David Carradine Guest-Starred In A Short-Lived Lynda Carter Crime Series

David Carradine remains best known for playing Kwai Chang Caine on the hit 1970s TV show "Kung Fu," and as the title character in Quentin Tarantino's "Kill Bill" films. But to say the man was prolific is to undersell just how many films and TV shows he appeared in. During the 1980s, he added to his ever-expanding filmography with a guest spot on the short-lived crime drama series "Partners in Crime." Neither the show nor Carradine's appearance are well remembered, but it did give him a chance to work with a fellow star who, like him, rose to fame in the 1970s: Wonder Woman herself Lynda Carter.

David Carradine's first experience of leading a TV show came when he fronted 1960s Western series "Shane." Based on the movie of the same name, the series didn't last long. In fact, like "Partners in Crime," it ran for just one season before being canceled. Still, Carradine went on to experience small screen success with "Kung Fu" before appearing in dozens of exploitation movies in the 1980s, squaring off against the likes of Chuck Norris in "Lone Wolf McQuade" and playing a governor turned action hero alongside his real-life daughter 1989's "Open Fire."

But even while he was busy churning out B-movies, Carradine never left the small screen behind. He had multiple guest spots on some of the best shows of the 1980s, appearing in everything from Lee Majors' "The Fall Guy" to "Matlock." "Partners in Crime" does not count as one of the best shows of the '80s, but it did feature Carradine in a decent guest role, wherein he played a mysterious jewelry expert who may or may not have been involved in a murder.

Like David Carradine, Lynda Carter shot to fame in the mid-1970s. Rather than playing a Shaolin monk, however, Carter played Wonder Woman in the TV series named after the legendary DC superhero. That show began airing on ABC in 1975, the same year "Kung Fu" was coming to an end on that same network. While Carradine never guest-starred on "Wonder Woman," he did rendezvous with Carter in 1984.

"Partners in Crime" was Carter's first TV leading role after "Wonder Woman," which came to an end in 1979. The crime drama series paired her with Loni Anderson, who was best-known known for playing Jennifer Marlowe on CBS's "WKRP in Cincinnati" between 1978 and 82. In "Partners in Crime," Carter and Anderson played Carole Stanwyck and Sydney Kovack respectively, two women who at different points were both married to a private detective named Raymond. After Raymond is murdered, he leaves his San Francisco-based business and home to Carole and Sydney, who decide to keep the detective agency running. "How do we manage?" asks Stanwyck in the show's opening credits. "We call the cops a lot." Doesn't sound like the most thrilling crime series, does it? Two women call the cops a lot. Thankfully, the show was a little more than that.

"Partners in Crime" was created by William Driskill, who by that point had writing credits on several well-known shows including "The Six Million Dollar Man," classic Western TV shows such as "Maverick," and three episodes of "Columbo." He surely hoped his Carter and Anderson-led crime series would fare as well as Peter Falk's. It didn't, and there was nothing David Carradine could do to help when he appeared in the sixth episode.

The year after he faced down Chuck Norris in "Lone Wolf McQuade," David Carradine paid a visit to Lynda Carter and Loni Anderson over on NBC. "Partners in Crime" Episode 6, "Paddles Up," aired on October 27, 1984, and saw the "Kung Fu" star play a mysterious man known only as Hermanski. He introduces himself to Carole Stanwyck and Sydney Kovack at an auction, bonding with Carole over a broach that catches her eye. Soon, both Carole and Hermanski are outbid for the broach. But Hermanski needs the item for his client, and hires the detective duo to track down the winning bidder.

Sydney is dubious. She doesn't trust Carradine's affable antiques expert, and considering he tells them that he was run out of the business for taking "a couple of short cuts" which tarnished his reputation, she might not be wrong. Carole, however, seems to like him and tries to help him find the broach and its new owner. But things take a dark twist when that same owner is shot dead. Can Hermanski be trusted, or was Sydney right all along?

Carradine was actually quite charming as the jewelry expert with a shady past. Alas, his turn in "Paddles Up" couldn't do much to save "Partners in Crime." Today, Lynda Carter is one of the few main actors still alive from "Wonder Woman," and remains beloved for her portrayal of the eponymous hero. Her starring role in "Partners in Crime," however, was quickly forgotten after NBC canceled the show following its 13th episode.