"The Fall Guy" (1981) TV series 1981-1986

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Creator:

Glen A. Larson

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

Release Date:

4 November 1981 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure

Plot:

The adventures of a film stunt performer who moonlights as a bounty hunter when movie work is slow.

Plot Keywords:

Bounty Hunter | Stunt | Cousin | Stuntman | Beautiful Woman

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Lee Majors	...	Colt Seavers (112 episodes, 1981-1986)
Douglas Barr	...	Howie Munson (112 episodes, 1981-1986)
Heather Thomas	...	Jody Banks (112 episodes, 1981-1986)
Markie Post	...	Terri Michaels (61 episodes, 1982-1985)

Runtime:

60 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

20th Century Fox Television

Trivia:

According to the "E! True Hollywood Story" (1996) biography of Lee Majors, Farrah Fawcett made a cameo appearance in the pilot episode against the advice of her friends and manager. Lee and Farrah had just completed a messy tabloid-ridden divorce. She made the appearance in order to show the public that they were separating on good terms.

Quotes:

Colt Seavers: This is the story of one of America's great unsung heroes. I mean you've seen him but you never knew who he was. You've cheered for him and cried for him and women have wanted to die for him. But did he ever get any credit or the girl? No! He's what we call the "Stuntman" and the reason I'm talking so fondly about him is...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Dynasty: The Making of a Guilty Pleasure (2005) (TV)

Soundtrack:

The Ballad of the Unknown Stuntman

The BEST action-adventure series of ALL TIME!!!

I have been a fan of this series for a long while. It is a recipe for ultimate entertainment:...start with a dash of real man macho stunts, throw in a pinch of T & A sex appeal, add a big-ass explosion or two, mix with some genuine humour and saute with some classic one-liners and super surprise guest stars. Bake for an hour and top off with a car chase and crash. Voila! You are in for a real treat.

This show may never be mistaken for a Shakespearean drama, but it sure is a lost classic in it's own right. This show is NEVER dull. Be thankful that Al Gore or John Kerry never made an appearance(though it was edited by Howard Deane in season four). Some episodes were downright gripping, poetic and contained a powerful message such as "A Hundred Miles a Gallon"(lost love and a look at a road not traveled by Colt), "The Life of Riley"(the heartbreak of a child abduction with excellent acting and unique direction to boot), "Trauma"(the tragedy of losing someone you care about) and "Boom"(a serious and hard look at terrorism...years before 911 or the Oklahoma City bombing).

There were also certain episodes that had non-stop action and thrilling pacing like "Death Boat", which was a humorous opposite to "The Love Boat." This second season show was loaded with incredible eye-popping stunts such as a semi truck utterly destroying a house, a pickup truck and a car(with a fishing boat in tow, no less) blowing up a gas station after a crash into the fuel pumps, a boat chase and gun battle that leads to a boat bursting into flames and igniting, a car chase on a winding cliffside road between a convertible and Colt hanging from a HELICOPTER by a ladder(as seen in the opening titles in season 2-5) which climaxes with the car going over the edge of a cliff and falling apart upon impact of the rocks AND MORE!!! Hell, most feature films these days don't give you so much raw energy!

I could go on and on since I own every episode on video and I currently have 90 uncut 16mm film prints of this series of 110 episodes(I count them by the story, not the hour...hence the 2 hour episodes "The Fall Guy" and "Colt's Outlaws" are counted once and FILM is the ONLY WAY to fully appreciate this fine and underrated series, I might add), but in closing I will say that I am perplexed as to why garbage shows such as "Macgyver" and "Knight Rider"(by Glen A. Larson, who created The Fall Guy, natch) are currently seen on TWO DIFFERENT cable networks taking up airtime while a true original sits on the shelf collecting dust. At the time that I type this on August 17th, 2004 U.S. President George W. Bush is engaged in a tense Presidential re-election campaign. Most in Hollywood are against the President. Perhaps those out in California at Twentieth Century Fox see a similarity between the no nonsense take-charge character Colt Seavers(who has been called a "cowboy" in several episodes just as the President has) and the President and they don't want his southern sense of action to become popular until after the 2004 U.S. election? Just a theory.

TRIVIA QUESTION: What is Howard "Howie" Munson's real first name?