Believe it or Not: Remembering the Theme from The Greatest American Hero

It was such a good song, I not only recorded it directly off TV, but it was one of the first singles I ever bought on a .45 record.

It was just like John Sebastien’s “Welcome Back” from “Welcome Back, Kotter” before it, and B.J. Thomas and Dusty Springfield’s “As Long as We’ve Got Each Other” from “Growing Pains” after it.

“Believe it or Not” by Joey Scarbury from “The Greatest American Hero” was much more than just a theme song from a TV show. It was a bonified chart success.

The song
The creators of “Believe it or Not” were a blend of experience and youth. The song was composed by Mike Post who was legendary in TV anthem circles for shows such as “The Rockford Files”, “The A-Team”, “Hill Street Blues”, “Magnum P.I.”, “L.A. Law”, “Quantum Leap”, and “NYPD Blue”.

It was sung by Joey Scarbury (although I heard it mis-pronounced often as Joey Scarborough), after he began working for Mike Post.

Together, they created an unforgettable song.

Chart success
“Believe it or Not” was recorded both as a full length single, which I bought on .45, and cut down to about a minute for television.

The song benefitted from the exposure the show gave it. “Believe it or Not” entered the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 countdown on June 13, 1981 and went all the way to number two for two weeks in August. It could just not displace from the number one spot that powerful ballad “Endless Love” by Lionel Richie and Diana Ross. It spent 18 weeks in the Top 40 and ended 1981 as the number 11 song of the year. It also hit number 1 on the US Cash Box Top 100 and number three on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart.

The time after
“Believe it or Not” would also be part of 1981's “America’s Greatest Hero”, Scarbury’s first and only studio released album. That album had some heavy hitters with songs written by Bruce Hornsby and Dan Seals.

Scarbury would team up with Mike Post again in 1984 to perform the song “Back to Back”. It was the theme song for part of the second season of the drama “Hardcastle and McCormack”, another Stephen J. Cannell Production. "Back to Back" had replaced “Drive”, which was the initial theme song for the first season. “Back to Back” was the theme song for the first 12 episodes of the second season but, because of fan backlash, “Drive” returned for the 13th episode, and remained through the second and all of the third and final season.

I have another odd memory. There was this comedy called “Jennifer Slept Here”, starring Ann Jillian as the ghost of an actress. I noticed Scarbury sang the theme song for that show as well, but that was the last I ever saw of him.

Personal memories
I loved “Believe it or Not” so much, I recorded the song off the TV, using this old tape recorder my brother left me, with the microphone it came with and a blank tape I bought at Radio Shack. I listened to it over and over to try and learn the words. The recording was not the best, so I actually taped it again off TV. It was better, but not the best. So, one Saturday when I went to Lethbridge with my parents, my Mom and I paid a visit to Anglo Stereo and Photo. It was the premiere music store in Lethbridge, with a massive selection in the basement. It was there I bought “Believe it or Not” on .45.

I took it home and used my Mom’s old record player to play that song over and over until I could sing along when “The Greatest American Hero” started.

Everyone at school knew I loved the song. We had a little dance in our classroom in Grade 7 or 8, when Mrs. Ober was our home room teacher for both years. Some of my classmates pushed aside all the desks and I heard my friend Tony Curtis call my name.

I looked up just as Tony started dancing, with his partner Michelle, to the sounds of – “Believe it or Not”.

Resurgence
What prompted my memories of “Believe it or Not” was hearing it in a commercial for State Farm insurance on TV. Earlier this year “Believe it or Not” was also in a Tide detergent commercial, which ran during the 2021 Super Bowl.

Parting thoughts
The other night I decided to watch one of my favourite episodes of “The Greatest American Hero” on demand. The minute I saw the space ship approaching Earth and “Believe it or Not” starting to play, I was taken back all those years ago. I could still sing along, because the words are still in my head.

Then an interesting thing happened. I couldn’t get the song out of my head the whole next day.

That just shows the power of that song.

It still remains one of my favourite all-time songs – believe it or not.

Taking off with The Greatest American Hero

Connie Sellecca, as Pam Davidson; William Katt as Ralph Hinkley, the Greatest American Hero; and Robert Culp as FBI Agent Bill Maxwell in "The Greatest American Hero".
Source: https://tvline.com/2017/09/08/the-greatest-american-hero-reboot-abc-female-pilot/
(May be subject to copyright)

Imagine you’re alone in the desert and your car stops working. Helpless, suddenly it sounds like your radio starts talking to you. Then, you see this blinding light that compels you to leave your car only to disover a space ship hovering over head.

