Gideon Oliver was one of three shows that rotated in ABC's Monday Mystery Movie, alongside Burt Reynolds starring in B.L. Stryker and the Columbo revival. Doctor Oliver was a professor of anthropology at Columbia University. When confronted with a mystery, Gideon always searched for the solution, sometimes to the chagrin of local authorities. He was assisted at times by his daughter, Zina. Based on the novels by Aaron Elkins, the show lasted five episodes in the spring of 1989.moreless