Alan Kistler on Wonder Woman in Media

THIS PAGE IS UNDER REVISION AND WILL BE UPDATED SOON.

This is part of my Wonder Woman files, focusing on Diana's portrayal in television.

WONDER WOMAN IN MEDIA

Bear with me here, people. Some of this yer not gonna like.

With the success of the Batman & Robin live-action show starring Adam West and Burt Ward, DC decided to translate Wonder Woman to the screen. Like the Batman series, this would be a comedic/camp take on the character. The show was called Who's Afraid of Diana Prince?

In the pilot, we met a young girl named Diana Prince who was played by Ellie Wood Walker. Diana was a very awkward and plain girl who was crazy in love with Steve Trevor, a pilot who worked at the Air Force base that Diana lived nearby. Diana lived with her mom, a mortal woman who constantly lectured her on how important it was that she find a man.

Annoyed by her mother and determined to at least have an active fantasy life, Diana dressed up in a sexy star-spangled  outfit and admired herself in the mirror. While dressed like this, she had incredible powers. Along with this, she believed that wearing the costume also made her glamorous and beautiful. Looking in the mirror, she saw a heroic beauty reflecting back (played by Linda Harrison, who would later play the girl Nova in Planet of the Apes). However, her mother and the viewers could see that she was still her plain, awkward self, so the girl was either quite imaginative or downright delusional.

Diana then giggled to herself as she leaped out the window and flew away to find Steve. She obviously traveled in this fashion regularly, since her mother didn't freak out but only reminded her to visit a relative as long as she was heading out.

So the whole gimmick was to make Diana a female version of Don Quixote, where only she wasn’t aware of the truth of her own situation. Although never seen in the pilot (which was only a few minutes long), it seems that the show might’ve revolved around Steve Trevor constantly avoiding Diana’s advances since she was, you know, weird and a little nuts.

You’d think that the fact this pilot was utter crap would’ve been the reason for not pursuing it. But in fact, the reason why it wasn’t picked up was because the production wasn’t very enthusiastic about having a female-centric show in general (as explained by writer Stanley Ross years later).

Wonder Girl appeared in a few cartoon shorts of "Teen Titans" during the Superman/Aquaman Hour. Later, Wonder Woman herself showed up in the Brady Kids cartoon in a 1972 episode entitled “It’s All Greek To Me” (for you folks who weren’t around back then, Brady Kids was a cartoon spin-off of The Brady Bunch). In that episode, the Brady Kids were accidentally transported back in time to the Trojan War and Diana had to come to their rescue. Stop friggin’ laughing, I’m not making this up.

Diana also was one of several DC heroes to guest-star in the Scooby-Doo cartoon. Finally, she joined the cast of the SuperFriends and was also a star in the follow up Legendary Super-Powers cartoon.

But back to the live-action stuff. In 1974, ABC made a live-action TV-pilot starring the blonde Cathy Lee Crosby as Wonder Woman. Sadly, this movie was inspired by the “I-Ching Era” and featured a character who had no powers and only a brief mention of having come from an island full of Greek women. Cathy Lee was an intelligence agent who wore normal clothes and went to combat the evil Ricardo Montalban (“KHAN!”). Only in the final act of the movie did this version of Diana don a costume, one which seemed like an Emma Peel jumpsuit rather than her outfit from the comics. She also carried a firearm rather than any magical sort of weapon (because who needs a lasso of truth when you have a gun, right?).

Audiences didn’t care much for it so instead of being a pilot, it became a stand-alone movie. But ABC still figured there was potential in having Wonder Woman on TV. Stanley Ralph Ross (writer of Who's Afraid of Diana Prince?) was called back for writing duties but was now told to be faithful to the comic book (an amazing bit of advice, wouldn’t you say?).

LYNDA CARTER TO THE RESCUE 

The new live-action pilot was entitled The New Original Wonder Woman. This signified that although the show was new and different from the Cathy Lee Crosby film, it was also a return to the roots of the comic book character. Ross set the story during the days of World War II. Audiences saw met the Amazons on Paradise Island and watched as Princess Diana left her home to help Steve Trevor fight Nazi threats, after which she assumed the identity of Diana Prince of the U.S. Army. The pilot was to have special effects that were a level above normal ABC television shows. Like the comics, Diana would fly an invisible plane, wield a lasso of truth, wear the colorful costume with the eagle crest, would possess fantastic strength and would be able to leap great distances and deflect bullets with her bracelets. It almost seemed like the comic had literally come to life.

ABC searched high and low and finally came upon former beauty pageant winner and all-around hottie Lynda Carter. Said Carter, "I couldn't pay my next month's rent when I got the part. I was thrilled to have a pilot of my own."

