Feedback Friday -- Tween Edition
Long before Buffy and Xena, during the Dark Ages of the 1970s, young girls in need of a TV heroine had Jaime Sommers, The Bionic Woman. Excuse me, myrebelcat won't shut up about the oft overlooked feminist icon Daisy Duke (who according to Rebel could shoot a gun, fix a transmission and run in high heels). So, let's begin again. . .
In the 70s, my kick ass heroine of choice was the Bionic Woman with her very cool Bionic Dog (Daisy Duke didn't have one of those). While Jaime Sommers did teach me the value of intimidating students by tearing telephone books in half, the character who had the most profound impact on me was Jaime's boss, Oscar Goldman, played by the talented character actor Richard Anderson. Hey, I warned you back in January that I have a weakness for older men.
Watch out for the fembots, Oscar!
Oscar Goldman was the head of the Office of Scientific Intelligence, a government agency who was in charge of turning men, women and the occasional German Shepherd into cyborgs. His job was to mediate between high maintenance bionic agents and equally high maintenance scientists and government officials, fend off evil fembots, and be the cranky voice of sanity. Nice work if you can get it, except for the standing order to Kill Oscar if he was captured.
Oscar was a childhood hero, and here is my long overdue feedback to the man who brought him to life:
Dear Mr. Anderson,
From the ages of nine through twelve, I had no positive male role models in my life. So, I turned to TV, where your portrayal of Oscar Goldman in The Bionic Woman provided me with an example of a male authority figure who balanced his power with compassion and a sense of humour. Your performance provided me with much needed perspective at a time when I was surrounded by unpredictable autocrats.
Over the years, I have also enjoyed your many guest appearances on a wide variety of shows from The Man from U.N.C.L.E. to Simon & Simon. Even when you play the villain, you still sound like the voice of reason to me.
I have enclosed a SASE, as I would appreciate an autographed photo. No pressure, though. What's important is that I'm finally thanking you for the positive impact your work as an actor had on my life.
Wishing you all the best,
In the 70s, my kick ass heroine of choice was the Bionic Woman with her very cool Bionic Dog (Daisy Duke didn't have one of those). While Jaime Sommers did teach me the value of intimidating students by tearing telephone books in half, the character who had the most profound impact on me was Jaime's boss, Oscar Goldman, played by the talented character actor Richard Anderson. Hey, I warned you back in January that I have a weakness for older men.
Watch out for the fembots, Oscar!
Oscar Goldman was the head of the Office of Scientific Intelligence, a government agency who was in charge of turning men, women and the occasional German Shepherd into cyborgs. His job was to mediate between high maintenance bionic agents and equally high maintenance scientists and government officials, fend off evil fembots, and be the cranky voice of sanity. Nice work if you can get it, except for the standing order to Kill Oscar if he was captured.
Oscar was a childhood hero, and here is my long overdue feedback to the man who brought him to life:
Dear Mr. Anderson,
From the ages of nine through twelve, I had no positive male role models in my life. So, I turned to TV, where your portrayal of Oscar Goldman in The Bionic Woman provided me with an example of a male authority figure who balanced his power with compassion and a sense of humour. Your performance provided me with much needed perspective at a time when I was surrounded by unpredictable autocrats.
Over the years, I have also enjoyed your many guest appearances on a wide variety of shows from The Man from U.N.C.L.E. to Simon & Simon. Even when you play the villain, you still sound like the voice of reason to me.
I have enclosed a SASE, as I would appreciate an autographed photo. No pressure, though. What's important is that I'm finally thanking you for the positive impact your work as an actor had on my life.
Wishing you all the best,