Shaft 

Based on the movies of the same name, John Shaft is a two-fisted black private eye along the lines of Mike Hammer and Phillip Marlowe. Each week presents a different case and a different ... See full summary »

Stars:

Richard Roundtree, Eddie Barth, Judie Stein

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Richard Roundtree	...	John Shaft 7 episodes, 1973-1974
Eddie Barth	...	Lt. Al Rossi 7 episodes, 1973-1974
Judie Stein	...	Laura Parks 2 episodes, 1973-1974

Storyline

Based on the movies of the same name, John Shaft is a two-fisted black private eye along the lines of Mike Hammer and Phillip Marlowe. Each week presents a different case and a different crime to solve.

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Plot Keywords:

surname as series title | character name as series title | black cop | based on film | african american | 

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 October 1973 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

MGM Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

73 min (7 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This series alternated on Tuesday evenings with Hawkins (1973) which may have led to the early demise of both series. Contemporary analysts suggested that since the two shows appealed to vastly different audience bases, alternating them only served to confuse fans of both series, giving neither one the time to build up a large viewership.

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Goofs

Shaft's personal car for the series is a 1973 or 1974 Dodge Charger; Silver with blue interior. However, it is easy to distinguish between the 1st Unit and 2nd unit cars. The 1st Unit (or Hero Car) that is used in the scenes with Richard Roundtree has Rallye Wheels and White-lettered tires while the 2nd unit car has Magnum 500 wheels (sans trim ring) and black-walled tires. Both cars feature vinyl top trim, but no actual vinyl top. But, the 1st unit car appears to have a sunroof while the 2nd unit car does not. Lastly, the 1st unit car has functional exterior lights while the second unit car only has functional headlamps.

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Connections

Referenced in Southland: Underwater (2012)

User Reviews

This Sooooo Needs to be on DVD

I caught two of these episodes on TNT in the mid 90's.

Hit and Run with Anthony Geary and another, maybe Cop Killer. They were both very cool. I was quite impressed. As accessible as Shaft's Big Score.

I have no idea why it was cancelled after only 7 episodes, or why Warner Bros has not found a reason to put these episodes on 2 discs, and charge $29.99 for them. If they double side one of the discs there will be plenty of room for a interview with Richard Roundtree. With only seven episodes, they can probably interview most of the guest cast too.