KnightRiderLegacy

by Unknown

  In the pilot, there are a few scenes where there is white lettering under the knight head emblem on the steering wheel. What does it say? I wanted the little Knight logo to look like a modern kind of Roman helmet graphic. I had a hope that it might end up painted on the side of the truck or corporate headquarters, but that never happened. The lettering said: “Knight Two Thousand,” I think. Designing K.I.T.T. •

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  Did you design any of the computer props in the semi trailer? If so, which ones?

  No—I did a mobile lab and garage for a later pilot Glen did about motocrossers, but not that Knight trailer. Chances are that like a lot of fake computers, they came from a rental house called “Modern Props” in town. As a side note, I designed a set of prop computers for John Z. who ran that company. I don’t know if they were his first, but they were mine; they were for the first TV show I’d ever worked on—it was called The Darker Side of Terror and starred Adrienne Barbeau and Ray Milland, and was shot back in ‘78!

  What inspired the design of the front nose?

  Glen wanted to see a scanner (à la Cylon helmet) mounted in the nose. We both wanted the shape of the nose to be something sleek and neat-looking. I sketched several versions, including a little foam 3D version. I tried to keep the lines of the car smooth and flowing as they converged in front. I’m not a big fan of blunt front ends, but there was a lot of very nearly vertical area on the original front end. Without changing the hood or fender lines, the only way to make that bluntness more sleek is to extend the lines of the hood and fenders forward…but that makes more overhang. Although the overhang wasn’t as enormous on that generation of Firebird as it became in later versions, the idea of making it still longer bothered me!

  So I tried to keep the nosecap short, especially at its outer extremes. Front overhang is especially noticeable when it is present out at the corners, just ahead of the wheels. The extra “vee” in the nose (as seen from above, or what we call in “plan”) made a nice compromise. It gives a sleeker profile, without the awkwardness of too much visual mass just ahead of the front wheels. The length is at the center, not the corners. More important than all of that, I didn’t want the poor stunt guys to be smashing a yard of fiberglass off the nose every time they jumped the car, either!

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  Similar considerations affected the design of the lower spoiler lip. Bringing its top edge up into the remaining upright area helped to further reduce the bluff, vertical “read” of the stock front end. The highlights and reflections of the rearward and forward raked surfaces roughly halve the sense of bluntness of the front view. And I surely didn’t want to tack a chin spoiler on below the stock height—the car was prone enough to scrape the ground already. It was important that the nose contours lead smoothly back into the existing shapes so that the other body panels could remain stock. But besides that, I like to see generous outside radii where a nose’s front surfaces round back to become the body sides. The sharp corners popular on some cars’ front ends, especially the spoilers of the period, really cut into their aerodynamic efficiency. You don’t need a wind tunnel to intuitively

  “know” that a crisp edge between the front and side of a box is no good for airflow. NASA tests in the ‘70s (when people cared about fuel economy) showed that a radius of just an eighth the vehicle’s width was enough to significantly reduce drag. This helps the air to stay attached to the body and not shear off. The buffeting which results when air becomes unattached is called nonlaminar flow, and takes power to generate. That power could better be spent doing something more enjoyable—say, accelerating, going a little faster, or not spent in the first place, by a reduction in fuel use. To my eye, it makes the car look more purposeful when you feel that it slips through the air more easily.

  Lastly, the slotted openings allowed big driving lights to be mounted with the idea that the “airbrakes” (pop-up headlights) wouldn’t need to be deployed (turned on and raised). Those headlights really hurt the lines of the car terribly when you use them.

  Can you share any stories where the nose gave the staff unexpected chal- lenges on the set?

  Oh, I’m sure they must have smashed any number of them to bits. As much as I wanted to keep the overhang short, and the ground clearance Designing K.I.T.T. •

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  adequate, the nose was clearly more vulnerable than stock. One of those compromises made for the sake of style, I suppose—but sometimes I suppose there are worthwhile sacrifices made for fashion. Ask women, for example, about the comfort of some of those shoes men love to see them wear…

  Other than its first appearance in the Cylon helmets in Battlestar

  Galactica, was there anything else that inspired your design of the front scanner for K.I.T.T.?

  Glen thought it would look neat, giving the car a sort of “heartbeat”

  even when it was standing still. It’s similar to the purpose that the lights served for the Cylons, actually. It shows a kind of emotion or pulse in an otherwise inexpressive or impassive face. That was pretty brilliant, really. Jon Ward’s electronics guy had cleverly programmed many possible patterns into the circuitry. I was impressed—there were at least eight choices, neatly listed on a little piece of paper—and maybe even double that number! There were various speeds, stepping, flashing, and so on. When you look back on your finished product of the overall Knight

  Rider car, is there anything that you now wish you would have designed differently?

  I don’t have any regrets, but with so little time available, there are a thousand decisions that could have been made differently. Generally, it takes more time and money to make something more sophisticated in appearance. You see this everywhere in design. For example, if you want a hinge to be flush or recessed, it takes a lot of forethought to incorporate it into a structure. Just look at how complex a kitchen cabinet hinge which mounts inside is, compared to an exposed one.

