Wiseguy

Wiseguy is an American crime drama television series that aired on CBS from September 16, 1987, to December 8, 1990, for a total of 75 episodes over four seasons. The series was produced by Stephen J. Cannell and was filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, to avoid the higher studio costs associated with filming in Los Angeles.

Wiseguy
Wiseguy title card, season one
Genre	Crime drama Mystery
Created by	Stephen J. Cannell Frank Lupo
Starring	Ken Wahl Steven Bauer Jonathan Banks Jim Byrnes
Composers	Mike Post Walter Murphy
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	4
No. of episodes	75 (3 unaired)
Production
Executive producers	Stephen J. Cannell David J. Burke Stephen Kronish
Producers	Brent-Karl Clackson Rod Holcomb (pilot) Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr. Alex Beaton
Running time	60 mins
Production company	Stephen J. Cannell Productions
Distributor	Cannell Distribution
Release
Original network	CBS
Picture format	Color
Audio format	Mono
Original release	September 16, 1987 – December 8, 1990

Wiseguy originally starred Ken Wahl as Vinnie Terranova, a Brooklyn native and deep cover operative for the FBI under the supervision of senior agent Frank McPike, played by Jonathan Banks. The primary cast was rounded out by Jim Byrnes, who played an information operative known as Lifeguard (real name Daniel Burroughs) who assisted Vinnie in the field. This cast remained together for three full seasons, after which Wahl left the series. The writers conceived a new lead character, Michael Santana, and played by Steven Bauer.

Synopsis

The series followed Vincent "Vinnie" Terranova, an undercover agent of the OCB (Organized Crime Bureau), a fictional division of the FBI. The show kept its focus on both the mechanics of being deep undercover and the consequences of the protagonist's actions.[1]

Unlike similar series of the day, Wiseguy was serialized over multiple episodes telling a self-contained story that would conclude in the final episode of the cycle. This gave rise to the industry term "story arc". Some cycles were short while others were extended, but each new story had a specific set of central characters exclusive to it who would appear over the course of multiple episodes. For example, Kevin Spacey appeared in seven episodes of a first-season arc as an antagonist, while Jerry Lewis was a protagonist for five episodes in a season-two arc.

Characters

Vincent Terranova

Vincent Michael "Vinnie" Terranova (Ken Wahl) is an undercover agent who is 30 years old when the series begins. His job is to infiltrate criminal organizations, gather evidence, and then destroy the organization and bring the guilty parties to justice. At the beginning of the show, he is estranged from his family because of an eighteen-month prison sentence (meant to establish his "wiseguy" credentials with the criminal underworld) and continued ties to criminals. His Italian-born mother, Carlotta (Elsa Raven) calls him "Vincenzo" but his legal name is Vincent. Vinnie was often seen wearing Fordham University sweatshirts and hats as he and his brother Pete are Fordham graduates.

Frank McPike

Frank McPike (Jonathan Banks) is Vinnie's superior officer, who assigns Vinnie to cases, supplies him with important information and coordinates back-up support. He became Vinnie's immediate superior after Vinnie was released after completing an eighteen-month sentence in the Newark State Penitentiary (Frank was responsible for ensuring that Vinnie served the full term in order to cement his cover). Since McPike is a known law enforcement official and Vinnie is deep undercover, McPike will often have Vinnie arrested on a trumped-up charge so that he can talk to Vinnie without revealing his identity. Like many characters in law-enforcement dramas, Frank has a troubled marriage. He separates from his wife after diverting some money recovered from a gangster to pay for a liver transplant for her.

Daniel Benjamin "Lifeguard" Burroughs

Lifeguard (Jim Byrnes), with whom Vinnie communicates almost exclusively by telephone, is Vinnie's other contact person. Vinnie (ideally) calls him every morning with the latest updates on the case, and Lifeguard provides him with quick updates. He also, under the name of "Mike Terranova", provides Vinnie with an emergency contact number (555-4958, a play on Vince's agent number), without revealing Vinnie's true identity. (The cover location is "Sailor Hardware"; the code phrase "Uncle Mike" indicates an emergency request for assistance.) Daniel is a double-leg amputee, but is remarkably mobile in his wheelchair; he is also mobile with a pair of prosthetic legs. Like McPike, Daniel is divorced as a result of his work; his ex-wife stays in close contact, apparently because Daniel has resources she wants, and Daniel endures this with resentment. Eventually he forms a relationship with OCB's West Coast Lifeguard operator when Vinnie's investigations take him to Washington State.

