When was quantum leap set

It's actually a brilliant bit of writing, and yes, one future leap with Sam and Al together could be a lot of fun. In a dual leap situation, Al would be the Swiss-cheesed novice leaper, and Sam once again the old pro--but without the memory edge and Al libido of "The Leap Back. Incidentally, Deborah Pratt told my husband John and myself way back in that they were thinking of having Tom Beckett go leaping after Sam! That could be neat, too--once! Ultimately, Don apparently told NBC no with regard to the future leap idea, at least as a continuing premise.

The year before, NBC had asked for and gotten leaps that involved famous people, an experiment which does not seem to have helped the ratings and actually annoyed many of the show's fans.

Don was able to find a way to make celebrity leaps work, but future leaps with a kid sidekick were too much for Don to agree to. So NBC canceled the series. Maybe Don could have kept it on by agreeing to NBC's idea, and maybe not.

But as Don said at the convention, it was better to have the show end than let it be ruined by NBC. Many fans have proposed a branching timeline theory with respect to Quantum Leap , in which each possible action in a situation leads to the existence of a multitude ultimately an infinite number of universes in which that action did or did not take place in exactly that way.

However, this theory has one major problem as far as Quantum Leap goes, and no one has ever explained it away to my satisfaction. If all Sam does is create a new history without destroying the old one, then we now have two or a million and two, or an infinite number of sets of people, some created out of Sam's actions and better off, others going on as before, dying or whatnot.

No matter how many Sams are created by the different possible choices made Sam wears a red shirt instead of a brown one, Sam forgets to brush his teeth , the original history in which Sam was never there remains, and the person still dies. Since people change as things happen to them, the branching timeline theory creates in effect whole new people, each with their own memories and personalities.

Furthermore, Sam's own past could not change; we could only get an additional Sam, one who was always married to Donna, and whose brother Tom always came home.

Neither the new Al nor the new Sam would remember the original history at all--because neither of them would ever have been in the original universe in which it happened. That clearly doesn't match what we've seen! More important, the original person Sam leaped in to help would not be helped. Instead, a new version of that person would be created while the original one continued to suffer.

It has been argued that the balance of good versus evil is thus improved in the Multiverse, but it still doesn't help the original person. Also, if the branching timeline theory results in infinite Universes, then all possible outcomes exist, good and bad, with as many evil Sams as good ones and no shift in the balance of good and evil at all.

No, I'm sorry, but it doesn't fit the premise of "striving to put right what once went wrong," and being "driven by an Unknown Force to change history for the better. I don't buy it, certainly not in the context of the show. What I do buy is the concept as said in a straightforward manner on the show itself, over and over: Sam changes the "original history," thus creating a revised history.

Not in addition to! So why complicate things any more than Don or the show does? As seen above, the revised history theory which, incidentally, more or less fits the Back to the Future movies as well enables Sam and Al to improve their own lives as well as the lives of others.

And because they were there in each version of history and participated in the changes, it is theoretically possible for each of them to remember the original history. Incidentally, Sam's universe in any version of history is not quite the same as ours. Obvious differences include the probable presence of angels, vampires, cursed mummies, etc.

Even if one believes in angels in our reality, they probably aren't dead human beings, and a tv series based on a top secret government project would be an unbelievably huge security leak!

There are also quite a few subtle differences between Sam's changing universe and ours. These include the date Buddy Holly left Lubbock and probably when he wrote "Peggy Sue" , Woody Allen's age, Chevy Chase and Bill Murray being on Saturday Night Live during the same season, the release date of the film Earthquake which in our universe came out before Sam's stunt work on it in his universe , the dating of the Apollo space program and the names of the astronauts on board , the exact circumstances of Elvis' audition s for Sam Phillips, etc.

Later, in "A Leap for Lisa," the Project successfully leaped Bingo into himself of a few days earlier, and in "Lee Harvey Oswald," the Project leaped more of Oswald's mind into Sam via Accelerator while attempting to Sam Sam only his own neurons and mesons. All in all, it looks like the Project can indeed send people and even parts of people to specific destination. However, this technique does not give Al and Ziggy a means of using the Accelerator to bring Sam home. Say Sam has just about finished what he's there to do, and so you send the leapee into the Accelerator, targeted on Sam.

