Category: Season 1

Hitchhiking his way across California, Banner sees a young woman on crutches collapse, and he carries her to her home. Her family informs Banner that she is ill, and offers him a job working on the grounds. But something is troubling: the family doctor is administering medication that, far from curing her illness, could actually be making her sick. Of course, without revealing his own identity or his background as a doctor, Banner can’t raise much of an alarm. It turns out the girl is the heiress of the family fortune, and it seems that nearly everyone, including her own mother, is patiently waiting for her to die. Banner tries to help her, but in a delusional haze, the girl attacks him, unwittingly unleashing the Hulk.

written by Kenneth Johnson
directed by Alan J. Levi
music by Joe Harnell

Cast: Bill Bixby (David Bruce Banner), Jack Colvin (Jack McGee), Lou Ferrigno (The Hulk), Laurie Prange (Julie Griffith), Dorothy Tristan (Margaret Griffith), John McLiam (Michael), Mills Watson (Sheriff), William Daniels (Dr. Bonifant), Gerald McRaney (Denny Kayle), Victor Mohica (Rafe), Robert Phillips (Phil), Ann Weldon (1st Nurse), Linda Wiser (2nd Nurse), Roger Aaron Brown (Lab Technician), Janet Adams (3rd Nurse), Socorro Swan (Receptionist), Rita Gomez (Maid), Rick Garcia (The Cuban)

Notes: In syndicated reruns (in which it is divided into a two-parter) and on DVD, this movie is known by the title Death In The Family. The title as originally broadcast was The Return of The Incredible Hulk.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

As he continues his trek on foot, Banner runs afoul of inner city street thugs, but before the power of the Hulk is unleashed, he’s saved by “Rocky”, an aspiring boxer who trains at a nearby gym in exchange for running “errands” for the gym owner. Rocky talks the gym owner into taking Banner on as a physical therapist, but the more time Banner spends at the gym, the more he’s convinced that something illegal is happening there. By tagging along with Rocky, he discovers that the errands Rocky runs are transporting heroin to dealers on the street. When a rival dealer intercepts Rocky and his latest delivery, the owner of the gym arranges for Rocky to take a very public, and very lethal, fall. Only Banner’s rage at the impending fate of his new friend can save him.

written by Kenneth Johnson
directed by Kenneth Gilbert
music by Joe Harnell

Cast: Bill Bixby (David Bruce Banner), Jack Colvin (Jack McGee), Lou Ferrigno (The Hulk), Martin Kove (Henry “Rocky” Welsh), Fran Myers (Mary), Al Ruscio (Mr. Sariego), Paul Henry Itkin (Wilt), Ron Trice (Black Mugger), T. Miratti (White Mugger), John Witherspoon (Tom), Tony Brukbaker (Bill Cole), Paul Micale (Man in audience)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

David finds work in a zoo where Dr. Claudia Baxter is conducting research into quelling primal rage in animals. Though he’s employed as little more than a glorified janitor, David asks Dr. Baxter in-depth questions about her work, and is surprised to hear her admit that she’s trying to continue the work of the late Dr. David Banner. But her already-controversial research has hit a snag – a string of unusual deaths among animals at the zoo – and David is suspicious of Baxter’s boss, Dr. Malone, and his aide, Carl. He knows he’s getting close to the truth of what’s happening when Carl locks him into a cage with a gorilla, who Carl then injects with a chemical designed to bring its rage to the boiling point…and that’s when the Hulk appears.

written by Karen Harris & Jill Sherman
directed by Kenneth Gilbert
music by Joe Harnell

Cast: Bill Bixby (David Bruce Banner), Jack Colvin (Jack McGee), Lou Ferrigno (The Hulk), Caroline McWilliams (Dr. Claudia Baxter), Richard Kelton (Carl), Dabbs Greer (Dr. Malone), Charles Lampkin (Joe), Jean Durand (Jagger), Norman Rice (1st Zoo Security Guard, Joe DeNicola (2nd Zoo Security Guard), Billie Beach (Rita)

Notes: Richard Kelton (1943-1978) was one of the cast members of the short-lived NBC sci-fi spoof Quark, which was airing at the same time as The Incredible Hulk – in fact, this episode aired opposite an episode of Quark on the same night. He died later in 1978.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

David awakens, dazed, from a recent transformation into the Hulk, and unable to remember what happened. The news media is there to fill him in: the Hulk is accused of the murder of a model, and a manhunt has begun for the huge creature. David manages to get a job as a valet to James Joslin, who was present at the scene of the Hulk’s attack, and discovers another eyewitness to the event, model Sheila Cantrell. He tries to piece together his missing memories to find out what really happened, and what the Hulk really did…only to discover that the Hulk was the only one present who wasn’t directly involve in the murder.

written by James D. Parriott
directed by Larry Stewart
music by Joe Harnell

Cast: Bill Bixby (David Bruce Banner), Jack Colvin (Jack McGee), Lou Ferrigno (The Hulk), Jeremy Brett (James Joslin), Loni Anderson (Sheila Cantrell), Jane Alice Brandon (Girl), Ben Gerard (Sanderson), Deanna Lund (Terri Ann), Doug Hale (TV Reporter), Rick Goldman (Elkin), Nancy Steen (Ellen), Bill Baldwin (Jackson), Vince Howard (Security Guard), Art Kimbro (1st Policeman), Ross Durfee (Collins)

Notes: The Incredible Hulk’s casting department managed to land Loni Anderson mere months before the premiere of WKRP In Cincinnati made her a household name. Jeremy Brett (1933–1995) had already made numerous TV and movie appearances by this point, though his signature role, that of Sherlock Holmes, was a few years ahead of him still. Deanna Lund had been one of the stars of Irwin Allen’s Land Of The Giants.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

David makes his way to New York City to compare notes with a renowned genetic researcher, but in the meantime he’s picked up work at a pinball arcade. Unknown to him, McGee is not far behind him, following up on a lead about a recent sighting of the Hulk in the Big Apple. David’s a bit surprised to see Mayor Jason Laird pay his employer a visit, and listens in from the next room under the pretense of gathering his tools. What he overhears is horrifying: Laird is running a protection racket, grafting money from David’s new boss and other merchants in Times Square…and worse, Laird has become aware of one man who wants to blow Laird’s scheme wide open, and wants David’s boss to kill that man. Laird’s cronies spot David trying to warn the intended victim, and invite him to tell Laird what he knows…not knowing that their interrogation methods will unleash the Hulk on New York City.

written by William Schwartz
directed by Alan J. Levi
music by Joe Harnell

Cast: Bill Bixby (David Bruce Banner), Jack Colvin (Jack McGee), Lou Ferrigno (The Hulk), Robert Alda (Jason Laird), Jack Kruschen (Norman Abrams), Arny Freeman (Leo Kahn), Pamela Shoop (Carol Abrams), Karl Held (Jonathan), Michael Mancini (Hank), Simmy Bowe (Mr. Burns), Al Fann (Robert Benson)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

Banner boards flight 14, a Chicago-bound 747, hoping to meet with a neuroscientist about his condition. A passenger in a neighboring seat passes out after drinking coffee, and Banner goes to inform the pilot, who asks Banner to follow him into the hold…at which point Banner is shoved into a cage and locked in. The pilot and a member of the flight crew are not what they seem: they’ve drugged the flight crew and put the plane on autopilot, and plan to parachute out after stealing prized artifacts hidden among the cargo. The pilot plans to dispose of his inconvenient witness, only to discover that the tight, pressurized confines of a passenger airplane don’t mix with the Incredible Hulk.

written by Thomas E. Szollosi & Richard Christian Matheson
directed by Sigmund Neufeld Jr.
music by Joe Harnell

