When we started out, it was...
I don't really know how the initial relationship was established,
because I came on as a hired hand at the beginning,
but I think the idea was to make sure whatever we did in a military setting,
with a military venue, that we had as much credibility as possible.
We approached them, essentially to initiate a relationship.
They jumped at the opportunity. We ate it up.
What it's done in the long run is exactly what it set out to do -
we can consult with them, make sure we're doing things right.
And, ultimately, as respectfully as possible.
In my conversations with our liaison,
and subsequently I have experienced firsthand,
a fair amount of respect from the air force itself in how we were portraying it.
We took what they advised and assimilated it into our product,
and we've got nothing but compliments from the air force itself-
from every cadet right on up to every four star.
How it looked, how it represented the air force.
Ultimately, how it lightened certain perceptions,
certainly in my portrayal of a colonel, and now a general.
It was a matter of choices, and asking MGM to trust me
in my instincts about the character.
There is no way I could do what Kurt Russell did -
if you all remember the movie.
Life's too short to be that stoic and serious
throughout the course of a series.
Not only that, I cannot make my hair do what his does.
Because I had a certain idea that was fairly loosely structured,
it was important that I get some validation
for how I was gonna portray a military officer.
So I got a nice little pat on the back from a couple of the four-star generals,
chiefs of staff, General Ryan and General Jumper.
- Come in. - General.
I'd like to talk to you about this mission upon which we're about to embark.
Seems a bit ridiculous, doesn't it?
Have you met General Ryan?
Hello, Colonel.
The General Ryan? Chief of Staff?
That's right.
Shouldn't there have been a memo or something?
(Richard) The scene we had together was essentially me coming in
and kind of complaining about some aspect of some operation.
But the real deal was in the office.
During the scene, of course, I make a fool of myself as O'Neill.
Between takes of the scene, I just had to ask the real guy
if my portrayal of Colonel O'Neill was remotely credible.
- And I cornered, uh... - (man) General Ryan.
- Yeah. Ryan. - (audience laughs)
...and asked him he had colonels that actually behaved in the way I did.
How was my portrayal going? Was he, you know...
Was it a little shaky? Was I being disrespectful?
And he stopped me in mid-sentence, and just said, "Son..."
(audience laughs)
Which I thought was rather condescending.
He said, "Yes, we've got colonels like you, and worse."
(audience laughs)
In fact, both generals that I worked with on Stargate said the same thing.
"You're doing what we all want to do, but really can't."
Got your hands full with that one, hey, George?
I was invited by the air force to come to Washington DC and receive an award
for my representation and my portrayal, and ultimately, the show's contributions.
They said enlistment was up because of the show. I found that hard to believe.
The award ceremony that evening was the culmination of the week's activities.
Black-tie event. The only black-tie event that the air force has all year long,
in this grand ballroom of the hotel.
It was to present and recognise the real heroes.
I mean, guys that have been through wars or made contributions technologically.
Thank God they had things in perspective enough
to present my award before dinner.
Because after dinner the real guys got their awards.
In the middle of the dinner, there was a fire alarm.
Mind you, this is a black-tie event, so we all exited
in the hot, muggy night in Washington.
That alone was quite a sight to see.
All the ribbons and bows. Photo ops aplenty.
That was great. That part was really fun.
What you don't see, and what doesn't come through on the television,
is the humanity of these actors and actresses that appear on the programme.
And we have here in the form of Richard Dean Anderson,
MacGyver, Colonel Jack O'Neill,
is a truly fantastic American,
who cares deeply about our country,
our people in uniform, and our United States air force.
(audience applauds)
(Richard) I got an eagle, and then a medallion from General Jumper,
showing their appreciation for my contributions,
and the show's contributions.
And then, as an added bonus, General Jumper presented me with general stars.
I became an honorary brigadier general.
If you were watching closely,
Richard has been, actually, the beneficiary of a recent promotion,
which I think is quite appropriate for a guy who saves the planet every week.
(audience laughs)
Absolutely. So what we have for you is a set of stars, Richard.
You are an honorary brigadier general of the United States air force.
I knew I had been humbled in my tracks. I knew I'd been paid a great compliment,
and I was never so honoured in my life.
My father, who passed away about a year and a half ago,
I know -
God bless him - how proud he would have been of me that evening.
It made it all really worth it.
I got a tour of the Pentagon. I'd never been there before.
I'd been to Washington, but I'd never really examined
any part of Washington DC other than the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
But I went to the Pentagon and was given, I guess, a fairly typical tour.
I got in the golf cart. There's 17 miles of hallways.
A seaman drove us around. He was a chatterbox of information.
Shaved clean bald shiny head, just all proper.
I tried to loosen him up a little bit by asking some questions
that you don't normally ask.
Things like, "Why do you have to wear that collar?"
"Are you happy with your uniform?"
"Why is that owl on top of the kiosk?"
But I was just dually impressed by the venue itself.
Just the bustle of activity.
And then, upon reflection and through our tour guide,
really getting a perspective on what transpires behind those doors.
Hallowed as they may be, it's serious stuff.
I visited all the memorials, and all the rooms of the Medal of Honor winners.
Certainly the new chapel they have there, where the 9/11 plane came through.
It was an awesomely humbling experience.
I was ushered into the office of General Tom Moseley.
Or Buzz, as he likes to be called.
Within a minute he came out, and greeted me.
Very boisterous. Heavy-handshake kinda guy. Full of energy.
He showed me his office. He's got a collection of commemorative coins.
Just footballs and memorabilia. All kinds of pictures all over the place.
And I love hearing war stories
or life stories about the military, in particular.
I let him know that so that was like opening up the gates.
The tone in General Moseley's office was such that...
You know that they're very serious about the business at hand and take care of it,
but he was gracious enough, or had things in perspective enough,
to make sure that he brought me in and met MacGyver.
I had the opportunity to go to Walter Reed hospital,
and visit some of the troops that had come back from Iraq - injured troops.
There's nothing more humbling than that experience.
My being there, it was openly expressed, was so appreciated
that it makes you a little misty when you... In retrospect.
I talked to about 10 or 12 guys, spent as much time as I possibly could there.
Guys with no limbs, paralysed,
unable to speak, hoses coming out of their necks.
I mean, just very embattled human beings. They were all just...
Regardless of the fact that I was in a show that represented part of the armed forces,
the fact that a human being from the outside came in to spend some time...
I don't know. It's one of those experiences where it's virtually impossible
to relate what kind of an experience it becomes.
To really be face to face, and in the same room, and communicating with guys
that have seen frontline action.
But it was so appreciated by every man and woman that I met.
That's what made me feel the best about that whole experience.
Notwithstanding the great honour of receiving the awards and the recognition,
the visit to Walter Reed was the highlight. I definitely want to go back.
I have not been more honoured by any experience in my business or in my life.
Mrs Jumper had said, "The last person to get this was Jimmy Stewart, in 1987."
And you want to throw me in with that crowd of one?
Thank you so much. Thank you.
The question about the owl on top of the kiosk -
when it was first built, they had pigeons crapping all over this building.
Apparently, the daughter of one of the generals at the time, I believe,
was a little nine-year-old kid who just said,
"Daddy, aren't pigeons afraid of owls?"
They all recognised that that was possibly the solution, as it turned out to be.
So after spending Lord knows how many tax dollars to fix the problem,
a little 16-dollar statuette saved the day.
ENHOH