''Magnum, P.I.'' is an American

crime drama Crime film is a film belonging to the crime fiction genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and fiction. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine with many other genres, such as Drama (film and television), dr ...

television series starring

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 ...

Thomas Magnum Thomas Magnum is the main character on the American television series '' Magnum, P.I.'' created by Donald P. Bellisario and Glen A. Larson. The titular private investigator was originally portrayed by actor Tom Selleck from 1980 to 1988, and ...

, 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. ...

(P.I.) living on

Oahu Oahu (, , sometimes written Oahu) is the third-largest and most populated island of the Hawaiian Islands and of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital, Honolulu, is on Oahu's southeast coast. The island of Oahu and the uninhabited Northwe ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

. The series ran from December 11, 1980, to May 1, 1988, during its first-run broadcast on the American television network

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

. ''Magnum, P.I.'' consistently ranked in the top 20 U.S. television programs in the

Nielsen ratings Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...

during the first five years of its original run, finishing as high as number three for the 1982–83 season. The series entered syndication in 1986 under the title ''Magnum'' in order to differentiate reruns from new episodes still airing under the original title on CBS. A remake series of the same name was ordered to series on May 11, 2018, and premiered on September 24, 2018, on CBS.

Premise

Thomas Sullivan Magnum IV is a

played by

. He lives in the guesthouse of a beachfront estate called Robin's Nest, in

, at the invitation of its owner, Robin Masters. Ostensibly this is ''

quid pro quo ''Quid pro quo'' (Latin: "something for something") is a Latin phrase used in English to mean an exchange of goods or services, in which one transfer is contingent upon the other; "a favor for a favor". Phrases with similar meanings include: " ...

'' for Magnum's services based upon his expertise in security; the pilot and several early episodes suggest Magnum had done Masters a favor of some kind, possibly when Masters hired him for a case. Masters is rarely depicted and is the celebrated author of several dozen lurid novels. His voice, heard only in five episodes, was provided by

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...

(one last appearance was provided by a different actor, Red Crandell)."Déjà-Vu", Season 06, Episode 02 Magnum lives a luxurious life on the estate and operates as a P.I. on cases that suit him. The only thorn in the side of his near-perfect lifestyle is Jonathan Quayle Higgins III, played by

John Hillerman John Benedict Hillerman (December 20, 1932 – November 9, 2017) was an American actor best known for his starring role as Jonathan Quayle Higgins III on the television series '' Magnum, P.I.'' that aired from 1980 to 1988. For his role as ...

. An ex-

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

regimental sergeant major Regimental sergeant major (RSM) is an appointment that may be held by a warrant officer (WO) in the British Army, the Royal Marines, and the armies of many other Commonwealth and former Commonwealth nations. It is also an actual rank in the Iri ...

, he is on the surface a stern, by-the-book caretaker of Robin's Nest, whose strict ways often conflict with Magnum's more easygoing methods. He patrols Robin's Nest with his two highly-trained "lads",

Dobermann The Dobermann is a German list of dog breeds, breed of medium-large working dog of pinscher type. It was originally bred in Thuringia in about 1890 by Karl Friedrich Louis Dobermann, Louis Dobermann, a tax collector.Ferrari 308 GTS Quattrovalvole, but as a humorous aside in various episodes, often has to bargain with Higgins for use of estate amenities such as the tennis courts, wine cellar, and expensive cameras. The relationship between Magnum and Higgins is initially cool, but as the series progresses, an unspoken respect and fondness of sorts grows between them. Many episodes dedicate more screen time to this "odd couple" pairing after the relationship proved popular with fans. A recurrent theme throughout the last two seasons, starting in the episode "Paper War", involves Magnum's sneaking suspicion that Higgins is actually Masters, since he opens Masters's mail, calls Masters's Ferrari "my car", etc. This suspicion is neither proved nor disproved, although in at least one episode Higgins is shown alone in a room, picking up a ringing phone and talking to Masters, indicating they are different people. Aside from Higgins, Magnum's two main companions on the islands are Theodore "T.C." Calvin ( Roger E. Mosley), who runs a one-person local helicopter charter and tour van service, "Island Hoppers", and often finds himself persuaded by Magnum to fly him during various cases, and Orville Wilbur Richard "Rick" Wright ( Larry Manetti), who refuses to use his

Wright brothers The Wright brothers, Orville Wright (August 19, 1871 – January 30, 1948) and Wilbur Wright (April 16, 1867 – May 30, 1912), were American aviation List of aviation pioneers, pioneers generally credited with inventing, building, and flyin ...

