On this day, September 19, 1945, Randy Mantooth of "Emergency!" was born.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

He played Los Angeles County Fire Department paramedic John Gage on Emergency!

Randolph Mantooth


Mantooth in 2014

Born: Randy DeRoy Mantooth; September 19, 1945 (age 79)
Sacramento, California, U.S.
Education: San Marcos High School
Alma mater: Santa Barbara City College, American Academy of Dramatic Arts

Randolph Mantooth (born Randy DeRoy Mantooth, September 19, 1945), is an American actor who has worked in television, documentaries, theater, and film for more than 40 years. A graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, he was discovered in New York by a Universal Studios talent agent while performing the lead in the play Philadelphia, Here I Come. After signing with Universal and moving to California, he slowly built up his resume with work on such dramatic series as Adam-12 (1968), Marcus Welby, M.D. (1969), McCloud (1970) and Alias Smith and Jones (1971).

He was chosen to play a lead role as paramedic John Gage in the 1970s medical drama, Emergency! (opposite Robert Fuller as Dr. Kelly Brackett, Julie London as Nurse Dixie McCall, Bobby Troup as Dr. Joe Early and Kevin Tighe as Roy DeSoto). The show aired six seasons (129 episodes) and six two-hour television movie specials. Randolph Mantooth has spoken regularly at Firefighter and EMS conferences and symposia across the United States, while maintaining an active acting career. He is a spokesperson for both the International Association of Firefighters [IAFF] and the International Association of Fire Chiefs [IAFC] for fire fighter health and safety, and honored over the years with numerous awards and recognition.

Mantooth has appeared in numerous films and television series in lead and supportive roles including miniseries adaptations of Testimony of Two Men (1977) and a starring role as Abraham Kent in The Seekers (1979–80). Through the 1990s and 2000s, he appeared in daytime soap operas, earning him four Soap Opera Digest Award nominations. He frequently returns to performing in theatrical productions. He serves as an associate artist at Jeff Daniels' Purple Rose Theatre. His performances includes Mark Kaufman's Evil Little Thoughts, Black Elk Speaks, Carey Crim's Morning after Grace, Lanford Wilson's Rain Dance, and innumerable works by Native American playwrights including William S. Yellow Robe, Jr.

Emergency!

Release
Original network: NBC
Original release: January 15, 1972 – May 28, 1977

Emergency! is an American television series that combines the medical drama and action-adventure genres. It was a joint production of Mark VII Limited and Universal Television. It debuted on NBC as a midseason replacement on January 15, 1972, replacing the two short-lived series The Partners and The Good Life, and ran until May 28, 1977, with six additional two-hour television films during the next two years.

The series stars Randolph Mantooth and Kevin Tighe as two rescuers, who work jointly as paramedics and firefighters in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The duo form Squad 51, a medical and rescue crew of the Los Angeles County Fire Department. They work in concert with the fictional Rampart General Hospital medical staff (portrayed by Robert Fuller, Julie London and Bobby Troup), and with the firefighter engine company at Station 51.

Emergency! was created and produced by Jack Webb and Robert A. Cinader, who had also created the police dramas Adam-12 and Dragnet. Harold Jack Bloom is also credited as a creator; Webb does not receive screen credit as a creator. In the show's original TV-movie pilot, Webb was credited only as its director. The series aimed to be a realistic portrayal of the emergency medical services (EMS). Pioneering EMS leader James O. Page served as a technical advisor, and the two main actors underwent some paramedic training.

The series aired at a time when ambulance coverage in the United States was rapidly expanding and changing, and the role of a paramedic was emerging as a medical profession. The series is credited with popularizing the concepts of EMS and paramedics in American society, and even inspiring other states and municipalities to expand the service.

Nearly 30 years after Emergency! debuted, the Smithsonian Institution accepted Emergency! memorabilia into its National Museum of American History's public-service section, including the firefighters' helmets, turnouts, biophone, and defibrillator. The vehicles of Station 51 are a part of the collection of the Los Angeles County Fire Museum.

{snip}

Randy Mantooth was Emergency!'s heartthrob. Emergency! is constantly re-run on MeTV or COZI, I can't remember which. I caught "Welcome to Santa Rosa County," Episode 10 from Season 6 (1976-1977) a few weeks back. John and Roy had gone out fishing in remote Santa Rosa County. As luck would have it....

And here it is. Strike that. Here it isn't. I'll have to find a video.

Emergency (1972) Season 6 Episode 10
164,947 views • Published on Nov 13, 2016

Thomas Lowry
2.75K subscribers

EMERGENCY! 50! The Show that Saved Your Life (FULL LENGTH)

COZI TV
64K subscribers

189,503 views Sep 8, 2022 #EMERGENCY #COZITV
Now the show is celebrating its 51st anniversary year but you can still join in and enjoy COZI TV's most popular original special "EMERGENCY! 50! The Show that Saved Your Life," here in its entirety!

Behind-the-scenes stories from stars Randolph Mantooth and Kevin Tighe and many more. Learn about the show's immense impact on real-life emergency services as we know them today.

Find your free COZI TV: http://www.cozitv.com/get-cozi-tv/

{snip}

Tue Sep 19, 2023: On this day, September 19, 1945, Randy Mantooth of "Emergency!" was born.

Thu Sep 19, 2019: Born, on this day, September 19, 1945: Randy Mantooth

Thu Sep 19, 2019: Wait! There's more.

Nothing like a lunch of PB&J, Kool-Aid, and deep contemplation of the often razor-thin margin between life and death.

Link to tweet

[Aristus]

1. As a precocious, seven year-old future horndog, I tuned in to watch Julie London as Dixie McCall.

I thought she was the most beautiful woman in the world. I also loved her husky voice, which I didn't know at the time was due to her heavy smoking.

[EYESORE 9001]

2. I probably watched more episodes of that show than any other during its run

I didn’t watch a lot of TV in that era, but it was hard not to absorb that culture through osmosis, and in this case it was two different girlfriends who each had an obvious crush on Randy Mantooth. From what seeped into my consciousness through the boob toob, they coulda done a lot worse in the TV crush department back then.