Information AboutMacgyver |
''MacGyver'' is an , extremely resourceful Secret Agent , played by Richard Dean Anderson . The series was created by Lee David Zlotoff and executive produced by Henry Winkler and John Rich. It ran for seven seasons from September 29 1985 to May 21 1992 on the ABC network and filmed primarily in Vancouver , British Columbia , Canada . Of the 139 one-hour episodes, three had two parts. Additionally, two made-for-TV movies were produced in 1994. Angus MacGyver's main asset is his practical application of scientific knowledge and inventive use of common items—along with his ever-present Swiss Army Knife and Duct Tape and the usual coincidence of being locked up in a room full of useful materials. The clever solutions MacGyver implemented to seemingly intractable problems—often in life-or-death situations requiring him to improvise complex devices in a matter of minutes—were a major attraction of the show, which was praised for generating interest in engineering1 as well as providing entertaining storylines. All of MacGyver's exploits on the show were ostensibly vetted to be based on real scientific principles (even though, the creators acknowledged, in real life one would have to be extraordinarily lucky for most of MacGyver's ideas to succeed). In the few cases where MacGyver used household chemicals to create Poison s, Explosive s or other things deemed too dangerous to be accurately described on television, details were intentionally altered or vague. The use of ordinary household items to Jury Rig devices shows an influence from '' The A-Team '' (though MacGyver eschewed firearms). The idea has entered U.S. Popular Culture ; such constructions are referred to as " MacGyverisms " (a term first used in episode 3 of season 2, "Twice Stung"). CHARACTERS as MacGyver]] Angus MacGyver is a highly intelligent, optimistic Action Hero who prefers non-violent conflict resolution wherever possible. He refuses to carry or use a gun due to a childhood accident with a Revolver that resulted in the death of a friend. This was shown in episode two of Season 4 (Blood Brothers) when MacGyver goes back to his home town and meets two childhood friends and in flashbacks we see the accidental death of friend Jesse by a bullet from a falling gun. In the first episode " Pilot ," MacGyver fires an AK-47 at some Russian soldiers. This episode was before his dislike of firearms was established. The character is portrayed as an outspoken advocate of Gun Control , and is also politically liberal in other respects; environmental preservation, racial equality, assisting the poor. Even in cases where his improvised devices are used to attack hostile opponents, he is always doing so in self-defense and, if possible, subduing or disabling rather than killing. He is often suspicious of militaristic attitudes within the government; he sees his ''Phoenix Foundation'' employer as an alternative to the more conventional (and violent) means of law enforcement. He was born and raised in himself was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on January 23 1950 .) MacGyver lived his childhood in Mission City. Like Anderson, MacGyver was an avid Hockey player as a child, and competed in his local hockey league, continuing to play the game as an adult. He graduated from Alexander Ramsey High School in Roseville, Minnesota . His character earned a degree in physics from the fictitious ''Western Tech'' where in 1973 a mustachioed MacGyver had studied under Julian Ryman, a man who also had an ability to fix things with everyday objects and was probably influential on MacGyver. This was revealed in the episode "Hell Week" where MacGyver returns to his college and ends up helping Ryman's son, David. MacGyver's interests include Mountain Climbing , Ice Hockey and Baccarat . MacGyver's first name remained a mystery until the final season; whenever he's asked about it, he says he dislikes his first name and changes the subject. Consequently, most of his friends and colleagues call him by his last name or simply "Mac." The Script for the series Pilot gave MacGyver's first name as "Stace", but this information, while mentioned in promotional material, did not appear in the finished episode. His first name is finally officially revealed in " Good Knight, MacGyver ", in which he learns of a 7th Century Scottish ancestor, Angus M'Iver, and admits that they share their first name; and repeated in the series finale, which introduces MacGyver's son, whose middle name is Angus. It is also revealed on the boxes of the MacGyver