''B.L. Stryker'' is an American detective drama that aired on ABC from February 13, 1989, to May 5, 1990, as part of the '' ABC Mystery Movie'' umbrella group, along with ''

Columbo ''Columbo'' is an American crime drama television series starring Peter Falk as Columbo (character), Lieutenant Columbo, a homicide detective with the Los Angeles Police Department. After two pilot episodes in 1968 and 1971, the show originall ...

'' and ''

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''.

Tom Selleck Thomas William Selleck (; born January 29, 1945) is an American actor. His breakout role was playing private investigator Thomas Magnum in the television series ''Magnum, P.I.'' (1980–1988), for which he received five Emmy Award nominations fo ...

was one of the series' executive producers. The series starred

Burt Reynolds Burton Leon Reynolds Jr. (February 11, 1936 – September 6, 2018) was an American actor most famous during the 1970s and 1980s. He became well known in television series such as ''Gunsmoke'' (1962–1965), '' Hawk'' (1966) and '' Dan Augus ...

, Ossie Davis, Dana Kaminski and

Rita Moreno Rita Moreno (born Rosa Dolores Alverío Marcano; December 11, 1931) is an American actress, dancer, and singer. With a career spanning eight decades she is known for her roles on stage and screen, and is one of the last remaining stars from t ...

. Reynolds also directed several of the episodes. Each ''B.L. Stryker'' episode was two hours long, and took approximately a month to film. The first season of ''B.L. Stryker'' was seven two-hour episodes that aired every three weeks, broadcast on Monday nights from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m., on ABC. In the second season, the show was aired on Saturday nights.

Premise

Reynolds portrays Buddy Lee Stryker, aka B.L., a

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

vet and retired

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

police officer A police officer (also called policeman or policewoman, cop, officer or constable) is a Warrant (law), warranted law employee of a police, police force. In most countries, ''police officer'' is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. ...

who has moved back home to the other side of the tracks in

Palm Beach, Florida Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from West Palm Beach, Florida, West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach, Florida, ...

, and is working as a

private investigator A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI; also known as a private detective, an inquiry agent or informally a wikt:private eye, private eye) is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. ...

. Stryker lives on a

houseboat A houseboat is a boat that has been designed or modified to be used primarily for regular dwelling. Most houseboats are not motorized, as they are usually moored or kept stationary, fixed at a Berth (moorings), berth, and often tethered to ...

and drives an old

Cadillac Cadillac Motor Car Division, or simply Cadillac (), is the luxury vehicle division (business), division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Its major markets are the United States, Canada and China; Cadillac models are ...

, and occasionally scrapes up a client while trying to avoid being relocated for not paying his slip fees.

Cast

as B.L. Stryker * Ossie Davis as Oz Jackson, Stryker's best friend and a former boxer *

as Kimberly Baskin, Stryker's ex-wife (6 episodes) * Dana Kaminski, as “Lyynda Lennox” was a series regular, starting in BL Stryker's second episode.and throughout the two seasons on ABC, as Stryker's assistant. (11 episodes) * Michael O. Smith as Chief McGee * Alfie Wise as Oliver Wardell, diminutive owner of the marina at which Stryker's boat is moored, and frequently Stryker's comic foil * James C. Lewis as Captain Cartrude, Palm Beach police (10 episodes)

Production

Reynolds decided to return to television after appearing in a number of unsuccessful movies. The deal came together very fast; ABC approached Reynolds and he agreed to make it in two days. Reynolds says he was attracted by the fact the series gave him six months off and considerable creative control, and it would be shot in Florida where he lived.

Episodes

Season 1 (1989)

Season 2 (1989–90)

Home media

The complete 12-episode series was released on Region 1 DVD from Arts Alliance America in a 7-disc set.B.L. Stryker: The Complete Series
at Amazon.com

References

External links

* {{Christopher Crowe 1989 American television series debuts 1990 American television series endings American Broadcasting Company television dramas Television series by Universal Television Television series created by Christopher Crowe (screenwriter) American English-language television shows The ABC Mystery Movie American detective television series