Booker (TV series)

American TV crime drama series

Booker

Genre|

* Police procedural
* Crime drama

Created by|

* Eric Blackeney
* Stephen J. Cannell

Starring|

* Richard Grieco
* Carmen Argenziano
* Marcia Strassman

Opening theme| "Hot in the City (Exterminator Mix)" performed by Billy Idol
Ending theme| "Hot in the City (Exterminator Mix)" performed by Billy Idol
Composer| Mike Post
Country of origin| United States
Original language| English
No. of seasons| 1
No. of episodes| 22
Production
Executive producer| Bill Nuss
Producers|

* Carleton Eastlake
* Brooke Kennedy
* Jo Swerling, Jr.

Production location| Vancouver
Running time| 45–48 minutes
Production company| Stephen J. Cannell Productions
Original release
Network| Fox
Release| September 24, 1989 (1989-09-24) –
May 6, 1990 (1990-05-06)
Related
21 Jump Street

Booker is an American crime drama series starring Richard Grieco that aired on the Fox Network from September 24, 1989, to May 6, 1990. The series is a spin-off of 21 Jump Street and the second installment of the Jump Street franchise. The character of Dennis Booker was originally a recurring character on the police drama during its third season.

## Synopsis

[edit]

Dennis Booker, who once worked for a large metropolitan police department, is now hired by the US office of a large Japanese company to investigate some suspicious insurance claims. Booker is portrayed as despising authority, and he is often openly disdainful of the orders he receives. He also occasionally undertakes non-work-related tasks in order to help friends and family. Katie Rich left the show in the middle of its run, and Lori Petty was added to the cast.

Fox scheduled Booker as its Sunday night leadoff program, airing in the 7/6 pm slot that was vacated by its parent series, 21 Jump Street; the latter moved to Monday nights.[1] Booker was not the hit that its predecessor had been, with Fox eventually moving the show to 10:00 pm (during the period when the network was programming past that hour on Sundays) and later cancelling it following the season.[2]

## Cast

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### Main

[edit]

* Richard Grieco as Dennis Booker
* Carmen Argenziano as Chick Sterling
* Marcia Strassman as Alicia Rudd
* Katie Rich as Elaine Grazzo
* Lori Petty as Suzanne Dunne

### Notable guest stars

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* Peter DeLuise as Officer Doug Penhall (from 21 Jump Street)
* Holly Robinson Peete as Officer Judy Hoffs (from 21 Jump Street)
* Steven Williams as Captain Adam Fuller (from 21 Jump Street)
* Jason Priestley as Fred
* Thomas Haden Church as Michael
* Ben Vereen as Ben
* Mariska Hargitay as Michelle
* Don S. Davis in various roles
* Maura Tierney as Donna Cofax
* Marcia Cross
* Don Cheadle
* Vanity
* Gedde Watanabe
* Tawny Kitaen
* James Hong
* Heavy D
* Jay O. Sanders as Gordon Rudd

## Episodes

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No.| Title| Directed by| Written by| Original release date| Prod.
code

|
|
|
|
|

1| "Booker"| David Jackson| Stephen J. Cannell| September 24, 1989 (1989-09-24)| 31101

Dennis Booker helps Elaine clear a man she thinks was wrongly convicted when she served jury duty.

2| "The Pump"| Mark Sobel| Story by : Nicholas J. Corea
Teleplay by : Stephen J. Cannell & Nicholas J. Corea| October 1, 1989 (1989-10-01)| 31102

Booker is targeted by a gang seeking revenge for the death of a member who shot Judy (Holly Robinson guest-starring from 21 Jump Street).

3| "Raising Arrizola"| Rob Bowman| Gordon Dawson| October 8, 1989 (1989-10-08)| 31106

Booker has a busy day getting involved with a Teshima executive, avoiding a supposedly reformed ex-con and trying to keep a homeless kid on the right path.

