The A-Team 

Four Vietnam vets, framed for a crime they didn't commit, help the innocent while on the run from the military.

Creators:

Stephen J. Cannell, Frank Lupo

Stars:

George Peppard, Mr. T, Dwight Schultz

Nominated for 3 Primetime Emmys. Another 3 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
George Peppard	...	John 'Hannibal' Smith (97 episodes, 1983-1987)
Dwight Schultz	...	'Howling Mad' Murdock (97 episodes, 1983-1987)
Mr. T	...	B.A. Baracus (97 episodes, 1983-1987)
Dirk Benedict	...	Templeton 'Faceman' Peck (96 episodes, 1983-1987)

Storyline

At the end of their stint in Viet Nam, Col. John "Hannibal" Smith and his team were framed for robbing the Bank of Hanoi (which they had done, but under orders), and sent to a US military prison. They escaped and went on the run, pursued first by Col. Lynch and later by Col. Decker. While on the lam, they became heroes for hire, working as good-guy vigilantes around the US or the world. Hannibal was their leader and an expert at disguises. Face was the team's con artist and ladies man. BA (officially "Bad Attitude") was their mechanic, but also took care of mayhem and intimidation. The final member of the Team, "Howling Mad" Murdock, was an expert pilot, and a certified lunatic--they broke him out of a mental hospital whenever they needed him for a mission.

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Plot Keywords:

1980s | good versus evil | mercenary | hero for hire | cult tv | 

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Taglines:

Heroes for hire.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Crime

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 January 1983 (USA)

Also Known As:

L'agence tous risques

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Stephen J. Cannell Productions, Universal Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

4:3

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the opening credits, Dirk Benedict reacts to a passing metallic "Cylon warrior". Cylons were the nemesis in Benedict's earlier series, Battlestar Galactica (1978).

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Goofs

In order to have become a Green Beret BA Baracus would have to have undergone Airborne Training and completed a number of parachute jumps. Yet according to his mother he was afraid of flying even from an early age. However, given BA's tenacity and toughness, that doesn't discount the possibility that he did many parachute jumps simply because he wanted to face that fear and overcome it. In addition, given that Murdock's flying is blamed as well for BA's fear of flying, it's likely that his phobia was exacerbated dealing with his experiences with Murdock's piloting on duty.

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Quotes

[repeated line]
Hannibal: I love it when a plan comes together!

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Connections

Referenced in iZombie: Spanking the Zombie (2017)

User Reviews

One of the best shows ever.

It's just a pity it only ran for 3 years. I was only a kid then but I imagine it was one of the top rating shows. When I say that The A-Team was inventive I really mean it.

Every show would have them locked in a barn or warehouse, by a corrupt Sheriff or Mayor, that just happens to be loaded with equipment of some kind. The A-Team then invent some kind of crazy machine that enables them to break out and defeat the bad guys. Not before a montage of them building the machine to a variation of the classic A-Team theme tune.

Every 10th show would be about Deckard and how he wanted to catch the A-Team "for a crime they didn't commit", but he never did. They were just too clever.

The show was always critized for being too farfetch'd. It's true though. A car would be blown up and the passengers would walk out, cough and dust themselves down...totally unharmed. And The A-Teams uncanny ability to fashion a rocket launcher out of a pringles tube and an orange was just too much for some folks. But that's what made it so good.