Toma (TV series)
| Toma | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Genre | Crime drama |
| Created by | Edward Hume |
| Written by |
Edward Hume Roy Huggins |
| Directed by |
Alex Grasshoff Jeannot Szwarc |
| Starring |
Tony Musante Susan Strasberg |
| Composer(s) |
Pete Rugolo (pilot) Mike Post (series) Pete Carpenter (series) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 22 (plus 1 TV-movie) |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Stephen J. Cannell |
| Location(s) |
Universal Studios: 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California RMS Queen Mary: 1126 Queens Highway, Long Beach, California |
| Cinematography | Vilis Lapenieks |
| Editor(s) | Gloryette Clark John J. Dumas |
| Running time | 48 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Roy Huggins-Public Arts Productions Universal TV |
| Distributor |
ABC Universal TV |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Original release | March 21, 1973 – May 10, 1974 |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | Baretta |
Toma is an American crime drama series that ran on ABC in 1973 and 1974.
The series stars Tony Musante and Susan Strasberg and was based on the real-life story and published biography of Newark, New Jersey, police detective David Toma. Toma had compiled an amazing arrest record during his years on the force, particularly in arresting drug dealers. His boss, Inspector Spooner, was played by Simon Oakland.
The show ended production after one season, as Musante had only agreed to film one full season, citing a desire not to get trapped into only playing one character over a long period of time. The network and show runners had initially assumed this to be a negotiating ploy, but Musante held firm and decided not to return.
Although the role was recast with Robert Blake, it was soon felt that Blake would be better served with a reworked and rewritten concept; accordingly, Toma was overhauled into the 1975 series Baretta. Aside from the circumstances of its conception, Baretta has no on-screen connection with Toma, as the shows have no characters or settings in common.
Many of the people on the Toma writing staff would go on to write episodes of The Rockford Files, which debuted shortly after Toma's cancellation. These writers included Stephen J. Cannell, Roy Huggins (who signed most of his work on both shows as "John Thomas James"), Juanita Bartlett, Zekial Marko, Don Carlos Dunaway, and Gloryette Clark. Series stars Musante, Strasberg and Oakland would also guest star on various episodes of The Rockford Files.
* Unknown
The series received favorable reviews and blistering criticism for its depictions of criminal and police violence. Although Toma was achieving relatively good ratings, the show was cancelled after one season. A second season was planned, but Tony Musante refused to continue with the show. Musante had told the producers at the outset that he only wanted to do one season, but they mistakenly believed he would return if the series was renewed.
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Wikipedia