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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 16, 2017 11:10:04 GMT -5
Dr Wells is MissingGuest Stars John Van Dreelan (Von Ryan's Express, The Money Pit) as Alfredo Tucelli, Michael Dante (STOS-"Friday's Child", Winterhawk) as Julio Tucelli, Than Wyenn (Black Sunday, Being There) as Desk Clerk, Curt Lowens (Mission: Impossible, Hogan's Heroes) as Alfred Brandt. Jim Shane (New Phil Silvers Show) as Yamo (Be There), Cynthia Lynn (Hogan's heroes) as Fraulein Krueger, Terry Leonard (stuntman, Indiana Jones films) as Vincent, Tony Carroll (stuntman, Buck Rogers-Pantherman) as "Savate Master" Episode Synopsis: Rudy Wells is Innsbruck, Austria (2 years before the 1976 Winter Olympics) to receive an honorary degree from his alma mater (Frankenstein U, no doubt) and is checking into his hotel. A pair of men are waiting and while Rudy takes a phone call from Oscar, they grab him and disappear. Oscar is worried about Rudy's safety abroad and sends Steve to keep an eye out. Steve arrives in Austria (which looks suspiciously like the Universal backlot and Northern California) but find Rudy checked out and disappeared. A few marks slipped to a porter reveals that he left in an expensive classic car. Steve tries to trace the car through a garage, but the owner says he doesn't know of such a car in the area. Steve isn't buying it and keeps watch at a cafe, while being served by Fraulein Helga, on her day off from Stalag 13. The garage owner leaves (in another classic car) and Steve follows, to an estate out in the country. He sneaks in and finds Rudy, who is being held by the Tucelli brothers, a pair of criminals who want the secret of bionics. Rudy spots Steve and cries out and Steve gets konked from behind. Rudy agrees to work with the men, to save Steve's life and concocts a story about Steve being a rep from a pharmaceutical company, who want bionics. Steve is sent on his way, except he is steered to a cell, instead. he breaks out, while being observed via remote camera and is forced to surrender when Rudy's life is threatened. A Test is set up, pitting Steve against Tucelli's thugs. Steve cleans their clocks, though a big bruiser, Yamo (Be There), hits Steve with a lamppost (!!!) breaking his bionic arm. Steve takes out Yamo (Be There) and drop kicks the gates of the estate open, while Rudy hightails it out in a land rover. The thugs follow; but, Steve kicks a car on them. Rudy is brought back safe and sound to the states, where he fixes Steve's arm. Bionic Stunts: Lots of running, snapping of chains, kicking down huge wooden gates, kicking over cars, and whooping the tar out of a bunch of stuntmen, including a "savate master," who seems to be using kempo karate, with the world's goofiest kias, breaking a coffee table with his pinky (at the end, after his arm has been "fixed"). Trashin' Fashion: Steve's got a pretty ugly belt; but, tones down his travelling wear and Rudy is in a conservative suit. Julio Tucelli has a pretty ugly plaid jacket, though. General Thoughts: This was written by Elroy Shwartz and has more comedy than the other episodes, especially the goofy fight with the henchmen/stuntmen. They dub a ridiculous Kia over shots on Tony Carroll doing some weird martial arts (looked like kempo, to me; definitely not savate) and as he goes sliding across the snow and gets tossed into trees. One of the stunt guys is Terry Leonard, who doubled Harrison Ford and did the truck stunt, in Raiders of the Lost Ark (a stunt that injured him on Legend of the Lone Ranger, recreating Yakima Canutt's stunt from Stagecoach). Yamo (Be There) is a giant bruiser, who picks up Rudy... and later rips out a light pole (with a bionic sound effect) and tries to ram Steve with it. A little judo sends him falling; but, he hits Steve over the arm with it and breaks the bionic arm, despite Steve previously knocking away falling steel girders and boulders. There are a bunch of classic cars on display.... which suggests someone made a deal to showcase them. Seriously, you do not see a Volkswagen or a Mercedes anywhere. Innsbruck has the same block of streets as we saw in Solid Gold Kidnapping, which we will see redressed several times, as it is on the Universal backlot. Also, everyone in Austria has stereotypical German accents, without anyone sounding like either Arnold Schwarzenegger or Christoph Waltz). It's not the same accent, guys. Cynthia Lynn (Helga, on Hogan's Heroes) has a cameo as a waitress and Curt Lowens plays the garage owner. Lowens did several Mission: Impossible episodes, as well as Hogan's Heroes. he just recently passed away. Alan Oppenheimer is here as Rudy Wells. The basic plot could have come from any third-rate spy script or martial arts plot (especially with the fight in the climax). There are plenty of stunts for Steve, including his first bionic leap upwards. However, too much is played for laughs, though the image of Yamo (Be There) ripping up the lamppost has stayed with me since childhood. They repeat several scenes of the stuntmen flying around in this one, rather noticeably so. You also have scenes of a noticeably-not-Lee Majors jumping from a phone booth and running bionically through the hills. Majors must have been busy elsewhere.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 16, 2017 11:19:48 GMT -5
codystarbuck Very funny review! I remember this episode. I actually liked it. A bit silly but fun.
