The Truth About ‘The Greatest American Hero’s Sudden Name Change
In the early 1980s, one of my favorite TV shows was The Greatest American Hero. It starred William Katt as mild-mannered substitute teacher-turned-superhero Ralph Hinkley, with appearances by veteran actor Robert Culp, along with the always lovely Connie Sellecca. At least at the beginning of its run, the show was a ratings success; however, towards the end of the first season, the show’s protagonist required an emergency name change, after a national tragedy involving then-President Ronald Reagan.
The Greatest American Hero was a light comedy — the last thing anyone would associate with major negative news. Ralph is given a red and black suit by aliens that grant him superhuman abilities. Unfortunately for Ralph, he hates wearing the suit and immediately loses the instruction book. Thus, he has to learn how to use its powers through trial and error, often with very funny results.
©ABC/Everett Collection
However, real-world horror impinged on the comedy when, as the cast and crew were midway through filming the first season, there was an assassination attempt on then-President Ronald Reagan. The attacker was a young man named John Hinckley Jr., whose actions were at least partially motivated by his fascination with actress Jodie Foster.
In 2024, Foster told People magazine this about the experience: “… It was a huge moment. It was a long time ago. You probably don’t even know, but he shot him in order to impress me, and he had written letters to me, so it was a big moment in my life.”
And so, as the first season of The Greatest American Hero was winding down, Ralph Hinkley all of a sudden became Ralph Hanley.
Credit: Jim Britt / TV Guide / Everett Collection
Apparently, the makers of the show felt like they needed to distance the main character as far from John Hinckley Jr. as possible. Did sharing the same last name have any effect on the show’s ratings? I don’t think so. And I guess eventually the makers of the show came to agree, because when Season 2 premiered, William Katt was once again known as good old substitute teacher Ralph Hinkley.
When all was said and done, the series ran for three seasons, and, according to this Fandom entry, it was only a couple of episodes towards the end of Season 1 where he was known as Ralph Hanley.
Also worth mentioning, during that time, DC Comics’ parent company, Warner Communications, sued ABC television. They claimed that The Greatest American Hero was a rip-off of their Superman character. Ultimately, the case was dismissed about a month after the series concluded. The judge said that while both heroes had similar powers (in particular, the ability to fly through the air), there were more dissimilarities than similarities between Clark Kent and Ralph Hanley, oops, I mean Hinkley.
Remind