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“At the tone, leave your name and message. I’ll get back to you.”…”Hello Jim, I know you are supposed to be dead. But, some guy is posing as you in the year 2026!”

By Benjamin Groff II GroffMedia© | benandsteve.com | ©2026
November 13, 2026

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Good morning, my fellow Coffee Drinkers!

Pour yourself a cup. We’re going back to a time when television .detectives solved crimes between commercials, and Madge could sneak a customer’s hand into a bowl of dish soap without anyone calling the authorities.

I was young when James Garner first brought Jim Rockford and his hard-knocks life into our living room. The Rockford Files was grown-up detective television, and my parents got a kick out of seeing the original Maverick behind the wheel of a car.

He could still throw a punch, take one, and talk his way into trouble. James Garner was the man, as far as they were concerned.

I had reservations. Naturally, Hollywood had neglected to consult me.

To my young way of thinking, Garner belonged on a horse. He should have been wearing a cowboy hat, looking suave, and outsmarting everybody between the saloon and the nearest cactus. Moving him into modern-day traffic seemed like a waste of a perfectly good cowboy.

I couldn’t have explained that feeling then. I just knew somebody had taken Maverick’s horse and handed him car keys.

And where was Jack Elam?

In my memories of Garner’s Westerns, Elam always seemed to be somewhere nearby—either helping him out of trouble or helping him into it. I don’t know whether they had a package deal, but seeing one made me look around for the other.

Despite my unsolicited review, The Rockford Files did quite well for itself. Adults settled in to watch, and somewhere during those television years, Madge was keeping everybody’s hands soaking in Palmolive.

“You’re soaking in it!”

If you know, you know. Some of us can remember a dish-soap commercial from decades ago but cannot remember why we walked into the kitchen.

Those years have slipped away. James Garner, Jack Elam, and the familiar faces who visited our living rooms are part of our memories now. But put on an old episode, and for a little while, everybody is right back where we left them.

Including Madge. That poor woman’s customer must have the softest hands in television history by now.

And now Hollywood is bringing The Rockford Files back.

You may already have seen the promotions. David Boreanaz is taking on the role, and to my eyes, there’s enough of the original Jim Rockford in his appearance to make me look twice.

That is downright spooky. Somebody in casting apparently remembered where they put the files.

My first question was whether this would be Jim Rockford’s grandson carrying on the family business. Apparently, we’re starting fresh: a modern version of Jim himself, returning to private detective work in Los Angeles.

I’m curious to see what they do with it. There’s a certain comfort in an old television favorite coming around again, even with a different face behind the wheel.

My parents enjoyed watching their Maverick become Jim Rockford. Now I’m old enough to watch somebody else become Jim Rockford and have opinions about that, too.

I’ve been preparing for this responsibility for years.

What do you think? Will you give the new Rockford a chance?

I probably will. But if Jack Elam turns up, somebody had better explain a few things.

Until then, enjoy your coffee—and check what you’re soaking in.