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Post by brutalis on Nov 16, 2017 11:30:08 GMT -5
codystarbuck while this one was a lighter episode it does stick with me (and others it seems) in memory of what the fun aspects of being Bionic were. Imagine the running, jumping, breaking, pulling things apart all of us would indulge in (secret or not doesn't matter) with being Bionic? And Lee Majors is what makes this show work for the most part IMO. Not sure if anyone else at that time in television has the charm and charisma for playing Austin so normal/casual/serious/humorous. Kind of how Adam West fit Batman so well and Lyle Waggoner was Steve Trevor I feel that Majors made Steve Austin come across as a real heroic figure who overcame his tragic accident and inspired others who suffered major disabilities and accidents.
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 16, 2017 12:46:12 GMT -5
Last of the Fourth of JulysGuest Stars: Steve Forrest (Captain America I, SWAT) as Quail (no relation to Dan), Kevin Tighe (Emergency!, Road House) as Root, Arlene Martel (Star Trek-Spock's ex) as Violette, Tom Reese (Murderer's Row, Ellery Queen) as Joe Alabam, Ben Wright (Sound of Music, ton of tv) as Mr Ives Episode Synopsis: A man in a suit is moving through an industrial area, in the dark and sends out a message on a hidden radio, before being caught. We learn that a mercenary named Quail is planning on bouncing a sophisticated laser beam off a satellite and set off explosives, at a Paris summit meeting. He is located in a neutral country (Norway), in a private facility, with radar screens and sophisticated defenses. Steve is tasked to infiltrate the base, locate the laser and disable it. To do this, he will be shot out of a submarine torpedo tube, scale a cliff face and pole vault over a 30 ft electrified fence. Just another day at work. He trains with Sgt Joe Alabam, who yells and screams at him, forgetting that Steve is a colonel and must be addressed as "sir," while being yelled and screamed at, by a drill instructor. After a near-mishap in a pressure chamber, Steve rides a torpedo (inside it) to shore, pts on his khaki action dus, scales the cliff and vaults the fence (I guess 30 feet was to much for bionics, though he jumps at least that high in multiple future episodes). He sneaks inside; but, the radiation from his bionics trips alarms and he is hunted down by men in golf carts. He is interrogated by Kevin Tighe, which doesn't work (strobe light and swirling platform) and then Violette takes over, with the Vulcan nerve pinch. However, she tells him she is an Interpol agent and ends up helping him escape. he sabotages the laser and the pair zoom out in the golf cart, followed by goons in a golf cart, whose numbers fluctuate throughout the chase (between 2 and 4). They get outside as Quail sets off the laser, which explodes, destroying the facility. Steve and Violette swim back to the submarine and then share some booze and head off to a private cabin, as Oscar realizes three's a crowd. Bionic Stunts: Steve does a lot of running, jumping and smashing, bends steel with his bare hands, and propels the torpedo back to the sub with bionic legs (and flippers). Trashin' Fashion: Kevin Tighe has a rust brown suit that is pretty hideous; but, everyone else is in tasteful clothes, more or less. Violette gets a few costume changes, starting out in a cream-colored dress, with a sort of bib-style closure, with buttons down the side, which shows off her attributes well (including her nipples, at one point), then a little red number and then a flouncy black pantsuit thing, with a plunging neckline. General Thoughts: This is another favorite, due to Steve's infiltration of the base. This was exactly what should have been done to doa Bionic James Bond. Steve Forrest hams it up as the villain, in a manner similar to his role as the villain in the first Reb Brown Captain America pilot film. Forrest was about a year away from playing Lt Dan "Hondo" Harrelson, in SWAT, the most violent show on tv (apart from Sanford and Son; Aunt Esther did hid Fred alot). Forrest went to school with producer Harve Bennett, where they played brothers, in a play. Forrest was the real-life brother of actor Dana Andrews, and changed his name to hide the association. Kevin Tighe had been playing the bland Roy DeSoto, on Emergency!, opposite the more lively Randolph Mantooth (great name!) and was hard to take seriously as a goon. Down