Disillusioned with American TV
My love affair with American TV shows began as a child. I remember watching Star Trek, sitting on the sofa with my younger brother, dodging the Enterprise as it flew towards the screen during the opening credits. There were a host of other SF series as well, mainly coming from the fertile mind of Irwin Allen. Luckily my Dad provided something to return my feet to terra firma. He was a huge western fan so other early viewing included The Virginian, The High Chaparral, Lancer, Cheyenne (and spin off Bronco) and the excellent Hondo that sadly only lasted one season. Not to mention Kung Fu that had me attempting to imitate David Carradine’s Kwai Chang Caine resulting in more than a few bruises, some my own!
As the 70’s progressed we saw the decline of the western show and a glut of detective series filled the void - Kojak, Cannon, McCloud, Colombo, Banachek, Starsky & Hutch to name just a few. My personal favourite was The Rockford Files, to the extent that my ambition when I grew up (sadly unachieved) was to be a detective and live in a trailer by the sea. And there were also other lesser known gems like Petrocelli, Manhunter (set during the American depression) and Baretta (starring the ill fated Robert Blake).
Then there were the SF shows trying to fill the gap left by Star Trek and Irwin Allen - The Six Million Dollar Man (and spin off The Bionic Woman),Logan’s Run, The Fantastic Journey, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Battlestar Galactica along and numerous others that are probably best forgotten (The Man From Atlantis anyone?)
