THE HAT SQUAD: AARON SPELLING (PART THREE)

Usually when I divvy up the credits culled from the IMDb.com for a Hat Squad tribute, I add a category of "TV Pilots".

To have gone through this list of TV movies in search of those which probably served as pilots for unsold series would have taken more time than even I with no life to speak of had.

But I think it safe to say that Aaron Spelling produced many of his TV movies with an eye toward eventual sale as TV series.

Just look at the titles for some of the following offerings, and you can see that there's something of a generic quality that suggests more of a blueprint for a future show:

Internation Airport
Waikiki
The Law And Mr. Lee
Gulf City
Grass Roots
Massarati And The Brain
Mr. And Mrs. Ryan

Perusing the list, it appears Spelling built his power base on the concept of the TV Movie during its heyday in the early 1970s, especially those for ABC's Tuesday Movie of the Week showcase. And some of those tele-flicks definitely served the mantra "Give the people what they want":

Love On The Run
Making of a Male Model
The Wild Women of Chastity Gulch
Sizzle
The Best Little Girl in the World

As well as the two versions of "Satan's School For Girls".

But they weren't all throwaway examples of what Spelling would call "mind candy". He was also the executive producer for "And The Band Played On", and deserves a tip o' the hat for bringing that to the general public.

And he wasn't above giving the okay to a project that needled his contributions to the TV Universe. "Murder Can Hurt You" was the Toobworld version of Neil Simon's "Murder By Death". But in this case, the detectives were spoofs of various TV detectives, including two who were obvious parodies of 'Starsky & Hutch'.

