OHARA (1987-1988) – In this 1-hour detective show’s case “Ohara” is NOT O’Hara and is instead a Japanese-American cop played by the venerable Pat Morita, who also co-created the program. During its run Ohara went through THREE changes of format, starting out with a very innovative approach before poor ratings prompted desperate network scrambling for tired old approaches.
The first name of Morita’s character was never revealed on the show, and he was basically a “gimmick” character. Ohara was a Los Angeles police detective who initially worked without a partner and preferred meditation and soft-spoken interrogations to the cliched Tough Cop techniques. Our hero often cooked Japanese meals for guests to his home, incorporating Pat Morita’s own culinary enthusiasms into the show. Continue reading
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