List of additional MythBusters cast members
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This is a list of additional cast members of the television series MythBusters. In addition to the core cast members, the MythBusters team includes several honorary MythBusters as well as some recurring guests.
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[edit] Former and honorary MythBusters
[edit] Christine Chamberlain
Christine Chamberlain was a "MythTern" (MythBusters Intern) who joined the MythBusters team as a result of a Discovery Channel contest and was present for the second season of MythBusters.
[edit] Scottie Chapman
Scottie Chapman is a former member of the Build Team who was called the "Mistress of Metal" for her work in welding and metal craft. She departed after the second season for "personal reasons", according to a message posted by executive producer/show creator Peter Rees on the official Discovery Channel fansite. However, in a blog post-dated January 20 2006, Chapman states that she was 'laid off of [her] job' and in any case had not been fully satisfied with her employment. [1]
- Discovery Channel bio of Scottie Chapman
- Scottie Chapman at the Internet Movie Database
- Scottie Chapman at MySpace
[edit] Robert Lee
Robert Lee's humorous commentary provides the backdrop of many myths. In some regions he is replaced by British narrator Robin Banks.
[edit] Jess Nelson
Jess Nelson first appeared on MythBusters during the "Archimedes' Death Ray" episode (Season 3, Episode 9) as part of the girls' team on the small scale build-off. She appeared again in the Whirlpool of Death episode (Season 4, Episode 3) where she was introduced as a "MythTern" (MythBusters Intern). In that episode she assisted Adam with the building of scale models to test the whirlpool, and towards the end of the episode got to hold his hand as he vomited in the whirlpool tank, adding her own memorable quote to MythBusters: "Smells like pizza." More recently, she appeared in the Mega Movie Myths 2 Hour Special episode where she helped find a car for the use with the ejector seat myth. Once again, she was cited as a "MythTern". She was also shown(as a Mythtern) in Episode 63 Air cylinder rocket. Most recently, she was shown in the Anti-Gravity Device episode, where she watched over the Christmas trees overnight.
[edit] Heather Joseph-Witham
Heather Joseph-Witham is a folklorist whose extensive research in urban legends, myths, and folklore led her to be tapped for information by the MythBusters team. She appeared on camera for at least one pilot episode, four episodes in the first season, and three in the second season.
[edit] Guests
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Throughout the series the MythBusters rely on various guests, typically specialists in the field that they test a myth. The following is a brief list of the more notable guests on this show:
- Peter Anderson: Vacuum Technician - (Levitation Machine, Jet Engine Vacuum) Peter provided vacuum cleaner motors for the MythBusters' experiments, as well as technical advice on how to use (and abuse) them effectively.
- Lester Apple: Elevator Repairman - (Elevator of Death) Jamie and Adam sought Lester's advice on elevators when testing the Elevator of Death myth. His advice for someone trapped in a falling elevator was to lie flat on the floor.
- Frank Doyle: Retired FBI agent - (Concrete Dynamite, Car Capers Revisit, Exploding Pants, Crimes and Myth-demeanors 2) Frank assisted the MythBusters by helping load a cement truck with 850 pounds of blasting agent to aid in its destruction. He also provided the tracer ammunition for retesting the myth of shooting a gas tank to make it explode (Car Capers revisit) and supervised the making of hazardous materials for the Exploding Pants myth.
- Eric Gates: Rocketry Expert - (JATO Chevy, Ming Dynasty Astronaut, Swingset 360, Confederate Rocket revisit) Eric provided rockets and rocketry assistance in several myths, starting with the very first experiment—the legend of the Jet Assisted Take-Off Chevy Impala.
- Ray Guy: Pro Football Hall of Fame Punter - (Helium Filled Footballs) Was interviewed about the myth that the Oakland Raiders would fill footballs with helium for him to punt to make them travel farther.
- Ricky Jay: Sleight-of-hand Expert, World Record Card Thrower - (Killer Deck) Ricky Jay was consulted in this episode primarily for his card throwing abilities, a skill in which he is was a world record holder. Jay is particularly notable because of various film and television roles prior to his appearance on MythBusters, including the part of Henry Gupta in the movie Tomorrow Never Dies.
- Jim Long: Pro Archer - (Splitting an Arrow Revisit) Jim could consistently hit the nock of the target arrow, but cedar arrows would not split. When the cedar arrow was replaced with bamboo, Jim split the full length of the shaft on his first try.
- Roger L. McCarthy: Chairman Emeritus of Exponent Incorporated - (Ice Bullet, Steam Cannon) Roger, an engineering disaster investigator, explains why magic bullets such as those implicated in John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories are implausible, as well as suggesting modifications to the initial steam cannon design that resulted in a successful (but underpowered) prototype.
- Jack Morocco: Pyrotechnician - (Tree Cannon, The Mad Trombonist, Concrete Dynamite) Jack provided the MythBusters with Cherry Bombs and other explosives while they tested as well as explosives expertise.
