# Knight Rider "Movie" 2/17/2008



## cnmsales (Jan 9, 2007)

Loved it!!!! cant wait for more. I hope its picked back up. Better then Bionic woman.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

tzphotos.com said:


> The show is not HD in Chicago.:nono2: It is some messed up black boxes of 4 sides kind of showing.
> 
> Now the question is:
> 
> Is there a way to zoom in with the HR-20 so you can fill your 16:9 HD screen with the image?


After the second commercial break... WMAQ fixed their issue with the broadcast


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

And now half way through....

WHY IS THERE NOT A SERIES LINK BUTTON!!!!!

Sign it up baby.... So far it has exceeded my expectations....

They had me with the opening credits, and kept the start of the opening "music"


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## lwilli201 (Dec 22, 2006)

Showing my age, Knight Rider started on TV (1982) when I was 42 years old. I even remember when Million Dollar Man started in 1973.  They both were fun diversion type shows. Yep I am old. I was stationed in Germany when they started building the Berlin Wall. How things have changed, yet stay the same.


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## gulfwarvet (Mar 7, 2007)

*NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!*

anyone have the last 8 minutes of the movie? i lost power from some bad T-storms and now i wont know the ending.


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## cnmsales (Jan 9, 2007)

GWV Im sure it will be available at there site.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

Now that the show has ended...

Here is the part I hated the most...

After the credits:
"Will I see you again...... I certainly hope so"...

And then it was a comercial for America's Got Tallent...
Instead of saying... comming this fall... Knight Rider.
---------------

Anyway.... Loved the movie...
Absolutely loved it. Could have had a few minutes left of the "mush" stuff... but not too bad.

Fantastic... stuck to the original theme of the series... the structure... even some of the "predictability"


Spoiler



Did anyone NOT think that was Mike opening the Hotel Door



All I want to know is:

1) What is the holdup of signing this up as a series
2) If it does become a series... how long until there is an episode with K.I.T.T. and K.I.T.T (Two Thousand and Three Thousand)

Even the minor details were awsome... showing the steering wheel and the license plate from K.I.2.T. The tidibts from the Theme...

And then what we though was going to be a semi... turned out to be a plane... Just SWEET...

And we know there is not going to be any sexual tension between Mike and the FBI agent... (well.. pretty sure at least).

Sign it up... Give it a shot. Monday Night... Three 1 hours in a row...

Knight Rider - Chuck - Heroes


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

gulfwarvet said:


> *NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!*
> 
> anyone have the last 8 minutes of the movie? i lost power from some bad T-storms and now i wont know the ending.





Spoiler



Funeral for Mike's Mom...
Michael Knight is in the background...
Comes and talks to Mike...

Tells him the classic line: One man can make a difference.
He shakes Mike's Hand... walks away... and says he hopes to see him again.

Mike comes out and talks to the daughter (can't remember her name right now).

Next scene... he is in K.I.3.T... talking to the FBI agent, getting a mission assignment.

His Mechanic buddy closes the hood in classic Bonnie style always "tweeking" to the last minute. The rest of the "crew" is standing there as he backs out onto the road..... from a PLANE (C37 if I have it right).

Only thing missing was the classic "ending" theme song, lone man....


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## Michael D'Angelo (Oct 21, 2006)

It was great. Much better than I thought it would be. I really hope it becomes a series and if it doesn't I will be very disappointed.


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## waynebtx (Dec 24, 2006)

I really hope it becomes a series also even my wife watch with me.


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## Sixto (Nov 18, 2005)

Just finished watching. Very nice. 

Awaiting 13 episodes ...


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## frederic1943 (Dec 2, 2006)

Earl Bonovich said:


> And we know there is not going to be any sexual tension between Mike and the FBI agent... (well.. pretty sure at least).


Unless they do a crossover with Torchwood.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

Sixto said:


> Just finished watching. Very nice.
> 
> Awaiting 13 episodes ...


13?

Sign it up for the 26... give it a full chance, without fear of being cut... to develop itself.

If it doesn't cut it in the ratings... put it up on DirecTV OnDemand


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## lwilli201 (Dec 22, 2006)

I was worried how they would tie it in with the past show. It was perfect. The age of Michael Knights son is just about right also since the show started in 1983. Go for the series. I will be watching.


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## TNGTony (Mar 23, 2002)

Well, I hated the original series, the movie was loaded with the exact same pit-falls, bad writing and editing with impossible situations and total disregard for Newton's laws of motion.

To say I watched this show is really a misnomer, I was doing the dishes and general house chores and cleaning while the show was on. Listening to the dialog I was transported back to the lousy bad-guy-good-guy TV shows of the late 70s and early 80s that made me beg my father to get cable the instant it was available in our area in 1981 so I would have something "good" to watch. (but that's another story).