seasons. During seasons 4–7, the show revolved more around social issues such as guns and runaway teens than did the episodes in seasons 1–3, which were mostly about MacGyver's adventures working for the United States government, and then later the Phoenix Foundation. The most appealing aspect is that MacGyver, when being challenged to protect himself or a person who needs protection (a persecuted man, woman, or child), is a man "who never gives up", and "when plan A doesn't succeed", then he will think about "plan B". There are only a few episodes in which he was forced to think about a "plan B". Recurring characters ;Pete Thornton ( Dana Elcar ) :MacGyver's boss and best friend, Pete is an operative at the ''Department of External Services'' (DXS), also referred to mistakenly as DSX in several episodes, which is where he is impressed by Mac's ingenuity while tracking down Murdoc, an international assassin. When Pete takes the position of Director of Operations at the ''Phoenix Foundation'' seven years later, he brings MacGyver into the program. :Pete has a son named Michael. :In the episode "Pilot", actor Dana Elcar plays a completely different character named "Andy Colson". The Pete Thornton character doesn't appear until episode 1.11, "Nightmares". :Elcar appears in the Dream Sequence / Time Travel episode "Good Knight, MacGyver" as King Arthur ; whether this is because Pete is one of Arthur's distant descendants or because Mac subconsciously based his Hallucination of Arthur on him is uncertain. :In 1991, actor Dana Elcar began to develop Glaucoma , a degenerative condition of the eyes that causes Blindness . This condition was written into the show, and Elcar's character also develops the disease. A number of Public Service Announcement s were composed and shown at the end of many of the later episodes, encouraging viewers to get checked early and often for the condition. :Elcar died on 6 June 2005 at the Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura, California due to complications from pneumonia. He was 77. He is survived by his son, Dane Elcar, his three daughters, a stepdaughter (former soap opera actress and current writer Emily Prager), his sister, his half-sister, and his long-time partner, Thelma M. Garcia. ;Jack Dalton ( Bruce McGill ) :An aviator and old friend of MacGyver's with a weakness for Get-rich-quick Scheme s that invariably get him (and usually Mac) into trouble. He always wears a peaked cap and twitches his left eye when lying. :His phone number is given as JOATMON or 562-8666 (jack of all trades, master of none). ;Murdoc ( Michael Des Barres ) :MacGyver's most frequent opponent, a master assassin who never fails—except when MacGyver gets involved. Murdoc is a master of disguise, as well as highly skilled and creative in the use of Booby Trap s. He is also very fond of heavy weapons, including flamethrowers, bazookas, and dynamite. Murdoc's signature for each hit is to take photographs of his victims at the moment of their deaths. His first appearance in the series is presented as his second run-in with MacGyver. Murdoc returns for revenge for their first encounter—to the surprise of MacGyver, as Murdoc had apparently been killed while escaping on that occasion. Murdoc's revenge scheme not only fails, but results in him apparently being killed again. This became a recurring theme: each of Murdoc's subsequent appearances ends in another "death", which he incredibly survives, to return in a later episode. :Murdoc always screams ''"MACGYVER!"'' at the moment of his "death" except in the episode "Halloween Knights", where he and MacGyver act as allies. Murdoc has been in a total of nine near death acccidents, all of which he survived. :Murdoc is associated with the ''Homicide International Trust'' (HIT), an organization of assassins, until he is excommunicated for his repeated failures at MacGyver's hands. ;Penny Parker ( Teri Hatcher ) :Penny Parker and MacGyver meet in line at an airport in Bulgaria ("Every Time She Smiles") when she tries to smuggle some jewels out of the country in his pocket. With little talent, but big dreams, her pursuit of a show business career gets her into trouble more than once; she is sometimes used by Murdoc as an unwitting pawn in his attempts to eliminate MacGyver. ;The Coltons ( Della Reese , Cleavon Little , Richard Lawson , Cuba Gooding Jr. ) :A family of Bounty Hunter s (Mama Colton, Frank, Jesse and Billy), introduced one at a time—the only episode in which more than one appears is their collective final appearance in the final season, on