TV - Eight Beginnings, Two Endings Quiz

Answer: Airwolf

The shows credits list Jan-Michael Vincent (as Stringfellow Hawke), Ernest Borgnine (as Dominic Santini), and Alex Cord (as Michael "Archangel" Coldsmith Briggs, III) in the starring roles, but the true star of the series was the big black super sophisticated helicopter for which the series was named.
"Airwolf" ran for three years in its original format from 1984 until 1987, on network television. A fourth and final season was produced for cable television, and filmed in Canada, with a complete change in cast.

The full 50 second narration, as spoken by actor Lance LeGault, is as follows:

"This briefing is from file A56-7W, classified top secret. Subject is Airwolf, a mach one plus attack helicopter, with the most advanced weapons systems in the air today. It has been hidden somewhere in the Western United States by its test pilot, Stringfellow Hawke. Hawke has promised to return Airwolf only if we can find his brother, Sinjin, an MIA in Vietnam.
We suspect that Archangel, deputy director of the agency that built Airwolf is secretly helping Hawke in return for Hawke flying Airwolf on missions of National concern."
"Stringfellow Hawke is 34, a brilliant combat pilot, and a recluse since his brothers disappearance. His only friend is Dominic Santini, whose air service is the cover for their government work".
"With Hawke and Santini flying as a team at speeds rivaling the fastest jets, backed by unmatched firepower, Airwolf is too dangerous to be left in unenlightened hands. Finding it is your first priority. End of file."

Answer: The Invaders

This 1967 series starred Roy Thinnes as David Vincent, an architect returning home from a business trip who accidentally discovers the plot of a group of alien invaders to claim Earth as their new conquest and home. Vincent's attempts to alert an unbelieving world of the alien's plan to take over the planet largely falls on skeptical or unbelieving ears.
The series ran for two seasons.

Answer: The Fugitive

David Janssen starred as Dr. Richard Kimble, a famed surgeon wrongly convicted of the murder of his wife. When he escapes from custody, he searches for the real killer, the man who can clear his name.
The series ran for four seasons (1963-1967), and the series final episode, "The Judgment, Part 2", originally broadcast on August 29, 1967, was the highest rated episode in television history. That record ended thirteen years later with the "Who Shot J.R." episode of "Dallas".
"The Fugitive" returned as a major motion picture in 1993, starring Harrison Ford as Dr. Richard Kimble, and Tommy Lee Jones as his pursuer, Deputy U.S. Marshal Sam Gerard. A second television version of "The Fugitive" aired for one season in 2000, with Tim Daly in the role of Dr. Richard Kimble, and Mykelti Williamson as Lt. Philip Gerard.
For the original television series, the strong voice of the narrator was that of actor and announcer William Conrad. Conrad was the voice of Marshal Matt Dillon in the radio version of "Gunsmoke", and starred on television as Private Detective Frank Cannon in the 1971 series "Cannon".

Answer: The Avengers

A British import, "The Avengers" aired for seven seasons starting in 1961. The series starred Patrick Macnee as suave British intelligence agent John Steed. One of the most popular characters to appear on the series was introduced during the fourth season, in the person of Emma Peel, played by actress Diana Rigg. The popularity of the Emma Peel character, especially with American audiences, resulted in the narration for the show, which was specifically done for the American viewing audiences. The name Emma Peel, was derived from an old British film industry term which refers to roles for attractive actresses with "man-appeal" or "m-appeal". The "Avengers" was the first British television program to be sold to American television networks. Diana Rigg as Emma Peel, was also the first person ever to perform the martial art form "kung fu" on the screen.
Throughout the production of the series, five basic rules were always followed to maintain the pure fantasy aspect of the show. The guideline rules were, 1) no uniformed policemen, 2) no colored people, 3) no blood, 4) no dead women, and 5) no blatant sex.

Opening monologue:

"Extraordinary crimes against the people, and the state, have be avenged by agents extraordinary. Two such people are John Steed, top professional, and his partner, Emma Peel, talented amateur, otherwise known as 'The Avengers'."

