The Greatest ’80s Action Hero Had an Identity Crisis Over One Small Detail

The Greatest ’80s Action Hero Had an Identity Crisis Over One Small Detail Angus MacGyver (Richard Dean Anderson) wearing sunglasses on 'MacGyver'.Image via ABC By  Shawn Van Horn Published Feb 7, 2026, 7:06 PM EST Shawn Van Horn is a Senior Author for Collider. He's watched way too many slasher movies over the decades, which makes him an aficionado on all things Halloween and Friday the 13th. Don't ask him to choose between Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees because he can't do it. He grew up in the 90s, when Seinfeld, Everybody Loves Raymond, and TGIF were his life, and still watches them religiously to this day. Larry David is his spirit animal. His love for entertainment spreads to the written word as well. He has written two novels and is neck deep in the querying trenches. He is also a short story maker upper and poet with a dozen publishing credits to his name. He lives in small town Ohio, where he likes to watch professional wrestling and movies. Sign in to your Collider account Add Us On follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap

In the 80s, TV was ruled by action series with cool heroes, from Magnum P.I. and Miami Vice, to The A-Team and Simon and Simon. The most unique of all was MacGyver, starring Richard Dean Anderson as the titular protagonist. A member of the Phoenix Foundation, MacGyver spent every week on ABC battling various bad guys by using his brains instead of violence, which often saw him escaping capture with nothing more than normal items like a paperclip and a piece of gum. MacGyver was the last name of the hero, and that's all he went by for the first six seasons, with his first name unknown. However, that was finally revealed in a bizarre Season 7 episode, but if it had been up to producer Henry Winkler, Mac would have had a different moniker.

Henry Winkler Wanted MacGyver's First Name To Be Stacey

Richard Dean Anderson was the star of MacGyver, but he wasn't the most notable name involved. That distinction went to Henry Winkler (yes, the Fonz himself), who got a production deal with ABC and Paramount after Happy Days went off the air. This led to him being an executive producer of MacGyver, which debuted in 1985. For every season until the last, MacGyver's first name was kept a mystery. Then came Season 7, where the decision was made to reveal who he really was.

In an interview with MacGyver Online, Anderson recalled how the first name came to be. “We didn’t have a first name for him for the longest time, and Henry tried to straight-out name him after his wife. It was Stace for a while, but that just didn’t fly.” Instead of MacGyver being Stacey, in honor of Stacey Weitzman, it ended up being Anderson who found the first name when he attended a show honoring police and firefighters in Vancouver.

“It was at a big stadium and there was a huge LED board screen that was flashing what I think was the mayor’s name – Angus Reid. I got mesmerised by it and realised that had to be MacGyver’s first name. I ran it past our executive producer and his jaw dropped. It was the perfect name – Scottish and proper.”

MacGyver's Name Was Revealed as Angus in a Season 7 Episode

In November 1991, MacGyver aired a two-part episode over consecutive weeks called "Good Knight MacGyver". The play on words had a double meaning, because not only would Mac's life be in danger again, but this is where the audience learned more of the backstory behind the show's hero. After years of characters asking his first name here and there, and MacGyver only offering that he didn't like it, Part 2 of "Good Night MacGyver," which aired on November 11, 1991, went for it.

Part I, airing the week before, was a strange one, as MacGyver finds out more about how his ancestors were treated in the Middle Ages. When he's knocked out, he has a dream that takes him back to the era of King Arthur. He then sets out to find his family and battle knights in an episode unlike any other. Part 2 has MacGyver fighting alongside the wizard Merlin. He finally meets one of his descendants, a Scotsman named Ian M'Iver (William H. Bassett), who has a child named Angus. It's then that MacGyver acknowledges Angus is his first name too. In an era before the internet and leaks being the norm, viewers were shocked by the unusual selection. Anderson told MacGyver Online, "Yeah, I don’t think it got sprung anywhere." But does it work?

Related Henry Winkler Almost Lost His Most Iconic Role to a Member of The Monkees

That would have been different!

Posts By  Rachel Leishman

Angus Fit the Unique Protagonist of 'MacGyver'

Richard Dean Anderson staring ahead as MacGyverImage via ABC

Although MacGyver's first name is finally given to the audience, the series didn't change. In the second half of MacGyver's seventh and last season, he still went by his famous last name. Angus comes back around though in the series finale, "The Mountain of Youth", when a twist ending introduces Sean Malloy (Dalton James), the son of MacGyver. And what's his middle name? Angus, of course. He has the same resourceful nature and love for adventure like his father does, signifying that MacGyver's efforts will live on in some way.

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Angus is certainly a weird name to give MacGyver, but that's why it works. It fits because Mac is a bit of an eccentric genius. WIth his mullet and good looks, he seems like any other guy, yet his actions prove otherwise. MacGyver is a selfless man who feels deeply and cares about saving others above all else. Imagine if MacGyver got to the pivotal moment, only to name their hero something like Ron or Jeff. What's so memorable about that? He's a unique character who required a unique first name. Angus MacGyver fits perfectly.

MacGyver TV-PG Drama Family Crime Western Action Release Date 1985 - 1992-00-00

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