America's Most Wanted

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For the United States FBI list of fugitives, see FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives.
America's Most Wanted
Starring John Walsh
Narrated by Don LaFontaine (teaser announcer)
Country of origin Flag of the United States United States
No. of episodes 900+
Production
Executive producer(s) Lance Heflin
Running time 60 min.
Broadcast
Original channel FOX
Original run February 7, 1988 – Present
External links
Official website
IMDb profile
TV.com summary

America's Most Wanted is a long-running TV show produced by 20th Century Fox. Its purpose is to profile and assist law enforcement in the apprehension of fugitives wanted for various crimes, including murder, rape, child molestation, white collar crime, armed robbery, gang violence, and terrorism many of which who are currently on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.

Contents

The idea for America’s Most Wanted originally came from a German show Aktenzeichen XY... ungelöst (ger. file number XY... unsolved) that first aired in 1967, and the British show Crimewatch UK, first aired in 1984, with the US version conceived by then-Fox executive Stephen Chao and Executive Producer Michael Linder in the summer of 1987. It premiered on February 7, 1988 on seven Fox-owned stations. Within four days of the first broadcast, FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitive David James Roberts was captured as a direct result. He was a convicted killer who had recently escaped from prison. This demonstrated the effectiveness of the show's "Watch Television, Catch Criminals" premise to skeptical law enforcement agencies. Ten weeks later, the program premiered nationwide on the Fox network and became the fledgling network's first hit series. Since its debut, it has become the longest-running series on the Fox Network.

America's Most Wanted reinvented the economics of prime time television with its low-budget reenactments of crimes. A typical hour of prime time programming in 1988 cost $1 million to produce. AMW's initial budget was much lower than that, but the show's reality-style format and nearly instantaneous captures (some fugitives were captured before the episode's final credits rolled) contributed to its success.

After the program’s pilot aired, a lengthy search was conducted, and John Walsh was selected as the host of the show. Walsh gained publicity after his six-year-old son, Adam Walsh, was kidnapped and murdered in 1981, and he parlayed that into the creation of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Other potential candidates included former Marine Corps Commandant General P.X. Kelly and victims' advocate Theresa Saldana.

The show began profiling missing persons, especially children, in 1991. As of November 3, 2007, 966 fugitives have been captured and 54 missing persons (including children) have been recovered alive as a direct result of viewer tips. Some of the most notorious captures include suspected killers Shawn Windsor and Michael Brashar, the Texas Seven, as well as Elizabeth Smart’s abductors Brian Mitchell and Wanda Barzee.

The show was cancelled for a month and a half in the fall of 1996 when Fox decided to air a Saturday night sitcom block consisting of Married… with Children, Martin and two new series: Love and Marriage and The Preston Episodes. However, protests from the public, law enforcement, and government officials as well as low ratings for the shows replacing AMW encouraged Fox to bring the show back. Martin and Married… with Children were moved back to Sundays. Producers rechristened the show America's Most Wanted: America Fights Back. Since this time, the AMW/COPS combination has made Saturday evening Fox’s most stable night.

The show expanded its focus to also cover criminals in the War on Terrorism when, on October 12, 2001 an episode aired featuring 22 most wanted al-Qaeda operatives. The show was put together due to a request by President George W. Bush, who had presented the same list of men to the nation two days earlier. In October 2002, the show did a special episode focusing on the serial sniper shootings in the Washington, D.C. area.

In the new millennium, America’s Most Wanted has seen continued success. Currently in its 21st season, AMW is close to a reported 1000 captures.

The show usually ends with John Walsh saying, "...and remember, you can make a difference."

  • On Fox 2 (KTVI), St. Louis, Missouri, they run "St. Louis's Most Wanted" every Saturday night at their 9PM newscast, after AMW.
  • On Fox 2 (WJBK-TV, Detroit, Michigan), They run "Michigan's Most Wanted" every Thursday night at their 10:00 newscast.
  • On Fox 5 (WAGA-TV, Atlanta, Georgia), a "Georgia's Most Wanted" segment airs on their Saturday 10:00pm newscast. "Georgia's Most Wanted" segments were hosted by Angeline Hartmann prior to joining America's Most Wanted as a correspondent.
  • On Fox 5 (WNYW-TV, New York, New York), They periodically air segment "New York's Most Wanted" during their 10:00 newscast after AMW.
  • On Fox 6 (WITI-TV, Milwaukee, Wisconsin), a segment called "Wisconsin's Most Wanted" is aired during the Saturday 9 p.m. newscast, following the airing of America's Most Wanted. This segment is produced similarly to a single story from AMW, and normally lasts 5 to 10 minutes.
  • On Fox 13 (KSTU-TV, Salt Lake City, Utah), a "Utah's Most Wanted" feature airs periodically on the 9:00 newscast, particularly after AMW airs.
  • On Fox 14 (KCIT, Amarillo, Texas, The Amarillo Crimestoppers fugitive of the week is featured every Saturday Night on the KCIT FOX 14 News @ 9 After America's Most Wanted.
  • On Fox 17 (KDSM-TV, Des Moines, Iowa) They run a short spot during the commercials of America's Most Wanted called "Metro's Most Wanted" featuring one locally wanted fugitive. The spot lasts about 25-40 seconds.
  • On Fox 40 KTXL-TV, Sacramento, California, a segment called "FOX 40 Crime Alert" airs Saturday Nights at 10:00 p.m. on Fox 40 News at 10 after AMW.