One of the following cases will apply:. After all, sending someone from the Accelerator to wherever and whenever Sam is need not have any effect on where and when Sam goes from his starting point in the past. In this scenario, the leapee will just get back at the same time he or she would have leaped to anyway, and Sam's destination will be unaffected by the Project's tinkering.

In that case, leaping someone in may bounce Sam out, but since he isn't really to go, he'll just leap into someone else nearby so that he can finish the job. We've already seen much the same thing happen in "Double Identity," when Sam leaped from Frankie who would probably have been killed otherwise into Don Geno with the power to save Frankie and also help Nona win at bingo. We've also seen it happen in "Lee Harvey Oswald," when Sam's realization of his own identity delayed Oswald's shot for a moment, and then Sam leaped into Secret Service agent Clint Hill to finish saving Jackie.

One major reason why leaping someone from the Project to Sam is easier than leaping Sam to the Project is that all the equipment the Accelerator and the targeting program is at the Project end of things.

Bingo or whoever is right there, and the Accelerator and its operators are in more or less direct control of where he initially goes from the Accelerator Chamber. Sam on the other had is far away both in time and distance, and the Project equipment is lucky to get enogh of a lock on Sam for Al to visit him holographically, let alone for the Accelerator to force him back to or whenever.

This is why the Project was unable to get Sam back to using the Accelerator's retrieval program in the pilot episode. Based on Gooshie's mention of religion, it also explains why Gooshie told Leon he couldn't send Leon back on demand.

I loved learning about history from the show as a kid, and I still appreciate it when I rewatch it now. It was a family affair on my end as well, something I shared with my brothers. Did your son enjoy the rewatch? QL might seem painfully — or delightfully — old-fashioned to some kids these days.

Oh and my son likes the show. Sometimes he will ask questions to make sure he understands what is going on and I am happy to oblige. The show, upon re-watch, feels to me delightfully old-fashioned in its attempts to impart some life lessons, educate the dangers of prejudice, and forever see the opportunity for wrongs to be righted and give the forgotten folks of history a second chance at a better life.

Good on you for paying that kind of fun forward to the next generation. One of my other comments did not pop up but if it does, I apologize. I have seen clips though. I also watched an interview he has a few months back. He enjoys being on NCIS. Heck yes! The plot came in too late and didnt fit in with the rest of the series. Also, it leaves you wondering how they came to know what was going on. If there is a reunion I just hope its not played on too much. She adores Bakula on there, and he still looks movie star handsome regardless of his age.

The trilogy, I think, intentionally leaves all of that unanswered. I loved Bakula in QL. The story lines were not enough for me to look past the horribly fake accents. Watching this show again after first seeing it when I was a kid, and enjoying it enormously. I only remember certain episodes Lee Harvey Oswald, for one. I think our mom had us watch less when the evil leapers thing happened because she thought it was scary for us. Anyway, I grew up and starting teaching dramatic literature and I swear that every time the playwright Samuel Beckett came up, I thought of this show!

I am convinced the name is no coincidence if you look at what some of the plays were about. The casting is perfect and the characters are so much fun. I liked the Return of the Evil Leaper, but I thought I saw a couple of inconsistencies in the episode.

Generally I liked season 5, but I too felt the Dr. Nobody is forcing you to read these. I mean, QL was always soft sci-fi, never too into the actual science part of it, so the rules were pretty flexible. I see season 5 as the ultimate example of this. That just sets up how in season 5 things start to get wonky with the leaping process, setting up things like the trilogy and the finale. I would like to clarify my earlier comment.

I believe that I may have experienced the Mandela effect but I feel certain that there was an episode where Sam leaps into a dog in an earlier season than the season four chimpanzee. It was the first time Sam leapt into an animal and yes the episode was made otherwise I would not be saying so. I am certain that I have seen the episode and now for some reason it is missing. I also remember it being said that there was a total of 98 episodes made and I remember thinking to myself that it was 2 episodes shy of Now it is said there is 97 episodes but I do not believe that because of this particular episode I know exists.

I do understand if you do not believe me but I am telling the truth, I have seen the episode, I have no doubt about it. To give yo an idea, Sam leaps finds himself on the floor of a house possibly the kitchen butt naked wondering who or what he has leapt into.

Wondering why, Al tells him he has leapt into a dog! Here my memory is vague but I believe a scene took place outside somewhere near the house etc. I am sorry I cannot remember more but as always Sam succeeds and then leaps again.

