Lynda Carter

Wonder Woman, the fictional superhero character, was created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston and artist Harry G. Peter in 1941 for DC Comics.

Conceived in the wake of the popularity of Superman, Marston designed his creation as counter-programming to the Man of Steel.

The Diana Prince/Wonder Woman character is also called the Amazing Amazon, the Spirit of Truth, Themyscira's Champion, and the Goddess of Love and War.

Wonder Woman was an instant hit with readers and became the most prominent DC comic book female superhero.

Lynda Jean Cordova Carter (born July 24, 1951) is an American actress, singer, and beauty pageant titleholder, best known as the star of the live-action television series Wonder Woman, in the role of Diana Prince / Wonder Woman, based on the DC comic book fictional superhero character of the same name.

In 1970, Carter successfully auditioned for and then sang on tour with The Garfin Gathering and bandleader Howard (Speedy) Garfin.

Their first performance together was at the Holiday Inn Chinatown, a San Francisco hotel so new that it had no completed sidewalk entrance.

Consequently, they played mostly to the hotel staff and hotel guests who parked their cars in the underground garage.

The Garfin Gathering toured the Nevada "Silver Circuit", playing shows in many of the state's casino lounges between Lake Tahoe, Carson City, Reno, and Las Vegas.

She took acting classes at several New York acting schools during the early 1970s.

One of her acting partners during this time was future CBS president Les Moonves.

As a pageant contestant, Carter was crowned Miss World USA 1972 and finished in the top 15 at the Miss World 1972 pageant.

In 1972, Carter decided to leave the Garfin Gathering to pursue an acting career, returning to Arizona.

In 1972, Carter won a local Arizona beauty contest and gained national attention in the United States by winning Miss World USA 1972, representing Arizona.

In the international Miss World 1972 pageant, representing the United States she reached the Top 15.

Carter made her first acting appearance in "Roots of Anger", an episode of the 1974 police drama Nakia.

She began making appearances on such TV shows as Starsky and Hutch and Cos, as well as appearances in several "B" movies.

She achieved fame playing Wonder Woman in a series that aired on ABC and later on CBS from 1975 to 1979.

Carter was born in Phoenix, Arizona, the daughter of Juanita (née Córdova) and Colby Carter.

Her father is of English and Irish ancestry, and her mother, whose family hailed from Mexico, is of Mexican, Spanish, and French descent.

She has one brother, Vincent, and one sister, Pamela.

Carter made her public television debut on Lew King's Talent Show at age 5.

During high school, Carter performed in a band called Just Us.

The band included a marimba, a conga drum, an acoustic guitar, and a stand-up bass which was played by another girl in the group.

At age 15, Carter began singing in the local pizza parlor to earn extra money.

When she was 16, she joined two of her cousins in another band called The Relatives.

Actor Gary Burghoff was the drummer for the band.

The group opened at the Sahara Hotel and Casino lounge in Las Vegas for three months; because Carter was under 21 she had to enter through the kitchen.

Carter's acting career took off when she landed the starring role on Wonder Woman in 1975, as the title character and her secret identity, Diana Prince.

The savings she had set aside from her days of touring on the road with her band to pursue acting in Los Angeles were almost exhausted.

Carter has publicly stated that, on the day she got the part, she had $25 in the bank.

She was close to returning to Arizona when her manager informed her that Joanna Cassidy had lost the role and Carter had the part of Wonder Woman.

Carter's earnest performance greatly endeared her to both fans and critics and as a result, she continues to be closely identified with Wonder Woman.

The Wonder Woman series lasted for three seasons, which aired on ABC and later on CBS from 1975 to 1979.

Carter's performance, rooted in the character's inherent goodness combined with a comic-accurate costume and a catchy theme song made for a depiction that was nothing less than iconic.

After the show ended, Carter told Us that "I never meant to be a sexual object for anyone but my husband. I never thought a picture of my body would be tacked up in men's bathrooms. I hate men looking at me and thinking what they think. And I know what they think. They write and tell me."

Carter says she got the role back in 1975 largely because she looked the part which was both a blessing and—as one of the show's producers warned her—a curse, saying that "Oh, women are going to be so jealous of you."

Carter had responded, "Not a chance. They won't be, because I am not playing her that way. I want women to want to be me, or be my best friend!".

In 2017, Carter explained her perspective of portraying the Diana Prince/Wonder Woman character.

The 2018 journal article "Casting a Wider Lasso: An Analysis of the Cultural Dismissal of Wonder Woman Through Her 1975-1979 Television Series" argued that the show strongly adapted Wonder Woman's ideals but "was suppressed, undone, and discredited" by American culture as part of a larger legacy suppressing the character.