Recurring characters

• Father Pete Terranova played by Gerald Anthony
• Carlotta Terranova (Aiuppo) played by Elsa Raven
• Paul Beckstead played by Ken Jenkins
• Mark Cermak played by Dwight Koss
• Mel Profitt played by Kevin Spacey
• Dahlia Mendez played by Martika

Episodes

Season 1 (1987–88)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
1 2	1 2	"Pilot"	Rod Holcomb	Stephen J. Cannell & Frank Lupo	September 16, 1987
3	3	"New Blood"	Lyndon Chubbuck	David J. Burke	September 24, 1987
4	4	"The Loose Cannon"	Larry Shaw	Stephen J. Cannell	October 1, 1987
5	5	"The Birthday Surprise"	Robert Iscove	Story by : Eric Blakeney & Gene Miller Teleplay by : Eric Blakeney	October 8, 1987
6	6	"One on One"	Reynaldo Villalobos	Stephen Kronish	October 15, 1987
7	7	"Prodigal Son"	Charles Correll	Carol Mendelsohn	October 22, 1987
8	8	"A Deal's a Deal"	Charles Correll	David J. Burke & Stephen Kronish	October 29, 1987
9	9	"The Marriage of Heaven and Hell"	Zale Dalen	Eric Blakeney	November 5, 1987
10	10	"No One Gets Out of Here Alive"	Robert Iscove	David J. Burke	November 12, 1987
11	11	"Last Rites for Lucci"	Bill Corcoran	Stephen Kronish	November 19, 1987
12	12	"Independent Operator"	Aaron Lipstadt	Stephen J. Cannell	January 4, 1988
13	13	"Fascination for the Flame"	William A. Fraker	Stephen J. Cannell	January 11, 1988
14	14	"Smokey Mountain Requiem"	Neill Fearnley	Story by : David J. Burke & Hans Tobeason Teleplay by : David J. Burke	January 18, 1988
15	15	"Player to be Named Now"	Don Rapiel	Stephen Kronish	January 25, 1988
16	16	"The Merchant of Death"	William A. Fraker	Carol Mendelsohn	February 1, 1988
17	17	"Not for Nothing"	Bill Corcoran	David J. Burke & Don Kurt	February 8, 1988
18	18	"Squeeze"	Bill Corcoran	Gina Wendkos	February 15, 1988
19	19	"Blood Dance"	Kim Manners	Eric Blakeney	February 22, 1988
20	20	"Phantom Pain"	Dennis Dugan	Stephen Kronish	March 14, 1988
21	21	"Dirty Little Wars"	Robert Iscove	David J. Burke	March 21, 1988
22	22	"Date with an Angel"	Les Sheldon	David J. Burke & Stephen Kronish	March 28, 1988

Season 2 (1988–89)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
23	1	"Going Home"	Les Sheldon	David J. Burke	October 26, 1988
24	2	"School of Hard Knox"	Robert Iscove	Stephen Kronish	November 2, 1988
25	3	"Revenge of the Mud People"	Bill Corcoran	Stephen J. Cannell	November 9, 1988
26	4	"Last of the True Believers"	Robert Iscove	John Schulian	November 16, 1988
27	5	"Aria for Don Aiuppo"	Jan Eliasberg	Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr.	December 7, 1988
28	6	"7th Avenue Freeze Out"	Bill Corcoran	David J. Burke & Stephen Kronish	December 14, 1988
29	7	"Next of Kin"	Bill Corcoran	Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr. & John Schulian	December 21, 1988
30	8	"All or Nothing"	Gus Trikonis	Suzanne Oshry	January 11, 1989
31	9	"Where's the Money?"	Robert Iscove	David J. Burke & Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr.	January 18, 1989
32	10	"Postcard from Morocco"	Roy Campanella II	Stephen Kronish & John Schulian	January 25, 1989
33	11	"Stairway to Heaven"	James A. Contner	Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr.	February 1, 1989
34	12	"White Noise"	James Whitmore Jr.	Story by : Ken Wahl Teleplay by : David J. Burke & Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr.	February 15, 1989
35	13	"Dead Dog Lives"	Gus Trikonis	David J. Burke & Stephen Kronish	March 1, 1989
36	14	"And It Comes Out Here"	Bill Corcoran	David J. Burke & Stephen Kronish	March 8, 1989
37	15	"The Rip-Off Stick"	Mario Azzopardi	Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr. & John Schulian	March 22, 1989
38	16	"High Dollar Bop"	Douglas Jackson	Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr. & John Schulian	April 5, 1988
39	17	"Hip Hop on the Gravy Train"	Helaine Head	Suzanne Oshry	April 12, 1989
40	18	"The One That Got Away"	Jorge Montesi	David J. Burke & Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr.	May 3, 1989
41	19	"Living and Dying in 4/4 Time"	James A. Contner	Stephen Kronish & John Schulian	May 10, 1989
42	20	"Call It Casaba"	Gus Trikonis	David J. Burke & Clifton Campbell & Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr.	May 17, 1989
43	21	"The Four-Letter Word: Part 1"	Frank E. Johnson	John Schulian & Suzanne Oshry	May 24, 1989
44	22	"Le Lacrime de Amore: Part 2"	Bill Corcoran	Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr. & Clifton Campbell	May 24, 1989