the road he would buy the Double Deuce and hire the ultimate cooler, Dalton. Arlene Martel was Spock's wife T'Pring, in the classic Star Trek episode "Amok Time." and she's pretty smokin' here, too. For some reason, the golf carts, with spotlights, just tickle me to death. The medium speed chase is a bit silly, especially as it ends in a rather goofy crash. Had Glen Larson crafted something like this, his two telefilms probably would have done much better in the ratings. Harve Bennett took the premise seriously and treated the show with respect, mostly (it did drop in quality in the last two seasons). Again, this is why the first season has so many memorable episodes, as they played around with the format and types of stories.
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 16, 2017 13:19:00 GMT -5
Burning BrightGuest Stars: William Shatner (some sci-fi tv show, Judgement at Nuremburg)as Josh Lang, Quinn Redeker (bunch of tv, Rescue of Athena One) as NASA exec Calvin Billings, Warren J Kemerling (Close Encounters, Godzilla 1985) as Ted Episode Synopsis: We see footage of Shatner doing what Shatner does best: hamming it up. He is astronaut Josh Lang (Capt, USN), a friend of Steve's. Something happened to him during a spacewalk and he has been acting strangely ever since. he meets with Steve at Ocean World (Sea World) and talks about the peace of the sea creatures. He denies knowing an Andy, despite the tapes of him calling out to an Andy, during his space mission. He gets weirder, going ape about a mistake in a line of computations for an upcoming space shot. We see him talking to dolphins and he shows mental abilities. He's put under observation, but telepathically incapacitates an MP and impersonates him to escape. he's at a roadside diner when a cop comes in. He over-reacts and accidentally kills the cop. Meanwhile, Steve is investigating Andy and finds an insurance policy that makes Ernesto Arruza the beneficiary. Steve contacts Arruzo and discovers that Josh was a friend of Arruzo's sond, Andy, who was killed in a fall from a high-tension line electrical tower. Josh starts losing it and goes climbing up just such a tower, to rescue Andy. Steve goes after him and Josh burns out and collapses, dead. Bionic Stunts: Steve yanks off electrical cable, does some jumping and running, a little eye action and somehow keeps from cracking up as Shatner is chewing scenery (though according to interviews, the broke up left and right). Trashin' Fashion: a picture is worth a thousand words... The only thing uglier than that sport coat is Shatner's rug. Definitely not his A-toupee! General Thoughts: This is a really good episode, despite Shatner's acting. there is so much ham on display it would annoy a rabbi: and, yet, it works! Shatner's acting range can be summed up in these pictures: Somehow, it fits. Lee Majors aura of calm nicely offsets Shatner's histrionics, which really sells the idea that Josh Lang is nuts. It all ends rather darkly, though the entire episode is kind of dark. The space footage appears to be from one of the Gemini spacewalks, based on the suit and the capsule doors. Quinn Redeker is back as the NASA exec in charge of the astronauts (which in real life was Deke Slayton) ad he looks the part. Warren Kemmerling, who plays Ted, is a familiar face in tv and movies, playing a general in Close Encounters, among many other roles. He's usually a cop, military officer, or government type.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 16, 2017 13:40:47 GMT -5
Liked the Shatner episode. It was fun to see him in another role besides Kirk. I agree that toupee was hideous.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 16, 2017 13:41:18 GMT -5
codystarbuck while this one was a lighter episode it does stick with me (and others it seems) in memory of what the fun aspects of being Bionic were. Imagine the running, jumping, breaking, pulling things apart all of us would indulge in (secret or not doesn't matter) with being Bionic? And Lee Majors is what makes this show work for the most part IMO. Not sure if anyone else at that time in television has the charm and charisma for playing Austin so normal/casual/serious/humorous. Kind of how Adam West fit Batman so well and Lyle Waggoner was Steve Trevor I feel that Majors made Steve Austin come across as a real heroic figure who overcame his tragic accident and inspired others who suffered major disabilities and accidents. Great point!
