The 80s Had a Private-Eye Problem
The 80s loved a private investigator. Give somebody a mustache, a sports car, a houseboat, or one deeply questionable trench coat, and suddenly they had an office and a weekly mystery. A few became classics. The rest vanished so completely that remembering five might actually be impressive.
“Riptide” (1984–1986)
Two former military buddies opened a detective agency, operated from a boat, and teamed up with their computer-genius friend. They solved cases using a speedboat, a robot, and a barely respectable old helicopter called the Screaming Mimi. Riptide was essentially what happened when the 80s gave private investigators a toy budget.
Screenshot from Riptide, NBC (1984–1986)
“Matt Houston” (1982–1985)
Matt Houston was a wealthy Texas oilman who moved to Los Angeles and apparently decided running an enormous business was not enough excitement. Played by Lee Horsley, he treated private investigation as a very expensive side job while C.J. Parsons and her computer “Baby” did a healthy amount of the actual work.
Screenshot from Matt Houston, Paramount (1982-1985)
“Crazy Like a Fox” (1984–1986)
Jack Warden played Harry Fox, a rumpled San Francisco private investigator who repeatedly dragged his tightly wound lawyer son into dangerous cases. Harrison would remind his father that he was a lawyer, not a detective. Harry would ignore him. That was basically the arrangement—and it worked surprisingly well.
Screenshot from Crazy Like a Fox, Sony Pictures Entertainment (1984-1986)
“Tenspeed and Brown Shoe” (1980)
Ben Vereen played a fast-talking con man working as a private detective to satisfy his parole requirements. Jeff Goldblum played an accountant who dreamed of becoming a pulp-novel private eye. Naturally, they opened an agency together. Stephen J. Cannell’s wonderfully strange buddy series lasted just 14 episodes.
Screenshot from Tenspeed and Brown Shoe, ABC (1980)
“Tucker’s Witch” (1982–1983)
Rick and Amanda Tucker were married private investigators, which was already enough of a television premise. But Amanda was also psychic and received visions that helped solve their cases. Tim Matheson and Catherine Hicks starred, and somehow a romantic detective show involving supernatural powers has almost completely disappeared from 80s nostalgia.
Screenshot from Tucker's Witch, CBS (1982–1983)
“Partners in Crime” (1984)
Lynda Carter and Loni Anderson played two very different women who had both been married to the same man. After he was murdered, they investigated what happened and inherited his San Francisco detective agency. That is an impressive amount of television premise to squeeze into a single sentence.
Screenshot from Partners in Crime, Sony Pictures Entertainment (1984), enhanced
“Philip Marlowe, Private Eye” (1983–1986)
Powers Boothe played Raymond Chandler’s legendary private detective in a series that refused to modernize him. It remained in the smoky, dangerous Los Angeles of the 1930s and adapted Chandler’s stories. More surprisingly, it was the first drama produced for HBO—and only produced 11 episodes.
Screenshot from Philip Marlowe, Private Eye, HBO (1983–1986)
“Finder of Lost Loves” (1984–1985)
Most television private investigators searched for criminals. Cary Maxwell searched for the person clients never stopped thinking about. Anthony Franciosa starred as the owner of a detective agency specializing in locating old flames, former sweethearts, and other romantic unfinished business. It was basically The Love Boat with background checks.
Screenshot from Finder of Lost Loves, ABC (1984–1985)
“The Devlin Connection” (1982)
Jack Scalia played Nick Corsello, a struggling private investigator and racquetball pro who turned out to be the son Brian Devlin never knew he had. Rock Hudson played Devlin, a wealthy former intelligence officer and retired detective-agency owner who began helping with Nick’s cases. Crime solving was apparently easier than normal father-son bonding.
Screenshot from The Devlin Connection, NBC (1982)
“Simon & Simon” (1981–1989)
Rick and A.J. Simon were brothers who ran a private detective agency in San Diego—and agreed on almost nothing else. Gerald McRaney’s Rick was the cowboy-boot-wearing street guy, while Jameson Parker’s A.J. preferred suits and rules. This one lasted most of the decade, but it is rarely discussed beside the era’s biggest hits today.
Screenshot from Simon & Simon, NBCUniversal (1981-1989)
“Nero Wolfe” (1981)
William Conrad played brilliant private detective Nero Wolfe, who strongly preferred tending orchids and eating elaborate meals to leaving his Manhattan home. Luckily, Lee Horsley’s Archie Goodwin handled the running around. The series brought Rex Stout’s famous characters into contemporary New York but lasted only 14 episodes.
Screenshot from Nero Wolfe, NBC (1981)
“Cassie & Co.” (1982)
Angie Dickinson returned to crime television as Cassie Holland, a divorced former police officer who took over a Los Angeles detective agency. She had an ex-con secretary, a gym-instructor assistant, and plenty of contacts around town. NBC produced 13 episodes, although the show never found the following Police Woman had enjoyed.
