One of the promises of streaming was that we’d be able to get everything. Now we know that isn’t true. Stuff disappears from streaming services all the time, and I’ve noted it in this article a few times. And then, some content never quite gets to streaming. Such is the case with a pair of shows I’d like to reminisce about today.
Remington Steele
In the early 1980s, Remington Steele was a bona fide hit. At least it was for the first two seasons. The show’s premise was simple. It was at heart a typical private eye show, of the sort that was common at the time. However, the agency was headed by a woman who couldn’t be taken seriously. This was the 1980s, folks. So, she invented a superior… a decidedly masculine superior. This figurehead, whom she named Remington Steele, was a complete fiction until one day a con man walked into the office, assumed the name, and as they say hilarity ensued.
Laura Holt and Remington Steele solved crimes together with spark and panache. The analytical Holt and the suave Steele often clashed but always with a bit of romance hanging over them. Laura Holt was played by Stephanie Zimbalist, daughter of then-famous TV actor Efrem Zimbalist. The elder Zimbalist later took on a recurring role as a father figure to Steele, in one of many “meta” references.
Steele himself was played by then-unknown Pierce Brosnan. Brosnan was considered for James Bond, but had to turn down the role when he wasn’t released from his Remington Steele contract. As we all know he did finally take on the Bond role a decade later.
This show was one of the first really “wink at the audience” sort of shows. It didn’t start out that way, but as viewership declined, the in-jokes started to abound. By the start of the shortened fifth season, the characters would wince noticeably at camera whenever the word “canceled” was used, for example.
Moonlighting
In the first season of its short run, Moonlighting was a cultural phenomenon. It paired world-renowned actress and model Cybill Shepherd with then unknown bartender Bruce Willis, in his first major role of any kind. Like Remington Steele, the setting was a female-run detective agency, and the two leads were forced to work together to solve crimes. This time, the meta references were a lot more obvious from day one.
Sadly, the show sank quickly in the ratings. Reports from set had Shepherd and Willis at each other’s throats and both threatening to leave the show. By season two neither was on camera much, replaced by the equally delightful pair of Allyce Beasley and Curtis Armstrong. Still, the show disappeared from our consciousness as quickly as it appeared.
You can’t stream either of these gems
Both of these shows were created by the same person: Glenn Gordon Caron, then a prolific producer. According to a recent interview, Caron blames music clearance issues. He says that the shows, particularly Moonlighting, have so much popular music in them that it would be impossible to show them as they originally appeared. This seems to be less of a case for Remington Steele, which has at least aired on broadcast television.
That same interview calls “bull” on that claim, saying that music clearance issues usually disappear when an app really wants a show. For example, it was claimed for years that The Muppet Show couldn’t stream for similar reasons. And then boom, it did.
Both shows were shot on film, which would need to be remastered to HD or 4K. Yes, you would either need to clear the music or replace it with something similar. But these aren’t really huge issues if someone really wants to take them on. And I think that’s the problem.
I am willing to say out loud that neither Glenn Gordon Caron nor any of the major streamers want to put in the time and effort. It’s a shame, really. Would it really be that hard? Would return on investment really be impossible?
There are a few episodes of Moonlighting on YouTube, and as I said it’s not impossible to find Remington Steele on broadcast TV, usually on subchannels. But the quality is subpar of course, and these shows do deserve better than they have gotten. Both were favorites of mine at different times in my life, and I would welcome the chance to see if they’ve held up or if I just remember them being better than they were.
