James Garner first assumed the bethumped mantle of Private Investigator Jim Rockford on March 27, 1974. The original Rockford Files TV movie, like the long running series that followed, starred Garner as an ex-con who only takes cases that the people have been unable to solve. Future Bionic Woman Lindsay Wagner is the person retaining Rockford's service in this first adventure. She wishes Jim to investigate the death of her father, a skid-row derelict whose demise the police have written off as natural causes. Robert Donley plays Jim Rockford's father in the inaugural Rockford Files, a role that was filled by Noah Beery Jr. in the series proper. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide