PodStallions 21: Bionic Man-ia

[RSS]

It was bound to happen, episode 21 talks of the Six Million Dollar Man television series which slow motion ran across our television screens (and our collective hearts) during the Polyester decade.

In this we discuss the series itself, the spin offs and the crazy/wonderful merchandise that made Christmas more memorable. We go through the fan club kit, discuss favourtie episodes and villains. Jason also gets to relay his experience working with the license some 30 years later and even

Of course, that being said we get off track into discussions about Mego, Star Wars, the career of John Saxon, Star Trek the Motion Picture , David Carradine and other things completely unrelated to our subject.

Episode 21 will have you looking your Bionic Eye.


Download the Show Here

Listen here









Show Links:

• [*=left]Lee Majors selling diet soda in the mid 80s.
  [*=left]The original Dusty Springfield theme tune.
  [*=left]The original Kenner Toyfair reel for the toy.
  [*=left]The most blatant Bionic Man knock offs.

Plenty more content on the PodStallions Facebook page!
We'll be adding Bionic Man collectible photos there, LIKE USSSSSS!
PODSTALLIONS ON ITUNES
PODSTALLIONS RSS FEED

For more Fashion Mockery and 70's toy love visit us at Plaid Stallions.com


More...

[cjefferys]

Sounds all good, I'll be listening this weekend!

[Earth 2 Chris]

You've saved Friday once more!

Chris

[Earth 2 Chris]

Well, that was a lot of fun. I have yet to rediscover SMDM as an adult. I've been very tempted by the box sets at Target. I may have to bite soon.

I was really young during the show's heyday, so I only remember the broad strokes. But I did have the Kenner Steve, although I'm not sure which version. I do fondly recall the Mars space suit and that shiny red dome. I was captivated by it, for some reason. I really need to get those two back.

The last thing I saw Majors on was a commercial for a hearing aid. He was trading on his Bionic powers in the ad. He's a fellow Kentuckian, I believe.

Suggestions for Halloween: How about the best commercial Halloween costumes, from Ben Cooper, Collegeville, etc? And by best, of course I kind of mean worst and most out there!

Chris

[palitoy]

We're definitely going to do the costume one Chris, it's too much fun.

[Earth 2 Chris]

Awesome! Can't wait to hear it.

Chris

[The Toyroom]

What? No mention of Max the Bionic Dog or the Bionic Boy (Vince Van Patten)? I listened for nothing then.

[palitoy]

What? No mention of Max the Bionic Dog or the Bionic Boy (Vince Van Patten)? I listened for nothing then.

Let me guess, you have a stack of Jimmy Osmond albums too.

[The Toyroom]

Let me guess, you have a stack of Jimmy Osmond albums too.

Unfortunately his musical genius hasn't translated well in the U.S. to produce enough albums to constitute a stack...

[Wee67]

You made me dumber.

Usually I use my weekend morning elliptical time to read Scientific American or The Economist (true story). This week, however, I used the entire time to learn Harve Bennet voiced over the start of the show open.

[MIB41]

Great pod cast guys! Six Mill was definitely my favorite childhood hero in the 70's. When I purchased the box set from Time Life, I definitely forgot about the growing pains from the first two seasons, so I wasn't surprised when Brian indicated he was burned out by the end of season two. But when I purchased the series, I wasn't as familiar with episodes prior to the Bionic Woman storyline save for a few, so I started at that point and watched the series from there and was happy to see the show had not lost the charm I remembered. When I circled back around to pick up from the start, it was a struggle. So much of what made the show iconic was not really in place yet. You had the heartbeat when Steve ran. And in some cases they did show him running at full speed as well. So you could tell, creatively speaking, they were still trying to figure out what exactly they wanted to say and where they wanted to go with the series. Indeed, before the Bionic Woman episode the series was in fact headed for cancellation. When that episode occurred, it was a complete game changer. It was one of the first times television had really injected a woman in a heroic part for television and the letters poured in at the end of season two to bring her back to life (which was not the original intention). So from a historical perspective, the series never really found it's "bionic" legs until the start of season three. So Brian I would enthusiastically recommend you go back and start from there and see if the show doesn't leave a better imprint on what you loved. It definitely worked for me.

I think the slow motion running ultimately came from the producers being fans of professional football and watching NFL films, which if you recall always showed the players running in slow motion. This gave a certain dynamic to the narrative and the producers realized that's what they needed for the show. To this day I think that is STILL a relevant effect because it's still used in NFL films which happens to be the most popular sport in the world. I have to believe the slow motion effect on film is not an accidental coincidence that lingered through the decades. If they ever rebooted the series, I think that would still very much work. Obviously the Plaid Stallions fashion might be missing, which is a darn shame.