"Remington Steele" (1982) TV series 1982-1987

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Creators:

Robert Butler
Michael Gleason

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

Release Date:

1 October 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Comedy | Crime | Drama | Mystery

Tagline:

Before He Was Bond He Was...

Plot:

The cases of a female private detective partnered with a former thief who assumes the role of a fictitious detective in the business.

Plot Keywords:

Investigation | Private Investigator | Private Detective | Murder | Male Female Relationship

Awards:

Nominated for Primetime Emmy. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Stephanie Zimbalist	...	Laura Holt (94 episodes, 1982-1987)
Pierce Brosnan	...	Remington Steele (94 episodes, 1982-1987)
Doris Roberts	...	Mildred Krebs (72 episodes, 1983-1987)

Runtime:

60 min (94 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG | Singapore:PG | Finland:K-11 (DVD) (2006) | Argentina:Atp

Filming Locations:

ABC Entertainment Center - 2040 Avenue of the Stars, Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

MTM Enterprises

Trivia:

Although Pierce Brosnan was contracted to "Remington Steele" (1982) for seven seasons, NBC decided to cancel the show at the end of the fourth season due to low ratings. This meant that Brosnan was free to play James Bond in The Living Daylights (1987). However, Brosnan's television contract gave NBC a 60-day period in which the network had the option to reverse the cancellation. During that time, the publicity over Brosnan's selection as James Bond led to an unexpected boost in the ratings for Remington Steele. As a result of this, in addition to viewer protests and a failed attempt to sell Remington Steele to another network, NBC had second thoughts about the cancellation. The network approached the Bond producers in an attempt to strike a deal that would allow Brosnan to play both James Bond and Remington Steele the following year without any scheduling conflicts. But eventually, Albert R. Broccoli famously told NBC that "James Bond will not be Remington Steele and Remington Steele will not be James Bond." At the last minute, NBC finalized its decision to renew Remington Steele, causing Brosnan to lose the role of James Bond to Timothy Dalton. NBC went on to make only six episodes for the show's fifth season, and then canceled the series for good in the spring of 1987.

Quotes:

Remington Steele: Zif climp blagh blagh blaghgh
[looks at Laura]
Remington Steele: It's for you.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Family Guy: Jungle Love (#4.13)" (2005)

Soundtrack:

Remington Steele/Theme For Laura

Classy mystery series

In re the previous viewer's comment on the romance in this series, IMHO the romance was always secondary to the mystery. The reason to watch this show is not for romance! Watch it for the homage paid to classic films, the wit, and the charm. The pilot episode alone was a delicious screwball comedy of confused identities. When Steele referenced an old movie I hadn't seen I would rush off next day to the video store to rent it -- although I confess I still have not managed to sit through all of The Yakuza! Michael Gleason's creation was an amalgam of great old movie characters: Cary Grant's John Robie in "To Catch a Thief"; Grant's multiple-named character in "Charade"; a little bit of Bogart and even a touch of Jimmy Stewart. I watched this show religiously at a time when I could hardly stand to watch anything on TV (and other than Foyle's War and the Hornblower series I pretty much avoid the boob-tube altogether nowadays)- so many episodes were wonderfully scripted and directed: Steele Away With Me, Steele Your Heart Away, Steele Belted, License to Steele, Altared Steele, and my favorites with the archvillain Major Descoin. I sure hope that when the show finally makes an appearance on DVD that the ENTIRE series is published, and not just a "best of" set.