Season 3 (1989–90)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
45	1	"A Rightful Place"	Robert Iscove	David J. Burke	September 20, 1989
46	2	"Battle of the Barge"	Robert Iscove	Clifton Campbell	September 27, 1989
47	3	"Sins of the Father"	David J. Burke	Stephen Kronish	October 4, 1989
48	4	"Heir to the Throne"	Bill Corcoran	Alphonse Ruggiero, Jr.	October 11, 1989
49	5	"Sleepwalk"	Matthew Meshekoff	David J. Burke & Clifton Campbell	October 25, 1989
50	6	"How Will They Remember Me?"	William A. Fraker	Story by : Ken Wahl & David J. Burke and Stephen Kronish & Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr. Teleplay by : Stephen Kronish & Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr.	November 1, 1989
51	7	"People Do It All the Time"	Jonathan Sanger	Story by : David Braden & David Curran Teleplay by : Suzanne Oshry	November 8, 1989
52	8	"The Reunion"	William A. Fraker	Story by : Don Kurt Teleplay by : David J. Burke & Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr.	November 15, 1989
53	9	"Day One"	Mario Van Peebles	David J. Burke & Stephen Kronish & Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr. & Clifton Campbell	November 29, 1989
54	10	"Day Four"	Reynaldo Villalobos	David J. Burke & Stephen Kronish & Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr. & Clifton Campbell	December 6, 1989
55	11	"Day Seven"	William A. Fraker	David J. Burke & Stephen Kronish & Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr. & Clifton Campbell	December 13, 1989
56	12	"Day Nine"	Les Sheldon	David J. Burke & Stephen Kronish & Alfonse Ruggiero, Jr. & Clifton Campbell	December 20, 1989
57	13	"Meet Mike McPike"	Robert Woodruff	Frank Megna	January 10, 1990
58	14	"To Die in Bettendorf"	Jorge Montesi	Morgan Gendel	January 17, 1990
59	15	"Romp"	Ken Wahl	Davey Lovejoy	February 7, 1990
60	16	"A One Horse Town"	Peter D. Marshall	David J. Burke	February 14, 1990
61	17	"His Master's Voice"	James A. Contner	Robert Engels	March 7, 1990
62	18	"Hello Buckwheat"	Jonathan Sanger	David J. Burke & Stephen Kronish	March 14, 1990
63	19	"Let Them Eat Cake"	James A. Contner	Clifton Campbell & Robert Engels	March 21, 1990
64	20	"Meltdown"	Frank E. Johnson	Clifton Campbell & Stephen Kronish	March 28, 1990
65	21	"Sanctuary"	William A. Fraker	David J. Burke & Robert Engels	April 11, 1990
66	22	"Brrump-Bump"	Peter D. Marshall	Robert Engels	April 18, 1990

Season 4 (1990)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
67 68	1 2	"Fruit of the Poisonous Tree"	Jan Eliasberg	Story by : Stephen J. Cannell & Peter Lance & Rafael Lima Teleplay by : Peter Lance	November 10, 1990
69	3	"Black Gold"	Jorge Montesi	Story by : Stephen J. Cannell & Peter Lance & Rafael Lima Teleplay by : Bill Bludworth	November 17, 1990
70	4	"The Gift"	Jorge Montesi	Stephen J. Cannell	November 24, 1990
71	5	"La Mina"	Colin Bucksey	Peter Lance	December 1, 1990
72	6	"Witness Protection for the Archangel Lucifer"	Jorge Montesi	TBA	December 8, 1990
73	7	"Point of No Return"	Colin Bucksey	Brock Choy	UNAIRED
74	8	"Dead Right"	Tucker Gates	James Kearns	UNAIRED
75	9	"Changing Houses"	Gus Trikonis	Stephen J. Cannell	UNAIRED

Season one

Sonny Steelgrave storyline

FBI undercover agent Vinnie Terranova is released from prison after serving an 18 month sentence to establish his cover. After his training agent is murdered by Dave Steelgrave (Gianni Russo), an Atlantic City Mafia boss, Vinnie vows to infiltrate the organization and take the Steelgraves down. He eventually earns the trust of Sonny Steelgrave, Dave's brother, and after Dave's death and the apparent defection of one of the Steelgrave captains, he is made Sonny's second-in-command. Over time, Vinnie feels conflicted by his genuine feelings of friendship towards Sonny, and having to lie to his mother about his work for the government in order to maintain his cover. Eventually, Sonny discovers that Vinnie is an undercover agent and, about to be arrested for his crimes, commits suicide rather than face the death penalty. Vinnie is ultimately able to overcome the guilt he feels over his betrayal of Sonny and continues to work as an undercover agent.

Episodes of season one
(Sonny Steelgrave storyline)

No.	Episode
1	Pilot (1)
2	Pilot (2)
3	"New Blood"
4	"The Loose Cannon"
5	"The Birthday Surprise"
6	"One on One"
7	"Prodigal Son"
8	"A Deal's a Deal"
9	"The Marriage of Heaven and Hell"
10	"No One Gets Out of Here Alive"

Arc cast

• Ray Sharkey as Sonny Steelgrave
• Gianni Russo as Dave Steelgrave
• Jessica Steen as Tracy Steelgrave
• Dennis Lipscomb as Sid Royce/Elvis Prim
• Eric Christmas as Harry "The Hunch" Shanstra
• Joe Dallesandro as Paul "Pat the Cat" Patrice
• Joe Shea as Mack "No Money" Mahoney
• Nathan Davis as Don "Joey Bags" Baglia
• Robert Mangiardi as Aldo Baglia

Arc guest stars

• Robert Miranda as Tony Greco
• Billy Vera as Joey Romanowski
• Annette Bening as Karen Leland
• Dan Lauria as Jack Phillips
• David Marciano as Lorenzo Steelgrave

Mel Profitt storyline

Vinnie, using his reputation developed as a result of infiltrating the Steelgrave crime family, made contact with a hitman/assassin named Roger Lococco (William Russ). However, Vinnie soon discovered a much bigger target: Roger's boss, the (mentally unstable) multi-billionaire international criminal mastermind and arms dealer Mel Profitt (Kevin Spacey), and his sister Susan (Joan Severance). Mel had an addiction to prescription medication (often administered to him by Susan) which further contributed to his unstable emotional state. He was also a believer in Malthusian economics. After much international intrigue involving Mel, Susan and Lococco (who turned out to be a CIA agent, under even deeper cover than Vinnie), the entire organization was destroyed. The arc alluded to an incestuous relationship between Mel and Susan.

