bruce Willis in his best role

don't care much for the rest.

[terryfromkerry]

Hi guys ,

Great thread idea Lance.

(1) Magnum PI ( all our girls wanted to be with him & all of us guys wanted to be him )

(2) THE ROCKFORD FILES (barely qualifies as 80's but it broke the staid formula of previous PI shows and James Garner was so impressive as the wise cracking reluctant almost anti - hero. )

(3) MIAMI VICE ( the music, pastels, the clothes, the cars, Don Johnson ..... the coolest guy on the planet !)

(4) Sledge Hammer ( " trust me I know what I'm doing " ..... great spoof of the genre. )

(5) Simon & Simon ( always enjoyed this show, was delighted to see Gerald Mac Raney in Deadwood & Longmire .

Just an honourable mention to the very short lived ACE CRAWFORD, PRIVATE EYE (1983) starring the hilarious Tim Conway. Such a shame it was cancelled almost immediately. The moment Tim Conway came on screen I just cracked up even before he did or said anything.

I have ridiculously fond memories of the '80's. I had 2 aloha shirts , a dozen " grandfather" shirts a la Tom Magnum and the sky blue Sonny Crockett jacket with the sleeves rolled up above the elbows. It was also in the '80's our 2 sons were born. They were crazy about ALF, MASK, TRANSFORMERS, etc not to mention Hulk Hogan, Andre The Giant, Randy Savage & the rest of the gang.

[Steve]

The only two on the list that I watched regularly are Magnum,pi and Miami Vice. I also loved Vega$ that ran until 1981 and have to cheat and put Mannix from the 60's and The Rockford Files from the 70's as they were both incredible shows.......

[MagnumILWU]

Miami Vice isn't a Private Detective show! Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer, Spenser: For Hire, Moonlighting, Simon & Simon, and of course Magnum!

[eagle]

Of those, I watched these while they were new-on-air:
Charlie's Angels (1976-81)
Knight Rider (1982-86)
Magnum, P.I. (1980-88)
Moonlighting (1985-89)
Murder, She Wrote (1984-96)
Remington Steele (1982-87)
Simon & Simon (1981-89)
CHiPs (1977-1983)
The Rockford Files (1974-1980)

I saw a few episodes of some others (Spenser, MacGyver, The A-Team).

Of the original list, I still enjoy these and would rank them like this:
Magnum, P.I. (1980-88)
Charlie's Angels (1976-81)
Remington Steele (1982-87)
Simon & Simon (1981-89)
CHiPs (1977-1983)
Knight Rider (1982-86)
The Rockford Files (1974-1980)

I especially like Charlie's Angels seasons 2-3 (with Cheryl Ladd and Kate Jackson), and season 1 after that. I'm less a fan of seasons 4-5.

[Pahonu]

Strange story, but stay with me. A couple of summers ago I saw an old wood powerboat on the long dock by our place. It was a beautiful old ELCO from the 30's, and it was called Riptide. It was there a few days and I got a chance to talk to the owner. It was indeed the boat used in the 80's detective series. It had fallen into disrepair since the show filmed in King Harbor. He bought and put quite a bit of money into it, about six figures if I remember correctly! At the time it was slipped in San Pedro, though I've since learned it is now in the Puget Sound area. I had essentially forgotten all about the show, but had watched it as a kid. So last summer I found a cheap copy of season one of Riptide. I thought it wouldn't hold up, but it was still pretty good, light-hearted, escapist fun. There was also an episode filmed in Long Beach that I recognized immediately. Long story short, I bought the other two seasons and enjoyed them as well.

On a side note, the last season had a hilarious episode where they spoof Moonlighting, the show that was such a big hit, it basically got them canceled. The Riptide detectives are hired to teach two actors of a new show what detective work is really like. The actor who copied Bruce Willis was really good. I would also add, having tried watching it recently, Moonlighting does not hold up nearly as well.

So then:

1. The Rockford Files is my favorite show ever, but barely in the 80's.
2. Magnum pi
3. Riptide
4. Simon & Simon
5. MacGyver

[Styles Bitchley]

So, several of those listed are cop shows, so I'm keeping with the solid private detective genre.

1. Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer (Love the juxtaposition of Keach's version of Hammer living in 1980s NYC. It's funny, gritty, and unapologetically masculine. I think Hammer kills at least one bad guy and sleeps with at least one hot babe in every episode!)
2. Magnum P.I. (no need to expand on this one.)
3. Simon & Simon (This show is amazing. Watched a lot of episodes in the first run, but as I go through the episodes now sequentially I remember nothing. Great chemistry, mostly good scripts.)
4. Remington Steele (Okay, the opposite of Mike Hammer, but I still love it. Great chemistry between the two leads. I'm still surprised Zimbalist didn't go on to other things.)
5. Moonlighting (I didn't discover this show until about five years ago. Always thought of it more aimed at my mom's generation. First three seasons - up until Maddie gets pregnant - are awesome...the rest...meh.)

if I could add a sixth, I'd slip in Riptide. Watched several episodes recently and it holds up well. Some very hot bikini babes.

[Dave Anderson]

Thought there were more than those on the list, but my memory has faded after all these years.

I would have to say, don't shoot me, but my favorite was Simon and Simon, slightly more than MPI. This was mainly just because I am from San Diego and could relate to the show more personally. Sorry for the sacrilege. I don't necessarily consider it a better series though, just personal fav.

1. Simon and Simon
2. Magnum PI
3. Moonlighting
4. A-team (assuming this counts in the category), if not Remington Steele.
5. Father Dowling (ok, in retrospect, watching now it seems pretty weak, but I liked it at the time. Old blue collar Chicago urban vibe gave it ambiance).

Honestly, again sacrilege, but the first three are pretty much a tie if you want to get down to it. In terms of quality of show, I would probably drop S&S down to #3 after MPI and Moonlighting.

[Dave Anderson]

...
5. Moonlighting (I didn't discover this show until about five years ago. Always thought of it more aimed at my mom's generation. First three seasons - up until Maddie gets pregnant - are awesome...the rest...meh.)...

That's interesting, I was a teenager and was hooked on the show from the very first pilot episode. My mom never watched it as far as I know. It was a bit mature I suppose, but I knew a lot teens who watched it.

They talk about Miami Vice being groundbreaking, but I think Moonlighting was at least as much, and, of course, both took ideas from Magnum. Magnum broke the "4th wall" before Moonlighting. The thing about Moonlighting was the massive amount of dialogue, and the overall ambiance/aura they created. The took the man-woman romantic dectective thing from Remington Steele and Hart to Hart but it just took it to an entirely new level. I don't know if it was the lighting or what, but the show just had a special something about it, while at the same time being as dramady, even a farce at times, as a serious show. It was amazing IMO, though it had some flaws that keep it from the perfect category, and of course, the last two seasons were basically rubbish.

[Dave Anderson]

...I especially like Charlie's Angels seasons 2-3 (with... Kate Jackson)...

Oh yeah!...

[Pahonu]

Here's a link to a thumbnail I found with the Riptide in front of our townhome complex in Long Beach.



And a link to a bigger picture.

http://classicyacht.org/gallery/display ... p?pid=1107

[Lance Mannion]

...I especially like Charlie's Angels seasons 2-3 (with... Kate Jackson)...

Oh yeah!...

Ironic, Kate Jackson was considered the "un-pretty" one ) ... But that was when every kid in America - knew of, had/needed only two Posters - Farrah Fawcett and Rocky Balboa - Simpler times ...

[Majordomo]

1 - Magnum PI
2 - Rockford Files
3 - Simon & Simon
4 - In the Heat of the Night
5 - Knight Rider