59 Fun Facts About Miami Vice

How is Crockett's black Daytona destroyed in Miami Vice's season three premiere?

A Stinger missile, fired by an arms dealer showing off his stock, blows it up. Ferrari had sued the maker of the show's replica, so the producers wrote the car out.

Which actress guest-starred as a madam in a 1987 Miami Vice episode that Don Johnson directed?

Melanie Griffith played madam Christine von Marburg in the third-season episode. Twice married to Johnson, she had divorced him in 1976 and wed him again in 1989.

Who plays Crockett's partner, Detective Ricardo Tubbs, in Miami Vice?

Philip Michael Thomas later traded on the role as the television face of a telephone psychic hotline, long after the series had ended.

Which agency employs Crockett and Tubbs in Miami Vice?

Metro-Dade Police was the county force, not the city's: Crockett's badge marks him as a deputy sheriff of Dade County.

Where did Tubbs work before coming to Miami in Miami Vice?

The New York Police Department lost him when he came south hunting the drug lord who had his brother Rafael killed, and he stayed on in Miami.

What kind of pet does Sonny Crockett keep on his sailboat in Miami Vice?

An alligator shares the boat as Crockett's "watch-gator", there to give uninvited visitors a hostile welcome.

What is the name of Crockett's pet in Miami Vice?

Elvis earns his keep as a guard, left aboard to protect the sailboat that Crockett calls home.

What is the name of the sailboat Crockett lives on in Miami Vice?

St. Vitus' Dance was really three different yachts over the run: one for the pilot, then two successive Endeavour sailboats.

What was Crockett's black Ferrari Daytona Spyder actually built on in Miami Vice's first two seasons?

A Chevrolet Corvette chassis sat under fibreglass panels from McBurnie Coachcraft. Ferrari sued over the lookalikes, and the firm was ordered to stop building them.

Which car replaced Crockett's Daytona from season three of Miami Vice?

A white Ferrari Testarossa: Ferrari supplied two real cars in black, and the show repainted them, in one account because black was lost in night scenes.

Who plays the taciturn Lieutenant Martin Castillo in Miami Vice?

Edward James Olmos took command of the squad after Gregory Sierra asked to leave because he disliked living in Miami, and won a 1985 Emmy for the role.

What happens to the vice squad's first commander, Lieutenant Rodriguez, early in Miami Vice?

He is shot by a hitman whose bullet was meant for Crockett, the last name on a drug lord's hit list, and dies of his wounds.

Who plays Detective Gina Calabrese in Miami Vice?

Saundra Santiago's Gina has a brief romance with Crockett after his divorce, then remains one of his closest friends on the squad.

Which fast-talking petty criminal, played by Martin Ferrero, informs for Crockett and Tubbs in Miami Vice?

Izzy Moreno is forever running get-rich-quick scams, now and then with fellow informant Noogie Lamont, and trades street gossip to stay out of jail.

Which two-word memo is NBC executive Brandon Tartikoff said to have written to sum up Miami Vice's concept?

"MTV cops" is the legend, but creator Anthony Yerkovich disputes it, saying the idea came from laws that let police use property seized from drug dealers.

What was the working title of the two-hour pilot before it became Miami Vice?

Gold Coast was the title on Anthony Yerkovich's pilot script, and the phrase stayed on screen: the squad works behind a front called Gold Coast Shipping.

Which show had creator Anthony Yerkovich written for before Miami Vice?

Hill Street Blues employed him as a writer and producer, and it was there that he began collecting material on Miami, which he saw as a modern-day Casablanca.

Which jazz great guest-starred as pimp Ivory Jones in the 1985 Miami Vice episode 'Junk Love'?

Miles Davis plays a pimp whom Castillo pressures into informing on a smuggler, one of many musicians the show handed acting roles.

Which two colours did director Bobby Roth say were forbidden on Miami Vice?

Red and brown were off limits, Roth said: if a script called for a Mercedes, the car people would show white, black and silver ones, never those two.

Which show beat Miami Vice to the 1985 Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series?

Cagney & Lacey took the top drama prize, and Miami Vice left with four wins from its 15 nominations, none of them for either of its two leads.

