Hall of Fame: Michael Knight
There is no mystery as to how crime fighting crusader Michael Knight became an ’80s icon. Over the course of Knight Rider’s four season run on NBC, Michael Knight brought dozens upon dozens of criminals to justice, saved just as many damsels in distress and did it all while wearing a sweet leather jacket, a smart watch and driving a high tech car known as the Knight Industries Two Thousand (or K.I.T.T. for those in the known).
K.I.T.T. was more than a car for Michael, thanks to his artificial intelligence, K.I.T.T. was a partner and a friend to Knight… both man and machine were a part of the team at the Foundation of Law and Government (or F.L.A.G. for those in the known).
Knight Rider was an instant hit for NBC and the series saw its best ratings in its second season. Michael Knight was a career changing character for the actor that brought him to life, David Hasselhoff. One could easily argue that the series Baywatch would have never happened if not for the success that Hasselhoff experienced playing Michael Knight on Knight Rider.
Some of the most memorable episodes of the series involved Michael Knight and K.I.T.T. battling the likes of Michael’s “evil twin” Garthe Knight (also played by Hasselhoff) and Garthe’s armored semi known as Goliath!
Knight Rider afforded David Hasselhoff the opportunity to display his vocal skills along with his action chops, specifically in the Season 2 episode titled “Let It Be Me”. This eventually lead to The Hoff’s post-Knight Rider recording career and the amazing opportunity to perform his song “Looking for Freedom” in a newly unified Germany, celebrating the destruction of The Berlin Wall on December 31, 1989… complete with piano scarf and light up jacket!
Given the popularity that Knight Rider had with the kids of the ’80s it is no surprise that Kenner produced Knight Rider themed toys including a Michael Knight action figure and a talking K.I.T.T. car for the figure to cruise around in. Over the years there were also Knight Rider themed computer and video games because who wouldn’t want to be Michael Knight?!?!
David Hasselhoff reprised the role of Michael Knight for the 1991 TV movie, Knight Rider 2000 and then again for the premiere episode of NBC’s 2008 reboot, that featured Michael Knight’s estranged son as the main protagonist of the short lived series.
If Hollywood has taught us anything, it is that we probably have not seen the last of Michael Knight. And it is because of Knight’s enduring popularity and the impact that his character and the original television series has had on pop culture that Michael Knight turbo boosts himself into the Bulletproof Action Hall of Fame Class of 2020.