-esque given name of Orville and owns a local bar. In the pilot episode, this was "Rick's Cafe Americain", inspired by ''

Casablanca Casablanca (, ) is the largest city in Morocco and the country's economic and business centre. Located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Chaouia (Morocco), Chaouia plain in the central-western part of Morocco, the city has a populatio ...

'', with Rick appearing in suitable 1930s attire. After completing the pilot, though, executives felt that audiences would be unable to fully connect with this element. Instead, Rick moved to running the plush, beachside King Kamehameha Club, which has exclusive membership and Higgins on the board of directors. Magnum often strolls around the club, using its facilities and running up an ever-unpaid tab, further fueling the Magnum-Higgins feud. T.C. and Rick are both former Marines from VMO-2 with whom Magnum, a former member of the

United States Navy SEALs The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the United States Navy's primary special operations force and a component of the United States Naval Special Warfare Command. Among the SEALs' main func ...

and Naval Intelligence officer, served in the

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 ...

.The three friends wear a gold Team Ring, which bears a

Cross of Lorraine The Cross of Lorraine (), known as the Cross of Anjou in the 16th century, is a heraldry, heraldic two-barred cross, consisting of a vertical line crossed by two shorter horizontal bars. In most renditions, the horizontal bars are "graded" with ...

on a black field, as a bond of wartime camaraderie. The series was one of the first to deal with Vietnam veterans as "human beings" and not as shell-shocked killers, and was praised by many ex-servicemen groups for doing so. Magnum often dupes or bribes T.C. and Rick into aiding him on his cases, much to their frustration. T.C., whose assistance often involves the use of his helicopter, often tells Magnum, "gas money. All I need is gas money", referring to the high cost of the helicopter's fuel. Magnum comes and goes as he pleases, works only when he wants, and has almost unlimited use of the Ferrari and many other luxuries of the estate. He keeps a mini-refrigerator with a seemingly endless supply of beer (" altbier"), wears his father's treasured Rolex GMT Master wristwatch, and is surrounded by countless beautiful women, who are often victims of crime, his clients, or otherwise connected to the cases he solves. Other characteristics specific to Magnum are his thick moustache, baseball caps (usually a

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

or VMO-2 cap), a rubber chicken, and a variety of colorful Aloha shirts. Nearly every episode is narrated, in voice-over, by Magnum at various points. At the end of the seventh season, Magnum was to be killed off, to end the series. Following an outcry from fans who demanded a more satisfactory conclusion, an eighth season was produced to bring Magnum "back to life" and round off the series.

Cast

Main cast

* Roger E. Mosley as Theodore "T.C." Calvin * Larry Manetti as Orville "Rick" WrightIn the series finale, "Resolutions 2", the priest at Rick's wedding announces his full name as Orville Wilbur Richard Wright. Rick disliked being named after both of the Wright brothers, and preferred his nickname. *

as Jonathan Higgins

Recurring characters

* Lieutenant Yoshi Tanaka: A homicide-division police lieutenant with the

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

police department ( Kwan Hi Lim), he has a slight Lieutenant Columbo-like enigmatic quality, characterized by his casual dress and ironic sense of humor. He is also, like Magnum, a

fan. He appears in Seasons 2–8. * Agatha Chumley: Higgins's stereotypically English lady friend (Gillian Dobb), who seems to have a crush on Higgins. Her first appearance was in the episode "Black on White". She appeared in Seasons 3–8. * Colonel "Buck" Greene: A Marine Corps aviator and intelligence officer ( Lance LeGault), who is often Magnum's nemesis in seasons 2–8. LeGault also played John W. Newton, aka "Delta One", in episode 9 of season 1, "Missing in Action". * Carol Baldwin: An assistant district attorney (

Patty McCormack Patricia McCormack (born Patricia Ellen Russo; August 21, 1945) is an American actress with a career in theater, films, and television. McCormack began her career as a child actress. She is perhaps best known for her performance as Rhoda Penma ...

in season 1, followed by Kathleen Lloyd in seasons 3–8); before playing Carol Baldwin, Lloyd guest starred in the episode "Almost Home" (season 3, episode 11) as Bridget Archer. * Lieutenant "Mac" MacReynolds: A doughnut-munching

Office of Naval Intelligence The Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) is the military intelligence agency of the United States Navy. Established in 1882 primarily to advance the Navy's modernization efforts, it is the oldest member of the U.S. Intelligence Community and serv ...

(ONI) lieutenant ( Jeff MacKay), killed by a car bomb planted by "Ivan", a Russian KGB officer. Mac returns as a ghost for four episodes ("Mac's Back", "Limbo", "Infinity and Jelly Doughnuts" and "Pleasure Principle") and later as a lookalike character. In the pilot, MacKay portrayed "Ski", a guard at the entrance gate of Pearl Harbor. He appeared in Seasons 1–3 and 7–8. * Jim Bonnick: A con man and an ex-Navy pilot who was released on a medical discharge ( Jeff MacKay); he is Mac Reynolds's lookalike. In at least one episode ("Mac's Back"), MacKay appeared in both roles. He appeared in Seasons 5–8. * Francis "Icepick" Hofstetler: An American loan shark and major underworld figure from

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, and a quasi-father figure to Rick Wright (Walter Chotzen and later Elisha Cook Jr.). * Dr. Ibold, M.D. "Doc Ibold": A minor character ( Glenn Cannon) who appeared in episodes when the script called for a physician. First referred to as "Script Writer #1", he was known for prescribing opiates for any and all ailments. He appeared in Seasons 2–8. Cannon also played Dr. Bernard Kessler in Episode 1.7, "Never Again...Never Again". * Michelle Hue: The love of Magnum's life ( Marta DuBois); she and Magnum married in Vietnam but the devoutly Catholic Michelle had the marriage annulled after her first husband, a North Vietnamese general who was presumed dead, resurfaced. Magnum had believed that Michelle was killed during the 1975 evacuation of Saigon. She appeared in Seasons 2–8. *Lily Catherine Hue: Daughter to Magnum and Michelle Hue (Kristen Carreira). Michelle entrusts Lily to Magnum's care but doesn't reveal that she is his daughter. Although she was raised as the daughter of General Hue, Lily Catherine learned Magnum-related things from Michelle, such as "Detroit Tigers" and "Rick, T.C., Thomas". By "Resolutions" (May 1988), General Hue's enemies had killed Hue, Michelle, and Michelle's second husband, Edward Durant. Lily Catherine was presumed dead and was reunited with Magnum, who returned to his career as a Naval Intelligence officer to protect her. She appears in seasons 7–8. * Lieutenant (later Lieutenant Commander) Maggie Poole: The successor of the deceased Mac Reynolds ( Jean Bruce Scott), she dislikes her superior, Marine Corps Colonel Greene. She appeared in Seasons 3–8. * Luther H. Gillis: A mock

film noir Film noir (; ) is a style of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Crime film, crime dramas that emphasizes cynicism (contemporary), cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of Ameri ...

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

private eye with a Boston accent ( Eugene Roche), whose deception, dissembling, and disturbing capacity for violence Magnum almost always underestimates or overlooks. Gillis provided the narration in the five episodes in which he appeared in Seasons 4–8. * Lieutenant Nolan Page: A hard-nosed, no-nonsense Honolulu Police Department lieutenant with a

New York accent The phonology, sound system of New York City English is popularly known as a New York accent. The accent (sociolinguistics), accent of the New York metropolitan area is one of the most recognizable in the United States, largely due to its p ...

( Joe Santos), he assists Magnum on several cases. He appeared in Seasons 7–8. * Moki: The bartender of the King Kamehameha Club in Season 1; later replaced by Keoki, he appeared in Seasons 1–2. * Keoki: The bartender/server of the King Kamehameha Club starting in season 2. He is arrested in season 4 by Lt. Tanaka for robbing the club in the episode "I Witness". He appeared in seasons 2–4. * Bryant Calvin, T.C.'s son in seasons 7 and 8, played by

Shavar Ross Shavar Ross is an American actor, film director, screenwriter, film producer, editor, photographer, author, online retail entrepreneur, and spiritual mentor and teacher. He is known for his recurring television role as Dudley Johnson, Arnold Ja ...

Setting

Robin's Nest () is the fictional beach front estate on the island of

, which serves as the residence of the main characters. In the series, it is owned by renowned novelist Robin Masters, who employs Jonathan Higgins as the estate's caretaker and Thomas Magnum as its security expert. Higgins resides in the estate's main house while Magnum occupies the guest house. In reality, the beachfront property was on Oahu's east shore at 41-505 Hawaii Route 72, near Waimanalo Beach, Hawaii (). Designed by American

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Louis Davis Louis Davis may refer to: * Chip Davis (born 1947), born Louis F. Davis, American musician * Louis Davis (architect) (1884–1962), American architect * Louis Davis (painter) (1860–1941), British artist See also * Lou Davis (1881–1961), Americ ...

and called "Pahonu" ("turtle enclosure" in Hawaiian), it was also known as "The Anderson Estate" after its longtime owner, politician Eve G. Anderson. The grounds were used for hundreds of years to raise

green sea turtle The green sea turtle (''Chelonia mydas''), also known as the green turtle, black (sea) turtle or Pacific green turtle, is a species of large sea turtle of the family Cheloniidae. It is the only species in the genus ''Chelonia''. Its range exte ...

s for the Hawaiian royal family and include a 500-by-50-foot stone wall that surrounds the former turtle-raising pond. Since 1978, the turtle pond has been on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Hawaii. A residential estate since the early 1930s, comprising an main house, a boathouse (which in the series appears as the guesthouse Magnum occupies), a gatehouse, and private tennis court. Owned in January 2014 by

Cox Communications Cox Communications, Inc. (also known as Cox Cable and formerly Cox Broadcasting Corporation, Dimension Cable Services and Times-Mirror Cable), is an American digital cable television provider, telecommunications and home automation services comp ...

heiress Barbara Cox Anthony, it was placed on the market with

Sotheby's Sotheby's ( ) is a British-founded multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine art, fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, an ...

for $15.75 million and sold for $8.7 million in March 2015. In April 2018, the estate was demolished by its new owner, a friend of former President Barack Obama. Many of the indoor scenes of ''Magnum, P.I.'' were filmed on the old '' Hawaii Five-O'' soundstage, as the network did not wish for its Hawaiian production facilities to go to waste after ''Hawaii Five-O'' ended its run. Through the years, fans of the show have noted commonalities in the settings of time and space (the so-called fictional TV universe) between ''Magnum, P.I.'' and '' Hawaii Five-O''. For example, in Season 1, Episode 5, "Thank Heavens for Little Girls, and Big Ones Too", Higgins calls Five-O to report a theft. In Season 1, Episode 6, "Skin Deep", Magnum gets on the radio pretending he's with the police and asks: "Billy, this is McGarrett of Five-O. Is David Norman armed?" The producers of ''Magnum, P.I.'' unsuccessfully attempted to convince Jack Lord to make a cameo. In a 2013 episode of the '' Hawaii Five-0'' remake, the characters "sing" the ''Magnum, P.I.'' theme song while discussing which person most resembled the characters on that program. The purported connection between the programs appears to be preserved in the remakes, as explained by their creators in

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media In mass communication, digital media is any media (communication), communication media that operates in conjunction with various encoded machine-readable data formats. Digital content can be created, vi ...

, where plans for a crossover were announced as well as acknowledgment of the coexistence of ''Magnum'' with ''Hawaii Five-0'' in the same TV universe. A ''Hawaii Five-0'' and ''Magnum P.I.'' crossover event aired on CBS in January 2020, with the ''Hawaii Five-0'' episode "Ihea 'oe i ka wa a ka ua e loku ana?" (Hawaiian for "Where were you when the rain was pouring?") followed by the ''Magnum P.I.'' episode "Desperate Measures".

Theme music

The original theme music for the opening credits of the pilot episode was a mid-tempo jazzy piece by Ian Freebairn-Smith. This music was also used for the next nine regular episodes. Beginning in Episode 12, it was replaced by a more up tempo theme typical of 1980s action series by Mike Post and

Pete Carpenter Clarence Edward "Pete" Carpenter (April 1, 1914 – October 18, 1987) was an American jazz trombonist, arranger, and veteran of television theme music sheet music. After a long career playing the trombone in bands and as a studio musician, Carp ...

with guitar by

Larry Carlton Larry Eugene Carlton (born March 2, 1948) is an American guitarist who built his career as a studio musician in the 1970s and 1980s for acts including Steely Dan and Joni Mitchell. One of the most sought after guitarists of his era, Carlton has ...

. This theme had been used during the show and over the closing credits from Episode 8. A longer version of this second theme ("Theme from Magnum P.I.", 3:25 in duration) credited to Post was released as a single by Elektra Records in 1982 and featured on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart that same year, peaking at No. 25 on May 8, 1982. This version also appeared on Post's 1982 album ''Television Theme Songs''.

Vehicles

Cars

Robin Masters' cars (with license plates) * "ROBIN 1" ** 1979 Ferrari 308 GTS - season 1 ** 1981 Ferrari 308 GTSi - season 2 ** 1982 Ferrari 308 GTSi - season 3 ** 1984 Ferrari 308 GTS Quattrovalvole - seasons 4–8 * "ROBIN 2" ** 1980 Audi 5000 - seasons 1–4 (×2, with one blown up in s01e05) ** 1985 Audi 5000 - seasons 5–8 ** 1974

Jaguar XJ The Jaguar XJ is a series of mid-size/full-size luxury cars produced by British automobile manufacturer Jaguar Cars (becoming Jaguar Land Rover in 2013) from 1968 to 2019. It was produced across four basic platform generations (debuting in 1968 ...

(seen only in s04e618) :::(all these sedans were in various shades of dark grey) * "ROBIN 3" ** 1980 GMC Jimmy Sierra (full size C/K-series) — season 1–3 ** 1983 GMC S15 Jimmy (mid-size S-series) — seasons 4–6 ** 1984

Jeep Cherokee The Jeep Cherokee is a line of sport utility vehicles (SUV) manufactured and marketed by Jeep over five generations. Marketed initially as a variant of the Jeep Wagoneer (SJ), the Cherokee has evolved from a full-size SUV to one of the first ...

(XJ Model) — seasons 7–8 :::(all these SUVs were in shades of brown, with red stripe on the C/K & large yellow stripe on the S15) * "Robin 23" ** 1981 Ferrari 308 GTSi in dark green/Verde Pino – seen only in the episode "''Summer School''" (s06e13). This car was provided by Robin Masters for his visiting nephew, 'R.J.'. * "56E-478"; regular/non-vanity license plate ** 1978 Ferrari 308 GTS (seen in the pilot, and all episodes' opening credits) Others * Island Hoppers (TC's) van —

Volkswagen Type 2 (T3) The Volkswagen Type 2 (T3) is the third generation of the Volkswagen Transporter. It was marketed under various nameplates worldwide – including the Transporter or Caravelle in Europe and Australia, Type 25 (T25) in the UK, Microbus and Komb ...

