AMERICAN TV COP SHOWS AND HOW THEY INFLUENCED THIS WHACK JOB SERIES
I grew up watching American TV Cop shows. And, the two I religiously followed at the time was 'TJ Hooker' and The Mod Squad. Both TV shows were thrilling and had it all in terms of drama, action, adventure which had more sizzling issues that were themed with the times.
The first tv show was based on a tough cop who was assigned a new job in the police force. It was to nurture a new way forward to fight crime off the streets. That was after his work partner fell prey to an incident on the street. The titular character was played by William Shatner of STAR TREK fame. The second show was centred around three juvenile delinquents who were drafted in as undercover cops into the LA Police force in the late sixties. They were known as THE MOD SQUAD(1968-1973). This popular tv show was also noted as an American television crime drama. These youthful cops were practically positioned to infiltrate criminal circles who enticed the youth of the day. In some respects this was just an experiment. But it had proven successful as a police project.
This little piece is written and comes when I have just learnt of the demise of one of it's stars MICHAEL COLE. He was the last surviving regular cast member from the series. It's a pity because the late Michael with his co stars was brilliant in the role of Pete Cochran. A Beverly Hills rich kid who was kicked out of his house by his parents to go live on the streets before he met his two friends and co-workers Julie Barnes who was played by the late Peggy Lipton(Died in 2019) and Lincoln Hayes who was played by the late great CLARENCE WILLIAMS III(Died in 2021).
The Mod Squad was and still is one of my favourite television shows. Simply because everything about it was grounded, realistic and cool. And the music composed for it was out of this world. Including the opening scene with the trio in it was not just the coolest opening it was smoking HOT. But, on the other hand 'TJ Hooker' had its perks and this was because Hooker wasn't just an ordinary patrol cop on the streets he was an educated cop who demoted himself to take on extra curricular duties to fight crime. The notion was brilliant and I must say that idea greatly influenced the creation of my WHACKJOB series. The storylines which mainly involved Hooker and members of his team were razor edge exciting and breath taking stories to watch on telly. And that had me going for a very long while until I decided to come up with the creation of this nut job named LOGAN-The Expendable PI.
These two American television programmes were instrumental to creating an impact with my stories. The Mod Squad was hip and very stylish and TJ Hooker was a police procedural series yet had all the hardcore elements of a mini spy thriller series. The two shows despite cancellation due to budget cuts were ground breaking and ahead of its time. Enough said.
The Rattlesnake RETURNS soon and his past actions come back to roost in an exciting mystery adventure thriller that will blow the mind of fan favourite readers all over the globe. You might think you saw this new adventure coming. Well, guess what? You ain't seen nothing yet. Remember vengeance beckons in this action packed mystery thriller titled 'SHADES OF FALCON' .
Hey Gang STAY SAFE!
