:''For the upcoming film, see
Magnum, P.I. (film)
'''Magnum, P.I.''' is an
American television show that followed the adventures of
Thomas Magnum (played by
Tom Selleck), a
private investigator living in
Hawaii. The show aired eight seasons on the
CBS network from 1980 to 1988.
The show was in the top 20 in the
Nielsen Ratings for the first five years the series was broadcast.
[1]
The series
Selleck played Thomas Sullivan Magnum IV, a former
U.S. Navy SEAL. He is a graduate of the
Naval Academy, where he played
quarterback, and left the Navy in
disillusionment after approximately sixteen years of service, including three tours in Vietnam.
Magnum lives in the guest house of a lush 200-acre beachfront estate
Robin's Nest in Hawaii, at the invitation of its owner, celebrated (but never seen) author of lurid novels
Robin Masters, in exchange for his expertise in quality control of the estate’s security. Robin’s Nest is guarded by two highly trained
Dobermann pinschers, Zeus and Apollo, and managed by
Englishman Jonathan Quayle Higgins III (played by
John Hillerman), an ex-
British Army Sergeant Major. During early seasons of Magnum, the voice of Robin Masters, heard only a few times a season, was played by
Orson Welles.
Magnum lives a "dream" lifestyle: he comes and goes as he pleases, works only when he wants to, has the almost unlimited use of a
Ferrari 308 GTS as well as many other of Robin Masters’ luxuries. He keeps a mini-fridge with a seemingly endless supply of
beer, comes into contact with countless beautiful women (who are often his clients or victims in the cases he solves), and enjoys adventures with his two buddies, both former
U.S. Marines he served with in VM0-2 (a
Marine Observation Squadron) in
Vietnam.
[2]The buddies are:
★
Theodore "T.C." Calvin (played by
Roger E. Mosley) (who sports a ''
Da Nang'' baseball cap), a
helicopter pilot who operates a tourist charter business called ''Island Hoppers'', where he flies a distinctively painted
Hughes 500D. His combat-trained flight skills are often enlisted by Magnum during the course of an investigation. He is also very powerfully built, which Magnum exploits when he expects to run into physical trouble. With the exception of some early season 1 episodes, T.C. avoids alcohol, instead preferring milk, soda, or juice, but mostly coffee.
★
Orville Wilbur Richard “Rick” Wright[3] (played by
Larry Manetti), a suave playboy who is manager of the
King Kamehameha Club, an exclusive beachfront members-only club. In the
pilot, Rick owned ''Rick’s Cafe Americaine'' (a.k.a. "The Snow Palace"), a reference to
''Casablanca''. Rick also maintains a number of underworld contacts (one of whom is Francis “Icepick” Hofstettler, played by
Elisha Cook Jr., a loan shark, gang boss, and Rick’s stepfather) and is an expert in weaponry—he was T.C.’s
door gunner during the war.
List of episodes
★ Main Article:
List of Magnum, P.I. episodes
DVD releases
Universal Studios Home Entertainment has released the first six seasons of ''Magnum P.I.'' on DVD in Regions 1, 2 and 4, with Season 7 to be released in Region 1 on
October 302007. The eighth and final season is expected to be released soon
★ Includes the crossover Season 2 episode from ''Simon & Simon'' titled "
Emeralds Are Not a Girl's Best Friend".
★ Includes the crossover Season 3 episode from ''Murder She Wrote'' titled "
Magnum On Ice".
Awards
Selleck
won an Emmy in 1984 for his portrayal of the title character; three years later costar
John Hillerman also won an Emmy.
[7]
In 1981, series creators and writers
Glen A. Larson and
Donald P. Bellisario received an
Edgar Award from the
Mystery Writers of America for Best Episode in a TV Series.
7[8]
Cultural impact
''Magnum, P.I.'' was a combination of action, comedy, and drama. The show moved beyond the simple plot lines of the characters solving the crime of the week and confronted the difficulty
Vietnam era soldiers faced in making the readjustment to civilian life. In fact ''Magnum'' was one of the first shows to explore regularly the impact of the
Vietnam War on the American cultural psyche.
As of July 2006 ''Magnum, P.I.'' is one of a small handful of dramas voted by an overwhelming majority to have never "
jumped the shark" on the user-edited website devoted to that concept.
[9]
''Magnum, P.I.''’s theme was one of many iconic TV themes written by
Mike Post. The theme made its debut during the mid-first season of the show, and later replaced the opening and closing theme of the syndicated repeats of all earlier season one episodes. The original season one theme was composed by
Ian Freebairn-Smith.
