THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN

'''The Six Million Dollar Man''' is an American television series about a cyborg working for the OSI (which was usually said to refer to the Office of Scientific Intelligence, but sometimes was called the Office of Scientific Investigation). The show was based on the novel ''Cyborg'' by Martin Caidin, and aired on the ABC network as a regular series from 1974 to 1978, following three television movies in 1973. The title role of Steve Austin was played by Lee Majors, who subsequently became a pop culture icon of the 1970s. A spin-off of the show was produced called ''The Bionic Woman''.

Contents

Overview

Medical Bionics

Opening Sequence

Radio chatter

Narration

Main characters

Parts

Changes for television

Novels

Original Novels

Novelizations

Other adaptations

Merchandise

DVD releases

Trivia

References in Pop Culture

Notes and references

Episodes

External links

Overview

The background story of the original novel and the later series is the crash of former astronaut Steve Austin in a “lifting body” craft, shown in the opening credits of the show (the lifting body craft mostly shown was a Northrop M2-F2, however in the episode "The Deadly Replay", a Northrop HL-10, identified as such in dialog, was used). Austin is severely injured in the crash and is “rebuilt” in a title-giving operation that costs six million dollars. His right arm, both legs and the left eye are replaced by ''bionic'' implants that enhance his strength, speed and vision far above human norms: he can run at speeds of 60 miles an hour, and his eye has a 20:1 zoom lens and infrared capabilities. He uses his enhanced abilities to work for the OSI (Office of Scientific Intelligence) as a secret agent (and as a guinea pig for bionics).

Caidin’s novel was a best-seller when it was published in 1972 and was followed by three sequels, ''Cyborg II: Operation Nuke'', ''Cyborg III: High Crystal'', and ''Cyborg IV'' (with no subtitle), respectively about a black market in nuclear weapons, a Chariots of the Gods scenario, and fusing Austin's bionics to a space plane.
In the spring of 1973, ''Cyborg'' was loosely adapted as a made-for-TV movie starring Majors as Austin (although usually referred to by the title ''The Six Million Dollar Man'', and that is the precise wording used on the original ABC broadcast, this film is sometimes cited by the longer title ''Cyborg: Six Million Dollar Man''). The adaptation was done by writer Howard Rodman working under the pseudonym of Henri Simoun. The film, which was nominated for a Hugo Award, modified Caidin's plot, and notably made Austin a civilian astronaut, rather than an Air Force officer. Absent were some of the standard features of the later series: the electronic sound effects, the slow motion running, and the character of Oscar Goldman (instead, another character named Oliver Spencer, played by Darren McGavin, was Austin's supervisor, of an organization here called the OSO). The lead scientist involved in making Austin bionic, Dr. Rudy Wells, was played in the pilot by Martin Balsam, then on an occasional basis in the series by Alan Oppenheimer, and, finally, as a series regular, by Martin E. Brooks. Austin does not use the enhanced capabilities of his bionic eye at any time during the film.
The first film was a major ratings success and was followed by two more made-for-TV films that fall—''Wine, Women and War'' and ''Solid Gold Kidnapping'' (the former bearing strong resemblances to Caidin's second ''Cyborg'' novel, ''Operation Nuke''; the latter was an original story), followed by the debut, in January 1974, of ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' as a weekly hour-long series. The two movies, produced by Glen A. Larson, notably introduced a James Bond flavor to the series (and reinstated Austin's status from the novels as an Air Force colonel); the hour-long series, produced by Harve Bennett dispensed with the James Bond-gloss of the movies, and portrayed a more down-to-earth Austin.
The show was very popular during its run and introduced many pop culture elements of the 1970s, such as the show’s opening catch-phrase and the slow-motion action sequences and the accompanying “electronic” sound effects. The slow-motion action sequences were originally referred to as "''Kung Fu'' slow motion" in popular culture (due to its usage in the 1970's martial arts television series), but it became far more noteworthy in ''The Six Million Dollar Man''.
For many years, attempts have been made to bring the story of Steve Austin to the movie screen. In the mid-1990s, director Kevin Smith wrote a screenplay (which he talks about on the DVD "An Evening with Kevin Smith 2: Evening Harder" from 2006), and there were reports later that comedian Chris Rock was being considered for the role. In 2003, an announcement was made to film the story as a full-out comedy starring Jim Carrey but that project appears to be on hold. In a July 2006 interview at Comic Con, Richard Anderson (who played Oscar Goldman in the series) stated that he is involved with producing a movie of the series but the rights are in litigation between Miramax and Universal. A post on writer Kenneth Johnson's website, indicates there are similar problems regarding DVD release of the series in North America, although Region 2 (the United Kingdom) has so far seen the release of the first two seasons since 2005.
The upcoming remake of the ''Bionic Woman'', integrates the Steve Austin series by having Jaime Sommers equipped with an eye implant in addition to the traditional ones.

