Shadow Chasers

Shadow Chasers is an American science fiction mystery television series created by Brian Grazer and Kenneth Johnson. Fourteen episodes were produced, ten of which were shown on the ABC television network, the remaining four on the Armed Forces Network. It debuted on November 14, 1985, and was produced by Warner Bros. Television.

Plot
Shadow Chasers features strait-laced British anthropologist Jonathan MacKensie (played by Trevor Eve), who works for the fictional Georgetown Institute Paranormal Research Unit (PRU). In the pilot, MacKensie's department head, Dr. Julianna Moorhouse (Nina Foch), withholds a research grant to force him into investigating a supposed "haunting" involving a teenage boy (Bobby Fite). He is paired with flamboyant reporter and popular author Edgar "Benny" Benedek (Dennis Dugan) to reduce the length of the investigation, over Moorhouse's objections; she does not want a sensationalist who writes for the supermarket tabloids to be associated with the Georgetown Institute. Benny and Jonathan did not get along, but managed to solve the case despite their differences.

As the series continued, Jonathan and Benny grudgingly learned to respect each other and their different skills. Some episodes featured out-of-body experiences, genuine paranormal powers, and even bringing Dr. Moorhouse into the field on occasion. Other episodes had Benny and Jonathan investigating unreal happenings, running afoul of clever criminals, and defeating them. To Dr. Moorhouse's irritation, Benny was often able to turn his experiences into best-selling popular books and appearances on the late night talk show circuit. Despite this, she continued to promote the partnership of Benny and Jonathan in their investigations.

Cast

 * Dennis Dugan as Edgar 'Benny' Benedek
 * Trevor Eve as Dr. Jonathan MacKensie
 * Nina Foch as Dr. Juliana Moorhouse
 * Teresa Ganzel as Christy

Reception
Only nine episodes (counting the two hour pilot as a single episode) were shown in the U.S. Four others were only shown overseas on the Armed Forces Network during the original run of the series. The pilot frequently appears on cable, particularly on the Mystery Channel.

The show was the lowest-rated of 106 programs during the 1985-1986 TV season, (due in part to being broadcast in the same time slot as NBC's The Cosby Show and Family Ties and CBS's Magnum P.I. and later, Simon & Simon) averaging only a 5.8/9 rating/share. This competition had been the focus of a series of humorous commercials for the series, starring such luminaries of the time as Ricardo Montalbán and Ron Howard. While heavily promoted during the network's mini-series North and South, the commercials proved to be prophetic, in that the series drew small audiences, and was frequently pre-empted in some markets.