Remington Steele is an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
televisionTelevision is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
series, co-created by
Robert ButlerRobert Butler is an American film director. He helped launch actor Kurt Russell's career through four Walt Disney movies , but his strongest and most fondly remembered contributions have been to the small screen.-Biography:Butler began his career as a stage manager and an assistant,...
and Michael Gleason. The series, starring
Stephanie ZimbalistStephanie Zimbalist is an American actress best known for her role as Laura Holt on the NBC detective series Remington Steele.-Background:...
and
Pierce BrosnanPierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...
, was produced by
MTM EnterprisesMTM Enterprises was an American independent production company established in 1969 by Mary Tyler Moore and her then-husband Grant Tinker to produce The Mary Tyler Moore Show for CBS...
and first broadcast on the
NBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
network from
1982The year 1982 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1982.For the American TV schedule, see: 1982-83 American network television schedule.-Events:...
to
1987The year 1987 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1987.For American TV schedule, see: 1987–88 United States network television schedule.-Events:-Debuts:...
. The series blended the genres of romantic comedy, drama, and detective procedural. Remington Steele is best known for launching the career of Pierce Brosnan and for serving as a forerunner of the similar series
MoonlightingMoonlighting is an American television series that aired on ABC from March 3, 1985, to May 14, 1989. The network aired a total of 66 episodes...
, but was also an influential part of television history in its own right.
Remington Steeles premise is that Laura Holt, a licensed private detective played by Stephanie Zimbalist, opened a detective agency under her own name but found that potential clients refused to hire a woman, however qualified. To solve the problem, Laura invents a fictitious male superior whom she names Remington Steele. Through a series of events that unfold in the first episode, "License to Steele", Pierce Brosnan's character, a former thief and con man whose real name (or whether he even has one) is never revealed, assumes the identity of Remington Steele. Behind the scenes, Laura remains firmly in charge.
Significance and Influence
Any history of American television in the 1980s will conclude that TV drama underwent a significant evolution in both content and styles of storytelling. Remington Steele is best known for launching the career of
Pierce BrosnanPierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...
and for serving as a forerunner of the similar, but edgier, series
MoonlightingMoonlighting is an American television series that aired on ABC from March 3, 1985, to May 14, 1989. The network aired a total of 66 episodes...
, but was also an influential part of television history in its own right. Recent evaluations, in the wake of the series' full release on DVD, conclude that Steele was solidly crafted, well-acted and groundbreaking in its own way. Other recent evaluations have also noted that series has aged better than some other series of its time, perhaps due to the timelessness of its central theme.
Innovations
Steele was a unique hybrid of romantic comedy, drama, and detective procedural that paid homage to Hollywood movies of the 1930s and 1940s, drawing particularly from
screwball comedyScrewball Comedy is an album by the Japanese band Soul Flower Union. The album found the band going into a simpler, harder-rocking direction, after several heavily world-music influenced albums.-Track listing:...
in the romantic storyline, while often referencing
film noirFilm noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
in the mystery storylines. It subverted 1970s detective show conventions by telling its stories from the point of view of an independent, professional woman. At a time when hour-long series were serious and half-hour series were humorous, Steele incorporated multiple styles of comedy into the standard detective format. It pioneered the slowly evolving "will they or won't they" relationship arc that is now common to television drama of all genres. Furthermore Steele’s unusual premise allowed it to explore themes of personal identity and role-playing in strikingly complex ways. As critic Jaime Weinman concludes, "Remington Steele is a great hybrid of detective story and romance because it treats romance as similar to detective work: it's about finding out what the other person is hiding."