After everything collapsed around him, Mel suffered a complete mental breakdown and asked Susan to "send him home". She obliged him by injecting him with a lethal dose of heroin and amphetamines and giving him a Viking funeral, and eventually went insane (through no help of Lococco, who began gaslighting her) and was committed to a mental facility.

As it turned out, the Profitt connection was part of a much larger plot by the CIA to train mercenaries and install a puppet regime in the Caribbean. Lococco's training officer and immediate superior Herb Ketcher proved to be behind the plot and after Vinnie and McPike infiltrated the operation, the entire thing was exposed as a front for an American corporation and Lococco turned state's evidence. Shortly after his testimony, Lococco went off the grid. Ketcher, after being exposed, would take his own life before consequences were dealt to him.

As the arc came to an end Vinnie announced his resignation from OCB and would not listen when McPike said he would give him six months off instead.

Stephen J. Cannell, producer of Wiseguy, stated that the character Jim Profit from the short-lived Fox series Profit (which Cannell also produced) was named after and partially based on the Mel Profitt character.

Note - In 1997 TV Guide ranked the episode "Blood Dance" number 14 on its "100 Greatest Episodes of All Time" list.[2]

Episodes of season one
(Mel Profitt storyline)

No.	Episode
11	"Last Rites For Lucci"
12	"Independent Operator"
13	"Fascination for the Flame"
14	"Smokey Mountain Requiem"
15	"Player to be Named Now"
16	"The Merchant of Death"
17	"Not For Nothing"
18	"Squeeze"
19	"Blood Dance"
20	"Phantom Pain"
21	"Dirty Little Wars"
22	"Date With an Angel"

Arc cast

• Joan Severance as Susan Profitt
• Kevin Spacey as Mel Profitt
• William Russ as Roger Lococco
• David Spielberg as Herb Ketcher
• Melanie Chartoff as Lillah Warfield
• Ben Halley, Jr. as Henri LaLonde
• Clyde Kusatsu as Kenny Sasusha
• Will Zahrn as Charles Shagrass

Season two

White supremacy storyline

At the beginning of the second season, Vinnie is living at home with his mother and brother, Father Pete (Gerald Anthony) and working for a friend at a gas station as everyone in his neighborhood still believes he is in the Mafia.

McPike, meanwhile, has been dispatched to find Vinnie by the new director of OCB, Paul Beckstead. Vinnie's resignation letter has yet to be processed, and McPike has been given the following choice: either debrief Vinnie and process his resignation or bring him back from sabbatical. Vinnie refuses to go along, however.

Meanwhile, his friend gets an eviction notice and nearly is driven to sabotage in an attempt to protect his business. A patron of his turns him on to the teachings of "Dr." Knox Pooley, who leads a group called the "Pilgrims of Promise" that has white supremacist leanings. His right-hand man, Calvin Hollis, has a particularly dim view of Jewish people and he leads a group of Pilgrims in an attack on a synagogue. In the aftermath of the attack, Pete goes on television condemning the attack; shortly after he is run down in an alley.

After agreeing to return to work, but only on his terms, Vinnie discovers that Hollis runs an even more extreme group than he knew about and one that is determined to eradicate other races by any means. Pooley is simply a con man and former used car salesman trying to make money off of the men who follow him. Hollis' grip on reality loosens more significantly as the time goes on, eventually leading to him murdering a talk show host which finally sets Pooley off and causes him to disavow his existence. Before Hollis can be brought to justice for his crimes, he is killed in a fire which he inadvertently set by shooting a crony of his. Pooley, meanwhile, simply moves on to his next angle: selling beachfront real estate in Florida.

Episodes of season two
(White supremacy storyline)

No.	Episode
23	"Going Home"
24	"School of Hard Knox"
25	"Revenge of the Mud People"
26	"Last of the True Believers"

Arc cast

• Tim Guinee as Richard T. (Ritchie) Stramm
• John M. Jackson as Daryl Elias
• Fred Dalton Thompson as Knox Pooley
• Paul Guilfoyle as Calvin Hollis
• Jack Orend as Stan Corker
• Kerry Sandomirsky as Angela Terranova

Garment trade storyline

David Sternberg (Ron Silver) and his father Eli (Jerry Lewis) ran a clothing business, and were being squeezed by the fearsome gangster Rick Pinzolo (Stanley Tucci). David goes to the OCB for help, thus Vinnie is recruited to act as security for the Sternbergs. After a small-time loanshark attacked and injured Vinnie, he was temporarily replaced by retired agent John Henry Raglin (Anthony Denison). (This was done in order to allow Ken Wahl to recover from a broken ankle he suffered in an on-set accident.) Raglin brought down (and killed) Pinzolo, but not in time to save Eli's business or David's life. Joan Chen appeared in one episode of this arc, as a rebellious Chinese sweatshop worker with whom the married Raglin briefly has an affair. After Raglin breaks Pinzolo's jaw, the character has his jaw wired shut, requiring Tucci to talk through clenched teeth afterward.

