Talk:Knight Rider

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Somebody changed "he became a crime fighter known as Michael Knight, working together with a high-tech automobile, called KITT" into "he became a crime fighter known as Michael Knight, working together with a modified Pontiac Trans am, called KITT".

I changed this back, and put the information about the make of car further down in the article. The changed text is in the introduction, which describes the background story of the series. In that background story, the crime fighter is not called David Hasshole (the actor) but Michael Knight (the protagonist), just like the car is not a modified Trans am (the actor), but rather a wonder car called KITT (the character).

Further down in the article, the actors are described in more detail, so I felt that location more appropriate to describe the make of the car used to 'act' KITT.--user:Branko

"His medical care was taken over by the Knight Foundation, a private crime-fighting organization founded by a dying millionaire. Long was officially declared dead. After recovery and plastic surgery, which changed his appearance, he became a crime fighter known as Michael Knight..." <--- Doesn't this sound odd? One second he's declared dead, the next he's recovering (from death, apperantly) and getting plastic surgery. Just pointing out someone should elaborate on his revival. I would, but my memory isn't reliable enough to fill in the blanks properly. MardukZero 03:53, 7 Sep 2004 (UTC)

The background is that he was an undercover LV police officer and was shot by the criminals he was investigating. So plastic surgery makes sense as a high-tech witness protection program Sympleko 12:44, 14 Apr 2005 (UTC)
Michael Long did NOT really die, as what is elluded to in "Total Television" by Alex McNeil. However, to make Tanya think she got rid of him, and to create a person with a fictional identity so he can easily go undercover (which sometimes didn't quite work out, but that's another topic), the Foundation made it look like Long died by giving the police a fake corpse (and, although not really mentioned in the pilot, forged death certificates, etc.). Then Devon emphasizes to Michael that he should not consider himself Long but Knight.

[edit] Viper

There's mention of Airwolf and Streethawk... How about Viper, which was almost a direct rip-off? The main character is severely injured, presumed dead, so a secret organization can give him plastic surgery and make him the driver of a high-tech super car used to fight crime. Then again, does anyone but me remember that show?  :) KuriosD 20:28, 18 Feb 2005 (UTC)

The link is there. Now you can write the article.  :-) Sympleko 11:45, 19 Apr 2005 (UTC)
I remember Viper, but I wasn't aware that Viper's driver was "killed" and resurrected like Michael Knight. Been a while since I seen the show. I just thought he was more like Streethawk's concept - a cop given the assignmnet to drive the hightech vehicle. Cyberia23 20:28, 1 October 2005 (UTC)

[edit] KARR

K.A.R.R. is mentioned befre it is explained, and even then it only expands the acronym. It would be nice if perhaps it had a sentence or too in the main part of the article, before the "Facts" list. Turnstep 18:49, Mar 21, 2005 (UTC)

Article needs some sectioning because there is no place to elaborate on the KARR story. The main section (before "Facts") is a mish-mash of the show story and its impact in the real world.

You have no idea how tempting it is to swap the WP entries for Knight Rider and Knight Ridder :(

lol Trekphiler 22:34, 8 December 2005 (UTC)

[edit] dedication

At the end of some episodes, there was a dedication (I forgot the name) "... he was the original." I wondered when I saw it in TV, who was it? Samohyl Jan 20:17, 18 August 2005 (UTC)

There was a dedication at the end of Race for Life. The son of the actor who played Julio died during the filming and the episode was dedicated to him. I'm not sure of any other dedications. I have yet to watch them all. Cyberia23 23:11, 10 November 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Fan Mail

More than once, I've heard that David Hasselhoff stopped doing Knight Rider because KITT was getting more fan mail than he was. I can't believe this is true, but can anyone else comment? Smallbone10 23:59, 17 September 2005 (UTC)

I highly doubt the reason was over fan mail. Michael was supposed to be the main character of the show, even Glen A. Larson said that. Kids loved the car. Women loved David Hasslehoff. Men loved the James Bond action and intrigue of both KITT and Michael. It was when KITT turned into a "Transformer" during 4th season that the show jumped the shark. No more was Michael really fighting criminal masterminds and terrorists, he spent more time fighting street gangs and car thieves and it got really boring. That's what killed it IMO. Cyberia23 20:36, 1 October 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Music

