Teaser:

Much controversy was caused by this leap as Bellisario leaps Sam into a chimp in the chimponaut corps. His job is to get the chimp into the space program - or he'll disappear forever due to unethical helmet testing methods. He also must avoid the advances of a female chimp in the next cage!

Audio from this episode:

Sam: I've leaped into a diaper!

Place:
Cape Canaveral, Florida

Leap Date:
January 24, 1961 – Tuesday

Leapee:
BOBO (Chimp #52)

Synopsis & Review:

Sam leaps into what at first appears to be another pilot. Fifteen seconds to takeoff. He screams for them to stop and frantically pushes buttons. Blast off!

Sam is freaking out and his vitals are going crazy. Dr. Ashton calls that the mission is aborted. She removes Sam from the space capsule and asks if he is ok. He says he’s never been better.

She removes Sam’s pants, and calls him Bobo, prompting him to look in the mirror. He tries to tell her the truth, that he is not a chimp. But she can’t understand him. Corey throws food at Sam and Ashton tells Corey to stop flirting with Bobo.

Al comes, and marvels that Sam has leaped into the space program. Sam is a Chimp-o-naught, and in less than a week one of the chimps here will be the 1st to go up into space. Sam remembers that Al was an astronaut. Al says he was part of Apollo, and recited Genesis on Christmas Eve while circling the moon ten times.

Sam writes a note that says “My Name is Sam,” and Al tells him that will get his brain dissected. Al tells him that he has to pretend to be who he leaped into, but Sam doesn’t want to follow the rules this time.

Dr. Ashton brings in Dr. Tucker to look at Bobo. Sam shows him the note, and Tucker thinks it's a joke that Dr. Ashton is paying. Enter Dr. Winger, who just transferred here from Edwards to do research. Ashton is introduced to him as one of the top vets on Project Mercury.
We learn the important detail that chimps can’t swim. Sam continues to walk hunched over. He is put in a cage. He remembers the early days of the space race and hopes he doesn’t get launched.

Al comes back and Sam is surprised that Corey can see him. Al says that since chimps share 99% DNA to humans, and that is why Sam can be here. He is Bobo the chimp.Ashton brings the chimps lemon drops as a bedtime treat, and Sam resists.

Al says Ashton is 27 and got her Vet doctorate in London, and grew up in Cameroon, where his cigar wrappers are made. She’s been around chimps all her life. Al says that Sam is here to save Bobo. Tomorrow the two top chimps are going to be picked to go into space. Ziggy says there is an 85% chance Sam is here to see that Bobo is one of the two finalists. If he’s not picked, he disappears.

Sam says spending the night as a chimp wasn’t as bad as it would seem. Stern comes in to feed them, and is basically abusive to Corey, who spits food on him. Dr. Winger comes to talk to Dr. Ashton. He doesn’t believe that the chimps can understand her, but she explains how they have their own ways of communicating and definitely have an understanding of human language.

Winger expresses interest in Ashton and invites her for a drink to discuss his research. Dr. Ashton makes bottles for the chimps - Sam tastes it before she reveals it has caterpillars in it. Dr. Tucker looks unimpressed at Sam’s reactions - he isn’t helping Bobo’s odds of getting picked.

Ashton tells Winger she isn’t going to make it for drinks, the chimps need her attention. She tells him about her history in Cameroon. He says he started out as a flight surgeon before going to Edwards, but was never as crazy as Yeager (referencing the real life Charles Elwood Yeager, the 1st pilot to break Mach 1) and the rest. He doesn’t miss the funerals. He asks her out to dinner, and she says after the launch, which is in 2 days. Al tells Sam he has to be careful, because of caterpillars. Sam tries telling Ashton he doesn’t need his temperature taken, but she does anyway, not orally.

Sam is given a test that spins him round and round. Al doesn’t know how to help him, so has to spy on the chimp in the next machine to figure out what Sam has to do. Sam fails and gets shocked. Finally he gets it and must eat his reward. He has a hard time doing so, and Al tells him to wash it down with the water - except there’s more caterpillars in it! Al helps Sam through more tests. Sam is not good at any of it.

Dr. Tucker tells Ashton that Bobo and Corey don’t have what it takes. Ashton pushes for them, but Tucker says he is assigning them to another project. Ziggy gets access to the records, and finds an autopsy report for chimp 52 (Bobo), for massive head trauma. Sam tells us that all of the chimps that go into space return safely, but Bobo will instead die of head trauma unless they can find a way to prevent it. They don’t know how he gets killed.

Stern returns with another guy. He again has a specific vendetta against Corey, and shoots her with a tranq gun. Sam protests to no avail. They take Corey away. The 2nd guy says Winger asked for numbers 61 and 90, but Stern says to put 61 in Corey’s cage.

An autopsy report says #63 (Corey) dies today from Massive Head Injury. They look up Dr. Winger and learn that he is a neurologist studying head traumas.

Ashton comes and immediately realizes that Kathy is in Corey’s cage. Sam tells her that they took Corey away. He points out the door and then points to her name badge and ring to get her to say Dr. Winger took Corey. They guys come back and Ashton yells at them for the mistake. Stern is an asshole to her too, and won’t answer any questions about Dr. Winger’s research. But Sam conveys the message that he is studying head trauma.

Dr. Winger comes in and is told that he has the wrong chimp. The guys say it's not a big deal, as the chimps are not picked for going into space. Winger says he will return Corey and use a different chimp. But Ashton, understandably, is not happy that he is testing on any chimps. He tells her that at Edwards, 1 in 4 test pilots die. He says using the chimps to make better safety equipment for the pilots is no different than her using the chimps to ensure safety for astronauts. She says his research is flawed as chimps' frontal ridges are two times thicker than humans. They continue to fight.

Winger instructs the guy to bring him another male chimp, and he goes for Sam. Ashton tries to stop him, and Sam fights with the man. He uses his martial arts skills to kick a gun out of Stern’s hands, who makes note that the chimp knows karate. A fight ensues. Ashton ends up restrained by security, and Sam ends up with a tranquilizer dart in his back.

Al pleads with Sam to get up, but he is down for the count. He is strapped into position to test a helmet. It is set to give an impact force of 5k pounds to the left of Sam’s head. Sam comes to while the machine is reaching the correct impact pressure. Al talks him through unbuckling himself from the harness. Sam manages to duck out of the way just as the machine punches.

Still drugged up, Sam manages to hold the tranq gun on the researchers, and lets Corey out of her cage. Together they make their way out of the building. Ashton confronts Dr. Tucker about the validity of Winger’s experiments. Sam and Corey cuddle and hide behind some trash cans. He reassures Corey that Al will find them a way out, and kisses her head. Al returns with an escape route that involves crossing a lake via a pipe that goes over it.

They make their way to the water. Dr. Winger catches up to them in a jeep. Corey and Sam cross the pipe, and as he tries figuring out how to get Corey over the fence with barbed wire, Winder tries following across the pope, but falls into the water. Sam goes back to rescue Winger. By this time, Ashton and others have arrived. Winger says he thought that chimps couldn’t swim, and Ashton confirms this fact. It appears that Bobo has accomplished what is physically impossible. Winger has a new appreciation for Bobo, and for the chimps in general. He instructs Stark to put down the gun that he is holding on Sam. Corey picks up the tranq gun and shoots Stark in the butt.

Al says that Winger stops chimp testing, but still develops a helmet that saves a lot of human lives. Ashton starts her own vet practice in 1965, and builds a sanctuary for orphaned and ex-research chimps. Corey and Bobo have a baby. Sam kisses Corey, on the lips this time, and he leaps. Synopsis by Stacie Wilcox

Personal Review by Carol <aka> C_Dean n C_Al:

This was an especially interesting episode because Sam and Al could talk to each other with out anyone being the wiser. But the one-liners that Dean and Scott were throwing at each other was hilarious to me. The first time I saw this episode I laughed so hard I missed some of it. Luckily I was taping it and I got the re-play it over again. LOL … The chimps were so cute too. Scott actually kissed one a couple times too! Another time the chip was fixing his hair and had it’s arm around Scott’s neck. Awww … All in all … this is one of my favorite ~QL~ episodes!

Project Trivia:
The hand link is the ‘Gummy Bear’. Multi-colored little squares that flash, beep and squawk.

Al is seen using the Imaging Chamber door to leave and is heard when he enters.

Ziggy is referred to as male in this episode.

Al sees Sam leap into the next adventure.

Sam Trivia:

Sam remembers that he got a Nobel Prize in physics and that Al used to be an astronaut.

Sam says, "Even though my memory was Swiss cheesed, I couldn’t forget the early days of the space race. In our mad dash to beat the Russians we quickly put together a space program and shot anything and everything up into the air. I only hoped I wouldn’t be one of the anythings."

Al Trivia:

Al smoked 4 cigars.

Al popped in and out 4 times.

Al and Beth were married in June 1961

Al was an astronaut on Apollo. He circled the moon 10 times and recited Genesis on Christmas Eve.

The wrappers on Al’s Cheval cigars are made in Cameroon, West Africa, which is where Dr Ashton grew up.

(1) Blue suit w/ light blue shirt. Blue print odd cut tie. Gold color watch on left wrist. Dark gold color ring on ring finger of right hand.

(2) Pale Red Jacket w/ Black & White ruffled shirt and Black pants. Red shoes.

Miscellaneous Trivia:

During his role as project observer, Admiral Al Calavicci on the sci-fi series QUANTUM LEAP / NBC / 1989-93, Dean Stockwell, puffed on Honduran handmade Zino brand cigars that cost $185 a box. He smoked about one box per episode.

Sam writes “my name is Sam” on a scrap of paper, much like in the Planet of the Apes movie where a character writes “My name is Taylor” on a scrap of paper.

The title of the episode refers to The Right Stuff, a book/movie about astronauts on Project Mercury.

The first chimpanzee in space:
On Jan 31, 1961, NASA launched the first fully equipped operational Mercury capsule suborbital with a primate, Ham, onboard in MR-2. Ham’s story spans the globe and into the reaches of space. Born in Cameroon in approximately 1957, Ham was captured and brought to a facility in Florida called the Miami Rare Bird Farm. In July 1959, Ham was transferred to Holloman Air Force Base in Alamogordo, NM, to be trained for space flight as part of Project Mercury. Ham at the time was known as Chang, or #65, and was renamed at the time of his spaceflight after the acronym for “Holloman Aero Medical.” Ham and other young chimpanzees, including Minnie (the mother of two STC residents, Rebel and Li’l Mini) and Enos (who would become the first and only chimpanzee to orbit the Earth), were habituated to long periods of confinement in a chair, and trained to operate levers in response to light cues. After 18 months of training, Ham was selected as the chimpanzee whose life would be risked to test the safety of space flight on the ape body. On January 31, 1961, after several hours of waiting on the launch pad at Cape Canaveral, FL, 3 ½ year old Ham was propelled into space, strapped into a container called a “couch.” Ham’s flight lasted approximately 16 ½ minutes. He travelled at a speed of approximately 5800 mph, to a height of 157 miles above the earth. He experienced about 6 ½ minutes of weightlessness. Incredibly, despite the intense speed, g-forces, and weightlessness, Ham performed his tasks correctly. After the flight, Ham’s capsule splashed down 130 miles from its target, and began taking on water. It took several hours for a recovery ship to reach Ham, but miraculously he was alive and relatively calm considering his ordeal. When he was finally released from the “couch” however, his face bore an enormous grin. Although interpreted as a happy smile by many people, Ham’s expression was one of extreme fear and anxiety. That fear was demonstrated again sometime later through an act of defiance. Photographers wanted another shot of Ham in his “couch.” Ham refused to go back into it, and multiple adult men were unable to force him to do so. Unlike the rest of the space chimps, Ham was spared decades of biomedical research, but he did have a lonely existence for many years. He was transferred to The National Zoo in 1963, where he lived alone for 17 years, before finally being sent to the North Carolina Zoo where he could live with other chimps. He died 22 years after his historic flight into space, on January 18, 1983, at the estimated age of 26. Ham’s flight is remarkable for many reasons. Ham not only survived the flight, but performed his tasks correctly, despite the rigors of space flight and the fear he must have experienced. His courage and heroism paved the way for Alan Shepard, Jr., the first American in space. But perhaps the most remarkable aspect of this story is often lost in all of the writings about Ham: he was a baby. If Ham had not been kidnapped and his mother killed, he still would have been nursing at age 3 ½, dependent on his mother for survival. Humans are often considered more intelligent than chimpanzees, yet it is hard to imagine a human toddler performing as well as Ham in this challenging task. It speaks to Ham’s character, intelligence, and bravery. Source

