“CHiPs”
“CHiPs” is an American tv show that firstly aired on September 15th, 1977. It ran until 1 May 1983. The production consisted of six seasons with 139 episodes. A reunion Tv movie was released in 1998.
The Show
The show tells the story of the daily lives of members of the California Highway Patrol, or “CHiPs”. Due to the notoriously busy L.A. highways, filming was conducted on back roads. Although some scenes were filmed on new but not yet opened sections of the roads.
During the filming of season 5, the strained relations between Wilcox and the producers ended with Wilcox leaving the show. He was replaced by Tom Reilly (Officer Bobby Nelson).
The motorbikes
The motorbikes used during seasons one and two were Kawasaki Z1-Ps or Z900-C2s, and from season three onwards Kawasaki KZ 1000-C1s were used.
Most of the motorbike riding and smaller stunts were performed by Estrada and Wilcox, although in some cases stunt doubles were used. Reruns of the show, while the original was still running, was called “CHiPs Patrol”, but reruns returned to the original name when production stopped after season 6.
The Cast
- Larry Wilcox as Officer Jonathan Andrew Baker (1977–82)
- Erik Estrada as Officer Francis “Ponch” Poncherello
- Robert Pine as Sergeant Joseph “Joe” Getraer
- Lew Saunders as Officer Gene Fritz (1977–79)
- Brodie Greer as Officer Barry “Bear” Baricza (1977–82)
- Paul Linke as Officer Arthur “Grossie” Grossman
- Lou Wagner as Harlan Arliss, Automobile/Motorcycle Mechanic, CHP (1978–83)
- Brianne Leary as Officer Sindy Cahill (1978–79)
- Randi Oakes as Officer Bonnie Clark (1979–82)
- Michael Dorn as Officer Jedediah Turner (1979–82)
- Caitlyn Jenner as Officer Steve McLeish (1981–82) (credited as “Bruce Jenner”)
- Tom Reilly as Officer Robert “Bobby” “Hot Dog” Nelson (1982–83)
- Tina Gayle as Officer Kathy Linahan (1982–83)
- Bruce Penhall as Cadet/Officer Bruce Nelson (1982–83)
- Clarence Gilyard Jr. as Officer Benjamin Webster (1982–83)