Episodes of season two
(Garment Trade storyline)

No.	Episode
28	"7th Avenue Freeze Out"
29	"Next of Kin"
30	"All or Nothing"
31	"Where's the Money"
32	"Postcard From Morocco"

Arc cast

• Jerry Lewis as Eli Sternberg
• Ron Silver as David Sternberg
• Stanley Tucci as Enrico "Ricky" Pinzolo
• Anthony Denison as John Henry Raglin
• Harry Goz as Phil
• Patricia Charbonneau as Carole Goldman

Dead Dog Records storyline

Upon his recovery, Vinnie's next assignment took him into the music business, where he dealt with music impresario Isaac Twine (Paul Winfield) and his wife Amber (Patti D'Arbanville). He was set up as a new executive in a front company, "Dead Dog Records", which was originally created by the Drug Enforcement Administration, who offered it to the OCB when their investigation ended. Vinnie then attempted to infiltrate the music industry in search of corruption. The principal villain of this arc is English record mogul Winston Newquay (pronounced Noo-kway in the show, rather than Nyoo-key in the English fashion). Newquay, played by Tim Curry, ruthlessly cheats the artists under his control, funneling their money into his own companies while hiding his activities with accounting tricks.

Debbie Harry, Mick Fleetwood, Deidre Hall and Glenn Frey also appear during this story arc.

Episodes of season two
(Dead Dog Records storyline)

No.	Episode
35	"Dead Dog Lives"
36	"And it Comes Out Here"
37	"The Rip-Off Stick"
38	"High Dollar Bop"
39	"Hip Hop on the Gravy Train"
40	"The One that Got Away"
41	"Living and Dying in 4/4 Time"
42	"Call it Casaba"

Arc cast

• Tim Curry as Winston Newquay
• Patti D'Arbanville as Theresa "Amber" Twine
• Glenn Frey as Robert "Bobby" Travis
• Deidre Hall as Claudia Newquay
• Deborah Harry as Diana Price
• Paul McCrane as Johnny Medley
• Pamela Segall as Tanya Medley
• Paul Winfield as Isaac Twine
• Billy Wirth as Eddie Tempest
• Ron Taylor as Monroe Blue

Season three

Mafia Wars storyline

At the beginning of the third season, Vinnie had not been assigned any recent cases, but, in usual Wiseguy fashion, a case found him. Vinnie's stepfather, Don Rudy Aiuppo (George O. Petrie) was shot and wounded, leaving Vinnie the temporary head of the local Mafia commission (to Frank McPike's delight). Vinnie investigated the other members, including Albert Cericco (Robert Davi). Eventually, Vinnie brought down most of the commission, only to find Aiuppo had been manipulating him to exact revenge on some rivals. An enraged Vinnie angrily told Aiuppo that, stepfather or not, he wanted nothing more to do with him. Aiuppo in turn tried to drive a wedge between Vinnie and his mother by implying that he had learned of Vinnie's undercover role from her. In reality, he had bugged a payphone outside his hospital room, thinking that the various Mafiosi visiting him would be using it just after taking their leave; Vinnie had used it to contact Uncle Mike.

Episodes of seasons two and three
(Mafia Wars storyline)

No.	Episode	Season
43	"The Four-Letter Word (1)"	2
44	"Le Lacrime de Amore (2)"	2
45	"A Rightful Place"	3
46	"Battle of the Barge"	3
47	"Sins of the Father"	3
48	"Heir to the Throne"	3

Arc cast

• Robert Davi as Albert Cerrico
• George O. Petrie as Raphael Gaitanio Aiuppo, Rudy Flowers, aka Don Aiuppo
• Tony Mike Romano as Poochy
• John Snyder as Joey Grosset
• Michael Chiklis as Carlo Spoletta
• Anne De Salvo as Gina Grosset
• Chazz Palminteri as Peter Allatore

Washington, D.C., storyline

Vinnie was summoned to the Justice Department and put in charge of an investigation of Japanese yen counterfeiting, unaware that the whole thing was a setup by certain unscrupulous government figures who sought payback for damaging fallout from the Mel Profitt case. Based on the real-life Operation Bernhard, the conspirators aim to undermine the Japanese economy by printing large amounts of counterfeit Yen, smuggling them into Japan on cargo aircraft, and then announcing it; all in order to devalue the currency. After the revelation, a convenient scapegoat is supposed to take the blame, in this case, Vinnie. When the plan is foiled en route, Vinnie nevertheless becomes the focus of an investigation, and is only saved when a third party "connects the dots" for the investigating committee.