4| "High Rise"| Jorge Montesi| Carleton Eastlake| October 22, 1989 (1989-10-22)| 31109

In an homage to Die Hard, Booker takes action when gunmen take the execs of Teshima hostage.

5| "All You Gotta Do Is Do It"| Reynaldo Villalobos| Stephen J. Cannell| October 29, 1989 (1989-10-29)| 31105

Alicia asks Booker to find her gambler ex-husband when he takes off with their daughter.

6| "Bête Noir"| James Whitmore Jr.| Charles Grant Craig| November 5, 1989 (1989-11-05)| 31110

Booker concocts a plan to catch a woman he suspects murdered her two husbands for insurance money.

7| "Flat Out"| Jefferson Kibbee| Carleton Eastlake| November 12, 1989 (1989-11-12)| 31111

Booker races to find a young woman who skipped bail before mobsters kill her.

8| "Wheels and Deals – Part 1"| Mark Sobel| Charles Grant Craig & Thania St. John| November 26, 1989 (1989-11-26)| 31113

Booker plots the downfall of his nemesis Raymond Crane. This episode concludes on 21 Jump Street.

9| "Someone Stole Lucille"| Kim Manners| Bill Nuss| December 10, 1989 (1989-12-10)| 31112

Booker and a young Teshima executive from Japan are sent to find B.B. King's stolen guitar.

10| "Cementhead"| Jorge Montesi| Glen Morgan & James Wong| December 17, 1989 (1989-12-17)| 31114

Booker deals with his childhood idol, a hockey player seeking to make a comeback on a team owned by Teshima.

11| "The Red Dot"| Mario Azzopardi| Story by : Carleton Eastlake
Teleplay by : Bill Nuss & Charles Grant Craig| January 14, 1990 (1990-01-14)| 31118

A woman hires Booker to find her missing boyfriend, who's also the target of a hit man.

12| "Who Framed Roger Thorton?"| Jefferson Kibbee| Story by : Thania St. John
Teleplay by : Charles Grant Craig| January 21, 1990 (1990-01-21)| 31115

Booker investigates the murder of a fashion designer and encounters an old acquaintance.

13| "Hacker"| Bryan Spicer| Story by : Carleton Eastlake
Teleplay by : Carleton Eastlake & Charles Grant Craig| February 4, 1990 (1990-02-04)| 31119

Booker is pursued by the FBI as soon as he cracks a computer hacker's code.

14| "The Life and Death of Chick Sterling"| Kim Manners| Bill Nuss & Thania St. John| February 11, 1990 (1990-02-11)| 31122

Chick and an old army buddy are targeted for assassination because of a past incident.

15| "Black Diamond Run"| Peter D. Marshall| Seth Pearlman| February 18, 1990 (1990-02-18)| 31120

A cat burglar is stealing from guests at a ski resort who are insured by Teshima.

16| "Love Life"| Jefferson Kibbee| Story by : Gary Rosen & Jacqueline Zambrano
Teleplay by : Jacqueline Zambrano| February 25, 1990 (1990-02-25)| 31121

Booker sets out to prove that a prostitute was framed for stabbing a Teshima executive.

17| "Reunion"| Jan Eliasberg| Carleton Eastlake & Thania St. John| March 25, 1990 (1990-03-25)| 31124

Booker attends his high school reunion where an old girlfriend asks him to find her missing fiancé, who happens to be the guy she left Booker for.

18| "Wedding Bell Blues"| Jefferson Kibbee| Charles Grant Craig & Bill Nuss & Thania St. John| April 1, 1990 (1990-04-01)| 31125

An old high school friend of Booker's is engaged to two women, both of whom have vengeful relatives.

19| "Molly and Eddie"| David Nutter| Charles Grant Craig & Bill Nuss & Thania St. John| April 8, 1990 (1990-04-08)| 31123

Booker takes care of a 6-year-old girl while he searches for her father, a repo man who may have gotten involved in a stolen car ring.

