The television show, Hunter, debuted in September of 1984. I would've been 2 years old at the time. It's entirely possible that I could've been watching it with my mom, or more likely, with my grandpa, that early on, but I don't have any memories going back that far, so I can't say with any certainty either way. I do know though that I had been watching it regularly for at least a few years before it was cancelled in 1991. My memory tells me that it was already in syndication before it ended, thereby allowing me to catch up on all of the earlier episodes, but I can't find anything that says when it went in to syndication (in the old days it was usually after five seasons or 100 episodes, whichever came first) so I might've just been watching the new episodes, and then caught up on the rest later on. Either way, it's one of those shows that feels intertwined with my childhood, and as is often the case with such shows, I have accumulated a few cards that remind of said show; which in this case, amounts to a small Fred Dryer collection.
I have been trying to obtain the above autograph for a couple of years, but could never find one that I considered to be reasonably priced. Well, at least not until earlier last year when I was able to get this one for (I think) around $14 shipped (I'm afraid to look, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if they could be had for less now). Previous copies that I had bid on always ended in the $25-30 range, so I was quite pleased to get this one for so much less; and what's more, there was nothing wrong with the card!
In a perfect world, I'd be able to get Fred's autograph on a card of him as Rick Hunter, but I don't see anyone putting out a Hunter set anytime soon, so I had to make due with this one. At least the signature was on-card.
I'd also really like to get a Stepfanie Kramer (Sgt. Dee Dee McCallđ) autograph to pair up with Fred's, but no official ones exist as of yet; and she doesn't appear to sign requests through the mail. I suppose at this point too, if she did ever actually sign some cards for a set, it would probably be for one of those atrocious Leaf Pop Century sets, which I absolutely loathe! Even for her, I don't think that I could bring myself to buy one of those monstrosities. But then again...
Wow, I have not thought about the TV show Hunter in forever! It was a great show! I wonder if it's streaming anywhere.
ReplyDeleteMy reply to your last pontification is always the same, I don't do streaming, so you'd probably have to look around on your own.
DeleteDoesn't seem possible that there are actually people walking around who have no memories of 1984. I could fill 3 books with them. But I never watched one episode of Hunter.
ReplyDeleteIf I had the power to recall 5 years before I was born, oh, the things I could accomplish :)
DeleteNO: And I have a hard time believing that there are people walking around who haven't seen Hunter :)
DeleteGreg: It would be wonderful to have such an ability.
I kind of remember Hunter being one of those shows that was on TV when I was a kid but I never got to watch much (think it might have been on too late or something). I was more of a Simon and Simon or Magnum P.I. guy at the time, but was always kind of interested in Hunter. Cool card though!
ReplyDeleteMagnum didn't do a lot for me as a kid, but I did like Simon and Simon quite a bit though.
DeleteI remember the show well. Steph has got that Joan Collins thing working
ReplyDeleteA. Nice call John. I totally see the similarity.
DeleteB. And nice pick up Jon. I would be all over that Dryer autograph for that price.
I can see it a bit too.
DeleteGreat theme song too...congrats on the autograph!
ReplyDeleteThey definitely don't make television theme songs like they used to!
DeleteI was a little too young for that show. Guess I should check it out.
ReplyDeleteI don't know how well it'll hold up to modern eyes, but you could certainly still give it a go.
DeleteI did not watch Hunter in the 1980s, also a little too young, but there was an independent television station in that St. Louis that showed old episodes in the middle of the day in the late 1990s and early 2000s. When I first started teaching, my co-teacher was an older women in her 60s, and she would watch all the shows on there during our workdays. It was way better than most of the cop shows from that era. I am surprised that a streaming service has not picked it up yet.
ReplyDeleteGreat find, hopefully someone will find a place for a Dee Dee McCall autograph on their checklist.
Even though many of them weren't that good, I have a strong affinity for cop shows from that era. Sounds like that woman had good taste in television!
DeleteIt would be nice, but I'm not gonna hold my breath.