Recently in Knight Rider 08 Category

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Caroll Shelby, who's Ford Mustang Shelby GT500KR form inspired KITT in the 2008 series, passed away Thursday night in Dallas - he was 89. Shelby's first success came in the 1906's with the Shelby Cobra, which was a line of high performance vehicles that challenged the speeds of Ferraris and Porsches. More on USA Today

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Louis Cicciari, Tom Day, Gary Hunter, Nick Nugent, Daniel Trujillo Jr., Jennifer Catano, Dennis Resinger and Hero KITT (photo courtesy of Daniel Trujillo Jr)

This past Tuesday, the replica group Knights of the West Coast, stopped by a secret warehouse in California to catch up with two friends. As you may recall, after being re-imagined as a Mustang for the TV movie, KITT again changed as they went to series. The cars from the movie were auctioned for charity - but what happened then? Gary Hunter was able to track down the man who purchased them, and went with KOTWC to check them out. Author Nick Nugent, friend to KRO and KOTWC member fills us in:

Tom Day is a proud Grandfather who finds his wealth mostly through Real Estate. He loves to collect various high profile and rare cars such as Shelby and Roush mustangs, corvettes, classic, and movie/tv cars and other vehicles mostly to help raise funds for charity. He originally bought the two KITTs at the Barret Jackson Auction as a pair for just that very reason - charity. He also had the pleasure of meeting Justin Bruening who was very grateful for his contribution while at the event.


Tom says in the interview that he enjoys the hero KITT more than the Attack KITT. He told us when we arrived, a funny story about how his granddaughter drove the Attack KITT on the highway one afternoon and was pulled over by a cop. When he approached the car he asked her, "Isn't this just a little too much car for you to handle?". Tom suspects the officer just wanted to get a closer look at his prized possession and who wouldn't? The Attack Mode KITT definitely turns heads when people see it cruising out and about.

Tom has several garages full of cars he's collected over the years and he chooses to keep them secretive. His long term goals for his car collection is to open up a museum which is currently in the finishing stages of being built where he plans to display his two KITT cars as well as other vehicles in his collection for all to see in a safe and fun environment for everyone to enjoy. Tom also owns a genuine GT500KR.

Tom hopes to restore the KITTs as accurately as possible. He hopes to make it to Knight Rider Festival III (March 18-19, 2011 in Las Vegas), so hopefully everyone can check out these rare items at whats shaping up to be yet another amazing event!

Be sure to check out more pictures of the cars below. Video of the day from both Nick and Gary can be found at their youtube channels: [Gary's Interview with Tom] and from Nick [Hero KITT walk around] [Attack KITT walk around] and [Interview with Tom]

Thanks again to Gary and Nick for this report. Nick's book, the Knight Rider Companion - an amazing guide to the original Knight Rider - is now available for $39.95 (previously $50) via his website valaryc.com (click on the KRC book tab)



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As I’m sure many of you will know, the Knight Rider 2008 DVD set was released on the 14th September here in the UK. Unfortunately, our plans to create a pre-release review were scuppered by the recent industrial action being carried out by the postal service. However, thanks to the efforts of the people at Universal Playback, we were finally able to get a copy early this month.

I know what you’re thinking, but in spite of the time lapse, the saying does go, better late than never. Sadly, circumstances have since conspired to prevent a complete review from taking place. As a result, I have decided to take this brief moment under the dawn’s early light to catalogue the content of each disc, so as to ensure that those of you that are still on the fence, will know the basics, such as how many discs are present, and what bonus features are available.

So, if you’d like to read further, feel free to follow the jump.

On October 8th on RTL, Germany will finally air the recent revival attempt of Knight Rider. Why would a country that loves Knight Rider so much, be one of the last to air it? Easy! Redubbing! Watch the teaser above to hear how KITT and Mike will sound from the mouths of their German counterparts. Can't wait to hear what the others sound like.

Tell all your German based friends to watch! Remember what they did for Baywatch.

More on RTL's website

[Thanks to Markus for linking us to the teaser]

On September 14th, Knight Rider 2008 will be released on DVD in the UK. To celebrate Playback, the TV Home Video leg of Universal UK, is having a giveaway contest to give away for the DVD. Simply visit their site, and take the Knight Rider 2008 quiz, and you'll be entered to win!

Take the Knight Rider 2008 quiz

Thanks to Playback, we hope to have a review of their DVD release up soon, so check back for that!