- Sgt. J. D. Nelson: Alameda County Sheriff Sergeant/EOD Team leader - (Exploding Pants, Dynamite Paint Job) "JD" supervised the use of the Alameda County Sheriff's "Range One" in Dublin, California.
- Sgt. Alan Normandy: South San Francisco Police Sergeant/Court-Certified Firearms Expert - (Blown Away, Finger in a Barrel, Catching a Bullet in Your Teeth, Bullets Fired Up, Mega Movie Myths, Firearms Folklore) Alan frequently assists the MythBusters by bringing modern firearms - including fully-automatic weapons - to test on myths involving guns. A 21-year Police Veteran, Chief Firearms Instructor, former SWAT Officer and Police Sniper, Alan often aids and abets the MythBusters as a Range Safety Officer, and provides some legal and firearms expertise.
- Ben "Cadillac Ben" Rillie: Fan - "Cadillac Ben" donated his Cadillac for the Car Capers series of myths, on the condition that there would be a destroyed car. Although "Earl the MythBusters Caddy" was not destroyed in the myth, and would appear in a few others, the car would be ultimately destroyed after it was dropped off of a 60-foot crane to test the resilience of Buster 2.0.
- Dr. Roger Schwenke: Acoustician for Meyer Sound - (Duck Quack Echo, Brown Note, Voice Breaking Glass) - Dr. Schwenke is called an Honorary MythBuster by Adam in the "Breaking Glass" myth. He found that duck quacks do echo, busted the Brown note myth, and found out how to shatter a glass using sound alone.
- Jaime Vendera: Singer, Vocal Coach - (Breaking Glass) Jaime helped Adam and Jamie (Hyneman) confirm the Breaking Glass myth. He is the first documented person to break a glass using his unamplified voice alone.
[edit] Buster
Buster is a crash test dummy that, while not technically a MythBusters cast member (due to being an inanimate object), plays an important role in many experiments by taking the place of a human subject in many of the more dangerous myth tests. Buster was introduced in the beginning of the first season for the Exploding Toilet myth. Adam had purchased the dummy to take the place of Jamie (who had second thoughts about testing the myth because he realized the foam he would be using was flammable), and Jamie gave it its name.
Because of the nature of the situations in which the MythBusters use him, Buster has been subjected to forces and situations that far exceed his original-design parameters as an automobile crash test dummy. As a testament to the danger of the tests in which he is used—tests that usually result in his being broken into pieces, burnt, or otherwise mutilated—Buster has had to be extensively repaired and rebuilt over the course of the series — to the point that an entire episode was devoted to his being rebuilt and upgraded to "Buster 2.0". The current Buster was designed with quick and simple repair in mind, and boasts improved joints, with a more realistic range of movement, and easily-replaceable poplar wood "bones". The MythBusters chose poplar because in their tests, they found that poplar's shear strength was very similar to human bone, providing an accurate gauge of how bones would react in a crash and/or other impact, since it wouldn't be feasible to use real human bones. In addition, Buster's new flesh (with the noted exception of his face) is made of "Dragon Skin", a special fire-resistant silicone. Buster's original head was retained when he was rebuilt, but it had to be replaced after it was shattered during a mishap on the Escape Slide Parachute myth. The "skin" from the original head was retained to fit over his replacement head. They tested Buster 2.0 by dropping him 60 feet (about 20 meters) off a crane while inside "Earl the MythBusters Caddy" (a donated Cadillac which was supposed to be destroyed in a previous myth).
The MythBusters have at times adapted Buster to fit specialized equipment or give him new functionality. For myths involving holding onto things (such as "Plywood Builder"), his hands are replaced with clamps or quick-release rigs. For myths involving falls (like "Hammer Bridge Drop"), accelerometers, shock gauges, or other related devices are installed in his body. He was even attached to a pneumatic system at one time so he could punch sharks for the Shark Week special.
Buster has since been supplemented with a family of at least four Simulaids, dubbed "Randy" (Father), "Jane" (Mother), "Suzy" (Daughter) and an unnamed son. These were added partly because Buster (even in his current design) was becoming increasingly difficult to repair, and also because not all myths can be accurately tested with Buster due to his size, weight, and other factors. For instance, Suzy (a child dummy) was used to test the myth that a child could go 360 degrees around a swing set. Being representative of an adult man, Buster would not have properly fit the criteria for the myth. The Simulaids were first introduced in the Killer Brace Position myth, primarily because multiple dummies were needed for testing.
[edit] External link
| MythBusters | ||
|---|---|---|
| Main crew | ||
| Jamie Hyneman - Adam Savage | ||
| Build Team | ||
| Kari Byron - Tory Belleci - Grant Imahara | ||
| Related articles | ||
| Season 1 - Season 2 - Season 3 - Season 4 - Pilots, Specials and Mini-myths | ||
| Additional cast - M5 Industries | ||