Laura Holt as Role Model
Many female fans see Laura Holt as a hero and a role model. In an interview recorded in 2005 for a DVD special feature, Remington Steele co-creator Michael Gleason and star Stephanie Zimbalist discuss the large number of women who have approached them over the years to express their appreciation for the character of Laura Holt. Speaking of the women she meets, Zimbalist said "They are extraordinary women…. They are interesting. They do interesting things. They are smart. They're independent. They're sort of, what my character was – and I meet them all the time." Also in 2005, Robin Rauzi published an article in the Los Angeles Times saying that Laura Holt was her hero. In a subsequent interview Rauzi elaborated, saying that Laura "was one of the only examples of an unmarried modern career woman on TV that I could identify with at that time" and that Laura "didn’t seem that far away from who I was and who I could be." Rauzi concludes, "I’ve decided to stop being embarrassed to say Remington Steele changed my life. It did and for the better."
Influence of Writing Staff
Glenn Gordon CaronGlenn Gordon Caron is an American television writer, director and producer. He lives in Los Angeles, CA.-Bio:...
, creator of
MoonlightingMoonlighting is an American television series that aired on ABC from March 3, 1985, to May 14, 1989. The network aired a total of 66 episodes...
, was a writer and producer of Remington Steele during its first ten episodes and left the series to pursue other opportunities. In addition to Caron, many other successful television writers worked on Steele early in their career, later becoming producers and showrunners on other series, including
Lee David ZlotoffLee David Zlotoff is a producer, director and screenwriter best known as the creator of the TV series MacGyver. He started as a screenwriter writing for Hill Street Blues in 1981. He then became a producer of Remington Steele in 1982....
(MacGyver), Jeff Melvoin (Northern Exposure, Alias),
Brad KernBrad Kern is a distinguished television producer and writer best known recently for his work as head writer and executive producer on the hit supernatural drama Charmed, which he was showrunner on for all eight seasons...
(Charmed, Lois & Clark), John Wirth (Picket Fences, Nash Bridges) and the team of Kerry Lenhart and John J. Sakmar. In a DVD special feature included on the Season 3 compilation, several of these Remington Steele writers credit Michael Gleason as a mentor, with Kerry Lenhart saying that Gleason taught him that television "writing could be a worthwhile and noble endeavor." In the same feature, Kern states that Gleason challenged them to do something that had not been done before and Melvoin says that Gleason "remains the biggest influence in my professional life." Melvoin and Wirth have edited a guide to writing for prime time episodic television for the Writer's Guild of America - west in an effort to continue Gleason's tradition of mentoring young writers.
Development
Remington Steele’s initial premise was conceived in 1969 by long-time television director
Robert ButlerRobert Butler is an American film director. He helped launch actor Kurt Russell's career through four Walt Disney movies , but his strongest and most fondly remembered contributions have been to the small screen.-Biography:Butler began his career as a stage manager and an assistant,...
as a series featuring a solo female private investigator. Butler pitched the idea to
Grant TinkerGrant Almerin Tinker is the former chairman and CEO of NBC from 1981 to 1986, co-founder of MTM Enterprises, and television producer. Tinker is the former husband of television actress Mary Tyler Moore...
before he was head of MTM, but Tinker felt the series was ahead of its time. In January of 1980, following the success of several sitcoms featuring working women, including the groundbreaking Mary Tyler Moore Show, Butler and Tinker, now head of MTM, revived the concept. MTM Vice President of Programming Stu Erwin felt Butler's concept was only "half a show" and suggested that Butler work with veteran writer Michael Gleason to expand the premise. Imagining Holt’s fictional boss, Gleason proposed to Butler, “Wouldn’t it be great if he showed up and made her crazy?” In 1981, Gleason, Butler, Erwin and Tinker pitched the series to NBC, but were initially rejected by executives who didn't "get" the premise. Shortly thereafter, Tinker left MTM to become chairman of NBC, then the number three network, and subsequently a pilot was ordered.
