The Streets of San Francisco
Dead Lift
TV Flash files “Dead Lift” as hour 116 of 120 in the TV Flash guide — The Streets of San Francisco (1972–1977) on ABC, season 5, episode 20, aired 1977-05-05, 60 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S05E20: listed hour 116 of 120 in the The Streets of San Francisco guide, hour 20 of 24 in season 5. It aired 1977-05-05 (60 min). The listed hour before it is “Interlude” (S05E19). Next is “Breakup” (S05E21).
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
Ah-nold, long before his movie stardom, made his TV-acting debut as a champion bodybuilder (which he was at the time) visiting San Francisco for a competition. Something (it's not made clear what) has made him incredibly buff and muscled, but has also left him extremely hypersensitive to criticism and with no control over his anger. When he shows off his poses for a young woman, he becomes enraged and unwittingly chokes her to death. He's taken in by a couple and entered into the bodybuilding contest, but broods when he finishes only second.
Viewer FAQ
Where does Dead Lift sit in the The Streets of San Francisco guide?
S05E20 is listed hour 116 of 120 — hour 20 of 24 in season 5, season 5 episode 20.
When did The Streets of San Francisco S05E20 air?
Dead Lift aired 1977-05-05 and is listed at 60 minutes.
Malden and Douglas, or the later partner?
Start with Malden and Douglas — the mentor pairing that launched a movie star. Hatch arrives after Douglas leaves; the city remains.
In the series
Why this series still plays
Karl Malden's veteran cop drags a young Michael Douglas up those hills, and the city itself does half the blocking. Location-heavy Quinn Martin crime, cable-car glamour, mentor grit. Partnership chemistry that actually launched a movie star, filmed on streets that never look like a backlot.
ABC put Quinn Martin on actual pavement and let San Francisco do half the blocking. The Streets of San Francisco (1972–1977), from Edward Hume, ran five seasons, 120 episodes: Karl Malden's veteran Mike Stone dragging a young Michael Douglas's Steve Keller up those hills. Heavy on-location shooting made the city a character; the theme and photography refused the backlot. Richard Hatch later arrived as Insp. Dan Robbins after Douglas left toward a producing and film career. Mentor/protégé casting that actually…
Open the The Streets of San Francisco package · Season 5 hub
Filed against
- Karl Malden as Det. Lt. Mike Stone
Karl Malden’s Det. Lt. Mike Stone dragged a young Michael Douglas up The Streets of San Francisco — location-heavy Quinn Martin crime, cable-car glamour, mentor grit. Partnership chemistry that actually launched a movie star, filmed on…
- Michael Douglas as Insp. Steve Keller
Michael Douglas’s Insp. Steve Keller climbed The Streets of San Francisco’s hills behind Karl Malden — 1970s Quinn Martin crime, location-heavy blocking, cable-car glamour, mentor grit. Partnership chemistry the city itself helped stage.…
- Richard Hatch as Insp. Dan Robbins
Richard Hatch’s Captain Apollo gave Battlestar Galactica its earnest Viper-jock spine — the good son in a ragtag fleet, square enough to make the space opera feel like a duty. Streets of San Francisco and Survivor keep the file from being…