Medical Bionics

In medicine, Bionics means the replacement or enhancement of organs or other body parts by mechanical versions. Bionic implants differ from mere prostheses by mimicking the original function very closely, or even surpassing it.
This definition of bionics is best known to the general public in reference to the television series ''The Six Million Dollar Man'', in which the titular cyborg character is referred to as a “bionic man.” In the mid-1970s, when scientists in a popular TV series rebuilt a wounded, barely-living test pilot into the world’s first bionic man, making him “better, stronger, faster,” the field of medical bionics was the stuff of science fiction.
However on April 3, at Experimental Biology 2006, some of the leading scientists in the rapidly expanding field of bionics explain how much of what was once fiction is today at least partial reality—including electronically-powered legs, arms, and eyes like those given TV’s Six Million Dollar Man 30-plus years ago.
The symposium on “The $6 Billion Man” is part of the scientific program of the American Association of Anatomists.

Opening Sequence

The opening sequence featured NASA's 1967 footage of a real-life accident [1] of the Northrop M2-F2 lifting body tumbling end for end down the runway caused by piloting error. The pilot, Bruce Peterson actually survived reasonably unscathed, although he lost an eye due to an infection acquired while in the hospital.
The opening credits actually used footage of two different lifting bodies; the HL-10, shown dropping away from its carry plane, and the M2-F2 shown in the unstable flight/crash sequence. (The aircraft was actually referred to as being an “HL-10” in the series, and the real HL-10 was used in a later episode; however, in the 1987 TV film ''The Return of the Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman'' Austin refers to it as the "M3F5", which is the name used for the aircraft that crashes in the original ''Cyborg'' novel.)

Radio chatter

The radio chatter that occurs before the opening narration has been the subject of some debate as it was not entirely clear due to the radio static noise. The following script is one example of the radio chatter, based on a sound file found online. The chatter starts with the release of the HL-10 and continues through to the crash.

'NASA One (flight control): ' “It looks good at NASA One.”

'B-52 Pilot: ' “Roger. BCS arm switch is on.”

'NASA One: ' “Okay, Victor.”

'B-52 Pilot: ' “Landing rocket arm switch is on.”

'B-52 Pilot: ' “Here comes the throttle. Circuit breakers in.”

'Steve Austin (voice of Lee Majors): ' “We have separation.”

'Chase plane: ' “Roger.”

'B-52 Pilot: ' “Inboard and outboards are on.”

'B-52 Pilot: ' “I’m comin’ forward with the sidestick.”

'NASA One: ' “All looks good.”

'B-52 Pilot: ' “Ah, roger.”

'Steve Austin: ' “I’ve got a blowout—damper three!”

'Chase plane: ' “Get your pitch to zero.”

'Steve Austin: ' “Pitch is out! I can’t hold altitude!”

'B-52 Pilot: ' “Correction, alpha hold is off, trim selectors—Emergency!”

'Steve Austin: ' “Flight Com! I can’t hold it! She’s breaking up, she’s break—”

In the original pilot, however, none of the above dialogue occurs. Instead, Austin and ground controllers calmly discuss complications with the landing right up to the moment of the crash; most notably, there is no reference to a blow-out. In a recap that opens the second pilot film, ''Wine, Women & War'', Oscar Goldman is depicted as being involved in the transmissions, asking Austin “What’s going on?” to which Austin replies “I was hoping you would tell me.” Once again, unlike the version used in the series, this early rendition omits any reference to an actual cause for the crash.

Narration

After the crash sequence, the narration for each episode has become part of American pop culture. After an early version of the narration was tested in the ''Solid Gold Kidnapping'' TV film, the most famous version was introduced in the weekly series:
Another version of the narration (transcribed from "The Ultimate Imposter" from Season 4):

Main characters

★ ''Steve Austin'', the title character (played by Lee Majors), canonical spelling of Steve’s full first name, Steven, established by the road sign in the episode “The Bionic Woman, Part 1”)

★ ''Oscar Goldman'', the Director of the OSI (played by Richard Anderson)

★ ''Dr. Rudy Wells'', Austin’s physician and primary overseer of the medical aspects of bionic technology (played by Martin Balsam (pilot only) /Alan Oppenheimer (seasons 1 and 2) /Martin E. Brooks (seasons 3-5 and three movies) (due to the change in actor, in "The Return of the Bionic Woman", Wells undergoes an appearance change between Jaime Sommers' death and a desperate plea for revival only minutes later)

★ ''Jaime Sommers'' played by Lindsay Wagner—recurring

★ ''Oliver Spencer'', Director of the OSO in the pilot only (played by Darren McGavin)

Parts

★ A 20.2:1 zoom lens along with a night vision function in the left eye (as well as the restoration of normal vision). The figure of 20.2:1 is taken from the faux computer graphics in the opening credits; the only figure actually mentioned in the series, by Austin himself, is 20:1, in the episode "Population: Zero." Austin's bionic eye also has other features, such as an infrared feature used frequently to see in the dark, and he has also demonstrated the ability to detect heat (as in the episode "The Pioneers") and view people cloaked in invisibility (as in the "Secret of Bigfoot" story arc). In Caidin's original novels, Austin's eye was originally depicted as simply a camera (which had to be physicially removed after use) and Austin remained blind in the eye; later, he gained the ability to shoot a laser from the eye (this ability is also demonstrated in the first issue of the ''Six Million Dollar Man'' comic book issued by Charlton Comics.

★ Bionic legs allowing him to run at tremendous speed and make great leaps. Austin’s upper speed limit was never firmly established, although a speed of 60 mph is commonly quoted since this figure is shown on a speed gauge during the opening credits; the highest speed ever shown in the series on a speed gauge is 66 mph; the later revival films suggested that he could run faster, however.

★ A Bionic right arm with the equivalent strength of a bulldozer; the arm contains a geiger counter (established in "The Last of the Fourth of Julys").
The implants have a major flaw in that extreme cold interferes with their functions and can disable them given sufficient exposure. However, when Austin returns to a warmer temperature, the implants quickly regain full functionality.
The Charlton Comics comic book spin-off from the series also established that Austin's bionic eye could shoot a laser beam and also worked as a miniature camera (these abilities were demonstrated in the first issues of the color comic and black-and-white illustrated magazine, respectively), but neither function was shown on television and are not considered canonical.
The series became known for how Austin's bionic abilities were presented. When running or using his bionic arm, Austin was usually presented in slow-motion, accompanied by an electronic grinding-like sound effect. When the bionic eye was used, the camera would zoom in on Austin's face, followed by an extreme close-up of his eye; his point-of-view usually included a crosshair motif accompanied by a beeping sound-effect. In early episodes, different ways of presenting Austin's powers were tested, including a heartbeat sound effect that predated the electronic sound, and in the three original made-for-TV movies, no sound effects or slow-motion were used at all, with Austin's actions shown at normal speed (except for his running which utilized trick photography); the slow-motion portrayal was introduced with the first hour-long episode, "Population: Zero."

Changes for television

A number of changes had to be made to Caidin’s version of the character to make him work for television. In the original novels, Austin was a cold-blooded killer, while the TV version rarely killed after his status as a childhood hero had been realized, and in fact Austin explicitly states his opposition to killing in the pilot film.
A number of changes to Austin’s bionics were also made. In the novel, Austin’s ''left'' arm, not his right, was the bionic one. Also, the arm was little more than a superpowered battering ram and not as complex as the TV version. Austin was blind in his bionic eye in the books, which was simply used as alternately a camera or a laser, and was removable. The book version of Steve Austin had some abilities the TV version lacked, such as a radio transmitter contained within a rib, a steel-reinforced skull that made it impossible for him to be knocked out with a blow to the head, and a CO₂-powered poison dart gun in one of his bionic fingers which the literary version of Austin often used to eliminate bad guys.
Another minor change was a matter of spelling: in the original novels, the term “bionics” was always used in its plural form, e.g. “bionics limbs.” Perhaps to make it easier to say in dialogue, this was changed to “bionic limbs” ''et al.'' for the television series. The word “bionics” is never actually uttered during the first pilot film.
One character name was also initially changed. In the original novel Austin’s superior is Oscar Goldman, as he is in the series; however, in the pilot film the name was changed to Oliver Spencer. The opening credits of the second pilot film, ''Wine, Women and War'', performs retconning to eliminate Spencer and reinstate Goldman as the government chief who authorizes Austin’s conversion; Goldman is also portrayed as a friendlier and more sympathetic character than Spencer, whom Austin accuses of being little more than a robot. In Caidin’s novel, Austin is recruited by the Office of Strategic Operations (OSO). In the TV pilot, it is still referred to verbally as the OSO, but door labels are OSI. Later TV episodes completed the change to OSI, and the first season episode Operation Firefly identified this as the Office of Scientific Intelligence (shown on Steve Austin's ID card).
The pilot film changed Austin’s character, making him a civilian member of NASA, rather than the Air Force colonel he was in the original novel; his military rank and background was restored for the TV series and no further reference was made to him being a civilian astronaut.

Novels

Martin Caidin wrote four novels featuring his original version of Steve Austin beginning in 1972 with ''Cyborg''. Although several other writers such as Mike Jahn would later write a number of novelizations based upon the TV series, in most cases these writers chose to base their character upon the literary version of Austin rather than the TV show version. As a result, several of the novelizations have entire scenes and in one case an ending that differed from the original episodes, as the cold-blooded killer of Caidin’s novels handled things somewhat differently than his watered-down TV counterpart. For example, the Jahn book ''International Incidents'', an adaptation of the episode “Love Song for Tanya”, ends with Austin using the poison dart gun in his bionic hand to kill an enemy agent; since the TV version of the character lacked this weapon, the villain was simply captured in the episode as broadcast.

Original Novels

(all by Martin Caidin)

★ ''Cyborg'' (1972)

★ ''Operation Nuke'' (1973)

★ ''High Crystal'' (1974)

★ ''Cyborg IV'' (1975)
(Of the above, only ''Cyborg'' was adapted for television.)

Novelizations

★ ''Wine, Women and War''—Mike Jahn

★ ''Solid Gold Kidnapping''—Evan Richards

★ ''Pilot Error''—Jay Barbree

★ ''The Rescue of Athena One''—Jahn

★ ''The Secret of Bigfoot Pass'' (UK title, ''The Secret of Bigfoot'')—Jahn

★ ''International Incidents''—Jahn (this volume adapted several episodes into one interconnected storyline)

Other adaptations

Charlton Comics published both a color comic book and a black and white, illustrated magazine, featuring original adventures as well as differing adaptations of the original TV movie. While the comic book was closely based upon the series, the magazine was darker and more violent and seemed to be based more upon the literary version of the character. Both magazines were cancelled around the same time the TV series ended. Artists Howard Chaykin and Neal Adams were frequent contributors to both publications.
A British comic strip version was also produced, written by Angus P. Allan, drawn by Martin Asbury and printed in TV comic ''Look-In''. A series of standalone comic strips was printed on the packaging of a series of model kits by Fundimensions based upon the series. In Colombia, a black and white comic book series was published in the late 70s, with art and stories by Jorge Peña. This series was licensed by Universal studios to Greco (Grupo Editorial Colombiano), then kwown as Editora Cinco, now part of Grupo Editorial Televisa. In France, ''Télé-Junior'', a magazine devoted to comic book adaptations of all sorts of TV series and cartoons also featured a ''Six Million Dollar Man'' comic (under its French title, ''L'Homme qui valait trois milliards'') with art by Pierre Le Goff and stories by P. Tabet and Bodis. A tradepaperback reprinting several episodes from the magazine was released in October, 1980^[1].
Peter Pan Records and its sister company Power Records published several record albums featuring original dramatized stories (including an adaptation of the pilot film), several of which were also adapted as comic books designed to be read along with the recording.
In 1996, a new comic book series entitled ''Bionix'' was announced, to be published by Maximum Press. The comic was to have been an updated version of both the ''Six Million Dollar Man'' and the ''Bionic Woman'' and feature new renditions of the two characters. Although the magazine was advertised in comic book trade publications, it was ultimately never published.[2]

