This Day in TV History: Greatest American Hero, "The Shock WIll Kill You" premieres

40 years ago tonight, The Greatest American Hero premiered the episode "The Shock Will Kill You." This happens to be the GAH episode we discussed on our podcast. We really liked it!

It's worth seeing "The Shock" just for Bill and Pam's Batty-nominated fashion choices, but you get an episode filled with action, laughs, and maybe even a monster!

FilmRise has made the episode available for free with ads on YouTube:

Happy 40th birthday to "The Greatest American Hero!"

On March 18, 1981, The Greatest American Hero premiered on ABC with its two-hour pilot. We covered the show in our most recent season and loved revisiting it so much that we gave it multiple Battys. As we mention on the podcast, the series is easy to find streaming for free, so you have no excuse! Go watch it!

50 years ago tonight, NBC ended its prime time with an original Arte Johnson special titled--you guessed it--Ver-r-r-y Interesting. It was produced by the same team that did Laugh-In and featured guests like Bing Crosby, Elke Sommer, Billy de Wolfe, and Joe Flynn.

Happy birthday, William Katt!

Today is the 70th birthday of Batty-nominated William Katt, star of stage and screen and iconic portrayer of Ralph Hinkley on our beloved Greatest American Hero! He also starred in Stephen J. Cannell's short-lived CBS drama Top of the Hill. Check out the Mike Post theme and show open here:

We'd bake a cake, but, uh, we lost the instruction manual, and we don't want to burn down the BOTNS podcast studios, so how about a spirited rendition of "Happy Birthday to You" instead? Maybe we can get Faye Grant and the other kids to sing!

YouTube Spotlight: Two great American heroes team up on Showtime!

Talk about a dream team! Check out this clip from this week's video playlist:  A promo for a Showtime airing of the 1988 film White Ghosts starring William Katt and Reb Brown!

That's right, Ralph Hinkley and Steve Rogers team up in this action movie filmed in Zimbabwe but set in Vietnam. No, the movie doesn't get great reviews, but William Katt and Reb Brown! It is currently available for streaming free with ads on Tubi TV.

The Greatest American Hero video playlist is now live!

After listening to the podcast this week, enjoy our video playlist with plenty of clips related to The Greatest American Hero. You will see commercials, promos, music, and more, including: Bob Culp feels OUTRAGE! Connie Sellecca warns you against former Batty nominee cocaine! And William Katt released a pop rock album in 1982?  All this plus appearances by co-stars Michael Pare, Faye Grant, and even the space shuttle when you click below!

Remember you can check out our official YouTube channel for past episodes of the podcasts as well as video playlists that accompany each one!

Show Notes: Episode 8-8: The Greatest American Hero: "The Shock Will Kill You"

*The Greatest American Hero premiered March 1981 on ABC and ran until February 1983 for a total of 3 seasons and 45 episodes (though, as we say on the show, that includes the added-for-syndication multiple unaired episodes and the Greatest American Heroine pilot).

*ABC first broadcast "The Shock Will Kill You" February 10, 1982 at 8:00 P.M. The Fall Guy and Dynasty followed it.  NBC ran Real People, The Facts of Life, Love, Sidney, and Quincy. 

*CBS showed She's a Good Skate, Charlie Brown and 1978's Hooper. The Peanuts special is a 1980 cartoon spotlighting Peppermint Patty.

*Joey Scarbury took the show's theme song to #2 on the Billboard charts. You will be able to hear a track from William "Billy" Katt's 1982 solo album in this week's YouTube playlist dropping soon!

*Here is where you can find RetroFan, which published the cool interview with star William Katt in issue #5.

*Jon Abbott's book quoted in that article is Stephen J. Cannell Television Productions: A History of All Series and Pilots.

*Bob Culp and Burt Reynolds never appeared in a movie nor TV episode together according to our research. What a shame!

*Ralph Hinkley and Pam Davidson get married in season 3's "The Newlywed Game."

*Hear more about Leonard Lightfoot here in our examination of Silver Spoons.

*Rod Holcomb directed 6 episodes of the series.

*The Greatest American Heroine featured Mary Ellen Stuart as the titular superhero and Mya Stark as the precocious girl.

Episode 8-8: The Greatest American Hero "The Shock Will Kill You"

Believe it or not, it took eight seasons for us to get to The Greatest American Hero. After steering a powerless space shuttle to a safe landing, Ralph turns into a walking magnet, and only he, Bill, and Pam stand in between a electricity-eating space monster and doom! What a scenario!

Check out this episode!