When America's Most Wanted debuted, the show's original toll-free hotline number was 1-800-CRIME-88 (1-800-274-6388). The last 2 digits of the hotline number changed each year (1-800-CRIME-89, 1-800-CRIME-90, and so on) until 1995, when it was permanently changed to its current number, which is 1-800-CRIME-TV (1-800-274-6388, which, coincidentally, was what the number had originally been in 1988).

The AMW Dirty Dozen is a list of the most notorious fugitives that have been reviewed on the show that are currently at large. It is similar in function, though not analogous, to the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list, though three of the Dirty Dozen are on the FBI list.

These are the current Dirty Dozen. They are in order as presented on the AMW website; the list is not ranked.

  • Jason Derek Brown is wanted for killing an armored car driver and stealing $56,000 USD in front of a movie theater in Phoenix, Arizona, on November 29, 2004. He is charged in Phoenix with first-degree murder and unlawful flight to avoid prosecution. He is believed to be in either Orange County, California, or Whistler, British Columbia. [2]
  • Paul Eischeid, a member of the Arizona Hells Angels, is wanted for his part in killing a woman in Tempe, Arizona, in 2001. He is charged with first degree murder. [3] He was recently placed on the U.S. Marshals 15 Most Wanted List, and is additionally wanted for drug trafficking and RICO. [4]
  • Mark Everett, a former child actor, is wanted for murdering his former girlfriend, Stephanie Spears, and kidnapping their son, Benjamin, in Hawthorne, California, on Father's Day, June 20, 2004. The FBI is offering a $20,000 reward for information leading to his arrest. [5]
  • Paul Erven Jackson is wanted in Hillsboro, Oregon, for raping numerous teenage girls during the late 1980s and early 1990s. [6]
  • Alexis Flores is wanted for the kidnapping, rape and murder of seven-year-old Irina DeJesus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in July 2000. He is on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. [7]
  • Dan William Hiers Jr. is wanted for murdering his wife, Ludimila Hiers, in Goose Creek, South Carolina, in March 2005. He is also wanted for sexually abusing a child in Charleston, South Carolina, shortly before. Hiers is on the U.S. Marshals 15 Most Wanted List, and they are offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to his capture. [8]
  • Emigdio Preciado, Jr. is wanted for attempted murder in a brutal gang-related shooting of Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department deputy Michael Schaap on September 5, 2000. He is on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List. [9]
  • Elby J. Hars is wanted for sexually abusing young girls in Columbia, South Carolina. He had previously served time for sexually abusing his own daughter, Terri Hars. Astonishingly, when he was released, she found young girls for him to abuse, leading to her going to prison. Elby is still at large. [10]
  • Andre Neverson is wanted for the murders of his sister, Patricia Neverson, and his ex-girlfriend, Donna Davis, both in Brooklyn, New York, in July 2002. He is also on the U.S. Marshals 15 Most Wanted list. [11]
  • Greisy Valencia is wanted for viciously abusing her 11-year-old daughter, who remains unidentified for her protection. Valencia has been on the run since the girl's discovery on December 9, 2002. [12]
  • Robert William Fisher is wanted for killing his wife, Mary, and his children, Britteny and Bobby Jr., on April 10, 2001, and then burning down their house to try to cover up the crime. He is also on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. He is considered to be AMW's Public Enemy Number 1. [13]
  • Rufino Castaneda is wanted for kidnapping and raping a woman in Mishawaka, Indiana, in 2004. [14]

15 Seconds of Shame is a segment (approximately one minute in length) where the show features four fugitives that are currently on the run, each in their own 15-second briefing. The run-up shows the charges against the fugitives, and where they might be. Aliases, tattoos and character quirks are also mentioned in the profiles.

Many of the series' cases have some connection outside the United States or have not taken place in the United States at all. The first show that aired after September 11, 2001 was 2 hours and focused mainly on terrorism. The series' first international capture was in Nova Scotia in 1989.

The show's nature does not allow repeats, except for updates on convicted criminals, and is pre-empted a maximum of six times during the year; three NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, one Major League Baseball playoff game, the World Series, and if necessary, one NFL playoff game. However, if a fugitive featured on the show is not captured, their profile may be aired again.

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America%27s_Most_Wanted"
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