Glen A. Larson

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Glen A. Larson
Glen A. Larson.jpg
Larson in 2004
Born
Glen Albert Larson

(1937-01-03)January 3, 1937
DiedNovember 14, 2014(2014-11-14) (aged 77)
Resting place Rose Hill Burial Park, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S.
Occupation(s)Producer, screenwriter, composer
Notable work
Spouses
  • Carol Jean Gourley
    (m. 1961;div. 1982)
  • Janet Prescott
    (m. 1982;div. 2008)
  • Jeannie Marie Pledger
    (m. 2009)
Children9

Glen Albert Larson (January 3, 1937 – November 14, 2014) was an American television producer, writer, and composer. He created many series, including Alias Smith and Jones , Battlestar Galactica , Buck Rogers in the 25th Century , The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo , Quincy, M.E. , The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries , B. J. and the Bear , The Fall Guy , Magnum, P.I. , and Knight Rider . Active on television until the early 2010s, he was also a member of the folk revival/satire group The Four Preps.

Contents

Career

Larson began his career in the entertainment industry in 1956 as a member of the vocal group The Four Preps, with whom he appeared in one of the Gidget films. The Four Preps ultimately produced three gold records for Capitol, all of which Larson himself wrote and/or composed: "26 Miles (Santa Catalina)", "Big Man", and "Down by the Station". A later member of the Four Preps, David Somerville, and a session singer he knew, Gail Jensen, later collaborated with Larson to write and compose "The Unknown Stuntman", the theme from The Fall Guy ; series lead Lee Majors performed this song over the opening titles.

After working for Quinn Martin on productions including The Fugitive (where he had his first writing credit), Larson signed a production deal with Universal Studios. His first hit series was Alias Smith and Jones , a 1971–1973 Western which described the activities of Hannibal Heyes and Jedediah "Kid" Curry, concentrating on their efforts to go straight. (George Roy Hill's film, scripted by William Goldman, about Butch Cassidy and the "Sundance Kid", is commonly believed to have been the inspiration for the series.) [1]

Larson was involved in the development for television of The Six Million Dollar Man , based on Martin Caidin's novel Cyborg , into the successful series, and was one of the program's early executive producers.

Larson later secured a then-unprecedented $1 million per episode budget for Battlestar Galactica . The show incorporated many themes from Mormon theology, such as sealing (marriage) for "time and eternity" and a "council of twelve". Larson, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in real life, [2] [3] had been working on the concept since 1968 with former Star Trek producer Gene L. Coon mentoring him in its early development. Although, he originally wanted to name the series Adam's Ark, he instead opted for Galactica. He was later convinced to include the word "star" in the title to capitalize on the recently released film Star Wars , eventually morphing the title into Battlestar Galactica. Larson was similarly convinced to deviate from his plan to produce the property as a series of TV movies to a weekly hour-long series, which caught his crew by surprise with a production schedule more demanding than originally expected in terms of writing while it overwhelmed the series' budgetary limits.

Even with its generous budget, the series often recycled effects shots and was canceled after one season. The pilot episode, titled "Saga of a Star World" was edited into a two-hour theatrical film and a re-edit of the other episodes was released as a second theatrical feature film titled Mission Galactica: The Cylon Attack. After the series was canceled, Larson went on to create a relatively low-budget sequel titled Galactica 1980 , which was set many years later, when the Galactica had reached Earth. It was less successful than the original and was canceled after 10 episodes.

Larson re-used some of the sets, props, costumes, and effects work from Galactica for the light-hearted sci-fi series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century in 1979. Based on the comic-book character created in 1928 by Philip Francis Nowlan, Larson co-developed the series with Leslie Stevens. The feature-length pilot episode was released as a theatrical film in March 1979 and grossed $21 million at the North American box office. [4] The weekly television series began in September 1979, running for two seasons until April 1981.

In the 1980s, Larson had further success as one of the creators of Magnum, P.I. , which ran from 1980 to 1988. Around the same time, he left Universal to work for 20th Century-Fox. [5] Additionally, Larson created The Fall Guy , which ran from 1981 to 1986. Larson's next prominent series was Knight Rider , which featured science-fiction elements with a light-hearted action-adventure scenario and limited violence. These basic elements characterized many of Larson's series' throughout the 1980s with Automan , Manimal and The Highwayman , though all of these shows were unsuccessful and none lasted more than a single season. Larson's profile declined, though he made a brief comeback in the 1990s with an adaptation of the Ultraverse comic Night Man , which lasted two seasons.

In 2003, Battlestar Galactica was remade for the Sci-Fi Channel as a miniseries; it was followed by a 2004 series, that, unlike the original, lasted multiple seasons. Larson was not involved in any capacity with the new series, though he did receive a screen credit as "Consulting Producer". After the series ended in 2009, a short-lived prequel series, Caprica , followed in 2010. Larson was again not involved, but he was given a screen credit for the creation of certain characters.

In February 2009, media sources reported that Larson was in talks with Universal Pictures to bring Battlestar Galactica to the big screen, though any potential feature film would not be based on the recent Sci-Fi Channel series remake, but would possibly be based on the original series. The project stalled for some time; in 2011 a re-announced version was now no longer a continuation of the original series but rather a complete remake.