Stephanie Zimbalist, an established actress with roles in several television movies, was approached for the role of Laura Holt. She first turned the series down, not wishing to be tied down to one show, but had a late night change of heart. Pierce Brosnan auditioned for the role of Remington Steele, but was initially refused by NBC executives who were concerned that Brosnan was a relative unknown in America. MTM's Stu Erwin stood firm in a face to face meeting with NBC executive
Brandon TartikoffBrandon Tartikoff was a television executive who was credited with turning around NBC's low prime time reputation with such hit series as Hill Street Blues, L.A. Law, ALF, Family Ties, The Cosby Show, Cheers, Seinfeld, Miami Vice, The Golden Girls, Knight Rider, The A-Team, St...
and Tartikoff relented.
Originally, NBC asked for pilot that imagined the series six months into its run, with the characters already working together in the detective agency. This pilot was produced in February and March 1982, and was eventually aired with revisions as "Tempered Steele". NBC had some concerns about audience confusion over this episode, but ultimately agreed to schedule the series for the 1982-83 season. NBC also asked for a more traditional premise pilot which told the story of how Laura Holt met the man who would become Remington Steele. This second pilot, "License to Steele", became the first episode aired in the series.
Season 1
The first season included two recurring characters, Murphy Michaels, a detective and rival for Laura's affections played by
James ReadJames Christopher Read is an American actor, best known for his role of George Hazard in the North and South television miniseries.-Early life:...
and Bernice Foxe, the secretary-receptionist played by Janet DeMay. Both Murphy and Bernice knew that Remington Steele was a fraud. Episodes in the first season set in motion the slow evolution of Laura and Steele's romantic relationship while revealing elements of the characters' backstory. The first season established the pattern where each episode would make direct reference to an old movie (for example, The Maltese Falcon and The Thomas Crowne Affair). Key episodes include "Thou Shalt Not Steele", which introduced Laura's mother and Felicia, a woman from Steele's past; "Sting of Steele", which introduced Daniel Chalmers (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) as Steele's former mentor; and "Vintage Steele", a fan favorite which focused on Laura's past. Additionally, writer Joel Steiger won an
Edgar AwardThe Edgar Allan Poe Awards , named after Edgar Allan Poe, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America...
from the
Mystery Writers of AmericaMystery Writers of America is an organization for mystery writers, based in New York.The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday....
for his script for the first-season episode "In The Steele of the Night." Remington Steele also received strong critical reviews in the first season, noting its intelligence and stylish sophistication.
Season 2
At the end of season one James Read made Michael Gleason aware that he was unhappy with the direction of his character. Gleason released him from the series and also let Janet DeMay go, thinking that the detective/investigator and secretary characters could be combined into one character. Gleason originally wrote the replacement character, Mildred Krebs, as an attractive 35 year-old woman who would be a rival for Steele's affections.
Doris RobertsDoris Roberts is an American character actress of film, stage and television. She has received five Emmy Awards. She began her career in 1952, and may be best-known as Marie Barone on Everybody Loves Raymond from 1996–2005....
, an established character actress who had recently won an Emmy for a guest role on St. Elsewhere, asked to read for the part. Although Roberts was not the right age for the character Gleason originally conceived, she won him over with her audition. Gleason then changed the character of Mildred Krebs to reflect the casting.
NBC moved the series to Tuesday nights at 9pm following The A-Team, increasing its budget and prominence on the network schedule. The second season continued the slow evolution of the relationship between Laura and Steele, as he became a more competent detective. Key episodes include the two-hour season premiere, "Steele Away With Me", filmed on location in Mexico; "Red Holt Steele", a fan favorite dramatic episode in which Laura's house is destroyed in an explosion; and "Love Among the Steele", another fan favorite episode in which the agency acquires a 1936 Auburn Speedster, which was used symbolically in several subsequent episodes.
Season 3
Remington Steele achieved its greatest ratings success in the third season, finishing the year in the top 25. Key third season episodes included the premiere, "Steele At It", shot on location in Cannes; "Steele Your Heart Away", shot on location in Ireland; and "Maltese Steele", shot on location in Malta. The season also included "Steele Trying", set in San Francisco and featuring the songs of
Tony BennettTony Bennett is an American singer of popular music, standards, show tunes, and jazz....
, and "Diced Steele", filmed on location in Las Vegas. "Puzzled Steele" earned Doris Roberts an Emmy nomination for best supporting actress. The third season also included an episode, "Steele in the Chips", co-written by Stephanie Zimbalist and writing partner Robin Bernheim. The final episode of the season ended with a cliffhanger as Laura and Steele seemed to be going their separate ways. Michael Gleason explained to the Los Angeles Times, "We want to pull the relationship apart and bring it back together again with a little bit different attitude."
Season 4
Season four was the final full season of the series. In the two-part season opener, "Steele Searching", filmed on location in London, Mildred Krebs learned of Steele's secret, changing the dynamics of the trio. Other key episodes, including "Forged Steele", "Steele in the Spotlight" and "Sensitive Steele", continued the slow evolution of the romantic relationship between the main characters. Facing a possible cancellation by NBC (whose fortunes had now changed to become the number one network) Gleason contrived a phony marriage between the characters in the final episode of season four, "Bonds of Steele", as an attempt to garner additional interest and provoke NBC to pick up the series for a fifth season.
Proposals for Season 5
Gleason originally wanted the characters to have a real marriage at the end of season four and had plans for how to change the series in season five to accommodate the change, but both Brosnan and Zimbalist rejected the idea. Following that decision, Gleason pitched another concept for season five to NBC in May 1986, introducing a character named "Eddie" as a rival for Laura's affections.
Brief cancellation
The series was cancelled at the end of the 1985–86 television season, although it still had a 28% share of the audience in its time slot. According to Michael Gleason, Brandon Tartikoff's decision to give an early pick-up to the
Stephen J. CannellStephen Joseph Cannell was an American television producer, writer, novelist and occasional actor, and the founder of Stephen J. Cannell Productions.-Early life:...
series Hunter left no room on the NBC schedule for Remington Steele. Two months after the cancellation, NBC executive
Warren LittlefieldWarren W. Littlefield is an American former television executive.A protégé of Brandon Tartikoff, Littlefield developed Cheers, The Cosby Show, and The Golden Girls as senior and executive vice president of NBC Entertainment under Tartikoff...
reversed the decision, responding to an outpouring of support from fans and a sharp upswing in the show's ratings during the summer of 1986.
The cancellation and reversal impacted film roles for both Brosnan and Zimbalist.
Albert R. "Cubby" BroccoliAlbert Romolo Broccoli, CBE , nicknamed "Cubby", was an American film producer, who made more than 40 motion pictures throughout his career, most of them in the United Kingdom, and often filmed at Pinewood Studios. Co-founder of Danjaq, LLC and EON Productions, Broccoli is most notable as the...
offered Brosnan the part of
James BondJames Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
for the film
The Living DaylightsThe Living Daylights is the fifteenth entry in the James Bond series and the first to star Timothy Dalton as the fictional MI6 agent 007. The film's title is taken from Ian Fleming's short story, "The Living Daylights"...
. Following NBC's reversal, Broccoli stated he did not want Bond to be identified with a current TV series, and instead gave the role to
Timothy DaltonTimothy Peter Dalton ) is a Welsh actor of film and television. He is known for portraying James Bond in The Living Daylights and Licence to Kill , as well as Rhett Butler in the television miniseries Scarlett , an original sequel to Gone with the Wind...
. Brosnan would finally become 007 in 1995, making his debut in the film
GoldenEyeGoldenEye is the seventeenth spy film in the James Bond series, and the first to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The film was directed by Martin Campbell and is the first film in the series not to take story elements from the works of novelist Ian Fleming...
. Zimbalist accepted the role of Officer Anne Lewis in the science-fiction movie
RoboCopRoboCop is a 1987 American science fiction-action film directed by Paul Verhoeven. Set in a crime-ridden Detroit, Michigan in the near future, RoboCop centers on a police officer who is brutally murdered and subsequently re-created as a super-human cyborg known as "RoboCop"...
and was forced to pull out of that production.
Final season
NBC reversed the cancellation, but did not slot a full twenty-two episode season into their schedule. The final abbreviated season consisted of six hours of made-for-TV films broadcast in early 1987, including installments filmed on location in Mexico, London, and Ireland.
Jack ScaliaJack Scalia is an American actor. He has had many roles in television series , television movies, and feature films.-Early life:...
joined the cast as a rival for Laura's affections. The circumstances surrounding Steele's birth as well as the identity of Steele's father are revealed in the final episode. The final scene of the series implied that Steele and Laura were about to consummate their relationship.
Rumors of Discord
Although part of the show's appeal was the sexual tension between the main characters, in real life the production was dogged for years by rumors that its two leads did not get along. Brosnan and Zimbalist have admitted some level of personal conflict in press interviews during and since, attributing some of it to the stress of long working hours, while also maintaining that it did not impact their ability to work together. Whatever discord there may have been at the time of production, Brosnan and Zimbalist speak fondly of one another in more recent interviews, and are occasionally in touch. In an interview included on the DVD release of Season 1, Brosnan says they did get along and trusted one another professionally. Brosnan also praises Zimbalist's acting on his official web site, saying that he would work with her again on the right project. Zimbalist returned the compliment in a 2011 interview with the New Jersey Star-Ledger, saying "Pierce Brosnan is a very sweet man."
Film Project
With the release of the series on DVD in 2005, Pierce Brosnan expressed interest in developing a Remington Steele feature film through his production company, Irish Dream Time, but now believes it is unlikely to be produced.
Cast
- Stephanie Zimbalist
Stephanie Zimbalist is an American actress best known for her role as Laura Holt on the NBC detective series Remington Steele.-Background:...
as Laura Holt
- Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...
as Remington Steele
- Doris Roberts
Doris Roberts is an American character actress of film, stage and television. She has received five Emmy Awards. She began her career in 1952, and may be best-known as Marie Barone on Everybody Loves Raymond from 1996–2005....
as Mildred Krebs (from third season, recurring second season)
- Janet DeMay as Bernice Foxe (first season)
- James Read
James Christopher Read is an American actor, best known for his role of George Hazard in the North and South television miniseries.-Early life:...
as Murphy Michaels (first season)
- Jack Scalia
Jack Scalia is an American actor. He has had many roles in television series , television movies, and feature films.-Early life:...
as Tony Roselli (fifth season)
Other recurring actors included:
- Cassandra Harris
Cassandra Harris was an Australian actress.Born Sandra Colleen Waites in Sydney, Australia, Cassandra Harris was a student at the National Institute of Dramatic Art. She enrolled in 1961, aged 12, under the name Sandra Gleeson. She went on to perform in the successful Sydney stage production of...
(first wife of Pierce Brosnan) as Felicia, one of Steele's old flames, and Anna, a mysterious woman from Steele's past.
- Efrem Zimbalist Jr. (father of Stephanie Zimbalist) as Daniel Chalmers, a charming con man who was Steele's mentor and surrogate father (revealed to be his biological father in the end) and whose real name was unknown. He died in the last episode, "Steeled With A Kiss, Part Two."
- Beverly Garland
Beverly Garland was an American film and television actress, businesswoman, and hotel owner. Garland gained prominence for her role as Fred MacMurray's second wife, "Barbara Harper Douglas", in the 1960s sitcom My Three Sons...
as Abigail Holt, Laura's mother.
- Gary Frank
Gary Frank is an American actor who won an Emmy Award for his performances on the TV seriesFamily...
as Detective James Jarvis, a somewhat incompetent police detective who more often than not falsely accused the principal characters and their clients of murder.
- Michael Constantine
Michael Constantine is a Greek American actor.He is probably now best known for his portrayal of Gus Portokalos, the Windex bottle-toting Greek father of Toula Portokalos , in the 2002 surprise hit film My Big Fat Greek Wedding.Prior to that, he was well-known for his extensive TV work, especially...
as George Edward Mulch, a business man with far-fetched ideas only looking for fame and fortune.
