MovieChat Forums > The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo (1979) Discussion > Perkins on the Incredible Hulk

Perkins on the Incredible Hulk

posted 15 years ago by voicemaster71
6 replies | jump to latest

It's nice to know there are other people out there who either remember Sheriff Lobo or are fans. I am a definite Sheriff Lobo fan and I remember watching it on Tuesday nights when I was a kid. It wasn't until I was 11 or 12 when it played with BJ and the Bear in syndication that I discovered the series was a spinoff of BJ and the Bear.

Oddly enough, my all time favorite TV show is the Incredible Hulk w/ Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno. 1 year before the pilot of BJ and the Bear aired on NBC,
Mills Watson appeared in the second pilot movie of the Hulk in November of 1977 before the Hulk became a series. He played the Sheriff of Everett County. And believe it or not, he was wearing the exact same or almost the same uniform that he would wear on Sheriff Lobo. He spoke in his regular voice and for the most part, he was a straight, serious version of Perkins. My little joke is, if Perkins had an identical twin brother somewhere, Lobo was probably kicking himself for not getting Perkins brother for his deputy and had to settle for Perkins himself.

I've heard that Sheriff Lobo is playing on a channel called RTN. I wish we had it. So far, I've only seen a couple of episodes. And I haven't even seen the Atlanta second season shows on there yet. Just the intro.

Cheers

[–] gppressingon 15 years ago

A good and informative post, especially about the pre-LOBO "proto-Perkins" appearance on THE INCREDIBLE HULK. I've often wondered whether appearances like that are what capture a producer's eye and lead to an actors getting cast in another role.

Mills Watson is a great actor. He is most remembered for comedic roles on LOBO and later HARPER VALLEY PTA (a short-lived Barbara Eden sitcom), but he can be seen playing hard-edged, downright mean characters on shows like GUNSMOKE.

And if you ever have a chance to see the original BJ AND THE BEAR pilot movie (syndicated as the two-part episode "The Foundlings") you will see Mills Watson playing Perkins the creepy female trafficker! In that pilot, both Lobo and Perkins were nasty characters (I'm glad they lightened 'em up for the regular series).

PS: Lou Ferrigno was in my town of Omaha today for Free Comic Book Day.

[–] voicemaster71 15 years ago

I know what you mean about Mills Watson as a character actor. I've never seen his other comedic roles. I mostly know him as Perkins. But I have seen him play villainous roles in two episodes of the Six Million Dollar Man series. As a villain, he is somebody not to be messed with.

I saw the pilot of BJ and the Bear back when the series was syndicated. I recalled the pilot where Lobo's car loses its roof during a chase with BJ. The same has been done on the Dukes of Hazzard and on Smokey and the Bandit. The one scene I remembered was the chase ending at the county line and Lobo having no jurisdiction, so Lobo and Perkins climb back in the car, but Lobo's car broke down and they had to be towed. If I'm not mistaken, I think Perkins became sheriff at the end of the pilot. I also recall a BJ episode where Lobo and Perkins kidnap Bear. So Perkins was not funny in the BJ pilot? Interesting.

I wonder if Mills Watson is still alive. I know Claude Akins is deceased and I think Brian Kerwin has had a successful career as a working actor. But Mills Watson is a mystery to me.

Cheers.

[–] kimbro1972 15 years ago

Yes, Mills Watson is alive and well living in Portal, Oregon. I know, I received a signed photo of him. It only took 16 days to hear back from him.

It's funny that someone started a thread of his appearance on 'The Incredible Hulk'. I was thinking of sending him my DVD sleeve from that episode to be signed. :)

It's nice to know there are other Mills Watson fans out there. Thanks for the post. Have a great weekend! :)

The Autograph Kid

If it's useless information, chances are I already know it!

[–] Seaverstown 15 years ago

Where can you write Mills?

[–] kimbro1972 15 years ago

You can contact Mills Watson at the following address:

Mills Watson
P.O. Box 600
Talent, OR 97540-0600

If you are writing to him for an autograph, be sure to include a large postage-paid self-addressed envelope.

Have a great week!

The Autograph Kid

If it's useless information, chances are I already know it!

[–] jefgg 8 years ago

Thank you for sharing that. Is that still his address?