* Rick's convertible — Mercedes-Benz R107 and C107. Col. Buck Green referred to it as a 450SL when Rick went missing, but he was also seen in 380 SL (s02e06) and a 560 SL (s07e17). Rick also drove at least one Corvette, a 1978 C3, in which Thomas and Rick drive side-by-side on a two-lane byway (s01e01). Rick drove the Mercedes from the middle of Season 2 through to the end of the series. * Rick's

Datsun 280ZX The Nissan S130 is a Sports car, sports coupé produced by Nissan in Japan from 1978 until 1983. It was sold as the Datsun 280ZX, Nissan Fairlady Z and Nissan Fairlady 280Z, depending on the market. In Japan, it was exclusive to Nissan Motor Compa ...

. Rick drove this car when the series started until the middle of season 2, after which he drove the Mercedes. * Magnum's Beetle — 1966

Volkswagen Beetle The Volkswagen Beetle, officially the Volkswagen Type 1, is a small family car produced by the German company Volkswagen from 1938 to 2003. One of the most iconic cars in automotive history, the Beetle is noted for its distinctive shape. Its pr ...

convertible. In 1979, having just opened up his private investigator business, Magnum drove a battered blue Volkswagen Beetle convertible, with a rusted driver's side door. * Magnum's Jaguar — 1969

Jaguar E-Type The Jaguar E-Type, or the Jaguar XK-E for the North American market, is a British FMR layout, front mid-engined sports car that was manufactured by Jaguar Cars, Jaguar Cars Ltd from 1961 to 1974. Its sleek appearance, advanced technologies, ...

. Magnum drove a red Jaguar XKE convertible, in very poor condition, in the episode "''Blind Justice''" (s05e07) after Higgins cut him off from using the Ferrari. * The Bentley — 1937 Bentley 3.5 Litre Drophead Coupe ( Gurney Nutting body). When Magnum and Higgins visit England in the Season 6 opener, when Robin Masters had just bought a new estate, "Robin's Keep", Magnum drives the old Bentley, the only car included with the estate. The car was previously driven by

James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...

in the unofficial 1983 movie ''

Never Say Never Again ''Never Say Never Again'' is a 1983 spy film directed by Irvin Kershner. The film is based on the 1961 James Bond novel ''Thunderball (novel), Thunderball'' by Ian Fleming, which in turn was based on an original story by Kevin McClory, Jack Wh ...

''.

Aircraft

* Island Hoppers (TC's) helicopter —

MD Helicopters MD 500 The MD Helicopters MD 500 series is an American family of light utility civilian and military helicopters. The MD 500 was developed from the Hughes 500, a civilian version of the US Army's OH-6A Cayuse/Loach. The series currently includes the M ...

(various models) * Ken Enderlin Charters — N9267F is a Hughes Model 369HS built in 1975, Construction Number (C/N) 1150778S, in the episodes "''Dream a Little Dream''" and "''Missing Melody''".

Development and production

Development of ''Magnum, P.I.'' was originally slated at ABC, which aired other Glen A. Larson series '' The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries'' (1977–1979) and ''

Battlestar Galactica ''Battlestar Galactica'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. It began with the original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel series, '' Galactica 1980'', a line of book adaptat ...

'' (1978–1979). In January 1979, ABC cancelled both series, and development on ''Magnum, P.I.'' Larson then took the series over to CBS. Selleck's contract commitment to the ''Magnum, P.I.'' series famously cost him the role of

Indiana Jones ''Indiana Jones'' is an American media franchise consisting of five films and a prequel television series, along with games, comics, and tie-in novels, that depicts the adventures of Indiana Jones (character), Dr. Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, ...

in the first ''

'' film, ''

Raiders of the Lost Ark ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'' is a 1981 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Lawrence Kasdan, based on a story by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman. Set in 1936, the film stars Harrison Ford as Indiana ...

'' (1981), which went to

Harrison Ford Harrison Ford (born July 13, 1942) is an American actor. Regarded as a cinematic cultural icon, he has starred in Harrison Ford filmography, many notable films over seven decades, and is one of List of highest-grossing actors, the highest-gr ...

. Selleck was unable to take the part of Jones as ''Magnum'' was due to start filming in March 1980. Owing to the 1980 AFTRA/Screen Actors Guild strike, production of ''Magnum'' was delayed until December 1980, which would have allowed Selleck to play Jones. In the 1986–87 season 7 of ''Magnum, P.I.'', Selleck was brought in as a producer and the program was moved from its Thursday night slot on CBS to Wednesday, which increased its slumping ratings from competing with ''

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 ...

'' (1984–1992) on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

Episodes

Crossovers

* "Ki'is Don't Lie" — Magnum works with the Simon brothers to recover a stolen Hawaiian artifact that's supposedly cursed. The plot concludes on ''

Simon & Simon ''Simon & Simon'' is an American crime drama television series that originally ran from November 24, 1981, to September 16, 1989. The series was broadcast on CBS, and starred Gerald McRaney and Jameson Parker as two disparate brothers who ope ...

'' in the episode " Emeralds Are Not a Girl's Best Friend". * "Novel Connection" — Jessica Fletcher comes to Hawaii when an attempt is made on the lives of Robin's guests. The plot concludes on ''

Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series f ...

'' in the episode " Magnum on Ice". For re-run and overseas purposes, the first half of these crossovers (the ''Magnum'' episode) also had alternate endings filmed, which wrapped the story up in a single episode and so allowed repeat showings as "stand-alone" stories rather than two-part crossovers. One mooted crossover from later in the series' run was with the

vigilantism Vigilantism () is the act of preventing, investigating, and punishing perceived offenses and crimes without legal authority. A vigilante is a person who practices or partakes in vigilantism, or undertakes public safety and retributive justice ...

drama '' The Equalizer'', starring Edward Woodward as the retired spy Robert McCall. According to ''Equalizer'' executive producer Coleman Luck, interviewed for a special-feature documentary on ''The Equalizer'', the crossover was proposed by

Universal Television Universal Television LLC (abbreviated as UTV) is an American television production company that is a division of NBCUniversal Television and Streaming#Universal Studio Group, Universal Studio Group, a division of NBCUniversal, which, in turn, is ...

and was opposed by the ''Equalizer'' production staff. In 1992, three years after the conclusion of ''Magnum,'' a script was written for a potential crossover with Donald P. Bellisario's next show,

's ''

Quantum Leap Quantum leap or ''variation'', may refer to: In general * Quantum leap (physics), also known as quantum jump, a transition between quantum states ** Atomic electron transition, a key example of the physics phenomenon * Paradigm shift, a sudden ch ...

,'' in which Dr. Sam Beckett ( Scott Bakula) would "leap" into the body of Thomas Magnum. It is unknown whether any original cast members from ''Magnum'' were slated to appear in the episode or how far production had progressed, though test footage does exist of the attempted recreation of Tom Selleck's famous fourth-wall breaking "eyebrow" shot from the opening credits with Bakula in the role.

Home media

Universal Pictures Home Entertainment Universal Pictures Home Entertainment LLC (UPHE) is the home video distribution division of Universal Pictures, an American film studio owned by NBCUniversal, the entertainment unit of Comcast. UPHE is the home video distributor for all of the ...

has released all eight seasons of ''Magnum, P.I.'' on DVD in Region 1, 2 and 4. On October 1, 2013, Universal released ''Magnum, P.I. - The Complete Series'' on DVD in Region 1. The 42-disc set features all 162 episodes of the series as well as bonus features. On December 12, 2016, in the United Kingdom, the complete series was released in HD on Blu-ray. In Australia, Madman Entertainment has re-released all eight seasons on DVD from November 18, 2015 to June 20, 2018, followed by "The Complete Series" on October 9, 2019. * Region 2 release dates refer to the United Kingdom market only. * Includes the crossover Season 2 episode from ''Simon & Simon'' titled "Emeralds Are Not a Girl's Best Friend".
** Includes the crossover Season 3 episode from ''Murder, She Wrote'' titled " Magnum On Ice".
*** Includes the bonus Season 5 episode from ''The Rockford Files'' titled " White on White and Nearly Perfect" featuring Tom Selleck.
****Includes bonus episodes from ''

The A-Team ''The A-Team'' is an American Action television, action television series that ran on NBC from January 23, 1983, to March 8, 1987, about a fictional team of former United States Army Special Forces who work as mercenaries while on the run from ...