TV MOVIES
Split Decision (2006) (TV) (pre-production) (producer)
Wanted (2005) (TV) (executive producer)
Bounty Hunters (2005) (TV) (executive producer)
Silver Lake (2004) (TV) (executive producer)
The Law and Mr. Lee (2003) (TV) (executive producer)
Hotel (2003) (TV) (executive producer)
Home of the Brave (2002) (TV) (executive producer)
Satan's School for Girls (2000) (TV) (executive producer)
Odd Jobs (1997) (TV) (producer)
After Jimmy (1996) (TV) (executive producer)
A Season in Purgatory (1996) (TV) (executive producer)
Cross Town Traffic (1995) (TV) (executive producer)
Green Dolphin Beat (1994) (TV) (producer)
Love on the Run (1994) (TV) (executive producer)
Jane's House (1994) (TV) (executive producer)
A Stranger in the Mirror (1993) (TV) (executive producer)
And the Band Played On (1993) (TV) (executive producer)
Gulf City (1993) (TV) (executive producer) (producer)
Grass Roots (1992) (TV) (executive producer)
Jailbirds (1991) (TV) (executive producer)
Rich Men, Single Women (1990) (TV) (executive producer)
Day One (1989) (TV) (executive producer)
Divided We Stand (1988) (TV) (executive producer)
Cracked Up (1987) (TV) (executive producer)
Dark Mansions (1986) (TV) (executive producer)
Mr. and Mrs. Ryan (1986) (TV) (executive producer)
International Airport (1985) (TV) (executive producer)
Velvet (1984) (TV) (producer)
Dark Mirror (1984) (TV) (executive producer)
Making of a Male Model (1983) (TV) (executive producer)
Shooting Stars (1983) (TV) (executive producer)
Don't Go to Sleep (1982) (TV) (executive producer)
The Wild Women of Chastity Gulch (1982) (TV) (executive producer)
Massarati and the Brain (1982) (TV) (executive producer)
Sizzle (1981) (TV) (executive producer)
The Best Little Girl in the World (1981) (TV) (executive producer)
Casino (1980) (TV) (executive producer)
Murder Can Hurt You (1980) (TV) (executive producer)
Waikiki (1980) (TV) (executive producer)
Love's Savage Fury (1979) (TV) (executive producer)
The Power Within (1979) (TV) (executive producer)
Beach Patrol (1979) (TV) (executive producer)
The Users (1978) (TV) (executive producer)
Kate Bliss and the Ticker Tape Kid (1978) (TV) (executive producer)
Wild and Wooly (1978) (TV) (executive producer)
Cruise Into Terror (1978) (TV) (producer)
Little Ladies of the Night (1977) (TV) (executive producer)
The Boy in the Plastic Bubble (1976) (TV) (executive producer)
Death at Love House (1976) (TV) (executive producer)
The New Daughters of Joshua Cabe (1976) (TV) (executive producer)
One of My Wives Is Missing (1976) (TV) (executive producer)
The Legend of Valentino (1975) (TV) (producer)
Murder on Flight 502 (1975) (TV) (executive producer)
The Fireman's Ball (1975) (TV) (executive producer)
The Daughters of Joshua Cabe Return (1975) (TV) (executive producer)
Only with Married Men (1974) (TV) (executive producer)
Death Cruise (1974) (TV) (producer)
Hit Lady (1974) (TV) (producer)
Death Sentence (1974) (TV) (producer)
Savages (1974) (TV) (producer)
Cry Panic (1974) (TV) (producer)
The Girl Who Came Gift-Wrapped (1974) (TV) (producer)
The Death Squad (1974) (TV) (producer)
The Affair (1973) (TV) (executive producer)
Letters from Three Lovers (1973) (TV) (producer)
Hijack (1973) (TV) (producer)
Satan's School for Girls (1973) (TV) (producer)
The Bait (1973) (TV) (executive producer)
The Letters (1973) (TV) (executive producer)
The Great American Beauty Contest (1973) (TV) (executive producer)
Snatched (1973) (TV) (producer)
The Chill Factor (1973) (TV) (executive producer)
Every Man Needs One (1972) (TV) (executive producer)
Home for the Holidays (1972) (TV) (executive producer)
The Bounty Man (1972) (TV) (producer)
Rolling Man (1972) (TV) (executive producer)
Say Goodbye, Maggie Cole (1972) (TV) (producer)
No Place to Run (1972) (TV) (producer)
The Daughters of Joshua Cabe (1972) (TV) (executive producer)
Two for the Money (1972) (TV) (executive producer)
The Trackers (1971) (TV) (executive producer) (producer)
If Tomorrow Comes (1971) (TV) (executive producer)
The Reluctant Heroes (1971) (TV) (executive producer)
The Death of Me Yet (1971) (TV) (producer)
In Broad Daylight (1971) (TV) (executive producer)
A Taste of Evil (1971) (TV) (producer)
The Last Child (1971) (TV) (executive producer)
Five Desperate Women (1971) (TV) (executive producer)
Congratulations, It's a Boy! (1971) (TV) (producer)
River of Gold (1971) (TV) (executive producer)
Yuma (1971) (TV) (producer)
Love Hate Love (1971) (TV) (executive producer)
Run, Simon, Run (1970) (TV) (producer)
Crowhaven Farm (1970) (TV) (executive producer)
The Over-the-Hill Gang Rides Again (1970) (TV) (executive producer)
The House That Would Not Die (1970) (TV) (producer)
Wild Women (1970) (TV) (executive producer)
The Old Man Who Cried Wolf (1970) (TV) (executive producer)
But I Don't Want to Get Married! (1970) (TV) (producer)
How Awful About Allan (1970) (TV) (executive producer)
The Love War (1970) (TV) (producer)
Carter's Army (1970) (TV) (executive producer) (producer)
The Ballad of Andy Crocker (1969) (TV) (executive producer) (producer)
The Pigeon (1969) (TV) (executive producer)
The Monk (1969) (TV) (executive producer) (producer)
Wake Me When the War Is Over (1969) (TV) (executive producer)
The Over-the-Hill Gang (1969) (TV) (executive producer)
Cricket on the Hearth (1967) (TV) (executive producer)
My Daddy Can Lick Your Daddy (1962) (executive producer)
A Pair of Boots (1962) (executive producer)
Guns of the Timberland (1960) (producer)

BCnU.....
Tele-Toby