I hope that someone else remember the episode too. It first ran in an era when almost every household had a VCR machine. Subsequently, there was a significant fan base, they had copies of all the episodes and they had accrued knowledge. Thank you for your reply, I agree that it is the Mandela effect. The same thing happened with a film many people have seen, but was denied at first by the actor mentioned, until he eventually admitted he had made the film. Though I have not seen any books or comics of Quantum Leap, I do not believe the dog leap is in any books or comics.

However, I strongly believe that the dog leap was definitely an episode as I am certain that I have seen it. To possibly clarify this, I would suggest to contact the actors and verify if they remember. Besides I feel certain that the episode exists. More on. Get over it. An interesting fact.

Al correctly predicted both that the Steelers Pittsburgh were in the game and that at a crucial point were trailing their opponents by 3 points. In the actual game they trailed the Dallas Cowboys by 3 late in the 4th quarter, , before finally losing I am commenting to let you know what a terrific experience my daughter enjoyed reading through your web page. She noticed a wide variety of pieces, with the inclusion of what it is like to have an awesome helping style to have the rest without hassle grasp some grueling matters.

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Learn how your comment data is processed. Skip to content Search for: Search Close. Close Menu. And this: Your pilot today will be a man who only just moments ago arrived in the cockpit and has no idea whatsoever how to fly a plane. Its story began after the U. Sam Beckett's Bakula "Quantum Leap" project.

In an attempt to save his work, he tested his project's accelerator, but made a small miscalculation that threw him back in time.

He arrived with partial amnesia to find not only that he "leaped" through history, but into someone else's body. His real self was only visible to a hologram of his friend Admiral Al Calavicci Stockwell , who, along with supercomputer Ziggy voiced by Deborah Pratt , worked to help him get back home. Despite this, Sam never leaps into the future beyond his trip back to before returning to the past.

Samuel Beckett was also the name of a famed prolific Irish writer. Some have seen similarities between the series and some of Beckett's work, notably his play Waiting For Godot. Season one's cliffhanger into season two, was the teaser for "What Price Gloria? Al Calavicci drove two different Ferraris in the series: in Quantum Leap: Genesis: Part 1 - September 13, , he was in a red Testarossa which is shown from very low angles so as to keep the identity of the car hidden , and in Quantum Leap: Killin' Time - June 18, , he is driving a rare Berlinetta convertible.

The show's theme song was revamped for the final season. However, the original version of the theme song was used for airings of that season's episodes in the syndicated versions. Scott Bakula would subsequently star on Star Trek: Enterprise Several actors and actresses, who appeared on this show, also made appearances on various Star Trek series. Terry Farrell , J. Sam Beckett is revealed to have attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and his friend and guide, Al Calavicci, is mentioned to have also spent some time there.

Al constantly confuses his second, third, fourth, and fifth wives, but he never gets his first wife confused because she was the one he truly loved more than anyone else. Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell are the only two actors to appear in every episode of the series.

Malcolm McDowell auditioned for the role of Al Calavicci, which would have made him a time traveler for the second time. The first time was Time After Time An actor of a similar last name with a difference of only one letter but no relation, Roddy McDowall didn't play Al, but was his replacement as a holographic contact in Quantum Leap: A Leap for Lisa - June 25, When many TV Shows begin, character's backstories or biographies are often incomplete and inconsistent until a series progresses and these story aspects settle in.

In the case of Quantum Leap, Sam's family history was different in the pilot than how it ended up as the series progressed. In the pilot when Sam first leaps and cannot remember anything about himself, he recalls that he has a sister named Katie who marries a Naval officer named Jim Bonney and lives in Hawaii.

There is no mention of his brother, Tom. Even in the latter part of the episode when Sam calls his family home in , it's implied that Sam is the oldest child. However, as the series progressed, Tom was mentioned as the big brother who was killed in Vietnam and Katie's backstory is changed to her marrying an abusive man named Chuck.

The only aspect that remained consistent throughout the series was that Sam's father died of cancer. Al Calavicci's pilot call sign is "Bingo". Many years later, Sabella played the role of Sancho in the Broadway revival of the musical. In season 2, the stolen truck used in the episode Freedom is also the truck used later on in season 2 Maybe, Baby. Though it was revealed in the series that Sam's initial leap took place in , Sam never leaped into any year later than Sam Beckett was born August 8,