Episodes of season three
(Washington, D.C., storyline)

No.	Episode	Season
53	"Day One"	3
54	"Day Four"	3
55	"Day Seven"	3
56	"Day Nine"	3

Arc cast

• Norman Lloyd as General Leland Masters
• Stephen Joyce as Admiral Walter Strichen
• Kim Greist as Katherine (Kay) Gallagher
• Robert Harper as Dewitt Clipton
• Ray Stricklyn as Senator Pickering
• Stan Shaw as Major Vernon Biggs
• Georgann Johnson as Senator Janet Getzloff

Lynchboro/Seattle storyline

Vinnie was made a deputy of a small town called Lynchboro in Washington state, where local strongman Mark Volchek (Steve Ryan) was essentially treating the town like his own personal dictatorship. Vinnie worked under Sheriff Matthew Stemkowsky, nicknamed "Stem".

The arc took an unexpected turn when recent murders, including several of Stemkowsky's deputies, were determined to be the work of a serial killer based on the then real life unsolved Green River Killer cases. As a large federal task force was on its way to Lynchboro, Volchek, fearful of the disruption and attention, was determined to identify the killer through his knowledge of the town and residents. Vinnie, however, was convinced it was Volchek. Volchek displayed a curious obsession with the movie "Mr. Sardonicus", which became a factor later in the arc.

The night before the task force was to descend on Lynchboro, Volchek worked with McPike to try to narrow down the possible suspects through a rapid series of deductions. Eventually, a frustrated Stem cracks under the intensifying pressure and confesses his crimes.

However, rather than face justice, Stem chose to violently kill himself with a stun gun in front of his deputies. Vinnie immediately began having flashbacks of Sonny Steelgrave's death and went off the grid, making one phone call to someone who owed him a favor. (This story-arc was, in mood and setting, eerily prescient of the early episodes of the show Twin Peaks, which debuted a few weeks after the sequence was aired.)

That person turned out to be Roger Lococco, who himself had gone off the grid two years earlier once he testified in the Mel Profitt investigation. He replaced Stem as sheriff and immediately began looking deeper into Volchek, who had a dream to build a hospital focusing on cryogenics. After fate turned against him, however, Volchek eventually was talked into loosening his grip on the town. In a cameo appearance, film critic Jeffrey Lyons appeared as himself to deconstruct the movie that Volchek was obsessed with. Re-enacting part of the movie with Volchek as the main character became part of his recovery.

Vinnie, meanwhile, wound up in Seattle with $42 to his name, which he used to rent a room in a transient hotel. He took a job with a waste removal company called Health Elimination Services that specialized in dumping medical waste. Vinnie, working for $100 a day, discovered that one of his jobs, dumping bodily fluids into a storm drain near an elementary school, resulted in a hepatitis outbreak at the school and that the company was aware of it.

Embroiled in the company manager's desperate attempts at covering up, Vinnie fled in repulsion from hired assassins as well as from his own burgeoning violent impulse, which resulted in him violently beating the manager and disposing of two of the assassins. He would find respite in a city church. Just as McPike found him in hiding there, a would-be assassin's bullet missed Vinnie and critically wounded McPike, propelling Vinnie on a final pursuit of justice.

Episodes of season three
(Lynchboro/Seattle storyline)

No.	Episode	Season
60	"A One Horse Town"	3
61	"His Master's Voice"	3
62	"Hello Buckwheat"	3
63	"Let Them Eat Cake"	3
64	"Meltdown"	3
65	"Sanctuary"	3
66	"Brrump-Bump!"	3

Arc cast

• Steve Ryan as Mark Volchek
• David Strathairn as Sheriff Matthew Stemkowsky
• James Stacy as Edward "Rogo" Rogosheske
• Darlanne Fluegel as Lacey Marseille
• Neil Giuntoli as Donny
• William Russ as Roger Lococco
• Bonnie Bartlett as Harriet Weiss
• Vincent Guastaferro as John Kousakis
• Lora Zane as Nona, the West Coast's answer to Lifeguard
• Leo Gordon as Charlie Boden
• Eddie Bracken as Father Patrick

Season four

After the third season ended, Ken Wahl left Wiseguy over a dispute with CBS over the direction of the show. Steven Bauer was brought in to be the new lead character, a former United States Attorney named Michael Santana who had recently been disbarred. Jonathan Banks and Jim Byrnes returned in their regular roles, and new addition Cecil Hoffman rounded out the cast. A new theme song by Mike Post, who wrote the original theme, was commissioned and had a more Latin flair. The series also found a new timeslot, moving to Saturday nights at 10:00 pm Eastern.

Guzman storyline

The season began with a raid on a drug warehouse in Miami run by the Medellín Cartel, with United States Attorney Michael Santana leading the raid. The head of the cartel is put on trial and is headed for a near certain conviction. However, as the jury deliberates, a Miami policeman comes forward and reveals he coerced a confession which led to the warrant being issued. Santana's misconduct after finding all of this out results in the dismissal of the case and eventually his disbarment.

Meanwhile, back in Washington, a now-bearded McPike has fully healed from the gunshot wounds he sustained at the end of the previous year and Director Beckstead is looking to have him assume desk duty. McPike, after all he has been through over the recent months, does not agree and leaves frustrated.

Lifeguard, meanwhile, is forced to drop another emotional bombshell on McPike. After being unable to reach him for several days, Lifeguard informs McPike that Vinnie has not been checking in. Since this is highly unusual for Vinnie, as he reliably keeps in contact with Lifeguard, McPike becomes concerned. He also comes to a conclusion that Lifeguard is keeping something from him regarding Vinnie.

