"Starsky and Hutch" Pilot (1975)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Barry Shear

Writer:

William Blinn (writer)

TV Series:

"Starsky and Hutch" (1975)

Original Air Date:

30 April 1975 (Season 1, Episode 0)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama

Plot:

The two detectives investigating a double homicide, discover that the man and women who died were mistakenly murdered - it was the detectives themselves who were the intended targets. |

Plot Keywords:

Detective | Murder | Police | Assassination | TV Series Pilot

Cast

David Soul	...	Det. Ken 'Hutch' Hutchinson
Paul Michael Glaser	...	Det. Dave Starsky
Michael Lerner	...	Fat Rolly
Antonio Fargas	...	Huggy Bear
Richard Ward	...	Captain Dobey
Gilbert Green	...	Frank Tallman
Albert Morgenstern	...	D.A. Mark Henderson
Richard Lynch	...	Zane
Michael Conrad	...	Cannell
Buddy Lester	...	Coley
Carole Ita White	...	Mrs. Gretchen Knebel
Don Billett	...	Steele
Karen Lamm	...	Patty
Douglas Fowley	...	Lijah
James Brodhead	...	Tourist

Runtime:

90 min (including commercials)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Filming Locations:

Galway Theatre, 514 S. Main St., Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Spelling-Goldberg Productions

Trivia:

The pilot is set in Los Angeles, while the TV series is set in fictional Bay City, California.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Starsky jumps into the swimming pool after the hitman, his gun is in his right hand when we see him in his blue shirt. When we see him a second later with the sweater back on, his gun is now in his left hand.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Simpsons: Bart Has Two Mommies (#17.14)" (2006)

The original Professionals

This pilot for the successful TV series is a dark, gritty thriller which begins with a young couple being blown away in their car by two assassins. LA's toughest cops Dave Starsky and Ken 'Hutch' Hutchinson are called onto the scene, believing that they were the intended victims, so they roam the seedy streets, looking for answers. They then realise that there are bad guys on both sides of the law. Compared to the series, this TV movie is considerably more serious. Although Starsky has several witty lines and the chemistry between him and Hutch is apparent, people are gunned down in cold blood and the two heroes trust no one but themselves. Soul and Glaser are good and the action sequences are raw and exciting, featuring a downtown car chase, a punch-up inside a gangster's mansion and the climactic chase/gunfight. S & H are the guys who clearly paved the way for the likes of Bodie & Doyle and Crockett & Tubbs, with their humorous banter and crimefighting antics. The first 2 seasons of S & H were pretty tough and violent, until they were told to tone it down and it became more corny.