But even if you don't live there, they have something cool to share. Four stylized Knight Rider 2008 desktops are available to all:

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If you still haven't ordered Amazon UK is selling it for £25.69 through this link: Knight Rider (2008) Season 1 [DVD]. A portion of your purchase will go back to support this site.

Tomorrow Premiere Props and Picture Car Warehouse will be holding the Massive Car and Movie Prop Auction, featuring items from a large selection of Movie and TV shows, including the Knight Rider. Featured in the auction is a 1991 Dodge Stealth, which was converted into the Knight 4000 for the Knight Rider 2000 movie. It doesn't specifically say if this was a screen used vehicle, and if I was a buyer, I'd like some assurance of that. The auction listing does mention that the dash was used in the Buck or cut away car, which is used to shoot closeups on a sound stage.

In addition to that is two 1969 Mustangs, which were used in the episode Fly By Knight.

The auction is this Saturday, August 15th at Los Angeles Center Studios, at 450 S. Bixel Street, Los Angeles, CA 90017. There will be a preview of the items, though we are told the Knight 4000 will NOT be on location, beginning at 9am till 11am. The auction itself begins at 11am. If you can't make it down you can bid via icollector.com or by phone. More information is available at the Premier Props website.

For more information on Ted Moser of Picture Car Warehouse, check out our interview with him, where we talk about his involvement with the Knight Rider 2008 Telefilm.

We hope to have more directly from the auction itself by the end of the weekend, so check back!


1991 Dodge Stealth from Knight Rider
Starting Price: $1,000 | Estimates: $80,000 - $300,000


1969 Ford Mustang Fastback
Starting Price: $1,000 | Estimates: $40,000 - $150,000


1969 Mustang Mach 1 Fastback
Starting Price: $1,000 | Estimates: $45,000 - $200,000

UPDATE: You can see Sue's report from the auction on our video page!

John Eaves, best known as a designer for Star Trek creating the look for vehicles like the Enterprise E, shares an interesting story on his blog today. If you hadn't known, John was tapped by Richard Toyon the production designer of Knight Rider 2008. His task was to design the transforming version of KARR that was created for for Knight to King's Pawn.

Last year the old “Knight Rider” TV show from the 80’s was re-invented and had a short one season run as a new series, and sadly it died away right when it was getting it’s bearings and the cast was getting into their roles. During that time I got a call from Richard Toyon, the production designer on the show to come over and work on the Karr designs with him!! It was great fun to work on an old favorite show, and it was a treat to work with Richard.

Be sure to visit John's blog Eavesdropping with Johnny for an interesting story and additional conceptual sketches.

Today sees the release of Knight Rider (2008), Season One on DVD. This four disc set contains the original Pilot from February 2008, as well as all 17 episodes that aired from September 24, 2008 till March 4, 2009.

Overview
Originally aired in February of 2008, the "back door pilot" was watched by over 12.7 million viewers. Set in real time, of 25 years later, we find Charles Graimen (a never known creator of KITT), being pursued, which activates the Knight Industries Three Thousand, or KITT, so that it can secure Sarah, Charles's daughter, and do what is necessary to protect her and the secrets she might be able to provide.

In September of the same year, Knight Rider returned to series form. Gary Scott Thompson (of Las Vegas and Fast and the Furious fame), came aboard as showrunner to inject adrenaline into the pilot, and transition it to episodic television. Originally approved for 13 filmed episodes, news was received on October 4th that four more scripts had been requested by NBC, and by Oct 21st they had approved a full season order.

As the show changed from the pilot to series, several characters were lost, while others were gained. The small team on the run, had turned into a larger government organization in a bunker in the middle of nowhere. What they lacked in dirt and grit, they more than made up for in flash and amazement.

The episodes themselves start out as a larger seasonal arch, with a story line that was supposed to carry on throughout the season. This was a departure from the original's "self contained format", a change some welcomed, but it didn't stay that way for too long. Sub-plots containing Mike's lost memory were quickly cut from the episodes for being too graphic, and shoved online for not many to see.

With complaints of too many characters vying for screen time, and NBC failing as a network to attract any viewership for any series, thus cutting many executives on staff, a change was needed. The format shifted in brilliant form back to the Knight Rider theme of old, by "offing" several of the main cast members, and blowing up the large government organization.

This new direction, with a renewed focus on the core of Knight Rider's vision of one man making a difference, began to see the ratings improve. But it was too little too late. In December, with new management in power at NBC, production on Knight Rider shut down at the end of it's 17th filmed episode (which aired 13th), a reduction from the 23 that were promised.

While many of us fought on to have this version of Knight Rider rise again, the future is still unclear. But with this release, we get to hold onto it a little more.

Universal Studios Home Entertainment has provided us with a couple of copies to give away, so here is your chance to win them! Just reply to this thread with your name and a valid email and we'll randomly pick a winner. All entries must be recieved by Midnight EST Wednesday July 29th.


Winners will be notified via email. This is open only to US residents. (they are region 1 restricted and beyond that we're paying for shipping, and those international fees are a doozy!) Remember, if you pre-order via the link on the right, a portion of your purchase will go back to supporting this site, so thank you!

Thanks to NBC Universal, we have our copy of the Knight Rider 2008 - Season One
DVD in our hands! We'll be working on a review (and maybe give a couple away!), but in the mean time check out these picks of the exterior packaging.

Sound off in the comments if there is anything you'ld to know!

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Available at Amazon for $41.99

We've heard a little update from MasterKey, the amazing team behind the effects of the new Knight Rider series. They were featured in an article from Variety focusing on VFX Emmy Contenders:

Another entry in this year's race is NBC's "Knight Rider" and its battle between hero car K.I.T.T. and evil K.A.R.R.

Master Key VFX, which created the sequence, also gets enormous creative control and relies on small teams.

"It allows them to know how everything is connected," says Elan Dessani, effects producer for "Knight Rider."

Master Key was able to choreograph the K.I.T.T. vs. K.A.R.R. battle to put the focus on the cars, keeping the fight in one location so artists would only have to create one background landscape.

"We didn't expect to have that much power, but because we had proposed this larger sequence, (the showrunner) let us go," Dessani says.

Be sure to visit MasterKey's website where they've just relaunched their site, complete with a new reel that focuses on some of their post Knight Rider works. Also check out our time with them over the last year.

Journey to the end of Knight

Tonight at 8pm is a new episode of Knight Rider for viewers in the UK! The episode is called "Journey to the End of Knight" and it airs as always on SciFi!

MIKE MUST INFILTRATE A RACING GANG WITH THE HELP OF AN OLD ARMY BUDDY Mike reunites with a former Army buddy to bring down a drag racing gang that is smuggling weapons overseas. Sarah joins Mike and KITT on this dangerous undercover mission, much to her father's dismay.

You can find more information including the trailer for tonights episode as well as photo galleries for this episode on it's episode guide page.

Please continue to keep Knight Rider such a positive success in the UK!

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The last few weeks have been troublesome for this fandom at best, with very little good news emerging from the United States. However, the international premiere of the 2008 series has been creating some news of its own, with the backdoor pilot bringing in over 500,000 viewers on the UK Sci Fi channel last week.

The UK is the place of origin for our next piece of news, as this week, the first episode of the 2008 series, A Knight in Shining Armor, which was aired in a two hour block along with Joss Whedon's newly renewed Dollhouse.


As UK members of our community know, 500,000 viewers is a large audience for a niche cable and satellite channel in our country, and only Heroes had a substantially larger audience during its brief tenure on the channel.


This is where we get to the good stuff. In a piece of news that I'm sure NBC won't have missed, the UK audience jumped a whopping 35% last night, drawing in over 700,000 viewers, making Knight Rider and Dollhouse an excellent combination that has secured the 2008 series a solid second place on the channels list of most watched programs since the turn of the new millennium.


Whilst times are tough for us at the moment, it's important to remember the effect that the international audience had on the original series, as the fat lady may be bellowing her lungs out, but the final chord is yet is to be played in spite of the show being dropped from NBC's fall schedule.


For the full press release from the Sci Fi UK channel's website, hit the jump.

NBC's official press release went out today revealing their 2009 - 2010 fall schedule. It may not be happy news, but it is finally the official news for all the fans, cast and crew of Knight Rider who were still holding out hope.

We at Knight Rider Online along with many other fan websites and individuals out there have been campaigning to save the show. But we should not give up. Canceled shows have seen another day in syndication many times before. Nor should we completely stop the idea of fan campaigns.

As it turns out for Chuck, campaigns can be very effective. Only a few weeks ago at NBC's infronts, where they give a sneak peek of their schedules to potential sponsors, Chuck was a show that was nerve-rackingly left off along with Knight Rider. As Variety reveals, a Twitter campaign along with the support from Subway Sandwich Shop convinced the network to rethink their decision about the show. Part of this apparent deal is to incorporate a character who works at the sandwich shop into the show.

Knight Rider has only just started to show in other markets over seas. It is up to us if we want to take this as a call to action or a sign of defeat.

