Before Hawaii Five-0 was a meme, it was this weirdly tense Cold War pilot with Leslie Nielsen as a villain.
In this pilot film to the "Hawaii Five-0" television series, special law officer Steve McGarrett tracks down Red Chinese operatives and their spy ring in Honolulu.
Acting
Jack Lord establishing McGarrett's ice-cold authority before the catchphrase.
Production
Honolulu locations shot like a paranoid travel brochure.
Writing
Wo Fat's debut — a villain so good they kept him for twelve years.
Director
Paul Wendkos
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This aired as a one-off TV movie in 1968; CBS ordered the series after seeing Jack Lord's test ratings with audiences who found him 'uncomfortably intense.'
Khigh Dhiegh (Wo Fat) was actually American-born; his 'exotic' performance fooled casting directors for decades.
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