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(More customer reviews)Aaron Spelling was in the beginning of his reign as ABC's personal hit-producer, having already contributed "The Mod Squad," when this show first aired in 1972. This show contributed to a era of cop shows that were as light and fluffy in content as they were heavy in pyrotechnic action.
"The Rookies" were a trio of newly-minted uniform patrolmen in a California police department. Terry Webster was a serious intellectual who had been a social protester, but decided he could make real change by patrolling the beat. Mike Danko was a serious minded ex military man married to a nurse, and Willie Gillis was a fun-loving college grad. Under the tutelage of their squad commander, Lt. Ryker, the three cops learned the ropes and how to take the bad guys off the streets.
Georg Stanford Brown played Webster with authority. Sam Melville, a veteran character actor, played Danko as a sober, but compassionate cop woh dearly loved his wife (played by Spelling's future Charlie's Angel Kate Jackson), and Michael Ontkean was the silly one, making jokes and always looking at things from a humorous perspective. (Ontkean would leave the series and be replaced by a different character played by Bruce Fairbairn in subsequent seasons). And Gerald S. O'Loughlin was marvelous as Lt. Ryker, a serious, almost unemotional superior who actually had a great sense of humor and was genuinely caring and concerned about his young charges.
This show wasn't going to set a high bar for plotting or originality, but it was well-written and well acted. It was entertaining and worth watching. And it continued to pave the way for Spelling's many other cop/detective dramas, including "SWAT," "Starsky and Hutch," "Vegas," "Hart to Hart," "Charlie's Angels," "TJ Hooker," and "Matt Houston." It's well worth remembering.
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The Rookies stars Sam Melville as Mike Danko, Michael Ontkean (Twin Peaks) as Willie Gillis, and Georg Stanford Brown (Roots) as Terry Webster.They portray three young and handsome new police officers learning to protect and serve the public under the watchful guidance of Gerald S. O'Loughlin as Lt. Ed Ryker. Also starring is Kate Jackson as Jill, a practicing nurse married to Mike Danko. The Rookies depict the personal and professional adjustments officers make as they embark on their careers and focus on the dramatic police cases they are assigned.
Notable guest stars the first season include Martin Sheen, Tyne Daly, Cheryl Ladd, Academy Award® winner Louis Gossett, Jr. (Best Supporting Actor, An Officer and a Gentleman), and Dick Van Patten (TV’s Eight Is Enough).
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