Battestar Galactica
Nitcentral's Bulletin Brash Reflections:
Knight Rider:
KITT-chen Sink:
Battestar Galactica
Knight Rider seems to have many influences from another loved science fiction show, "Battestar Galactica" (1978-1979, created by Glen Larson). Here are just a few I have noticed, as a casual viewer of BG:
1.The main villains on BG were the robotic Cylons. The main Cylon soldiers didn't have eyes; instead, they had a slot with a red light which swept back and forth with a distinct "weew-weew" sound.
-On KR, this was adapted to become KITT's scanner. In fact, if you watch "Knight of the Phoenix" closely, you can see that the first shooting car they used for KITT had a very similar scanner with a VERY similar red light and sound (this was the "thin scanner on a long hooded KITT" which was used for most of part 1, before the series was sure to be picked up and the normal KITT model was used).
2.The sound used for the Viper Fighters going into "turbo booster" mode was a loud "whoosh."
-This was used as KITT's turbo boost sound in season one of KR.
3.Edward Mulhare played the angelic being John in "Experiment in Terra."
-Edward Mulhare as Devon Miles in KR.
4.William Daniels played a guy named Norman in both parts of "The Night the Cylons Landed." He was dressed in a clown suit most of the time (it was Halloween, okay!).
-William Daniels as the vioce of KITT in KR.
5.Starbuck's computer had an AI called "C.O.R.A." which spoke with her own personality. As the voice spoke, a series of red lines moved. CORA often bantered with Starbuck.
-KR has a car called "K.I.T.T." with an AI and a personality all it's own. As the voice of KITT speaks, a series of red bars moves. KITT often banters with Michael Knight.
* - In the Knight Rider episode "Fright Knight," you can see a Cylon costume during the prop sequence (just before the "phantom" shoots at Michael with arrows). - *
For more information on BG, check out this excellent site:
http://www.battlestargalactica.com/about/bg/index.html
By CR on Friday, April 18, 2003 - 4:38 am:Just FYI, over on Nitcentral's Bulletin Brash Reflections:Movies:Jake's Movies:SciFi/Fantasy, there's a board devoted to the movie Battlestar Galactica, although it frequently delves into the series as well.
By Biggy on Tuesday, September 09, 2003 - 10:25 am: Couple of years ago, Sci-Fi Channel had a series called "Sci-ography," and their first episode was all about BG. In it, Larson admitted that he had liked the cyclon eyes so much that he pushed to have it incorporated into KITT when he made "Knight Rider."