Fortune Hunter (TV series)

Last updated

Fortune Hunter
Genre Drama
Created bySteven Aspis
Starring Mark Frankel
John Hoffman
Kim Faze
Composer David Michael Frank
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes13 (8 unaired)
Production
Running time60 minutes
Production companiesBBK Productions
Columbia Pictures Television
Original release
Network Fox
ReleaseSeptember 4 (1994-09-04) 
October 2, 1994 (1994-10-02)

Fortune Hunter is an American action-adventure drama series that was shown on Fox from September 4 to October 2, 1994, starring Mark Frankel as the super-spy Carlton Dial.

Contents

In the United States, Fortune Hunter aired on Fox from September 4, 1994 to October 2, 1994. Of the 13 episodes produced, only five were aired for the North American audience. The decision to schedule the series immediately after football on Sundays at 7:00 pm was a factor in the dismissal of Sandy Grushow, president of Fox Entertainment, by chairman Rupert Murdoch. [1]

The show has aired in its entirety in other countries. It was well liked and generally received high ratings.[ citation needed ]

Plot

The series was a high paced, action and adventure based show that followed the exploits of Carlton Dial (Mark Frankel). Dial is an ex-government agent whose high-risk assignments take him to exotic locales and into extreme danger, all in the name of recovering some of the world's most sought-after items – classified information, complex weapons systems, and the occasional endangered species, which have fallen into the wrong hands – for a handsome fee.

Dial is now working as a master agent for the Intercept Corporation, a high-tech global recovery organization based in San Francisco. Dial and his partner, the affable Harry Flack (John Robert Hoffman) execute incredibly complex plans to retrieve these valuable items, depending on split-second timing and an astounding array of sophisticated electronic gadgetry.

Dial is portrayed as a suave, charming and self-assured spy, similar in style, dressing and witty remarks to James Bond, who uses his quick wit and sense of humor to get him out of many precarious situations. Dial performs his high-risk assignments with deadly seriousness. Determined to keep his perfect success record intact, he depends upon split-second timing and an astounding array of sophisticated electronic gadgetry – not to mention his partner, Harry. Dial wears a special contact lens with a built-in camera and an electronic earpiece, so Harry can see and hear everything that Dial does. This also allows Harry to speak with Dial, relaying information to the agent immediately, from the safety of the home office.

As Dial travels the globe, Harry shares dangerous missions with Dial while linked to him by computer. He is in charge of the technological end, seeing and hearing everything Dial sees and hears, and providing the information not readily available to the average person. But much is left to Harry's imagination as the details of Dial's private life remain – well, private.

The humor in their pairing is that each man believes that he is the one in charge. Dial is the agent with "the perfect recovery record," the one who is always in danger, while Flack, the technological wizard, sees himself as "the brains," and lives vicariously through his partner, which often can get Dial into trouble.

Cast

Episodes

No. Title Directed by Written by Original air date
1"The Frostfire Intercept" Lewis Teague Steven AspisSeptember 4, 1994 (1994-09-04)
2"The Aquarius Intercept"Jefferson KibbeeSteven AspisSeptember 11, 1994 (1994-09-11)
3"Triple Cross (a.k.a. The Corkscrew Intercept)"Tucker GatesJack BernsteinSeptember 18, 1994 (1994-09-18)
4"Hot Ice (a.k.a. The Winter Star Intercept)"Guy MagarHarold ApterSeptember 25, 1994 (1994-09-25)
5"Red Alert"Mike LevineCarlton CuseOctober 2, 1994 (1994-10-02)
6"Countdown"Guy MagarJack BernsteinUnaired
7"The Alpha Team"TBDTBDUnaired
8"The Cursed Dagger"TBDTBDUnaired
9"The Deadliest Game"TBDTBDUnaired
10"Stowaway"TBDTBDUnaired
11"Sea Trial"TBDTBDUnaired
12"Body Count"James A. ContnerJohn WarrenUnaired
13"Target: Millenium"Terrence O'HaraSteven Aspis & Jack Bernstein (teleplay), Steven Aspis (story)Unaired
John Robert Hoffman does not appear in this episode. His character is described as being "promoted." Dwight Schultz, Meg Foster, and Jessica Tuck are introduced as Dial's new work colleagues.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rupert Murdoch</span> Australian-American business magnate (born 1931)

Keith Rupert Murdoch is an Australian-American business magnate, investor, and media proprietor. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of local, national, and international publishing outlets around the world, including in the UK, in Australia, in the US, book publisher HarperCollins, and the television broadcasting channels Sky News Australia and Fox News. He was also the owner of Sky, 21st Century Fox, and the now-defunct News of the World. With a net worth of US$21.7 billion as of 2 March 2022, Murdoch is the 31st richest person in the United States and the 71st richest in the world according to Forbes magazine.