Technically, System Of A Down didn't sample the Knight Rider theme. In I-E-A-I-A-I-O, the theme (which only appears for about ten seconds near the end of the song) is played on a pair of electric guitars, and it's a couple of notes different from the actual Knight Rider theme. It *is* very similar, though, and I'd always wondered if it was a coincidence or deliberate homage. Given that the song contains the lyric "A former cop, undercover / Just got shot, now recovered", I guess the homage makes sense. Cammy 20:58, 2 November 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Misc

This article seems to have more data about KITT himself than the actual KITT article - some comparing and moving of sections could be handled by someone with a bit more time. The article doesn't seem to mention some point in the series where KITT apparently got sunk in some sort of acid (I don't recall in what season, since it's been well over a decade since I last watched it), and I think the weekly villain responsible actually had "Acid" for a nickname, but I do recall that after that incident, KITT's "interior scenes" (dashboard indicators, pedals that moved themselves) were significantly changed from then on. I roughly recall of the rebuilding process that the current mechanic then mentioned some major experts were involved in the rebuilding, and KITT commenting with Michael that his sense of humour hadn't been included yet halfway through the process. Little bits, like Garthe having a moustache to tell him apart from Michael and KARR's front scanner lights being yellow also seem absent. Loona 18:04, 9 November 2005 (UTC)

Was the ep with the acid called Junk Yard Dog ?82.38.220.117 19:09, 9 August 2006 (UTC)

I moved the growing "List of KITT's features" to the KITT article. This may be a starting point to shortening this article somewhat. BTW, check out List of Knight Rider Episodes that I have been adding details too. The "acid bath" episode I believe is the final episode of Season Two, which I haven't gotten to yet. Also KARR's front scanner was red like KITT's. His voice bar LED light was yellow. Cyberia23 20:43, 9 November 2005 (UTC)
Thanks for the move. I haven't checked the full list yet, but the transition between seasons 2 and 3 seems to match what was mentioned - it's been a really long time since I last saw any episode at all to be of any real assistence there, but the fact the page is there at all might already help define some tendencies in the series. Speaking of which, one thing I forgot to mention above is that I have this rought notion that at least in some episodes there were scenes where KITT would interact by himself (Michael not involved) with the same bypasser at least once or twice per episode - I'm wondering if this happened every episode or not (scenes referring animals are mentioned in the article, and they could be considered a variation on this), since it might be something worth mentioning as a recurring kind of scene in the series, often with the episode's "bypasser" assuming he's talking to someone inside the car; from memory I recall KITT commenting on a woman's incorrect jogging habits, some monk inside the car impressed with the fearutes mentioned in the dashboard buttons, and at least one episode or 2 involving a blind character. Another detail I just remembered, and I hope I'm not getting the series confused, is that often KITT would be transported in a FLAG truck, and would get on the road by sliding out of the back of the truck while the bigger vehicle was still in motion - can anyone confirm either of these rough memories, and add them to the article if they turn out to be correct? As for the KARR yellow lights, I guess the time since I last saw an episode with him in it and the memory of it half-buried in sand might have affected my memory on this aspect - thanks for the clarification. Loona 11:51, 10 November 2005 (UTC)
Almost every episode, the writers added some humorous (sometimes really silly) subplot to the script which usually involved KITT freaking people out by talking or driving on his own. Sometimes Micheal had the subplot like in "White-Line Warriors" he kept tricking a guy who wanted to sell him a car alarm and he said he didn't need it. The guy begs him so Michael challenges him to "break into" KITT. Of course the guy fails and gives up and is stunned when Michael walks up and just opens the door. Apparently, "Remote Keyless Entry" wasn't heard of until the 1990s. Anyway, in order to keep the episode paragraphs as small as possible I didn't mention the subplots. I was thinking of doing that, but then I'd have to back and re-watch all of first season again on DVD and the synopsis would be really long. About the Knight Rider semi-truck, it was referred to as the "Rook" unofficially, and called the "Knight Mobile Unit". KITT boarded the truck either while it was in motion or parked somewhere.Cyberia23 15:04, 10 November 2005 (UTC)

Jump the shark? I'd say they jumped the shark right after the pilot. It established Michael & KITT as "going after untouchables"; before long, he was going after jaywalkers. And the constant "Turbo Boost", just to prove they could, was a joke. Oh, well... Trekphiler 22:37, 8 December 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Another spinoff or inspired series

There was a short-lived TV series sometime during the second half of the 1980s. It featured a crew of three or four people, one had an Australian or New Zealand accent, and they hauled a hi-tech trailer of some kind.