''Magnum, P.I.'' was also notable among the 1980s American media for offering a positive portrayal of an American veteran of the Vietnam War. Neither Magnum nor any of his friends are apologetic for having fought in Southeast Asia, and while they carry some of the physical and emotional scars of that conflict, they look back upon their actions with pride, often sporting unit insignia on their ball caps or T-shirts, and wearing custom rings with this insignia. Neither do they “snap,” as other Vietnam veterans were portrayed as being prone to in such movies as ''
First Blood'' or ''
Apocalypse Now''. The show could be critical of the
U.S. government, and particularly of the
Central Intelligence Agency, but it defended the foreign policy of the
Reagan Administration on several occasions. The
Communist governments of
Vietnam and the
Soviet Union were targets of several episodes throughout the series.
Tom Selleck was famous for wearing a Hawaiian-style
aloha shirt, common wear in Hawaii.
A number of the episodes suggested a familiarity with
haole culture and things which are common knowledge in Hawaii, such as the hazards of sun and dehydration to be found on the beaches.
Selleck also often wore a
Detroit Tigers baseball cap (Selleck's hometown team) and Magnum was portrayed as a passionate Tigers fan. In an episode dedicated to this, Magnum goes to Detroit on business and to see a Tigers home stand. Humorously, he misses game after game, but well-known Detroit Tigers
Alan Trammell and
Lou Whitaker make cameo appearances at a bar where Magnum is stuck and help him out.
Recurring characters
The series featured a large ensemble of minor characters who appeared in many episodes over multiple seasons. Many of these actors first played other characters in earlier episodes and then became regulars in the following roles:
★ Lt. Yoshi Tanaka — Homicide police lieutenant with the
Honolulu PD (played by
Kwan Hi Lim), characterized by his casual dress and ironic sense of humor. Seasons 2 – 8
★ Agatha Cholmondeley (pronounced ''Chumley'') — Higgins' quintessentially English friend (played by
Gillian Dobb). Seasons 3 – 8
★ Col. “Buck” Greene — Marine Corps intelligence officer (played by
Lance LeGault), Magnum's former superior and often nemesis. Seasons 2 – 8
★ Carol Baldwin — assistant district attorney (played in all but first appearance by
Kathleen Lloyd). Seasons 3 – 8
★ Lt. “Mac” MacReynolds — doughnut-munching Navy Intelligence lieutenant (played by
Jeff MacKay), killed off in the series and later brought back as a ghost of his character. Seasons 1 – 3, and 7 – 8
★ Jim Bonig — con man (played by Jeff MacKay) who was MacReynolds’ look-alike. In one episode MacKay appeared in both roles. Seasons 5 – 8.
★ Francis “Icepick” Hofstetler — see above (played by
Elisha Cook Jr who had a number of other roles in the series as well)
★ Doc Ibold — very minor character (played by Glenn Cannon) who nevertheless appeared in many episodes whenever a physician was needed in the script. Seasons 2 – 8
★ Michelle (Magnum) Hue — Magnum’s former wife (played by
Marta DuBois), presumed dead but reappearing as the wife of a
North Vietnamese general and the mother of Magnum’s child, and often seen in flashbacks. Seasons 2 – 8
★ Lt. (later Lt.Cdr.) Maggie Poole — successor of the deceased MacReynolds (played by
Jean Bruce Scott). Seasons 3 – 8
★ Luther H. Gillis — mock-
film noir private eye from
St. Louis (played by
Eugene Roche), and narrator of the episodes in which he appeared. Seasons 4 – 8
★ Moki - He was the bartender of the King Kamehameha Club in season 1. He was later replaced with Keoki. Seasons 1 -?
★ Keoki - He was a bartender / server of the King Kamehameha Club starting in Season 2. Season 2 - 4
Several members of the cast appeared in productions of Donald P. Bellisario.
Larry Manetti,
Jeff MacKay, and W.K. Stratton appeared together in the 1970s TV show "Baa Baa Black Sheep" (aka "
Black Sheep Squadron").
Film version
:
Main articles: Magnum, P.I. (film)
In January 2006 it was announced that a film is again in the planning stages (after several false starts most recently in 2005) and
Rawson Marshall Thurber would write and direct the screenplay.
In January 2007, it was reported that
Matthew McConaughey would play Magnum, with
Steve Zahn as Rick,
Tyrese Gibson as T.C., and
William H. Macy as Higgins.
[10]
IMDBpro.com has said that on January 17th, 2007, the script is finished and the film will be released in 2009.
[11]
Trivia
★ One reason this show was set in Hawaii was so that
CBS could re-use many of the sets from its other hit show, ''
Hawaii Five-O'' which had just completed its on-air run in 1980.
1 Several early episodes make reference to the ''Five-O'' squad. While this could be seen as setting this series in the same “universe” as ''Hawaii Five-O'' (highly likely, due to the numerous references), such references are common even in real life, due to the cultural impact of that series. Due to crossovers with other programs, the series is also shown to take place in the same
continuity as ''
Murder, She Wrote'' and ''
Simon and Simon'', and, by extension, ''
The Law and Harry McGraw'' and ''
Whiz Kids''.