A trip to Vinnie’s apartment yields more questions than answers. When McPike enters, he discovers that the stove is on in Vinnie’s kitchen with a pot of boiling pasta sitting there unattended. The television set in the living room is on and in the bathroom, the shower is running hot. Vinnie, however, is nowhere to be found and there is a noticeable handprint on the apartment’s door. McPike gets on the horn to Lifeguard with his discovery, and the two men deduce that it is highly likely that Vinnie did not leave his apartment willingly.

Trying to find answers, McPike drops in on Carlotta Terranova and Don Aiuppo to find out more. One of their neighbors, a Catholic priest, had been murdered by a right-wing death squad in El Salvador, and Vinnie had been assisting the family in trying to find answers. Since Vinnie had made contact with Michael Santana before disappearing, McPike traveled to Miami to meet with him. The two confirmed that Vinnie had been kidnapped.

Soon, McPike and Santana found Amado Guzman (Maximilian Schell), a Cuban-American businessman who worked for the cartel as a money launderer. They also found out that Guzman was offering support to the Salvadoran death squad, which in addition to murdering the priest was responsible for Vinnie's kidnapping. With the help of U.S. Attorney Hillary Stein (Hoffmann), who had been working the original case as Santana's AUSA before his removal and disbarment and was his love interest, they took Guzman's operation down.

Despite this, OCB never was able to locate Vinnie. He was presumed dead, being killed by the same death squad he had been investigating, and a memorial service was held in his honor. McPike spoke at the service, where he revealed the truth regarding Vinnie's services with the FBI and OCB.

OCB disbands

With the Guzman investigation closed, McPike convinced Santana to become an official OCB agent. However, Director Beckstead is forced to shut down the task force due to budget cuts. Instead, McPike and Santana are sent to the New York FBI office to work in tandem with the U.S. Attorney's office there. They were immediately thrust into an investigation into a scheme involving the deaths of several naval pilots in crashes involving faulty plane parts. Former AUSA Stein, meanwhile, has joined her family's law firm and taken on the case, but after the firm's partners elect to not go after the partmaker she turns her attention to finding justice for the families affected by the crashes. Through the work of McPike and Santana, as well as the continued covert work from Lifeguard, the head of the company is arrested and brought to justice.

Cancellation

Wiseguy was cancelled after one additional episode (with Billy Dee Williams as a guest) aired.

The program was never the strongest ratings draw, despite the positive feedback from critics. The loss of Ken Wahl combined with the move to a traditionally low rated Saturday night spot depleted the ratings further and the series came to its end after 75 episodes.

Ken Wahl said that the entire fourth season concept was "ridiculous" because it got away from what Wiseguy had been about: Whereas before the show was more character driven, CBS wanted to make the show more of an action-based crime drama and Wahl felt he could not continue in the role if that was where they wanted to go.[3]

Episodes of season four

No.	Episode
67	"Fruit of the Poisonous Tree (1)"
68	"Fruit of the Poisonous Tree (2)"
69	"Black Gold"
70	"The Gift"
71	"La Mina"
72	"Witness Protection for the Archangel Lucifer"
73	"Point of No Return"
74	"Dead Right"
75	"Changing Houses"

Arc cast

• Maximilian Schell as Amado Guzman
• Steven Bauer as U.S. Attorney Michael Santana
• Cecil Hoffman as U.S. Attorney Hillary Stein
• Billy Dee Williams as Jesse Hains
• Martika as Dahlia Mendez

Non-arc episodes

There were also several stand-alone episodes between the arcs, most of which dealt with the personal lives of the main characters. For instance:

• Aria for Don Aiuppo (Season 2, Episode 27) - Mama Carlotta Terranova falls for and marries an old flame, Rudy Aiuppo, whom she had formerly gave up, when he chose a life of crime. Aiuppo switches places with his recently reconciled (and dead-ringer) brother, who has returned to Italy, while Aiuppo fades back into the old neighborhood.
• White Noise (Season 2, Episode 34) - Vinnie enters a mental hospital for general treatment and is set up by Daryl Elias, who can work computers and has a score to settle. Sonny Steelgrave is brought back via Vinnie's memory and Vinnie resolves his guilt issues.
• Call it Casaba (Season 2, Episode 42) - Vinnie, Frank and Lifeguard go on a camping weekend, but Lifeguard has his daughter's marriage on his mind. This isn't helped when the daughter shows up at his cabin. This episode is a fan favorite, and was especially a favorite of co-star Jonathan Banks.
• Sleepwalk (Season 3, Episode 49) - After the "Dead Dog Records" arc, Vinnie has a liaison with Amber Twine, who was widowed when her husband suffered a heart attack during the main story. He attempts to live in her world of late nights with musicians but finds he has no interest in it, and she has no interest in his world. This sequence featured a cameo by blues harp player Kim Wilson and his band, The Fabulous Thunderbirds.
• How Will They Remember Me? (Season 3, Episode 50) - Vinnie discovers his late father's old diary and sees his very honest father faced the same temptations from criminals that Vinnie faces today.
• People Do It All the Time (Season 3, Episode 51) - Lifeguard's family troubles continue as he comes to grips with becoming a grandfather. He steps in when his son-in-law gets involved with an unscrupulous construction company.
• The Reunion (Season 3, Episode 52) - Vinnie attends his high school reunion, where he is reunited with an old flame who now works for the NYPD. This episode brought back Mike "Mooch" Cacciatore from the Garment Trade arc as Vinnie's high school buddy.
• Meet Mike McPike (Season 3, Episode 57) - Frank has family problems when his father, Mike McPike, gets thrown out of yet another nursing home.
• To Die in Bettendorf (Season 3, Episode 58) - Steelgrave's cohort, Sid Royce (Patrice's Harvard-educated accountant), is arrested, but discovers Terranova is a federal agent. Royce is given immunity, turns state's evidence, and he and his wife enter witness relocation, to McPike's protests. However, McPike is allowed to choose Royce's destination and Royce consequently becomes a Foot Locker-type shoe salesman named "Elvis Prim" in Bettendorf, Iowa, far from the bright lights of New York City. Despondent, Royce's wife leaves him for a cowboy, triggering him into a mental breakdown. Royce then goes off the grid and tracks down McPike just as McPike and his separated wife are on the verge of reconciliation. McPike kills Royce in a hostage situation (Terranova offers to do the deed but McPike turns him down).
• Romp (Season 3, Episode 59) - Vinnie attends the bachelor party of his friend Jimmy, and helps Jimmy get out from under a loan shark's thumb.

