On this day in movie history - The Blue Knight (movie & novel):

The Blue Knight

directed by Robert Butler,

written by E. Jack Newman,

based on the novel by Joseph Wambaugh,

a four-part made-for-TV film,

was originally broadcast on NBC from November 11 – 14, 1973.
Music by Nelson Riddle.

Cast:

William Holden, Lee Remick, Joe Santos, Sam Elliott, Eileen Brennan, Vic Tayback, Anne Archer, Lucille Benson, Ja'net DuBois, Mario Roccuzzo, Jamie Farr, David Moody, Gloria LeRoy, Richard Collier, Kenneth Wolger, George DiCenzo, Raymond Guth, Emile Meyer, Ernest Esparza III, John Quade, Janit Baldwin, Arell Blanton, Helen Boll, Simmy Bow, Don Calfa, Lou Cutell, Alan Fudge, John Furlong, Stan Haze, Howard Hesseman, Randy Kirby, Jon Korkes, Arthur Malet, Karmin Murcelo, Rudy Ramos, Paul Reid Roman, Lee Weaver, Jason Wingreen, Richard 'Dub' Wright, Harry Arnie, Katharine Bard, James Beach, Nanci Beck, Norland Benson, Roxanne Bonilla, Claire Brennen, Thomas Paul Carey, Ric Carrott, Stanley Bennett Clay, Patrick Dennis-Leigh, Larry Duran, Joseph X. Flaherty, Ben Frommer, Eddra Gale, Janie Greenspun, Raven Grey Eagle, Margie Haber, Monika Henreid, Janear Hines, Jan-Minika Hughes, J.S. Johnson, Richard E. Kalk, Wayne King Sr., Dudley Knight, Maryann Krakow, Bob Lauher, Norma Lee, David Lipp, Jay W. MacIntosh, E. Jack Neuman, Douglas T. O'Dell, Tim O'Denning, Danny 'Big Black' Rey, Richard Sarradet, Jeffrey Sayre, Christopher Seitz, Ken Smedberg, Nick St. Nicholas, Michael Stearns, Jack Tesler, Russell Thorson, Tom Tolbert, Dino Washington, John Sylvester White, Clint Young.

Recommended reading:

The Blue Knight

By Joseph Wambaugh.

First published 1972.

Published by Grand Central Publishing.

Mass Market Paperback.

ISBN-10: 0446509191

ISBN-13: 978-0446509190

Description:

Ex-cop turned #1 New York Times bestselling writer Joseph Wambaugh forged a new kind of literature with his great early police procedurals. Gritty, luminous, and ultimately stunning, this novel is Wambaugh at his best – a tale of a street cop on the hardest beat of his life.

The Blue Knight.

Twenty and two. Those are the numbers turning in the mind of William "Bumper" Morgan: twenty years on the job, two days before he "pulls the pin" and walks away from it forever. But on the gritty streets of L.A., people look at Bumper like some kind of knight in armor – they've plied him with come-ons, hot tips, and the hard respect a man can't earn anywhere else. Now, with a new job and a good woman waiting for him, a kinky thief terrorizing L.A.'s choice hotels, and a tragedy looming, Bumper Morgan is about to face the only thing that can scare him: the demons that he's been hiding behind his bright and shiny badge...

“Marvelous … realistic, frightening, touching in its humanity. – Detroit Free Press.

“An extraordinary piece of craftsmanship.” – Los Angeles Times.

On this day in movie history - Travis McGee (1983 movie & novel):

Travis McGee

directed by Andrew V. McLaglen,

written by Stirling Silliphant,

based on the novel The Empty Copper Sea by John D. MacDonald,

was released in the United States on May 18, 1983.
Music by Jerrold Immel.

Cast:

Sam Elliott, Gene Evans, Barry Corbin, Richard Farnsworth, Geoffrey Lewis, Amy Madigan, Vera Miles, Katharine Ross, Marshall R. Teague, Walter Olkewicz, Jack Murdock, Greta Blackburn, Owen Orr, Pilar Del Rey.

Recommended reading:

The Empty Copper Sea

By John D. MacDonald.

Introduction by Lee Child.

Filmed as Travis McGee (1983), directed by Andrew V. McLaglen.

# 17 in the Travis McGee series.

Published by Random House Trade Paperbacks.

First published 1978.

Paperback.

ISBN-10: 0812984080

ISBN-13: 978-0812984088

Description:

“John D. MacDonald is a shining example for all us in the field. Talk about the best.” – Mary Higgins Clark.

From a beloved master of crime fiction, The Empty Copper Sea is one of many classic novels featuring Travis McGee, the hard-boiled detective who lives on a houseboat.

Asking for help is something a proud man like Van Harder would never do. So when he shows up at the Busted Flush, Travis McGee knows that he must be the man’s last resort. What Harder wants salvaged is his reputation. After a long career as a seaman, he was piloting a boat the night his employer fell overboard. Harder is certain he’s been set up, but to help him, McGee must prove that a dead man is actually alive.

The fateful ride started with Harder at the helm of Hubbard Lawless’s luxury cruiser. It ends with him coming to, fuzzy and disoriented, and Hub lost to the water. Now everyone is saying that Harder got drunk, passed out, and is negligent in his boss’s death. The thing is, Van’s not a drinker . . . at least, not anymore.

Who would want to frame the good captain, and to what end? Dead or alive, Lawless is worth a lot of money. People are always eager to get a piece of that action – including some, as McGee soon finds, who are willing to take a piece out of anyone who gets in their way.

Features a new Introduction by Lee Child.

On this day in movie history - The Blue Lightning (1986):

The Blue Lightning

directed by Lee Philips,

written by William Kelley,

was released in the United States on May 7, 1986.
Music by Frank Strangio.

Cast:

Sam Elliott, Rebecca Gilling, John Meillon, Robert Coleby, Max Phipps, Robert Culp, Ralph Cotterill, Jack Davis, Ray Meagher, Michael Carman, Norman Erskine, Gary Waddell, Jeff Truman, Garry Who, Bob Barrett, Chris Pang, Peter Ford, Ernie Dingo, Leo Martin, Kenneth Radley, Dennis Hunt, Glenn Boswell, Bob Hicks, Zev Eleftheriou, Roy Edmunds.