56 Fun Facts About The Rockford Files

The Rockford Files ran from September 1974 to January 1980 on which network, before 1990s reunion movies moved elsewhere?

NBC aired the original run from 1974 to 1980; the reunion TV movies of the 1990s moved to CBS.

Which prolific TV producer co-created The Rockford Files with Roy Huggins and wrote its pilot?

Stephen J. Cannell had written for Jack Webb's Adam-12 before co-creating the series with Roy Huggins and scripting the 1974 pilot, 'Backlash of the Hunter'.

Rockford was conceived as a modern-day version of which earlier James Garner character?

Huggins conceived Rockford as a modern Bret Maverick, trading the Old West gambler he had created for Garner in 1957 for a Los Angeles private investigator.

Where had Jim Rockford served five years before being pardoned?

Rockford served five years in San Quentin for a crime he did not commit and was pardoned, not paroled, a distinction the plots repeatedly stress.

For most of the series, Rockford's trailer sits at which Malibu location?

The trailer sat in the Paradise Cove parking lot at 29 Cove Road, beside the pier and the Sand Castle restaurant; early season-one episodes placed it at 22878 Pacific Coast Highway.

What was Rockford's oft-quoted daily fee during the original series?

Rockford's standard rate was '$200 a day plus expenses', a line he quotes to nearly every client; a running gag was how rarely he collected it.

Where does Rockford usually keep his rarely used revolver?

Rockford keeps his .38 revolver in a cookie jar in the trailer's kitchen; he has no permit for it and prefers talking his way out of trouble.

Who played Rocky, Jim's father, for the run of the series?

Noah Beery Jr. took over from Robert Donley, whose pilot Rocky was written as more of a small-time grifter.

What had Rocky Rockford done for a living before retiring?

Rocky was a retired truck driver who spent much of the series urging Jim to quit investigating and take up trucking instead.

Who played Sergeant Dennis Becker, Jim's friend on the LAPD?

Joe Santos played Sergeant Dennis Becker, the harried LAPD detective who reluctantly helps Jim; Becker was promoted to lieutenant in the later seasons.

Stuart Margolin played Angel Martin, who knew Jim from where?

Angel works as a filing clerk at a newspaper his brother-in-law owns, a condition of his parole; Margolin won two Emmys for the role.

What is Angel Martin's actual first name?

Angel's given name is Evelyn, a detail played for laughs; the pathological liar and con man's schemes constantly land Jim in trouble.

How many Emmy Awards did Stuart Margolin win for playing Angel?

Stuart Margolin won two Emmys for Angel, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in both 1979 and 1980.

Gretchen Corbett played Beth Davenport, who was Jim's what?

Beth Davenport was Jim's lawyer and occasional girlfriend; Gretchen Corbett left after season four amid a contract dispute between Universal and Garner's Cherokee Productions.

Isaac Hayes played Gandolph 'Gandy' Fitch, who always called Jim by what nickname?

Gandy Fitch, Jim's hulking ex-cellmate, always calls him 'Rockfish'; in 'The Hammer of C Block' Jim helps clear Fitch of the murder that had put him in prison.

Which future Oscar winner played the boastful, chauffeur-driven P.I. Marcus 'Gabby' Hayes?

Louis Gossett Jr., later an Oscar winner for An Officer and a Gentleman, played Gabby Hayes, first appearing in 'Foul on the First Play' in season two.

Rita Moreno's recurring character Rita Capkovic had what profession?

Rita Capkovic was a call girl and police informant whom Jim befriends; Moreno won the 1978 Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress for a Single Appearance in the role.

Rita Moreno's 1978 Emmy for The Rockford Files came a year after she won one for which programme?

Moreno won her first Emmy in 1977 for a guest spot on The Muppet Show, memorably singing 'Fever' while Animal thrashed on drums.

Dennis Dugan's young private eye Richie Brockelman was spun off into his own series that ran how long?

Richie Brockelman, Private Eye lasted just five episodes, airing in Rockford's time slot in March and April 1978 after his introduction in 'The House on Willis Avenue'.

Which Rockford writer went on to create The Sopranos?

David Chase wrote and produced for Rockford before creating The Sopranos; his episode 'The Jersey Bounce' pits Jim against wannabe New Jersey mobsters.

Under what pen name did co-creator Roy Huggins take 'story by' credits during the first season?

Huggins took story credits as 'John Thomas James', a name built from his three sons' first names; his hands-on involvement ended during season one.

How many episodes did James Garner himself direct?

'The Girl in the Bay City Boys' Club' in season two was the only directing credit of his whole career; he took it because the scheduled director dropped out.

Which of Garner's Great Escape co-stars directed an episode?

Coburn had also worked with Garner on The Americanization of Emily; Jackie Cooper and Richard Crenna directed episodes too.

What make and model of car did Jim Rockford drive?

The gold Pontiac Firebird Esprit was really a higher-performance Formula rebadged to look like the cheaper Esprit Rockford could afford.

What was the licence plate on Rockford's Firebird for most of the series?

Some early episodes showed 835 OKG; Garner believed the letters stood for his home state and surname but never learned where the number came from.

The reverse-into-a-spin driving move Rockford used so often is known by which nickname?

The move is the J-turn, or moonshiner's turn: reverse fast, crank the wheel, and swing the nose around to speed off forward; Garner performed it himself.

Why was no Firebird newer than the 1978 model used on the show, even though it ran into 1980?

An answering-machine message in the final season nonetheless claimed his car was a '79.

What did Rocky Rockford drive?

A GMC Sierra Classic pickup, customised by off-road racer Vic Hickey with a winch, brush guard and CB radio.

Who composed the show's theme with Pete Carpenter?

Mike Post and Pete Carpenter wrote the theme; the single reached number 10 on the Hot 100 in August 1975 and won the Grammy for Best Instrumental Arrangement.

Which then-unusual instrument features in the refrains of the Rockford Files theme?

It was one of the first hit records to feature a synthesizer, alongside a blues harmonica solo and dobro.

Which English football club adopted the Rockford Files theme as its walk-out music?

Tranmere Rovers adopted the Rockford Files theme as their walk-out music at Prenton Park decades ago, and fans forced the club to restore it whenever it was dropped.

How does the answering-machine greeting that opens each episode begin?

This is Jim Rockford. At the tone, leave your name and message. I'll get back to you. The number on screen was 555-2368.

How many different answering-machine messages were written across the six original seasons?

They were rarely tied to the episode's plot; staff and crew were invited to suggest gags because the writers found them hard to keep producing.

Why did the show go on hiatus late in 1979, leading to its cancellation?

Garner's doctors ordered him to rest: years of doing his own stunts had left him with knee injuries, back trouble and an ulcer, and NBC cancelled the series in 1980.

How many Rockford Files reunion TV movies were made between 1994 and 1999?

Eight reunion movies aired on CBS from 1994 to 1999, starting with 'I Still Love L.A.', which was dedicated to Noah Beery Jr., who died that November.

In the 2009 attempt to remake the series, who was cast as Jim Rockford in a pilot that never aired?

Dermot Mulroney starred in the 2010 pilot written by House creator David Shore, with Alan Tudyk as Becker and Beau Bridges as Rocky; NBC passed on it.

In which state was James Garner born?

Garner was born James Bumgarner in Norman, Oklahoma, in 1928; Rockford's drawling Southern disguises drew on that background.

James Garner received the Purple Heart for wounds suffered in which conflict?

Garner served 14 months in the Korean War as a rifleman with the 24th Infantry Division; his second Purple Heart, for a friendly-fire wound, was only presented in 1983.

In which year did Garner win the Emmy for Best Actor for The Rockford Files?

He had been nominated once before, in 1959, for Maverick.

Who co-starred with James Garner in 250 Polaroid commercials after an Emmy-nominated Rockford guest spot?

Mariette Hartley, Emmy-nominated for guesting on Rockford, starred with Garner in the Polaroid ads; their on-screen rapport had viewers assuming they were married.

According to the series, Rockford was awarded which decoration for his army service?

He was also busted to private after being caught running pool halls in Busan and stealing a general's car.

The actor who played Rocky had an Oscar-winning uncle. Who was he?

His father was a silent-era leading man too; the nephew himself was known to friends as 'Pidge'.

In 2002, where did TV Guide rank The Rockford Files on its list of the 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time?

TV Guide placed The Rockford Files 39th on its 2002 list of the 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time, helped by the new audience its 1980s syndication had won.

Which episode served as a backdoor pilot for a proposed series called Gabby & Gandy?

'Just Another Polish Wedding' teamed Gabby Hayes and Gandy Fitch as a backdoor pilot for Gabby & Gandy, a spin-off that was never picked up.

Who directed the TV movie The Rockford Files: I Still Love L.A.?

He had played Fred Beamer, the mechanic who once moved into Jim's trailer and impersonated him.

What does Rocky usually call his son Jim?

Rocky habitually calls Jim 'Sonny', even while nagging him to give up detective work; Angel, by contrast, calls him 'Jimmy'.

Which actor played Lieutenant Doug Chapman, Becker's superior who despised Rockford, in seasons three to six?

James Luisi played Lieutenant Doug Chapman, the hostile superior who ordered Becker to keep Rockford at arm's length; Tom Atkins had played the earlier Lieutenant Diehl.

Tom Selleck's Lance White was based on which polished character from Maverick?

Stephen J. Cannell said Wayde Preston, who played the Maverick character in 1958, resembled Selleck two decades later.

Luis Delgado, who played Officer Todd Billings, had what off-screen connection to the show?

Luis Delgado was Roy Huggins's brother-in-law and James Garner's long-time stand-in and friend, settling into the recurring part of Officer Billings from season three.

Which writer-producer, Garner's partner at Cherokee Productions, scripted dozens of Rockford episodes?

Juanita Bartlett, Garner's Cherokee Productions partner, scripted dozens of episodes and later wrote for Scarecrow and Mrs. King, The Greatest American Hero and In the Heat of the Night.

On which night of the week did NBC air The Rockford Files throughout its run?

The Rockford Files held NBC's Friday 9 p.m. slot for its entire original run, from September 1974 to January 1980.

Which executive producer of The Rockford Files was also James Garner's talent agent?

Meta Rosenberg, James Garner's long-time agent, was the executive producer of The Rockford Files for its entire original run.

The episode 'Just a Coupla Guys' was a backdoor pilot about two wannabe gangsters trying to join which mob?

Writer David Chase later created The Sopranos, and actor Greg Antonacci from the episode went on to play an underboss in it.

For how much did Garner sue Universal in 1983 over Rockford Files profits?

Garner sued Universal for $16.5 million in 1983, accusing the studio of hiding the series' profits; the case was settled out of court in 1989.

By 1989, roughly how much had The Rockford Files grossed from network and syndicated runs?

Garner's long legal fight with Universal over those profits kept the character off screen until 1994.

Which comedy actor's company, Carousel Television, co-produced the unaired 2009 Rockford Files revival pilot?

Steve Carell's Carousel Television co-produced the revival pilot with Universal Media Studios and writer David Shore; NBC declined to pick it up.