This Week In Miami Vice History

[mvnyc]

January 13th - 20th:

"Golden Triangle", the 14th episode of the 1st season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 18th, 1985 at 10PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki):
* This episode was simply called "Golden Triangle" (with no part number) when it originally aired, but the name was changed to "Golden Triangle (Part II)" when it went into syndication, presumably to better link it with the preceding episode, which begins the story. This second title is now it's official one and has been used on the show's VHS, DVD and online releases.
* The opening sequence of this episode is one of the very few times in Miami Vice you see Edward James Olmos in attire other than his black tie and pants and white shirt.
* When Menton puts up Lao Li's phone number in the OCB meeting room, you can see the first digits are "72...", typically on television and movies a "555" exchange is used for phone numbers.
* John Santucci, who plays Dale Menton in this episode, was a real-life jewel thief before being hired by Michael Mann to serve as technical advisor on Mann's first film as a director, 1981's "Thief."
* Castillo's house makes its debut in this episode.
* This episode is somewhat unusual for Miami Vice in that none of the major villains are killed; all of them live to (presumably) serve prison sentences.
* The "Omnibus Crime Bill of 1984" that Crockett references gave law enforcement the power to confiscate drug dealers' assets, especially those of "ill gotten gains". This is the law that is referenced as an inspiration for the series' creation.
* Switek and Zito's "Bug Van" made its debut in this episode.

"Yankee Dollar", the 13th episode of the 2nd season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 17th, 1986 at 10PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki).
* When this episode was repeated in June, 1986, it marked Miami Vice's time slot change to 9:00PM, which would continue for nearly two years.
* Zabado's mansion was used in the film "Scarface", which inspired many elements of Miami Vice.
* This episode features one of the few times something slipped past censors, as seen when Sonny and Rico approach Max after the failed bomb attempt, as Max jumps over the bar, he can be heard saying "Oh sh*t!"

"Down For The Count, Part II", the 13th episode of the 3rd season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 16th, 1987 at 9PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki):
* The opening recap of the events leading to Zito's death do not match up with what actually happened in the previous episode. In Part I, Zito ultimately agrees to sell Sykes' contract to Guzman, but only in exchange for a piece of his illegal gambling action; revealing the he knows of Guzman's illegal activities is what gets Zito killed, either because he knows too much or simply because Guzman considers him too greedy. However, the opening to Part II makes it seem as though Zito rejected any offers on Sykes' contract to the end and even implies that this was, in fact, the reason he was killed. This change was probably implemented to simplify the scene and allow it to fit into the brief timeslot allocated to the recap.
* If you look closely at Crockett's Testarossa as it leaves Zito's apartment, the rear bumper is missing.
* When Crockett, Tubbs, and Switek enter the mall to stop the hit at the end of the episode, Tubbs has clearly been replaced by a stand-in. What's more, Tubbs disappears altogether after this shot and does not participate in the final gunfight at all.
* Although it is stated at the end of the episode that Zito's name has been cleared and that his death has been rightfully ruled as murder, it is never explained why this is so -- no physical evidence or witness testimony was indicated and neither Guzman nor any of his goons confessed to anything before they were all killed by the Vice team.
* Zito's goldfish, Harriet, never reappeared in the series after this episode and her fate was never known.
* It is clear the producers committed a sizeable portion of the season's budget to this episode as it featured many large, impressive action sequences, in particular the highly destructive car chase between Crockett and Tubbs and Giullini's Mafia goons.

"Love At First Sight", the 10th episode of the 4th season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 15th, 1988 at 9PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki):
* Crockett paraphrases a famous line from 1987's movie Lethal Weapon, "I'm getting too old for this 'crap'", after chasing down Choo Choo in the alley.
* This episode marks one of the first TV appearances of a sex toy. They were mentioned in TV shows starting in the 1970s, but rarely shown on screen.

"Hard Knocks", the 8th episode of the 5th season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 20th, 1989 at 10PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki):
* Switek's gambling problems would arise again in "Freefall" and "Too Much, Too Late."
* Switek has now had two girlfriends in the series, his first was Darlene from "Made For Each Other."
* The football scenes were filmed at the Orange Bowl, where the opening drug deal scene from "Indian Wars" took place.
* Kevin is shown to have an agent while playing college football; in reality, college players are forbidden from using agents under NCAA rules, and are declared ineligible if they have one.

[Daytona74]

"Golden Triangle" is one of my all time favorite episodes. Just flawless. Could have been a big screen feature film all on its own.

Although it does take a whole while to get to the story's actual point...

