Burt Gummer <img src="images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />.
Though he's a little paranoid and militaristic (overkill) thats what makes him so endearing to all his fans. Also, when he is unprepared for some situation (usually over prepared for one but not for others) he has the resourcefulness to pull anything off. [color:"red"] Burt Gummer, The epitome of the survivalist [/color] . <img src="images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

WEAK! WEAK! WEAK!

We all know no doubt that McGuyver is the man! Who else can stop a nuclear leak with duct tape, SAK and snickers candy bar? That's right... NOBODY!

Matt

I seconf that. I'm surprized that they never made a McGuyver model SAK!

Chris

I missed Macgyver when it was first on but I have caught several episodes on TVLand. That channel is home to almost all the great survivalists. In no particular order you have:

Macgyver - the guy's obviously a genius but his politics seem pretty liberal, esp. concerning guns & the environment

The Professor (Gilligan's Island) - another genius, could build anything out of bamboo except a raft to get off the island.

B A Baraccus (A Team) - given 20 minutes notice and a torch he can convert any vehicle into an armored monster that can repel an invading horde

Gomer Pyle - when he went on a survival test with Sgt Carter he demonstrated the difference between experience and book smarts

Personally I'm a Burt Gummer fan. He drives a cool rig, he knows his stuff in the bush, he's not politically correct and genuinely cares about those around him.

Ed

P.S. - No I don't really watch that much TV. I just have gift for trivia

Another vote for Burt.

Sorry to say, I've caught parts of the SciFi Channel series twice, and it sort of looks like they've lost the sense of humor that made the movies. There's no way to take this stuff very seriously, folks- that's what made it fun, that they realized (and showed that they realized) that it was an inherently absurd situation.

On a broader issue, note that there just aren't that many candidates to choose from. Rambo went to absurdity without a sense of humor, proving (yet again) that that doesn't work, and Tom Hanks in "Cast Away" spent 4 years on an island apparently accomplishing nothing much (after the first week or so) beyond pining for Helen Hunt (fruitlessly, as it turns out) and attempting suicide... didn't even bother to improve his digs in a wet cave in all that time. Not exactly a heroic model.

You really have to dig for examples of resourceful protagonists in TV and the movies. Most plots are stupidity-driven, and most intelligent characters are villains- or at least "mad" scientists. That's so much the case that when someone intelligent does show up on screen that's not the villain, they almost always turn out to be evil in the end, and are invariably defeated by the dumbed-down hero (they may SAY the protagonist is intelligent, but they invariably behave stupidly). What does that say about our culture?

Last week, I saw that Australian movie : "Rabbit-proof fence".
Without any PSK (except a matches box), those abo. kids walked over 1900km ...

That's a quite a big stroll, isn't it ??


Alain

Hmmm.. hey, and what about Indiana Jones??!!! Saw all three on a row last week: the fellow is a master survivalist and a genius with the whip and revolver, but NO KNIFE IN HIS BELT!!
Go believe!

Yes he is good <img src="images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> I'm still trying to figure out how he survived the submarine ride in "Raiders of the Ark".

Matt

My favorites would be:

Burt Gummer
Indiana Jones
BA Barracus

McGuyver does not make my list. He was anti-gun. (Please, no flames.)

well mine favorite is proberbly McGuyver, the fact that he does not have guns, doesnt borther me, i don't have one either ! But i wouldn't mind having one, though.....