Bionic Woman: Bionic Beauty

"Bionic Beauty"
	Series The Bionic Woman; Season 1, Episode 7
Air date	March 17th, 1976
Writers	James D. Parriott
Director	Alan Crosland
Producers	Kenneth Johnson; Harve Bennett
Starring	Lindsay Wagner; Richard Anderson
	Episode guide
Previous; "The Deadly Missiles"	Next; "Jaime's Mother"

"Bionic Beauty" is the seventh episode of season one of the 1970s sci-fi/action series The Bionic Woman. The episode was directed by Alan Crosland with a script written by James D. Parriott. It first aired on ABC on Wednesday, March 17th, 1976. In this episode, Oscar Goldman ropes Jaime Sommers into going undercover as a beauty pageant contestant to ferret out a link between corruption in the competition and a stolen micro-computer chip.

Synopsis[]

Cast[]

Principal Cast[]

Actor	Role
Lindsay Wagner	Jaime Sommers
Richard Anderson	Oscar Goldman

Guest Stars[]

Actor	Role
Bert Parks	Ray Raymond
Gary Crosby	Brady
Martha Scott	Helen Elgin

Co-Starring[]

Actor	Role
Helen Craig	Mrs. Belding
Cassie Yates	Sally Bartell
Charlotte Moore	Lady reporter
Henry Polic II	The Man

With[]

Actor	Role
Katie Hopkins Zerby	Miss Oklahoma
Lisa Parkes	Miss Tennessee

Notes[]

The Bionic Woman was created for television by Kenneth Johnson. Based on the novel Cyborg by Martin Caidin. Produced in association with Harve Bennett Productions.

This episode is included on disc three of the Bionic Woman: Season 1 DVD boxset collection.

Director Alan Crosland, Jr. is credited as Alan Crosland in this episode.

Actress Martha Scott is given a "Special Guest Star" credit in this episode.

This is the fourth episode of The Bionic Woman directed by Alan Crosland. He directs eleven episodes of the series in total.

This is the second episode of The Bionic Woman written by James D. Parriott. He writes fifteen episodes of the series in total.

This is the first credited acting work for Katie Hopkins Zerby.

This is the first credited acting work for Lisa Parkes.

This is the third appearance of Helen Elgin on the series and her sixth appearance overall.

Story notes[]

Abilities demonstrated in this episode include: super-strength, superhuman durability, enhanced hearing and super-leaping.

The name of the hotel that the pageant is taking place at is called the Ambassador Hotel.

The beauty pageant in this episode is called Miss United States. Jaime, turns out to be the winner with Miss Florida, Miss Oklahoma, and Miss Tennessee as runner ups.

Allusions[]

Several references are made to Steve Austin in this episode. In fact, Jaime's song routine is dedicated to Steve. Oscar Goldman reveals that Steve is working the other side of the computer chip investigation in Brussels.

The song that Jaime performs at the talent competition is "Feelings", which was composed by singer Morris Albert and released in 1974.

Ray Ramond makes reference to Oscar Mayer in this episode. Oscar Mayer is a food production company that makes bologna an weiners.

Trivia[]

Jaime Sommers is not the only female action hero from 1976 to go undercover as a beauty pageant contestant. Only a few short months later, Diana Prince, aka Wonder Woman, will do likewise in the "Beauty on Parade" episode of Wonder Woman (chronologically however, that event predates Jaime's pageant work by thirty years as the first season of the show was set in 1942).

Actor Gary Crosby is the son of legendary crooner Bing Crosby, and bears a strong resemblance to him. He is the uncle of future Star Trek: The Next Generation actress Denise Crosby.

Actors Martha Scott and Helen Craig were both born in 1912.

Bloopers[]

In a scene where Jaime Sommers leaps down from a balcony onto the ground, the face of Lindsay Wagner's stunt double, Rita Egleston is clearly seen.

Quotes[]

Jaime Sommers: Oscar look, before I put on this sash and go in there and make a fool out of myself, why don't you call this agent and make sure he wasn't joking, I mean this is a pretty silly message.
Oscar Goldman: I can't do that.
Jaime Sommers: Why?
Oscar Goldman: They found this agent this morning. Face down in the river Seine.
Jaime Sommers: Snorkeling?
Oscar Goldman: Dead.

....

Jaime Sommers: I feel like a side of beef, how do I look?
Helen Elgin: Terrific.
Jaime Sommers: You know I really liked by old legs better. I think they were better.