# Max Headroom: the 30th Anniversary omnibus thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 18, 2015, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308 "2015-03-18T17:28:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/21 "2015-03-19T00:24:23Z")
I dedicated a VHS tape to recording Max Headroom episodes (back when tapes were expensive) so now I can watch it whenever I want to. Hmmm, where can I find a VCR? I remembered Matt Frewer appearing as Max Headroom on David Letterman (do I have that right?) I was amazed with the technology that made a robot respond to Letterman’s questions; it took me a while to figure out that he was on camera back stage and it was just video special effects. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/22 "2015-03-19T02:11:02Z")
Like almost all Americans I first saw him on the infamous ‘new’ Coke commercials. Then the _Art of Noise_ video \*[Paranomia](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPVsTcdydPI)\*which got huge rotation on 80s MTV (still like that song!) Didn’t have Showtime so I only ever saw one of his talk shows (wish I’d seen more). Watched some of the ABC show, liked it overall but just never got into it before it was gone. Have never seen any of the original UK shows. Loved his[appearance on Letterman](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaHCjfvPViA). Loved even more their later parody, [Larry Bud Headroom!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MNkfTkH5eQ&feature=player_detailpage#t=49) ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/23 "2015-03-19T04:41:28Z")
I liked New Coke, and Amanda Pays. I was kind of a big nerd for the ABC series, even if it was a little weaker than the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Enright3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enright3/32/2897_2.png) [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/24 "2015-03-19T15:03:55Z")
> [@River\_Hippie](#): > > I didn’t watch it when it first ran but my dad was a big fan. He always talked about it so when it came out on DVD (after dad died) I bought it. > I don’t think it aged very well. I watched about half the DVD set, never finished it. I’ll have to get back to it one of these days. > Amanda Pays was very attractive! I’m happy you brought it up, but saddened it took until post 13 for Amanda Pays’ name to me be mentioned. To me she was at a “I-wouldn’t-be-able-to-talk-to-you” level of hotness. I loved both the movie and the series. > [@TBG](#): > > Every time I see Matt Frewer in anything, I still have the initial reaction of “Oh hey, Max Headroom!” 😃 I don’t remember the last time I saw Matt Frewer in anything. The last thing I remember was after MH ended and he played a dr. in the appropriately named Doctor Doctor. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/25 "2015-03-19T16:04:13Z")
> [@Enright3](#): > > I don’t remember the last time I saw Matt Frewer in anything. The last thing I remember was after MH ended and he played a dr. in the appropriately named Doctor Doctor. I wish they’d put that out on DVD. I remember liking it a lot, and would love to see it. It seems to be the only show where all the leads were above 6 feet tall. ---
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/26 "2015-03-19T17:05:59Z")
“An ‘Off’ switch… She’ll get _years_ for that…” Just a throwaway line that has always stuck with me for some reason, and in the modern Internet-enabled world of tracking cookies, spyware, targeted advertising and governmental surveillance of citizens, it takes on new meaning… Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to eat a Zik-Zak snak-pak and watch some blipverts ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/27 "2015-03-19T17:15:07Z")
I have the DVD set. It was good but not as good as I remembered. Matt Frewer is/was in The Librarians Amanda Pays has shown up on Flash (playing a character with the same name\*, but not the same person as she played on the earlier Flash) Brian \*Tina McGee ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/28 "2015-03-19T17:15:35Z")
> [@Enright3](#): > > I don’t remember the last time I saw Matt Frewer in anything. The last thing I remember was after MH ended and he played a dr. in the appropriately named Doctor Doctor. He’s been working pretty steadily since then. He was in the first Honey I Shrunk the Kids movie, the Generation X TV movie (which isn’t very good but it does have him in it kind of ripping off Jim Carrey’s Riddler), he’s done some voice work (Incredible Hulk, Gargoyles, etc.), and I last saw him in Orphan Black. If you haven’t seen Orphan Black, I recommend it. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/29 "2015-03-19T18:39:47Z")