NBC Television, Wikimedia Commons
“Spenser: For Hire” (1985–1988)
Robert Urich played Boston private investigator Spenser, with Avery Brooks stealing plenty of scenes as his intimidating friend Hawk. Based on Robert B. Parker’s novels, the series had tougher stories than many of its glossy 80s competitors. Somehow, it now feels less remembered than almost every show Urich made.
Screenshot from Spenser: For Hire, ABC (1985-1988)
“The Law & Harry McGraw” (1987–1988)
Before Jerry Orbach spent years questioning suspects on Law & Order, he played rumpled private investigator Harry McGraw. The character began on Murder, She Wrote before receiving his own series, where he worked with polished attorney Ellie Maginnis. Jessica Fletcher did not appear every week, which may have been the problem.
Screenshot from The Law & Harry McGraw, NBC (1987–1988)
“Private Eye” (1987–1988)
Created by Miami Vice creator Anthony Yerkovich, Private Eye ignored contemporary fashions and dropped viewers into 1950s Los Angeles. Michael Woods played disgraced former cop Jack Cleary, while a young Josh Brolin played his streetwise rock-and-roll partner. It looked stylish, expensive, and almost perfectly designed to become a forgotten cult show.
Screenshot from Private Eye, NBC (1987–1988)
“Remington Steele” (1982–1987)
Laura Holt was a talented private investigator whose clients refused to take a woman seriously, so she invented a male boss named Remington Steele. Then Pierce Brosnan’s charming mystery man showed up and adopted the identity. It was clever, romantic, and much more Laura’s show than the title suggested.
Screenshot from Remington Steele, NBC (1982-1987)
“Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer” (1984–1987)
Stacy Keach played Mike Hammer like the calendar had reached 1984 but nobody had bothered telling Mike. There were trench coats, fedoras, beautiful clients, dangerous alleys, and enough old-fashioned tough-guy dialogue to fill a filing cabinet. The third season was renamed The New Mike Hammer, although Mike remained aggressively old.
Screenshot from Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer, Columbia Pictures Television (1984-1987)
“Leg Work” (1987)
Margaret Colin played Claire McCarron, a former assistant district attorney trying to survive as a New York private investigator while driving a Porsche she could barely afford. Frances McDormand played her friend in the DA’s office. CBS produced ten episodes but aired only six before pulling the show.
Screenshot from Leg Work, The Walt Disney Company (1987), enhanced
“J.J. Starbuck” (1987–1988)
Dale Robertson played a billionaire Texan who drove around America in a flashy Lincoln Continental convertible with steer horns on the hood, solving crimes without charging the people he helped. Later episodes even brought back Ben Vereen’s Tenspeed Turner. Apparently, being enormously wealthy left Starbuck with plenty of time for unpaid detective work.
Screenshot from J.J. Starbuck, ABC (1987–1988)
“Sonny Spoon” (1988)
Mario Van Peebles played Sonny Spoon, a smooth private investigator who relied on street smarts, elaborate disguises, and an impressive ability to talk his way through almost anything. Stephen J. Cannell helped create the series, which aired 15 episodes during 1988 before Sonny packed away the disguises for good.
Screenshot from Sonny Spoon, NBC (1988)
“Diamonds” (1987–1989)
This Canadian series had a premise that was almost too clever. Mike and Christina were divorced actors who had once played married private investigators on television. After their series ended, they opened a real detective agency together. So they were actors playing actors pretending to know how to do the job they now actually did.
Screenshot from Diamonds, CTV (1987–1989)
“T. and T.” (1988–1990)
After The A-Team, Mr. T played T.S. Turner, a former boxer wrongly convicted of a crime. Public defender Amy Taler helped clear his name, and Turner began working as a private detective alongside her legal work. The series gave Mr. T cases involving people who needed help—and considerably fewer exploding vans.
Screenshot from T. and T., Global Television Network (1988–1990)
“B.L. Stryker” (1989–1990)
Burt Reynolds played B.L. Stryker, a former New Orleans police officer working as a private investigator in Palm Beach. He lived on a houseboat and occasionally found a paying client between enjoying the Florida lifestyle. The show aired as part of The ABC Mystery Movie, with Tom Selleck serving as an executive producer. That is a staggering concentration of mustaches.
Toni Anne Barson Archive, Getty Images
“Eye to Eye” (1985)
Charles Durning played semi-retired private investigator Oscar Poole, who returned to work after his former partner was murdered. Stephanie Faracy played the partner’s daughter, who became Oscar’s new investigative partner and helped search for the person responsible. ABC aired only six episodes, making this difficult even for devoted 80s-TV fans.
U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley, Wikimedia Commons
“Ace Crawford, Private Eye” (1983)
Tim Conway played a completely incompetent private investigator who always solved the case through accidents, misunderstandings, and ridiculous good fortune. His accountant assistant remained convinced Ace was a genius whose mistakes were part of some brilliant strategy. CBS aired five episodes—which might still have been longer than Ace deserved to keep his license.
Screenshot from Ace Crawford, Private Eye, CBS (1983)
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