The car chase that ends with a fabulous though totally impossible visual effect was awful due to the typical and predicable series of events. Any A-Team, Cannon, Manix, Barnaby Jones, Hawaii 5-0, Streets of San Francisco, Rockford Files or Hart to Hart episode had at least one just like it until the stunning visual effects ending.

The bad car chase was ended with a "wait a minute" moment when a person left behind at the beginning of the car chase meets back up with everyone seconds after the termination of the car chase FROM THE OTHER DIRECTION. Unless Scotty was aboard the enterprise in a time anomaly and beamed this person over to the next town, that was pretty bad writing/editing/continuity or all the above.

Those who liked the original series will probably love this movie because it is exactly the same trite, pedantic, unoriginal tripe we saw int he early 80s.

I guess after this movie the actor will move on to a new series which explores the life of a lifeguard on the California coast. No one has done that yet have they?



See ya
Tony


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## Mark Holtz (Mar 23, 2002)

I saw bits and pieces, will have to sit back later.

Hey, it's 1980's cheese, updated for the 2Ks. What were you experting--Hamlet? And, it looks like we will have to skip the continuity of _Knight Rider 2000_.

And, Tony, need I remind you of another 1980s series taht started a year after Knight Rider rode off into the sunset. Part of the title was _The Next Generation_, and took place a CENTURY after the original series.


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## TNGTony (Mar 23, 2002)

Mark Holtz said:


> I saw bits and pieces, will have to sit back later.
> 
> Hey, it's 1980's cheese, updated for the 2Ks. What were you experting--Hamlet?


I really wasn't expecting anything more than what I got. I was hoping to be pleasantly surprised. I wasn't. 



> And, it looks like we will have to skip the continuity of _Knight Rider 2000_.


Every franchise has at least one of these. "I" had the Filmation animated series.



> And, Tony, need I remind you of another 1980s series taht started a year after Knight Rider rode off into the sunset. Part of the title was _The Next Generation_, and took place a CENTURY after the original series.


Actually TNG started in 1987. 

And any honest TNG fan will tell you just how much seasons 1 and 2 blew chunks for the most part. However, I did not see any "Knight Rider" conventions, letter writing campaigns and constant rumors and developments, animated series, book series or comic books (before people insisted on calling them graphic novels so they wouldn't feel stupid buying a comic book) of new Knight Rider projects over the last two decades. 

Like I said. Any fan of the original 80's cheese will love the aroma the new series exudes.


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## dpeters11 (May 30, 2007)

My main question is why does KITT's computer need to be on to withstand bullet holes? I understand his nanotechnology needs his computer, but was the formula for the original KITTs molecular bonded shell lost when Devon died?

That and the hacker was able to get through KITTs systems way too easily. I think they need to install a few patches on his firewalls, and give KITT some ways of turning off his radios, WIFI or whatever when he realizes someone is hacking into him.

But other than that, pretty good.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

dpeters11 said:


> That and the hacker was able to get through KITTs systems way too easily. I think they need to install a few patches on his firewalls, and give KITT some ways of turning off his radios, WIFI or whatever when he realizes someone is hacking into him.


Did you miss the one liner that K.I.3.T's encryption, system specs were on the hard drive's that were stolen... So basically they knew the specs, and knew how to get around it.

Any quality hacker that knew EXACTLY how the system was designed and built, would have been able to get through it pretty quickly.

And since K.I.3.T wasn't complete... it is possible a lot of those things simply were not there at the time... Plus they needed a way to have a HUMAN car chace...


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## Ken S (Feb 13, 2007)

The show pales compared to the original...


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

Ken S said:


> The show pales compared to the original...


Compared to the entire series? 
Or the Knight Rider (Original) Pilot ?


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## razorbackfan (Aug 18, 2002)

I enjoyed it. It was a typical NBC leave your brain at the door, movie of the week, but entertaining. I own a new Mustang so I'm glad they chose an American classic instead of some GM garbage.


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## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

Earl Bonovich said:


> Compared to the entire series?
> Or the Knight Rider (Original) Pilot ?


I think he was making a joke, comparing last night's show to the old TV show, "My Mother the Car".


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## HouseBowlrz (Jul 15, 2007)

Indiana627 said:


> Val Kilmer is the voice of KITT. It was to be another actor, but he is affiliate with GM, and once GM found out KITT is now a Mustang instead of a Firebird, they asked him to pull out of the project. He had actually done all the voice overs, but now Kilmer has to retape them.


I hadn't seen this link so as I listed to KITT throughout the movie, I kept wondering was that Kilmer's voice.

