''Knightwatch'' is an American

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

television series that aired on

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from November 10, 1988 until January 19, 1989 as part of its fall 1988 lineup. It had been promoted as an original series in light of summer reruns continuing into the fall due to the

1988 Writers Guild of America Strike The 1988 Writers Guild of America strike was a strike action taken by members of both the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) and the Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) against major United States television and film studios represented by ...

Summary

''Knightwatch'' centers around the activities of the "Knights of the City", a volunteer group set up to assist law enforcement. It was largely made up of ex-gang members (and was modeled after a similar real-life group, the

Guardian Angels A guardian angel is a type of angel that is assigned to protect and guide a particular person, group or nation. Belief in tutelary beings can be traced throughout all antiquity. The idea of angels that guard over people played a major role i ...

); the program focused on its charismatic leader, Tony Maldonado (

Benjamin Bratt Benjamin Bratt (born December 16, 1963) is an American actor. He is known for playing Paco Aguilar in '' Blood in Blood Out''. He had supporting film roles in the 1990s in ''Demolition Man'' (1993), ''Clear and Present Danger'' (1994) and '' ...

). Operating out of donated space in the basement of a

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, the group practiced

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

and other unarmed techniques since they were not commissioned police officers and did not use firearms. Keeping young people with violent pasts from reverting to this pattern in their new-found calling was a constant challenge to Tony, as were the interpersonal relationships constantly developing among his young colleagues. ''Knightwatch'' was a

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failure. It struggled in its timeslot, airing against NBC's ''

The Cosby Show ''The Cosby Show'' is an American television sitcom created by (along with Ed. Weinberger and Michael J. Leeson) and starring Bill Cosby that originally aired on NBC from September 20, 1984, to April 30, 1992, with a total of 201 half-hour e ...

'' and ''

A Different World ''A Different World'' is an American sitcom television series and a spin-off of '' The Cosby Show''. It aired for six seasons on NBC from September 24, 1987, to July 9, 1993. The series originally centered on Denise Huxtable ( Lisa Bonet) an ...

'' and CBS's '' 48 Hours''. It was cancelled after 3 months on the air.

Cast

as Tony Maldonado * Don Franklin as Calvin Garvey * Paris Vaughan as Leslie Chambers * Joshua Cadman as Jason Snyder * Ava Haddad as Casey Mitchell * Calvin Levels as Mark 'Burn' Johnson *

Samantha Mathis Samantha Mathis (born May 12, 1970) is an American actress and trade union leader who served as the Vice President, Actors/Performers of SAG-AFTRA from 2015 to 2019. The daughter of actress Bibi Besch, Mathis made her film debut in '' Pump Up ...

as Jacquline 'Jake' Monroe * Harley Jane Kozak as Barbara 'Babs' Shepard

Episodes

References

Sources * Brooks, Tim and Marsh, Earle, ''

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External links

* 1980s American crime drama television series 1988 American television series debuts 1989 American television series endings Television series by MGM Television American English-language television shows Television shows set in New Jersey American Broadcasting Company television dramas {{US-drama-tv-prog-stub