Theater audiences in 1983 were introduced to the newest weapon in the arsenal of the Los Angeles Police Department. The big brother of the sky, Blue Thunder was a military helicopter, capable of traveling in stealth mode. With an assortment of armaments and plenty of gadgetry that included sensitive microphones, video surveillance equipment and infrared capabilities, it was capable of keeping a close watch on the citizenry from high above. Problem was, there were some bad guys who wanted to use it for nefarious political reasons as well and the only guy that could put a stop to these dastardly plans was its pilot, Frank Murphy – a troubled Vietnam Vet with a conscience.

After taking in over 42 million in the box office, ABC decided to bring the formidable chopper to the television skies. They cast James Farentino in the role of Frank Chaney, the newest commander of the big bird, and future Saturday Night Live alumni Dana Carvey as his sidekick, Clinton Wonderlove, also known as JAFO (Just Another Frustrating Observer.)

Unlike the film, this time around Blue Thunder had some ground support, a large van containing a camouflaged covert off-road vehicle called Rolling Thunder. The crew of this sophisticated vehicle was provided courtesy of the NFL, with Bubba Smith playing Bubba Kelsey and Dick Butkis as “Ski” Butowski. To save a few bucks in production, plenty of stock footage was re-used from the original film.

Unfortunately, Blue Thunder had a formidable nemesis, a competing super-copter called Airwolf on CBS that was becoming quite popular with viewers. And although it might have been fun to watch an all-out battle between the two whirlybirds, ABC decided that the competition was perhaps a little too fierce. After only 11 episodes, Blue Thunder was permanently grounded. Luckily, fans of the short-lived show can still relive its glory days, thanks to the first season, released on DVD in 2006.