Part of Magnum's appeal for the ladies, was the tall, dark, good looks of Tom Selleck which brought them back for more, week after week. For the men, it was the car (a Ferrari) and for both genders, his location - Oahu, Hawaii.
Thomas Magnum was a rather likeable character who hit our screens in 1980. He narrated the series, which rather gave the impression that he was talking to himself.
Magnum grew up as a Navy brat and despite his father's death when he was 10 years old, Thomas entered the Naval Academy and having graduated, found himself in Vietnam. The program occasionally flashes back to this period in his life, usually in a somewhat unpleasant way, as might be expected. For me this detracted from the usual rather happy go lucky feel of the programme. I digress - when Magnum left Vietnam, he was stationed at Pearl Harbour, having joined Naval Intelligence. It was there that, at age 33, he decided to become a private investigator.
Thomas duly got his PI licence, moved to Hawaii and opened for business. Some time later, he was hired by absentee author and international playboy, Robin Masters, as head of security at his vast estate, Robin's Nest. (Robin never appeared in person, but his voice was that of Orson Welles.) This job came with the use of Robin's guesthouse and his Ferrari, so Magnum was in clover. It also came complete with Jonathan Quayle Higgins III (played by John Hillerman), an Englishman of impeccable background, who ran the estate and who totally disapproved of Magnum and everything he stood for.
The good thing that came out of Magnum's Vietnam experience is the making of two good friends, who naturally find their way into Magnum PI. They were Theodore Calvin (TC) and Orville Wright (Rick). TC, played by Roger E. Mosley, ran a helicopter hire business so was often roped in by Magnum when he needed some speedy air transport from which he could keep an eye on suspects on the ground. Rick Wright, played by Larry Manetti, owned a rather shady nightclub and also proved useful to Magnum in providing information from the criminals who were his customers.
While each episode of Magnum PI stood alone in its storyline, there were often references to previous events and characters, giving a sense of continuity which appealed to the viewer.
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Michael Russell
Your Independent guide to Private Investigators
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