Published at: Oct. 1, 2010, 9:09 p.m. CST by hercules
I am – Hercules
In TV, they don’t come better, bigger or more important than Stephen J. Cannell, who passed away Thursday.
He created or co-created nearly 40 (!) series, including “The Rockford Files,” “Wise Guy,” “Profit,” “The Greatest American Hero,” “Tenspeed and Brown Shoe” “21 Jump Street,” "Baretta," "The Commish," "Riptide," "Hunter," "Hardcastle & McCormick," "Black Sheep Squadron" and “The A-Team.”
He was one of the most prolific screenwriters on the planet, even though he suffered from dyslexia.
Cannell gets into the TV Hall Of Fame just on the bona fides of “The Rockford Files,” which is right up there with “Columbo” (which Cannell also once scripted) as one of the greatest crime dramas ever to hit the broadcast airwaves.
I’ve been working my way through the “Rockford” season sets. “Sopranos” creator David Chase wrote a ton of great episodes, but the funniest and most entertaining for me were the ones Cannell scripted personally.
“Wiseguy” is probably broadcast TV’s best mob drama, and defined the genre long before cable’s “Sopranos” and “Boardwalk Empire” got into the act.
“Tenspeed and Brown Shoe” took a bit player named Jeff Goldblum (“Death Wish,” “Annie Hall,” “Invasion of the Body Snatchers”) and gave him his first lead role.
“The Greatest American Hero” was smarter, sharper and a hundred times funnier than “No Ordinary Family.”
Cannell published his first novel, “The Plan,” in 1996 and wrote at least 16 more before he passed, including two Shane Scully novels published this year: “The Pallbearers” and “The Prostitute’s Ball.”
A few weeks ago I was watching the “Lost” six-season set, for which Cannell was interviewed on the topic of ending a series. He said he never wrote an ending for any of his series. And I guess he never will.
