Street Hawk
| Street Hawk | |
|---|---|
| Format | Action |
| Created by | Paul M. Belous Robert Wolterstoff |
| Developed by | Bruce Lansbury |
| Starring | Rex Smith Joe Regalbuto |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 50 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | ABC |
| Original run | January 4, 1985 – May 16, 1985 |
Street Hawk is an American television series that aired for 13 episodes on ABC in 1985. This series was originally planned for the fall of 1984, Mondays at 8:00PM Eastern/7:00PM Central. However, ABC executives changed their minds when the summer series Call to Glory did well, and Street Hawk was pushed to mid-season. Street Hawk made its debut on January 4, 1985 on ABC at 9:00PM Eastern/8:00PM Central and ran until May 16, 1985.
Plot
The show was about a police officer and former amateur dirt-bike racer named Jesse Mach (Rex Smith) who was secretly chosen to test a top-secret project—an all-terrain attack motorcycle capable of speeds in excess of 300 miles per hour. Backing the motorcycle was a computerized command system that allowed its operator to provide the motorcycle's rider with real-time information from various sources and to autopilot the motorcycle during its high-speed runs after clearing traffic along the intended route. Norman Tuttle, an engineer employed with the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration of the Department of Justice, was the designer of the motorcycle and reluctantly picked Jesse to test it. Mach began to lead a double life, a police public relations officer by day, and crime-fighter by night.
The musical theme was composed by Tangerine Dream and produced by Christopher Franke, and a modified version (which was featured in the pilot episode during the sequence where Jesse takes the bike out for the first time) appeared on their album Le Parc, titled "Le Parc (L.A. - Streethawk)."
The opening-titles narration, voiced by Ernie Anderson, runs:
This is Jesse Mach, an ex-motorcycle cop, injured in the line of duty. Now a police troubleshooter, he's been recruited for a top secret government mission to ride Street Hawk--an all-terrain attack motorcycle designed to fight urban crime, capable of incredible speeds up to three hundred miles an hour...and immense firepower. Only one man, federal agent Norman Tuttle, knows Jesse Mach's true identity. The Man...The Machine...Street Hawk.
Episode 2, titled "A Second Self," featured an appearance by a young George Clooney playing the character of Kevin Stark in one of the actor's first TV roles.
The motorcycle
The motorcycle in the pilot episode was based on a 1983 Honda XL500 trailbike. The motorcycles used in the series were based on 1984 Honda XR500s. The motorcycles used for the stunt shots were based on Honda CR250s. Overall, fifteen motorcycles were used in the show.[citation needed] The whereabouts of fourteen of these are unknown, but the fifteenth now resides in the Cars of the Stars Motor Museum in Keswick, Cumbria, England, street hawk bike restored by stuntman, Chris Bromham. The pilot motorcycle was designed by Andrew Probert and the series motorcycles were redesigned by Ron Cobb.
There is also evidence[citation needed] that a second motorcycle survived, but the whereabouts of this motorcycle are now unknown. It is known, however, that a motorcycle was displayed at "Star Cars" in America in the 1980s or 1990s. It is believed that that particular motorcycle is now missing.
Video releases
There have been at least two official releases of the Street Hawk pilot movie on VHS. One was from MCA Canada and contained the full 90-minute pilot (actually 76 minutes or so without commercials), and the other was the U.S. MCA release that ran about 60 minutes. There are short bits of footage that are unique to each release (i.e., even though the U.S. version is shorter, it does include a line or two of dialogue not present in the Canadian version). Other differences include a "blue lightning"-style primary weapon in the Canadian version (whereas the red "laser beam" from the rest of the series appears on the U.S. release) and actual stunt jumps on the U.S. tape instead of "matted-in" fake jumps in the Canadian version.
There are plans for an official DVD to be released in the UK,USA and Australia in the 1st Quarter of 2010 by Fabulous Films.[1]
References
- ^ Lambert, David (13 November 2009). "Street Hawk - 300+ Mile-Per-Hour Motorcyle Races to DVD in 2010 to Fight Crime!". tvshowsondvd.com. http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Street-Hawk-DVDs-Planned/12970. Retrieved 14 November 2009.
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