''Action Pack'', also called Universal Action Pack, was a syndicated programming block series of

television movies Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, e ...

and

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

created by

Universal Television Universal Television LLC (abbreviated as UTV) is an American television production company that is a subsidiary of Universal Studio Group, a division of Comcast's NBCUniversal. It serves as the network television production arm of NBC; a prede ...

that aired from

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nelson ...

until 2001. The ''Action Pack'' included two hours of various television series produced by

Renaissance Pictures Raimi Productions (formerly Renaissance Pictures) is an American film and television production company. It was founded by director Sam Raimi, producer Robert Tapert, and actor Bruce Campbell, with help from publicist Irvin Shapiro, on August ...

and distributed by MCA TV (later known as Universal Television Enterprises and Studios USA Television Distribution).

Background

Previously, there were three attempts by MCA TV/Universal Television to launch some sort of organized independent programming. First, MCA TV launched the ad hoc movie

Universal Pictures Debut Network The Universal Pictures Debut Network, or simply the Debut Network, was a syndicated movie package that MCA Television sold to independent stations. The service reached agreements with ten stations in larger American markets such as New York City ...

in 1985. With Premier Program Service, MCA TV teamed up with Paramount for this planned network by October 1989 which was abandoned in February 1990. The last was a two night three-series Hollywood Premiere Network in 1990–91.

History

In 1994, the ''Action Pack'' initially ran as a

Wheel series A wheel series, wheel show, wheel format or umbrella series is a television series in which two or more regular programs are rotated in the same time slot. Sometimes the wheel series is given its own umbrella title and promoted as a single unit ins ...

of television movies, which were all effectively pilots; if successful, they would become TV series the following season.Mysteries Surrounding the Creation of the Syndicated Television Show XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS
Whoosh Online Edition. Issue Three. November 1996. The initial plan was for four films created from six franchises for the block including ''

TekWar ''TekWar'' is a series of science fiction novels created by Canadian actor William Shatner and ghost-written by American writer Ron Goulart, published by Putnam beginning in October 1989. The novels gave rise to a comic book series, video game, an ...

'', ''

Smokey and the Bandit ''Smokey and the Bandit'' is a 1977 American road action comedy film starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Pat McCormick, Paul Williams and Mike Henry. The directorial debut of stuntman Hal Needham, the film follows ...

'', ''

Midnight Run ''Midnight Run'' is a 1988 American road action comedy film directed by Martin Brest and starring Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin. Yaphet Kotto, John Ashton, Dennis Farina, Joe Pantoliano, and Philip Baker Hall play supporting roles. At the 4 ...

'', ''

Hercules: The Legendary Journeys ''Hercules: The Legendary Journeys'' is an American television series filmed in New Zealand, based on the tales of the classical Greek culture hero Heracles (Hercules was his Roman analogue). Starring Kevin Sorbo as Hercules and Michael Hurst as ...

'', ''

Vanishing Son ''Vanishing Son'' is an American action television series that was part of Universal Television's Action Pack. Starting as a series of four television films in 1994, the series debuted in syndication on January 16, 1995. ''Vanishing Son I'', ''V ...

'' and the working title ''Fastlane'' when offered at programming executive conference in January 1994. On January 17 and 18, 1994, a dozen stations showed ''

'', the premiere TV movie of the programming block. The stations' ratings increased greatly with a 350% increase in KOFY in San Francisco. MCA cut Rob Cohen's ''Midnight Run'' to three films, so that star Christopher McDonald could star in a feature film. Cohen produced ''

Knight Rider 2010 ''Knight Rider 2010'' is a 1994 American science fiction action television film directed by Sam Pillsbury and written by John Leekley, loosely based on the television series ''Knight Rider''. The film stars Richard Joseph Paul, Heidi Leick, Mi ...

'' as a replacement. The block aired its first season until January 1995 and lost $30 million. ''TekWar'' was picked up as a regular TV series for the

USA Network USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madison ...

instead of Action Pack, starting in January 1995. From January to June 1995, the block included ''Hercules: The Legendary Journeys'' and ''Vanishing Son''. The ''Hercules'' series became a surprise hit as the third most watched first-run syndicated action hour. From September 1995 through January 2000, ''Action Pack'' included ''Hercules: The Legendary Journeys'' and its spinoff, '' Xena: Warrior Princess''. After ''Hercules'' ended its run in January 2000, the ''Universal Action Pack'' launched the ''Back2Back Action Hour'' consisting of two thirty-minute series: '' Jack of All Trades'' and ''

Cleopatra 2525 ''Cleopatra 2525'' is an American science fiction television series that aired in syndication for two seasons, from January 2000 to March 2001. Produced by Renaissance Pictures and distributed by Studios USA, many stations aired it as part of th ...