Obviously aliens are making contact with you. However, these ones present you with a gift – a suit that gives you special powers.

What do you do? Try it on? Sure. Look for an instruction book to tell you what the suit does? Definitely.

How about losing the instruction book? Not a good idea.

That is exactly what high school teacher Ralph Hinkley did in the pilot of “The Greatest American Hero”.

It would go on to be my favourite show – when I could find it on the peasant vision dial.

Love at first sight
I saw the pilot of “The Greatest American Hero” on Channel 7 on the peasant vision dial, and it caught my attention immediately. It was the perfect combination of comic book super hero story with a touch of espionage. It was funny too. William Katt, who was relatively unknown at the time, played Ralph Hinkley who was summoned by aliens and given that suit. However, he was not alone. At the same time Ralph was in the desert, FBI agent Bill Maxwell, played by Robert Culp, had also been summoned, so he was there too when Ralph got the suit. They were compelled to work together, which often meant Ralph would help Bill with one of his cases. Some times something in Ralph’s life would command attention. Helping them along the way was Pam Davidson, a lawyer and Ralph’s eventual girlfriend then wife, who was played by Connie Sellecca. While they solved crimes, Ralph learned about his powers through trial and error. One he never mastered was flying. He was always out of control and the only way he landed was by crashing into something. It was always funny and it never got old.

“The Greatest American Hero” was a mid-season replacement in 1981, so the first season was only a handful of episodes – nine in total, but I loved it immediately.

Student body
Another part of the show that provided a lot of drama was Ralph’s students. There were two in particular who drew Ralph’s attention, Tony Villicana, who was kind of a hood, and Rhonda, who was kind of his girlfriend and the smartest student in class.

Tony was played by Michael Paré, who used “The Greatest American Hero” as a spring board for a number of roles. He would go on to feature in three theatrical movies – ; “Eddie and the Cruisers” in 1983; and “The Philadelphia Experiment” and “Streets of Fire” in 1984. He was back in 1986 in the police drama “Houston Knights”, playing a Chicago cop who has to re-locate to Houston.

Rhonda was played by Faye Grant who also used “The Greatest American Hero” as a springboard. In her case, she had one of the main roles on the chilling science fiction mini-series “V” where she played a scientist suspicious the visiting aliens are not as innocent as they appear. She reprised that role in the successful sequel “V: The Final Battle”, and the subsequent show “V: The Series”.

What’s in a name?
It was one of the strangest things. I was visiting my sister in Lethbridge when an episode of “The Greatest American Hero” was on. From the word go, something was off. One of the students referred to Ralph as “Mr. Hanley”. That was not right, I said, it was Hinkley. My sister was not sure, because she was not into the show as much as I was. Then, as if to accentuate the point, Ralph gets a new office and they show his name, “Ralph Hanley”, stencilled on the door.

Ralph’s name did return to Hinkley for the season two premiere, about Ralph playing professional baseball, which I also watched at my sister’s. Yet the whole thing always puzzled me until just a few years ago.

I learned that, while the show was in production, John Hinkley Junior tried to assassinate U.S. President Ronald Reagan. The producers thought it best to not draw attention to the would-be assassin, so they changed their main character’s name from Hinkley to Hanley.

I wasn’t seeing things or mis-remembering after all.

Memorable moments
There were several episodes that really stuck out for me. The most memorable centred on J.J. Beck, a wealthy man who is dying. He has Ralph and Bill kidnapped to help him recover his will. Beck plans to leave everything to charity. The will was stolen so it could be destroyed and his estate taken. Beck seems to know a fair bit about the suit too. Along with him, Ralph and Bill meet Marshall Dunn, another man who knows way too much about the suit. It turns out, the aliens had been to Earth before and gave a suit to Beck, while Dunn became his partner. Essentially, they were the original Ralph and Bill. However, instead of using the suit for good, Beck used it to become rich and famous. The aliens eventually came back and took the suit away. In the end of this episode, the aliens return and take the two old men away with them.

There was also an episode where Ralph goes undercover as a pitcher for the fictitious California Stars baseball team, to do battle with the equally fictitious Oakland Mets. There's another episode where Ralph goes undercover to play pro quarterback. He is there to help his boyhood friend Price Cobb (who Ralph called “Pridey”). Cobb was played by Stephen Shortridge, who was best known at that time for his role as Beau in "Welcome Back Kotter". Cobb is being pressured to shave points and throw an important game, but Ralph intervenes.

There was another one that I started to watch, but we had a power outage and I never did see it. In this episode, the aliens returned to give Ralph and Bill another instruction book. I was curious to see what happened, namely if he would lose the instructions again. The next morning on the school bus, one of my buddies tried to explain what happened in the rest of the episode, but it sounded too weird, I didn't believe him. I have the entire season available on-demand, so maybe I will eventually get to see it.