Merchandise

''The Six Million Dollar Man'' spawned a number of toys and other licensed merchandise. Everything from lunch boxes and running shoes to children’s eyeglasses and bedsheets all carried images of Steve Austin. The 12-inch tall Steve Austin action figure marketed by Kenner in the mid-1970s was particularly popular and intact Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman toys continue to attract premium prices on the collector’s market. Besides the lead characters, 12-inch scale action figures were also produced of Oscar Goldman (with an "exploding" briefcase similar to the type used by James Bond in ''From Russia with Love''), "Maskatron" (an android character based upon a cyborg played by John Saxon in several episodes), a Fembot (from a ''Bionic Woman'' episode) and the recurring character of Bigfoot (the Bigfoot doll was more than 12 inches high). Associated merchandise for use with the action figures included a rocketship that could transform into a bionic repair station, an inflatable command base, auxiliary bionic arms (critical assignment arms) with different features (such as one that included a flashlight), auxiliary bionic legs (critical assignment legs) with different features.
Fully intact Steve Austin action figures are rare. The bionic right arms of the dolls were covered in an elastic, skin-like material (intended to be rolled back to reveal bionic modules underneath) and this material tended to deteriorate over time. Early versions of the arms also included removable bionic modules that could be easily lost; later versions of the action figured included modules that could not be removed.

DVD releases

Universal Playback has released the first 2 Seasons of ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' on DVD in Region 2 for the very first time. It has yet to be released in Region 1 for unconfirmed reasons.

Name	Region 1	Region 2
The Complete Season One	TBA	September 26 2005
The Complete Season Two	TBA	October 23 2006

Trivia

★ One shot of the control panel depicted for the crashing aircraft in the opening sequence is actually stock footage of the controls for a musical synthesizer, and the settings for ADSR envelope can be clearly seen.

★ The aircraft seen crashing in the opening sequence of the show is real and the dialogue spoken by actor Lee Majors during the opening credits is reportedly based upon communication prior to a crash that occurred on May 10, 1967: (“I can’t hold her; she’s breaking up! She’s breaking—”). Test pilot Bruce Peterson lost an eye due to infection following the crash, but likewise also miraculously survived what appeared to be a fatal accident even though his lifting body aircraft hit the ground at approximately 250 mph (400 km/h) and tumbled six times.

★ One of the show’s most famous set pieces was a rotating ice tunnel that appeared in several episodes featuring Bigfoot (who, in this series, was the guardian for a group of aliens observing Earth; the tunnel was a line of defense intended to disorient and knock out intruders). This tunnel was for many years a popular part of the Universal Studios Tour, and tourists still pass through the tunnel today on the tour, though in 2003 it was redesigned to resemble the entrance to the Mummy’s Tomb (look for the rotating wall).

★ In the film ''Dogma'', The Metatron makes a reference to ''The Six Million Dollar Man'', telling Bethany, "She can rebuild you. She has the technology. She can make you better, stronger, faster."

★ André the Giant was the first to play Bigfoot in the two-part episode "The Secret of Bigfoot". Ted Cassidy played the characters in several sequel episodes.

★ One Christmas-themed episode of the series demonstrated an unexpected bit of product placement when Austin visits a toy store where ''Six Million Dollar Man'' action figures are visible in the background.

★ Near the end of the series, Lee Majors experimented with changing Austin's look by growing a mustache. This proved unpopular and the idea was dropped, but not before a number of commercial tie-ins, including a comic book and a lunch box, had been produced with the new look.

★ During filming of the 1977 episode “Carnival of Spies,” which was shot at a real-life carnival, a crewmember was moving what was thought to be a wax mannequin. When the mannequin’s arm broke, it was discovered that it was in fact the mummified remains of a man. Researchers discovered that the body was that of one Elmer McCurdy, an outlaw who had died in a gunfight in 1911.