On November 29, 1961, the first chimpanzee to orbit the Earth was Enos, in MA-5.

Bloopers:

Kiss With History:
Al states in less than a week, the first American chimp would be sent into outer space. On January 31, 1961, a chimp named Ham became the first.

Regular Cast:
Scott Bakula as Dr Samuel Beckett
Dean Stockwell as Admiral Albert "Al" Calavicci

Guest Cast:

Guest Cast Notes:

Caroline Goodall as Dr. Leslie Ashton: Born in Britain to Australian parents, Caroline Goodall is internationally known as a leading actress who has starred in some of the biggest blockbusters of the 90's, including Schindler's List (1993), Hook (1991), Cliffhanger (1993), Disclosure (1994), White Squall (1996) and The Princess Diaries (2001). She is a graduate of Bristol University where she gained a BA Hons. in Drama and English, and studied alongside other notable screenwriters such as Jeremy Brock (Mrs. Brown). As a writer, in addition to "The Bay of Silence" for Radiant Pictures, credits include screen adaptations of Rupert Thomson's "Dreams Of Leaving" for HKM Films. A former member of The Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre of Great Britain, Caroline appeared extensively on stage before being chosen by Steven Spielberg to star in Hook (1991) in 1991. Since then, she has worked on film and TV projects in the USA, Canada, Europe and Australia, striking a balance between Independent and Studio films, as well as maintaining a TV presence in Britain and Australia. She was nominated for Best Actress by the Australian Film Institute in 1990 for Cassidy (1989) and again in 1995 for Hotel Sorrento (1995). There followed a Logie nomination for Best Actress for A Difficult Woman (1998) which also won best TV mini series at the New York Festival in 1998. She is married to Nicola Pecorini and has two children, Gemma and Leone. She is sister to producer Victoria Goodall, who is married to actor/director Dallas Campbell. She was in "Hook" as ‘Moira Banning’.

Peter Murnik as Second Military officer: Peter Murnik was born on December 14, 1965 in Concord, Massachusetts, USA. He is an actor, known for Mindhunter (2017), Armageddon (1998) and Granite Flats (2013).

Kim Robillard as First Military officer: Kim Robillard was born on June 16, 1955 in Birmingham, Alabama, USA. He is an actor, known for Rain Man (1988), Always (1989) and The Fan (1996). Birmingham, Alabama native Robillard has appeared in more than 60 feature films and television series, including Rain Man (1988), Meat Loaf: To Hell and Back (2000), Django Unchained (2012), Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003), Hart of Dixie (2011), Carnivąle (2003), Kingdom (2014), Shameless (2011), How to Get Away with Murder (2014), and Dirty John (2018).

Albert Stratton as Dr. Max Tucker: Albert Stratton was born on October 23, 1937 in Cleveland, Ohio, USA. He was an actor, known for Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987), Baywatch (1989) and Wonder Woman (1975). He died on April 26, 2011 in Sarasota, Florida, USA.