20| "Crazy"| Bill Corcoran| Chad Hayes & Carey W. Hayes| April 15, 1990 (1990-04-15)| 31127

A crazy killer escapes custody and leads Booker on a journey through his troubled psyche.

21| "Mobile Home"| Christopher T. Welch| Story by : David Kemper
Teleplay by : Charles Grant Craig & Bill Nuss & Thania St. John| April 29, 1990 (1990-04-29)| 31128

Booker helps a friend search for his first home, which has been stolen by three siblings hunting for treasure.

22| "Father's Day"| Jan Eliasberg| Jan Eliasberg| May 6, 1990 (1990-05-06)| 31129

Booker's father asks for his help when he must testify against the mob.

## Home media

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This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

|

On September 17, 2008, Beyond Home Entertainment released Booker- The Complete Series on DVD in Australia (Region 4). The episode titled "Deals and Wheels pt.1" has been removed as it is part of a crossover with 21 Jump Street. Both episodes are included on the 4th season release of 21 Jump Street. The original Billy Idol "Hot in the City" main theme song is intact on the episodes. The episode "Someone Stole Lucille" is included in this set as well.

On August 25, 2009, Mill Creek Entertainment released Booker- Collector's Edition on DVD in Region 1.[3] Music rights have kept the episode "Someone Stole Lucille" from appearing on the set, thus the reason why the title of the release was changed from 'complete series'. The theme song was also changed to a generic action piece (entitled "Hot Summer Night") as the rights to "Hot in the City" could not be negotiated.

DVD Name  | Ep #  | Region 1  | Region 4

|
|
|

Booker: Collector's Edition  | 22  | August 25, 2009  | September 17, 2008

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Shales, Tom (July 29, 1989). "FOX Finds Success By Aiming Low". Deseret News. Archived from the original on July 1, 2014. Retrieved April 9, 2011.
2. ^ "Top 10 Worst TV Spin-Offs". Time. October 1, 2008. Archived from the original on October 4, 2008. Retrieved February 25, 2009.
3. ^ "Booker DVD news: Update About Booker - Collector's Edition". TVShowsOnDVD.com. December 8, 2009. Archived from the original on May 20, 2014. Retrieved May 19, 2014.

## External links

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* Booker at IMDb
* Booker at epguides.com

* v
* t
* e

Jump Street

Television|

* 21 Jump Street (1987–1991)
* episodes
* guest stars
* Booker (1989–1990)

Films|

* 21 Jump Street (2012)
* 22 Jump Street (2014)

* Category

* v
* t
* e

Television series produced or created by Stephen J. Cannell

* The D.A. (1971)
* Chase (1973)
* Toma (1973–74)
* The Rockford Files (1974–80)
* Baretta (1975–78)
* City of Angels (1976)
* Baa Baa Black Sheep (1976–78)
* Richie Brockelman, Private Eye (1978)
* The Duke (1979)
* Stone (1980)
* Tenspeed and Brown Shoe (1980)
* The Greatest American Hero (1981–83)
* The Quest (1982)
* The A-Team (1983–87)
* The Rousters (1983–84)
* Hardcastle and McCormick (1983–86)
* Riptide (1984–86)
* Hunter (1984–91)
* Stingray (1985–87)
* The Last Precinct (1986)
* Wiseguy (1987–90)
* 21 Jump Street (1987–91)
* J.J. Starbuck (1987–88)
* Sonny Spoon (1988)
* Top of the Hill (1989)
* Unsub (1989)
* Booker (1989–90)
* Broken Badges (1990–91)
* The 100 Lives of Black Jack Savage (1991)
* Palace Guard (1991)
* Personals (1991–92)
* Street Justice (1991–93)
* The Commish (1991–96)
* Silk Stalkings (1991–99)
* The Hat Squad (1992–93)
* Renegade (1992–97)
* Cobra (1993–94)
* Caesars Challenge (1993–94)
* Missing Persons (1993–94)
* Hawkeye (1994–95)
* Traps (1994)
* Marker (1995)
* Profit (1996)

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