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Date and Issue: Volume 32, Number 24 / June 11-17, 1977.
In 1975 Jamie Sommers, in the person of Lindsay Wagner, appeared on 'The Six Million Dollar Man' and became so popular that the beautiful cyborg was given her own series "The Bionic Woman" the next year. Yet Wonder Woman still ranks as Queen of all the TV super-heroines, and her television evolution has an interesting history spanning a full decade.
During the height of the popularity of the "Batman" TV show in 1966, producer William Dozier announced his plans to do a 'Wonder Woman' series. Reportedly, the series was to be played for laughs, starring, of all choices, Martha Raye as a rather loud-mouthed Wonder Woman. Miss Raye apparently was to transform into the character while staring into a full-length mirror. Thankfully this version of Wonder Woman never went into actual production.
Famed Character
During the 1970's Wonder Woman joined such famed comic book characters as Superman, Batman and Robin, Aquaman, along with an occasionally guest-starring Flash, Green Arrow and Plastic Man, on the Saturday Morning animated cartoon series Super Friends. This hour-long series presented various members of the Justice League of America fighting villains who were concerned with such activities as black-mailing Earth by polluting its waters.
A television movie entitled 'Wonder Woman' brought the character to the screen in live action in 1974. Blond Kathy Lee Crosby appeared as the Amazing Amazon in perhaps the talkiest, dullest and most disappointing comic book adaptation ever filmed. Ms. Crosby was certainly attractive and a capable enough actress, but due to an "Updating" of the character in the script, she simply wasn't Wonder Woman. Some attempt was made during the film's opening scenes to remain faithful to the comic book idea of an amazon being sent by her people to right wrongs in the world of men. But once Diana Prince, alias Wonder Woman, stepped onto "Man's World" she was simply an imitation Emma Peel, sans the familiar Wonder Woman costume. She did wear a costume of sorts during the final scenes of the picture, though it bore no resemblance to the comic book version.
Wait Worthwhile This incarnation of the character was obviously patterned after a brief period in the comic book's history during which Wonder Woman had neither costume nor superhuman powers. The real Wonder Woman finally came to the screen in 1975 in a TV movie called (to avoid confusion with its ill-fated precursor) "The New Original Wonder Woman". The wait proved to be more than worthwhile.
The film was set during the 1940's and was based directly upon the Wonder Woman stories featured in National's All-Star Comics no. 8, Sensation Comics, no. 1, and Wonder Woman, no. 1 (all 1942). Wonder Woman was really black-haired Princess Diana, daughter of Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons on the isolated Paradise Island.
After winning a contest among the other Amazons, Diana is given a revealing costume based upon the colors and design of the American flag and sent to "Man's World" to battle injustice.
Among Wonder Woman's powers is superhuman strength and the ability to leap great distances. She is equipped with a pair of bracelets that can deflect bullets. Her magic lasso compels whomever it binds to tell the truth and obey the person holding it. Wonder Woman also flies about In an invisible robot plane (drawn to look as if it were made from glass) which responds to her vocal commands, and she has spent much of her time since 1942 rescuing her courageous and handsome boyfriend, Colonel Steve Trevor.
New Wonder Woman The stunning new television Wonder Woman was portrayed by Lynda Carter, an incredibly voluptuous starry-eyed beauty with a charismatic smile and an enthusiasm that makes the red, yellow and blue-clad heroine thoroughly believable on the screen. Oscar winner Cloris Leachman played Hippolyta while Lyle Waggoner made the perfect Steve Trevor (despite the fact that his hair is brown while the Trevor in the comic books is blond).
The New, Original Wonder Woman was set during World War II and centered upon Diana's winning the Amazon games, coming to America to experience a world new to her, adopting the civilian identity of "Plain" Diana Prince, and battling the Nazis (along with inevitable rescue of poor Steve) with her superhuman powers. Not restricted by the Saturday morning taboos placed upon TV's less dynamic Isis, night-time TV's Wonder Woman repelled machine gun bullets with her bracelets (a maneuver officially called "Bullets and Bracelets") and tossed the villains around with the ease of a female Hercules.
Instant Star
She was given her invisible plane so familiar to readers of her comic book adventures. Camp (usually so prevalent in films of this type) was kept at a minimum and the extremely appealing Ms. Carter became an instant star as a result of this performance.
Warner Brothers, who made both Wonder Woman TV films (and who also owns the various comic books in which the character appears) later edited the movie down to an hour-long version and followed it with two sequels, all of which pre-empted The Bionic Woman. In the second of these sequels, Wonder Woman fought a Nazi counterpart to herself (played by Linda Day George) and reformed her after demonstrating how she had been used by her male superiors.
There have been recent reports that at least two "Wonder Women" will be appearing in their own television series next season. Apparently, the superheroine fad is only beginning. But whatever superpowered women do burst into life upon our television screens, they will have to really outdo themselves in order to match Lynda Carter and the New, Original Wonder Woman!
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