Gary Swanson as Dr. Frank Winger: After completing his degree in English Literature and graduating with honors from C.W. Post College, Gary Swanson put aside a career as a professional high diver on The Atlantic City Steel Pier and began working immediately as Greg Mercer on NBC Daytime Soap Opera, "Somerset" in New York City. While starring in the popular daytime drama, he met with the famed acting teacher and father of The Method, Lee Strasberg. Swanson studied with Strasberg both privately and at The Actors Studio after auditioning and becoming one of the very few lifetime members accepted into this elite acting company. Under Strasberg's tutelage, Swanson became one of the highest rated actors on television. Swanson continued his work with Strasberg for eight years while building his career as a working actor in New York and Los Angeles. His movie career kicked off in 1974, and since then he has starred in fifteen feature films. He has guest starred in numerous television series and films, theatrical productions and hundreds of national network commercials. He has starred and worked with some of the greatest directors in the world - Arthur Hiller, Willaim Friedkin, Peter Masterson, Nicolas Roeg, and Philip Noyce. Swanson's teaching credits are numerous, he began with Carlin Glynn at Tajas Productions in 1983. Credits include a summer at Circle In The Square. He taught basic technique at The Actors Studio where he continues to collaborate. In 1994, James Lipton and the executive committee of The Actors Studio, Paul Newman, Norman Mailer, Ellen Burstyn, Estell Parsons, Arthur Penn, asked Gary to be one of four teachers tasked with launching the Masters Program at the New School of Social Research, which came to be known as "Inside the Actors Studio," for three years.

Say What?
Al says we was part of the Apollo mission that circled the moon ten times on Christmas Eve. Apollo 8 did launch on December 21, 1968 and circled the moon ten times, but Al would have been a P.O.W. in 1968.

Sam has a chain around his neck with a tag that reads "#52" all through the show. But at the end just before he jumps in the water, to save Dr. Frank Winger, it's there and after he pulls him out of the water it's not there. So ... did it come off when he dove in or did the prop guys goof?

Quotable Quotes:

Sam: "I got a Nobel Prize in physics and get to keep my diaper on, what’s next?"

Al: "You’ve leaped into the space program!"

Sam: "I’ve leaped into a diaper!"

Al: "Why don’t you take the banana and … peel it!"

Al: "Chimps are our closest relatives. They’re so close you could share your blood with a chimp."

Sam: "I’m in the body of a chimp! That’s too close!"

Sam: "Spending the night as an astro-chimp wasn’t as bad as it might seem. My bed was … firm, the food was free and the company was … more than friendly. The only thing I really needed was … a shave. Over my entire body."

Sam: "She can see you Al!"

Al: "Of course all animals can see me. But she’s only has eyes for you."

Al: "Oh Sam, look who’s coming to tuck you in …lucky. Boy … makes me wish I was an ape."

Sam: "You’re actin’ like one!"

Best Scenes:

Al: "What about the Quantum rules? You have to at least pretend that you are who you leap into".

Sam: That’s if I’m a human, I’m not human I’m a chimp. We don’t have rules for chimps, do we?"

Al: "You can’t get off on a technicality."

Sam: "Ok wise guy, then what am I here to do?"

Al: "Join the circus?"

Sam: "This isn’t funny Al. This is not funny!"

Al: "Have you looked in the mirror lately?"

Sam: "Yah! Yah, I looked in the mirror lately"

Al: "Look, I dare you, go ahead look. Look!"

Sam: "I don’t wanna look."

Al: "You look, I dare you! And if you don’t think that’s funny. HooHooHooHoo."

Sam: "Ha-Ha Al!" (Scott gives Dean a raspberry and the ‘squinty eye’ look)

Al’s Best Scene & Al’s Best Lines:

I love this scene. Dean is such a great actor and every character he plays he puts his heart into the emotion. Sam has tried his best to ward of the guards. They now shoot him with a dart gun. Even though Dean is yelling at Sam, it's with feeling.

Al: "Sam! He’s got the dart gun! AHHH! … Awww no! SAM!"

