Still watch The Rockford Files all the time! This and Columbo are the two best detective shows ever made!

I bought the entire series on DVD last Christmas and spent several wonderful weekends binging the show and loving it so much!!!!

As a child, Rockford Files was my favorite. It was the only detective show that I would sit down and watch from beginning to end.

Very few shows of this era hold up as well as Rockford. So well acted, so well written.

There should never be another attempt of Rockford. James Garner was Jim Rockford. Just like Tom Selleck was Tom Magnum.

Rockfish! It was a show you could watch with your Dad. It helped knowing what a great guy James Garner was too.

Any man who can work in a Swing Kids reference so effortlessly earns an instant subscription.

You can't beat Rockford's quick sarcastic reactions to all the situations that he lands into.

As someone who’s never watched a moment of Rockford this serves as a great primer for the series.

“Lazy but still the smartest guy in the room and good at his job” also applies to Brett Maverick

I loved The Rockford Files. The whole family liked it, even my uncle who usually only watched old westerns.

Hey that Malibu trailer would be like worth 500k nowadays

The character Angel Martin, and the actor who played him, where the best weasel ever. .

You HAD to love ROCKFORD. I did. And I wasn't even a detective show fan back in the day.

My dad was a major fan of this show. He used to say, you can tell what time it was when Jim Rockford would get beat up by the bad guys.

That first pilot would be a hit series today

Stephen j Cannell was A MASTER of Crime Television.

I loved watching Rockfish!!! It was such a classic. The first episode was just as good as the last episode!! Forty-three years after it ended, it's still a great series.

James Garner could win emmys making lawn mowing videos , he was the show in every production he was involved in

Oh that theme song! 📺 Rockford was not playing the Playboy role; his character always respected women on the show. Too bad his knees gave out in the end...

Absolutely stunning. Great editing. Thank you so much.

Rockford and Columbo were the Best TV Detectives EVER, from my point of view!

I've heard of this show but never seen it. I have to find it. I liked Simon and Simon so this seems up my ally.

Would've loved a spinoff with Gabby & Gandy. 😔 Also, three cheers for "The Rockford Files" for never being bad. Plus, it's fun looking at how a middle age guy from the 50s & 60s was dealing with the various horrors of late 1970s American life. James Garner was a genial guide.

Rockford was truly the spiritual successor to Maverick.

The fact that Louis Gossett/Isaac Hayes thing didn't get picked up isn't surprising. I know there was a Huggy Bear spin off that tested well, but didn't go anywhere either. I think after the Shaft tv movies weren't a hit, they just said "Well, black TV detectives/action heroes don't sell. We tried." Too bad there wasn't a Norman Lear on the dramatic tv side to really push for it. The only other lead black cop/detective thing was Tenafly which I don't think even lasted a season on that NBC mystery wheel. It seems the networks were only cool with a black principle character if they were a partner or part of an ensemble.

Fun Fact: Tom Selleck did a special two episode appearance on Rockford Files as a sharp younger Private Eye. That lead directly to the Magnum PI series. The one spin off that worked...

Excellent video. You can really see how much Garner’s knees were hurting, especially toward the end. Almost every clip shows him limping or trying to avoid knee pain. He almost clutches his left knee in one scene. I’ve read (no source, sorry) that he used cannabis medicinally for his knee pain. Makes sense when you see him off-screen in his always-tinted glasses. One of my all-time favourite actors.

Didn’t get to see the show during its first run, but it was on reruns after I got done school every day. My dad and I watched every episode multiple times I think. Great memories and a really good show.

One of the best channels on KZfaq!

Rockford Files theme music makes me think its bedtime. I can still hear it playing in the living room as mum tucked me in. Which is odd as it would have only run for a few months a year.

I always thought they were trying to spin off the Tom Selleck character

Dude, I'm absolutely LOVING your videos! Your editing, delivery and sly sense of humor is nothing short of polished. Keep it up, Abe!

Laughs in Tom Selleck. BTW, I'm such a fan of Rockford, I purchased a 1978 Firebird years ago and am restoring it as a tribute.

This was terrific, really enjoyable. Only one minor quibble: you forgot to mention that the two characters (and the actors that played them Greg Antonacci and Gene Davis) from "Just a Coupla Guys" appeared first in an earlier RF episode, "The Jersey Bounce". In their first appearance, however, their characters Micky and Eugene are the villains. I've always thought "This Case Is Closed" is the weakest Rockford episode, partly because it was originally broadcast as a tv movie, and then was subsequently recut as two one hour episodes for syndication, with lots of car and landscape shots added to fill out the missing 30 minutes. Anyway, great job!

This was great, I didn't know about any of these. Always been a Rockford fan, thank you.