'' to air alongside ''Xena''. The lineup lasted until second quarter 2001. ''Jack of All Trades'' and ''Xena'' were canceled and ''Cleopatra 2525'' was increased to an hour long show in January 2001. After ''Xena'', the most successful series on the ''Action Pack'', completed airing its final season's reruns in the summer of 2001, ''Cleopatra 2525'' also stopped production and the ''Action Pack'' block was discontinued.

Television movies

The television movies aired during the ''Action Pack's'' first year included:

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the ...

series: *'' Hercules and the Amazon Women'' *'' Hercules and the Lost Kingdom'' *'' Hercules and the Circle of Fire'' *''

Hercules in the Underworld ''Hercules in the Underworld'' is the fourth television movie in the syndicated fantasy series ''Hercules: The Legendary Journeys''. In the film, Hercules is finally a happy family man with his wife Deianeira, two young sons Aeson and Clonus, d ...

'' *''

Hercules in the Maze of the Minotaur ''Hercules in the Maze of the Minotaur'' is the fifth and final television movie in the syndicated fantasy series ''Hercules: The Legendary Journeys''. In the film, Hercules has given up his days of traveling and has settled down to spend some ...

(Based on

the books ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

William Shatner William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1965 debut as the captain of the starship ''Enterpris ...

): *''Tekwar'' *''

TekLords ''TekWar: TekLords'' is a 1994 TV movie, based on a series of books by William Shatner. It is the second TV movie made from the series of books. It aired on 20 February 1994 and is preceded by ''TekWar'' (23 January 1994). It precedes '' TekWar: ...

'' *''Teklab'' *''TekJustice'', an original story The Midnight Run Action Pack,

films (Spin-offs of the 1988 Robert De Niro film): *''

Another Midnight Run ''Another Midnight Run'' is a 1994 American made-for-television film, and the first in a series of television films produced for Universal Television's Action Pack programming block and based on the 1988 feature film ''Midnight Run''. Christophe ...

'' *'' Midnight Runaround'' *'' Midnight Run for Your Life''

Bandit Banditry is a type of organized crime committed by outlaws typically involving the threat or use of violence. A person who engages in banditry is known as a bandit and primarily commits crimes such as extortion, robbery, and murder, either as an ...

films (Spin-offs of the ''

'' films): *''Bandit Goes Country'' *''Bandit Bandit'' *''Beauty and the Bandit'' *''Bandit's Silver Angel''

films: *''Vanishing Son I'' *''Vanishing Son II'' *''Vanishing Son III'' *''Vanishing Son IV'' Starting as a series of four made for television movies in

, the series debuted on January 16, 1995. ''Vanishing Son I'', ''Vanishing Son II'', ''Vanishing Son III'', and ''Vanishing Son IV'', were aired on February 28, July 18, July 25, and October 10, 1994, respectively. The series was ground-breaking for the casting of an

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

male in an attractive leading-man role. An additional movie was a part of the initial lineup, titled ''Fastlane'' was set to be directed by

John Landis John David Landis (born August 3, 1950) is an American comedy and fantasy filmmaker and actor. He is best known for the comedy films that he has directed – such as ''The Kentucky Fried Movie'' (1977), ''National Lampoon's Animal House'' (1978 ...

and would concern two friends finding a spaceship/car hybrid vehicle. However, for unknown reasons the project never actually made it to air. The "shell" prop for the spaceship/car (which was designed to fit over a

Pontiac Fiero The Pontiac Fiero is a mid-engine sports car manufactured and marketed by Pontiac for model years 1984-1988. Designed by George Milidrag and Hulki Aldikacti as a sports car, it was the first two-seater Pontiac since the 1926 to 1938 coupes, an ...

) was auctioned off in 2007. *''

'' (1994) *''The Adventures of Captain Zoom'' (December 9, 1995) * '' Beastmaster III: The Eye of Braxus'' (May 24th, 1996) * ''Atlantis: The Lost Continent'', first shown on a Starz/Encore network channel in March 1997 before being run on Action Pack as a pilot TV film in August 1997. When it finally aired it was known as ''Escape From Atlantis.''

Series

*''

'' * ''

'' * '' Xena: Warrior Princess'' * ''Back2Back Action Hour'' **'' Jack of All Trades'' **''

Theme song

The theme song is used in the ''Action Pack'' opening sequence, sponsorships, as well as the full version of the theme used in promos for the TV movies. The theme was composed by

Velton Ray Bunch Velton Ray Bunch (born January 22, 1948 in Goldsboro, North Carolina) is a film and television composer. Sometimes credited as ''Ray Bunch''. Bunch has been nominated for an Emmy three times for his work, and won the fourth time for his score t ...

Carrying stations

* KTLA, Los Angeles * KLRT, Little Rock * KOFY, San Francisco *

WPIX WPIX (channel 11) is a television station in New York City. Owned by Mission Broadcasting, it is operated under a local marketing agreement (LMA) by Nexstar Media Group, making it a ''de facto'' owned-and-operated station and flagship of Th ...

, New York * WSBK, Boston * KPLR, St. Louis * WDZL, Miami *

KDFW KDFW (channel 4) is a television station licensed to Dallas, Texas, United States, broadcasting the Fox network to the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside MyNe ...

KTXA KTXA (channel 21) is an independent television station in Fort Worth, Texas, United States, serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is owned by the CBS News and Stations group alongside Fort Worth–based CBS station KTVT (channel 11). B ...

KDFI KDFI (channel 27), branded on-air as Fox 4 More or More 27, is a television station licensed to Dallas, Texas, United States, broadcasting MyNetworkTV to the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is owned and operated by Fox Television Stations alon ...

KDAF KDAF (channel 33) is a television station licensed to Dallas, Texas, United States, serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex with programming from The CW. It is owned and operated by network majority owner Nexstar Media Group (based in nea ...

, Dallas *

KIAH KIAH (channel 39) is a television station in Houston, Texas, United States, airing programming from The CW. Owned and operated by network majority owner Nexstar Media Group, the station maintains studios adjacent to the Westpark Tollway on th ...

Houston * WGN, Chicago * KRCW, Portland * WCWB, Pittsburgh * WGNX, Atlanta * WDCA-20,

WDCW WDCW (channel 50), branded on-air as DCW 50, is a television station in Washington, D.C., airing programming from The CW. It is owned and operated by network majority owner Nexstar Media Group alongside Hagerstown, Maryland–licensed independen ...

, Washington, DC *

WFLX WFLX (channel 29), branded on-air as Fox 29, is a television station in West Palm Beach, Florida, United States, affiliated with the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox network. It is owned by Gray Television, which maintains a shared services agree ...

, West Palm Beach * KYES, Anchorage *

WCWJ WCWJ (channel 17) is a television station in Jacksonville, Florida, United States, affiliated with The CW. It is owned by Graham Media Group alongside independent station WJXT (channel 4). Both stations share studios at 4 Broadcast Place on the ...

, Jacksonville *

WNUV WNUV (channel 54) is a television station in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, affiliated with The CW. It is owned by Cunningham Broadcasting, which maintains a local marketing agreement (LMA) with Sinclair Broadcast Group, owner of Fox/MyNetw ...

, Baltimore * WFLI, Chattanooga, TN * WFVT, Rock Hill, SC / Charlotte, NC * WLMT-TV, Memphis, TN *

WPSG WPSG (channel 57) is a television station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, affiliated with The CW. It is owned by the CBS News and Stations group alongside CBS owned-and-operated station KYW-TV (channel 3). Both stations share stu ...

, Philadelphia, PA *

WUPA WUPA (channel 69) is a television station in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, affiliated with The CW. The station is owned by the CBS News and Stations group and maintains studios on Northeast Expressway (I-85) in unincorporated DeKalb County ( ...

, Atlanta, GA *

WFTC WFTC (channel 9.2) is a television station licensed to Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, broadcasting the MyNetworkTV programming service to the Twin Cities area. It is owned and operated by Fox Television Stations alongside Fox outlet ...

, Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN *

WKBD WKBD-TV (channel 50) is a television station in Detroit, Michigan, United States, affiliated with The CW. It is owned by the CBS News and Stations group alongside CBS owned-and-operated station WWJ-TV (channel 62). Both stations share studios o ...

, Detroit, MI * WKCF,

WOFL WOFL (channel 35) is a television station in Orlando, Florida, United States, airing programming from the Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside MyNetworkTV outlet WRBW (channel 65) ...

, Orlando, FL *

WTVT WTVT (channel 13) is a television station licensed to Tampa, Florida, United States, broadcasting the Fox network to the Tampa Bay area. Owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division, WTVT maintains studios on Kenne ...

, Tampa, FL *

KUTP KUTP (channel 45), branded on-air as Fox 10 Xtra, is a television station in Phoenix, Arizona, United States, broadcasting the MyNetworkTV programming service. It is owned and operated by Fox Television Stations alongside Fox outlet KSAZ-TV (c ...

, Phoenix, AZ

References

{{Reflist, 2 Television syndication packages Television programming blocks in the United States First-run syndicated television programs in the United States 1990s American television series 1994 American television series debuts 2001 American television series endings Television series by Universal Television