Power Rangers: 15 Things You Didn’t Know About the Original Team
From firings to behind the scenes secrets, here some things even die-hard fans didn't know about the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.
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15. Most Of Them Quit Over Pay Disputes
“The Power Transfer, Part I and Part II” were the 27th and 28th episodes in the second season of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.
The two-parter had massive ramifications on the show’s future. Nowadays, it is commonplace for a show to drop bombshells during the middle of a season. However, in 1994 on a kid’s show, it was a big deal.
These were the last episodes that would feature the entire original Power Ranger lineup. Jason, Zack, Trini, Kimberly, and Billy would never be seen on screen together again.
Jason, Zack, and Trini were selected to travel to Switzerland to take part in an international peace conference. Of course, things were less than peaceful behind the scenes.
Austin St. John, Walter Emanuel Jones, and Thuy Trang all walked off of the show over disputes with their pay.
The non-union show apparently paid them less than minimum wage.
The two-parter had massive ramifications on the show’s future. Nowadays, it is commonplace for a show to drop bombshells during the middle of a season. However, in 1994 on a kid’s show, it was a big deal.
These were the last episodes that would feature the entire original Power Ranger lineup. Jason, Zack, Trini, Kimberly, and Billy would never be seen on screen together again.
Jason, Zack, and Trini were selected to travel to Switzerland to take part in an international peace conference. Of course, things were less than peaceful behind the scenes.
Austin St. John, Walter Emanuel Jones, and Thuy Trang all walked off of the show over disputes with their pay.
The non-union show apparently paid them less than minimum wage.
Amy Jo Johnson’s first six months in Los Angeles were rough for the young actress. In addition to the west coast being a total shock for the New England born actress, the jobs just weren’t’ coming.
Breaking up with her boyfriend was the final straw. She sold her possessions and was ready to move back home.
Then, like kismet, she met a man named Walter Rainey. Rainey would be Johnson’s acting coach for the next ten years. One day, during a class, she met Katy Wallin, a casting director.
Wallin was working on Power Rangers and suggested Johnson come in for an audition. She showed up, crushed the audition, got the job, and was cast as Kimberly, the first Pink Ranger.
Breaking up with her boyfriend was the final straw. She sold her possessions and was ready to move back home.
Then, like kismet, she met a man named Walter Rainey. Rainey would be Johnson’s acting coach for the next ten years. One day, during a class, she met Katy Wallin, a casting director.
Wallin was working on Power Rangers and suggested Johnson come in for an audition. She showed up, crushed the audition, got the job, and was cast as Kimberly, the first Pink Ranger.
Billy, the Blue Ranger was the last of the original Power Rangers to be consistently featured on the show. Of course, Jason eventually returned, this time as the Gold Ranger. However, Billy shot almost had a consistent gig going on between Mighty Morphin’ and Zeo.
It was originally reported by producers of the show that David Yost quit the show due to disputes over pay.
It wasn’t until 2010, nearly 15 years later, that Yost admitted the real reason why he left.
He was sick and tired of constantly being harassed by crew members over his orientation.
Yost said that his character wasn’t taken seriously as a hero because the folks behind the scenes didn’t think a gay hero was believable.
It was originally reported by producers of the show that David Yost quit the show due to disputes over pay.
It wasn’t until 2010, nearly 15 years later, that Yost admitted the real reason why he left.
He was sick and tired of constantly being harassed by crew members over his orientation.
Yost said that his character wasn’t taken seriously as a hero because the folks behind the scenes didn’t think a gay hero was believable.
Leaving the low, but steady paying gig of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers had to be a tough decision for Austin St. John.
Sure, his show was a massive hit, but his paychecks failed to reflect that. He soon began to make a living doing appearances. He’d show up, get recognized, and collect some money.
However, that gig quickly dried up. That’s when St. John hit rock bottom.
He went from being the leader of the Power Rangers to living in his car. He was literally living the life of a starving artist. With just his dog, he drove around the Arizona desert where he would pull over and sleep in his jeep.
He managed to make a few bucks here and there by bouncing for nightclubs and teaching martial arts. Luckily, a friend of his took him in and helped the former Red Ranger get back on his feet.