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  If I had more time, I would have liked to try many things. But I did everything I could to make that car as good as I could, and feel so lucky to have had the chance to do it.

  If in the beginning you were given more time or more leeway, what more would you have designed for the car?

  Well, I suppose the main thing that’s changed since I did that car is that my career is now 24 years long, not four. 24 years is actually just two years less than my own age when I built the car!

  With time, of course, comes a certain measure of experience. This often gives you an advantage in making your decisions. There are things I would tackle now without too much concern, and other risks that I took back then not knowing better, which, thank God, worked out at the time. Naturally, without re-geared and much more boosted steering, the yoke is a bad idea for a road car, turning over as it does. For a TV prop it looked neat, though! There is an interesting new conversion of the steering system being produced for certain cars in Germany that I’ve read about. It eliminates multiple turns of the wheel. I’ve read it really does have an adequate level of with feedback, too. And I really think that there could be some great-looking dash shapes possible without having to worry about shading the displays. We were limited to flat-panel modules, and I would love to be able to work on a shaped surface. Of course the possibilities that today’s hard and software offer are staggering, too. Stereo litho gives the flexibility to prototype forms developed in computer modeling programs. This gives almost limitless flexibility in making the components and housings for the IP.

  It would be great to have the kind of development time a show car gets—a longer sketch program, and investigation of technical possibilities at the same time. This is pure dreaming for a TV project, of course. But some movie vehicles get pretty significant budgets these days. It would be Designing K.I.T.T. •

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  great to do some form studies for the IP and nose shapes, and some real fine-tuning of proportions.

  I
’m reluctant to talk about what I might change about the old design, because if the readers are anything like me, once their attention is called to an aspect that could be improved, their eyes will forever go to that thing like an arrow to a target! And I wouldn’t want to cast any shadows on a project that gave me a lot of great memories. Besides, if I had it to do over again, it would be in the present day, and everything is different now. Certainly styles change, and I think our ideas of what we like change a bit too. We get used to some things that seemed a little odd at first. And other styles can begin to look distinctly old hat or passé…Before they are rediscovered as a hip, new “retro” look, that is…

  Specifically, if someone gave me a new Firebird, there are a lot of things I would like to redo. It’s a shame GM isn’t going to keep making a relatively inexpensive rear wheel drive ponycar; there is a lot to like about the F-bodies. If cost were no object, from an aesthetic point of view, the most immediate need would come from the fact that it’s seriously hurting for wheelbase. (It’s shorter than a Honda Civic’s, even!) And that really accentuates the extreme overhangs front and rear. So a nose cap wouldn’t really do it. The front wheels would have to come forward, like that neat little Mustang which Ford put together a few years ago. The car handled so much better with the improved weight distribution—it moved the engine mass further aft of the front wheels. Of course, it helped the looks terrifically, too. But it would take serious surgery to reposition the front end. With more wheelbase, you could make a really pretty nose. And the interior offers some very interesting proportions to work with, even if a lot of magazines whined about the ergonomics. I think you could make a fantastic, zoomy fighter plane/alien spacecraft out of it, and have a ball driving it. A refined, elegant looking alien spacecraft,, of course, and with a big dose of that “Knight Two Thousand” style…

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  MEET GOLIATH

  In the Fall of 1983, Knight Rider geared up for its second—and arguably the best—season. The same basic formula that made the first season a success was there except for one major difference—the talented Patricia McPherson had been replaced by Rebecca Holden after McPherson was let go due to her supposed lack of sizzle. Executive Producer Robert Foster explains, “We wanted to try something different, something glitzy, and hired a shapely redhead, Rebecca Holden.”

  The ratings for the second season of the show actually increased during the second season that Holden was a cast member. Many writers and fans of the series however were shocked that Foster had decided to take a risk and tamper with the chemistry.

  Rebecca Holden [Agency Photo Courtesy Rebecca Holden] 76

  Meet Goliath •

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  They ended up with Rebecca through various deals she had been working with the network and they became interested in having her, so they decided to try her in Knight Rider. McPherson comments, “When Robert Cinader died and Foster came in, I felt I was in trouble. When new crew members came aboard, we all welcomed them to the show so they would feel comfortable. To be a regular on a show is great, you have that familiarity. The guys on the crew are all your family.”

  Rebecca presents a K.I.T.T. cake to the cast and crew on the set [Photo Courtesy of Rebecca Holden]

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  McPherson adds, “What we would do for guest stars on the show was very helpful to help them feel welcome. When Foster came in, we did the same for him, but there was never any reciprocation.” The decision didn’t go over well with David Hasselhoff, who was upset at the cast change.

  “David wasn’t in a position to say anything,” recalls McPherson, “because the show was a hit in the first year but that didn’t mean that they wouldn’t have changed anything at any given time.”

