Starsky & Hutch is an American action television series, which
consisted of a 70-minute pilot movie (originally aired as a Movie of
the Week entry) and 92 episodes of 50 minutes each. The show was
created by William Blinn, produced by Spelling-Goldberg Productions,
and broadcast from April 1975 to May 1979 on the ABC network. It was
distributed by Columbia Pictures Television in the United States and,
originally, Metromedia Producers Corporation in Canada and some other
parts of the world. Sony Pictures Television is now the worldwide
distributor for the series. The series also inspired a theatrical film
and a video game.The series' protagonists were two Southern California
police detectives: David Michael Starsky (Paul Michael Glaser), the
dark-haired, Brooklyn transplant and U.S. Army veteran, with a
street-wise manner and intense, sometimes childlike moodiness; and
Kenneth Richard "Hutch" Hutchinson (David Soul), the divorced, blond,
Duluth, Minnesota, native with a more reserved and intellectual
approach. Under the radio call sign "Zebra Three", they were known for
usually tearing around the streets of fictional Bay City, California.
Much of the series was shot on location in the Los Angeles beach
community of San Pedro. The building that was used as the Metropolitan
Division police headquarters is now San Pedro's City Hall.The
characters and even some plot points were based on real-life New York
City detectives, Lou Telano and John Sepe, who gained notoriety and
commendations for their unconventional and effective undercover police
work. The show's production team spent considerable time with the two
detectives during their daily routines. Lou Telano and John Sepe later
sued Aaron Spelling's production company and settled out of court for
$10,000 each.The vehicle of choice was Starsky's two-door Ford Gran
Torino, which was bright red, with a large white vector stripe on both
sides. Approximately four different cars were used for filming.
Earlier shots had red wing mirrors, except the pilot which had silver
mirrors, usually for long shots or footage used in later scenes, close
ups and later episodes had silver wing mirrors. The Torino was
nicknamed the "Striped Tomato" by Hutch in the episode "Snowstorm",
and fans subsequently referred to the car by that nickname, too.
However, this moniker didn't come from the writers, it came from a
real-life comment that Glaser made. In a segment titled Starsky &
Hutch: Behind the Badge that was featured on the first season DVD
collection, Glaser stated that when he was first shown the Torino by
series producer Aaron Spelling, he sarcastically said to Soul, "That
thing looks like a striped tomato!" In characteristic contrast,
Hutch's vehicle was a battered tan 1973 Ford Galaxie 500. It
occasionally appeared when the duo needed separate vehicles, or for
undercover work. However, the duo's cover was often blown because
Hutch's vehicle had a bad habit; when its driver's side door was
opened, the horn would go off, instantly drawing attention. It was
also noticeable due to the severely cluttered back seat, so cluttered
that there was no room to transport both prisoners and the two
detectives simultaneously.
consisted of a 70-minute pilot movie (originally aired as a Movie of
the Week entry) and 92 episodes of 50 minutes each. The show was
created by William Blinn, produced by Spelling-Goldberg Productions,
and broadcast from April 1975 to May 1979 on the ABC network. It was
distributed by Columbia Pictures Television in the United States and,
originally, Metromedia Producers Corporation in Canada and some other
parts of the world. Sony Pictures Television is now the worldwide
distributor for the series. The series also inspired a theatrical film
and a video game.The series' protagonists were two Southern California
police detectives: David Michael Starsky (Paul Michael Glaser), the
dark-haired, Brooklyn transplant and U.S. Army veteran, with a
street-wise manner and intense, sometimes childlike moodiness; and
Kenneth Richard "Hutch" Hutchinson (David Soul), the divorced, blond,
Duluth, Minnesota, native with a more reserved and intellectual
approach. Under the radio call sign "Zebra Three", they were known for
usually tearing around the streets of fictional Bay City, California.
Much of the series was shot on location in the Los Angeles beach
community of San Pedro. The building that was used as the Metropolitan
Division police headquarters is now San Pedro's City Hall.The
characters and even some plot points were based on real-life New York
City detectives, Lou Telano and John Sepe, who gained notoriety and
commendations for their unconventional and effective undercover police
work. The show's production team spent considerable time with the two
detectives during their daily routines. Lou Telano and John Sepe later
sued Aaron Spelling's production company and settled out of court for
$10,000 each.The vehicle of choice was Starsky's two-door Ford Gran
Torino, which was bright red, with a large white vector stripe on both
sides. Approximately four different cars were used for filming.
Earlier shots had red wing mirrors, except the pilot which had silver
mirrors, usually for long shots or footage used in later scenes, close
ups and later episodes had silver wing mirrors. The Torino was
nicknamed the "Striped Tomato" by Hutch in the episode "Snowstorm",
and fans subsequently referred to the car by that nickname, too.
However, this moniker didn't come from the writers, it came from a
real-life comment that Glaser made. In a segment titled Starsky &
Hutch: Behind the Badge that was featured on the first season DVD
collection, Glaser stated that when he was first shown the Torino by
series producer Aaron Spelling, he sarcastically said to Soul, "That
thing looks like a striped tomato!" In characteristic contrast,
Hutch's vehicle was a battered tan 1973 Ford Galaxie 500. It
occasionally appeared when the duo needed separate vehicles, or for
undercover work. However, the duo's cover was often blown because
Hutch's vehicle had a bad habit; when its driver's side door was
opened, the horn would go off, instantly drawing attention. It was
also noticeable due to the severely cluttered back seat, so cluttered
that there was no room to transport both prisoners and the two
detectives simultaneously.
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