In the DVD-commentary of the pilot years later, she elaborated, "I had been studying [acting] for a couple of years ... I'd done one movie. I had only had two one-day parts on television ... There really were not any roles for women like me [at the time]. You had to play a hooker or a secretary or a mother."

The pilot met with rave reviews. In fact, the vicious fight at the end of it became the model for a cat-fight on the show Dynasty years later. People loved Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman. Like Christopher Reeve a few years later, she won you over because she seemed so natural in the role. She didn’t act over-the-top or exaggerate a lot of her gestures. She was simply a confident woman who was perfectly at ease with the uniform she wore and that made you take her seriously.

Lynda Carter herself said, "I tried to play her like a regular woman who just happened to have superhuman powers. I figured she'd lived with it ever day of her life."

The pilot spawned two more TV movies: Fausta, the Nazi Wonder Woman and Wonder Woman Meets Baroness von Gunther. Christine Belford portrayed Diana’s Golden Age arch-enemy, an imprisoned Nazi who said she’d reformed but then turned out to be lying (very similar to when she left Transformation Island years before in the comics). Finally, the series was picked up by ABC. The TV movies were re-aired in episode format for anyone who'd missed them.

Although the majority of the show was faithful to the comic, there were still a few changes. Etta Candy was no longer an obese sweets-addicted college girl but rather was a work colleague of Diana’s in the army. Although a bit panicky and nervous at times, she was smart and loyal and certainly more companion than sidekick. The villains of the show were mainly Nazis and not characters from Greek myths such as Ares or Heracles or the like. And Diana was not a secretary but rather a Yeoman First Class (petty officer). She also had the added ability of being able to imitate anyone's voice.

Another thing that was different in the show was that Diana could change into her costume essentially by spinning, a move that Carter suggested herself since she had a background in dancing. This was somewhat reminiscent of comics where Diana would run towards danger at great speed and would inexplicably change into her costume with each stride. The spin-change gave Wonder Woman a slightly magical quality that was fun and reminded you the show didn’t take itself too seriously. The spin transformation has been parodied many times over the years.

The relationship between Steve and Diana was also altered. Although they showed chemistry and possible interest towards each other in the pilot, the studio decided not to have an ongoing romantic sub plot. Once the first season officially started, it was made clear that these two were just friends.

In the first season, it was said that Diana was only able to maintain her Amazon abilities and strength as long as she wore her belt, allowing the writers to have villains frequently steal it (along with her lasso and bracelets). This was, of course, to create more tension before Diana inevitably stole her stuff back and kicked everyone’s ass.

One thing that was not so great about the TV series was that it lost a lot of the fighting as time went on. TV was under attack for being too violent during these years, so producers often felt pressured to have action heroes fight without actually throwing a punch. If you watch, as the episodes of the Wonder Woman TV series progress, Diana stops kicking and punching over time and opts instead to throw people or simply push them or to dodge their attacks in such a way that her opponents knock each other out. And even though there series was grounded in World War II, Diana had a strict no-killing policy, believing that imprisonment and rehabilitation were far better principles (which is actually in keeping with the comic character).

Despite this, Lynda Carter did her best to throw all her energy into the role and tried to do as many of her own stunts as people would allow. "The stunt guys taught me how to throw a punch," Carter explained, "and eventually I became an honorary member of the Stunt Women's Association." 

Lynda Carter did get in trouble though when one episode was to have Wonder Woman hanging from a helicopter. "The stung girl was about to go under it and I said, 'Oh, I can do this!' I ran under and [the helicopter] went up and when the producers found out about it, they went ballistic."

In the fourth episode “The Feminum Mystique”, viewers were introduced to a live-action version of Wonder Girl. Debra Winger played Drusilla, Wonder Woman’s younger sister. It was in this episode that we found out Diana’s bracelets were made of a mystical Amazon metal called “feminum.” Oy!

Although Debra Winger would later be an Oscar-nominated actress, she seemed very stiff and awkward next to Carter, showing once again that not just anyone can play a costumed hero and make it work. 

The series was kicking ass in terms of rating but for whatever reason, ABC wasn’t sure about a second season. Warner Bros. got tired of waiting and took the show to CBS, who said they’d do it but only if they could switch the show from a World War II period piece to the modern-day. The re-titled The New Adventures of Wonder Woman exchanged the theme song for a more instrumental version and completely dropped the tongue-in-cheek comic book style of the opening montage (and, indeed, the entire show). 

The first episode revealed that Wonder Woman had gone back to Paradise Island after World War II had ended and was now returning to Man’s World after a 35-year absence. Due to her Amazon nature, she hadn’t aged and once again she assumed the cover identity of Diana Prince, this time as an agent of the Inter-Agency Defense Command (IADC), a security force that dealt with fighting criminal syndicates and the occasional alien invader. The first few episodes of this series made references to the fact that Wonder Woman had been active in World War II, but otherwise this was a totally new show.