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Post by Deleted on Nov 16, 2017 14:39:17 GMT -5
Liked the Shatner episode. It was fun to see him in another role besides Kirk. I agree that toupee was hideous. Agreed and I felt it was it was out of place and not right for the part and I wished that they didn't put on to him in the first place. I wished the producers had left Shatner alone.
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 16, 2017 15:31:11 GMT -5
The CowardGuest Stars: George Montgomery (Cimarron City, Battle of the Bulge) as Garth, George Takei (some sci-fi show, The Green Berets) as Chin-Ling ('cause Chinese and Japanese all look the same), France Nuyen (same sci-fi tv show, Joy Luck Club) as Mamu (ditto for Vietnamese-French and Chinese), Ron Soble (some sci-fi tv series; I'm sensing a pattern here, True Grit) as Queng-Dri, Martha Scott (Ten Commandments, Ben-Hur) as Helen Austin Elgin (The Six Million Dollar Mom). Episode Synopsis: An earthquake near the Chinese border has uncovered the wreckage of an old C-47 Skytrain, with the name "My Little Girl" painted on it. Oscar briefs Steve that it was carrying secret papers, forging an agreement between the Kuomintang government (the Nationalist Chinese and Chang Kai-Shek) and the USSR. If it were discovered by the Chinese government, it could upset the balance of peace between China and the USSR. The plane was piloted by Carl Austin, Steve's biological father, who was seen bailing out of the plane, leaving his crew to die. Steve talks to his mom, who doesn't believe that Carl Austin would leave his crew behind. Steve gets some mountain climbing training from Lt Sulu and then they head to somewhere near the Chinese Border (Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, India, Mongolia, the USSR, Myanmar, Nepal, Bhutan...they just don't say). Steve and Sulu parachute down and apparently go back in time, as they are met by bandits straight out of Terry & the Pirates, led by what looks like a Klingon. Sulu tries to talk to them.... "I'm George Takei, dammit!!!!!!!!!" Genghis Khan kills Sulu and Steve is rescued by the very caucasian bandit, in the floppy fur hat. The man, Garth, takes Steve home to his wife, the Dragon Lady, who ain't pleased. She spews some venom and Garth tells her he is an American and that's that. He takes Steve up the mountain for a heck of a lot of shots of mountain climbing, while the leader of the bandits interrogates the Dragon Lady, who claims Steve pulled a gun on Garth. The leader knows Steve was unarmed, so he decides to wait nearby. On the mountain, they finally reach the plane and Steve finds the dog tags of the crew, on their dead bodies; but, not his fathers. believing he did bail out, the pair head back down, with lots of scenes of rappelling. They run into the bandits and Steve takes out four with one tree... Queng-Dri draws a bead on Steve and Garth charges his horse, getting smooshed in the process. With his dying breath he tells Steve he is Christopher Bell, the co-pilot and hands Steve his father's dog tags. Steve goes home and we see a funeral with full military honors and our first shots of Steve in his Air Force uniform. His mother says Carl Austin would be proud of his son. Bionic Stunts Steve takes a bionic fall and survives, punches pitons into rock, knocks people off horse with trees, and does some running. Trashin' Fashion: Steve is wearing his ugly checked sport coat, when he sees his mother and Oscar is sporting his own ugly jacket. The bandits probably have fleas and Sulu needs a haircut... General Thoughts: Good plot here, though way too much rock climbing. Judging by the bandits (and the plane) I think Elroy Schwartz read way too much Terry & the Pirates and Steve Canyon. There is one big Star Trek reunion going on with this, with Sulu, Elaan of Troyious, and Wyatt Earp ("Spectre of the Gun");and this right on the heels of Kirk, T'Pring and Gary Mitchell! Martha Scott makes the first of several appearances as Steve's mom and she was always a welcome sight. It was refreshing to see a hero with a good relationship with his parents, much like Clark Kent. One of the reasons this show and the Bionic Woman were so popular, aside from the imaginative plots, was that they were old-fashioned, moral heroes, with strong values, an altruistic streak, and a straight-forward, honest way of doing things. Character flaws may make for better drama; but, you can have flaws without being a walking neurotic mess and Steve and Jamie were All-American heroes. Even Oscar was the Washington insider who worked for the betterment of his people, rather than his own power. It's part of the reason the revived Bionic Woman failed and why multiple attempts at a Six Million Dollar Man movie have come to naught. You can't catch lightning in a bottle twice and Hollywood doesn't understand that kind of sincerity, aside from Captain America. Heck, Steve Austin was a better Captain America than Reb Brown (even after they swiped bionic stunts for Cap). What is more American than a pilot/astronaut, who is busted up in an accident, rebuilt, and sent off to fight dragons and help people in distress?
