Lynda Carter: The True, Original Heart and Soul of “Wonder Woman”

A Classic TV Retrospective

She literally jumped onto the screen and dazzled us with her smile and style.

Her name is Lynda Carter, and on November 7, 1975, this former Miss U.S.A. debuted as Diana Prince in the TV-movie, The New, Original Wonder Woman.

This was the second take on the comic book character that was first brought to the small screen the previous year in a failed contemporary take on the concept which featured Cathy Lee Crosby as a blond Wonder Woman in a modern world, alongside Kaz Garas as love-interest Steve Trevor, and Ricardo Montalban (Kahn from the original and future Star Trek, and soon-to-be Mr. Roark from Fantasy Island) as the main villain.

Penned by John D.F. Black (another original Star Trek veteran), and directed by Disney veteran Vincent McEveety, this first edition of Wonder was similar to the powerless “I Ching” Diana Prince of the late 1960s but set in the then-current era of the 1970s.

While the film scored high ratings, ABC opted not to take it to series and instead, moved forward with Carter in a rebooted version that was developed by Douglas S. Cramer (former Vice-President of 20th Century-turned-Paramount-Studios/ABC-programming chief) and the prolific writer Stanley Ralph Ross (Batman, All in the…