[Matt5]

23 hours ago, mvnyc said:

January 13th - 20th:

"Golden Triangle", the 14th episode of the 1st season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 18th, 1985 at 10PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki):
* This episode was simply called "Golden Triangle" (with no part number) when it originally aired, but the name was changed to "Golden Triangle (Part II)" when it went into syndication, presumably to better link it with the preceding episode, which begins the story. This second title is now it's official one and has been used on the show's VHS, DVD and online releases.
* The opening sequence of this episode is one of the very few times in Miami Vice you see Edward James Olmos in attire other than his black tie and pants and white shirt.
* When Menton puts up Lao Li's phone number in the OCB meeting room, you can see the first digits are "72...", typically on television and movies a "555" exchange is used for phone numbers.
* John Santucci, who plays Dale Menton in this episode, was a real-life jewel thief before being hired by Michael Mann to serve as technical advisor on Mann's first film as a director, 1981's "Thief."
* Castillo's house makes its debut in this episode.
* This episode is somewhat unusual for Miami Vice in that none of the major villains are killed; all of them live to (presumably) serve prison sentences.
* The "Omnibus Crime Bill of 1984" that Crockett references gave law enforcement the power to confiscate drug dealers' assets, especially those of "ill gotten gains". This is the law that is referenced as an inspiration for the series' creation.
* Switek and Zito's "Bug Van" made its debut in this episode.

"Yankee Dollar", the 13th episode of the 2nd season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 17th, 1986 at 10PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki).
* When this episode was repeated in June, 1986, it marked Miami Vice's time slot change to 9:00PM, which would continue for nearly two years.
* Zabado's mansion was used in the film "Scarface", which inspired many elements of Miami Vice.
* This episode features one of the few times something slipped past censors, as seen when Sonny and Rico approach Max after the failed bomb attempt, as Max jumps over the bar, he can be heard saying "Oh sh*t!"

"Down For The Count, Part II", the 13th episode of the 3rd season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 16th, 1987 at 9PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki):
* The opening recap of the events leading to Zito's death do not match up with what actually happened in the previous episode. In Part I, Zito ultimately agrees to sell Sykes' contract to Guzman, but only in exchange for a piece of his illegal gambling action; revealing the he knows of Guzman's illegal activities is what gets Zito killed, either because he knows too much or simply because Guzman considers him too greedy. However, the opening to Part II makes it seem as though Zito rejected any offers on Sykes' contract to the end and even implies that this was, in fact, the reason he was killed. This change was probably implemented to simplify the scene and allow it to fit into the brief timeslot allocated to the recap.
* If you look closely at Crockett's Testarossa as it leaves Zito's apartment, the rear bumper is missing.
* When Crockett, Tubbs, and Switek enter the mall to stop the hit at the end of the episode, Tubbs has clearly been replaced by a stand-in. What's more, Tubbs disappears altogether after this shot and does not participate in the final gunfight at all.
* Although it is stated at the end of the episode that Zito's name has been cleared and that his death has been rightfully ruled as murder, it is never explained why this is so -- no physical evidence or witness testimony was indicated and neither Guzman nor any of his goons confessed to anything before they were all killed by the Vice team.
* Zito's goldfish, Harriet, never reappeared in the series after this episode and her fate was never known.
* It is clear the producers committed a sizeable portion of the season's budget to this episode as it featured many large, impressive action sequences, in particular the highly destructive car chase between Crockett and Tubbs and Giullini's Mafia goons.

"Love At First Sight", the 10th episode of the 4th season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 15th, 1988 at 9PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki):
* Crockett paraphrases a famous line from 1987's movie Lethal Weapon, "I'm getting too old for this 'crap'", after chasing down Choo Choo in the alley.
* This episode marks one of the first TV appearances of a sex toy. They were mentioned in TV shows starting in the 1970s, but rarely shown on screen.

"Hard Knocks", the 8th episode of the 5th season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 20th, 1989 at 10PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki):
* Switek's gambling problems would arise again in "Freefall" and "Too Much, Too Late."
* Switek has now had two girlfriends in the series, his first was Darlene from "Made For Each Other."
* The football scenes were filmed at the Orange Bowl, where the opening drug deal scene from "Indian Wars" took place.
* Kevin is shown to have an agent while playing college football; in reality, college players are forbidden from using agents under NCAA rules, and are declared ineligible if they have one.

Great episodes and detailed information as always -thankyou!

[mvnyc]

Thanks Daytona74 and Matt5, just doing my part to keep things interesting on this site.

[Tony D.]

30 minutes ago, mvnyc said:

Thanks Daytona74 and Matt5, just doing my part to keep things interesting on this site.

Thanks for the little bits of information, MVNYC that I was unaware of.

