''Matt Houston'' was an American

crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

television series starring

Lee Horsley Lee Arthur Horsley (born May 15, 1955) is an American film, television, and theater actor known for starring roles in the television series ''Nero Wolfe'' (1981), '' Matt Houston'' (1982–1985), and ''Paradise'' (1988–1991). He starred in the ...

as the title character, a wealthy oilman who decides to hold a

side job A side job, also informally called a side hustle or side gig, is an additional job that a person takes in addition to their primary job in order to supplement their income. Side jobs may be done out of necessity, when one's income from their mai ...

as a

private investigator A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI and informally called a private eye), a private detective, or inquiry agent is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigators of ...

. Created by Lawrence Gordon and produced by

Aaron Spelling Aaron Spelling (April 22, 1923 June 23, 2006) was an American film and television producer and occasional actor. His productions included the TV series ''Family'' (1976–1980), '' Charlie's Angels'' (1976–1981), ''The Love Boat'' (1977–1986 ...

, it originally aired on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

for three seasons from 1982 to 1985.

Synopsis

''Matt Houston'' starred

as a wealthy mustachioed Texas oilman named Matlock "Matt" Houston who works as a

in Los Angeles in his abundant free time. The show also starred

Pamela Hensley Pamela Gail Hensley (born October 3, 1950) is an American actress and author. Her notable acting roles include Princess Ardala on the 1979–1981 television series '' Buck Rogers in the 25th Century'' and C.J. Parsons on the 1982–1985 televisio ...

as his lawyer sidekick, C.J., and

George Wyner George Wyner (born October 20, 1945) is an American film and television actor. Wyner graduated from Syracuse University in 1968 as a drama major and was an in-demand character actor by the early 1970s. Wyner has made guest appearances in over 1 ...

as his continuously frustrated business manager, Murray. During the show's third and final season (1984–85),

Buddy Ebsen Buddy Ebsen (born Christian Ludolf Ebsen Jr., April 2, 1908 – July 6, 2003), also known as Frank "Buddy" Ebsen, was an American actor and dancer, whose career spanned seven decades. One of his most famous roles was as Jed Clampett in the CBS ...

played Houston's uncle, Roy Houston. Most episodes typically involve one of Houston's close friends being murdered or involved in some criminal enterprise, requiring his assistance. C.J. had access to an

Apple III The Apple III (styled as apple ///) is a business-oriented personal computer produced by Apple Computer and released in 1980. Running the Apple SOS operating system, it was intended as the successor to the Apple II series, but was largely consi ...

computer named "Baby" containing a database on virtually all living and deceased persons, allowing her to provide all necessary information. Murray frequently complained that Matt's private investigation business failed to make money, while Matt treated it more as an expensive hobby rather than a profit-making venture.

Cast

... Mattlock 'Matt' Houston *

... C.J. Parsons *

John Aprea Jonathan "John" Aprea (born March 4, 1941) is an American actor and comedian, best known for his role as the young Sal Tessio in '' The Godfather: Part II'' (1974) and on television as Lucas Castigliano in '' Another World'' from 1989 to 1992 ...

... Lt. Vince Novelli *

Paul Brinegar Paul Alden Brinegar Jr. (December 19, 1917 – March 27, 1995) was an American character actor best known for his roles in three Western series: ''The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp'', '' Rawhide'', and ''Lancer''. Early years Brinegar was b ...

... Lamar Pettybone *

Dennis Fimple Dennis Clarke Fimple (November 11, 1940 – August 23, 2002) was an American actor. Biography Fimple was born in Ventura, California, the son of Dolly and Elmer Fimple. He graduated from Taft Union High School in 1958 and received a teaching c ...

... Bo *

Penny Santon Pierina Burlando (September 2, 1916 – May 12, 1999) was an American film, stage and television actress. She was known for playing the role of Mama Rosa Novelli in the American crime drama television series ''Matt Houston''. Santon died in May ...

... Mama Rosa Novelli *

Lincoln Kilpatrick Lincoln Kilpatrick (February 12, 1932 – May 18, 2004) was an American film, television, and stage actor. Biography Career Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Kilpatrick attended Lincoln University and earned a degree in drama before he began acting. ...

... Lt. Michael Hoyt *

... Uncle Roy Houston *

... Murray Chase

Episodes

Season 1 (1982–83)

Season 2 (1983–84)

Season 3 (1984–85)

Home media

On March 9, 2010,

CBS DVD CBS Home Entertainment (formerly CBS Video Enterprises, Inc., MGM/CBS Home Video, CBS/Fox Video and CBS Video, currently branded as CBS DVD for DVD releases and CBS Blu-ray for Blu-ray releases) is a home entertainment company owned by Paramoun ...

(Distributed by

Paramount Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to: Entertainment and music companies * Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS. The following busin ...

) released season 1 of ''Matt Houston'' on DVD in Region 1 for the first time. Season 2 was released June 16, 2017 and Season 3 was released on July 21, 2017. On May 4, 2015, it was announced that all three seasons of Matt Houston would be released the summer of 2015 by VEI, Inc. The release was pushed back and was later released on July 15, 2016.'The Complete Collection' Pre-Order: Release Time, Package, More!

Award nominations

References

External links

*
DVD Review of Season One with production history
{{Aaron Spelling 1982 American television series debuts 1985 American television series endings 1980s American crime drama television series American Broadcasting Company original programming English-language television shows Television series by CBS Studios Television series by Spelling Television Television shows set in Los Angeles Houston, Matt