- James Tolkan
James S. Tolkan is an American actor, often cast as a strict, overbearing, bald-headed authority figure.-Personal life:He was born in Calumet, Michigan, the son of Ralph M. Tolkan, a cattle dealer, and attended the University of Iowa, Coe College, the Actors Studio and Eastern Arizona College...
as Norman Keyes, an insurance investigator bent on proving Steele to be a fraud. He died in the fifth season.
Guest stars included:
- Peter Scolari
Peter Scolari is an American television, film and stage actor best known for his roles in the television shows Newhart, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show, and Bosom Buddies.-Career:...
, "Steele Waters Run Deep", season 1
- Paul Reiser
Paul Reiser is an American stand-up comedian, actor, television personality, author, screenwriter and musician. He is most widely known for his role on the long-running television sitcom Mad About You.-Early life:...
, "A Good Night's Steele", season 1
- Sharon Stone
Sharon Vonne Stone is an American actress, film producer, and former fashion model. She achieved international recognition for her role in the erotic thriller Basic Instinct...
, "Steele Crazy After All These Years", season 1
- Annie Potts
Anne Hampton "Annie" Potts is an American film and television actress. She is known for her roles in the 1980s popular films such as Ghostbusters , Pretty in Pink , Jumpin' Jack Flash , Who's Harry Crumb? and Ghostbusters II . Potts is also known as a voice-actress...
, "Steele Crazy After All These Years", season 1
- Delta Burke
Delta Ramona Leah Burke is an American television and film actress. Her television work includes a leading role as Suzanne Sugarbaker in the CBS sitcom Designing Women...
, "Altared Steele", season 2
- Jane Kaczmarek
Jane Frances Kaczmarek is an American actress. She is best known for playing the character of Lois on the television series Malcolm in the Middle. Kaczmarek is a three-time Golden Globe and seven-time Emmy Award nominee...
, "Altared Steele", season 2
- Jeffrey Jones
Jeffrey Duncan Jones is an American actor. He has appeared in many films and television series, but may be best known for his roles as Emperor Joseph II in Miloš Forman’s Amadeus, Charles Deetz in Beetlejuice, and Dean of Students Edward R...
, "A Steele at Any Price", season 2
- A Martinez
Adolfo Larrue Martinez, III , better known as A Martinez, is an American actor and singer with roles in the daytime soap opera Santa Barbara and the primetime dramas L.A. Law and Profiler.-Early life:...
, "High Flying Steele", season 2
- Tom Baker
Thomas Stewart "Tom" Baker is a British actor. He is best known for playing the fourth incarnation of the Doctor in the science fiction television series Doctor Who, a role he played from 1974 to 1981.-Early life:...
, "Hounded Steele", season 2
- Whitey Ford
Edward Charles "Whitey" Ford is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who spent his entire 18-year career with the New York Yankees. He was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974.-Early life and career:...
and Mickey MantleMickey Charles Mantle was an American professional baseball player. Mantle is regarded by many to be the greatest switch hitter of all time, and one of the greatest players in baseball history. Mantle was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974.Mantle was noted for his hitting...
, "Second Base Steele", season 3
- Dorothy Lamour
Dorothy Lamour was an American film actress. She is best remembered for appearing in the Road to... movies, a series of successful comedies starring Bing Crosby and Bob Hope .-Early life:Lamour was born Mary Leta Dorothy Slaton in New Orleans, Louisiana, the daughter of Carmen Louise Dorothy...
, Virginia MayoVirginia Mayo was an American film actress.After a short career in vaudeville, Mayo progressed to films and during the 1940s established herself as a supporting player in such films as The Best Years of Our Lives and White Heat .Mayo remained an A-list actress into the mid-'50s, but then went...
, and Lloyd NolanLloyd Benedict Nolan was an American film and television actor.-Biography:Nolan was born in San Francisco, California, the son of Margaret and James Nolan, who was a shoe manufacturer...