which occasion they took over the episode entirely, relegating MacGyver to a Cameo Appearance . This episode, called "The Coltons", was actually intended as a pilot for a spin-off starring the Coltons, but nothing ever came of it. ;Harry Jackson ( John Anderson ) :Harry Jackson, MacGyver's grandfather, became MacGyver's "father" after his grandmother and real father were killed in a car accident. Seven years later, he left MacGyver. After another eighteen years (stated by MacGyver as "it's been six..seven...eighteen years"), Harry and MacGyver meet again in the season one episode, "Target MacGyver", in which MacGyver and his grandfather work together to defeat an assassin named Axminster (played by D'Mitch Davis). Harry dies of a heart attack in the fifth season episode "Passages". ;Nikki Carpenter ( Elyssa Davalos ) :Nikki Carpenter joins the Phoenix Foundation in the Third Season . She often has differences of opinion with MacGyver, although the two eventually come to respect each other as professionals. ;Mei Jan ( Michele Chan ) :Initially calling herself Sue Ling, the name of MacGyver's foster daughter, Mei Jan enlists MacGyver's help in completing her mission for the Chinese student movement. ;Wilt and Milt Bozer ( Robin Mossley , Robert Donner ) :Wilt Bozer is MacGyver's neighbor at the marina. (Note: Wilt Bozer also appears in MacGyver's two Western dreams in "Serenity" and "MacGyver's Women", where he has a brother named Milt. Milt only appears in the Western dream sequences and is not mentioned in the show's regular continuity.) ;Sean Angus Malloy ( Dalton James ) :Sean, known as Sam, is introduced in the series finale as MacGyver's son with a past love named Kate Malloy. Sean's middle name is a dedication by his mother to his father. ;Cynthia Wilson ( Roxanne Reese ) :Introduced with her husband Booker ( Michael D. Roberts ) in "The Challenge" (which also had Cuba Gooding, Jr. as a guest star), Cynthia runs the Challenger's Club, a program for troubled inner-city teens. In episodes where Mac tries to help runaways or other youths, he invariably sends them to the Challenger's Club as a safe haven. ;Lisa Woodman ( Mayim Bialik ) :She is a young girl who MacGyver originally meets at a Swiss boarding school, where she accidentally loses his trusty Swiss Army knife. She later returns and Mac helps her overcome a substance abuse problem. ;Mama Lorraine ( Kimberly Scott ) :She appears in only the final season of MacGyver. Mama Lorraine is a voodoo priestess. She appears in episodes "The 'Hood", "The Prometheus Syndrome" and "Walking Dead". INFLUENCE ON CULTURE MacGyverisms ''For a list of MacGyverisms, see List Of Problems Solved By MacGyver '' The spontaneous inventions have come to be nicknamed ''MacGyverisms'' and even led to the verb, 'to MacGyver' or 'to MacGyver-ize'. This word was used in Richard Dean Anderson's project '' Stargate SG-1 '', in a breaking of the 4th wall moment in the first episode, when the character Samantha Carter (portrayed by Amanda Tapping ) comments on the time and effort that had been required "to MacGyver" a replacement for the Stargate 's long-lost Control System . Anderson's character, Colonel O'Neill, is seen to inwardly groan and raise his eyes, in the manner of one who is not being allowed to forget something. In an outtake from another SG-1 episode, Tapping becomes 'upset' with Anderson over their characters' current predicament (being trapped under Antarctica), saying "For God's sake, I'm stuck in here with MacGyver! Here, I have a straw and some bubble gum, now make me a nuclear reactor!" Her remarks prompted laughter on the part of the crew, and apparent shock and disbelief on the part of Anderson. However, "MacGyverism" was used long before that, in a ''MacGyver'' episode. It was used by Joanne Remmings (played by Pamela Bowen ) in the second-season episode #3 "Twice Stung", in which MacGyver must con a con man. (The episode title is a reference to '' The Sting '', with Paul Newman , Robert Redford , and Dana Elcar .) ''MacGyverism'' is a derivative of the " Robinsonade " genre, named after '' Robinson Crusoe '' (1719). In this genre, the protagonist is suddenly isolated from the comforts of civilization and must improvise the means of his survival from the limited resources at hand. MacGyverism is also an example of Bricolage , and MacGyver himself is the paradigm of a Bricoleur ("a person who creates things from existing materials, is creative and resourceful"). In July 2005, the American International Press released a book of MacGyverisms from the television