Cast: Bill Bixby (David Bruce Banner), Jack Colvin (Jack McGee), Lou Ferrigno (The Hulk), Edward Power (Phil), Sondra Currie (Stephanie), Denise Galik (Denise), Brandon Cruz (Kevin), Howard Honig (Mr. Leggit), Don Keefer (Mr. MacIntire), Susan Cotton (Cynthia Davis), Del Hinkley (Pilot), Ed Peck (Captain Brandes), J. Jay Saunders (Controller), Shirley O’Hara (Mrs. McIntire), Barbara Mealy (Nurse)

Notes: Richard Christian Matheson may not be the Richard Matheson who wrote “I Am Legend”, numerous Twilight Zone scripts, and other works of speculative fiction, but he is that Richard Matheson’s son, and happens to be a prolific scribe in his own right; this and an episode of Three’s Company were his first two first produced scripts. He would go on to write episodes of Knight Rider, The Powers of Matthew Star, The A-Team (a show for which he was also story editor), Hardcastle & McCormick, Amazing Stories, Tales From The Crypt, Masters of Horror, and Nightmares & Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

Banner boards flight 14, a Chicago-bound 747, hoping to meet with a neuroscientist about his condition. A passenger in a neighboring seat passes out after drinking coffee, and Banner goes to inform the pilot, who asks Banner to follow him into the hold…at which point Banner is shoved into a cage and locked in. The pilot and a member of the flight crew are not what they seem: they’ve drugged the flight crew and put the plane on autopilot, and plan to parachute out after stealing prized artifacts hidden among the cargo. The pilot plans to dispose of his inconvenient witness, only to discover that the tight, pressurized confines of a passenger airplane don’t mix with the Incredible Hulk.

written by Justin Edgerton
directed by Larry Stewart
music by Joe Harnell

Cast: Bill Bixby (David Bruce Banner), Jack Colvin (Jack McGee), Lou Ferrigno (The Hulk), Julie Gregg (Wanda), John Crawford (Tom Edler), Dean Santoro (Ed Campion), Don Marshall (Lee), Simone Griffeth (Cathy), John Dewey-Carter (Ambulance Attendant), John Dennis (Mechanic), Buck Young (Doctor), Phil Hoover (1st Patrolman), William Molloy (Registration Clerk), Paul Coufos (Officer), Charles Picerni (Charlie), Tony Miller (Pit Boss), Wally K. Berns (Texan), David M. Zellitti (2nd Patrolman)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

Hitchhiking his way north from Las Vegas, Banner is picked up by a woman named Joanie, who says she’ll pay him to deliver a birthday note to her boyfriend. But it’s not a birthday note, and the man to whom Banner delivers it is not her boyfriend – and even Joanie isn’t what she seems, stealing a tanker truck from the man’s premises and taking off at top speed. Banner manages to pile into the truck with Joanie, where she tells him that she’s stealing the truck back from the man and his cohorts, who are hijackers. While Joanie stops to fuel up, Banner learns that the tanker contains not gasoline, but contraband computer parts…and wherever Joanie goes, the hijackers will follow her and stop at nothing to recover the contraband.

written by Kenneth Johnson
directed by Kenneth Gilbert
music by Joe Harnell

Cast: Bill Bixby (David Bruce Banner), Jack Colvin (Jack McGee), Lou Ferrigno (The Hulk), Jennifer Darling (Joanie), Frank R. Christi (Ted), Grand Bush (Mike), Peggy Doyle (Woman at Gas Station), Don Starr (Storekeeper), Charles Alvin Bell (Charles Alvin Bell)

Notes: This episode was written largely for comedic effect – it’s not the thugs threatening Joanie that drives Banner over the edge to become the Hulk, but rather an uncooperative telephone directory assistance operator. This episode also arrived before the peak of the 1970s trend of “trucker” movies and TV shows (for the record: two months prior to the U.S. premiere of Convoy, and six months prior to the TV premiere of the similarly-themed B.J. And The Bear). Long-haul trucking (or should we say truckin’?) was not an uncommon theme, as an episode of Gemini Man (Smithereens) had already used it as a plot device.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