★ Former ''Five-O'' cast members
Kam Fong and
Herman Wedemeyer have guest-starred on ''Magnum P.I.''
★
Robert Loggia, who starred as the bad guy in the pilot, directed a number of episodes.
★ The fictional
license plate on the
Ferrari changed from “56E-478” after the pilot to “ROBIN 1”, which remained for the duration of the series. The original plate number can be seen, briefly, in the titles of every episode, just as the 308 pulls away from the shoulder of the highway. Other vehicles in the series displayed similar “ROBIN” vanity plates, including an Audi 5000 with "ROBIN 2", a GMC Jimmy SUV with "ROBIN 3", and a green Ferrari (“ROBIN 28”) driven by Robin’s nephew, R.J. Masters.
★ The producers originally intended to use a
Porsche 928 as 'Magnum's' car and asked
Porsche to produce one with an extra large sunroof for aerial shots. Due to a strict policy by Porsche of not doing any special specifications at customer request, the
Ferrari 308 GTS (which came equipped with a removable roof from the factory) was chosen instead and went on to become one of the most iconic cars of all time.
★ The writers originally wanted to eventually reveal Orson Welles as being Robin Masters all along, but Welles died before the storyline could materialize.
★ The Ferrari used in the pilot episode was driven across the United States by noted author P.J. O'Rourke. His essay "Ferrari Refutes the Decline of The West", published in his book "Republican Party Reptile" is a great road trip story in itself. O'Rourke was working for Car and Driver in 1979, when he and his boss were asked to drive a brand new Ferrari 308GTS from New York to LA, and then write an article on it. Naturally they do so (at speeds as high as 140 mph) and "Ferrari refutes the Decline of The West" was the result. At the very end of the essay O'Rourke remarks that the car was being shipped to Hawaii to be used in filming a movie called "Don't Eat the Snow in Hawaii", which (although O'Rourke didn't know it at the time) was the name of the Magnum P.I. pilot episode.
★ Magnum and Higgins often "
break the fourth wall" by "locking eyes" with the audience; other characters do this, though less frequently.
★ Magnum does not appreciate abbreviations for his profession such as P.I. and private eye. He will always correct people who use such abbreviations and remark that he is a "private investigator."
★ It was originally intended for there to be an episode of the science fiction program ''
Quantum Leap'' where
Scott Bakula's character,
Sam Beckett, leaps into the identity of Thomas Magnum. The episode would depict Beckett stumbling through a day-in-the-life of ''Magnum, P.I.'', and presumably interacting with the varied series regulars. Both ''Magnum P.I.'' and ''Quantum Leap'' were produced by
Donald P. Bellisario. Plans for a ''Magnum, P.I.'' movie led to the early demise of the crossover, but some footage was filmed; namely, the end-of-episode “jumping in” scene, in which Beckett jumps into Magnum’s life, turns to the camera, and raises his eyebrows the same way Selleck made famous. If this episode had been made, however, it would have presented a minor continuity problem, as the episode "Another Mother" showed a character watching ''Magnum, P.I.'' on television, implying that ''Magnum'' is a fictional show within the ''Quantum Leap'' universe.
★ Selleck's contract commitment to the ''Magnum, P.I. '' series famously cost him the role of
Indiana Jones in the first ''Indiana Jones'' film, ''
Raiders of the Lost Ark'', which went to
Harrison Ford. Selleck was unable to take the part of Indy as ''Magnum'' was due to start filming in March 1980. However, due to a writer's strike, the start of production on ''Magnum'' was delayed until December 1980, which would have allowed Selleck to play Indy. In ''Magnum, P.I.'s final season, the producers gave a nod to his sacrifice with the episode “Legend of the Lost Art”, which parodied the film.
★ During the broadcast of the series on
TVG in
Spain, a voice-over narrator uttered the title of the series during the opening. However, due to a misunderstanding of the abbreviation P.I. (Private Investigator), the narrator said "Magnum
Pi", thus confusing the audience.
★ The ''
Family Guy'' episode "Stuck Together Torn Apart" mocked ''Magnum, P.I.'', with Magnum referring repeatedly to Higgins as "Tattoo". When Higgins tries timidly to correct him repeatedly, he steps out of the Ferrari, slaps him to the ground, and asks his name. Higgins, even more timidly, says "Tattoo". This is a clear reference to the ''
Fantasy Island'' character portrayed by the late
Hervé Villechaize.
★ In episode #149 (7.22) "Limbo," the song that plays off and on during the entire episode and as Magnum walks off is "Looking for Space" by
John Denver. This episode, where Magnum was to be shot dead by mobsters was to be the CBS series finale on
15 April 1987. When the show's fans heard this, there was a huge public outcry and the "shot dead" plotline was nixed by the producers. Magnum was indeed shot by mobsters in this episode, though he survived and returned for an unprecedented 8th season on CBS, filming 12 more episodes.