Glad to know my instincts were correct ... 

cheers


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## RobertE (Jun 10, 2006)

Considering the state the writers strike put pilot development in for Fall 08, I think this has a very good chance of getting picked up by NBC or SciFi.


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## SDizzle (Jan 1, 2007)

I liked it. I loved the original, I was a kid then. I wonder if a few episodes have already been made?!? With anticipation that NBC would say "yes" to the series? I HOPE SO!!!!!!!!!!


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## Ken S (Feb 13, 2007)

Stuart Sweet said:


> I think he was making a joke, comparing last night's show to the old TV show, "My Mother the Car".


Yes, I was...that was the joke with the original series. I guess people don't remember "My Mother the Car" anymore.
I didn't get to see the movie last night...I'll catch the replay on the 23rd though.


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## say-what (Dec 14, 2006)

I saw bits and pieces and what I saw looked promising enough that I'll watch the entire movie later.


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

dpeters11 said:


> My main question is why does KITT's computer need to be on to withstand bullet holes? I understand his nanotechnology needs his computer, but was the formula for the original KITTs molecular bonded shell lost when Devon died?


They switched to the nanotech technology. No more molecular bonding. It was probably an either-or choice.. IF such a thing were real, you'd probably opt for the nanotech as it adds so many other features as well... also, in the context of the show the "secret" formula for that bonding was stolen a couple of times so they probably needed something better anyway.


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## stewp97 (Mar 29, 2006)

I sure wish the car would have done more. They should have used the turbo boost button to jump over the Denali instead of driving around it  

peter


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## Pink Fairy (Dec 28, 2006)

I will need to see when this replays so I can set it up to record!

I already have a favorite line from it, and I haven't even seen it! 

The whole "Monogamy isn't natural." 

Couldn't agree more, and thought it was awesome that the line was there! (Don't even know what it was in reference too!)


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## tomcrown1 (Jan 16, 2006)

How about a rmake of My Mother The Car?? with an older Jerry Van ****


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## frederic1943 (Dec 2, 2006)

stewp97 said:


> I sure wish the car would have done more. They should have used the turbo boost button to jump over the Denali instead of driving around it
> peter


KITT wasn't operational at that time. They didn't boot him up until they came to a stop. It's a good thing KITT doesn't take as long as the HR20 to boot up.:lol:


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## dpeters11 (May 30, 2007)

Earl Bonovich said:


> Did you miss the one liner that K.I.3.T's encryption, system specs were on the hard drive's that were stolen... So basically they knew the specs, and knew how to get around it.
> 
> Any quality hacker that knew EXACTLY how the system was designed and built, would have been able to get through it pretty quickly.
> 
> And since K.I.3.T wasn't complete... it is possible a lot of those things simply were not there at the time... Plus they needed a way to have a HUMAN car chace...


Maybe, but I thought at the end they said the encryption hadn't been broken.

But yeah, most would find a human car chase more exciting.


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

dpeters11 said:


> Maybe, but I thought at the end they said the encryption hadn't been broken.


Those bad guys stole two things... Their main goal was stealing Prometheus (the government project), but they stole everything in the lab... and eventually figured out that they had the plans to the car as well as Prometheus.

For whatever reason, it would appear KITT's stuff was not nearly so encrypted and protected as were the Prometheus hard drives... so the hackers got into the car specs and used that against the good guys to try and get them to give over access to Prometheus.


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## armophob (Nov 13, 2006)

I just watched it. Local NBC has DD issues so I had to watch it in 2.0. 
Besides that, I enjoyed the nostalgia ride, but a series based on a talking car in the 00's vs the 80's? I will watch, but I question the limitations of the actors to carry it.


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## elaclair (Jun 18, 2004)

I loved it and hope it gets picked up by SOMEONE as a series. Even though the mind-candy part that has you check your reality at the door, there were two things that just bugged me. 1. You really mean to tell me that a super-tuned 550HP Mustang Shelby can't outrun a Ford Edge?? And 2. After _SLIDING_ to a halt in front of the Denali, KITT suddenly became an immovable object....hmmmmm .

But what the hell, let's do it again!!!


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## mightythor88 (Sep 22, 2007)

thumbs up here, I liked the original series and enjoyed the new show. I will be shocked after getting 12.9 million viewers if it doesnt get picked up.

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2008/02/extreme-makeo-1.html

I cant believe it lost to extreme makeover, but then I'm not a fan of much reality tv.


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## 2Guysfootball (Jul 2, 2007)

I really liked this. Much Much better then the Team Knight Rider from a few years ago.
It is what it is a Fun Show about a Super Duper Car.
I would love it if they made it into a series.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

2Guysfootball said:


> Much Much better then the Team Knight Rider from a few years ago.