In production
Another aspect of “The Greatest American Hero” was the end credits. It was a “Stephen J. Cannell Production”. It was the first show that used that credit.

Cannell was one of my heroes, a television writer I tried and aspired to be like, and it all started with “The Greatest American Hero”. I just liked the way he wrote, and I connected with the premises for his TV shows. Some of his more popular shows were “The A-Team”; “Hardcastle and McCormack”; “Riptide”; and “Hunter”. I dreamed of having a company like his that put out the shows I wanted to write.

Where is it?
Peasant vision could be so frustrating. Shows would not air when they said they were in “TV Guide”, or would be moved around. They also changed channels. “The Greatest American Hero” was on Channel 7 in its first year, but moved to Channel 13 in its second year and beyond. Then it was gone.

Fate of the show
I was not sure if it had been cancelled, or Channel 13 just stopped airing it.

One afternoon, when I was home from school, William Katt appeared on daytime TV, “The Alan Hamel Show” I think. They mentioned that his show was on hold. It had not been cancelled, but it hadn’t been renewed either. Back then, there weren’t as many entertainment shows and magazines talking about cancellations and renewals either.

I finally found out the fate of "The Greatest American Hero" in an odd way. I was reading the fall preview issue of “TV Guide”. There I saw Connie Sellecca co-starring in a new show called “Hotel”. Well, obviously she wasn’t going to be on two shows.

That meant disaster had struck.

“The Greatest American Hero” had been cancelled.

The years after

Mother and son

William Katt will be best known as Ralph Hinkley, but he had a special role after "The Greatest American Hero". He was the son of Barbara Hale, an actor who would actually play Ralph's mom in "The Greatest American Hero". However, she was best known for her role as Della Street, Perry Mason's secretary in the television legal drama of the same name. In 1985, NBC began airing Perry Mason television movies. The other regular on the original show was a private investigator Perry used named Paul Drake. The actor had died before the remakes, so William Katt played Paul Drake Junior in nine TV movies. Son was reunited with mother.

Not a suit but a shirt

The first time I saw it, I wasn't sure I believed what I was seeing. It was an episode of "The Big Bang Theory" and uber-science fiction nerd Sheldon Cooper regularly wore t-shirts with comic graphics on them. On this day, it was the symbol from Ralph's suit on "The Greatest American Hero". Wikipedia confirmed for me that in fact was the case. It was a nice touch.

Parting thoughts
I was surprised to learn that only 43 episodes of “The Greatest American Hero” were made over three seasons, from 1981 to 1983. That makes sense with the first season being a mid-season replacement and the last season put on hold after nine episodes.

In that short a time, it had quite an effect on me. It just had something that connected with me. Maybe it was Ralph’s idealism and the desire to use the suit for good, or Bill’s cynicism but still doing the right thing.

I do believe it was the combination of super hero story, espionage, and comedy. The show didn’t take itself too seriously at times, but at other times it really did. People were killed and in danger. The stakes were high, and Ralph and Bill did have to save the world.

My only wish is that it could have been given more time to explore more stories. But maybe that would have just made it run out of steam.

We’ll never know.



What I do know was that for a 12-year-old kid in 1982 it was must-see viewing – when I could find it.

The Thorn Birds: Remembering the miniseries

Rachel Ward and Richard Chamberlain in "The Thorn Birds".
Source: http://bookorbigscreen.blogspot.com/2011/10/one-superlative-song-existence-price.html
(May be subject to copyright)

It was one of the most watched television events of the 1980s, and a symbol of one of those things we have lost – the epic television miniseries.

For four nights, record numbers of viewers faithfully tuned in to see if a priest played by Richard Chamberlain, would bow to carnal desire and finally get together with Meggie Cleary, played by newcomer Rachel Ward.

“The Thorn Birds” was one of the most memorable miniseries of the 1980s.

The story
Chamberlain plays Father Ralph de Bricassart, an ambitious young Catholic priest, who is posted to a small community in Australia. He gets the attention of Mary Carson, a local matriarch, who tries desperately to tempt him to break his vows, but never succeeds. Ralph curries her favour in the hopes she will make a sizeable contribution to the Catholic Church and further his own ambition. Meanwhile, over time, he grows closer to young Meggie Cleary who grows into an attractive woman.

When Mary Carson dies, it is discovered she has left the bulk of her estate to the church and made Ralph the executor. That forces him to choose between ambition and staying close to Meggie. It was a master manipulation from the grave by a jealous Mary Carson. Ralph chose to pursue his ambition.