'', Season 2 titled "Diamonds 'n' Dust" and '' Knight Rider'', Season 2, titled "Brother's Keeper".

Awards

Selleck won an Emmy in 1984 for his portrayal of the title character. Three years later, co-star

also won an Emmy. In 1981, series creators and writers Glen A. Larson and Donald P. Bellisario received an

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America which is based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards hon ...

from the

Mystery Writers of America Mystery Writers of America (MWA) is a professional organization of mystery and crime writers, based in New York City. The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday. It presents the E ...

for Best Episode in a TV Series.The 1981

was won for an episode entitled "China Doll".

Golden Globe Awards

''Magnum, P.I.'' was nominated for multiple

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Janua ...

Primetime Emmy Awards

Other awards

Detroit Tigers incident

On September 16, 2017, a group of 45 men dressed as

were ejected from a

game for smoking and catcalling women in the park. The story quickly became one of international interest as the group, from nearby

Allen Park, Michigan Allen Park is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 27,528. Ford Motor Company is an integral part of the community. Many of the company's offices and facilities lie within the city lim ...

gave dozens of interviews to newspapers, magazines, radio stations, podcasts and more.

Proposed sequels

In October 2013, Selleck said

Tom Clancy Thomas Leo Clancy Jr. (April 12, 1947 – October 1, 2013) was an American novelist. He is best known for his technically detailed espionage and military science, military-science storylines set during and after the Cold War. Seventeen of ...

had planned to write a screenplay for a ''Magnum, P.I.'' film in the 1990s, with

Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...

interested in producing it. However, the project never materialized. In September 2016, ABC began developing a sequel from '' Leverage'' creator John Rogers and producer

Eva Longoria Eva Jacqueline Longoria Bastón ( Longoria; born March 15, 1975) is an American actress, producer, director, and businesswoman. After several guest roles on television, she became recognized for her portrayal of Isabella Braña on the CBS day ...

centering on Lily "Tommy" Magnum, which never made it to series.

Remake

In October 2017,

announced they had issued a pilot commitment for a remake of the series, to be developed by Peter M. Lenkov, who has helped remake other series like '' Hawaii Five-0'' and ''

MacGyver Angus "Mac" MacGyver is the title character and the protagonist in the TV series ''MacGyver''. He is played by Richard Dean Anderson in the MacGyver (1985 TV series), 1985 original series. Lucas Till portrays a younger version of MacGyver in Mac ...

'' for the network. CBS officially ordered the pilot three months later, along with one for a reboot of another hit 1980s television series for the network, '' Cagney & Lacey'', as well as one for 1990s favorite ''

Murphy Brown ''Murphy Brown'' is an American television sitcom created by Diane English that premiered on November 14, 1988, on CBS. The series stars Candice Bergen as the eponymous Murphy Brown, a famous investigative journalist and news presenter, news anch ...

''. On February 20, 2018,

Jay Hernandez Javier Manuel "Jay" Hernandez (born February 20, 1978) is an American actor. After making his television debut in NBC's '' Hang Time'', he made his film debut opposite Kirsten Dunst in the romantic drama '' Crazy/Beautiful'' (2001). He has sin ...

was cast as Thomas Magnum.Currently, Tom Selleck stars as NYPD Commissioner Frank Reagan in another CBS series, '' Blue Bloods'', which immediately followed the ''Magnum P.I.'' reboot until the latter show’s cancellation by CBS and revival by

Notes

References

External links

* *
''Magnum Mania''

A man and his mousatche: The history of Magnum P.I.
{{Authority control 1980 American television series debuts 1988 American television series endings American action television series 1980s American crime drama television series 1980s American mystery television series CBS crime dramas American detective television series Edgar Award–winning works American English-language television shows Fictional portrayals of the Honolulu Police Department Primetime Emmy Award–winning television series Television series created by Donald P. Bellisario Television series created by Glen A. Larson Television series by Universal Television Television shows filmed in Hawaii Television shows set in Hawaii Cultural depictions of Kamehameha I