"Few Years Ago" - Almost 10 years since that horrid attempt
http://www.teamknightrider.com/episodes/101/101eps.html


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## stewp97 (Mar 29, 2006)

frederic1943 said:


> KITT wasn't operational at that time. They didn't boot him up until they came to a stop. It's a good thing KITT doesn't take as long as the HR20 to boot up.:lol:


I thought they booted him up as they were passing him. Oh well. Like you said, good thing he boots up fast. Must not be running Vista either!

peter


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## dharrismco (Aug 22, 2006)

My wife and I both enjoyed it as well! I can hope that they pick it as I think they could do well with it. 

Glad I saw the post on here about it, otherwise we probably never would have known about it!


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## 2Guysfootball (Jul 2, 2007)

Earl Bonovich said:


> "Few Years Ago" - Almost 10 years since that horrid attempt
> http://www.teamknightrider.com/episodes/101/101eps.html


:lol: WOW I guess so


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

I watched this last night and agree that they might as well go ahead and make it a series .. 

This particular show was scripted quickly before the writer's strike started and they couldn't really update the script during filming because at that point the writers were on strike ..


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## SDizzle (Jan 1, 2007)

I don't remember turbo boost being used at all?!? Am I forgetting something?


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## Zepes (Dec 27, 2007)

Ok, it was OK

I'll watch a series, or at least the first episode


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

SDizzle said:


> I don't remember turbo boost being used at all?!? Am I forgetting something?


To be fair, that was one problem with the old series. KITT would say "press turbo boost" or something when a car of that technological level really should be able to engage its own turbo boost when required. Seriously, having all that advanced tech but not allowing the computer to engage certain features... every once in a while Michael (Hoff) would be unconscious or drugged or something and KITT would be helpless because it couldn't press certain buttons on its own, even though it could drive by itself.


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## dave1234 (Oct 9, 2005)

HDMe said:


> To be fair, that was one problem with the old series. KITT would say "press turbo boost" or something when a car of that technological level really should be able to engage its own turbo boost when required. Seriously, having all that advanced tech but not allowing the computer to engage certain features... every once in a while Michael (Hoff) would be unconscious or drugged or something and KITT would be helpless because it couldn't press certain buttons on its own, even though it could drive by itself.


I agree the Turbo boost option should be automatic, but what about the "launch nuclear missle" option? :lol:

(I hope the new car isn't tied into skynet...)

I was pleasantly surprised by the movie. It was entertaining and not too cheesy.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

Reminder to anyone that missed it.

Knight Rider is replayed TONIGHT on most NBC affiliates


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## dpeters11 (May 30, 2007)

HDMe said:


> To be fair, that was one problem with the old series. KITT would say "press turbo boost" or something when a car of that technological level really should be able to engage its own turbo boost when required. Seriously, having all that advanced tech but not allowing the computer to engage certain features... every once in a while Michael (Hoff) would be unconscious or drugged or something and KITT would be helpless because it couldn't press certain buttons on its own, even though it could drive by itself.


Yet other things he could do. I can't think of any major ones, mostly the stuff used for humor when he was waiting for Michael like when a cat got inside and he used his cryogenic feature to get rid of it. I think he also tinted his windows a few times.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

source


> "Knight Rider." NBC's movie/backdoor-pilot revival of the '80s talking-car hit clocked nearly 13 million viewers -- the second-most-watched scripted program of the week, behind ABC's "Lost" -- while scoring the biggest 18-to-49-year-old crowd rating for any movie (made-for-TV or theatrical) on any network in nearly three years.


This looks promising ..


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

dpeters11 said:


> Yet other things he could do. I can't think of any major ones, mostly the stuff used for humor when he was waiting for Michael like when a cat got inside and he used his cryogenic feature to get rid of it. I think he also tinted his windows a few times.


Another curious thing to me... is that KITT still does not have automatic transmission! This means when KITT is driving itself, it has to physically be shifting gears... Now we can argue all day whether or not a human driver can shift better than a computer transmission... but the computer has to be able to drive better with an automatic transmission than with stick-shift.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

HDMe said:


> Another curious thing to me... is that KITT still does not have automatic transmission! This means when KITT is driving itself, it has to physically be shifting gears... Now we can argue all day whether or not a human driver can shift better than a computer transmission... but the computer has to be able to drive better with an automatic transmission than with stick-shift.


IIRC... The shifter came up when the car when into manual mode.

It can be something similar to my father-in-laws mercades... where you can "shift" if you want, but it is basically an automatic with a manual overide.


