''Sonny Spoon'' is 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 that aired on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

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from February 12 to December 16, 1988. The series was created by Michael Daly, Dinah Prince, Stephen J. Cannell, and

Randall Wallace Randall Wallace (born July 28, 1949) is an American screenwriter, film director, producer, and songwriter who came to prominence by writing the screenplay for the historical drama film ''Braveheart'' (1995). His work on the film earned him a nom ...

and produced by Stephen J. Cannell Productions (the fall 1988 episodes were in association with

NBC Productions 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 predeces ...

Overview

''Sonny Spoon'' stars

Mario Van Peebles Mario Van Peebles (born January 15, 1957) is an American film director and actor best known for directing and starring in ''New Jack City'' in 1991 and '' USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage'' in 2016. He is the son of actor and filmmaker Melvin Va ...

as Sonny, a hip,

black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

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 ...

who uses his street smarts and "cool" persona to solve crimes. He often assists, and is assisted by, Carolyn Gilder (Terry Donahoe), an attractive assistant

district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a l ...

. Additionally, Sonny was a master of disguises, and might spend part of any given episode dressed as a clergyman, an Arab tourist, or an old lady. He used his many connections on the streets and relationships with friends and informants (who were apparently attracted to him mostly by his vibrant personality, as he had little cash to share with them) to further his ends, and also the insights of his father, Mel, a bar owner (played by

Melvin Van Peebles Melvin Van Peebles (born Melvin Peebles; August 21, 1932 – September 21, 2021) was an American actor, filmmaker, writer, and composer. He worked as an active filmmaker into the 2000s. His feature film debut, ''The Story of a Three-Day Pass'' ( ...

, Mario's real-life father).

Cast

as Sonny Spoon *

as Mel Spoon * Terry Donahoe as Carolyn Gilder * Jordana Capra as Monique *

Bob Wieland Bob Wieland is a Vietnam War veteran who lost his legs to a mortar mine in 1969. After recovering from his injuries he was inspired to become a marathon participant. Over his lifetime he has finished many marathons, often taking multiple days t ...

as Johnny Skates * Larry Friel as Det. Bartlett

Episodes

Season 1 (1988)

Season 2 (1988)

Production

''Sonny Spoon'' began its run as a mid-season replacement in February 1988, and was renewed for a second season. It did not sustain its early momentum and was canceled in December 1988.

Broadcast history

References

Sources * Brooks, Tim and Marsh, Earle, ''

The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows ''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 ...

External links

* 1988 American television series debuts 1988 American television series endings NBC original programming Television series by Stephen J. Cannell Productions Television series by Universal Television Television series by 20th Century Fox Television 1980s American crime drama television series English-language television shows Television shows set in Los Angeles {{US-drama-tv-prog-stub