Series synopsis
The Six Million Dollar Man is an American sci-fi & fantasy action & adventure drama television series that premiered on ABC on January 18, 1974. It ended on March 6, 1978. It was created by Kenneth Johnson, Martin Caidin. It stars Martin E. Brooks and Richard Anderson.
Follow the adventures of Steve Austin, cybernetically enhanced astronaut turned secret agent, employed by the OSI, under the command of Oscar Goldman and supervised by the scientist who created his cybernetics, Rudy Wells. Steve uses the superior strength and speed provided by his bionic arm and legs, and the enhanced vision provided by his artificial eye, to fight enemy agents, aliens, mad scientists, and a wide variety of other villains.
Premise
Follow the adventures of Steve Austin, cybernetically enhanced astronaut turned secret agent, employed by the OSI, under the command of Oscar Goldman and supervised by the scientist who created his cybernetics, Rudy Wells. Steve uses the superior strength and speed provided by his bionic arm and legs, and the enhanced vision provided by his artificial eye, to fight enemy agents, aliens, mad scientists, and a wide variety of other villains.
Premise: Better. Stronger. Faster.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
- Martin E. Brooks as Dr. Rudy Wells
- Richard Anderson as Oscar Goldman
Guest cast
- Lee Majors as Steve Austin
- Lindsay Wagner as Jaime Sommers
- Ann Dusenberry as Clerk
- Don Porter as Dr. Stanley Bacon
- Penny Fuller as Dr. Chris Forbes
- Paul Fix as Joe Taylor
- Colby Chester as Joe Hollister
- John Elerick as Corporal Ed Presby
- David Valentine as Teletype Operator
- John Houseman as Doctor Franklin
- Corinne Camacho as Lynda Wilson
- Sally Yarnell as Mother (uncredited)
Episodes
This series spans 6 seasons with 105 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 0 | 6 | March 7, 1973 | November 17, 1973 |
| Season 1 | 13 | January 18, 1974 | April 26, 1974 |
| Season 2 | 22 | September 13, 1974 | April 27, 1975 |
| Season 3 | 21 | September 14, 1975 | March 7, 1976 |
| Season 4 | 22 | September 19, 1976 | May 15, 1977 |
| Season 5 | 21 | September 11, 1977 | March 6, 1978 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
The Moon and the Desert (1) When test pilot Steve Austin is seriously injured in a crash, Dr. Rudy Wells rebuilds him into a superhuman through the medical science of bionics. |
March 7, 1973 |
| 2 |
The Moon and the Desert (2) With his new bionic arm, legs and eye, Steve undertakes his first mission for the Office of Scientific Intelligence in order to rescue a young boy in Saudi Arabia. |
March 7, 1973 |
| 3 |
Wine, Women and War (1) After Col. Steve Austin fails to retrieve the contents of a safe owned by arms dealer Arlen Findletter, he takes up a friendly offer of a vacation in the Bahamas. |
October 20, 1973 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Population: Zero When Steve and Oscar investigate the death of the entire population of a small town, they are contacted by a scientist, once employed by the government, who is set on revenge for past grievances. Demanding $10 million or he will strike again, Steve must find and stop him. |
January 18, 1974 |
| 2 |
Survival of the Fittest Due to secret negotiations with the Russians, Oscar Goldman is targeted for assassination by interests that will be hurt by the prospective pact. Oscar and Steve Austin board a flight in Hawaii bound for Dulles. The plane is forced to make an emergency landing on a deserted Pacific Island when part of a wing is lost during a storm. While awaiting rescue, two military officers that had been on the flight severely wound Oscar in an attempt to kill him. Unaware of the breadth of the conspiracy, Steve Austin must carefully decide whom he can trust in his efforts to save his friend. |
January 25, 1974 |
| 3 |
Operation Firefly Dr. Samuel Abbott has been kidnapped while developing a wireless laser that utilizes scientific principles observed in light generation by the common firefly. Steve Austin goes to Spain to find Abbott’s daughter Susan whose known powers of ESP will hopefully assist in locating the scientist. She leads them to the Everglades only to discover that Dr. Abbott mistakenly believes his kidnappers are government agents that are protecting him. He continues to complete the laser unaware that it is being used to extort money from the U.S. Government. |
February 1, 1974 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Nuclear Alert Steve must stop a group of government conspirators who have assembled an atomic bomb from stolen parts. |
September 13, 1974 |
| 2 |
The Pioneers While scientist David Tate experiments in space with a serum designed to awaken cryogenically frozen patients, he is accidentally injected with too much serum. When the space capsule crashes, he begins terrorizing the countryside and Steve must hunt him down. |
September 20, 1974 |
| 3 |
Pilot Error A plane carrying Steve, a senator, and the senator's aides crashes in the desert. Steve must lead the others to safety despite being blinded in the crash. |
September 27, 1974 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
The Return of the Bionic Woman (1) Steve Austin's bionic legs are heavily damaged during a mission and while recuperating at Dr. Rudy Wells' hospital, he catches a glimpse of his fiancée, Jaime Sommers, still alive but recuperating. |
September 14, 1975 |
| 2 |
The Return of the Bionic Woman (2) Steve Austin takes the recuperating Jaime Sommers to their hometown of Ojai in an attempt to jog her memory. Unfortunately this only results in her getting violent headaches and confusing flashbacks. |
September 21, 1975 |
| 3 |
The Price of Liberty Bitter explosive expert Robert Meyer arranges for the Liberty Bell to be stolen, rigs it with three bombs and demands five million dollars. Complications mount up and Steve Austin is forced to ask imprisoned bomb expert Linstrom to help defuse Meyer's handiwork. |
September 28, 1975 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
The Return of Bigfoot (I) Steve Austin becomes a suspect after series of burglaries that can only be accomplished with bionic strength are committed. As Austin begins to have vague memories of his encounter with Bigfoot, he is approached by Gillian, one of the alien travelers. She explains that one of her own, Nedlick, has formed a splinter group intend on world domination and is now using Sasquash to commit robberies in order to gain wealth. The crossover continues on The Bionic Woman S02E01 The Return of Bigfoot (II). |
September 19, 1976 |
| 2 |
Nightmare in the Sky When an Aircraft mysteriously disappears in a test flight, Steve's friend Kelly Wood becomes the prime suspect, since she was the one driving the plane at the time. But for some reason, she has no memory, except remembering seeing a Japanese Zero plane from World War 2. Since no one believes her, Steve knows he must clear his friend's name, before it's too late. |
September 26, 1976 |
| 3 |
Double Trouble When a nightclub comedian is hit by a car, the x-rays reveal an implant in his head that can control his actions. Oscar sends Steve to find out why and if the Russians are involved. |
October 3, 1976 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Sharks (1) Steve is captured while investigating the unusual power failure of a nuclear submarine. |
September 11, 1977 |
| 2 |
Sharks (2) A nuclear submarine is commandeered for the purpose of piracy and extortion. Steve investigates and is captured. To escape he must eluded trained sharks. |
September 18, 1977 |
| 3 |
Deadly Countdown (1) Steve is on a mission involving a test satellite. But Steve becomes a target when the satellite is needed to gain control of a missile to be sold to a foreign power. |
September 25, 1977 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | ABC |
|---|---|
| First aired | January 18, 1974 |
| Last aired | March 6, 1978 |
| Status | Ended |