September 26: “Knight Rider” brings KITT to life on this date in 1982

How is it that a guy fighting crime with a talking Pontiac Trans Am became one of the favorite TV shows of a generation? I was watching "Knight Rider" when it debuted on this date in 1982, and as a kid I remember caring little about whatever David Hasselhoff was up to in between appearances by the Knight Industries Two Thousand. Creator Glen Larson said he wanted to do a sci-fi version of "The Lone Ranger" with Tonto as a talking car, but the masterstroke was having William Daniels as the voice; as NBC would prove with its ill-fated relaunch, the concept goofs itself to oblivion without Daniels' intelligent overtones coming through the grille. Now if they'd only make self-driving cars more like KITT...