Criticism

Despite his success, much criticism has been aimed at Larson for his perceived general lack of originality as many of his television series are seen as small screen "knock-offs" of feature films. Harlan Ellison once referred to him as "Glen Larceny" for the notorious similarities between Larson's shows and cinema blockbusters. [6] [7]

In his autobiography, The Garner Files, James Garner stated that Larson stole a number of plots of The Rockford Files (which Garner's production company co-produced), then used them for his own shows, simply changing the dialogue minimally and using different character names. Garner's group complained to the Writer's Guild; Larson was fined, and an episode of Larson's series Switch called "Death by Resurrection" had the writing credits revised to give sole credit to the writers of the original Rockford Files episode "This Case Is Closed", as it was very clearly the basis of the Switch episode. Nevertheless, Garner felt that the fine had taught Larson nothing when he persisted in plagiarism and later copied the theme music from The Rockford Files for one of his shows. Garner stated that when Larson subsequently showed up on the Rockford set, he put his arm around Garner and said: "I hope there are no hard feelings, Jim." After Larson ignored a warning by Garner to take his arm off him, Garner reportedly punched Larson so hard that Larson "flew across the curb, into a motor home, and out the other side." [8]

Lawsuit against Universal Studios

In July 2011, Larson began a lawsuit against Universal Studios, alleging a decades-long fraud and claimed the studio had not paid him a share of the profits owed from the television shows he produced while working with them. Larson's involvement with Universal had begun in the 1970s, and his contractual agreement had secured him net profits from the revenues generated by the shows he worked on as a producer, including The Six Million Dollar Man, Quincy, M.E., Battlestar Galactica, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Magnum, P.I. and Knight Rider. [9] The dispute was settled four years later in December 2015. [10]

This was not the first legal wrangle Larson had with the studio, as there had previously been a disagreement over ownership of rights to the Battlestar Galactica franchise. It was ultimately determined that Larson no longer owned the television rights to the property, but retained feature film rights.

Death

Larson died on November 14, 2014, in UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica, California, from esophageal cancer, aged 77 and was survived by his wife Jeannie and nine children. [11] He is buried at Rose Hill Burial Park (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma).

Awards and honors

Larson also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to the television industry.

Filmography

TitleYearDirectorWriterProducerCreatorComposerNotes
The Fugitive 1966Yes
Twelve O'Clock High 1966Yes
It Takes a Thief 1968–70YesYesYes
The Virginian 1970–71YesYes
McCloud 1970–77YesYesYes
Alias Smith and Jones 1971–73YesYesYes
The Six Million Dollar Man 1973YesYesYes2 additional television films
Fools, Females and Fun1974YesYesYesUnsold pilot
Get Christie Love!1975YesYesYes
Switch 1975–78YesYesYesYesYes
Quincy, M.E. 1976–83YesYesYesYes
Benny and Barney: Las Vegas Undercover1977YesYesTelevision film
Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries 1977–78YesYesYesYesYes
Evening in Byzantium 1978YesYesMini-series
The Islander1978YesYesTelevision film
A Double Life1978YesYesTelevision film
Battlestar Galactica 1978–79YesYesYesYes Pilot also theatrical release
Sword of Justice 1978–79YesYesYesYes
Cliffhangers: The Secret Empire1979Yes
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century 1979YesYesYesTheatrical film
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century 1979–81YesYesYesYes
The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo 1979–81YesYesYesYes
B. J. and the Bear 1979–81YesYesYesYes
Battles: The Murder That Wouldn't Die1980YesYesYesUnsold pilot
Galactica 1980 1980YesYesYesYes
Nightside 1980YesYesUnsold pilot
Magnum, P.I. 1980–88YesYesYes
Fitz and Bones1981–82YesYes
The Fall Guy 1981–86YesYesYesYes
Rooster 1982YesYesUnsold pilot
Simon & Simon 1982Yes
Knight Rider 1982–86YesYesYesYes
Manimal 1983YesYesYes
Trauma Center 1983YesYes
Automan 1983–84YesYesYes
Masquerade 1983–84YesYesYes
Cover Up 1984–85YesYesYes
Half Nelson 1985YesYes
In Like Flynn1985YesYesYesUnsold pilot
Crazy Dan1986YesUnsold pilot
The Highwayman 1987–88YesYes
The Road Raiders1989YesYesYesTelevision film
Chameleons1989YesYesYesUnsold pilot
P.S. I Luv U 1991–92YesYesYesYes
Staying Afloat1993YesTelevision film
One West Waikiki 1994–96YesYes
Team Knight Rider 1997–98Yes
Night Man 1997–99YesYesYesYesYes
The Darwin Conspiracy1999YesYesTelevision film
Millennium Man1999YesYesTelevision film
Battlestar Galactica [12] 2003-09YesYesIncluding miniseries, [13] TV movies (1, 2) & web-series
Knight Rider 2008-09Yes
Caprica [12] 2009-10Yes
Battlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome [12] 2012YesWeb-series

Books written

TitleYearCo-writerFollowed seriesNotes
The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew Meet Dracula1977Michael Sloan Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries Novelisation for two same name episode
Battlestar Galactica1978 Robert Thurston Battlestar Galactica (1978) Novelisation for three-part pilot episode "Saga of a Star World"
The Cylon Death Machine1979Robert ThurstonBattlestar Galactica (1978)Novelisation for two episodes "Gun on Ice Planet Zero"
The Tombs of Kobol1979Robert ThurstonBattlestar Galactica (1978)Novelisation for two episodes "Lost Planet of the Gods"
The Young Warriors1980Robert ThurstonBattlestar Galactica (1978)Novelisation for episode "The Young Lords"
Galactica Discovers Earth1980 Michael Resnick Galactica 1980 Novelisation for three same name episodes
The Living Legend1982 Simon Hawke Battlestar Galactica (1978)Novelisation for two same name episodes
War of the Gods1982Simon HawkeBattlestar Galactica (1978)Novelisation for two same name episodes
Greetings from Earth1983 Ron Goulart Battlestar Galactica (1978)Novelisation for two-part same name episode
Knight Rider1983Roger Hill Knight Rider (1982) Novelisation for two-part pilot episode "Knight of the Phoenix"
Trust Doesn't Rust1984Roger HillKnight Rider (1982)Novelisation for same name episode
Experiment in Terra1984Ron GoulartBattlestar Galactica (1978)Novelisation for episodes "Baltar's Escape" and "Experiment in Terra"
Hearts of Stone1984Roger HillKnight Rider (1982)Novelisation for same name episode
The 24-Carat Assassin [14] 1984Roger HillKnight Rider (1982)Novelisation for two-part episode "Mouth of the Snake/All That Glitters"
Mirror Image [14] 1984Roger HillKnight Rider (1982)Novelisation for two-part episode ""Goliath"
The Long Patrol1984Ron GoulartBattlestar Galactica (1978)Novelisation for same name episode
The Nightmare Machine1985Robert ThurstonNoOriginal Battlestar Galactica novel
"Die, Chameleon!"1986Robert ThurstonNoOriginal Battlestar Galactica novel
Apollo's War1987Robert ThurstonNoOriginal Battlestar Galactica novel
Surrender the Galactica!1988Robert ThurstonNoOriginal Battlestar Galactica novel

Related Research Articles

Knight Rider is an American action crime drama television series created and produced by Glen A. Larson. The series was originally broadcast on NBC from September 26, 1982, to April 4, 1986. The show stars David Hasselhoff as Michael Knight, a sleek and modern crime fighter assisted by KITT, an advanced, artificially intelligent, self-aware, and nearly indestructible car. This was the last series Larson devised at Universal Television before he moved to 20th Century Fox Television.

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 adaptations, original novels, comic books, a board game, and video games. A reimagined version aired as a two-part, three-hour miniseries developed by Ronald D. Moore and David Eick in 2003, followed by a 2004 television series, which aired until 2009. A prequel series, Caprica, aired in 2010.

Magnum, P.I. is an American crime drama television series starring Tom Selleck as Thomas Magnum, a private investigator (P.I.) living on Oahu, Hawaii. The series ran from December 11, 1980, to May 1, 1988, during its first-run broadcast on the American television network CBS. Magnum, P.I. consistently ranked in the top 20 U.S. television programs in the Nielsen ratings 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.

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References

  1. Snauffer, Douglas (2008). The Show Must Go On: How the Deaths of Lead Actors Have Affected Television Series. McFarland. p. 23. ISBN   978-0-7864-5504-1.
  2. "LDS Scene", Ensign , August 1979, 80. In 1979, Larson received an award from the Associated Latter-day Media Artists.
  3. Mormon Expression, "Episode 135: Battlestar Galactica and Mormon Theology" Archived July 22, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
  4. Box Office Mojo (Buck Rogers)
  5. "Larson moving to Fox TV" (PDF). Broadcasting . July 28, 1980. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  6. Delaney, Sean; Bryant, Chris (2002). "Battlestar Galactica" (PDF). BFI National Library – TV Sci-Fi Source Guide. British Film Institute: 17. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 22, 2008. Retrieved November 3, 2011.
  7. Hughes, David (March 2011). "Glen A. Larson does Star Wars!". Empire Magazine. No. 261.
  8. James Garner & Jon Winokur. The Garner Files: A Memoir. Simon & Schuster, 2011. ISBN   978-1-4516-4260-5. Chapter 7: "The Rockford Files" (page 129).
  9. Belloni, Matthew (July 12, 2011). "'Knight Rider' Producer Glen Larson Sues Universal for Millions in Unpaid Profits". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 3, 2011.
  10. Gardner, Eriq (December 21, 2015). "Universal Settles Profit Dispute Over 'Knight Rider,' 'Battlestar Galactica'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  11. Barnes, Mike (November 15, 2014). "Glen A. Larson, Creator of TV's 'Quincy M.E.,' 'Magnum, P.I.' and 'Battlestar Galactica,' Dies at 77". The Hollywood Reporter .
  12. 1 2 3 "Consulting producer" credit only
  13. Writer as "Christopher Eric James".
  14. 1 2 UK released only