Missed "A Coffin for Starsky"? Sony makes it available!

Back when we covered Starsky and Hutch, we mentioned that it was leaving Prime Video and other streaming outlets (except for purchase). I personally picked up the show on disc, but if you do not have it on physical media, Sony's official YouTube rerun channel just uploaded the episode we talked about: "A Coffin for Starsky!" Check it out for free:

We recommend the episode! You can click here to hear our own episode talking about it in depth.

For Your Batty Consideration: Starsky and Hutch (Season 11, Episode 12)

Yet another listener-inspired selection, Starsky and Hutch gave us a lot to talk about, from violence on TV to buddy shows to the parodies and self-parody of the series. "A Coffin for Starsky" is a fine example of the series clicking. Too bad this is another example of a series that is pulled from streaming during our podcast season! 

Our podcast episode

Show notes and YT playlist

Anonymous Batty insider says: "A lot of people have underestimated this series over the years and lost a lot of money doing so. I'd say the fact that it was pulled from Prime Video would hurt the Batty chances if I didn't know that Rick bought the DVDs afterwards. Hey, that in itself might indicate something, huh?"

Starsky and Hutch and 227 in "TV Guide" Fall previews

I didn't post these when we did the respective episodes a few weeks ago, so here is your chance to check out the TV Guide Fall Preview issue glances at Starsky and Hutch (the 1975 issue) and 227 (the 1985 issue).

One thing that stands out is the lack of respect for Starsky and Hutch, which may indicate they didn't think much of it or its prospects for lasting. It ended up having a substantial impact even beyond the surface of its solid 4-year run, yet it gets barely a half-page here. And that picture they chose!

Also note Jackee is not in that cast photo for 227 but Alaina Reed is.

Brooks on Books: Starsky and Hutch in a Golden Book?

Starsky and Hutch, a poster show for excessive violence in television at one point in the Seventies, does not seem an ideal candidate for merchandising aimed at kids. Or does it? Apparently someone thought the younger set would be enchanted by a fictional world of violence, narcotics, prostitution, and other assorted social ills and general coptastic mayhem. We talked on the podcast about this, but here is one of my favorite examples: Western Publishing's illustrated look at our favorite Seventies buddy cop team.

William Blinn is credited as show creator, with comic book vets George Kashdan and Jack Sparling listed as writer and artist, respectively.

The book contains 3 short stories, each accompanied by a couple of big illustrations. 

I don't think these are adaptations of actual Starsky episodes, but, boy, they could be. Some of the themes explored in this book are: Police corruption, assault, organized crime, blackmail, adultery, assassination, and good old-fashioned murder.

The first story has a reference to "an assortment of nodding addicts and rocking winos." Prostitution, I will say, is the one thing not mentioned in this All-Star Golden Book.

One of my favorite moments comes when Starsk and Hutch confront a closed door and confirm that they need a warrant to search the premises, but if the door should happen to open accidentally...and Hutch kicks it down.

Later, a story begins with Hutch acting as a "big brother" type to a woman having relationship troubles, basically seducing her. When he and Starsky go out on some actual policework, he asks her to wait there a couple hours, then keeps checking the time while on the case because he is thinking about "the chick waiting in my pad."

I am not sure what the target audience was for this in 1977, but I love it in 2023. This is great stuff, and it really does feel like the TV show. There is even a scene with Dobey bemoaning his health food lunch and calling to order a veal parmagiana after a stressful moment,

Western, the publisher of Whitman comics as well as Gold Key and Little Golden Books, did other books in this line, like a Charlie's Angels one that I really want to see now. This is a great collectible for fans of the decade, the TV of the era, and especially those who enjoy Starsky and Hutch.

Collectible Corner: Starsky and Hutch and the Gran Torino!

I got this little number, a 2002 Corgi release, on a recent excursion and loved it as soon as I saw it. Lucky for me, I could get it at a reasonable price.

I will admit, though, in the moment, my standard for "reasonable price" was changed a bit knowing that we were doing a Starsky episode this season! Here is the back:

I like that you get the car but also a little tableau of the lads and Bay City. The little cardboard "standee" of Dave and Ken is a bit cheesy, but it adds to the charm as far as I am concerned. As I have said on the show, I am not a car guy, but this particular cop series is in many ways a car show, and this little vehicle is now one of my favorite podcast-related toys.

YouTube Spotlight: "The Doctors"

The Doctors was a daytime soap on NBC from 1963 to 1982. A generous uploader posted this clip with a very young Paul Michael Glaser from a 1967 episode, and we included it in this week's Starsky and Hutch playlist:

The show was forgotten for years, or so I thought. It seems to have a fervent following. As you can tell from the watermark on the clip, Retro TV picked up reruns and started airing it in 2014, though it does not have all the episodes. Apparently it does not have access to anything before 1967, but you can see episodes on demand here.

Show Notes and Video Playist: Episode 11-12: Starsky and Hutch "A Coffin for Starsky"

*Click above for this week's video playlist, featuring promos, commercials, music, and more!

*And remember, you can always check out our official YouTube page for all of our past podcasts and episode-specific playlists for each one!

*Thanks again to listener David for inspiring this episode. As a reminder, check out his The Atari 5200 Podcast right here.

*Watch this page for a review of that kids book I mention! Also, I plan to write more about that Aaron Spelling memoir at some point!

*Here is the Tom Shales article from 1977 on violence in television.

*Busting is a 1974 film with Elliot Gould and Robert Blake, directed by Peter Hyams and distributed by United Artists. Antonio Fargas is even in the cast!

*Here is the Miami Vice episode we did looking at "Smuggler's Blues." 

*Bay City is fictional, but much of the location shooting on the series took place in the Los Angeles area.

*"Starsky vs. Hutch" is the next-to-last episode of the series, number 21 in Season 4, and you have to see it to believe it.

*The wrestling episode is in the same season, "The Golden Age" in Season 4.

*I'll share the Corgi Starsky and Hutch car soon in a separate post! You can see some cool toy ads in this week's playlist.

*9-1-1 service began in the USA in the late Sixties and was rolled out in different areas through the Seventies and into the Eighties. We're not sure when it began in "Bay City."

*The show is now no longer available on streaming, and Get TV and Cozi dropped it a while back, but it is still there on DVD; look around a bit for a deal.

Episode 11-12: Starsky and Hutch

Buckle your seat belt and cinch your cardigan because this week we're hitting the mean streets of Bay City with Starsky and Hutch! Things get harry for the boys after someone poisons Starksy with a deadly neurotoxin. As they race against a ticking clock to find the culprit and an antidote, they make time for their emotions and a fair amount of proprety damage. All in a day's work for these 1970s stalwarts.

#podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #starskyandhutch #tvcops #bestfriends

 

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