''Chopper One'' was an

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

action-crime television series premiering in early 1974, depicting the activities of a fictional California police helicopter team. The program was produced by television powerhouse

Spelling-Goldberg Productions Spelling-Goldberg Productions was an American television production company established on May 1, 1972 by Aaron Spelling and Screen Gems' top TV executive Leonard Goldberg. They produced series during the 1970s including ''Family'', ''Starsky & ...

. The series aired in a half-hour time slot on Thursdays at 8 p.m. Eastern. The show aired as a lead-in to '' Firehouse'', an action-drama series about a Los Angeles fire station which premiered on the same day. ''Chopper One'' was cancelled after six months with ''Firehouse'' promptly ending the following month.

Story and Characters

''Chopper One'' was directed by E.W. Swackhamer, featuring two flight police officers (a pilot and an observer) and their adventures in a police helicopter. The helicopter was a

Bell 206 The Bell 206 is a family of two-bladed, single- and twin-engined helicopters, manufactured by Bell Helicopter at its Mirabel, Quebec, plant. Originally developed as the Bell YOH-4 for the United States Army's Light Observation Helicopter progr ...

JetRanger. It starred

Jim McMullan James P. McMullan (October 13, 1936 – May 31, 2019) was an American actor from Long Island, New York, best known for his role as Dr. Terry McDaniel on the 1960s series ''Ben Casey'' and as Senator Andrew Dowling on the CBS primetime soap ope ...

as Officer Don Burdick and

Dirk Benedict Dirk Benedict (born Dirk Niewoehner; March 1, 1945) is an American actor and author. He is best known for playing the characters Lieutenant Starbuck in the original ''Battlestar Galactica'' film and television series and Templeton "Face" Peck ...

as Officer Gil Foley. Benedict would later earn fame as Lt. Starbuck in the original 1978 TV show ''

Battlestar Galactica ''Battlestar Galactica'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. It began with the original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel series, '' Galactica 1980'', a line of book adaptat ...

'' and as Lt. Templeton 'Faceman' Peck in the TV show ''

The A-Team ''The A-Team'' is an American Action television, action television series that ran on NBC from January 23, 1983, to March 8, 1987, about a fictional team of former United States Army Special Forces who work as mercenaries while on the run from ...

''. Ted Hartley played their boss Capt. McKeegan and Lou Frizzell played Mitch, the crusty mechanic.

Episodes

Home media and streaming services

Since its cancellation in 1974, ''Chopper One'' was reported to have rarely (if ever) been seen again in rerun syndication. On July 12, 2016,

Sony Pictures Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. is an American diversified multinational mass media and entertainment studio conglomerate that produces, acquires, and distributes filmed entertainment (theatrical motion pictures, television programs, and rec ...

released ''Chopper One: The Complete Series'' on DVD in Region 1. This is a Manufacture-on-Demand (MOD) release, available exclusively in the US and is part of the ''Sony Pictures Choice Collection'' in partnership with Amazon.com and their CreateSpace MOD program.'The Complete Series' DVDs are NOW AVAILABLE!
As of 2023, all 13 episodes of ''Chopper One'' are available on free video streaming service Crackle.

References

External links

''Chopper One'' on ABC at ''TV Guide''
* {{IMDb title, 0070976, Chopper One 1974 American television series debuts 1974 American television series endings 1970s American crime drama television series American adventure television series Television series by Spelling Television Television series by Sony Pictures Television Television shows set in Los Angeles American aviation television series American Broadcasting Company crime dramas