60 Fun Facts About Miami Vice

On which network did Miami Vice air from 1984 to 1989?

It ran on Friday nights for five seasons; USA Network picked up the reruns in 1988.

Who plays James "Sonny" Crockett?

NBC had doubts because of his string of failed pilots; creator Anthony Yerkovich read the scripts and blamed them, not the actor.

What is the full name of Philip Michael Thomas's character?

Thomas later voiced Lance Vance in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, the game the show inspired.

Which agency employs Crockett and Tubbs?

Their vice squad offices hide behind the front of the Gold Coast Shipping building.

Where did Tubbs work before coming to Miami?

He came south chasing Calderone, the drug lord who had his brother Rafael killed.

What kind of pet does Sonny Crockett keep on his sailboat?

It is named Elvis, which is also the obsession of Detective Stan Switek, a huge Presley fan.

What is the name of Crockett's scaly pet?

The name was a nod to Sonny's boat-based bachelor life; Switek's love of Elvis Presley was a separate running joke.

What is the name of the sailboat Crockett lives on?

It was an Endeavour 42, priced at $120,000 in 1986; the season's boat was later sold to a couple in the Midwest.

What was Crockett's black Ferrari Daytona Spyder in the first two seasons actually built on?

McBurnie Coachcraft made the replica; Ferrari sued, so the car was "blown up" and two real Testarossas were donated instead.

Which car replaced Crockett's Daytona from season three?

Ferrari donated two brand-new 1986 Testarossas; the stunt car was a De Tomaso Pantera in disguise.

What did Tubbs drive?

The Thunderbird was Switek's and the Cougar was Gina's; Crockett drove the Porsche in a 1980 flashback.

Who plays the taciturn Lieutenant Martin Castillo?

Castillo replaced Lieutenant Rodriguez, who was killed in the fourth episode; his past was as a DEA agent in the Golden Triangle.

What happens to the vice squad's first commander, Lieutenant Rodriguez?

Gregory Sierra played him; the hitman had been hired to kill Crockett.

Who plays Detective Gina Calabrese?

Olivia Brown is her partner Trudy Joplin; Gina had a brief romance with Crockett after his divorce.

Which fast-talking petty criminal, played by Martin Ferrero, informs for Crockett and Tubbs?

Noogie Lamont, played by Charlie Barnett, was the other comic informant in the early years.

Which two-word memo is NBC executive Brandon Tartikoff said to have written to sum up the show's concept?

Creator Anthony Yerkovich disputes it, saying his real inspiration was asset-forfeiture laws that let police seize dealers' toys.

What was the working title of the two-hour pilot before it became Miami Vice?

The name survives as Gold Coast Shipping, the front for the squad's offices.

Which show had creator Anthony Yerkovich written for before Miami Vice?

The name "Sonny Crockett" had already been used for a criminal on Hill Street Blues in 1983.

Which director served as executive producer and enforced the show's famous colour rules?

He banned earth tones and even red; Dick Wolf took over as showrunner in season three when Mann left for Crime Story.

Which two colours did director Bobby Roth say were forbidden on the show?

When a script called for a Mercedes, the car people would offer white, black or silver, never red or brown.

How many Emmy nominations did the first season receive?

It won four; each episode cost $2 million and was one of the first network shows broadcast in stereo.

Which two film stars were considered for Crockett but were too big for television at the time?

Mickey Rourke turned it down and CHiPs star Larry Wilcox was rejected for having just played a cop.

Whom was NBC ready to replace its Crockett actor with during his contract dispute after season two?

Harmon had just left St. Elsewhere; Johnson settled and stayed to the end.

Which future TV star played Crockett's ill-fated first partner Eddie Rivera in the pilot?

He was one of many future names to pass through, alongside Bruce Willis, Julia Roberts and Liam Neeson.

Which Czech-born keyboardist composed the show's synthesizer score and theme?

He had played with the Mahavishnu Orchestra; Michael Mann simply told him to "run with it".

How high did the Miami Vice Theme climb on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1985?

It was the last instrumental to top the chart until "Harlem Shake" in 2013, and won two Grammys.

How many weeks did the Miami Vice soundtrack spend at the top of the US album chart in 1985?

It featured Glenn Frey's "Smuggler's Blues" and "You Belong to the City", and was the most successful TV soundtrack up to then.

Which Phil Collins song plays as Crockett and Tubbs drive through Miami at night in the pilot?

The show paid $10,000 or more per episode for real recordings, and Collins later guest-starred himself.

Roughly how much did the show spend per episode licensing original pop recordings?

USA Today would print the songs featured each week, and a placement was a boost for any label.

Which Ray-Ban model did Crockett make a bestseller, pushing sales to 720,000 pairs in 1984?

The rest of the look was Italian sport coat, T-shirt, linen trousers and sockless loafers.

What was the electric razor sold in 1986 to give men Crockett's permanent five o'clock shadow called?

