Max Headroom 

In the near future, an intrepid investigative TV reporter does his job with the help of his colleagues and a computerized version of himself.

Stars:

Matt Frewer, Amanda Pays, Chris Young

Won 3 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Matt Frewer	...	Edison Carter / ... 14 episodes, 1987-1988
Amanda Pays	...	Theora Jones 14 episodes, 1987-1988
Chris Young	...	Bryce Lynch 14 episodes, 1987-1988
Jeffrey Tambor	...	Murray 14 episodes, 1987-1988
George Coe	...	Ben Cheviot 14 episodes, 1987-1988
Lee Wilkof	...	Edwards 13 episodes, 1987-1988
Hank Garrett	...	Ashwell / ... 12 episodes, 1987-1988
William Morgan Sheppard	...	Blank Reg 7 episodes, 1987-1988
Concetta Tomei	...	Blank Dominique 7 episodes, 1987-1988
Sharon Barr	...	Lauren 7 episodes, 1987-1988

Storyline

20 minutes into the future, the world has become imbued network-television. It's illegal to turn off your TV, and televisions are given to the needy. In this world, Network 23 has a highly-rated news program with a roving reporter named Edison Carter. But Carter uncovers a plot to cover up lethal "blipverts" and is almost killed. In the process his mind is copied into a computer and the computer-generated personality "Max Headroom" is born. Together, Max and Edison, along with Edison's controller (Theora), their boss (Murray), their boss' boss (Ben Cheviot), and Network 23's boy-genius (Bryce) combat crime, placate sponsors, defeat rival networks, and turn in stories. 14 episodes.

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Plot Keywords:

future | reporter | television | one liner | deadpan comedy | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Sci-Fi

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 March 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

Max Headroom: 20 Minutes Into the Future

Company Credits

Production Co:

Chrysalis/Lakeside, Lorimar Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min (14 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Matt Frewer, Amanda Pays and William Morgan Sheppard were the only actors held over from the original UK version.

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Quotes

Max Headroom: Yes, t-t-t-t-tune into Network 23! The network that's a *real* mind-blower!
[his head explodes then reappears]
Max Headroom: And I love, love, l-l-love... love those blip-blip-blip-blipverts!

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Connections

Referenced in Jonathan Creek: The Grinning Man (2009)

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Soundtracks

Golf
Words and Music by Michael Bramon
Performed by Matt Frewer and Michael Bramon

User Reviews

Filmed at 30 frames a second

Here's a piece of trivia. Max Headroom was filmed at 30 frames a second instead of the standard 24 frames a second. One of the reasons was so the series could more easily incorporate video with film, but a welcomed side-effect was that it gave the show a Hi-Def, futuristic look on 1980s television. It really did look different from any other show on TV.

What's interesting is that some current shows on video shoot at 24 or 25 frames a second to look more like film. It would be interesting to see what some filmed shows would look like in HDTV if they were shot at at 30 frames a second. You would get true HD.