The 1970s were a strange and wonderful time for television, with inventive shows popping up left and right throughout the decade. Major network shows like The Six Million Dollar Man, Happy Days, M*A*S*H, All in the Family, and Donny & Marie created big stars. And while these episodic shows often wrapped up their complicated plotlines in tidy 22-minute chunks, things weren’t always so easy when the cameras were off. From dead bodies to teddy bears, from mental health issues to bouts in alcohol rehab facilities, here’s our list of the most shocking secrets behind some of your favorite ’70s TV shows.

The Six Million Dollar Man’s Opening Sequence Uses Footage From A Real Plane Crash

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The Six Million Dollar Man was a breakthrough science fiction series that aired on ABC in the 1970s. The show told the story of Steve Austin, an astronaut whose body is re-engineered after a near-fatal crash. But few viewers knew that the series’ opening sequence, which depicts Austin’s supposed crash, is actually real footage of a catastrophic plane crash. The victim, pilot Bruce Peterson, may not have had the option of hiring a personal injury lawyer to go up against NASA, but at least the organization gave him an Exceptional Leadership Award in 1981.