SIMON & SIMON: The Complete Seasons

Simon and Simon is a 1980s detective television series starring Gerald McRaney and Jameson Parker.

Originally a 1978 pilot called Pirate's Key set in Florida, when the show was picked up by CBS, the characters' home was changed from Florida to San Diego, California where the show's storyline remained for the course of its eight year run 1981 to 1989 on CBS.

The show was almost cancelled in 1982 before it was scheduled to run after Magnum, P.I. This brought its ratings up and allowed it to run for many years. Simon and Simon actually had a crossover with Magnum, P.I., on the Magnum double episode "Ki's Don't Lie" and in the Simon and Simon episode "Emeralds Are Not a Girl's Best Friend" (both in 1982).

The show revolves around polar opposite brothers Rick (McRaney) and A.J. (for "Andrew Jackson") Simon (Parker). Rick was a Vietnam United States Marine Corps veteran and had much more street sense, while A.J. went to college and had book smarts. Rick preferred things that were viewed by his brother as lower-class, like pickup trucks (Rick's Dodge Power Wagon is notable for its dull paint and large metal bumper used in one episode to crush the engine of a car), while A.J. took care of his money and could afford to be more fashionable (A.J. often drove a 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible, and later, a Chevrolet Camaro Z28). Rick lived on a boat in A.J.'s yard. A.J. preferred to first try to do things by the rules while Rick was much more of a free spirit, using a classic P.I. type of justice. Even their guns are different-Rick has a 357 Magnum and A.J. has a Colt Detective Special snub-nose.

The two went into business together, running a private detective service; the contrasting ways that the brothers went about their investigations and the subsequent conflicts between them provided much of the story each week, in addition to the plots of solving the cases. Although the premise in the series is that Rick is older and A.J. is younger, in fact McRaney and Parker were both born in year 1947 with only a 4 month difference.