SLEDGE HAMMER SEASON ONE - EPISODE 22

“The Spa Who Loved Me”
(Airdate: Apr. 28, 1987). Bodybuilding terrorists led by a female aerobics instructor steal a nuclear warhead from the military and threaten to destroy the entire country. Hammer and Dori are assigned to the case and are captured by the group. When Hammer gets control of the situation he tries to disarm the device. Seconds later, the bomb explodes.

Guest Cast: Robin Leach as the host, Mary Woronov as Jill Taylor, Lance LeGault as the general, Michelle Russell as Tawney Small.

Writers: TinoInsana and Robert Wuhl.

Director: Jackie Cooper.

Trivia: As is widely known, producer Alan Spencer didn’t expect “Sledge Hammer!” to be renewed for a second season and conceived this episode as going out, literally, with a bang… drawing inspirations from the finales of not only the Stanley Kubrick film “Dr. Strangelove” but also the classic Patrick McGoohan TV series “The Prisoner”.

Actress Mary Woronov, a cult favorite from Paul Bartel’s “Eating Raoul”, satirized a Jane Fonda-ish fitness guru. Nevertheless, the term “Workout” had to be substituted with “Fitness Program” to appease a worried broadcast standards department.

Curiosity, as well as this episode airing within a special timeslot, created an appreciable gain in “Sledge Hammer’s” ratings for this season ending finale. Go figure.