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## dodge boy (Mar 31, 2006)

Would have been alot better if it was a 2008 dodge Challenger SRT-8 in black....

http://www.dodge.com/en/2008/challenger/index.html?bid=1758118&adid=63936509&pid=15226024

I just ordered mine!


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## dodge boy (Mar 31, 2006)

Earl Bonovich said:


> IIRC... The shifter came up when the car when into manual mode.
> 
> It can be something similar to my father-in-laws mercades... where you can "shift" if you want, but it is basically an automatic with a manual overide.


and a clutch pedal dropped from under the dash.... the mecedes is an automatic (Chrysler's autostick) the car can't have a clutch pack (standard) and a torque converter (automatic)


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

dodge boy said:


> and a clutch pedal dropped from under the dash.... the mecedes is an automatic (Chrysler's autostick) the car can't have a clutch pack (standard) and a torque converter (automatic)


Why not?

The clutch pedal could be there... and just not do anything.


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## bdowell (Mar 4, 2003)

Just caught the rebroadcast ... I had wanted to watch it when it first aired and missed it while watching something else after channel surfing.

Agreed completely with comments above that this blew away the lame Bionic Woman remake.

Hopefully it comes back as a series


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

bdowell said:


> Agreed completely with comments above that this blew away the lame Bionic Woman remake.


No kidding ..


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## dodge boy (Mar 31, 2006)

Earl Bonovich said:


> Why not?
> 
> The clutch pedal could be there... and just not do anything.


The clutch links the motor to the tranny, and is engage manually, a torge converter does the same but does it automatically, you would have to pull the cluch out and put in a torque converter. It is imposible to have both on a car. Many many years ago, Chrysler had a "CluchFlite" transmission that was an automatic tranny that they "Cut" the cast aliminum "bellhousing" portion off of and put a cluch and a stamped steel bellhousing on it. You yould use the clutch to "launch" the car but it would shift automatically, hence removing driver error at the dragstrip and still allow you to launch the car at around 4500 rpm.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

dodge boy .. Are you suggesting that KITT is not real?  :lol:


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## gulfwarvet (Mar 7, 2007)

Earl Bonovich said:


> Reminder to anyone that missed it.
> 
> Knight Rider is replayed TONIGHT on most NBC affiliates


not here 

i thought i only missed the last ten minutes do to a power outage. but, i only had a hours play time even tho the progress bar stated it recorde 1:50 minutes.

anyways does anyone have a link to this movie for download?


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## spartanstew (Nov 16, 2005)

Really surprised at the comments here.

My wife and I finally got a chance to watch this on Saturday night (and were both really looking forward to it). We made it to about the 40 minute mark and finally gave up. Thought it was terrible. Bad acting, bad writing, bad effects. 

:shudder:


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## gcisko (Sep 27, 2006)

spartanstew said:


> Really surprised at the comments here.
> 
> My wife and I finally got a chance to watch this on Saturday night (and were both really looking forward to it). We made it to about the 40 minute mark and finally gave up. Thought it was terrible. Bad acting, bad writing, bad effects.
> 
> :shudder:


I was thrilled to watch it (and keep forgetting about this subgroup on this site to comment )

However... As you say the acting was not thrilling. Especially when the daughter is talking to kitt on their way to get Mike. And I think they do need another kitt voice. I was surprised that my wife did not throw a fit! Listening to kitt was like listening to paint dry. The St. Elsewhere guy from the original series had a much more suitable voice. They could have done the kitt voice much better.

That said... I thought the show was awesome. I loved the original kight rider in the first season or so. But then it seemed like the ideas for eposides were not good and the series became very lame - to the point where I stopped watching.

I think if they fix a few issues the potential series would be awesome. I look at this like the spock character in the original star trek pilot with Geoffery Hunter. Spock's acting was horrible and nemoy grew it into a character pretty much everyone loves. I would hope the same could be done here.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

Actually they did have another voice for KI3T...

However, at a later date... there was a conflict of intrest... and they basically had to re-dub the voice with Val Kilmer.

If it becomes a series, I would suspect that they will find a different voice (that probably carries a lower price tag)


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## gcisko (Sep 27, 2006)

Earl Bonovich said:


> Reminder to anyone that missed it.
> 
> Knight Rider is replayed TONIGHT on most NBC affiliates


Did the chicago rebroadcast have the squished 16:9 picture during the first 2 comercials like the original broadcast? It was in 16:9 but with black bars on each side. After the second comercial it was full screen 16:9 HD.

And was it confirmed that only the chicago NBC affiliate had that problem? It looked more like a nework feed issue.


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## gcisko (Sep 27, 2006)

Earl Bonovich said:


> Actually they did have another voice for KI3T...
> 
> However, at a later date... there was a conflict of intrest... and they basically had to re-dub the voice with Val Kilmer.
> 
> If it becomes a series, I would suspect that they will find a different voice (that probably carries a lower price tag)


That was Val Kilmer???