[summer84]

On 12/1/2017 at 10:49 PM, mvnyc said:

January 13th - 20th:

"Golden Triangle", the 14th episode of the 1st season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 18th, 1985 at 10PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki):
* This episode was simply called "Golden Triangle" (with no part number) when it originally aired, but the name was changed to "Golden Triangle (Part II)" when it went into syndication, presumably to better link it with the preceding episode, which begins the story. This second title is now it's official one and has been used on the show's VHS, DVD and online releases.
* The opening sequence of this episode is one of the very few times in Miami Vice you see Edward James Olmos in attire other than his black tie and pants and white shirt.
* When Menton puts up Lao Li's phone number in the OCB meeting room, you can see the first digits are "72...", typically on television and movies a "555" exchange is used for phone numbers.
* John Santucci, who plays Dale Menton in this episode, was a real-life jewel thief before being hired by Michael Mann to serve as technical advisor on Mann's first film as a director, 1981's "Thief."
* Castillo's house makes its debut in this episode.
* This episode is somewhat unusual for Miami Vice in that none of the major villains are killed; all of them live to (presumably) serve prison sentences.
* The "Omnibus Crime Bill of 1984" that Crockett references gave law enforcement the power to confiscate drug dealers' assets, especially those of "ill gotten gains". This is the law that is referenced as an inspiration for the series' creation.
* Switek and Zito's "Bug Van" made its debut in this episode.

"Yankee Dollar", the 13th episode of the 2nd season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 17th, 1986 at 10PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki).
* When this episode was repeated in June, 1986, it marked Miami Vice's time slot change to 9:00PM, which would continue for nearly two years.
* Zabado's mansion was used in the film "Scarface", which inspired many elements of Miami Vice.
* This episode features one of the few times something slipped past censors, as seen when Sonny and Rico approach Max after the failed bomb attempt, as Max jumps over the bar, he can be heard saying "Oh sh*t!"

"Down For The Count, Part II", the 13th episode of the 3rd season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 16th, 1987 at 9PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki):
* The opening recap of the events leading to Zito's death do not match up with what actually happened in the previous episode. In Part I, Zito ultimately agrees to sell Sykes' contract to Guzman, but only in exchange for a piece of his illegal gambling action; revealing the he knows of Guzman's illegal activities is what gets Zito killed, either because he knows too much or simply because Guzman considers him too greedy. However, the opening to Part II makes it seem as though Zito rejected any offers on Sykes' contract to the end and even implies that this was, in fact, the reason he was killed. This change was probably implemented to simplify the scene and allow it to fit into the brief timeslot allocated to the recap.
* If you look closely at Crockett's Testarossa as it leaves Zito's apartment, the rear bumper is missing.
* When Crockett, Tubbs, and Switek enter the mall to stop the hit at the end of the episode, Tubbs has clearly been replaced by a stand-in. What's more, Tubbs disappears altogether after this shot and does not participate in the final gunfight at all.
* Although it is stated at the end of the episode that Zito's name has been cleared and that his death has been rightfully ruled as murder, it is never explained why this is so -- no physical evidence or witness testimony was indicated and neither Guzman nor any of his goons confessed to anything before they were all killed by the Vice team.
* Zito's goldfish, Harriet, never reappeared in the series after this episode and her fate was never known.
* It is clear the producers committed a sizeable portion of the season's budget to this episode as it featured many large, impressive action sequences, in particular the highly destructive car chase between Crockett and Tubbs and Giullini's Mafia goons.

"Love At First Sight", the 10th episode of the 4th season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 15th, 1988 at 9PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki):
* Crockett paraphrases a famous line from 1987's movie Lethal Weapon, "I'm getting too old for this 'crap'", after chasing down Choo Choo in the alley.
* This episode marks one of the first TV appearances of a sex toy. They were mentioned in TV shows starting in the 1970s, but rarely shown on screen.

"Hard Knocks", the 8th episode of the 5th season, premiered on NBC on Friday, January 20th, 1989 at 10PM EST. Some notes on this episode (from Miami Vice Wiki):
* Switek's gambling problems would arise again in "Freefall" and "Too Much, Too Late."
* Switek has now had two girlfriends in the series, his first was Darlene from "Made For Each Other."
* The football scenes were filmed at the Orange Bowl, where the opening drug deal scene from "Indian Wars" took place.
* Kevin is shown to have an agent while playing college football; in reality, college players are forbidden from using agents under NCAA rules, and are declared ineligible if they have one.

I may not always comment, but I love reading these background details! Thanks again mvnyc! 

[mvnyc]

Thanks Tony D and Summer84!