Answer: Knight Rider

The story detailed how Las Vegas police officer Michael Long was shot in the Nevada desert by criminals, and left for dead. On the brink of death, Long was rescued by Wilton Knight, the billionaire founder of the Foundation for Law and Government, who arranged and paid for his medical treatment. After his recovery, Long underwent plastic surgery to change his facial features, and adopted the new name and identity of Michael Knight. Following his recovery, Knight was presented with a partner, in the form of a prototype super-sophisticated talking car, a black Pontiac Firebird Trans Am, known as the Knight Industry Two Thousand, or "KITT" for short. With Michael Long declared legally dead on public records, Michael Knight agrees to carry on the wishes of Wilton Knight, and becomes a crusader for the foundation. Michael Knight was played by David Hasslehoff. Michael Knight was supported by Devon Miles, played by Edward Mulhare, who served as Michael's immediate boss, and was leader of the team, and Bonnie Barstow, played by Patricia McPherson, who was KITT's chief mechanic. The series ran four seasons from 1982 until 1986. An updated version of the series, "Team Knight Rider" appeared in 1997, featuring a different cast, and a group of different special vehicles.

Opening narration as spoken by Richard Basehart, who played Wilton Knight in the series pilot:

"Knight Rider ... A shadowy flight into the dangerous world of a man who does not exist. Michael Knight, a young loner on a crusade to champion the cause of the innocent, the helpless, the powerless, in a world of criminals who operate above the law."

Answer: Tales From The Darkside

In this 1984 horror series, viewers were treated to 30 minute episodes featuring a different cast each week. Featured were horror stories that usually ended with an unusual or surprising twist. The show was in the genre of many of the other popular horror series of the time, such as "The Twilight Zone", "The Outer Limits", and "One Step Beyond".
The series was produced by horror film director and writer George A. Romero, who wrote the screenplays for the classic horror movies, "Night of the Living Dead" in 1968, and "Dawn of the Dead" in 1978.
The series aired for four seasons.

The full opening narration (minus the spooky music):

"Man lives in the sunlit world,
of what he believes to be reality,
but, there is, unseen by most, an underworld,
a place that is just are real,
but not as brightly lit."
"A darkside!"

Answer: Secret Agent

Patrick McGoohan starred in this British imported spy series as secret agent John Drake. The series originally aired for two seasons (1960-1962) to British audiences under the title of "Danger Man". When the series was revived in 1964, it was sold to American networks and retitled, "Secret Agent". With the new name came a popular new theme song, performed by Johnny Rivers. The series aired for an additional four seasons (1964-1968). During the first run, John Drake was a secret agent for a branch of NATO. His assignments involved aiding in the resolution of problems involving countries dealing with the interest of NATO or the United States. In the second run of the series, Drake was an agent for the British Government intelligence agency known as M19.
"Secret Agent" first aired in America in 1964, as a summer replacement program on the CBS network. The upbeat theme song was written by Steve Barri and P.E. Sloan, and was performed by guitarist, singer Johnny Rivers.

The lyrics to "Secret Agent Man" were:

"There's a man who leads a life of danger.
To everyone he meets, he stays a stranger.
With every move he makes, another chance he takes,
the odds are he won't live to see tomorrow.

Secret agent man, secret agent man,
they've given you a number, and taken away your name..

Beware of pretty faces that you find.
A pretty face can hide, an evil mind.
Be careful what you say, or you'll give yourself away,
the odds are you won't live to see tomorrow.

Secret agent man, secret agent man,
they've given you a number, and taken away your name.

Swingin' on the Rivera one day.
And then layin' in the Bombay Alley, next day.
Oh no, you let the wrong word slip, while kissings persuasive lips,
the odds are you won't live to see tomorrow.

Secret agent man, secret agent man.
they've given you a number, and taken away your name.

Secret agent man".

