The series was launched with a 96-minute pilot movie that set the tone for everything that followed. In this feature-length introduction, dashing businessman Jonathan Hart (Wagner) promises a friend’s widow that he will investigate the mysterious death of her husband. Clues lead him to a posh health farm, where he encounters a beautiful redhead who challenges him at every turn—only to reveal herself as his wife, Jennifer (Powers), returning from a reporting trip in Europe.
Before it became a weekly series, Hart to Hart debuted as a 90-minute television movie on August 25, 1979. Directed by Tom Mankiewicz (who also heavily polished the script), the pilot established the blueprint for the series. It introduced the lavish lifestyle of the Harts and featured a mystery involving a health spa that served as a front for a sinister extortion plot. The pilot is a crucial piece of television history, setting the tone for the banter and high-stakes action that followed. 2. The Five-Season Run (1979–1984) Hart to Hart -1979- - Complete with Pilot and T...
Following the pilot’s strong ratings, ABC greenlit the series. The regular series premiered on September 22, 1979, and ran for five seasons, totaling 110 episodes (plus the pilot, making 111 distinct stories in most complete collections). The series was launched with a 96-minute pilot
The final season on ABC. While ratings were still solid, the network wanted to make room for new programming. The fifth season leans into more character-driven stories. The series finale, “The Harts and the Greys,” ends not with a cliffhanger but with a warm, trademark moment: Jonathan and Jennifer toasting each other as Max turns off the lights at the mansion. It was a perfect send-off. Before it became a weekly series, Hart to
Unlike other TV detectives who worked for a paycheck, the Harts were motivated by curiosity and a sense of justice. Most episodes began with the couple stumbling into a mystery—often involving international espionage, high-society theft, or white-collar crime—and using their wits (and Jonathan’s endless resources) to crack the case. The Pilot: Setting the Stage