THE GREATEST AMERICAN HERO (1981) : The Show Superman’s Owners Tried to Stop

Believe it or not, The Greatest American Hero nearly got grounded before its first episode aired. While ABC was getting ready to introduce a schoolteacher who could fly but couldn’t land, the owners of Superman went to court to stop the show.

Go behind the scenes of the 1981 TV series and discover how Stephen J. Cannell turned a lost instruction manual into the premise for an unlikely superhero. We revisit William Katt’s turn as Ralph, Robert Culp’s no-nonsense FBI agent Bill Maxwell, and Connie Sellecca’s Pam Davidson. Along the way, we look at why Ralph’s last name suddenly changed, how a Friday-night move put the series up against *Dallas*, and what happened to the four finished episodes ABC never aired.

The court fight outlasted the show, but the theme song outlasted them both. From Joey Scarbury’s original recording to George Costanza’s answering machine, “Believe It or Not” kept finding new audiences long after Ralph’s last crash landing.