Hard Knocks (1987 TV series)

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Hard Knocks
Hard Knocks (1987 TV series) Title.png
Hard Knocks opening title card
Created by Chris Thompson
Starring Bill Maher
Tommy Hinkley
ComposersDan Foliart
Howard Pearl
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes13
Production
Executive producers Gary Nardino
Chris Thompson
Running timeapprox. 30 min.
Production companiesGary Nardino-Chris Thompson Productions
Paramount Television
Original release
Network Showtime
ReleaseApril 20 (1987-04-20) 
August 6, 1987 (1987-08-06)

Hard Knocks is an American comedy-drama television series that aired on the Showtime Network. It featured Bill Maher and Tommy Hinkley as ideologically opposed private detectives looking to make money by solving the problems of their wealthy clients.

Contents

Synopsis

Gower Rhodes and Nick Bronco open a private detective agency in the back of a restaurant to make money by solving cases. However, nothing seems to go their way.

Cast

Main characters

Recurring and Guest Roles

Episodes

TitleDirected by:Written by:Air date
1"Pilot"Jules Lichtman Chris Thompson July 23, 1987 (1987-07-23)
2"Play Mr. Tambourine Man for Me"Don Barnhart Rob Dames,
Bob Fraser
April 20, 1987 (1987-04-20)
Gower and Nick go on a double date
3"What Becomes a Legend Least" Shelley Jensen Marjorie Gross May 8, 1987 (1987-05-08)
4"The End of the World" Rob Dames Don Reo May 15, 1987 (1987-05-15)
Gower and Nick release a deadly chemical
5"Bronco's Rib" Shelley Jensen Ron Zimmerman May 29, 1987 (1987-05-29)
6"Fallen Idol"Jules Lichtman Don Reo June 5, 1987 (1987-06-05)
7"Luck be a Dead Gangster Tonight" Chris Thompson Marjorie GrossJune 12, 1987 (1987-06-12)
8"If You Knew Nancy" Shelley Jensen Ron Zimmerman June 19, 1987 (1987-06-19)
9"Highway to Hard Knocks" Shelley Jensen UnknownJune 26, 1987 (1987-06-26)
10"The Hits" Shelley Jensen Don ReoJuly 9, 1987 (1987-07-09)
11"Captain Justice" Shelley Jensen Marjorie Gross,
Don Reo,
Chris Thompson,
Ron Zimmerman
July 16, 1987 (1987-07-16)
12"Sap Cops" Shelley Jensen George BeckermanJuly 30, 1987 (1987-07-30)
13"Hammerhead Is Out" Shelley Jensen UnknownAugust 6, 1987 (1987-08-06)

Reception

Critical reception

John J. O'Connor of the New York Times called the show "something truly different." [1] The show has also been reviewed in the Spartanburg Herald-Journal as "hard to watch," [2] and in the Chicago Tribune as having woeful writing, unappealing characters, an infantile premise, and as "making programmers at the three networks look like charter members of Mensa." [3]

Awards and nominations

Hard Knocks was nominated for a CableACE Award in 1988 [4]

Sources

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References

  1. O'Connor, John (April 20, 1987). "TV Review; 'Hard Knocks,' Sitcom". NYT . Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  2. Edelstein, Andrew (April 26, 1987). "'Hard Knocks' is hard to watch". Spartanburg Herald-Journal . Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  3. Terry, Clifford (April 20, 1987). "'Hard Knocks' Doesn't Earn Its Keep For Creative Laughs". Chicago Tribune . Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  4. "Hard Knocks (1987– ) Awards". IMDb . Retrieved January 14, 2015.