Wahl had wanted to call it the Miami Device but feared a trademark suit.

Which stainless-steel handgun did Crockett carry in the first two seasons?

Its maker Dornaus & Dixon went bust in 1986, so Smith & Wesson stepped in with a Model 645 for season three.

Which now-famous pistol was first seen on TV in Miami Vice?

The Steyr AUG and MAC-10 also got their mainstream debuts on the show.

Which Wellcraft boat became so popular from the show that the company built 100 "Miami Vice Edition" copies?

Wellcraft's sales rose 21% in a year and it gave Don Johnson his own boat, which he used to commute to set.

What did the racing team the show's star founded, Team USA, win in 1988?

Kurt Russell and Chuck Norris joined his Team USA.

Which run-down neighbourhood did the show help revive by filming its Art Deco hotels?

Ocean Drive was so empty the crew could shoot in the middle of the street, and elderly residents worked as extras.

Which long-running show did Miami Vice move opposite in season three, starting its ratings decline?

TV Guide ran the cover "Dallas Drubs the Cops" as the show fell from ninth to 27th.

Which future Law & Order creator took over as executive producer for season three?

He brought "ripped from the headlines" stories on the Troubles and capital punishment, and darker clothes.

Which pop star played Caitlin Davies, the singer Crockett marries in season four?

Caitlin is later killed by a man Crockett had wrongly helped free from death row.

What is Crockett's undercover drug-dealer alter ego, whom he believes he really is after a concussion?

Rico Cooper was Tubbs's cover; the amnesia arc ran through "Mirror Image", "Hostile Takeover" and "Redemption in Blood".

What was the title of the two-hour series finale that aired in May 1989?

Brother's Keeper was the pilot; three unaired episodes followed in June as "Lost Episodes".

Which 2002 video game was heavily inspired by the show?

Philip Michael Thomas even voiced Lance Vance in it.

Who played Crockett and Tubbs in the 2006 film version?

Foxx pitched the idea to Mann at a party for Ali; the film grossed $164 million on a budget of up to $150 million.

Which Top Gun: Maverick director was announced in 2025 to direct the film Miami Vice '85?

Dan Gilroy of Nightcrawler was attached to write the script when it was announced.

According to his backstory, what ended Crockett's college football career with the Florida Gators?

He then served two tours in Vietnam, which he calls the "Southeast Asia Conference".

Where was the actor who plays Crockett born?

He was born in his grandmother's house in Flat Creek and raised in Wichita, Kansas, where his father worked for Boeing.

Which Glenn Frey song from the Miami Vice soundtrack reached No. 2 on the US charts?

The soundtrack topped the US album chart for 11 weeks in 1985, the most successful TV soundtrack of its time.

Which Miami Vice detective is a big Elvis Presley fan who later falls prey to a gambling addiction?

He drove a turquoise 1961 Ford Thunderbird and his partner Zito was killed by a forced overdose.

How is Detective Larry Zito killed in the line of duty on Miami Vice?

John Diehl played him from 1984 to 1987 as Switek's surveillance partner.

Where were the show's interior scenes shot, instead of the Universal lot in Los Angeles?

The move simplified cross-country logistics, with only post-production done in Los Angeles.

Which 1980s NBC hit's cancellation let Miami Vice move to 9 pm on Fridays, opposite Dallas?

The new slot against the perennial Top 10 show began the series' ratings decline.

Which new series did Michael Mann leave Miami Vice to work on before season three?

He handed the executive producer role to Dick Wolf, who steered the show toward contemporary issues.

Who played Valerie Gordon, the NYPD officer and on-and-off love interest of Tubbs?

Notable guest stars also included Dean Stockwell, Clarence Williams III and Brian Dennehy.

Which award did Don Johnson win in 1986 for playing Sonny Crockett?

He was nominated for the same Golden Globe in 1987 and for an Emmy, but never won the latter.

Don Johnson's 1986 single 'Heartbeat' peaked at what position on the Billboard Hot 100?

He released two pop albums in the decade, Heartbeat in 1986 and Let It Roll in 1989.

Which later CBS police drama starred Don Johnson alongside Cheech Marin from 1996 to 2001?

A 2010 jury awarded him $23.2 million from Rysher Entertainment over his half-share of the show's copyright.

Which South American country's resort of Atlántida stood in for Havana in the 2006 Miami Vice film?

Filming also took place in Paraguay's Ciudad del Este, the Caribbean and South Florida.

Which box-office leader did the 2006 Miami Vice film knock off No. 1 on its opening weekend?

Pirates had led the box office for almost a full month; Vice went on to gross $164.2 million worldwide.

Which studio released the 2006 Miami Vice film, written and directed by Michael Mann?

It had a reported budget of $135 to 150 million and drew polarised reviews.

The 2006 tie-in game Miami Vice: The Game was released exclusively for which console?

Rebellion Developments made the third-person shooter, published by Vivendi Universal Games.