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The Greatest American Hero (1981–1983) 7.0
A teacher is asked to be a superhero using a special alien suit with powers he can barely understand or control. Creator:Stephen J. Cannell |
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Title: The Greatest American Hero (1981–1983)
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Cast
| Complete series cast summary: | |||
| William Katt | ... |
Ralph Hinkley
(44 episodes, 1981-1986)
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| Robert Culp | ... |
Bill Maxwell
(44 episodes, 1981-1986)
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| Connie Sellecca | ... |
Pam Davidson
(41 episodes, 1981-1986)
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Don Cervantes | ... |
Paco Rodriguez
(23 episodes, 1981-1983)
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| Faye Grant | ... |
Rhonda Blake
(22 episodes, 1981-1982)
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| Michael Paré | ... |
Tony Villicana
(21 episodes, 1981-1983)
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| Jesse D. Goins | ... |
Cyler Johnson
(19 episodes, 1981-1983)
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Edit
Plot Summary
|
Add Synopsis
Storyline
A pair of strangers, liberal high-school teacher Ralph Hinkley and right-wing FBI agent Bill Maxwell, have a close encounter in the Southern California desert one night with "little green men", who give our heroes a red superhero suit. The suit works only for Ralph, and the two, accompanied by Ralph's cute lawyer girlfriend Pam, reluctantly team up to battle criminals. Problems ensue when Ralph loses the suit's instruction book, so he had to master the suit's powers on his own. Written by Marty McKee <mmckee@wkio.com>
Parents Guide:
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Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
18 March 1981 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
El gran héroe americano See more »Company Credits
Show detailed
company contact information
on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
| (43 episodes)Sound Mix:
MonoColor:
ColorAspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1
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Written by Mike Post & Stephen Geyer
Performed by Joey Scarbury
(theme song)
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
Connie Sellecca was rarely seen during the second season due to her real-life pregnancy. See more »Crazy Credits
During the opening credits of the pilot "Greatest American Heroine", the three-note NBC theme is heard as the letters "i-n-e" appear one at a time on screen. (An in-joke as NBC was the network the series was being pitched to at the time) See more »Soundtracks
"Believe It or Not"Written by Mike Post & Stephen Geyer
Performed by Joey Scarbury
(theme song)
See more »
The Greatest American Hero was one of the best concepts for a TV show that I have ever seen, and certainly the most unique take on the superhero genre. The show had charm, lighthearted fun, and was full of 80's magic. I can still remember watching this show back in the early 80's and when Ralph first tried to fly that red suit. He couldn't get it, and some little kid that saw him struggling gave him some advice. Now see, that's the kind of magic that TV shows in the 80's had. TV wasn't afraid of putting out a hero that got advice on how to fly from a goofy little kid. Ralph Hinkley (played by William Katt) was just a regular guy, a young high school teacher that wanted to make a difference. Then one night he is approached by aliens out in the desert, teamed up with a gung-ho FBI agent, and given a spectacular red suit styled in the classic superhero design of cape and longjohns.
Unfortunately poor Ralph promptly loses the instruction book to the suit, and must learn the suit powers through trial and error. Connie Sellecca played Hinkley's girlfriend Pam, I seem to recall later in the show they were married. I also remember that Ralph got another instruction book, only to lose it again. And if I remember correctly, this show was only on for a brief 2 years and had 3 seasons. I don't know why the network prematurely cancelled this series, the show sadly never got to live up to it's full potential. I think it only clocked in around 44 or 45 episodes because the network pulled the plug on it so soon. The low episode number is probably why we don't get the luxury of seeing TGAH on Sci-Fi channel, WGN, TBS, or TV Land. Even with only 2 years of episodes, this series is still fondly remembered by many as a part of 80's magic.