A TRIBUTE TO ESCAPISM TV - THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN

I miss the Good Ol'e Days of escapism TV. During the early 70's, there was a classic TV show which could never be confused with Shakespeare. That show was named, The Six Million Dollar Man. It was great. it was an action-adventure show that allowed the viewer to escape the problems of the real world, and to imagine the possibility of actually having Super Human strength.

Lee Majors was the lead actor, a good looking and likeable, action-adventure star. He played the role of an astronaut who survived a terrible accident. As a side note, the crash film, that was used to introduce the show each week, was an actual crash. The real test pilot survived the crash. He didn't have a need for bionic replacement parts. Steve Austin, the character that Lee Majors played, wasn't so lucky. Of course, he came to appreciate his Super Human powers. He had the ability to outrun most cars and the ability to pick up most cars. One of his eyes had zoom capabilities. The sound effects that played, when Steve Austin used his bionic parts, was the best part of the show. Oh, yeah, the slow-motion fighting and running was super cool also. 

Steve Austin was put together after the crash with bionic parts. The total cost was six million dollars. It wasn't $5,999,999.99, it was $6 million exactly. He had to "pay" for the parts by becoming a government agent, to protect the country from bad guys. A modern day Superman.

The show provided the opportunity to create a lineup of great toys. Kenner produced a line of Six Million Dollar Man toys and I have posted one of their ads. The commercial is for the Six Million Dollar Man - Mission to Mars Adventure set. It had the tag line, "With The Bionic Grip," which allowed the Steve Austin figure to beat up your brother's GI Joe figure, and have your sister's Barbie doll all to himself. 

Barbie and Steve Austin, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G. First comes marriage, then comes CYBORG in a baby carriage.




Posted below, is a comic book ad for The Six Million Dollar Man action figure.








TV TOY MEMORIES




 

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