> [@MacTech](#): > > “An ‘Off’ switch… She’ll get _years_ for that…” > > Just a throwaway line that has always stuck with me for some reason… Every episode is littered with those. Many have lost their shock value by virtue of having come true, or even passé. “Hackers have broken into our satellite feed! Nothing will be safe! Our credit histories, our medical records…” “…our _ratings_!” ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/30 "2015-03-19T18:42:36Z")
Double down on _Orphan Black_. Not just Frewer, but thematically it should appeal to many _Max Headroom_ fans. ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/31 "2015-03-19T19:04:25Z")
Funny thing is, cable connections s-s-still d-d-do th-th-that… ---
**Author:** ![mage-girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cc9497/32.png) [@mage-girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mage-girl)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/32 "2015-03-19T22:08:00Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > Have you seen pictures of him a little later, around 30? Even as a thoroughly het male, I kinda said, “Whoa…” I think they mentioned those on IMDB, and the couple I saw… Yeah. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/33 "2015-03-20T03:02:35Z")
> [@Enright3](#): > > I don’t remember the last time I saw Matt Frewer in anything. The last thing I remember was after MH ended and he played a dr. in the appropriately named Doctor Doctor. You may remember him from such shows as Eureka, Orphan Black, and the Librarians. Well, if you’ve watched any of those. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/34 "2015-03-20T04:08:37Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > I liked New Coke, and Amanda Pays. > > I was kind of a big nerd for the ABC series, even if it was a little weaker than the movie. Yeah, Amanda Pays. What a hottie! Even today I still confuse her with similar 80s hottie Rachel Ward. One was married to the _LA Law_ guy, the other to the _FX_ movie guy… ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/35 "2015-03-25T14:08:27Z")
I found a completely new Max reference last night, and in the most unexpected place. Since I can’t find any mention of it or discussion in places where it should be, I assume I am the first to overlap in this tiny sliver of the Venn diagram intersection. So I’m wasting an evening hour in Borderlands 2, and I’m on to the second DLC (Torgue’s Campaign), and I go to find the returning NPC character Tiny Tina (a psychotic 13yo bomb expert, since you ask). In the main game, she lived in a cave. In this DLC, she lives in… …a big pink bus with TV and satellite antennas on top. I haven’t laughed so hard in a long time - the dogs and kids had to come down to see if I was okay. I’ve queried Gearbox Software to see if anyone on the design team will 'fess up. As I said, there’s no prior mention of this in the extensive game wiki or discussions. Takes a weirdo to catch a weirdo, I guess. [10 Days and Counting, now.] ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/36 "2015-04-03T14:01:56Z")
And for those interested, [TheVerge.com](http://TheVerge.com) has run a really interesting [“oral history” piece](http://www.theverge.com/2015/4/2/8285139/max-headroom-oral-history-80s-cyberpunk-interview) that ties together a lot of half-known stories from the original cast and creative team into a very clear and interesting narrative. I expect to see a lot of the entertainment rags and blags to run much more recycled material in the next month/year. Verge set the bar pretty high, though. ---
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/37 "2015-04-04T00:53:58Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > And for those interested, [TheVerge.com](http://TheVerge.com) has run a really interesting [“oral history” piece](http://www.theverge.com/2015/4/2/8285139/max-headroom-oral-history-80s-cyberpunk-interview) that ties together a lot of half-known stories from the original cast and creative team into a very clear and interesting narrative. > > I expect to see a lot of the entertainment rags and blags to run much more recycled material in the next month/year. Verge set the bar pretty high, though. Thanks for posting that - very interesting stuff. You can definitely still feel some ice cold rancor from some of the players who got cut out of the money bandwagon. Very cool. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308/38 "2015-04-04T15:38:33Z")
**Hap-Happy 30th Birthday, Max!** [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-headroom-the-30th-anniversary-omnibus-thread/715308.md?page=1)