'Love Boat' finally released on DVD

SAN FRANCISCO, March 9 (UPI) -- A new DVD set featuring first-season episodes of "The Love Boat" marks the first time the once-popular U.S. TV series has been released in that format.

The DVD set features the first 12 episodes of the ABC series that first aired 30 years ago, the San Francisco Chronicle said Sunday.

"Love Boat" star Gavin McLeod says the series helped popularize the cruise ship industry.

"It's all because of people watching that television show," said McLeod, who played Capt. Merrill Stubing. "It kicked off the cruise industry."

The actor said while other series received more critical acclaim, the influence of "Love Boat" and its televised run from 1977 to 1986 is still apparent today.

"The 'Mary Tyler Moore Show' ... accrued more Emmys in a seven-year period than any other show on television, and that's admirable," he told the Chronicle, referring to another show on which he starred. "But 'The Love Boat' truly created an enormous industry that continues to grow and grow."