  Nonetheless, Rebecca Holden, a successful singer and dancer, was now on board as April Curtis, the woman responsible for maintaining and programming K.I.T.T.’s systems. She described her character as “intelligent, capable, and not just a sexy bimbo. I know they hired me because there was good chemistry and I could act, but they also hired a whole package. I had already done a lot of guest-starring roles for NBC and Universal Studios, so they were familiar with my work. I received a call from my agent asking me to read for the role. I met with the producers and David and we read several scenes.”

  Holden recalls how she got the part after a long and exhaustive search for the right replacement: “NBC came to us and asked if I would consider doing Knight Rider and said they were creating a new character and that the show was picked up for 22 more episodes. I told my agent that I thought it was a great show. We have a very good new time slot in the fall. The show has developed such a following. It has a TVQ in the top 10; it’s number 6. It’s above Magnum P.I. and 60 Minutes. It’s very rare that you can walk into a show that’s already a hit like that. Usually you have to go through making the pilot, waiting to see if it sells.”

  Holden was even approached by Knight Rider producers Joel Rogosin and Robert Foster to discuss adding comedy, romance, and maybe even song and dance to her role. “I remember that they discussed having me sometimes wear glasses to give me a more ‘studious, computer-expert’

  look. Everyone was so nice and they seemed to feel that there was nice chemistry. When I got home, I received another call from my agent saying that I had the role.” Holden was just happy to be there and satisfied with Meet Goliath •

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  however they chose to make the introduction of her character. “David has such an ongoing personality and made everything fun. He also had the ability to make everyone, cast and crew alike, feel like part of a family. I always looked forward to going to the set-no matter how early the call or how late we worked. It just never seemed like work. Edward was such a professional, having had such a long and illustrious career. He was truly a gentleman and a joy to be around. I must also mention the wonderfully talented Bill Daniels, the voice of K.I.T.T. I saw him more at NBC events. He should be given credit for giving K.I.T.T. his personality and making him come alive.”

  During the second season, McPherson was doing guest spots on other things and it wasn’t that long a period before she knew that she would be coming back. They did have tryouts for other actresses as well. Composer Don Peake took the opportunity to remake the Knight Rider theme for the season. “We decided to rerecord the theme for the second year. We actually did that each year, but kept it pretty much the same. The harmony changed slightly; I used a suspended chord in some places to change the tension.” Stu Phillips remembers offering to change the theme at no cost. “At the beginning of the second season I did approach Universal and offered to redo the sound, and I did not ask for a nickel. However the studio and the network were adamant about not changing a note of the original. In the third season, an attempt was made to write a new theme for the show. Glen Larson quickly put a stop to that idea with one call the network brass.”

  The second season was off to a strong start with “Goliath,” the twohour season premiere that pitted Michael Knight against his evil brother and a supertruck. “Everybody remarks on [this] episode—honest to God, everybody does,” Hasselhoff said. “And when I was doing it with my little earring, I thought, ‘I am never going to work again’. And when my father saw it he said, ‘Michael Knight’s evil twin is a better actor then Michael Knight!’” In the episode, Michael’s evil twin, Garthe Knight, was resurrected from three consecutive life sentences in an African 80

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  prison and was determined to destroy Michael Knight, calling him an insult to his existence. Stories that involve an evil clone are almost always a sure-fire ratings booster, and Knight Rider was no exception—

  “Goliath” ranked in the top 20 for its premiere. This episode also introduced us to more of the Foundation’s history, including Wilton Knight’s ex-wife Elizabeth.

  Filming for “Goliath” was anything but smooth, as Jack Gill recalls.

  “We were at Caesar’s Palace
and I had about twelve Knight Rider cars there. The producers didn’t want to park them in front of the casino because of all the publicity, so we parked them in an underground garage (three floors below ground) and stationed a guard there. We couldn’t shoot immediately because it rained for three days straight. All that rain flooded the garage and ruined every car down there, including the producer’s brand new Mercedes.” Despite this minor setback, production continued with minimal interruptions.

  David Hasselhoff recalls the climatic scene in “Goliath” in which K.I.T.T. and Goliath had a head-on collision: “They wouldn’t let me do that scene. There were two stunt drivers and we set up the cameras in the middle of the desert. Each driver was told to get as close as possible to the other. The truck would hold to a straight line and Jack, in the car, would turn at the last second. Each driver had a radio in the car and that helped control the scene. It appeared that they collided, but that was just special effects. It’s very sophisticated. We first shot the cars going by each other. Then we put in a car without the driver, and made it look as if it hit the truck.” Although David was not permitted to participate in that stunt, he was given the opportunity to perform a small part of another stunt. “It appeared that I had to jump from the truck into the back of a moving car. That really wasn’t me. However, I did have to jump from a moving towtruck used in that scene into the back of a car, then knock out the guy driving the car. That turned out to be the scariest stunt I had to do. The driver held down the gas pedal until I could get hold of the steering wheel. Then I had to push him over and drive away. It wasn’t easy.”