Lieutenant Starbuck of the Colonial Service, played by

Dirk Benedict Dirk Benedict (born Dirk Niewoehner; March 1, 1945) is an American film, television and stage actor, philosopher and author. He is best known for playing the characters Lieutenant Starbuck in the original ''Battlestar Galactica'' film and telev ...

, is a

fictional character In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life person, ...

in the 1978

science fiction television Science fiction first appeared in television programming in the late 1930s, during what is called the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary ...

series ''

Battlestar Galactica ''Battlestar Galactica'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The franchise began with the Battlestar Galactica (1978 TV series), original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel se ...

.'' Starbuck is a Viper starfighter pilot, gambler,

womanizer Womanizer may refer to: * "Womanizer" (term), a promiscuous heterosexual man * "Womanizer" (song), a 2008 song by Britney Spears * "Womanizer", a 1977 song by Blood, Sweat & Tears from '' Brand New Day'' * ''Womanizer'', a 2004 album by Absolute ...

and smoker of "fumerellos" (cigars). He is involved with Lieutenant Athena and socialator Cassiopeia, and best friend of

Captain Apollo Captain Apollo is a fictional character in the ''Battlestar Galactica'' franchise. He was first played by Richard Hatch, who would also later appear as the character of Tom Zarek in the reimagined ''Battlestar Galactica'' series in 2005. Apol ...

Fictional character history

Orphaned at a very young age in the Cylon attack on Umbra, a small agro community on Caprica at the edge of the thorn forest in yahren 7322, Starbuck never knew his parents. The man known as

Chameleon Chameleons or chamaeleons (family Chamaeleonidae) are a distinctive and highly specialized clade of Old World lizards with 202 species described as of June 2015. The members of this family are best known for their distinct range of colors, bein ...

, portrayed by

Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz; May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, choreographer, actor, and singer. He is often called the greatest dancer in Hollywood film history. Astaire's career in stage, film, and tele ...

in the episode "The Man with Nine Lives", is discovered to be Starbuck's father, but Chameleon never reveals this fact to his son, instead trusting only Cassiopeia with this knowledge. Starbuck is very close to the family of

Commander Adama {{DISPLAYTITLE:Adama (''Battlestar Galactica'') Adama is the family name of several fictional characters in the '' Battlestar Galactica'' sci-fi universe. In the Original Continuity: * Commander Adama, initially a member of the Council and then Pr ...

, who refers to Starbuck as a man "he loves like a son" in ''

Galactica 1980 ''Galactica 1980'' is an American science fiction television series and a spin-off from the original '' Battlestar Galactica'' television series. It was first broadcast on ABC in the United States from January 27 to May 4, 1980, lasting for 10 ...

''s "

The Return of Starbuck '' Battlestar Galactica'' and '' Galactica 1980'' are American science fiction television series, produced in 1978 and 1980 by Glen A. Larson and starring Lorne Greene, Richard Hatch and Dirk Benedict. Series overview Episodes ''Battle ...

". Starbuck was well liked and had close friendships with some of the other colonial viper pilots such as Flight Sergeant Jolly and Lieutenant Boomer. Starbuck is renowned as a fighter pilot but nonetheless manages to crash a Viper four times, in "

Saga of a Star World "Saga of a Star World" (or "Battlestar Galactica") is the pilot for the American science fiction television series of '' Battlestar Galactica'' which was produced in 1978 by Glen A. Larson. A re-edit of the episode was released theatrically as '' ...

", "The Long Patrol", "The Young Warriors", and "

"; to crash a shuttle at least once, in "

Gun on Ice Planet Zero '' Battlestar Galactica'' and '' Galactica 1980'' are American science fiction television series, produced in 1978 and 1980 by Glen A. Larson and starring Lorne Greene, Richard Hatch and Dirk Benedict. Series overview Episodes ''Battle ...

"; or get into a difficult situation in a dogfight. Starbuck returned for one episode, "

", in ''

''. In this episode (which is Dirk Benedict's personal favorite out of every Galactica episode he appeared in), Starbuck is shot down by Cylon raiders and crashes on a remote planet. "The Wheel of Fire", an unproduced ''Galactica 1980'' episode, reveals that Starbuck was eventually rescued by the beings from the Ship of Lights and that the entire affair of Starbuck finding Angela, delivering her child, and sending him to the Colonial Fleet was engineered by them, to test whether Starbuck was worthy to join them. Starbuck passes the test and becomes one of the Ship's crew. Starbuck reappears in Richard Hatch's original ''Galactica'' novels, described as still the best pilot in the fleet, even though over 10 years have passed since the last episode and the start of the novel series. He and Cassiopeia have a daughter named Dalton, who becomes a fighter pilot. He also appears in the Maximum Press comic book series published in the 1990s, with one story seeing him stranded on a deserted planet and having to fight to survive, much like the episode "

". Due to licensing issues, his likeness isn't based on Dirk Benedict.

Origins of name

The name of the character Starbuck is derived from ''

Moby-Dick ''Moby-Dick; or, The Whale'' is an 1851 novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is the sailor Ishmael (Moby-Dick), Ishmael's narrative of the obsessive quest of Captain Ahab, Ahab, captain of the whaler, whaling ship ''Pequod (Moby- ...

''. In the novel, it is the name of the

first mate A chief mate (C/M) or chief officer, usually also synonymous with the first mate or first officer, is a licensed mariner and head of the deck department of a merchant ship. The chief mate is customarily a watchstander and is in charge of the ship ...

of the whaling ship the ''Pequod''.

Reception

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

'' ranked Starbuck # 21 on its "25 Greatest Sci-Fi Legends of All Time" list.

References

External links

Starbuck
at Battlestar Wiki {{DEFAULTSORT:Starbuck Battlestar Galactica (1978) characters Galactica 1980 characters Fictional lieutenants

Fictional character history

Origins of name

Reception

See also

References

External links