How
many people have a holiday named after them? My dad does. On January
14, 1986, the city of Los Angeles proclaimed it: “Stephen J. Cannell
Day.”
That was the day he got his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
I
was pretty young back then, but kinda remember it. He was honored at a
roast at the Roosevelt Hotel, and then joined the ranks of some
Hollywood’s biggest stars out on the Walk of Fame.
It’s
rare for a writer to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, that
honor usually goes to actors or singers, but my dad has had a pretty
long career; he’s created or co-created 40 shows!
His
first big hit was the Rockford Files. Few people remember, but the
Rockford Files actually started off as an episode of a police show
called “Toma.” My dad wanted to create a private detective unlike any
other on TV at the time.
He
wanted to write a detective who had flaws and wasn’t perfect. Jim
Rockford asked for money up front, if your check bounced, he would take
the pink slip on your car, and if the going got tough, he gave up. The
network hated it, but audiences loved it.
The
Rockford Files was a huge hit in the ratings and also won several
Emmys. The success of that show would help my dad create his own TV
production company, have more hit shows, and eventually get his star on
the Walk of Fame.
