''Shaft'' is a series of television films that aired along with '' Hawkins'' and other TV films during 1973–74 television season on ''

The New CBS Tuesday Night Movies ''The New CBS Tuesday Night Movies'' (known as ''The New CBS Friday Night Movies'' in its first season) was a weekly 90-minute motion picture made expressly for television. The series aired on CBS from 1971 to 1974. During its first two seasons, ...

''. Broadcast every third week, the series is a continuation of the three films beginning with ''Shaft'' (1971), starring

Richard Roundtree Richard Roundtree (born July 9, 1942) is an American actor. Roundtree is noted as being "the first black action hero" for his portrayal of private detective John Shaft in the 1971 film '' Shaft'', and its four sequels, released between 1972 and 2 ...

as private detective John Shaft and Ed Barth as Al Rossi; Barth replaces Angelo Gnazzo, who portrayed the character in ''

Shaft's Big Score! ''Shaft's Big Score!'' is a 1972 American blaxploitation action-crime film starring Richard Roundtree as private detective John Shaft. It is the second entry in the ''Shaft'' film series, with both director Gordon Parks and screenwriter Ernest Ti ...

'' (1972). Because it was aired on over-the-air television, CBS felt that the narrative needed to be toned down. Now instead of opposing the police, Shaft worked with them, creating conflicts with '' Hawkins'' starring cinema legend

James Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military pilot. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morality h ...

, another police series with a starkly different viewership. The show was cancelled after one season. Contemporary analysts suggested that since the two shows—''Shaft'' and ''Hawkins''—appealed to vastly different audience bases, alternating them only served to confuse fans of both series, giving neither one the time to build up a large viewership. A further contributor to its ratings failure was competition from other crime drama series starring African-American private investigators, NBC's ''

Tenafly Tenafly () is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the borough had a population of 15,409,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 ...

's ''

Get Christie Love! ''Get Christie Love!'' is an American crime drama TV series starring Teresa Graves as an undercover African-American female detective which originally aired on ABC from January 22, 1974, until April 5, 1975. The starring television role made Grav ...

''. Richard Roundtree himself has publicly expressed his disdain for the small-screen version of ''Shaft''."Richard Roundtree." ''Unsung Hollywood''. Nar. Gary Anthony Williams. Exec. Prod. Frank Sinton, Arthur Smith, Kent Weed, and Mark Rowland. TV One, 25 Mar. 2015. Television.

Films

Cast and characters

as Det. John Shaft: : A private detective working with the

New York Police Department The New York City Police Department (NYPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, established on May 23, 1845, is the primary municipal law enforcement agency within the City of New York, the largest and one of the oldest in ...

(NYPD). Roundtree reprises his role from the theatrical ''Shaft'' film series. * Ed Barth as Lt. Al Rossi: : An NYPD police lieutenant working with Shaft. Barth replaces Angelo Gnazzo, who portrayed the character in ''

'' (1972).

* This table only shows characters that have appeared in three or more films in the series. * A dark grey cell indicates that the character was not in the film or that the character's presence in the film has yet to be announced.

References

External links

*
TV Party: "Shaft" on TV

Steve Aldous Guide to Shaft TV Series 1973-4
CBS original programming Live action television shows based on films Television series based on adaptations Shaft (franchise) 1973 American television series debuts 1974 American television series endings 1970s American crime drama television series Television shows set in New York City American detective television series {{US-drama-tv-prog-stub