Harman Patil (Editor)

Probe (1988 TV series)

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7.2/10
TV

No. of episodes
  
8

Production company(s)
  
MCA Television

Final episode date
  
14 April 1988

8.2/10
IMDb

Country of origin
  
USA

Running time
  
45 mins.

First episode date
  
7 March 1988

Probe (1988 TV series) wwwgoldmonkeycommivaprobejpg

Created by
  
Isaac Asimov William Link

Starring
  
Parker Stevenson Ashley Crow

Network
  
American Broadcasting Company

Cast
  
Parker Stevenson, Ashley Crow

Program creators
  
Isaac Asimov, William Link

Similar
  
Otherworld, Voyagers!, Misfits of Science, The Invisible Man, Amazing Stories

probe tv intro


Not to be confused with Probe (1972 TV pilot)

Contents

Probe is a 1988 American television pilot and subsequent TV series, created by television mystery writer William Link and science fiction author Isaac Asimov as a sort of modern version of Jonny Quest or Tom Swift. It aired on ABC. Michael I. Wagner, a veteran television writer, wrote the two-hour pilot, and became Executive Producer for the series. The pilot and series starred Parker Stevenson as Austin James, a misanthropic genius who solved high tech crimes, and Ashley Crow as James' new secretary Mickey Castle.

The show began as a mid-season replacement and was canceled after a two-month run of the pilot and six episodes. Entire episodes have made their way on the Internet through video-sharing sites such as YouTube.

Some episodes of the show revolved around Serendip, a company founded by Austin that he has no interest in running. Mickey, his Serendip-appointed secretary, plays Dr. Watson to Austin's Holmes.

Probe 1x01 computer logic part one


Characters

  • Austin James (played by Parker Stevenson): A genius-level scientist and inventor with eidetic memory, Austin is constantly thinking, inventing ground-breaking technology and seeking answers to various mysteries and problems. One disadvantage to his vast intellect is that it isolated him from his peers from a very early age. As a result, he is awkward and uncomfortable in normal social situations, and very reclusive. His manner can be at times overly brusque, but he has a deep love of humanity. Austin is occasionally called in by local police to investigate baffling homicides, though he professes to not understand the motivation for murder. He founded the think tank Serendip, but he has no interest in managing its day-to-day affairs, preferring to spend most of his time engaged in a variety of experiments and investigations at his "workshop," a refurbished warehouse which serves as his home and laboratory.
  • Michelle "Mickey" Castle (played by Ashley Crow): Mickey seems an unlikely candidate to serve as Austin James' secretary, as she lacks any background in science and relies more on her instincts instead of logic. Though she initially finds Austin's genius and eccentricities intimidating (and infuriating), Mickey comes to enjoy the adventure of working for him. Similarly, while Austin has fired every other secretary foisted upon him by Serendip, he is soon captivated by Mickey's uncanny knack for providing unique observations that help him in his investigations.
  • Howard Millhouse (played by Jon Cypher): As Serendip's long-suffering director, Howard constantly finds himself at wit's end, managing the company founded by Austin, and bankrolling his various experiments. Howard's attempts to draw Austin out of his warehouse to take a more active interest in his own company have only served to make Austin keep Serendip further at bay.
  • Graham McKinley (played by Clive Revill): Howard's apparent successor at Serendip who also butts heads with Austin from time to time over various projects.

    • References

    Probe (1988 TV series) Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA