Hardcastle and McCormick is a 1980s
action/drama television series from Stephen J. Cannell Productions, shown on
ABC from 1983–1986, starring
Brian Keith as Judge Milton C. Hardcastle and
Daniel Hugh Kelly as ex-con and
race car driver Mark "Skid" McCormick.
The show's premise involves the retirement of Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Milton C. "Hardcase" Hardcastle. With file drawers filled with 200 criminals who got off on technicalities, he takes a page from his
childhood hero, the Lone Ranger, and makes plans to go after these
criminals. Mark McCormick is a smart-mouthed, streetwise car thief who is looking at hard time for his latest theft, a prototype sports car, called the Coyote X, designed by his murdered best friend. Together they strike a deal: Hardcastle helps Mark catch the murderer; Mark agrees to be released as the Judge's right hand man. In addition, Mark is allowed to keep the Coyote, which proves to be an excellent pursuit vehicle for their needs.
Cast
Brian Keith .... Judge Milton C. "Hardcase" Hardcastle
Daniel Hugh Kelly .... Mark "Skid" McCormick
Mary Jackson .... Sarah Wicks (1983)
John Hancock .... Lt. Michael Delaney (1984–1985)
Joe Santos .... Lt. Frank Harper (1985–1986)
Nate Miller..... Stunt double for Daniel Hugh Kelly, and waiter #1 in episode 12
Coyote X
The car that McCormick drove, the Coyote X, was not built from a
Manta Montage kit car, as is the popular belief, but was based on a
McLaren M6BGT, though the Montage itself was an M6 replica as well. The nose, windshield doors and lower body are faithful representations of the McLaren; the rear deck, however, was a custom component, that became a feature on many Montages with damaged rear windows. Most of the cars for the show were molded and assembled by Mike Fennel. Like many kit cars of the time, the car uses a chassis from a
VW Beetle and its engine from a
Porsche 914. For the second and third seasons, producers used a different Coyote, which was based on a
De Lorean DMC-12, as Brian Keith had difficulty getting in and out of the original Coyote. One significant difference is that the car's appearance no longer resembles the Manta, as the front is larger than the original, making the car resemble a front-engined car. A season 1 car that was used in the production of
Hardcastle and McCormick is currently owned by a private owner in southern New Jersey. Another stunt car was reconfigured for the Knight Rider 2000 tv pilot, then consequently turned into Jay Ohrberg's show car "Taz-Mobile". That car is currently being restored in Long Beach, CA, by a private collector, and can be viewed on Jay's website. There seem to be only three remaining season 1 cars in existence, while the DeLorean-based cars are represented by at least three examples.
Theme songs
The opening theme song during season one of this series was entitled "Drive". It was composed by
Mike Post and
Stephen Geyer and sung by
David Morgan. For the first part of second season, the theme song was "Back to Back", also composed by Post and Geyer but sung by
Joey Scarbury (who also sang Post's theme for
The Greatest American Hero). Public outrage, however, resulted in the "Drive" theme being reinstated and kept through season three. Post and
Pete Carpenter scored the music for the series.
Nielsen Ratings
1983-84: #15 (18.71 rating)
1984-85: #39 (15.82 rating)
1985-86: #52 (13.90 rating)
Ratings courtesy of TVTango.com's ratings archive
DVD releases
Visual Entertainment has released all 3 seasons of
Hardcastle and McCormick on DVD in Region 1
(Canada only). VEI also released
Hardcastle & McCormick: The Complete Series on DVD on September 3, 2008.
{| class="wikitable"
!DVD Name
!Ep #
!Release Date
!Additional Information
|-
| The Complete First Season
| align="center"|23
| February 14, 2006
|
Includes 2 hr Pilot, "Rolling Thunder"
|-
| The Complete Second Season
| align="center"|22
| August 15, 2006
|
All Original Music
|-
| The Complete Third Season
| align="center"|22
| October 30, 2007
|
Photo Gallery
All Original Music
|-
| The Complete Series
| align="center"|67
| September 3, 2008
|
|}
It is unknown if Sony Pictures Home Entertainment will release any seasons of Hardcastle and McCormick in the U.S.
References
External links
hardcastleandmccormick.tv
Hardcastle and McCormick transcripts at TVTDB.com
Coyote – The Challenge – The Car Star about the legendary car of the series, the "Coyote".
Jump The Shark – Hardcastle and McCormick
Category:1980s American television series
Category:American Broadcasting Company network shows
Category:Crime television series
Category:American drama television series
Category:Television series by Stephen J. Cannell Productions
Category:Television series by Sony Pictures Television
Category:Television shows set in California
Category:1983 television series debuts
Category:1986 television series endings