Which future action star played abusive arms dealer Tony Amato in the 1984 Miami Vice episode 'No Exit'?

Bruce Willis's Amato is so brutal to his wife Rita that she tries to hire a hitman, a call Crockett intercepts while watching the house.

Which actor was NBC ready to replace Miami Vice's Don Johnson with during his 1986 contract dispute?

Mark Harmon had just left St. Elsewhere, but the threat was never carried out: Johnson and the network settled, and he stayed until the series ended.

Which future TV star played Crockett's ill-fated partner Eddie Rivera in the Miami Vice pilot?

Jimmy Smits lasts about five minutes: Rivera is killed by a car bomb in the opening scenes, two years before L.A. Law made Smits a star.

Which keyboardist composed Miami Vice's synthesizer score and theme?

Jan Hammer left Czechoslovakia after the 1968 Soviet-led invasion, studied at Berklee and played with the Mahavishnu Orchestra before turning to television scores.

How high did the Miami Vice Theme climb on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1985?

Number 1 in November 1985. In the single's video its composer plays the bad guy himself, his performance intercut with scenes from the series.

Which Glenn Frey song inspired a Miami Vice episode in which he played a pilot?

Smuggler's Blues so caught producer Michael Mann's attention that he had a first-season script built around the song, and the episode took its title too.

Which Phil Collins song plays as Crockett and Tubbs drive through Miami at night in the Miami Vice pilot?

In the Air Tonight began a long link between the show and the singer, who later turned up as a guest star himself.

Miami Vice was among the first American network shows broadcast in which sound format, showing off its pop soundtrack?

Stereo sound let the show make the most of the current pop and rock hits on its soundtrack, and several of the musicians turned up as guest stars.

Which Ray-Ban model did Crockett help turn into a 1980s bestseller on Miami Vice?

Wayfarer frames were one part of a look that swept menswear: the show also popularised T-shirts under suit jackets and a permanent five o'clock shadow.

What was the electric razor sold in 1986 to give men Crockett's permanent five o'clock shadow called?

The Stubble Device had settings for one to five days' growth; one columnist asked how it differed from a shaver that simply didn't work very well.

Which pistol did Crockett carry in Miami Vice's first two seasons?

Bren Ten production ended when its maker, Dornaus & Dixon, went bankrupt in 1986, so Crockett switched to a Smith & Wesson for season three.

In Miami Vice, where did Lieutenant Castillo serve as a DEA agent before taking over the vice squad?

The Golden Triangle of Southeast Asia was his beat in the 1970s, where his fight against the heroin trade kept running into a CIA willing to back the traffickers.

Which powerboat did Crockett pilot from Miami Vice's second season onward?

Scarab 38 KV orders poured in once the boat was on screen, and maker Wellcraft thanked Don Johnson with a duplicate of his own.

Which powerboat-racing event did Miami Vice star Don Johnson win in 1988?

The Offshore World Cup went to Johnson in the superboat class. He raced for Team USA, where fellow actors Kurt Russell and Chuck Norris joined him.

Which run-down neighbourhood did Miami Vice help revive?

South Beach was then mostly dilapidated retirement hotels, so the crew repainted shabby building fronts to suit the show's colour palette.

Which long-running show did Miami Vice move opposite in season three, starting its ratings decline?

Dallas beat it so soundly at 9 pm on Fridays that TV Guide ran the cover line "Dallas Drubs the Cops".

Which future creator of a long-running crime franchise joined Miami Vice as a writer-producer for season three?

Dick Wolf, later the creator of Law & Order, pushed the stories toward the headlines, with episodes on the Troubles in Northern Ireland and capital punishment.

Which pop star played Caitlin Davies, the singer Crockett marries in season four of Miami Vice?

Sheena Easton's Caitlin is shot dead at her own concert by Frank Hackman, a killer Crockett had helped to free from death row.

What is Crockett's undercover drug-dealer alter ego, whom he believes he really is after a concussion?

Sonny Burnett takes over when a boat explosion wipes Crockett's memory and the cartel that rescues him convinces him the cover story is real.

What was the title of Miami Vice's two-hour series finale, aired in May 1989?

Freefall ends with Crockett and Tubbs throwing down their badges and quitting the force; NBC then aired three leftover episodes that June.