★ In an episode of ''
The Simpsons'', Lenny gives Homer a
DVD player and the first season of ''Magnum, P.I.'' as a
Christmas gift.
★ The video ''Hard to Explain'' by
The Strokes, begins with a scene from ''Magnum P.I.'', where the Red Ferrari is accelerating from the dirt.
★ In the ''
E! True Hollywood Story'' episode on the series,
Donald Bellisario reveals that the character of Rick was designed to be a faithful impression of
Humphrey Bogart's character of the same name from ''
Casablanca''. This is further evidenced in the restaurant, called Rick's ''Cafe Americaine'', owned and operated by Rick in the pilot. According to Bellisario, the studio execs at
CBS "just didn't get it," and asked that this gimmick be discontinued. For the remainder of the series,
Larry Manetti simply played Rick as himself.
★ In an episode of ''
NCIS'' (again a product of Donald Bellisario), Magnum P.I. is referred by Tony DiNozzo, after finding some "Magnum's style" Hawaiian
shirts. Magnum P.I. is also referred to in Frame-Up, when DiNozzo is being interrogated, he says he wanted to watch Magnum.
★ In the episode "Unfinished Business", Magnum receives a package addressed to "Mr. Thomas Magnum, c/o Robin's Nest, 1541 Kalakaua Ave., North Shore, HI 96801". Kalakaua Avenue is in Waikiki, Honolulu (South part of the island) rather than the North Shore of Hawaii and 1541 Kalakaua Ave., is the address of the Senior Citizens Section of the Department of Parks & Recreation. The estate used in the series is in Waimanalo, HI 96795 and is owned by a lady named Eve Anderson.
★ One of the teaser movies for the game
World in Conflict is a
parody of Magnum P.I.'s opening.
★ In one Halloween episode on the online cartoon website,
homestarrunner.com,
Strong Mad's
Halloween costume is of Magnum P.I.
Broadcasters
★ United States &
Canada (first run):
CBS
★ United States (Syndication): Weekdays on
Superstation WGN and Monday - Friday, three times a day, (except Wednesdays and & Fridays) with two different episodes each day. It is also broadcast on the cable channel Sleuth every weekday, sometimes concurrently with another episode being shown on WGN.
★
Finland:
MTV3. Magnum, as it was known in Finland, was first heavily edited and then cancelled as "too violent" during its first season. It has never been broadcasted after that in any of the main Finnish tv-channels.
★
Germany:
ARD,
RTL,
Super RTL,
DAS VIERTE
★
Poland:
Telewizja Polska Program 2
★
Spain (
Catalonia):
TV3,
BTV (
Galicia):
TVG
★
Russia: STS (Russian: СТС)
★
Brazil: Globo, Rede 21, Sony
★
France: Antenne 2 (now France 2)
★
Norway (first run, 1980s):
NRK, (reruns, 1990s and onwards):
TVNORGE
★
The Netherlands: SBS6, Veronica, Net 5
★
Lithuania:
TV3 Lithuania
★
Ireland:
RTÉ
★
Israel:
Channel 1
★
United Kingdom:
ITV Regional (1981 - early 1990s),
Five (formerly Channel 5) (2002-2003),
Men & Motors (2006- )
★
Italy:
Canale 5,
Italia 1
★
Hungary:
Viasat 3
★
Estonia:
TV3
★ South Africa SAUK
★
Australia 1980-1988
★
Austria ORF1
★
Slovenia POP TV
References
1. Entry for ''Magnum, P.I'' from the Museum of Broadcast Communications website
2. The three buddies wear a gold Team Ring, which bears a Croix de Lorraine on a black field, as a bond of wartime camaraderie.
3. In the last episode, "Resolutions 2", where Rick gets married, the priest announces Rick's full name as being Orville Wilbur Richard Wright. The series ended on a cliffhanger note, as we never see whether or not Manetti's character said "I do". The name may be a continuity error, as early on in the series Roger E. Mosley's character had referred to him as "Elliot," though in the first episode he is in fact identified as Orville.
4. The Region 1 version of the Season 1 DVD release comes with an extra disk, featuring extra episodes from later in the series.
5. The Season 1 (Region 1) release has an error in the episode "China Doll": the musical cues are about 30 seconds off throughout much of the episode.
6. Region 2 DVDs have different cover art.
7.
8. The 1981 Edgar Award was won for an episode entitled "China Doll."
9. ''Magnum, P.I.'' at ''JumpTheShark.com''
10. ''Magnum'' at BitsofNews.com
11. Magnum News
External links
★
★
Magnum at Stage 1
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