show, called 'The Unofficial MacGyver How-to Handbook' by Bret Terrill and Greg Dierkers. A Swiss Army Knife is commonly called "Macgybar Chakku" in Bangladesh , "Maekgaibeo Kal" in South Korea , and "Pisau MacGyver/Pisau Lipat MacGyver" in Indonesia and Malaysia . (''Chakku'', ''Kal'' and ''Pisau'' mean ''knife'' in Bengali, Korean and Malay, respectively.) In Malaysia, the term "MacGyver knife" (English) is also commonly used. In Norway and in certain areas of Finland , duct tape is commonly known, to some degree, as "MacGyver-tape", though it is more used in a joking manner. In Mozambique , fixing something by adapting locally-available parts is sometimes referred to as doing a "Macgyver". In Taiwan , a person who is knowledgable or skilled at a technical subject X is termed an "X magaixian" ("X MacGyver"). In the media As Of 2005 , MacGyver is the subject of a Hoax Presidential Campaign , as a Spin-off of a similar and popular hoax concerning actor Christopher Walken . The campaign started at the website MacGyver 2008 . MacGyver is referenced in the First Episode of the show Stargate SG-1 in which Capt. Carter explains the difference between the DHD on Abydos and the DHD on Earth. In 2006, Anderson appeared in a , uses an ordinary Tube Sock as the Pulley for a Zipline , and somehow repairs and Hotwire s a nonfunctional Truck using a Paper Clip , Ballpoint Pen , Rubber Band , Tweezers , Nasal Spray and a Turkey Baster . In contrast to previous MasterCard commercials showing people making somewhat extravagant purchases to accomplish some mundane task, MacGyver is here portrayed as escaping from some sort of deathtrap using less than $20 worth of common household items. The commercial ends by showing him purposefully buying an assortment of such things at a department store with his credit card (as a tongue-in-cheek explanation for how Mac seems to always have items he needs on hand no matter where he goes). It should be noted that although the commercial clearly indicates Anderson is portraying the role of MacGyver, he is never explicitly identified as such, possibly due to licensing issues related to the character. The series is referenced in many episodes of '' The Simpsons '', primarily detailing Marge Simpson 's sisters Patty and Selma 's obsession with the show and their Crush on the MacGyver character. The sisters' regular viewing of the show is an unalterable element of their daily schedule to the point of death as demonstrated in the episode " Black Widower ". Anderson himself is an avid fan of ''The Simpsons'', and even provided his voice for an episode of the show titled " Kiss Kiss, Bang Bangalore ", which first aired April 6 2006 . In the season one episode titled "" from '' Family Guy '', Peter writes a letter to Richard Dean Anderson asking him to save his dog using the enclosed items from the envelope: a rubber band, a paper clip and a straw. Anderson puts these together and hits himself in the eye with the rubber band. The New Zealand sporting skit show ' Pulp Sport ' had a running gag called 'McIvor' in which the MacGyver theme is played, and a prank involving Sky TV sports presenter Steven McIvor is played out. This gag, instead, now targets TV3 sports news presenter Hamish McKay (dubbed 'McKay-ver'). The pranks usually involve the office area (a mobile phone taped to the under side of a desk) or something happening the car of the victim (placing a goat in the back seat). In the MMORPG , a Grand Master Engineer named "Mack Diver" can be found in Zabra'Jin, a Horde outpost in Zangarmarsh. Mack Diver wears a diving helmet and wields a utility knife, a homage to MacGyver. Recently, the NBC sketch show Saturday Night Live has had a parody of MacGyver called "MacGruber" with Will Forte as the title character shown as a pretaped, three-part sketch on episodes hosted by Jeremy Piven and former castmember Molly Shannon . A series of popular YouTube sketches surfaced in early 2007 portraying the fictional escapades of MacGyver at Phoenix University as a young man. The "MacGyver: The College Years" sketches usually revolve around MacGyver building a contraption from everyday items that ultimately backfires, with disastrous consequences. SHOW INFORMATION
DVD RELEASES Paramount Home Entertainment has released all 7 Seasons of MacGyver on DVD in Region 1 for the very first time. They have also released Seasons 1 to 4 in Region 2. TV Movies (DVD Release Pending) TVM1 Lost Treasure of Atlantis TVM2 Trail to Doomsday BOOK RELEASES SEE ALSO INTERNATIONAL
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