MacGruder and Loud

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MacGruder and Loud
Genre Police procedural
crime drama
Created byLane Slate
Starring John Getz
Kathryn Harrold
Composer Paul Chihara
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes15
Production
Executive producer Aaron Spelling
Producer Robert H. Justman
Production location Los Angeles
Running time60 minutes
Production company Aaron Spelling Productions
Original release
Network ABC
ReleaseJanuary 21 (1985-01-21) 
April 30, 1985 (1985-04-30)

MacGruder and Loud is an American crime drama from Aaron Spelling Productions that aired on ABC from January 20 to April 30, 1985.

Contents

Premise

The series stars John Getz and Kathryn Harrold as married police officers Malcolm MacGruder and Jenny Loud in a Los Angeles Police Department-styled police agency (where strict anti-fraternization policies were in effect). They fought a battle every day to keep it a closely guarded secret from their boss, Sgt. Hanson (played by veteran actor Lee de Broux). [1]

Malcolm and Jenny lived in a duplex-type apartment complex where there was a secret door behind the grandfather clock in her apartment, where Malcolm could sneak in and enjoy her company. [1]

Cast

Episodes

TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
1"Pilot" Jerry London Lane SlateJanuary 21, 1985 (1985-01-21)
2
3"The Violation"Jerry LondonUnknownJanuary 22, 1985 (1985-01-22)
4"The Inside Man" Richard Compton UnknownJanuary 29, 1985 (1985-01-29)
5"Odds Favor Death" Stan Lathan UnknownFebruary 5, 1985 (1985-02-05)
6"On the Wire"Victor HsuSteve Kreinberg & Andy GuerdatFebruary 12, 1985 (1985-02-12)
7"Cop Killer"Richard ComptonUnknownFebruary 26, 1985 (1985-02-26)
8"Under Special Circumstances"Stan LathanUnknownMarch 5, 1985 (1985-03-05)
9"Sanctuary"Richard ComptonStephen KandelMarch 12, 1985 (1985-03-12)
10"Stepover Man" Bill Duke UnknownMarch 19, 1985 (1985-03-19)
11"For Better or for Worse" James L. Conway UnknownMarch 26, 1985 (1985-03-26)
12"The Price of Junk"Charlie PicerniUnknownApril 9, 1985 (1985-04-09)
13"The Very Scary Man"Richard ComptonMike RobeApril 16, 1985 (1985-04-16)
14"Act of War" Rick Wallace UnknownApril 23, 1985 (1985-04-23)
15"Tarnished Blues"James L. ConwayJaysen D. HayesApril 30, 1985 (1985-04-30)

Production

This was one of the relatively few failures from Aaron Spelling's production company in its history, since it was picked by ABC to debut right after the Super Bowl in 1985 and was heavily promoted during the game. The promotion resulted in high ratings at first, but the series was cancelled three months into its run. [2] The ratings decline was blamed on ABC's repeated changing of the show's timeslot before settling on Monday nights at 10:00 p.m., known as "the graveyard slot". It ranked 36th out of 77 shows with a 14.9 rating and a 23 share. [3]

Because of the frequent commercials during the Super Bowl, the following night Johnny Carson asked rhetorically during his monologue on The Tonight Show , "Did you see that new show, 'Frequent and Loud'?"[ citation needed ]

The series was rushed into production by ABC in order to capitalize on the popularity of another crime drama at that time, Cagney & Lacey (which aired on CBS).

References

  1. 1 2 Zoglin, Richard (January 21, 1985). Autumn Goofs, Winter Repairs, TIME .
  2. McIntee, Michael Z. (January 13, 2003). Show #1934 Recap, Late Show with David Letterman .
  3. "The TV Ratings Guide: 1984-85 Ratings History".