I started watching 70's detective shows recently. I knew Rockford Files as a kid. Still good. Starsky and Hutch is good very entertaining. Banacek also entertaining but ridiculous. Hawaii 5-0 is really good too. The best is McCloud. Great writing and acting. McCloud is a player. On all of the shows, the set is a main character. You could never really appreciate back in the 70's and antenna broadcast 19" TV. The production value of all of these shows is very high. Real sets, shot on film and lots of outdoor and location shots. If you notice most TV shows today are filmed on a soundstage. These show are outside!. The stories can be kind of outlandish but still better than today's show.

Fantastic work. This is Network TV quality. A+

I had great fun watching that, Atomic Abe.

60s and 70s produced some of the best tv shows ever made.

Angel & Gandy should've had a show, or just a Truck Turner series.

I remember there was a followup episode with the two Jersey guys where they moved in next to Rocky and framed Rockford for a murder trying to get in good with a mob boss. Rockford cracked "Abbot and Costello meet the Godfather!"

Rockford Files, Mannix and Cannon, and The Maltese Falcon convinced me for a time as a kid that I could make a living as a private "eye."

Rita Moreno and Gretchen Corbett are the only two remaining actors from the show still alive. Garner died less than ten years ago at 86. Very funny actor. Great show and very entertaining

8:33 One of the best lines from Rockford is at the end of this episode..."Gabby and Gandy...sounds like a puppet show".

Terrific content! Bravo!!

Mty favorite Rockford line...In the 1977 episode of The Rockford Files, "Quickie Nirvana", Sky asks "What is the sound of one hand clapping?" . Later, Gordon Borchers slaps Sky for informing on him, and Jim says "That's the sound of one hand clapping".

Dermot Mulroney as Jim Rockford, Alan Tudyk as Dennis Becker, Beau Bridges as Rocky, its hard to say if the new series would have lasted, probably not, you can't beat the original, James Garner will always be Jim Rockford.

Making this took real dedication to your art.I salute you.

Rockford files was one of the best series ever made

I went back to Germany in 1989. " Detectiv Rockford" was in re runs on German TV.

Another super episode, Kevin!

Anytime I see or hear the name I now think immediately of Ben Folds Five. “Serial litterbug” I love it but he didn’t litter. It lands on the pile

He was wounded in ww2 and suffered damage to his legs and could barely walk in later lifetime. He sued the studio because he was supposed to get A percentage of profits, but was told there was no profit. Won in court and was paid a settlement.

The Rockford Files was My favorite show a long time, but I never knew there were any spinoffs, so they must have been pretty insignificant!

I like the Rockfish name 😂😂😂

So many arguments in my life could have been silenced with Stephen Cannell writing a sarcastic and witty return quip. The show was a success due to brilliant casting, Cannell's writing, and Garners' acting style. One very important aspect was the camera shooting. Filmed in a conversational style with multiple angles, and cuts. For each conversation there would be a mix of wide angle, close ups, over-the-solder back and forth. They must have used multiple cameras or multiple takes. It's a stubble element that adds a signature style to the show, and kept it interesting.

The Rockford Files had excellent writers, directors and producers. Many supporting characters were also top caliberer actors. James Garner had much charisma with excellent acting skills. Most detective shows were too scripted and often somewhat predictable. The Rockford Files was probably one of the best network detective shows of the 1970's. The character development and scripts were certainly more realistic too. I watch old reruns of the Rockford Files but never watch new television shows.

Rockford followed the formula that most Cannell shows followed: For the first 2/3 of the show the lead is an idiot getting the spit kicked out of him, followed by the final 1/3 when he suddenly pulls it all together and is brilliantly successful. After this experience, David Chase said he would never do a network television series again!

Good stuff! Can never redo Rockford, right time, right tech, no cell phones, no computer cars. A certain naivete no longer found.

First time to the channel. This was great fun and a idea. Loved Rockford, I really thought Magnum PI was going to be one of them, though the characters are different I am sure the idea for the series and a show for Tom came from working with him here.

You didn't mention the Rockford/Brockelmen 2hr episode Never Send A Boy King to Do A Man's Job. Just as good as House on Willis Avenue .

The guy at 13:20 was the heavy creator and Director of Adam Sandler films in the 90s in 2000s and still do some riding for him. But did you know he was the only survivor in The Howling?

R.I.P. Louis Gossett, Jr.

Spin-offs are so hard to pull off. I personally would prefer the series to extrend a few seasons with the newer popular characters. Kind of like how The Closer morphed into Major Crimes.

I remember seeing Just A Coupla Guys when it originally aired and as a kid I didn't know what backdoor pilots were. I was very confused by how we see Jim getting beaten up in an aiport and then almost don't see him anymore. It was very confusing.

Excellent video. Could you do a video on the failed ROCKFORD FILES reboots (the 2010 unaired pilot with Dermot Mulroney as Rockford) and the long-stalled feature that was to star Vince Vaughn as Rockford?

i love a good d&d alignment drop in

You can’t reboot Rockford without James Garner. It’s like rebooting Sanford and Son without Redd Fox

I love what you do🏆😂👏🏾

Greg Antonacci, who played would-be Jersey wiseguy Eugene, actually appeared in nine episodes of “The Sopranos”.

