Wonder Woman TV Actresses Through the Years
Lynda Carter Wasn't Only Actress to Play TV Wonder Woman
Here are the actresses who've brought the mythic comic book figure to vibrant life on the small screen.
Ellie Wood Walker
Adam West playing "Batman" in William Dozier's hit 1960's TV show, prompted the producer to go for a similar treatment of the Amazonian herself, Wonder Woman. The campy project never did get off the ground, and when one sees a sample of the absolute tackiness of the attempt, it's no wonder. For the truly brave of heart, a quick perusal on YouTube will showcase this filmed embarrassment pilot test. Actress Ellie Wood Walker plays a nerdy Diana Prince, who still lives at home with dear old mom. She's not only terminally clumsy to the point of klutzy embarrassment, but appears more than a bit psychologically afflicted with a severe Narcissus complex.
Cathy Lee Crosby
Perhaps best known to TV audiences as one of the co-hosts of the hit reality TV show, "That's Incredible", Cathy Lee Crosby managed some incredible stunts as the first fledged television Wonder Woman. The TV movie she starred in did more than respectable ratings for ABC, but the network felt that going in the updated manner of Crosby's Wonder Woman was a mistake. Most diehard fans dismiss the flick as too diluted of the traditional Wonder Woman mythos, however there's a decent fun factor to the whole affair, and Ricardo Montalban plays a suave villain with a crush on Wonder Woman.
Lynda Carter
Much like actor Christopher Reeve, who literally became Superman for a generation, and many more to follow, Lynda Carter fit the public's perception of the mythic Amazon so well, it's going to be a hard battle for any actress to do her better. Carter's pilot film aired in November of 1975, and it was a hit on ABC. The network ordered a few more episodes, and then a full order for a full first season. Despite some changes made to the TV version from the comic book, the show tried to be faithful to the comic roots.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074074/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izz4OdHxyJo
Published by Will Stape
Will is an Emmy Award nominated screenwriter. He also writes extensively for magazines and the web. Will penned episodes for the TV shows, Star Trek: The Next Generation & Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.... View profile
5 Comments
Post a CommentFirst, good article, second Carter was the best and I'm not too happy with the new actress they hired for the part. That's just me.
Lynda Carter is the image we think of as Wonder Woman.
I'm a forever Lynda Carter fan. No one will top her beauty, grace, and embodyment of the great Wonder Women figure. I saw the new chick... I'm not going to watch the show.
OMGoodness, I forgot about Cathy Lee Crosby ... gotta agree with Charlotte, she was horrible.
I remember Cathy Lee Crosby. She was horrible as Wonder Woman. Lynda Carter, on the other hand was perfect. It will be interesting to see what the new girl can do although I'm a little peeved that they took the patriotic look out of her costume.