Diana’s costume was changed slightly to be “sexier” and now she was partnered not with Steve Trevor but with Steve Trevor, Jr., the son of her old World War II companion who was the spitting image of daddy (a flimsy excuse to have the character played by the same actor). Seems Steve, Sr. died when his plane crashed in the Bermuda Triangle (was he looking for Paradise Island or what?).

The show had an otherwise different supporting cast, such as Diana’s blonde cousin Evadne. And even though we still had a Steve Trevor, after a fashion, Diana didn’t work with him nearly as much in the new series. What’s more, CBS wanted to show off Lynda Carter’s looks as much as possible, so she no longer went out of her way to dress down and appear older and stuffier as Diana Prince. In fact, there was now very little disguise at all between her two alter egos. Yet despite the fact that Steve saw Diana Prince with her hair down and without glasses at times and often encountered her when she was wearing form-fitting outfits that showed she was the same physique as Wonder Woman, soldier-boy never realized the two people were one and the same. 

The first season had always had a sense of humor about things. Comic book captions saying “Meanwhile …” would be used as bridges between scenes and Diana often displayed a sometimes innocent wit about things. In the new CBS take, producers decided to take things more seriously. And so they replaced all the "silly" stuff with very down-to-earth stuff like robots, talking computers and special motorcycle bodysuits for Diana to wear (because you can't have bare legs and your hair flying when you're on a motorcycle, can you?!).

For the first several episodes, Diana, Steve and a colleague named Joe would receive their orders from an unseen character who spoke over the phone. But this was dropped when they realized it was too much like Charlie's Angels, I guess. This voice (which fans presumed was that of the President) was replaced with IRAC, a super-computer that gave Diana her orders and which had deduced her true identity.

To give Steve Trevor someone to interact with while Diana was off on missions, a secretary/assistant named Eve was introduced. And eventually, a tiny robot called Rover was added to the cast. Rover was comic relief, speaking in a high-pitched voice and using BEEP BEEP noises (borrowed from the cartoon Road Runner) as he sorted mail and got people coffee. Rover, along with the super-computer IRAC, was aware of Diana’s secret identity.

I have a strong suspicion that the folks at the studio basically saw an episode of Buck Rogers and decided “Okay, this show has a little robot. Star Wars has a robot. People like robots. We need a robot.”

Sadly, stunts like this, and some glaring errors in the show's own continuity, made some fans switch-off. In the third season, CBS tried to have the show more geared towards teenage audiences, as Diana dealt with issues such as the environment, the fun of roller coasters and what it really meant to be able to skateboard.  She also had a telepathic connection with animals now. Later on, Diana moved to L.A. and Steve Trevor was dropped from the show entirely. Right after this, the show was finally canceled. But it had a long-lasting effect on the minds and hearts of many fans.

And should a new Wonder Woman movie come about, I would hope that Lynda Carter would be allowed to come back as some cool role, maybe even to play Hyppolyta. I mean, have you seen her?! She’s aged beautifully! I also met her once and have to say she is a wonderful person. Diana was lucky to be trusted to such a lovely and talented woman. 

On the subject of the show's success and fame, Lynda Carter said, "I'd like to think I had something to do with it, but it's a phenomenon unto itself. And it's not too bad to be a sort of pop icon, you know? It's not too tough to handle."

         

Modest words from a very cool lady.

To continue the history of Wonder Woman within the comics, you may go to Part 2 which covers the "I-Ching Era" all the way up to The Crisis. You may also skip ahead to Part 3 which covers Diana Post-Crisis or Part 4 which covers Infinite Crisis and beyond.

Comments

[David Brumley]

I just discovered your work here, and I am enjoying it very much. I just finished reading your treatment of the Martian Manhunter, and I was very impressed with the time and effort you obviously spent on it.
I have not been as avid a follower of the DC universe as I was of the Marvel iteration, and I have been out of touch with both since the 80's, so work such as yours is very much welcomed.
Anyway, I want to express my appreciation for your work, and for the look back at the Wonder Woman TV series. Since it has been recently released on DVD, it has re-kindled my interest, as I well remember when it was first televised.
I was unclear on the plot change that moved the series from the World War 2 era to the present, and you have cleared that up for me.
I, as well, hope that a movie is in the making, as Wonder Woman is certainly an icon as much remembered and revered as Superman, Batman, or Spiderman.
Time will tell, I suppose, but in the meantime, thanks again for the enjoyable reading and trip back to the past!

[Alan Kistler]

Thanks for the comment, it's very appreciated. Glad I could clear things up.