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

gcisko said:


> Did the chicago rebroadcast have the squished 16:9 picture during the first 2 comercials like the original broadcast? It was in 16:9 but with black bars on each side. After the second comercial it was full screen 16:9 HD.
> 
> And was it confirmed that only the chicago NBC affiliate had that problem? It looked more like a nework feed issue.


The rebroadcast did not have the issue.

From the feedback that I saw else where, it seemed to be a local affiliate issue.


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

Earl Bonovich said:


> If it becomes a series, I would suspect that they will find a different voice (that probably carries a lower price tag)


I agree... he is too recognizable not to demand more money than a voice-over is worth. I'm not even sure Kilmer would want to tie himself down to a TV series if he was acting in it, much less a voice role only. Not saying he is a top-knotch-high-salary actor... but he's gotta command more than worth for this kind of role.

If they're smart, they'll take some time to voice-test some unknowns and pick a good voice that won't eat up the cost of the show. IF it were to become popular, then the voice-actor is going to demand even more because of being identified with the car... so they might as well try and save money on the early episodes.

Pilots are notoriously re-cast, and re-casting KITT from the pilot would be an easy "we remodulated his voice" 5 second explanation and then move on... but once the show gets established, that becomes harder to do. Which is why so many people even on a new show have trouble not associating the original voice-actor with the car, even when the car is completely different.


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## RunnerFL (Jan 5, 2006)

gcisko said:


> That was Val Kilmer???


Yes, I recognized his voice from the first 2 words he said. I think he was a great choice, even though he was the second choice.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

gcisko said:


> That was Val Kilmer???


Yep... sure was


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## RunnerFL (Jan 5, 2006)

HDMe said:


> I agree... he is too recognizable not to demand more money than a voice-over is worth. I'm not even sure Kilmer would want to tie himself down to a TV series if he was acting in it, much less a voice role only. Not saying he is a top-knotch-high-salary actor... but he's gotta command more than worth for this kind of role.


I don't agree. He may cost more but they wouldn't be paying him to act, just to do the voice. And if he does the voice in this show it doesn't mean he can't still do movies and such. He wouldn't be tied down at all.

The guy who was the voice if KITT in the original series was also on St. Elsewhere at the same time. It didn't stop him from having a "normal" career.


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## RobertE (Jun 10, 2006)

Earl Bonovich said:


> Actually they did have another voice for KI3T...
> 
> However, at a later date... there was a conflict of intrest... and they basically had to re-dub the voice with Val Kilmer.
> 
> If it becomes a series, I would suspect that they will find a different voice (that probably carries a lower price tag)


My vote, Mike Rowe.  He's already on Fords payroll, so why not.


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## kitchj (Aug 3, 2007)

I was finally able to watch this last night. I really did enjoy it. It definitely brings back the car/motorcycle/helicopter craze of the 80s  I love that everything doesn't have to feel "real". It is a very fun show, and I hope it gets picked up for sure.

I actually liked Val Kilmer's voice as KI3T.

My one complaint was the first 5 minutes. I expected it to be a fun show to watch with my boys, and there was Mike in bed with two women. And then FBI agent comes back to her bedroom with her woman. I don't get why shows feel they have to add this all the time. There are more discreet ways to show him as a playboy, etc.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

RobertE said:


> My vote, Mike Rowe.  He's already on Fords payroll, so why not.


That wouldn't be so bad.....
He would also have a great "smart-alic" voice over as well.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

RobertE said:


> My vote, Mike Rowe.  He's already on Fords payroll, so why not.


That would be an interesting choice .. I though Kilmer did a fine job and if available he could continue .. Obviously it wouldn't be free, but it wouldn't take that much of his time and he wouldn't have to get all made up to perform.

Besides, how do we know that Val Kilmer isn't a Knight Rider fan and simply wanted (wants) to do it because it's cool! Actors have been known to have different rates depending on the situation.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

Doug Brott said:


> Besides, how do we know that Val Kilmer isn't a Knight Rider fan and simply wanted (wants) to do it because it's cool! Actors have been known to have different rates depending on the situation.


Doing the TV Movie is one thing (for a low rate)...
But the Series... that is probably another (and one that the Actors Union would probably get involved in.)


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## RobertE (Jun 10, 2006)

I think Kilmer did a good job, I think Rowe would be even better. He would give KI3T an attitude. His dry, sarcastic, snarky sense of humor would add some soul to the car and give it a personality. Some of the jabs that KI3T & Mike (character, not Rowe) could have would be priceless.

