Knight Rider (1982 TV series)
Knight Rider is an American action crime drama television series created and produced by Glen A. Larson. The series was originally broadcast on NBC from September 26, 1982, to April 4, 1986. The show stars David Hasselhoff as Michael Knight, a sleek and modern crime fighter assisted by KITT, an advanced, artificially intelligent, self-aware, and nearly indestructible car. This was the last series Larson devised at Universal Television before he moved to 20th Century Fox Television.
For other articles, see Knight Rider (disambiguation).Knight Rider
- Stu Phillips
- Glen A. Larson
- Stu Phillips
- Don Peake
- Morton Stevens
United States
English
4
90 (list of episodes)
- Glen A. Larson
- Robert Foster
- R.A. Cinader
California
48 minutes
September 26, 1982 –
April 4, 1986
Plot[edit]
Self-made billionaire Wilton Knight rescues police Detective Lieutenant Michael Arthur Long after a near-fatal shot to the face, giving him a new identity (by plastic surgery) and a new name: Michael Knight. Wilton selects Michael to be the primary field agent in the pilot program of his public justice organization, the Foundation for Law and Government (FLAG). The other half of this pilot program is the Knight Industries Two Thousand (KITT), a heavily modified, technologically advanced Pontiac Firebird Trans Am with numerous features, including a highly durable shell and frame, controlled by a computer with artificial intelligence. Michael and KITT are brought in during situations where "direct action might provide the only feasible solution".
Heading FLAG is Devon Miles, who provides Michael with directives and guidance. Dr. Bonnie Barstow (season 1, 3 and 4) and April Curtis (season 2) are the chief engineers in charge of KITT's care and act as a technical assistant to Devon.
Critical reception[edit]
At the time of its release, Knight Rider received mixed to negative reviews. At review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the first season scores 35%, based mainly on archived contemporaneous reviews, with an average rating of 5.60/10. The site's consensus reads: "This car can do anything -- except paper over how tiresomely silly Knight Rider's concept is.".[7] Tom Shales, writing for The Washington Post, commented: "'Knight Rider' is all revved up but has no place to go, except, maybe, headlong into a large brick wall."[8] In the years following the series' conclusion, retrospective reviews have been more positive. Marc Bernardin of Entertainment Weekly called the show "a relic from a simpler time, when audiences demanded less from their TV".[9]
Syndication and home media[edit]
In syndication[edit]
Knight Rider was first syndicated in the U.S. in the Fall of 1986. Stations were initially offered either the original hour-long format (with three minutes cut from each episode), or severely-condensed into half-hour format.[10] Reruns were later syndicated on USA Network in 1994,[11] Sci-Fi Channel in 2003,[12] Sleuth in 2005,[13] and on G4 in 2012.[14]
DVD releases[edit]
Universal Studios has released all four seasons of Knight Rider on DVD in regions 1, 2 & 4. A complete series box set featuring all 90 episodes in a collector's edition box has been released in regions 1[15] & 2.[16]
On March 8, 2016, it was announced that Mill Creek Entertainment had acquired the rights to the series in Region 1; they subsequently re-released the first two seasons on DVD on May 3, 2016.[17] On October 4, 2016, Mill Creek re-released Knight Rider - The Complete Series on DVD in Region 1.[18]
Blu-ray releases[edit]
In Japan, NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan—a subsidiary of NBCUniversal—released a Blu-ray box set containing all four seasons, replicas, props, and memorabilia under the title ナイトライダー コンプリート ブルーレイBOX (Knight Rider: The Complete Series). The set is limited to Region Code A, which includes the U.S. It was released on November 27, 2014.[19]
In North America, Mill Creek Entertainment released the complete series on Blu-ray in Region 1 on October 4, 2016.[20]
On December 30, 2022, the German company Turbine worked with Universal to put together Knight Rider: The 40th Anniversary Edition Blu-Ray Collection. This set is a restored uncut version with the original music when it first aired on NBC. The series is on twenty discs, with three bonus discs, and includes bonus features about the series and the Knight Rider 2000 and Knight Rider 2010 movies in SD. Also in SD are all 22 episodes of the series Team Knight Rider.
On November 10, 2023, Turbine made a smaller release called Knight Rider: The Special Edition Set, which includes the first twenty uncut episode Blu-ray discs and the first bonus discs with the interviews.[21]
In popular culture[edit]
The Knight Rider theme has been sampled in the songs "Clock Strikes", "Turn It Up (Remix) / Fire It Up", and "Mundian to Bach Ke".[23] It was also featured as Ted's ringtone for John's phone in the 2012 comedy film Ted.[24]