, "Cast of Steele", season 3
- John Larroquette
John Edgar Bernard Larroquette, Jr. is an American film, television and Broadway actor. His roles include Dan Fielding on the series Night Court, Mike McBride in the Hallmark Channel series McBride, John Hemingway on The John Larroquette Show, and Carl Sack in Boston Legal.-Personal...
, "Breath of Steele", season 3
- Geena Davis
Virginia Elizabeth "Geena" Davis is an American actress, film producer, writer, former fashion model, and a women's Olympics archery team semi-finalist...
, "Steele in the Chips", season 3
- Jean Smart
Jean E. Smart is an American film, television, and stage actress. She is known for her comedic roles, one of the best known being her role as Charlene Frazier Stillfield on the CBS sitcom Designing Women. She later gained critical acclaim for dramatic work, with her portrayal of Martha Logan on 24...
, "Steele in the Chips", season 3
- Louie Anderson
Louie Perry Anderson is an American stand-up comedian. Anderson created the cartoon series Life with Louie, has written three books, and was the initial host of the second revival of the game show Family Feud, from 1999 to 2002....
, "Steele Spawning", season 4
- Rose Marie
Rose Marie is an American actress. As a child performer she had a successful singing career as Baby Rose Marie....
, "Steele in the Spotlight", season 4
DVD releases
20th Century Fox20th Century Fox Home Entertainment is the home video distribution arm of the 20th Century Fox film studio. It was established in 1976 as Magnetic Video Corporation, and later as 20th Century Fox Video, CBS/Fox Video and FoxVideo, Inc....
has released all five seasons of Remington Steele on DVD in Region 1. The Season 1 DVD inadvertently echoed an ongoing joke in the series in that Stephanie Zimbalist, who had top star billing when the show was on air, was initially omitted from all promotional material connected with its release, as well as the DVD box itself, as Fox Video chose to promote Pierce Brosnan as the sole star. Subsequently, a sticker saying "Also starring Stephanie Zimbalist" was added to the packaging as an afterthought. This omission was corrected with the release of the second season which gave Zimbalist star billing with her photograph appearing on the box. Additionally, Zimbalist is featured on the behind-the-scenes featurettes contained therein.
Season 1 has also been released in Region 2 & 4, whereas the rest of the seasons have yet to be released in those regions.
| DVD name |
Ep # |
Release Date |
| Season One |
22 |
July 26, 2005 |
| Season Two |
21 |
November 8, 2005 |
| Season Three |
22 |
April 18, 2006 |
| Seasons Four and Five |
27 |
August 15, 2006 |
Production notes
- Every episode title has the word "Steele" in it.
- At the end of every episode, the MTM kitten "Mimsie" has an animated deerstalker
A deerstalker is a type of hat that is typically worn in rural areas, often for hunting, especially deer stalking. Because of the hat's popular association with Sherlock Holmes, it is also a stereotypical hat of a detective.-Construction:...
's cap on its head and a meerschaumMeerschaum , also sepiolite, is a soft white mineral sometimes found floating on the Black Sea, and rather suggestive of sea-foam, whence the German origin of the name, as well as the French name for the same substance, écume de mer.-Overview:...
pipe in its mouth, a la Sherlock HolmesSherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
. The pipe falls from the kitten's mouth and bounces twice on the bottom of the screen as it meows.
Popular Culture References
- A 2011 episode of the television detective show Castle
Castle is an American comedy-drama television series, which premiered on ABC on March 9, 2009. The series is produced by Beacon Pictures and ABC Studios. On January 10, 2011, Castle was renewed for a fourth season...
, "Eye of the Beholder", made multiple references to Remington Steele, including an appearance by James ReadJames Christopher Read is an American actor, best known for his role of George Hazard in the North and South television miniseries.-Early life:...
. A review stated that the episode "felt like an homage" to Remington Steele.
External links