KITT or K.I.T.T. is the short name of two fictional characters from the adventure franchise '' Knight Rider''. While having the same acronym, the KITTs are two different entities: one known as the Knight Industries Two Thousand, which appeared in the original TV series ''Knight Rider'', and the other as the Knight Industries Three Thousand, which appeared first in the two-hour 2008

pilot film is a Japanese animated short film directed by Masaaki Ōsumi, which was created around 1969. It is the first animated adaptation of the ''Lupin III'' manga series, created by Monkey Punch in 1967. The 12-minute film was created by Tokyo Movie ...

for a new ''Knight Rider'' TV series and then the new series itself. In both instances, KITT is an artificially intelligent electronic computer module in the body of a highly advanced, very mobile, robotic automobile: the original KITT as a 1982 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am, and the second KITT as a 2008–2009 Ford Shelby GT500KR. During filming, KITT was voiced by a script assistant, with voice actors recording KITT's dialog later. David Hasselhoff and original series voice actor William Daniels first met each other six months after the series began filming. KITT's evil twin is KARR, whose name is an acronym of Knight Automated Roving Robot. KARR was voiced first by Peter Cullen and later by Paul Frees in seasons one and three, respectively, of the NBC original TV series ''Knight Rider''. A 1991 sequel film, '' Knight Rider 2000'', is centered on KITT's original microprocessor unit transferred into the body of the vehicle intended to be his successor, the Knight Industries Four Thousand (Knight 4000), voiced by Carmen Argenziano and William Daniels. Val Kilmer voiced KITT in the 2008–2009 ''Knight Rider'' series.

Knight Industries Two Thousand (KITT)

In the original '' Knight Rider'' series, the character of KITT (Knight Industries Two Thousand) was physically embodied as a modified 1982 Pontiac Trans Am. KITT was designed by customizer Michael Scheffe. The convertible and super-pursuit KITTs were designed and built by George Barris.

Development

In the history of the television show, the first KITT, voiced by William Daniels, was said to have been designed by the late Wilton Knight, a brilliant but eccentric billionaire, who established the Foundation for Law And Government (FLAG) and its parent Knight Industries. The 2008

implied that Charles Graiman, creator of the Knight Industries Three Thousand, also had a hand in designing the first KITT. An unknown number of KITT's systems were designed at Stanford University. KITT's total initial production cost was estimated at $11,400,000 in 1982 (Episode 5, "Just My Bill"). The 1991 movie '' Knight Rider 2000'' saw the first KITT (Knight Industries Two Thousand) in pieces, and Michael Knight himself reviving the Knight 2000 microprocessor unit, which is eventually transferred into the body of the vehicle intended to be the original KITT's direct successor, the Knight 4000. The new vehicle was a modified 1991 Dodge Stealth, appearing similar to the Pontiac Banshee prototype. In the 1997–1998 spin-off series '' Team Knight Rider'', KITT is employed as a shadow advisor. It is later revealed that "The Shadow" is actually a hologram run by KITT. In "Knight of the Living Dead", Graiman states a third KITT exists as a backup. When KITT is about to die, his memories are downloaded so the third KITT can use them. However, the third AI is not used in the end. While the 2008 pilot movie, and then the new series, appears to be a revamp of the original series, it offers some continuity from the original one. The "new" or "second" KITT (Knight Industries Three Thousand) is a different vehicle and microprocessor unit. In ''Knight Rider 2000'', it is stated that most of the Knight 2000 parts had been sold off. However, Graiman's garage in the 2008 pilot shows a more complete collection of parts than in the boxes recovered by Michael Knight in ''Knight Rider 2000''. The original Knight Industries Two Thousand is also shown in the pilot movie (although in pieces) in the scene where the garage of Charles Graiman (creator of the Knight Industries Three Thousand and implied co-designer of the original KITT) is searched by antagonists. A Trans-Am body (without its hood) is partially covered by a tarp, on which rests the rear spoiler. The famous KITT steering wheel (labelled "Knight Two Thousand") and "KNIGHT" license plate are also shown, along with numerous black muscle car body parts. When the camera shows a full scene of the garage, there are four other Knight two thousand cars being stored there. One has been taken apart, and 3 other complete cars. If you pause at the right moment all 4 cars are visible.

AI personality and communication

According to the series, the original KITT's main cybernetic processor was first installed in a

mainframe computer A mainframe computer, informally called a mainframe or big iron, is a computer used primarily by large organizations for critical applications like bulk data processing for tasks such as censuses, industry and consumer statistics, enterpris ...

used by the US government in Washington, D.C. However, Wilton saw better use for "him" in the Foundation's crime-fighting crusade and eventually this AI system was installed in the vehicle. KITT is an advanced

supercomputer A supercomputer is a computer with a high level of performance as compared to a general-purpose computer. The performance of a supercomputer is commonly measured in floating-point operations per second ( FLOPS) instead of million instructions ...

on wheels. The "brain" of KITT is the Knight 2000 microprocessor, which is the centre of a " self-aware" cybernetic logic module. This allows KITT to think, learn, communicate and interact with humans. He is also capable of independent thought and action. He has an ego that is easy to bruise and displays a very sensitive, but kind and dryly humorous personality. According to Episode 55, "Dead of Knight", KITT has 1,000 megabits of memory with one nanosecond access time. According to Episode 65, "Ten Wheel Trouble", KITT's future capacity is unlimited. KITT's serial number is AD227529, as mentioned in Episode 31, "Soul Survivor". Modulador_de_voz_kitt_11-4-2020

KITT's Voice (Anharmonic) Synthesizer (for speech) and Etymotic Equalizer (audio input) allow his logic module to speak and communicate. With it, KITT can also simulate other sounds. KITT's primary spoken language was English; however, by accessing his language module, he can speak fluently in Spanish,

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

and much more. The module can be adjusted, giving KITT different

accent Accent may refer to: Speech and language * Accent (sociolinguistics), way of pronunciation particular to a speaker or group of speakers * Accent (phonetics), prominence given to a particular syllable in a word, or a word in a phrase ** Pitch ac ...

s such as in Episode 82, "Out of the Woods", where KITT uses a "New York City" accent and called Michael "Micky". During the first season, KITT's "mouth" in the interior of the vehicle was indicated by a flashing red square. In episode 14 "Heart of Stone", this was changed to three sectioned vertical bars, as this design proved popular with fans as part of KARR. KITT can also project his voice as a loudspeaker or as a form of ventriloquism (First used in Episode 48, "Knight of the Drones, Pt. 2"). KITT is in constant contact with Michael via a

comlink {{Short pages monitor *

External links

Bringing KITT Back!
as detailed in Project: K.I.T.T. {{Knight Rider Fictional cars Knight Rider characters Fictional artificial intelligences Fictional computers Television characters introduced in 1982 One-off cars Pontiac Fictional characters who can move at superhuman speeds de:Knight Rider#K.I.T.T.