Misfits Of Science
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''Misfits of Science'' is an American
science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
comedy-drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...
television series created by
James D. Parriott James D. Parriott (born November 14, 1950, in Denver, Colorado) is an American writer, director, and producer, with his own self named production company. Career He created the series: ''Voyagers!'', '' Misfits of Science'', ''Forever Knight'', ' ...
that aired on
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
from October 4, 1985, to February 21, 1986.


Plot

The series featured super-powered humans and their madcap adventures. The team is formed by Dr. Billy Hayes, a research scientist at the ''Humanidyne Institute'' who specializes in "human anomalies". He works with shrinking Dr. Elvin "El" Lincoln, and together they recruit electrically powered Johnny Bukowski, a rock-and-roll musician, and Gloria Dinallo, a telekinetic teenager.


Production

A double-length TV pilot and 15 additional episodes were produced; however, one episode did not air before the show was cancelled due to low ratings. The name "Misfits of Science" and other conceptual ideas were the brainchild of then-president of
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
Entertainment,
Brandon Tartikoff Brandon Tartikoff (January 13, 1949 – August 27, 1997) was an American television executive who was head of the entertainment division of NBC from 1981 to 1991. He was credited with turning around NBC's low prime time reputation with several ...
. He explained of the series "We'll rely on the ''
National Enquirer The ''National Enquirer'' is an American tabloid newspaper. Founded in 1926, the newspaper has undergone a number of changes over the years. The ''National Enquirer'' openly acknowledges that it pays Source (journalism), sources for tips (chec ...
'' for story ideas. It's loosely inspired by the dynamics we saw in ''
Ghostbusters ''Ghostbusters'' is a 1984 American supernatural comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. It stars Bill Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis as Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and Egon Spengler, three eccentric ...
''... sort of a kick-back, Friday type of show." The ninth episode was the first paid writing job for
Tim Kring Richard Timothy Kring (born July 9, 1957) is an American screenwriter and television producer, best known for his creation of the drama series '' Strange World'', ''Crossing Jordan'', '' Heroes'', and ''Touch''. Early life Kring was born in El ...
, who later originated and produced the thematically similar ''
Heroes Heroes or Héroes may refer to: * Hero, one who displays courage and self-sacrifice for the greater good Film * ''Heroes'' (1977 film), an American drama * ''Heroes'' (2008 film), an Indian Hindi film Gaming * ''Heroes of Might and Magic'' ...
'' in 2006.


Title sequence

The main title sequence and its theme song were unusual for TV shows of the era. Donald Todd, head writer and story editor, described them as follows:


Cast and characters

*
Dean Paul Martin Dean Paul Martin Jr. (born Dino Paul Crocetti Jr.; November 17, 1951 – March 21, 1987) was an American pop singer and film and television actor. A member of the California Air National Guard, Martin died in a crash during a military training ...
as Dr. Billy Hayes, the leader of the team (who has no superpowers). He is a young research scientist at the Humanidyne Institute who specializes in "human anomalies" and a fast-talking but good-hearted schemer full of boyish enthusiasm who often gets the team into as much trouble as he gets them out of. Although easily distracted whenever an attractive woman walks by, he is honestly interested in getting involved in a serious relationship with Jane Miller even after she showed up pregnant by another man. * Kevin Peter Hall as Dr. Elvin "El" Lincoln, Billy's colleague and close friend. He has the ability to shrink for minutes at a time from his height of to via hormonal treatments which he activates by pressing a nerve on the back of his neck. A recurring joke after such transformations is that he always has to put on the tiny change of clothes he carries with him for his small size. The character is shy and struggles socially, and despite being so tall, he is a very bad
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
player. * Mark Thomas Miller as Johnny "Johnny B" Bukowski, a
rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...
musician who was electrically shocked on stage which resulted in disturbing electrical powers. He continually drains any electrically charged items in his surroundings, forcing him to live in isolation. He wears sunglasses because his eyes glow when he is fully charged. He can throw lightning bolts forcefully and run at superhuman speed, easily outracing in one episode a parody of the '' Six Million Dollar Man'', but he is vulnerable to water which
short-circuits A short circuit (sometimes abbreviated to short or s/c) is an electrical circuit that allows a current to travel along an unintended path with no or very low electrical impedance. This results in an excessive current flowing through the circuit. ...
him and burns his skin. He is a big
Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, guitarist and songwriter who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and de ...
fan. *
Courteney Cox Courteney Bass Cox (born June 15, 1964) is an American actress and producer. She rose to international prominence by playing Monica Geller in the NBC sitcom ''Friends'' (1994–2004) and Gale Weathers in the horror film franchise '' Scream'' ...
as Gloria Dinallo, a troubled telekinetic teenager with a history of juvenile delinquency and a mother in a mental institution who claims Gloria's father is from outer space. She has a crush on Johnny. Gloria can only use her telekinesis on things that she can see: using a blindfold on her renders her powerless. * Diane Civita as Miss Nance, the scientists' secretary. Although she usually seems more interested in doing her nails, going on her coffee break, and watching her soap operas, she is actually the one who keeps their department running and is always there at the end of the series to turn off the lights and say goodnight to the rabbits in their cages. * Jennifer Holmes as Jane Miller, Gloria's
probation officer A probation or parole officer is an official appointed or sworn to investigate, report on, and supervise the conduct of convicted offenders on probation or those released from incarceration to community supervision such as parole. Most probat ...
. Although attracted to Billy, she is often put off by his eccentric behavior. Her character appears only in the earlier episodes, disappearing after the first 7 episodes. (Although Holmes is still in the opening credits through episode 12.) *
Max Wright George Edward "Max" Wright (August 2, 1943 – June 26, 2019) was an American actor, known for his role as Willie Tanner on the sitcom '' ALF'' (1986–1990). Early life Wright was born August 2, 1943, in Detroit, Michigan, as George Edwar ...
as Dick Stetmeyer, the uptight director of the Humanidyne Institute. Unlike the other cast members, he isn't actually considered to be one of the Misfits. *
Mickey Jones Mickey Jones (June 10, 1941 – February 7, 2018) was an American musician and actor. He played drums with acts such as Trini Lopez and Bob Dylan, with whom he played on his 1966 world tour. He became a founding member of The First Edition ...
as Arnold "Beef"/"Ice Man" Beifneiter, who got his power to freeze anything he touches from placing himself in an experimental
cryogenic In physics, cryogenics is the production and behaviour of materials at very low temperatures. The 13th International Institute of Refrigeration's (IIR) International Congress of Refrigeration (held in Washington, DC in 1971) endorsed a univers ...
cold storage unit back in the year of 1937 due to grief caused by the loss of his beloved
Amelia Earhart Amelia Mary Earhart ( ; July 24, 1897 – January 5, 1939) was an American aviation pioneer. On July 2, 1937, she disappeared over the Pacific Ocean while attempting to become the first female pilot to circumnavigate the world. During her li ...
. The team drives around in an
ice cream truck An ice cream van (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) or ice cream truck (North American English) is a commercial vehicle that ice cream products are sold from, usually during the spring and summer. Ice cream vans ...
( International Metro Mite M-800) because the lumbering and now rather simple-minded Ice Man dies if he gets too warm, so they keep him in the freezer. Beef only appears in the pilot episode due to legal objections from
Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...
, who publish a similarly named character in ''
X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer/editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, the team first appeared in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 (September 1963). Although initial ...
'', but the characters continue to use the ice cream truck.


Episodes


International broadcast

In France, the series was known as ''Superminds'', in Germany, as ''Die Spezialisten unterwegs'' (''The Specialists On The Way''), in Brazil, as "Curto-Circuito" ("Short Circuit"), in Mexico, Colombia, Peru and rest of Latin America as ''Los Cientificos Rebeldes'' (''The Rebel Scientists'').


DVD releases

On January 25, 2008, the series was released in Germany as a 5-disc DVD box set ( Region 2) with all episodes (including the final episode, which was originally unaired on NBC but broadcast in Germany) with both English and German audios and German subtitles. The release was entitled “Die Spezialisten Unterwegs”, translates literally to “The Specialists On The Go”. On September 19, 2012, the series was released on DVD in France as '' Superminds''.


References


External links

*
Misfits of Science
at internationalhero.co.uk
Misfits of Science
at the ''Friday @ 8/7 Central'' blog {{DEFAULTSORT:Misfits Of Science 1980s American comedy-drama television series 1980s American comic science fiction television series 1980s American superhero comedy television series 1985 American television series debuts 1986 American television series endings American English-language television shows NBC comedy-dramas Television series by Universal Television Television shows filmed in California Television shows set in California