The Swatch Group Ltd is a Swiss manufacturer of watches and jewellery. The company was founded in 1983 by the merger of ASUAG and SSIH to move to manufacturing quartz-crystal watches to resolve the quartz crisis threatening the traditional Swiss watchmaking industry.

<i>New York Post</i> Conservative daily tabloid newspaper

The New York Post is an American conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The Post also operates three online sites, NYPost.com, PageSix.com, a gossip site, and Decider.com, an entertainment site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">News Corporation</span> American media company (1980–2013)

The original incarnation of News Corporation was an American multinational mass media corporation controlled by media mogul Rupert Murdoch and headquartered at 1211 Avenue of the Americas in New York City. Prior to its split in 2013, it was the world's largest media company in terms of total assets and the world's fourth largest media group in terms of revenue, and News Corporation had become a media powerhouse since its inception, dominating the news, television, film, and print industries.

<i>The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.</i> American television series

The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr., often referred to as just Brisco or Brisco County, is an American weird western television series created by Jeffrey Boam and Carlton Cuse. It ran for 27 episodes on the Fox network starting in the 1993–94 season. Set in the American West of 1893, the series follows its title character, a Harvard-educated lawyer-turned-bounty hunter hired by a group of wealthy industrialists to track and capture outlaw John Bly and his gang. Bruce Campbell plays Brisco, who is joined by a colorful group of supporting characters, including Julius Carry as fellow bounty hunter Lord Bowler and Christian Clemenson as stick-in-the-mud lawyer Socrates Poole.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harry Harrison (writer)</span> American science fiction author (1925–2012)

Harry Max Harrison was an American science fiction author, known mostly for his character The Stainless Steel Rat and for his novel Make Room! Make Room! (1966). The latter was the rough basis for the motion picture Soylent Green (1973). Long resident in both Ireland and the United Kingdom, Harrison was involved in the foundation of the Irish Science Fiction Association, and was, with Brian Aldiss, co-president of the Birmingham Science Fiction Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mr. Burns</span> Fictional character from The Simpsons franchise

Charles Montgomery Plantagenet Schicklgruber "Monty" Burns, usually referred to as Mr. Burns or C. Montgomery Burns, is a recurring character in the animated television series The Simpsons, voiced initially by Christopher Collins and currently by Harry Shearer. He is the mostly evil, devious, greedy, and wealthy owner of the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant and, by extension, Homer Simpson's boss. He is assisted at almost all times by Smithers, his loyal and sycophantic aide, adviser, confidant, and secret admirer. He is between 81 and 120 years old, though sometimes it's implied he's much older.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bounty hunter</span> Person who catches fugitives for a monetary reward

A bounty hunter is a private agent working for a bail bondsman who captures fugitives or criminals for a commission or bounty. The occupation, officially known as a bail enforcement agent or fugitive recovery agent, has traditionally operated outside the legal constraints that govern police officers and other agents of the state. This is because a bail agreement between a defendant and a bail bondsman is essentially a civil contract that is incumbent upon the bondsman to enforce. Since they are not police officers, bounty hunters are exposed to legal liabilities from which agents of the state are protected as these immunities enable police to perform their functions effectively without fear of lawsuits. Everyday citizens approached by a bounty hunter are neither required to answer their questions nor allowed to be detained. Bounty hunters are typically independent contractors paid a commission of the total bail amount that is owed by the fugitive; they provide their own professional liability insurance and only get paid if they are able to find the "skip" and bring them in.

<i>Where on Earth Is Carmen Sandiego?</i> American animated television series

Where on Earth Is Carmen Sandiego? is an American live action/animated television series based on the series of computer games. The show was produced by DIC Productions L.P. and originally aired from 1994 to 1999, on Saturday mornings during FOX's Fox Kids Network block. Reruns aired on the Qubo television network from June 9, 2012 to May 26, 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Janet Evanovich</span> American writer

Janet Evanovich is an American writer. She began her career writing short contemporary romance novels under the pen name Steffie Hall, but gained fame authoring a series of contemporary mysteries featuring Stephanie Plum, a former lingerie buyer from Trenton, New Jersey, who becomes a bounty hunter to make ends meet after losing her job. The novels in this series have been on The New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal and Amazon bestseller lists. Evanovich has had her last seventeen Plums debut at #1 on the NY Times Best Sellers list and eleven of them have hit #1 on USA Today Best-Selling Books list. She has over two hundred million books in print worldwide, and her books have been translated into over 40 languages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Disney Networks Group Asia Pacific</span> Hong Kong-based commercial broadcasting company

Disney Networks Group Asia Pacific, was a Hong Kong-based commercial broadcasting company operating multiple specialty television channels. The company was founded in 1991 by Hong Kong businessman Richard Li.

<i>The X-Files</i> (season 2) Season of television series The X-Files

The second season of the science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing on the Fox network in the United States on September 16, 1994, concluded on the same channel on May 19, 1995, after airing all 25 episodes. The series follows Federal Bureau of Investigation special agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully, portrayed by David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson respectively, who investigate paranormal or supernatural cases, known as X-Files by the FBI.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New World Pictures</span> American film production and distribution company

New World Pictures was an American independent production, distribution, and multimedia company. It was founded in 1970 by Roger Corman and Gene Corman as New World Pictures, Ltd., a producer and distributor of motion pictures, eventually expanding into television production in 1984. New World eventually expanded into broadcasting with the acquisition of seven television stations in 1993, with the broadcasting unit expanding through additional purchases made during 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fred Patten</span> American animation historian

Frederick Walter Patten was an American writer and historian known for his work in the science fiction, fantasy, anime, manga, and furry fandoms, where he gained great distinction through a substantial contribution to both print and online books, magazines, and other media.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yannick Bisson</span> Canadian film and television actor

Yannick Denis Bisson is a Canadian film and television actor and director. He is famous for playing Detective William Murdoch on the series Murdoch Mysteries for over 15 years, since 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1994–1996 United States broadcast television realignment</span> Television station affiliation switches

Between 1994 and 1996, a wide-ranging realignment of television network affiliations took place in the United States as the result of a multimillion-dollar deal between the Fox Broadcasting Company and New World Communications, announced on May 23, 1994. Unprecedented in the broadcast industry, the deal resulted in twelve stations owned by, or in the process of being purchased by New World, switching network affiliations to Fox over the course of a two-year period when existing contracts expired. These stations were long-standing affiliates of the traditional "Big Three" television networks—CBS, NBC, and ABC—in some of the country's largest markets, with the majority having been aligned with CBS individually for over 40 years.

A bat phone or batphone, in popular jargon, is a private telephone number for important telephone calls handled at high priority. The term is also used to describe the use of more than one mobile phone, with the "bat phone" reserved for a specific purpose. The name Bat-Phone was popularized by the Batman television series starting in 1966, when it was depicted as a red phone that Commissioner Gordon used to summon the superhero Batman in emergencies, and as the red phone mounted inside the Batmobile, the car driven by Batman. Technology journalists have also used "Bat Phone" to describe devices that are novel in appearance, or have a connection to the Batman franchise.

John Robert Hoffman, most often known simply as John Hoffman, is an American actor, screenwriter, director and producer. He wrote and co-starred in the Disney Channel original film Northern Lights (1997) and has written many unproduced screenplays, including Queen Bess, Indianapolis, In Harm's Way and Queen of the Jews.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harry Friedman</span> American television industry executive (born 1946)

Harry Friedman is an American television industry executive. He was the executive producer of the syndicated game shows Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune from 1999 to 2020. Initially he shared the title of executive producer with the shows' creator, Merv Griffin, but from Griffin's 2000 retirement until his own 2020 retirement, he served as their sole executive producer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zac Williams (Australian footballer)</span> Australian rules footballer

Zachery Williams is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Carlton Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). A utility, 1.85 metres tall and weighing 84 kilograms, Williams also plays as a defender and mid-fielder. Williams previously represented the Greater Western Sydney Football Club, playing 113 games over eight seasons from 2013 to 2020. He was recruited by Greater Western Sydney as the 54th pick in the 2012 AFL Rookie Draft, making his debut in round five of the 2013 AFL season. Williams earned a nomination for the 2013 AFL Rising Star award and has played the 14th most games for Greater Western Sydney Club. At the end of the 2020 season, Williams signed with Carlton as a restricted free agent.

References

  1. Carter, Bill (September 30, 1994). "Murdoch Replaces Fox Programming Chief". The New York Times . Retrieved May 27, 2008.