Here is the official press release:

Shared Time Period Strategy Around NBC’s Broadcast of 2010 Winter Olympics Along with Jay Leno at 10 p.m. Enables Network to Broadcast Original Programming Year-Round

Network Renews Returning Series "Law & Order" and "Chuck"


NEW YORK -- May 19, 2009 – NBC announced today its 2009-2010 schedule featuring more original programming than ever before and a shared time-period strategy around NBC’s Olympics platform that, along with "The Jay Leno Show" (Mondays-Fridays 10-11 p.m. ET), allows the network to broadcast all-new content year-round.

In addition, NBC issued renewals to "Law & Order" and "Chuck" (see accompanying release) as part of its strong slate of new and returning shows announced recently at the network’s highly successful Infront.

"NBC has picked up more scripted shows than last season even with 'The Jay Leno Show' at 10 p.m.," said Ben Silverman, Co-Chairman, NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios. "We’re incredibly excited about our new and returning series and have more comedy programming than anyone else, as well as two of the most buzzed about new shows, 'Community’ and ‘Parenthood.’ We can’t wait for the fall."

"We are extremely proud to introduce these strong new series to NBC's schedule next season in strategic timeslots that position them for success," said Angela Bromstad, President, Primetime Entertainment, NBC and Universal Media Studios. "They join some of the highest quality returning shows on television, which will serve as a strong foundation to the new schedule. I think viewers are going to be happy to see this lineup of great new shows that will truly fit the NBC legacy of quality, culturally defining shows."

NBC’s shared time period strategy will kick off this fall on Mondays with the premiere of "Heroes" (8-9 p.m. ET) continuing with all originals before "Chuck" assumes the time period after the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, which will be a powerful launching platform with its broad, female appeal and strong ratings as the most-watched event of the year. Using "NBC Sunday Night Football's" potent promotional platform, the new high-octane drama "Trauma" will debut Mondays (9-10 p.m. ET) with the epic event series "Day One" taking over the time period following the Olympics.

NBC’s successful "The Biggest Loser" series continues Tuesdays (8-10 p.m.) and will help launch the new Wednesday lineup this fall, with the new family drama "Parenthood" debuting (8-9 p.m. ET) and the new hospital drama "Mercy" assuming the time period post-Olympics. "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" will air 9-10 p.m. ET following ‘Parenthood.’

NBC’s Thursday marquee comedy night will begin with the only live comedy between 8-10 p.m. on any network, "Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday" (8-8:30 p.m. ET), followed by "Parks and Recreation" (8:30-9 p.m. ET), "The Office" (9-9:30 p.m. ET) and the new comedy "Community" (9:30-10 p.m. ET). After "Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday" completes its multi-week run, "Community" will move to 8 p.m. and "30 Rock" will debut at 9:30 p.m., enabling NBC to feature more original comedy than ever before.

On Fridays in the fall, the enduring drama "Law & Order" will return for its record 20th season (tying "Gunsmoke" as the longest running drama series in primetime) and will lead off at 8-9 p.m. (ET) while "Southland" follows at 9-10 p.m. (ET), building a great crime block.

Saturdays will be a showcase for "Dateline NBC" (8-9 p.m. ET) and encore episodes of "Trauma" (9-10 p.m. ET) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (10-11 p.m. ET).

"Football Night in America" (7-8:20 p.m. ET) and "NBC Sunday Night Football" (8:20-11 p.m. ET) – the number one show of the fall -- will return on Sundays in the fall with a fan-pleasing schedule of games to round out the fall season.

Utilizing the compatible demographics provided by the Olympics, NBC will launch the premieres of "The Marriage Ref" from executive producers Jerry Seinfeld and Ellen Rakieten ("Oprah") on Sundays (8-9 p.m. ET) and the third season premiere of "The Celebrity Apprentice" on Sundays with two-hour editions (9-11 p.m. ET). In addition, the new comedy "100 Questions" will debut on Tuesdays (9:30-10 p.m. ET) following a 90-minute edition of "The Biggest Loser" (8-9:30 p.m. ET).

And coming in the summer, NBC will telecast all original episodes of “The Jay Leno Show,” "Friday Night Lights," "America's Got Talent," "Breakthrough with Tony Robbins," "Dateline NBC," with additional programs to be announced later.

To catch up on season finales, watch new "Heroes" and "The Office" web series, and more, please log onto NBC.com.


