ALL SCI-FI

Bud Brewster · Last edited by Bud Brewster on Tue Jul 26, 2022 1:48 pm; edited 2 times in total

Pilot episode for the popular series about a test pilot (Lee Majors) who receives bionic replacement parts for his injured body after a plane crash. Majors has two super-fast legs, one super-strong arm, and one telescopic eyeball.

After generously providing six million dollars worth of hi-tech prosthetics, Uncle Sam wants Majors to show his gratitude by become a kind of detective/secret agent. His boss is Richard Anderson ("Forbidden Planet"), head of the Office of Scientific Information which may have been producer/director Richard Irving's way of paying tribute to Ivan Tors and Curt Siodmak, who planned to do a TV show back in the 1950s about trouble-shooting scientists from the Office of Scientific Investigation.

High production values, plenty of action, and a good cast made "The Six Million Dollar Man" fun to watch. The only consistent flaw was the use of slow motion photography whenever Majors was supposed to be moving super-fast (?).

It was intended to indicate that something extraordinary was happening, but the gimmick only made the action scenes look as sleepy as an underwater fistfight. The series spawned a successful spin-off starring Lindsay Wagner as "The Bionic Woman".
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

orzel-w · Galactic Ambassador Joined: 19 Sep 2014 Posts: 1865

I had read back-in-the-day that the slow motion was settled on after trials with fast motion for his speedy running turned out looking like the Keystone Cops. The slow motion effect throws off the viewer's internal clock so the actual speed is indiscernible.
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...or not...

WayneO
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Krel · Guest

In the TVM/pilot, Oscar Goldman was played by Darren McGavin, who played Goldman as a real S.O.B.. When it went to series, it was part of a rotating block with other shows which ran 90 minutes. In the 90 minute format, the show was more of a spy show.

David.

johnnybear · Mission Specialist Joined: 15 Jun 2016 Posts: 441

Darren McGavin actually played Oliver Spencer rather than Oscar Goldman! Which sort of could confuse the casual viewer who always remembered Richard Anderson's concerned features in the credits as Steve crashed his experimental plane!
JB

Pow · Posted: Tue Dec 06, 2022 1:46 pm Post subject:

According to one source the $6,000,000 Man in 1974 would now be the $33,931,277.89 in 2022.

Bud Brewster · Posted: Tue Dec 06, 2022 3:23 pm Post subject:

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Wow! Shocked

I guess if they reboot the series they'll have to call it —

The Thirty-Three Million, Nine-Hundred and Thirty-One Thousand, Two Hundred and Seventy-Seven Dollar Man

Obviously they'll leave off the 89¢, because that might make it just bit too long, right? Confused

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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)