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Post by brutalis on Nov 16, 2017 16:29:14 GMT -5
I agree codystarbuck that there is nothing wrong and everything right about having REAL HONEST TO GOD HEROES instead of all these flawed/damaged/broken heroes. Things have gotten far too reality based in comics, television and movies these days. Absolutely can we have back our pure and true heroic fantasy action which inspires us and promotes doing the right thing without all of the catch 22's? The world needs more of the Steve Austin and Captain America and Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers and John Carter and Tarzan and Phantom style of selfless heroics!!! Pleeeeeease?!?!?!?!?!?
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Post by Deleted on Nov 16, 2017 16:53:49 GMT -5
Martha Scott makes the first of several appearances as Steve's mom and she was always a welcome sight. It was refreshing to see a hero with a good relationship with his parents, much like Clark Kent. One of the reasons this show and the Bionic Woman were so popular, aside from the imaginative plots, was that they were old-fashioned, moral heroes, with strong values, an altruistic streak, and a straight-forward, honest way of doing things. Character flaws may make for better drama; but, you can have flaws without being a walking neurotic mess and Steve and Jamie were All-American heroes. Even Oscar was the Washington insider who worked for the betterment of his people, rather than his own power. It's part of the reason the revived Bionic Woman failed and why multiple attempts at a Six Million Dollar Man movie have come to naught. You can't catch lightning in a bottle twice and Hollywood doesn't understand that kind of sincerity, aside from Captain America. Heck, Steve Austin was a better Captain America than Reb Brown (even after they swiped bionic stunts for Cap). What is more American than a pilot/astronaut, who is busted up in an accident, rebuilt, and sent off to fight dragons and help people in distress? AMEN!!
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Post by Deleted on Nov 16, 2017 17:22:50 GMT -5
Martha Scott makes the first of several appearances as Steve's mom and she was always a welcome sight. It was refreshing to see a hero with a good relationship with his parents, much like Clark Kent. One of the reasons this show and the Bionic Woman were so popular, aside from the imaginative plots, was that they were old-fashioned, moral heroes, with strong values, an altruistic streak, and a straight-forward, honest way of doing things. Character flaws may make for better drama; but, you can have flaws without being a walking neurotic mess and Steve and Jamie were All-American heroes. Even Oscar was the Washington insider who worked for the betterment of his people, rather than his own power. It's part of the reason the revived Bionic Woman failed and why multiple attempts at a Six Million Dollar Man movie have come to naught. You can't catch lightning in a bottle twice and Hollywood doesn't understand that kind of sincerity, aside from Captain America. Heck, Steve Austin was a better Captain America than Reb Brown (even after they swiped bionic stunts for Cap). What is more American than a pilot/astronaut, who is busted up in an accident, rebuilt, and sent off to fight dragons and help people in distress? AMEN!! codystarbuck ... Right on the nose!