NBC FALL 2009 SCHEDULE
*New programs in UPPER CASE

MONDAY
8-9 p.m. – "Heroes"
9-10 p.m. - "TRAUMA"
10-11 p.m. – "THE JAY LENO SHOW"

TUESDAY
8-10 p.m. – "The Biggest Loser" (two-hour edition)
10-11 p.m. – "THE JAY LENO SHOW"

WEDNESDAY
8-9 p.m. – "PARENTHOOD"
9-10 p.m. – "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit"
10-11 p.m. – "THE JAY LENO SHOW"

THURSDAY
8- 8:30 p.m. – "SNL WEEKEND UPDATE THURSDAY" (multi-episode run)
8:30-9 p.m. – "Parks and Recreation"
9- 9:30 p.m. – "The Office"
9:30-10 p.m. – "COMMUNITY" (moves to Thursdays 8-8:30 p.m. after multi-episode run "30 Rock" returns)
10-11 p.m. – "THE JAY LENO SHOW"

FRIDAY
8-9 p.m. – "Law & Order"
9-10 p.m. – "Southland"
10-11 p.m. – "THE JAY LENO SHOW"

SATURDAY
8-9 p.m. – "Dateline NBC"
9-10 p.m. – "TRAUMA" (encore broadcast)
10-11 p.m. – "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (encore broadcast)

SUNDAY
7- 8:20 p.m. "Football Night in America"
8:20-11 p.m. "NBC Sunday Night Football"

NBC MID-SEASON 2010 SCHEDULE
(2010 WINTER OLYMPICS preempt regularly scheduled programming from February 12-28, 2010)

*New programs in UPPER CASE

MONDAY
8-9 p.m. – "Chuck" (season premiere)
9-10 p.m. - "DAY ONE"
10-11 p.m. – "THE JAY LENO SHOW"

TUESDAY
8-9:30 p.m. – "The Biggest Loser" (90-minute edition)
9:30-10 p.m. – "100 QUESTIONS"
10-11 p.m. – "THE JAY LENO SHOW"

WEDNESDAY
8-9 p.m. – "MERCY"
9-10 p.m. – "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit"
10-11 p.m. – "THE JAY LENO SHOW"

THURSDAY
8- 8:30 p.m. – "COMMUNITY"
8:30-9 p.m. – "Parks and Recreation"
9- 9:30 p.m. – "The Office"
9:30-10 p.m. – "30 Rock"
10-11 p.m. – "THE JAY LENO SHOW"

FRIDAY
8-9 p.m. – "Law & Order"
9-10 p.m. – "Southland"
10-11 p.m. – "THE JAY LENO SHOW"

SATURDAY
8-9 p.m. – "Dateline NBC"
9-10 p.m. – "Southland" (encore broadcast)
10-11 p.m. – "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (encore broadcast)

SUNDAY
7-8 p.m. – "Dateline NBC"
8-9 p.m. – "THE MARRIAGE REF"
9-11 p.m. – "The Celebrity Apprentice" (season premiere; two-hour edition)

KnightRider2008_S1.jpgFinally after much rumor and some delay, the first season of the new Knight Rider will be released on July 28th. TVShowsOnDVD was first to break the news today of it's release date.

A month or so ago we had told you that Amazon put up the pre-order, but no further information was available at the time. Last year, NBC had planned to release the two hour pilot separately but that was canceled once the show went to series. After that, Fry's made it available as a promotion if you bought another dvd. But this will be the first time it's available for all.

You can pre-order it at Amazon for $41.99 through our Amazon store and a percentage of your purchase will go back to support KRO.

This will be a 4-DVD set running 802 minutes, presented in anamorphic widescreen video. Audio is English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, and English subtitles will also be provided. There will also be a few bonus features:

* The Icon Reborn
* K.I.T.T. - From 2000 to 3000
* Knight Rider - Legacy
* Knight Rider 2008 Commentary With Executive Producer David Bartis and Stars Justin Bruening & Deanna Russo

Package art isn't available yet, but here is the studio description of this release:

An iconic TV classic is back and better than ever in the reinvented, updated, and super-charged Knight Rider Season One. From executive producers Doug Liman (The Bourne Identity franchise), David Bartis (The O.C.) and Glen Larson (Battlestar Galactica) comes this action-packed series about the coolest car ever created, K.I.T.T. (Knight Industries Three Thousand), that's equipped with artificial intelligence capable of hacking into any computer, the weapons system of a jet fighter, and incredible custom body technology that allows it to transform into other vehicles. Relive every Season One episode as an elite team of crime-fighters work with K.I.T.T. to track down elusive, high-tech villains. You won't want to miss this fast-paced ride to the wild side!

Read the rest at TVShowsOnDVD

**UPDATE** Added new box art - thanks to TVShowsOnDvd