Maybe I'll drop an email to him via Dirty Jobs.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

RobertE said:


> Maybe I'll drop an email to him via Dirty Jobs.


Let us know if you hear back ..


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

RunnerFL said:


> I don't agree. He may cost more but they wouldn't be paying him to act, just to do the voice. And if he does the voice in this show it doesn't mean he can't still do movies and such. He wouldn't be tied down at all.
> 
> The guy who was the voice if KITT in the original series was also on St. Elsewhere at the same time. It didn't stop him from having a "normal" career.


My point was... if the show becomes a series, Kilmer (and anyone really) would become "known" to be the voice of the car... and each season the show goes on, it becomes tougher to replace that voice... and the voice-actor knows it. Taking a well-known actor to start with just starts the price at a higher point.

The Dukes of Hazzard tried replacing Bo & Luke when they wanted more money... the show suffered (granted, it wasn't classic literature)... Bewitched got lucky and a lot of people accepted the new Darren without an eyeblink. You can never tell.

Val Kilmer could certainly find the time for the voice work without sacrificing whatever else he does. The voice of Jor-El on Smallville (Terrance Stamp) isn't even done in the same country! Last I heard he does it from his home over a high-speed internet connection or something when they need him... but you can be sure the asking price for the work will go up if the show is popular.

And really, there's no point in hiring a known actor with name-recognition when he won't see camera time. The original KITT voice-actor was convenient because he was already on a network show so they had access to him and probably could bundle it somehow into his network contract at a discount + he wasn't a super-famous movie big-budget actor either.

For KITT, all you really need is a quality voiceover person.. and while it is a skill no doubt, there have to be a lot of guys (or gals) you could find who would do the same calibre of work for less money.


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## frederic1943 (Dec 2, 2006)

Earl Bonovich said:


> Doing the TV Movie is one thing (for a low rate)...
> But the Series... that is probably another (and one that the Actors Union would probably get involved in.)


As long as an actor is paid scale the Actors Union would be satisfied. The bigger "Name" an actor is the more he/she can demand above scale. Disney studios is famous for never paying an actor above scale for their movies.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

frederic1943 said:


> As long as an actor is paid scale the Actors Union would be satisfied. The bigger "Name" an actor is the more he/she can demand above scale. Disney studios is famous for never paying an actor above scale for their movies.


But that is what I mean...

A bigger 'name' actor can't go below "scale" even if he/she wanted to.


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## frederic1943 (Dec 2, 2006)

Earl Bonovich said:


> But that is what I mean...
> 
> A bigger 'name' actor can't go below "scale" even if he/she wanted to.


No one can officially go below scale. A first time actor or Charlton Heston get paid the same at scale. Scale is like minimum wage. You can pay someone more but not less. So it wouldn't matter who does the voice of KITT as long as they were willing to work for scale.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

frederic1943 said:


> No one can officially go below scale. A first time actor or Charlton Heston get paid the same at scale. Scale is like minimum wage. You can pay someone more but not less.


Exactly... and that is a shame...

If someone willing wants to do something at a lower rate, because they believe in it... or just flat out wants to do it.... they should have the option.

I can take a contract job, at what ever rate I want to in my career path... even if it is rock bottom on a scale...

Oh well... that really isn't the point, unless it is a major factor in getting Knight Rider into a series...

There are probably 1,000's of people that would be a great voice for KI3T
And honestly even if it is an absolutely no name we have never heard before... he/she would be known as KI3T for a long time


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## longrider (Apr 21, 2007)

I know I'm late to this but I was out of town and just watched the show last night. The broadcast problem appeared to be in the network feed, what I recorded was after the commercial break it had severe technical problems, no video and audio dropping in and out of DD for about 10 seconds then the Denver station appeared to cut to the letterboxed SD feed which gave the windowbox effect. It came back after a few minutes and was fine to the end.

I really hope this does become a series, not all TV needs to be serious, relevant info. A show like this can be simple entertainment to take your mind off reality for a while. I thoroughly enjoyed it and would watch it over a lot of the crap that is aired now.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

longrider said:


> not all TV needs to be serious, relevant info. A show like this can be simple entertainment to take your mind off reality for a while.


Kinda like _Chuck_?


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## Supervolcano (Jan 23, 2007)

TNGTony said:


> The bad car chase was ended with a "wait a minute" moment when a person left behind at the beginning of the car chase meets back up with everyone seconds after the termination of the car chase FROM THE OTHER DIRECTION. Unless Scotty was aboard the enterprise in a time anomaly and beamed this person over to the next town, that was pretty bad writing/editing/continuity or all the above.





elaclair said:


> Even though the mind-candy part that has you check your reality at the door, there were two things that just bugged me. 1. You really mean to tell me that a super-tuned 550HP Mustang Shelby can't outrun a Ford Edge?? And 2. After _SLIDING_ to a halt in front of the Denali, KITT suddenly became an immovable object....hmmmmm .