TV movie

In 1996, ABC commissioned a reunion movie with the possibility of a revival series in the works. Ken Wahl, Jonathan Banks, and Jim Byrnes all reprised their roles.

In order to explain the disappearance of Vinnie, a story was devised which effectively retconned the series and disregarded the events of season four. Following his desertion after witnessing Stem's suicide during the Volchek case in Washington state, as well as his problems with his stepfather, the FBI pulled Vinnie out of OCB and reassigned him to a wiretapping detail where he was still working at the time the film began.

Vinnie is ordered to infiltrate the organization of criminal boss Paul Callendar (Ted Levine). The movie had many of the same themes as the TV show, including Vinnie's constant conflict in betraying the people he had grown to care about.

While the movie was a critical success, ABC aired it against NBC's Thursday night Must See TV lineup and it failed to draw many viewers. In addition, Wahl suffered a broken neck in 1992 in a fall that left him temporarily quadriplegic and by the time the Wiseguy reunion was commissioned, he had been in near constant pain after he regained the use of his arms and legs and would likely not have been physically capable to take on the demands of the role. Thus, the movie was the last time the original Wiseguy cast appeared in their roles. The movie was rerun on Sleuth in 2008.

While never released on VHS or DVD in the United States or in Europe, the movie was released overseas on Video CD (MagnaVision CW071-003001) but is no longer commercially available.

Home media

In May 2009, Mill Creek Entertainment announced that they had acquired the rights to release Wiseguy on DVD in Region 1.[4] They subsequently released the complete first season on August 25, 2009.[5] On March 9, 2010, Mill Creek released Wiseguy: The Collector's Edition, a 13-disc set featuring 67 episodes from all 4 seasons. However, due to rights issues with the music contained in the show, the "Dead Dog Records" arc from Season 2 (8 of 22 episodes) is not included.[6]

Beyond Home Entertainment has released all four seasons on DVD in Region 4, again without the "Dead Dog Records" arc episodes.

Home media releases of Wiseguy, showing season and episode counts, with release dates

DVD name	No. ep.	Release dates
		Region 1	Region 4
Season 1	22	August 25, 2009	December 1, 2008
Season 2	14*	N/A	March 4, 2009
Season 3	22	N/A	July 8, 2009
Season 4	9	N/A	September 9, 2009

*omits the eight-episode "Dead Dog Records" arc

The first season became available on iTunes on April 28, 2008.

Awards

Awards received by Wiseguy

Year	Award	Category	Recipient
1989	Casting Society of America	Best Casting for TV, Dramatic Episodic	Vicki Huff
1990	Edgar Award	Best Television Episode	David J. Burke and Alfonse Ruggiero (for episode "White Noise")
1990	Golden Globe Award	Best Performance by an Actor in a TV-Series – Drama	Ken Wahl
1988	Viewers for Quality Television Awards	Founder's Award	Ray Sharkey

References

1. Nugent, Phil (2007). "Swimming with Sharkey". TheHighHat.com. Retrieved June 5, 2015.
2. TV Guide Book of Lists. Running Press. 2007. pp. 184. ISBN 0-7624-3007-9.
3. Clark, John (June 22, 2003). "Acting a former life for 'Wiseguy' / Now retired, Wahl recalls smart series". The San Francisco Chronicle.
4. Mill Creek Picks up Cannell Shows Archived February 14, 2010, at the Wayback Machine at TVShowsOnDVD.com
5. Wiseguy – The Complete 1st Season Archived June 19, 2009, at the Wayback Machine at TVShowsOnDVD.com
6. Announcement for Wiseguy – The Collector's Edition Archived March 23, 2010, at the Wayback Machine at TVShowsOnDVD.com

External links

• Wiseguy at IMDb
• Wiseguy (1996 TV movie) at IMDb
• Wiseguy at TV.com
• Wiseguy at epguides.com