★ Professional wrestler “Stone Cold” Steve Austin is named after his hometown of Austin, Texas, and not the Six Million Dollar Man series. However, one of his nicknames in the ring is “The Bionic Redneck.”

★ The exterior shots of the “OSI” Building are actually the Russell Senate Office Building as seen from the Senate side of the Capitol, across Constitution Avenue in Washington, DC.

★ Lee Majors and Richard Anderson are the only two actors to appear in every episode of the series.

References in Pop Culture

★ In the 1999 Disney movie Inspector Gadget the titular character is involved in a serious accident, and is then rebuilt in a vein similar to "Six Million Dollar Man." During testing of Gadget's new hardware, he is referred to as the Six Million Dollar Man.

★ In the 2000s, AOL adapted the opening sequence for a television commercial. Using the same soundtrack as the series opening, the commercial shows the animated AOL mascot going through vigorous physical testing, including running on a treadmill a la Steve Austin.

★ In the 2005 episode of Duck Dodgers (TV series) titled ''The Six Wazillion Dollar Duck'', Duck Dodgers is severely injured while attempting to close the hatch of an experimental rocket. He is repaired with "cyborganic" parts and assigned a mentor named "Steve Boston, the Cyborganic Man". Steve Boston is married to "Jamie Wynters, the Cyborganic Woman", an obvious reference to Jaime Sommers The Bionic Woman. A cyborganic Bigfoot also makes an appearance.

★ The episode War Babies from the British comedy series ''The Goodies'' Tim Brooke-Taylor plays himself as an adult-sized baby in World War II. After being injured in a parachuting accident he is rebuilt as the ''Six Million Dollar Baby'', and later goes about impersonating Winston Churchill.

★ In one episode of ''The Venture Bros.'', a six-million-dollar man named "Steve Summers" is discovered living in the woods with his Sasquatch lover. The government expects him to pay off the six million dollars on a government salary. Also, Brock Samson, one of the main characters, is an agent of OSI (though in ''Venture Bros'', it is referred to as the "Office of Secret Intelligence").

★ In a sketch in the comedy series ''Goodness Gracious Me'' there was a parody called "The Six Million Rupee Man". The Six Million Rupee Man, played by Sanjeev Bhaskar, had the ability to see objects on a supermarket shelf barely 3 feet away that others supposedly couldn't see, and, due to the lack of value of the rupee, his legs were made of plastic tea stirrers, which promptly snapped.

★ In Mexico, Guatemala, and Peru the ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' was known as ''El Hombre Nuclear (The Nuclear Man)''. The ''Bionic Woman'' name of the series remained the same (La Mujer Bíónica).

★ A scene from the ''Family Guy'' episode "Running Mates" parodied the opening of ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' with Peter Griffin in place of Steve Austin. The doctor working on Peter Griffin says "We can rebuild him, we have the technolgy, but I don't want to spend a lot of money" It then cuts to Peter, walking on the sidewalk, with a broom and a garbage can for legs

★ A 2006 episode of the Canadian sitcom ''Corner Gas'' ("Kids Stuff") spoofed the series by having series lead Brent Butt dressing in an outfit identical to that worn by Lee Majors in several episodes. Twice during the episode he imitates his childhood hero by running in slow motion (accompanied by the original bionics sound effect on the soundtrack).

★ The 1995 Stephen Chow movie ''Sixty Million Dollar Man'' is a spoof of the series; whereas the main villain is a war cyborg built with $60 million dollars, the main hero is reconstructed using spare parts from only $6,000.

★ When the series was broadcast in Israel in the 1970s, its name was translated as "The Man Worth Millions" (Ha'ish ha'shaveh millionim,האיש השווה מיליונים), because of the strong Holocaust connotations that the number six million raises in the Jewish state.

★ In the late 70s, the chemicals needed to hypothetically build a complete person would have cost near enough $6 million.

★ The television series Jake 2.0 is essentially an updating of the premise, with the lead character's enhanced abilities due to nanotechnology rather than bionics. Lee Majors appeared in the episode "Double Agent" as as "legendary operative Richard 'Dick" Fox." The episode suggests that Fox has been enhanced somehow, and the end of the episode features an oblique reference/homage to the Six Million Dollar Man.