Answer: Quantum Leap

The series ran for five seasons, from 1989 until 1993. Scott Bakula starred as scientist Dr. Sam Beckett. After entering a time Accelerator, he was transported, or "leaped" to another place and time, usually within his own lifetime. Dr. Beckett would emerge in the body of another person, suffering from partial amnesia. In each instance, he (or she) would be in a position to right some wrong in history. Dr. Beckett's only contact with the present time was in the form of a hologram named Al (played by Dean Stockwell), who could only be seen by Sam. Al was aided by a hand held computer that was linked to the quantum leap supercomputer, known as Ziggy, and was able to provide Sam with information that could be related to his leap. Once Sam was able to correct the problem in history, Sam would then be leaped to another place point in time, as a different character. Upon arriving at the new location, Sam would usually utter his signature line, "Oh boy", which lead to the next episode. Sam was trapped in the Accelerator, and had no control over when he would be leaped, or where he would end up.
During the first season, the opening narration, that described the premise of the show, was by Dr, Sam Beckett. In episode #13 of the second season, actor Lance LeGault, a character from the first season, provided the opening narration. After that, and for the remanded of the series, the opening narration was done by Deborah Pratt. Pratt, who was at the time married to series creator and executive producer, Donald P. Bellisario, also served as co-producer, occasional show writer, and series guest star. Deborah Pratt was also the voice of Ziggy.

"Quantum Leap" opening narration by Deborah Pratt

"Theorizing that one could time travel within his own lifetime, Dr. Sam Beckett stepped into the Quantum Leap accelerator and vanished. He awoke to find himself trapped in the past, facing mirror images that were not his own and driven by an unknown force to change history for the better. His only guide on this journey is Al, an observer from his own time, who appears in the form of a hologram that only Sam can see and hear. And so Dr. Beckett finds himself leaping from life to life, striving to put right what once went wrong, and hoping each time that his next leap will be the leap home".

Answer: Sea Hunt

These words, or a similar invitation, came each week from scuba diver Mike Nelson (played by Lloyd Bridges) at the conclusion of episodes of "Sea Hunt". Often the messages were delivered as Nelson stood on the deck of his high tech, state-of-the-art (by standards of the late 1950's) diving boat, "The Argonaut".
"Sea Hunt" aired for four seasons, from 1957 until 1961. The stories centered around Mike Nelson, a scuba diver, who was involved in everything from underwater rescues and recovering downed satellites to diving for sunken treasure and battling bad guys. Nelson usually worked alone, and the plots were almost always revealed through his voice-over narrations. The series was filmed in many exotic warm water locations throughout the world. The majority of underwater action scenes were filmed in a huge aquarium tank in what was an amusement park in Southern California, known as Marineland of the Pacific.
Due in part to creative differences, Bridges chose to leave the series after the fourth season. The producers wanted to play up the cops and robbers aspect of the show while Bridges wanted to focus more on environmental themes.
During the 1960's. episodes of "Sea Hunt" filmed from 1957 until 1961, were among the most popular of syndicated television series.
During the earlier episodes of the series, Lloyd Bridges did voice concerns about the weight of his twin air tanks during his out of the water (usually on the deck of his boat) scenes. The art director for the series designed twin air tanks made of balsa wood, and painted them silver to resemble the actual air tanks. Throughout the remainder of the series, only the lighter fake balsa tanks were used for above water filming.
"Sea Hunt" made a brief return to television in 1987, with Ron Ely in the starring role. The new series was set in Florida, but the production budget only allowed for actual filming in and around Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.

Answer: Lawman

For four seasons (1958-1962), John Russell starred as Marshal Dan Troop, with Peter Brown as Deputy Johnny McKay, on the series, "Lawman". Together, they brought law and order to a portion of the wild West. "Lawman" was one of the many Warner Brother's westerns that filled the small screens in the late 1950's and early 1960's. Like many of the other western series of the time, "Lawman" had a great television theme song. The song, with music by Jerry Livingston, and lyric by Mack Davis, was:

"Lawman ... Lawman
The Lawman came with the sun,
There was a job to be done,
And so they sent for the badge and the gun,
Of the Lawman.

And as he silently roved,
Where evil violently ploved,
They knew he'd live or he'd die by the code,
Of the Lawman.

A man who rides all alone,
And all that he'll ever own,
Is just the badge and a gun, and he's known,
As the Lawman".



Thanks for taking the time to play this quiz. I hope it triggered some fun memories of some of the great TV series of the past I did for me.

Any comments, corrections, or compliments will be warmly received.

A special thanks to ladymacb29 for a super job in editing.
:-)