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 16, 2017 17:41:37 GMT -5
Run, Steve, RunGuest Stars: Noah Beery Jr (Rockford Files) as Tom Molson, Henry Jones (Butch Cassidy) as Dr Jeffrey Dolenz (the robot-maker), George Murdock (BSG, Barney Miller) as Rossi, Melissa greene (Electra Glide in Blue, Rockford Files) as Suzie Lund, Mike Henry (NFL great, Tarzan and the Valley of Gold) as Chris Platt Episode Synopsis: Steve is at a construction sight, where some corporate type is trying to recruit him for his company; but, Steve turns him down. Then, he is nearly crushed in an elevator, which was boobytrapped by Dr Jeffrey Dolenz, the man who created the Robot (Day of the Robot) that nearly killed Steve. He is with man named Rossi, trying to get funding for a new batch of robots, but wants to study Steve's bionics to make them better. Steve goes off to a vacation in Utah, at an old friend's ranch. There, he meets young Suzie Lund, a champion rider. Dolenz stages some accidents to test Steve and he must save Suzie from a runaway horse. Eventually, Steve is captured by Dolenz and his lags are encased in cement. Tom Molson, the ranch owner, brings a posse and Steve snaps his chains and bends a hook into a straight point and busts up the concrete. he then stops the hoods (including Tarzan), while Dolenz escapes out the back door. Bionic Stunts: Well, Steve stops a runaway construction elevator and busts out of cement, then throws some hoods around. the rest of the show features clips of past exploits, including the fight with the robot. Trashin' Fashion: Well, apart from old atrocities in the flashbacks, everyone is in suits, western gear, or generic work clothes. Steve even breaks out his Heath Barkley cowboy hat. "Aw, shucks, ma'm; 't'weren't nothin!" General Thoughts: This is half a clip show, half a decent adventure and the return od Dr Dolenz. he escapes, so you know more robots are in the future. Suzie sets new standards for wooden (and this series has some pretty high wooden acting standards) and Noah Beery is his great self, though you keep waiting for Jim Garner to show up (that would have been an awesome crossover!). So, there we have the first season of the Six Million Dollar Man. Plenty of sci-fi, some laughs, a few generic cop show plots, a lot of Trek guest stars (and Mission: Impossible) and a sea of polyester. You also have a really fun show that is imaginative and presents a wholesome hero while the country is being pulled apart by Watergate and the end of the Vietnam War. It was a breath of fresh air and sunlight in a dark time. We would put up with leisure suits, big ties and ugly sport coats, sp long as we got bionic action, which we could imitate (in slow motion) on the playground. How could the second season top it? Well, how about a Seven Million Dollar Man, the return of Dr Dolenz and a new robot, and Jamie Sommers? We will also get to see more of Alan Oppenheimer, who only appeared in Wine, Women and War, The Solid Gold Kidnapping, and Dr Wells is missing. Martin E Brooks will inherit the role in season 3 and get far more screen time, cementing him in ans' eyes as the definitive Rudy.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 16, 2017 18:02:40 GMT -5
So, there we have the first season of the Six Million Dollar Man. Plenty of sci-fi, some laughs, a few generic cop show plots, a lot of Trek guest stars (and Mission: Impossible) and a sea of polyester. You also have a really fun show that is imaginative and presents a wholesome hero while the country is being pulled apart by Watergate and the end of the Vietnam War. It was a breath of fresh air and sunlight in a dark time. We would put up with leisure suits, big ties and ugly sport coats, sp long as we got bionic action, which we could imitate (in slow motion) on the playground. How could the second season top it? Well, how about a Seven Million Dollar Man, the return of Dr Dolenz and a new robot, and Jamie Sommers? We will also get to see more of Alan Oppenheimer, who only appeared in Wine, Women and War, The Solid Gold Kidnapping, and Dr Wells is missing. Martin E Brooks will inherit the role in season 3 and get far more screen time, cementing him in ans' eyes as the definitive Rudy. The second season was probably my favorite. Mostly because of the stuff I bolded in your post.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 18, 2017 14:35:25 GMT -5
More 70's observations besides the fashions:
Steve always looking for a pay phone to call Oscar. All the bad comb-overs on various actors. Come on there were decent toupees then. Lorne Greene & Pernell Roberts on Bonanza come to mind. Actors looking like normal people. This was before everyone on a series was a buff good looking dude & all the ladies were plastic pin up models. The ugly cars from the 70's.
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