And let's not forget that after KITT picked up the girl from the school ... and eluded the bad guys who were shooting at it ... KITT told the girl it could drive the 600+ miles to Las Vegas where the good guy was in about 3 hours.

So it could drive roughly 200 miles per hour.
Cool, I can dig that part.

They get near Vegas, find the good guy made a cash withdrawl at a particular casino thanks to KITT's extensive database resources, and even catches a security camera shot so they know what table he's at ... and wouldn't you know it ... The girl gets to the poker table ... and bad guys are already there watching them!!!

Call me crazy, but I'd rather have the car the bad guys had!!!
:lol: 
But seriously, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie.
Can't wait for it to become a series.


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## RunnerFL (Jan 5, 2006)

Supervolcano said:


> Call me crazy, but I'd rather have the car the bad guys had!!!


They had a helicopter.


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## spartanstew (Nov 16, 2005)

Supervolcano said:


> And let's not forget that after KITT picked up the girl from the school ... and eluded the bad guys who were shooting at it ... KITT told the girl it could drive the 600+ miles to Las Vegas where the good guy was in about 3 hours.
> 
> So it could drive roughly 200 miles per hour.
> Cool, I can dig that part.


Except that if he could drive 200 miler per hour, why did it take KITT so long to lose the bad guys after picking her up?

I hate stuff like that. Those guys were on his tail for a LONG time. That's bad writing (and there was lots of it).

If it becomes a series, I'll probably give it another shot, but I couldn't watch that "movie".


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## gulfwarvet (Mar 7, 2007)

spartanstew said:


> Except that if he could drive 200 miler per hour, why did it take KITT so long to lose the bad guys after picking her up?
> 
> I hate stuff like that. Those guys were on his tail for a LONG time. That's bad writing (and there was lots of it).
> 
> If it becomes a series, I'll probably give it another shot, but I couldn't watch that "movie".


i just wish i could have seen the entire movie. stupid power outage caused me to lose the 2nd hour of it.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

spartanstew said:


> That's bad writing (and there was lots of it).


I'm not so much in disagreement here, but I will give the show a small pass due to circumstances.

source


> Fulfilling Silverman's vision wasn't easy, what with only five months to make it real. David Andron belted out a script in 12 days - not a lot of time to brainstorm new mythology for an old franchise. (That's difficult even with ample development time. See: Bionic Woman.) And because of the strike, Andron couldn't tweak the script during filming, even though he was on set (in a WGA-approved producing capacity) while his fellow scribes were picketing. ''I was like, 'Am I going to abandon this?''' says Andron, who would likely serve as one of the showrunners if Knight Rider goes to series. ''I'd like to think that if I wasn't here, it wouldn't be as good.'


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## Supervolcano (Jan 23, 2007)

gulfwarvet said:


> i just wish i could have seen the entire movie. stupid power outage caused me to lose the 2nd hour of it.


Did a little checking and found out you CAN watch this movie for free at NBC's website.

http://www.nbc.com/Knight_Rider/video/episodes.shtml#vid=219277

If that link doesn't work, find it manually.

http://www.nbc.com/

Go into the scroll for "Watch Video Online Now".
Find "Knight Rider".
Click the blue circular icon to begin playback.

Don't know how long it will be available on the website, so you might want to watch it soon. I get the feeling from reading at the site that shows are only available for 7 days after airing (and the last showing was this past Saturday night).

I tried to find a link to download it from the site and couldn't. I even downloaded their stupid "NBC Direct" media player and it can't even find the video. Good side is you can use trickplay to find the portion you missed. Bad side is, yes, there are a few 30 second commercials you have to deal with.


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## chris0 (Jun 25, 2007)

Earl Bonovich said:


> If it becomes a series, I would suspect that they will find a different voice (that probably carries a lower price tag)


I'd suspect that any contract signed for doing the voice for the movie would also include doing the voice for the series. Normally. Since he was a last minute replacement, though, who knows?



RobertE said:


> My vote, Mike Rowe.  He's already on Fords payroll, so why not.


Mike Rowe would be most excellent as the voice of KITT. But there'd have to be a never-seen programmer or tech that KITT keeps referring to named "Barsky."


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## gulfwarvet (Mar 7, 2007)

Supervolcano said:


> Did a little checking and found out you CAN watch this movie for free at NBC's website.
> 
> http://www.nbc.com/Knight_Rider/video/episodes.shtml#vid=219277
> 
> ...


Thanks will check it out tonight


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