Which 2002 video game was heavily inspired by Miami Vice?

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City returns the compliment in play: at a three-star wanted level, two casually dressed undercover cops give chase in a sports car.

Who played Crockett and Tubbs in the 2006 film version of Miami Vice?

Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx took the roles after Foxx put the idea of a Miami Vice film to director Michael Mann at a party, prompting Mann to return to the series.

Which director of a Tom Cruise blockbuster was announced in 2025 to make the film Miami Vice '85?

Joseph Kosinski, who made Top Gun: Maverick, set out to recreate mid-1980s Miami, drawing on the pilot and first season, with Dan Gilroy writing.

In Crockett's backstory, what ended his college football career with the Florida Gators?

A knee injury finished the star receiver, who then served two tours in Vietnam, a stint he calls the "Southeast Asia Conference".

Which future Oscar winner appeared as Polly Wheeler in Miami Vice's 1988 season finale, 'Mirror Image'?

Julia Roberts was still months from her breakthrough in Mystic Pizza when she played Polly, who falls for Crockett while he has lost his memory.

Which Glenn Frey song from the Miami Vice soundtrack reached No. 2 on the US charts?

You Belong to the City was written for the show's second-season opener, in which the action moves to New York.

Which Miami Vice detective slides into a gambling addiction late in the series?

Stan Switek, shattered by the murder of his partner and best friend, runs up gambling debts that put him at the mercy of mobsters.

How is Detective Larry Zito killed in Miami Vice's third season?

He is given a forced overdose by a gangster's men while undercover as a boxing trainer. Actor John Diehl had asked to leave, finding the role unfulfilling.

Which Irish actor played terrorist Sean Carroon in Miami Vice's 1986 season premiere, 'When Irish Eyes Are Crying'?

Liam Neeson's Carroon plans to shoot down a Concorde and romances Gina, who ends up having to fire on him. Neeson moved to Hollywood the following year.

Which soul legend guest-starred in 'Missing Hours', the 1987 Miami Vice episode about UFO encounters?

James Brown plays Lou DeLong, who fronts a group for people claiming alien contact, in an episode where Trudy loses hours of memory and returns singing "I Feel Good".

Which new series did Michael Mann start producing in 1986, as Miami Vice entered its third season?

Crime Story, set among cops and mobsters in early-1960s Chicago, was Mann's new project; Miami Vice's third season turned darker and more serious as he stepped back.

Who played Valerie Gordon, the on-and-off love interest of Tubbs in Miami Vice?

Pam Grier's Valerie turns down Tubbs's marriage proposal in her last appearance, an episode NBC shelved and cable first aired in 1990.

Which award did Don Johnson win in 1986 for playing Sonny Crockett?

Golden Globe voters named him best actor in a TV drama, months after he had lost the lead-actor Emmy to William Daniels of St. Elsewhere.

Which 1986 single took Miami Vice's Don Johnson to No. 5 in the US?

Heartbeat was a cover: co-writer Wendy Waldman recorded it first, and Helen Reddy sang it too, before Johnson's version became the hit.

Which later CBS police drama starred Don Johnson alongside Cheech Marin from 1996 to 2001?

Nash Bridges later paid off in court: Johnson owned half its copyright, and in 2010 a jury ordered producer Rysher Entertainment to pay him millions in profits.

Which Chinese actress played Isabella, the cartel insider Crockett falls for, in the 2006 Miami Vice film?

Gong Li's Isabella handles the cartel's money; Crockett ends the film by sending her home to Cuba by boat instead of arresting her.

Which box-office leader did the 2006 Miami Vice film dethrone?

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest had led for three weekends. Miami Vice opened with $25.7 million but finished on about $164 million worldwide, against a budget of at least $135 million.

Which studio released the 2006 Miami Vice film, written and directed by Michael Mann?

Universal Pictures put the film's cost at $135 million, though insiders claimed more than $150 million after hurricanes and other delays cost shooting days.

Which showbiz term is the actor who played Miami Vice's Tubbs credited with coining?

EGOT stands for Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony, the four awards he said in 1984 he hoped to win within five years; he was never nominated for any of them.