The remainder of the miniseries focuses on what becomes of Ralph and Meggie. He goes off to Rome and progresses all the way to the position of cardinal. Meggie will marry Luke O”Neill, a farm worker who does not fulfill Meggie, and eventually she will leave him. Inevitably, Ralph and Meggie will cross paths from time to time resulting in no end of drama.

It was a riveting story.

The mini-series
One of the hallmarks of television in the 1980s was the mini-series.

It all really started in the 1970s with “Roots”, which became the most watched mini-series of all time. “The Thorn Birds” would be number two.

It was so successful that I did not watch it when it first aired in March of 1983. Instead, my mom told me all about it. “The Thorn Birds” was so popular, I watched it when it was rerun in January of 1985. Because it was so dense with detail, my mom’s explanation was not a spoiler at all. It just whet my appetite.

Richard Chamberlain, who played Ralph de Bricassart, became a mini-series legend. He started in a miniseries called “Centennial” in 1978 then really hit it big with “Shogun” in 1980. That mini-series, set in feudal Japan and based on the James Clavell novel, was a real television event.

There would be many more – “Rich Man, Poor Man”; “The Blue and the Gray”; “North and South”; “Masada”; “Winds of War”; “War and Remembrance”; “Marco Polo”; “Space”; “Master of the Game”; and so many more.

It was such a big part of television viewing back then. The mini-series allowed producers to tell longer stories than could fit in a two-hour made-for-TV movie, yet were not meant to be series television.

It was the epitome of appointment viewing, because everybody tuned into whatever minis-series it was, and it was all the talk at school the next day.

Parting thoughts
This was another idea that sat at the bottom of my blog’s closet for a long time. I initially wrote it down when I heard Colleen McCullough, who wrote the book “The Thorn Birds”, passed away in 2015.

It brought back some interesting memories. “The Thorn Birds” cemented Richard Chamberlain’s place as a mini-series star, while it launched the careers of Rachel Ward, who played Meggie, and Bryan Brown, who played Luke. Interestingly, Ward and Brown met on the set of “The Thorn Birds”, fell in love and got married. They are together to this day.

“The Thorn Birds” would go on to be nominated for 11 Primetime Emmy awards, winning for outstanding achievement in makeup; outstanding art direction for a mini-series or movie; outstanding film editing for a mini-series or movie; outstanding lead actress in a mini-series or movie for Barbara Stanwyck who played Mary Carson; outstanding supporting actor in a mini-series or movie for Richard Kiley; and outstanding supporting actress in a mini-series or movie for Jean Simmons. Chamberlain was nominated for outstanding lead actor; Brown and Christopher Plummer were nominated for outstanding supporting actor; Piper Laurie was nominated for outstanding supporting actress; and “The Thorn Birds” was nominated for outstanding mini-series or movie.

What I will always remember was how much my Mom loved “The Thorn Birds” the first time she saw it, and told me all about it. I really don’t know why I didn’t watch it that first time in 1983.

I did not make that mistake twice when it re-aired in 1985.

Sitting there beside me all four nights to watch it again, was my Mom, and she loved it just as much the second time around.

I could see why.

Richard Kiel: Much more than a giant

Richard Kiel as Samson in "The Longest Yard".
Source: https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/215258057167832167/
(May be subject to copyright)

He could have just been another giant on screen – a one dimensional oaf, a goon, a barbarian.

Instead, Richard Kiel represented his size well, playing multi-dimensional giants. Sometimes he was terrifying, sometimes he played his part for laughs, and sometimes he was just plain endearing.

In the two parts I remember best, he was a hulking inmate who was part killer and part softie in “The Longest Yard”, and a villain who turned good and loving in two James Bond movies.

Along the way he also dabbled in some television in the 1980s.

I was sad to hear Richard Kiel passed away a few years ago, and I had been meaning to explore his career a little closer.

His name lurked near the bottom of a list of ideas in a dusty old folder on my computer’s desktop, but now it is seeing the light day.

Early roles
Richard Kiel was seven feet two inches tall, the result of too much growth hormone growing up. He would break into acting in the 1960s and often play the bad guy in everything from “The Wild, Wild West” and “The Man from U*N*C*L*E” to “Gilligan’s Island” and “The Monkees”.

Richard Kiel as a Kanamit in "To Serve Man",
one of my favourite episodes of "The Twilight Zone".
Source: http://martingrams.blogspot.com/
2013/03/the-twilight-zone-to-serve-man.html
(May be subject to copyright)

“To Serve Man”
He also had a role in perhaps my favourite episode of the original “Twilight Zone", which I did see in the 1980s.

Kiel played a Kanamit, a member of a towering alien species who have come to Earth in friendship. They eradicate the world’s problems and appear to be a dream come true. One day, the Kanamit leaves a book at a press conference, and American linguists work to decipher it. They start with the title, “To Serve Man”. That puts everyone at ease, because that means they are there to help – to serve. Meanwhile, the story really revolves around one man, played by Canadian actor Lloyd Bochner. As the episode progresses, he becomes more comfortable with the Kanamits and decides to take them up on their offer of a trip to their home world. As he starts to board the departing ship, his friend comes running up, yelling the rest of the book has been deciphered.

“It’s a cook book!” she yelled, but it was too late for him to escape.

It was awesome.

I saw that episode as part of one of the “Twilight Zone” marathons Channel 7 played one weekend when I was in junior high. I was hanging out at my sister’s place in Lethbridge on a Saturday afternoon when I saw it.

Interestingly, in the 2019 re-boot, the Kanamits make another appearance and hint at still dining on humans when they decide to order out and get some “extra crispy”. It is unfortunate Richard Kiel died before that and could not complete that circle.

Life on the gridiron
Perhaps the first role I saw Richard Kiel in was as “Samson” in “The Longest Yard” where he played this towering inmate. When Paul Crewe, played by Burt Reynolds, goes to see him about playing on his football team, Samson is lifting 400-pound barbells with ease and says he was Mr. Florida 1964. He does not seem too eager to play football. Then Crewe tells him they are playing the guards. Samson smiles, says he would like that, and is looking forward to it. Then he returns to lifting 400 pounds like it was nothing.

We see his softer side in practice one day when he is slugged by Shockner, the meanest of the prisoners. Samson laments he broke his nose and Shockner did it in purpose. Crewe soothes him, saying he didn’t. Not only does he reset Samson’s nose, but he gets Shockner to apologize. Samson is just ecstatic like a little kid, telling everyone Shockner said he was sorry.

Then, during the big game, Samson is playing defence and gets a dirty hit from a guard. He vows to clothesline that son of a b—ch if he comes through the middle again. Sure enough he does, and Samson clotheslines him. Samson stands over him and exclaims joyously, “Hey, I think I broke his f—king neck!”. The medic comes over and says, “I think he broke his f—king neck!”

“I told you I broke his f—king neck!” Samson responds, and the whole defence mobs him with delight.

Even the public address announcer gets into the action.

“I think he broke his f—king neck!” he says over the loud speakers.

It was awesome.

Richard Kiel as Jaws in two James Bond films.
Source: https://variety.com/2014/film/news/
james-bond-villain-richard-kiel-dies-at-74-1201303251/
(May be subject to copyright)

Man with the steel teeth
Richard Kiel would turn his heads in the James Bond espionage thriller “The Spy Who Loved Me” in 1977, as a gigantic assasin with steel teeth named Jaws. He easily kills his victims with a combination of strength and those teeth, yet Bond eludes him. The time I remember best, is when Jaws has Bond in a death grip and the only way the spy can escape is by breaking a lamp and shocking Jaws in the teeth to release his grip. Jaws also survives everything and just keeps coming, and is seen to survive at the end of the movie.

He returns in 1979 in “Moonraker”, once again employed by a villain Bond has to battle. This time around, Jaws finds a girlfriend that softens his temperament. He turns against his employer, and helps Bond. The last time we see him is in space, being left behind with the love of his life. We discover they did make it back to Earth safely.

He had become a good guy, and it was awesome.

Hulking out – almost
Something I just recently discovered was that Richard Kiel was one of the actors tapped to try out for the role of the Hulk in the television series “The Incredible Hulk”. It was 1977, and Arnold Schwarzenegger was also considered for the part. Kiel made it to the pilot stage, but the producers realized they wanted someone more muscular, and not so tall, and Kiel so replaced by body-building champion Lou Ferrigno.

The 1980s and beyond
Richard Kiel didn’t have a lot of parts in the 1980s, but he did make guest appearances on TV in both “The Fall Guy” and “Simon and Simon”, as well as roles in movies such as “Cannonball Run II” and “Pale Rider”.

Richard Kiel kept working on television, films, most notably “Happy Gilmore” and “Inspector Gadget”, and in video games as Jaws, until 2012. He died in 2014 at the age of 74.

Parting thoughts
Richard Kiel had a productive and fruitful acting career, playing a wide variety of roles.

At a time when he could have so easily been typecast as a villainous giant, or a lovable oaf, he gave a humanity and sense of humour to roles that could have been one dimensional.

That made him much more than a giant.