Hitchhiking to Oregon, Banner meets a fellow traveler, a homeless pregnant woman named Carrie. He accompanies her to a clinic simply called Matrix, and then proceeds to the nearby hospital where he has an appointment with geneticist Dr. Stan Rhodes. Rhodes may be able to isolate the genetic strands that transform Banner into the Hulk, though Banner naturally hasn’t shared many details of what problems his unique genes cause. Banner is nearby when another patient is brought in for Dr. Rhodes, a woman who’s missing her baby – and says Matrix took it. Banner leaves the hospital to double back and check on Carrie, but it just so happens that Dr. Rhodes is paying a visit to Matrix as well, and now believes he’s part of a sting operation. When Banner returns to the hospital, the injection he receives from Rhodes is not designed to help him, but is a dose of morphine large enough to kill him. His survival instincts kick in and the Hulk takes over…but the amount of morphine administered is enough to leave even the Hulk in a stupor.

written by James D. Parriott
directed by Jeffrey Hayden
music by Joe Harnell

Cast: Bill Bixby (David Bruce Banner), Jack Colvin (Jack McGee), Lou Ferrigno (The Hulk), Julie Adams (Ellen), Andrew Robinson (Dr. Stan Rhodes), Carl Franklin (Crosby), Diane Civita (Carrie), Mitzi Hoag (Chief Nurse), John Warner Williams (Dan), Sarah Rush (Young Woman), Gil Garcia (1st Detective), Judd Laurance (2nd Detective), Takayo (Young Nurse), Lillah McCarthy (Tina), Al Berry (Trucker), Ben Freedman (Man in Elevator)

Notes: This episode carries the unusual disclaimer “all characters, organizations, and events in this story are fictional”, either because the big mutating green guy lumbering around wasn’t enough of a clue, or because the production’s legal research department found a company named Matrix in a line of business adjacent to services for expecting mothers. Carl Franklin, later a director of such big-screen fare as Devil In A Blue Dress and One True Thing, had been one of the stars of The Fantastic Journey a year earlier on NBC. Andrew J. Robinson was still in the midst of a lengthy string of “creepy” roles stemming from his career-making 1971 big-screen debut as the killer in Dirty Harry; he would later branch out into such roles as Liberace in a 1988 TV movie of the same name, President John F. Kennedy in a 1986 episode of the revived Twilight Zone, and the Cardassian tailor Garak throughout all seven seasons of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Diane Civita was a friend of showrunner Kenneth Johnson, and would appear in many of his later series, including V (as Harmony) and the pilot movie for Johnson’s TV adaptation of Alien Nation.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

Growing increasingly desperate to rid himself of the Hulk, Banner impersonates a nuclear safety inspector due for a visit at a nearby power plant, where he hopes to expose himself to another burst of radiation to try to cure himself. One of the plant’s staff members suspects something is amiss and double checks, discovering that Banner is an impostor, but before she can sound the alarm, a major earthquake strikes – and the nuclear plant is sitting directly over the fault line. Safety systems lock the facility down, but a runaway reaction is imminent…and unleashing the Hulk in this situation may make it even more dangerous for those trapped in the plant with him. Meanwhile, reporter Jack McGee is on the premises as a routine story about nuclear safety begins to spiral out of control.

written by Jim Tisdale & Migdia Varela
directed by Harvey Laidman
music by Joe Harnell

Cast: Bill Bixby (David Bruce Banner), Jack Colvin (Jack McGee), Lou Ferrigno (The Hulk), Sherry Jackson (Dr. Diane Joseph), Peter Brandon (Ted Hammond), Gary Wood (Turner), Kene Holliday (Paul), Lynne Topping (Nancy), Brett Hadley (Ron Harris), Roberta Sherwood (Mrs. Waverly), John Alvin (Dr. Patterson), Arthur Rosenburg (Larry Saenz), Diane Markoff (Janet), Robbyn Stuart (Reporter), Pamela Nelson (Marsha), Michael Wirick (Gate Guard)

Notes: This episode uses extensive footage from Universal Pictures’ 1974 disaster film Earthquake. (Universal’s television division also produced The Incredible Hulk.)

LogBook entry by Earl Green