The Show: Starsky & Hutch
The Cast: David Soul, Paul Michael Glaser
Number Of Episodes: 93
Years It Aired:

"Starsky, about this report, it reads like a comic book — 'The fiery Torino sped into the street, and we spilled into action.'" — Capt. Harold Dobey (Bernie Hamilton)

For many television programs that feature a cool car, the appeal of the vehicle helps elevate the hip factor of the show. But for the 1970's TV series Starsky & Hutch and its still-famous Ford Gran Torino, that seemed to work in reverse.

In 1975, Ford generally marketed the Gran Torino as a family car, a label that is about as boring as it gets. Then along came this popular series, which captured the essence of hip for its time, bell-bottoms and all.

Wearing a splashy paint job and oversized tires, the Gran Torino is cast against type in the role of a  high-performance sports car. It goes screeching through Bay City in thrilling chase scenes in almost every episode as detectives Dave Starsky (Paul Michael Glaser) and Ken Hutchinson (David Soul) take on murderers, rapists and drug dealers. And suddenly this unlikely star car is attracting fans of its own, with a still-loyal following even 30 years later.

Much of its speed is just television illusion. At the time, new emissions standards were taking a toll on horsepower. But that apparently didn't tamper interest. Ford announced in February 1976 — six months into the show's first season — that it would release a special Starsky & Hutch edition of the car. That spring, they produced 1,000 models with the special paint job — red with a white stripe. And so the "striped tomato," Hutch's nickname for the red Torino, became the first TV car to  inspire the manufacturer to produce official replicas, according to a 1976 article in Motor Trend magazine.

After starting out with a souped-up 1975 model, the series would use several others over the years, but none would be later than a 1976 because, despite its status as a TV star, Ford soon discontinued production of the Torino.

Much to the delight of fans, the striped tomato makes a return appearance in the 2004  campy movie remake of Starsky & Hutch starring Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson.

Photo courtesy of Barris.com

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