| Baywatch | |
|---|---|
Baywatch title logo |
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| Also known as | Baywatch (1989–1999) Baywatch Hawaii (1999–2001) |
| Genre | Action drama |
| Created by | Michael Berk Douglas Schwartz Gregory J. Bonann |
| Starring | See cast section |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 11 |
| No. of episodes | 242 (List of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Michael Berk Douglas Schwartz Gregory J. Bonann David Hasselhoff |
| Location(s) | Santa Monica, California[1] (1989–2000) Hawaii (2000–2001) |
| Running time | 45–48 minutes |
| Production company(s) | GTG Entertainment (1989–1990) Pearson All-American Television (1997–2001) The Baywatch Company (1991–2001) Tower 12 Productions (1991–2001) Tower 18 Production Company (1996–2001) |
| Distributor | LBS Communications (1991–1992) All-American Television (1992–1997) Pearson All-American Television (1997–2001) |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | NBC (1989–1990)[2] first-run syndication (1991–2001) |
| Picture format | 4:3 |
| Audio format | Mono Stereo |
| Original run | NBC September 22, 1989 – April 6, 1990 Syndication September 23, 1991 – May 14, 2001 |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | Baywatch Nights |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Baywatch is an American action drama series about the Los Angeles County Lifeguards who patrol the beaches of Los Angeles County, California, starring David Hasselhoff.[3] The show ran in its original title and format from 1989 to 1999, sans the 1990-1991 season, of which it was not in production. From 1999–2001, with a setting change and large cast overhaul, it was known as Baywatch Hawaii. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, Baywatch was the most watched TV show of all time, with over 1.1 billion viewers around the world each week.[4]
Baywatch premiered on NBC in 1989, but was canceled after only one season due to low ratings and also because the studio, GTG, went out of business.[3] Feeling the series still had potential, Hasselhoff along with creators and Executive Producers Michael Berk, Douglas Schwartz and Greg Bonann revived it for the first-run syndication market in 1991. Hasselhoff was given the title of Executive Producer for his work on bringing the show back. The series was hugely successful, especially internationally.[5][6] The show led to a spin-off: Baywatch Nights, and a reunion movie, Baywatch: Hawaiian Wedding.
In 1999, with production costs rising in Los Angeles, and the syndication market shrinking, the plan was to move the show to Australia and launch Baywatch Down Under. A pilot was filmed but the series was stopped when residents of Avalon put forth strong objections, including potential damage to a fragile ecosystem. Pittwater Council permanently barred all future filming.[7][8] This pilot finally aired as a two-part episode of Baywatch.
As an alternative to Australia, Hawaii offered the producers large financial incentives to move the show to the islands instead, and in Season 10, Baywatch Hawaii was launched.
Contents |
The show starred David Hasselhoff, of Knight Rider fame, as Mitch Buchannon, who was the only mainstay on the show, besides Michael Newman, for 10 of the 11 seasons. Baywatch revolved around the work of a team of lifeguards and their interpersonal relationships, with plots usually centering on dangers related to beach and other activities pertinent to the California (later Hawaii) beach lifestyle. Everything from earthquakes and shark attacks to serial killers and even nuclear bombs served as plot conflicts on the show. Saving people from drowning tended to be one of the most typical situations used in the shows. Thus a trademark of the show was slow motion shots of the lifeguards running, most notably done by Erika Eleniak, Pamela Anderson, Yasmine Bleeth, Alexandra Paul, and David Charvet along with Hasselhoff during the height of the show. Each show would feature one or two montages, often only superficially related to the plot.
| Actor | Character | Years |
|---|---|---|
| David Hasselhoff | Mitch Buchannon | 1999–2000 |
| Brooke Burns | Jessie Owens | 1999–2000 |
| Michael Bergin | J.D. Darius | 1999–2001 |
| Brandy Ledford | Dawn Masterton | 1999–2000 |
| Michael Newman | Michael Newman | 1999-2000, recurring thereafter |
| Simmone Mackinnon | Allie Reese | 1999–2000 |
| Jason Momoa | Jason Ioane | 1999–2001 |
| Stacy Kamano | Kekoa Tanaka | 1999–2001 |
| Jason Brooks | Sean Monroe | 1999–2001 |
| Brande Roderick | Leigh Dyer | 2000–2001 |
| Charlie Brumbly | Zach McEwan | 2000–2001 |
| Krista Allen | Jenna Avid | 2000–2001 |
In 2004, DreamWorks announced they had bought the rights to create a new theatrical Baywatch movie.[9] Jessica Simpson was rumored to be cast as C.J. Parker.[10] The movie is slated for release in 2012.[11]
The film version is reported to be a comedy, written and directed by Jeremy Garelick. Garelick's previous successes include the rewrite of The Hangover.[12]
Australia: Seasons 1–4 have been released in collector's edition boxsets.
Finland: Seasons 1–3 have been released by Futurefilm.
Germany: Seasons 1 to 11 have been released. These releases are presented exactly as they originally aired, albeit with German language credits (These are also available in the U.K. from amazon as imports).
Italy: Seasons 1 and 2 have been released by Koch Media, season 5 and 6 have been released by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
Netherlands: Seasons 3 have been released.
Sweden: Seasons 1–3 have been released.
UK: Seasons 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 have been released. Season 6 is scheduled for release on April 2, 2012.
USA: In June 1999 a single disc DVD was released featuring two 2-part episodes from the show's original run ("Nightmare Bay" part 1 and 2 from Season 2, and "River of No Return" part 1 & 2 from Season 3). These episodes are absent from the U.S. box sets of their respective seasons mentioned below.
France: The reunion movie Baywatch: Hawaiian Wedding was translated to French language as Alerte à Malibu: Mariage à Hawaï and have been released.
First Look Studios released the first three seasons on DVD in 2006/2007. Although the box sets are labeled "Season 1," "Season 2," et cetera, the sets actually feature episodes of the following season (i.e. the "Season 1" box set contains the episodes of the literal second season (1991–1992) of the show). The second and third sets were released on October 31, 2006. Each set features a disc with Season 1 episodes on it. These releases also do not contain any of the original music as it appeared when the episodes aired. They have been removed due to copyright agreements.[13] However, these releases have been discontinued and are now out of print.
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