All Season (5)
Sep 05, 1988
The show's final season would run for 21 episodes from Fall 1977 to Spring 1978. With its sister show, The Bionic Woman moved to NBC, there would be no further joint appearances between the two lead characters (though at least one NBC Bionic Woman episode, "The Bionic Dog", references Steve in dialogue). However, in a situation that as of 2014 remains unique in American television, Richard Anderson and Martin E. Brooks continued to appear as Oscar Goldman and Rudy Wells in both series, despite the shows airing on competing networks. The final season would visit the moon and bring back Bigfoot, Death Probe and sport a cameo by Steve Austin creator Martin Caidin. After losing the mustache late in Season Four, Steve loses the parted hair in Season Five in favor of a mod-for-the-time perm. Nonetheless, the opening credits remained unchanged from Season 4 - the only time the opening stayed consistent for more than one season - retaining the 1973-era images of Majors. With a total of five two-parters (six in syndication when a two-hour episode was reedited), the final season sets a record for over half its episodes being extended narratives- not to mention the legacy behind “Bigfoot V” and “Return of Death Probe”. Replacing Lionel E. Siegel and Alan Balter as producer would be Fred Freiberger (of Star Trek's and Space: 1999's final seasons) alternating with Richard H. Landau.
Sep 19, 1976
The season remembered for Steve's infamous mustache would feature two full-blown crossover epics with The Bionic Woman, starting with the shows’ joint premiere, “The Return of Bigfoot” and culminating in the three-part adventure “Kill Oscar”. Running for 22 episodes during the Fall of 1976 to the Spring of 1977, Season Four would wind up edging out Season Two for the most episodes in syndication. Season Four would introduce what would perhaps be Steve’s last great nemesis, the Death Probe. A Bionic Boy would be created. The show intro would see its final revision, with Martin E. Brooks joining Lee Majors and Richard Anderson (who would gain a new shot of himself on the red phone) in the opening credits, but would remain otherwise the same, Steve's new look not being included in the revised credits. Austin's/Major's mustache would not survive to the end of the season, being shaved off towards its end, though not before starting to tentatively appear on some merchandise, including an issue of the Six Million Dollar Man comic book and a lunchbox. After nearly a year of turmoil after the passing of Oliver Nelson, the show would settle down musically for Season 4 with veteran composer J. J. Johnson, who would lend the year a distinctive sound, and also revive a number of Nelson's earlier compositions for the show in episodes like The Thunderbird Connection and The Infiltrators. Replacing Producer Kenneth Johnson (who would continue on The Bionic Woman in that capacity) was returning producer Lionel E. Siegel, who would be joined later in the season by Alan Balter, but unlike the producing teams of the first 2 seasons, Siegel and Balter would alternate. For reasons that have been lost to the years, broadcast of the season finale episode, "The Ghostly Teletype", was separated from the rest of the season by a hiatus of two months.
Sep 14, 1975
The third season of The Six Million Dollar Man was a period of major change for the show, running for 21 episodes from the Fall of 1975 to the Spring of 1976. Jaime Sommers would return and gain her own series, while Martin E. Brooks would replace Alan Oppenheimer (who would nevertheless reprise the role one last time this season) as Dr. Rudy Wells and what may be the series’ most famous episode would air, The Secret of Bigfoot. A slight alteration to the mix would be the only change to the show intro, while Steve's bionic sounds would add a few new ones for jumping. Both Lee Majors and Lindsay Wagner would appear on one another's shows six times after her appearance in the premiere (for a complete list of joint appearances, refer to the Crossovers article). Tragedy would strike the show in late October 1975 as series composer Oliver Nelson passed away suddenly of a heart attack. The show continued to use music composed by Nelson throughout the Season, but as time wore on, new material was exhausted. Reuse, or "tracking" of Nelson's Season 3 work was done for some remaining episodes. After several new composers were hired later in the Season, beginning with "The White Lightning War," the show would settle on J. J. Johnson the following Season, but Nelson's theme and musical legacy would continue to guide the show's music for the remainder of its run. Replacing producers Lionel E. Siegel and Joe L. Cramer would be Kenneth Johnson, the creator of The Bionic Woman. Siegel would return, however, to produce “The Wolf Boy" and others before resuming full-time producing the following year. Recurring characters introduced would be Dr. Michael Marchetti, and the legendary Sasquatch (Bigfoot) with his alien masters. Returning would be Barney Hiller (formerly Miller) and Kuroda as well as Steve's parents.