★ The Blanks performed the theme song for ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' in the episode "My Nightingale" (2.02) of ''Scrubs''.

★ The electronic bionic sound effect is used in the opening sequence of Nickeloden's ''Rocket Power''

★ The US Rock band Danger Danger released a song called "Six Million Dollar" man on their album ''Return Of The Great Gildersleaves''. The beginning of this song features a sample from the opening credits of the TV series.

★ The 2001 song "Austin's Groove", by Kid Crème, featured the famous sample: "A man barely alive. We can rebuild him. We have the technology. We can make him better than he was. Better...stronger...faster.".

★ The 1986 debut album by indie girl group We've Got a Fuzzbox and We're Gonna Use It was titled ''Bostin' Steve Austin'' ("bostin'" is a Midlands slang word meaning "cool")

★ In the movie ''Freddy Got Fingered'', the bionic sound effect is used when Tom Green's character pulls off a jumping skateboard trick in slow-motion.

★ In the children's animated series ''Farzzle's World'', the bionic sound effect is used when an inanimate object becomes animated (e.g., a bowl of spaghetti "comes to life" and begins to dance)

★ On the TV series ''The Electric Company'', the did a parody of the show entitled 'The $6.39 Cent Man'

★ On ''Sesame Street'' in the 1970s, Kermit the Frog in a Sesame Street News Flash sketch parodied the show by interviewing who creates a "" robot (whose junk parts did total up to US$6 plus tax), but upon activation the creation goes berserk and partially destroys the scientist's lab before it falls apart while he laughs at the havoc it's wreaking. Aghast by the destruction in the aftermath, Kermit bemoans that the robot didn't do anything in which the scientist nonchalantly responds with the punchline: "Well, what did you ''expect'' for six dollars?".

★ Trigun's first episode is titled, "The $$60,000,000,000 Man", a dual reference to the bounty on the main character's head and this show.

★ The 'sound effect' heard throughout the series has been used on MTV's Pimp My Ride.

★ In the pilot episode of US version of'' The Office'', Michael poorly imitates the running effect (including the sound effect made by him) for an unamused Pam. He then speculates that six million dollars would be a good paycheck for him.

★ In an episode of ''The Simpsons'', Marge daydreams about Lee Majors and when he flies away with Marge in his arms, the bionic sound effect is used.

★ In 2005, ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' was referenced in a commercial for Lenovo's new fingerprint authentication tool. In the commercial, the laptop's user attempts to make the "na na na na" sound and gets corrected by Lee Majors.

★ In an episode of ''That '70s Show'' the ''Six Million Dollar Man'' is parodied by the gang in which they 'rebuild' Fez to make him less needy.

★ In The Order of the Stick's second prequel, ''Start of Darkness'', the villain Xykon is transformed into a lich in a scene similar to the opening of the Six Million Dollar Man.

★ A reference to ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' is made in ''Shrek the Third'' when The Gingerbread Man, who lost his legs in the first Shrek movie, reminisces and during this sequence you see how he was given new legs and then you see him on a treadmill (with an EKG trace in the background) and eventually he does a slow motion Bionic jump, along with Bionic sound effect, and a small segment of the main theme tune.

★ In the episode "Split Decision" from the NCIS TV series, Abby Sciuto repeats the narration from ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' and referred to the TV series.

★ In the Robot Chicken episode Suck It there is a whole sketch featuring a Mexican version of ''Six Million Dollar Man'' called ''Six Million Peso Man''.

★ In the build-up to SummerSlam 2007 promos aired hyping the return of Triple H. The words used in the promos started with "Gentlemen, we can rebuild him....."[3]

★ In "The 40 Year Old Virgin", a reference is made to an Oscar Goldman action figure.

Notes and references

1. Publishing details about "L'Homme qui valait trois milliards" French comic (In French)

Episodes

★ List of The Six Million Dollar Man Episodes

External links

★

★ (original pilot)

★ (series)

★ ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' at Nostalgia Central

★ ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' at JumpTheShark.com

★ The Last Kamikaze episode review

★ Richard Anderson interview at Comic Con 2006 at Revver.com

★
★ Plaidstallions.com a website devoted to the 1970's has scans of the Kenner Six Million Dollar Man toy catalogs as well as severl blog postings about the show and it's merchandise.