"Wonder Woman - The Cathy Lee Crosby Pilot" from 1974 Comes to DVD at Last!
by David Lambert
12/5/12




http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e10/JamesGrec/WonderWoman_CLCpilot-1.jpg




Before Lynda Carter took the heroine back to World War II for her "New, Original" incarnation, statuesque Tennis Pro turned performer Cathy Lee Crosby swung the magic lasso in a very different TV incarnation.

As developed by scribe John D.F. Black ("Star Trek", "Shaft"), and seemingly influenced by her recent turn as a mod, cat-suited crime-fighter in the pages of her DC Comics home, this Amazon Princess was more superspy than superhero. But fret not, four-color fans!

Many of the expected wondrous elements from bracelets and lassos to Paradise Island and invisible jets, all make an appearance, albeit with a sleek, seventies espionage superaction refit. Ricardo Montalban plays the laconic lothario who lurks at the top of a conspiracy to make off with ultra-secret code books, leading Agent Prince to discover an Amazon sister-in-exile (Anitra Ford).







Yes, 1974's "Wonder Woman - The Cathy Lee Crosby Pilot" was VERY different from the version Lynda Carter brought to the small screen in the 1975 telefilm, which led to a pair of April 1976 hour-long specials and then the regular weekly series that Carter starred in later in 1976.

All of the early Lynda Carter productions can be found on both the Season 1 set Warner Home Video released on DVD in 2004, and the Complete Series set that came out in 2007. But fans always felt like something was missing, because the Cathy Lee Crosby-starring pilot from 1974 - which clearly wasn't up to snuff to become a weekly show, but equally clearly led to the Lynda Carter program - wasn't included on either DVD set.





Now the Warner Archive Collection has announced that this coming Tuesday, December 11th will see the MOD (manufacture on demand) DVD release of "Wonder Woman - The Cathy Lee Crosby Pilot".

This single-disc release running 73 minutes will cost $14.95 SRP, and includes the feature in the original 1.33:1 video aspect ratio and English mono audio soundtrack. It's only available from the WBshop.com online studio store right now (see button link just below), so that means it will only ship to U.S. customers.

But it will soon be made available globally via Amazon's CreateSpace MOD program as well (how appropriate for an Amazon princess, right?).


Purchase from: http://www.wbshop.com/product/code/1000375453.do?AID=10811526&PID=3821628&ref=CJP

http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Wonder-Woman-Cathy-Lee-Crosby-Pilot/17833

http://whatculture.com/tv/15-failed-comic-book-tv-shows-lasted-one-episode.php/4

Before Lynda Carter had the chance to play the Amazonian superhero, Wonder Woman; there was already a failed attempt at bringing the hero to the small-screen. 1974’s Wonder Woman premiered on NBC as a TV movie, though the film was a pilot for an intended television series. Cathy Lee Crosby took on the role and the results were less than stellar.

Diana Prince/Wonder Woman (Crosby) is the secretary to a government agent. She is soon thrust into a world of international intrigue and danger. Her mission is to pursue a villainous individual named Abner Smith (played by typecast bad guy actor Ricardo Montalban).

Overall, this particular iteration of Wonder Woman is pretty confusing. First of all, it’s Cathy Lee – with no change of haircut or hair color. It’s very contemporary and has some adult innuendo throughout. And Wonder Woman has pretty limited powers – mostly Kung Fu of an Amazon variety. Also, the hero is not in her recognizable classic costume, she’s in an outfit that more closely resembles a female Evel Knievel.

Wonder Woman is a strong character who fights evil and looks good doing it. Crosby looks good but her acting is simply disappointing. The Shaft-like music is another cringe-worthy aspect of the film. As a side note, try counting the number of times someone uses a telephone during the film. You could make a drinking game out of it.