In one episode, they have to travel back in time to 1945 in pursuit of a scientist who's also gone back in time... the scientist intends to persuade his father to stop the first atomic bomb test in New Mexico, a blast that opened a hole in the space-time continuum along the highway to the bomb test site.

While there, the team tried to persuade a US military officer that they were from the future, pointing out the technical displays.

Anyone offer a clue on what this series was called? The above episode, I thought, guest-starred Lloyd Bochner, but his entry at imdb.com doesn't list it.

GBC 05:10, 2 January 2006 (UTC)

You're thinking of the The Highwayman. It was very cool, but unfortunately very canceled. Cyberia23 16:29, 2 January 2006 (UTC)

[edit] KITT Cartoon

How would a cartoon starring KITT sound? It might have been a good idea in the 80's. 206.211.69.253 12:22, 1 February 2006 (UTC)

It was already done. It was called Turbo Teen and it was a bad idea even back then. Cyberia23 23:48, 1 February 2006 (UTC)

What I meant was a cartoon starring KITT (& William Daniels), like Kidd Video or The Smurfs. 71.111.215.224 23:44, 13 April 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Night Rider

I forgot the "K" and I found out that Night Rider is a redirect to Ku Klux Klan. It puts a new spin on things to say the least. archola 00:04, 3 February 2006 (UTC)

Why would it go to the Klan page? There isn't even a mention of the term there. It should be a disambiguation at least, I'd assume. There are other things in this world that use the name "Night Rider". Like a model of Harley Motor Cycle for example, and I even seen a snow board with the name. Cyberia23 07:22, 3 February 2006 (UTC)
Not to mention it's another name for the original Ghost Rider. archola 23:12, 10 February 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Trivia

Knight Rider was also parodied in an episode of Futurama where his windshield wipers were used in the creation of Project Satan, the most evil vehicle ever created. When Fry says that "Knight Rider wasn't evil" he is told that "his windshield wipers were."

Should the full quote be added here (after ..."wipers were." it is "It never came up much in the show"--195.171.131.151 12:10, 2 March 2006 (UTC)Lucas


"Knight Boat" from the simpsons should be mentioned in the arcticle i think. it shows its impact on popular culture. and its funny. Raemie 01:37, 25 March 2006 (UTC)

Read. It already is. Cyberia23 20:43, 25 March 2006 (UTC)
Oh sorry, i did skim but i must have missed it. Raemie 21:29, 27 March 2006 (UTC)

[edit] DVDs

I have watched the DVDs of ALL episodes of all 4 seasons. For Region 1 DVDs, subtitles are available in French and Spanish in Seasons 1 and 2, but no more French in Season 3 and no more Spanish in Season 4, either.

I have noticed that the episode teaser trailers of Knight Song and The Scent of Roses, both from Season 4, are missing. Has anyone else noticed this?--Jusjih 16:29, 27 May 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Name

Is the name a play on Knight-Ridder? --70.31.220.188 21:43, 10 June 2006 (UTC)

It's a play of name "Night Rider" which has several sources. The company name Knight Ridder was formed by the merging of Knight Newspapers and Ridder Publications. Cyberia23 23:27, 11 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] List of Recurring Characters

It would be helpful if someone could convert the list into some sort of easy-to-read table, like the main cast list was.

[edit] Page Length Issue

Just noticed the page got flagged (no pun intended) for length being too long. Could we put the K.I.T.T. information on its own page to help the length issue?

[edit] Duplicated information

A lot of the information under the "KITT" section occurs again in the trivia section.

For example, the bits about KITT vs. the General Lee, or fans overwhelming GM with requests for the custom car.

The duplication should be eliminated somehow. Kirkman 06:11, 4 November 2006 (UTC)

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