FRENCH PHANTOM FARGAS

Rob Buckley, my British blogging buddy who maintains "The Medium Is Not Enough" (link to the left) brought this to my attention:

Apparently, Cherif got conked on the head and suddenly he could see Antonio Fargas as Huggy Bear. 

The hallucination was telecognizant, meaning that he knew he was living in a TV world (hence the mention of 'Mannix'), but that doesn't mean the real Huggy Bear was aware of that as well.

Forgive my translation of the original news story:

A cult character from the 'Starsky and Hutc' series, the informer Huggy Bear was played by American comedian Antonio Fargas.

This Friday, the viewers of France 2 will be surprised to see him in the episode of the Cherif series broadcast at 8:55 pm: When Cherif meets Huggy. A real role and not just an appearance.

Directed by Karim Ouaret. Scenario of Lionel Olenga and Nicolas Robert.

While investigating the death of a man found stabbed in his car, Cherif gets hit on the head and finds himself facing Huggy. A good genius that he is the only one to see and hear Huggy Bear and who will help Kader in his investigation.

Asked by the daily Le Parisien, Antonio Fargas reports that when the creator of Cherif came to see him in Beverly Hills, he told him about this cop fan series. "I was amused by the idea that Huggy appears in his mind, only Cherif can see him. It's also a way to get closer to the French fans who grew up with" 'Starsky and Hutch'. 

"Here, too, police told me they chose this profession after seeing the series! For me, it's wonderful to be invited to act in a French creation, to see the actor Abdelhafid Metalsi work, as I could see working with David Soul (Hutch) and Paul Michaël Glaser (Starsky) for years.  It feels like coming home!"

I think we have to accept that every character in Toobworld will eventually have a TV show about them. I've known that for years. And the cops Starsky and Hutchinson were the perfect choices for such a show. And Huggy Bear was colorful enough to be included as well. 

I would have loved for any references to a fictional Starsky and Hutch to be due to the movie that came out in 2004. But as you can see from the examples of references I share here, 'Starsky & Hutch' was a TV series by the mid-1970s.

But they were already getting well-known as themselves in the "reality" of Toobworld:

'SANFORD AND SON'

"LAMONT IN LOVE"

(1976) 

Mrs. Hopkins says every crimefighter has a sidekick, noting "Starsky has his Hutch."

They even got their own merchandising:

'CHARLIE'S ANGELS'

"TO KILL AN ANGEL"

(1976) 

Cathy, the surfer girl, is wearing a "Starsky and Hutch" T-shirt

TV's Hollywood took notice and a year later:

'GOOD TIMES'

"A STORMY RELATIONSHIP"

(1977) 

Mr. Barnes mentions TV series by name. 

'LAW & ORDER'

"CASTOFF"

Eddie Chandler: When I was a kid and I'd come home from school, I'd watch TV for hours on end, straight through till bedtime. 

Neil Pressman: What kind of shows did you watch? 

Eddie Chandler: Cop shows, action shows: The Mod Squad, The A-Team, Starsky and Hutch.

So far I've found proof that David Soul and Antonio Vargas played those roles in the fictional televersion of the show:

'MARTIN'

"ALL THE PLAYERS CAME"

(1995)

Antonio Fargas appeared as himself and is referred to by his character Huggy.

'LITTLE BRITAIN'

"TALLEST MAN"

(2003) 

Some characters meet David Soul who starred in 'Starsky and Hutch' and they talk about the character of Huggy Bear.

'THE ENFIELD HAUNTING'

EPISODE #1.2

(2015) 

Posters of David Soul and Paul Michael Glaser as their characters hang in Margaret and Janet's bedroom.

'MARRIED WITH CHILDREN'

"PSYCHIC AVENGERS"

(1992) 

Because of his old TV Guide, Al Bundy thinks the show is on again.

'SLIDERS'

"A THOUSAND DEATHS" 

(1999)

Quinn Mallory refers to Rembrandt Brown as "Huggy Bear". 

In this case, there's no Zonk in a hallucination based on a TV character AND the actor who played him. 

BCnU!