Sam: "Al …"

Al: "SAM! Can you hear me?"

Sam: "I can’t feel anything …" [He’s being wheeled away on a flat bed cart]

Al: "Get up Sam! … YOU GOTTA GET UP!"

Sam: "I can’t …"

Al: "If you don’t get up … you’re not gonna live!"

*The next scene is in the experiment lab and Sam is strapped to a chair, wearing a helmet with a mallet about 6 inches from his head.

Al: "You okay? … Come on Sam … WAKE UP! Wake up Sam! Good! Wake up! Wake up!"

*In the background Dr. Winger is speaking into a recorder and getting the apparatus ready for testing.

Al: "Can you see me? Sam … are you all right? … You gotta wake up SAM! WAKE UP! … SAM WAKE UP! … SAM WAKE UUUPPP!!! … Sam we got a problem here! … SAM WAKE UP DAMIT!!! … SAM!!! HEY! HEY! WAAAKE UUUPPP!!! … SAM!!! HEY! HEY! … Wake up!" [Sam opens his eyes a little and now begins to regain consciousness] "Can you see me?"

Sam: [Coughs, he has a tube in his mouth]

Al: "You all right? You okay?"

Sam: "Am I dead?"

Al: "Are you dead? No you’re not dead! But you’re gonna be dead if you don’t get outta there! … Learn to unbuckle yourself! Hurry up Sam! Unbuckle and get outta there! That’s it … yah … that thing … your hand right …flip it out … lift it out … [The plunger plunges toward Sam’s head just as he falls forward] "OH GOD! … All right Sam, get up outta there! You gotta get outta here or you’re gonna be road kill! … The Doc put his gun there … SAM HURRY UP! Go grab the gun! Grab the tranquilizer gun! Sam hurry up!!! GET ITTT!!! Okay …"

Awards:
Genesis Award for Raising Awareness of Animal Issues

Production Credits:

Theme by: Mike Post
Music by: Velton Ray Bunch
Co-Executive Producer: Deborah Pratt
Co-Executive Producer: Michael Zinberg
Supervising Producer: Harker Wade
Produced by: Jeff Gourson, Tommy Thompson
Produced by: Chris Ruppenthal, Paul Brown
Created by: Donald P. Bellisario
Written by: Paul Brown
Directed by: Joe Napolitano

Executive Producer: Donald P. Bellisario
Associate Producers: Julie Bellisario, James S. Giritlian
Coordinating Producer: David Bellisario
Story Editor: Paris Qualles
Director of Photography: Michael Watkins, A.S.C.
Production Designer: Cameron Birnie
Edited by: M. Edward Salier, A.C.E.
Unit Production Manager: Ron Grow
First Assistant Director: R. John Slosser
Second Assistant Director: Kate Yurka
Casting by: Ellen Lubin Sanitsky
Set Director: Robert L. Zilliox
Costume Designer: Jean-Pierre Dorleac
Costume Supervisor: David Rawley
Art Director: Ellen Dambros-Williams
Sound Mixer: Barry D. Thomas
Stunt Coordinator: Diamond Farnsworth
Sound Editor: Greg Schorer
Music Editor: Bruce Frazier

Panaflex ® Camera and Lenses by: Panavision ®

This motion picture is protected under laws of the United States and other countries. Unauthorized duplication, distribution or exhibition may result in civil liability and criminal prosecution.

Copyright © 1991 by Universal City Studios Inc. All Rights Reserved.

The characters and events depicted in this photoplay are fictitious. Any similarity to actual persons living or dead is purely coincidental.

Bellisarius Productions and Universal, an MCA Company

Podcasts:

Take a slug of caterpillar juice and cinch up your diaper, because it’s time for The Wrong Stuff!

Monkey mayhem ensues as hosts Allison Pregler, Matt Dale and Christopher DeFilippis discuss Sam’s leap into Bobo, an aspiring Astrochimp with an uncertain future.

Listen to The Quantum Leap Podcast on this episode here: