Hooperman
Hooperman is an American comedy-drama television series which aired on ABC from September 23, 1987, to July 26, 1989. The show centered on the professional and personal life of San Francisco police Inspector Harry Hooperman, played by John Ritter. The series was created by Steven Bochco and Terry Louise Fisher, who were the team responsible for creating L.A. Law. Though not the first comedy-drama (the long-running television series M*A*S*H could also be categorized as one), Hooperman was considered the vanguard of a new television genre when it premiered, and critics coined the term "dramedy" to describe it.[1][2][3]
| Hooperman | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Steven Bochco Terry Louise Fisher |
| Starring | John Ritter Debrah Farentino Barbara Bosson Felton Perry Clarence Felder Sydney Walsh Joseph Gian Alix Elias Paul Linke (1988–1989) Rod Gist (1988–1989) |
| Composer(s) | Mike Post |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 42 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Robert M. Myman |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Adam Productions 20th Century Fox Television |
| Distributor | 20th Television |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Original release | September 23, 1987 – July 26, 1989 |
Synopsis
Ritter plays San Francisco police Inspector Harry Hooperman. In the first episode, Hooperman inherits the rundown apartment building he lives in when his elderly landlady is killed in a robbery. He also inherits her temperamental pet Jack Russell terrier named Bijoux. Due to the demands of his job as a police officer, he hires Susan Smith (played by Debrah Farentino) to be the building manager, and the pair become romantically involved throughout the first season.
Also starring on the show was Alix Elias as the cheerful and bubbly police dispatcher, Betty Bushkin; Barbara Bosson was Hooperman's divorced superior, Capt. Celeste "C.Z." Stern; Felton Perry as Harry's partner, Inspector Clarence McNeil; Clarence Felder as redneck inspector Boris "Bobo" Pritzger; Joseph Gian as Rick Silardi, a gay cop, and Sydney Walsh as officer Maureen "Mo" DeMott, his patrol partner who was intent on "saving" him from being gay by making unwanted passes. Dan Lauria played Celeste's former husband, Lou Stern.
The theme music was composed by Mike Post.
Guest stars in the series' 42-episode run included: Don Cheadle, Kim Delaney, Dennis Dugan, Norman Fell (who worked with Ritter on The Stone Killer and Three's Company), Miguel Ferrer, Jack Gilford, Mark Hamill, Joanna Kerns, Richard Kind, Dan Lauria, Jane Leeves, Lorna Luft, David Paymer, Barbara Rush, and Shannon Tweed.
Except for a brief syndicated run on the FX Network in the mid 1990s, and the pilot rebroadcast on TV Land in 2003 following Ritter's death, the series has not aired since then.
Episodes
Season 1 (1987–88)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Hooperman" | Gregory Hoblit | Steven Bochco & Terry Louise Fisher | September 23, 1987 |
| 2 | 2 | "The Answer My Friend Is Passing in the Wind" | Gregory Hoblit | Steven Bochco & Terry Louise Fisher | September 30, 1987 |
| 3 | 3 | "Don We Now Our Gay Apparel" | Rick Wallace | Steven Bochco & Terry Louise Fisher | October 7, 1987 |
| 4 | 4 | "Aria da Capo" | John Patterson | Teleplay by: Leon Tokatyan Story by: Steven Bochco | October 14, 1987 |
| 5 | 5 | "John Doe, We Hardly Knew Ye" | John Patterson | Teleplay by: Rick Kellard Story by: Lydia Woodward | October 28, 1987 |
| 6 | 6 | "The Shooting" | Nick Havinga | Teleplay by: Leon Tokatyan Story by: Steven Bochco & Amy K. Milkovich & Ed Milkovich | November 4, 1987 |
| 7 | 7 | "Hot Wired" | Michael Zinberg | Teleplay by: Rick Kellard Story by: Steven Bochco & Rick Kellard | November 18, 1987 |
| 8 | 8 | "Baby Talk" | Anson Williams | Steven Hollander | November 25, 1987 |
| 9 | 9 | "Blues for Danny Welles" | Kim Friedman | Teleplay by: Rick Kellard Story by: Robert Rabinowitz & Steven Bochco & Rick Kellard | December 2, 1987 |
| 10 | 10 | "I, Witness" | Kim Friedman | Teleplay by: Leon Tokatyan & Rick Kellard Story by: Ross Hirshorn | December 9, 1987 |
| 11 | 11 | "Deck the Cell with Bars of Folly" | Peter Werner | Teleplay by: Peter Nasco Story by: Steven Bochco | December 23, 1987 |
| 12 | 12 | "The Naked and the Dead" | Paul Lynch | Teleplay by: Gina Goldman Story by: Steven Bochco & Gina Goldman | January 6, 1988 |
| 13 | 13 | "The Snitch" | Rick Wallace | Terry Hart | January 13, 1988 |
| 14 | 14 | "Chariots of Fire" | Michael Zinberg | James Kramer | January 20, 1988 |
| 15 | 15 | "High Noon" | Kim Friedman | Steven Hollander | February 3, 1988 |
| 16 | 16 | "Blaste from the Past" | Anson Williams | Phil Kellard & Tom Moore | February 10, 1988 |
| 17 | 17 | "Tomato Can" | John Patterson | John Schulian | March 9, 1988 |
| 18 | 18 | "Me and Mr. Magoo" | Carl Gottlieb | Rick Kellard | March 16, 1988 |
| 19 | 19 | "Baby on Board" | Bethany Rooney | Gina Wendkos | April 6, 1988 |
| 20 | 20 | "Trudy and Clyde" | Michael Zinberg | Teleplay by: Phil Kellard & Tom Moore Story by: Rick Kellard & Steven Hollander | April 13, 1988 |
| 21 | 21 | "Nick Derringer, P.I." | Michael Zinberg | Steven Bochco & Rick Kellard | May 4, 1988 |
| 22 | 22 | "Surprise Party" | John Patterson | Teleplay by: Gary Rosen Story by: Steven Bochco & Phil Kellard & Tom Moore | May 18, 1988 |
Season 2 (1988–89)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | 1 | "Requiem for an S.O.B." | Win Phelps | Rick Kellard | November 30, 1988 |
| 24 | 2 | "We'll Always Have Paris" | Alan J. Levi | Teleplay by: Phil Kellard & Tom Moore & Jill Gordon Story by: Rick Kellard & Michael Wagner | December 7, 1988 |
| 25 | 3 | "Who Do You Truss?" | Alan J. Levi | Phil Kellard & Tom Moore | December 14, 1988 |
| 26 | 4 | "In Search of Bijoux" | Anson Williams | Jill Gordon | December 21, 1988 |
| 27 | 5 | "Look Homeward, Dirtbag" | Rob Cohen | Teleplay by: Douglas Steinberg & Rick Kellard & Michael Wagner Story by: Jill Gordon & Michael Wagner | January 11, 1989 |
| 28 | 6 | "Nightmare in Apartment One" | Jeff Melman | Phil Kellard & Tom Moore | January 18, 1989 |
| 29 | 7 | "Hooperman Goes to Hell in a Handcart" | Ron Lagomarsino | Michael Wagner | January 25, 1989 |
| 30 | 8 | "Rashomanny" | Ron Lagomarsino | R.W. Goodwin | February 1, 1989 |
| 31 | 9 | "In the Still of My Pants" | Betty Thomas | Jill Gordon | February 8, 1989 |
| 32 | 10 | "The Dating Game" | Neema Barnette | Sam Greenbaum | February 15, 1989 |
| 33 | 11 | "Intolerance" | Eric Laneuville | Michael Wagner | February 22, 1989 |
| 34 | 12 | "The Nun and I" | Roy Campanella II | Vic Rauseo & Linda Morris | March 1, 1989 |
| 35 | 13 | "The Sure Thing" | Bethany Rooney | Teleplay by: Jill Gordon Story by: Phil Kellard & Tom Moore & Rick Kellard | March 15, 1989 |
| 36 | 14 | "The Long So Long" | Jeffrey D. Brown | Bob Dolan Smith | March 22, 1989 |
| 37 | 15 | "Stakeout" | Max Tash | Jill Gordon | June 14, 1989 |
| 38 | 16 | "Dog Day Afternoon, Morning and Night" | Betty Thomas | Jill Gordon & Phil Kellard & Tom Moore & Michael Wagner | June 21, 1989 |
| 39 | 17 | "Love Bytes" | Arlene Sanford | Phil Kellard & Tom Moore | June 28, 1989 |
| 40 | 18 | "Take My Building, Please" | Roy Campanella II | Rick Kellard | July 5, 1989 |
| 41 | 19 | "Some of That Jazz" | Arlene Sanford | Glen Merzer | July 12, 1989 |
| 42 | 20 | "Goodnight, Sweet Hooperman" | Betty Thomas | Michael Wagner | July 26, 1989 |
Awards and nominations
The pilot episode won the 1988 Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series.[6]
References
- Lowry, Brian (21 September 2012). "Critic says 'MASH' top show of character". Variety. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
- Hyatt, Wesley (2012). Television's Top 100. US: McFarland. p. 171. ISBN 978-0-7864-4891-3. Archived from the original on 2011-03-26.
- Kelley, Bill (27 April 1988). "The Best And The Brightest Abc`s Hooperman -- The Hands-down Winner Of The Best New Show Of The Year -- Introduces A New Format, ``dramedy,`` While Slap Maxwell Reintroduces Dabney Coleman". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
- Long-Awaited DVDs for the Steven Bochco Show Starring John Ritter! ***UPDATED!*** Archived 2016-11-17 at the Wayback Machine
- Package Cover and Pricing Arrives for 'Season 1' and 'Season 2' Archived 2016-11-22 at the Wayback Machine
- The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present. Ballantine Books. 2003. p. 1438. ISBN 0-345-45542-8.