Ever since I found your series on Backdoor pilots, I’ve been hoping you’d get around to this. I thought there was more than 3. Seemed like Tom Selleck was set up for a show. To me it seems like there was another buddy one with Clevon Little and Marv (?). Especially since this Marv’s return. The theme to Richie’s show was awful, made it seem like a sitcom. Great job, loved this so much. Plus, I’ve never knew about Switch.

The idea of Dennis Dugan as the lead actor in any sort of TV or film enterprise still gives me a laugh. A less appealing performer rarely has stepped in front of a camera.

I remember Tom Selleck played Lance White...good memories.

Why didnt they have more action showing clearly that it was him actually driving, never knew he did his own wheel work.

great show james garner was awesome. Isaac hayes was great.

That Brochelman actor was also shoe horned into a Columbo episode. The producers thought Columbo needed a sidekick. Wisely Peter Falk talked them into giving him a dog instead.

4:12 Thank you for getting this right! I just watched another video where they said the maneuver became called "The Jim Rockford Turn Around". I almost spit out my cereal. If I'd been eating any. Ti this day everyone I know and have ever talked to EVER has called it "A (Or The) Rockford". As in "Jim Rip the car over the south bound corner and then when you get to the store Hit the brakes Do ""A Rockford"" and come back here".

The Rockford Files succeeded on the charm of the actors, particularly Garner, but also the supporting cast, Rocky, Dennis, Beth and Angel. Gretchen Corbett was let go after 4 seasons and Stuart Margolin left after 5 and it's not surprising that the last 2 seasons were inferior to the first 4. It was that ensemble cast that made it so good and really hard to follow.

Rockford is Maverick mixed with Marlowe.

Rockford Files Fun Fact: James Garners dislike of the redesigned Firebird for 1979 resulted in Universal Studios never replacing the 1978 Esprit. The gold color of the Pontiac Firebird was a special shade ordered by Universal at the beginning of production in 1974 and not the Aztec Gold, that was only offered on the Firebird Trans Am for model years 1978 and 1979. How do I know this? My uncle worked at the GM F-body plant in Van Nuys, CA. during the 1970s and ‘80s as the liaison for the Hollywood studios that needed GM vehicles.

What a great show, although my knees ache just watching James Garner trying to move faster than a slow walk. Such iconic cars too, the Esprit, Rocky's Sierra classic and Beth's Porsche 914.

this was great. Unofficial back door spinoff, of course, was Tom Selleck's appearance as young P.I. Lance White in Season 5 Ep 4 (the episode directly after The Jersey Bounce). The character's not Magnum but let's face it, Magnum is Hawaiin Rockford, ultimately. What should have been a spinoff character: Bo Hopkins as lawyer John Cooper, the replacement for Gretchen Corbett's Beth Davenport. "Coop" debuted in, yes, The Jersey Bounce, and for my money was a far more interesting character than the two goombas. Hopkings invested so much in "Coop" right from that first episode it's some kind of reverse miracle that they didn't spin him off into his own show.

Prior to directing several of Adam Sandler's big-screen comedies (most notably "Happy Gilmore"), Dennis Dugan also played the ill-fated urban crimefighter Captain Freedom on "Hill Street Blues," reuniting him with his former "Richie Brockelman, Private Eye" castmate, the late Barbara Bosson (Bosson portrayed Fay Furillo, the whiny and long-suffering ex-wife of Hill Street's intense but calm precinct captain Frank Furillo [played by Daniel J. Travanti]).

As you mentioned his Firebird was a Formula 400. You can tell because of the dual exhaust and rear anti-sway bar. They also swapped out the hood and removed the rear spoiler. It had Esprit badging.

Richie Brockelman: There is not an actual fire here but there is an actual crime.

Its beyond sad that almost the entire cast AND the related industry people are gone!

The shades at 4:09 are awesome.

I really would have loved to have seen Gabby and Gandy. I love me a good Blaxplotation crime solving story. At least a TV movie.

Dugan's character appeared in another 2 part story with Rockford.

first episode of Sopranos they are watching Rockford Files in the retirement village

This show ruled. Days of good ole television.

Magnum PI was fantastically successful Rockford files spin-off!

Wow he actually drove the car , cant say that about any of the FAST CAST

I love watching The Rockford Files!

Denis Dougan was also in a Columbo episode last salute to the commodore. He played a young protégé to Columbo named Theodore "mac' Airbinski. He only made one appearance .

Best crime drama ever created to this day!

I used to hate the sleazy "Angel" character, but now I love him! His speedy, sleazy episodes are the best. He's always getting Jim into trouble in funny ways.

The Jersey guys first appeared in "The Jersey Bounce" on "The Rockford Files." Eugene pretends to be talking to his mother and asks, "How's Cousin Carmela."

Such a great show.