The Last Chance Detectives

Last updated
The Last Chance Detectives
The Last Chance Detectives (logo).jpg
The Last Chance Detectives logo
Running time25 minutes
Country of originFlag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Language(s)English
Syndicates Focus on the Family
Starring Adam Wylie
Daryl Sabara
Mae Whitman
AJ Noel
June Lockhart
Created byRobert Vernon
Written byJohn Fornof
Robert Vernon
Marshal Younger
Recording studioBurbank, California
No. of episodes12
Website LastChanceDetectives.com

The Last Chance Detectives is a series of Christian television movies, and later a radio drama series created by Robert Vernon and produced by Focus on the Family [1] in the mid-1990s. The production of each video episode cost approximately one million USD. [2] The series focused on four preteen "sleuths" [3] [4] who solve mysteries in their fictional small town of Ambrosia, Arizona. When the radio shows were airing, Canyon Quest, a prequel book to the show, was released.

Contents

Plot

12-year-old Mike Fowler lives in the fictional small town of Ambrosia, Arizona with his apparently widowed mother and his paternal grandparents. The family runs the Last Chance Gas and Diner highway stop near the town's municipal limits, as well as the small hangar and airstrip nearby. The diner property is also home to Lady Liberty, a B-17 Bomber [5] flown by Mike's grandfather in World War II; it is in the plane that Mike and his three friends—Ben Jones, Winnona "Winnie" Whitefeather, and Spencer Williams – run their detective agency called the "Last Chance Detectives". Together, they solve mysteries and have adventures, while learning Christian morals.

Radio albums

The radio series included a brand new cast, and Jason Whittaker, from Adventures in Odyssey in the first album. Both made by Focus on the Family, the two series were partially joined for this series. Three albums were created:

Film series

Escape from Fire Lake's cover Escape from Fire Lake.jpg
Escape from Fire Lake's cover

The Last Chance Detectives television films were filmed at Kingman Airport in Kingman, Arizona. Focus on the Family Films paid $3,000 to lease the land to film it there. [6] There were three films created:

Book series

Characters

Airings

The Last Chance Detectives currently airs on JellyTelly and KDSO-LD the Dove TV.

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References

  1. 1 2 Phan, Katherine T. (June 8, 2004). "FOTF Announces New Radio Series 'The Last Chance Detectives'". The Christian Post . Retrieved February 28, 2009.
  2. Ferguson, Tim W.; Lee, Josephine (1997-01-27). "Spiritual reality". Forbes . p. 3. Archived from the original on March 9, 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-03. Last Chance Detectives, patterned after the Hardy Boys stories and produced for $1 million an episode with Focus on the Family
  3. Howard, Judith Lynn (May 27, 1995). "An Industry in Fast Forward". The Dallas Morning News . Retrieved February 28, 2009.
  4. "A Curriculum Guide for Teachers of Mentally Retarded Pupils" (PDF). Oak Park Public Schools. 2005. p. 25. Retrieved 2009-03-03.
  5. "Focus on Family joins list of area's top tourist draws New attractions aimed at bringing in youngsters". The Gazette . August 2, 1997. Retrieved February 28, 2009.
  6. "Television series to be filmed near Kingman Airport". Kingman Daily Miner . January 16, 1994. Retrieved February 28, 2009.
  7. "'Casino' Stuntman Brings High Adventures To New Kid Video Series". PR Newswire . November 21, 1995. Retrieved February 28, 2009.[ dead link ]