Long before the current critically acclaimed A&E Bates Motel prequel series, NBC commissioned a Bates Motel of its own starring Bud Cort.
In this series, Norman Bates had passed away and ownership of the infamous motel fell into the hands of a friend of his from the insane asylum played by Bud Cort. Norman's friend intended to clean up the place and get it open again. His best efforts were thwarted by a mysterious presence that threatened to end his dreams of a reopened motel.
You can be excused for not remembering this Bates Motel. NBC set it up as a potential Fall 1987 series, but controversy hit the production when Anthony Perkins publicly spoke out against it. The pilot was rejected by NBC, but the network decided to salvage some of its investment by airing it as a movie of the week in the summer, a time when such network mistakes are burned off.
The current successful Bates Motel is a prequel of sorts, taking place in the current day, but showing the events that led up to Norman's crimes as alluded to in the Alfred Hitchcock film Psycho.
