Congratulations to television’s best Wonder Woman, Lynda Carter. At 66 years old, Carter finally received her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Patty Jenkins, director of 2017’s smash hit Wonder Woman was at Carter’s side as she posed with her star.
Jenkins captured the importance of Carter’s portrayal of the Amazon princess:
“In my youth, no one was more rebellious,” Jenkins said. “In my eyes, Lynda Carter is one of the greatest rebels then and now. Because while everyone else told me that I had to choose — serious or feminine, attractive or strong — only Lynda did whatever the hell she wanted to do. And she did both in everything she did.” […] Jenkins said Carter’s portrayal of Wonder Woman made her fall in love with her because “her Wonder Woman made me believe that I could have whatever I wanted, and even more importantly, it made me unashamed to want it. She wasn’t afraid to love being a woman and celebrate her femininity all while kicking ass and saving the world,” the director added, describing Carter as a sister, hero, friend and inspiration. (as qtd. in Saad)
Jenkins’s glowing memory of Carter’s portrayal of Wonder Woman is a necessary reminder that Carter changed the world for many television watchers and more little girls (and women) who found Wonder Woman through her portrayal.
The question, of course, is why the hell did it take so long?
For example, Charlie’s Angels’ stars Jaclyn Smith and Farrah Fawcett’s had stars placed in 1985 and 2008.
Though, notably, co-star Kate Jackson does not have a star. Neither does television star Alan Alda (who starred in M*A*S*H* from 1972 until 1983).
Like everything in the Wonder Woman universe, the answer is never clear.
What is clear is that claims that Carter was television’s first Wonder Woman are false. She is the best known, but Cathy Lee Crosby starred as Wonder Woman in a television movie called Wonder Woman (1974).
That movie’s tagline says it all: “The Amazing Amazon Princess Comes to Television!” Curious? Check it out below:
Wonder Woman fans will have to file this under “Better Late than Never.”
Though, for the record, we’re running out of room in that file.