Apr 12, 1975
The first full-length season of The Six Million Dollar Man ran for 22 episodes during the Fall of 1974 - Spring of 1975. In this season the sounds used for bionics would be standardized and the main title sequence would see its biggest revision, bringing it to its most familiar form. A good twenty seconds longer, the new intro struck a different tone from its predecessor. Notably, Oscar now addresses his audience as "Gentlemen," the famous "wireframe" graphics are first seen, Oliver Nelson's score dominates the final stretch, and the final freeze frame used for the show title is more centered and better illuminated, and would become the standard title for the show from then on (a vestige of the original is seen in the end titles, superimposed over the Season One freeze frame for all five seasons). For some reason one Season 2 episode, "Pilot Error" was produced using the Season 1 version of the credits, except with slight alterations to the sound mix and a different musical flourish at the end. Replacing producers Sam Strangis and Donald R. Boyle would be Lionel E. Siegel and Joe L. Cramer. Recurring characters introduced would be Barney Hiller, Kuroda, Audrey Moss, Oscar's secretary Peggy Callahan, Steve's stepdad Jim Elgin and, most importantly, Jaime Sommers. Expanding upon the success of "The Coward" and "Burning Bright", a number of episodes focused more on characters than bionics or spy plots. Standouts include "Straight On 'Til Morning", in which Steve comes to the aid of a family of alien explorers; "The Deadly Replay", in which the emotional aftermath of Austin's original crash is explored; "The Seven Million Dollar Man", which showed how poorly Austin's transformation could have gone; and, of course, the show's landmark two-parter, "The Bionic Woman". Jaime's apparent death in that storyline sparked a fan outcry, and combined with high ratings and favorable press this led to a return for Lindsay Wagner to the role in the following year, bringing many changes. The two-part storyline that introduced the Bionic Woman (before killing her off) was intended to be the season finale, but perhaps not wanting to end the season on a down note, it was broadcast earlier, with two standalone episodes ending the season. It was during Season 2 that it became clear that The Six Million Dollar Man was becoming an idol for many children. Perhaps due to this, certain violent elements common during the first season were toned down. After a one-off event in "Nuclear Alert", Austin would rarely be shown intentionally killing anyone, for example. However, Jaime notwithstanding, his newfound fame as a kids' hero doesn't stop Austin from adding many names to his roster of girlfriends, causing Oscar at one point (in "Act of Piracy") to moan, "Why don't I hate him?"
Jan 11, 1975
After The Solid Gold Kidnapping TV Movie, production immediately began on the first season of the regular weekly series. A mid-season replacement, Season One ran for 13 episodes in the spring of 1974, introducing much of what would become the show’s trademark mix of action, intrigue, science fiction, and a dash of tragedy for our leading man, set apart by his uniqueness. Returning from the telefilms would be Lee Majors, Richard Anderson and Alan Oppenheimer, whose Rudy Wells would be reduced to a single guest appearance for Season One. Replacing Glen A. Larson as Exec. Producer would be showrunner Harve Bennett, while producer Michael Gleason would be replaced by the producing team of Sam Strangis and Donald R. Boyle. Jazz composer Oliver Nelson would establish the musical character of the weekly series, and his theme for the show would become an instantly recognizable classic. Recurring characters introduced include Dr. Dolenz, Irina Leonova, the Hopper twins, and Helen Elgin, Steve’s mom. Another recurring character introduced was astronaut Major Kelly Woods, played by Majors' wife and soon-to-be-superstar Farrah Fawcett-Majors, who would not only return in the fourth season to reprise the role of Kelly, but in the interim guest star in seasons 2 and 3 playing different characters. Season One would establish the now-legendary show intro, standardize on the slow-motion presentation of bionics, the effects used for Steve’s eye, and introduce many of the sounds later used for Steve’s bionic strength. It also introduced lifelike androids as adversaries, which would become a staple for both The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman. Steve's character would return to the more sensitive character audiences recalled from the first telefilm, after a detour into James Bond emulation for the Suspense Movies. Oscar Goldman would also lose some of his manipulative aspects and gain some warmth for his pal Steve.
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About
The Six Million Dollar Man is released in 1974 and the latest season 5 of The Six Million Dollar Man is released in 1988. Watch The Six Million Dollar Man all seasons full episodes online - the English Action TV series from United States. The Six Million Dollar Man is directed by Dick Moder,Cliff Bole,Phil Bondelli,Jerry London and created by Larry Alexander with Lee Majors and Richard Anderson.