Sure, his show was a massive hit, but his paychecks failed to reflect that. He soon began to make a living doing appearances. He’d show up, get recognized, and collect some money.
However, that gig quickly dried up. That’s when St. John hit rock bottom.
He went from being the leader of the Power Rangers to living in his car. He was literally living the life of a starving artist. With just his dog, he drove around the Arizona desert where he would pull over and sleep in his jeep.
He managed to make a few bucks here and there by bouncing for nightclubs and teaching martial arts. Luckily, a friend of his took him in and helped the former Red Ranger get back on his feet.
The show never did anything to hide the fact that Walter Emanuel Jones (and by proxy his character Zack) was missing a finger.
Sure, while in costume there were five fingers on each glove. However, when in his civilian clothes, it could clearly be seen that he was missing his left middle finger.
This is even more prevalent when Zack strikes his classic, “It’s morphn’ time!” pose.
Perhaps, the most surprising aspect of this little fact is that so few people noticed that his finger was missing.
At one-point rumors had swirled that Jones lost his finger during a stunt gone wrong on set. This is not the case, the missing digit was a result of an accident that occurred when he was four years old.
Sure, while in costume there were five fingers on each glove. However, when in his civilian clothes, it could clearly be seen that he was missing his left middle finger.
This is even more prevalent when Zack strikes his classic, “It’s morphn’ time!” pose.
Perhaps, the most surprising aspect of this little fact is that so few people noticed that his finger was missing.
At one-point rumors had swirled that Jones lost his finger during a stunt gone wrong on set. This is not the case, the missing digit was a result of an accident that occurred when he was four years old.
This one probably doesn’t come as much of a surprise. Especially back in the 1990s, it wasn’t out of the ordinary for teenagers to be played by adults-- just ask Jason Priestley from 90210.
The cast of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers was no different. Thuy Trang, Walter Emanuel Jones, David Yost, and Amy Jo Johnson were all over 20 years old, with Yost being the oldest at 24.
Oddly enough, Austin St. John, who played the leader Jason, was the only true teenager, barely making it at 19.
It actually makes sense to hire young(ish) looking actors to play teens. There are a lot more rules when it comes to hiring actual teenagers. They can only work so many hours a day and have to spend a portion of their time on set with a tutor.
The cast of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers was no different. Thuy Trang, Walter Emanuel Jones, David Yost, and Amy Jo Johnson were all over 20 years old, with Yost being the oldest at 24.
Oddly enough, Austin St. John, who played the leader Jason, was the only true teenager, barely making it at 19.
It actually makes sense to hire young(ish) looking actors to play teens. There are a lot more rules when it comes to hiring actual teenagers. They can only work so many hours a day and have to spend a portion of their time on set with a tutor.
Despite not truly being one of the original Power Rangers, Tommy Oliver quickly became the show’s breakout character.
First debuting in the 17th episode of the show’s first season, it wouldn’t be long before the Green Ranger was leading the team. That being said, this was not the shows original plan.
Tommy was supposed to be written off of the show at the end of the season.
However, when producers found out just how much of a hit the character was, they decided to bring him back as the mysterious White Ranger.
We bet Jason David Frank counts his blessings every day because he has made his career off of Power Rangers. In addition to being a Green and White Ranger, the character has been Red and Black Rangers as well.
First debuting in the 17th episode of the show’s first season, it wouldn’t be long before the Green Ranger was leading the team. That being said, this was not the shows original plan.
Tommy was supposed to be written off of the show at the end of the season.
However, when producers found out just how much of a hit the character was, they decided to bring him back as the mysterious White Ranger.
We bet Jason David Frank counts his blessings every day because he has made his career off of Power Rangers. In addition to being a Green and White Ranger, the character has been Red and Black Rangers as well.
In addition to featuring an extremely unsettling scene that shows that “teenagers with attitude” morph into actual dinosaurs, there is a huge difference between the first episode of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and its unaired pilot.
The character of Trini was played by a different actress. That’s right, the original Yellow Ranger was played by an actress named Audri Dubois. After being let go from the show, Dubois would work in Hollywood as a stunt choreographer and stunt double.
According to Walter Emanuel Jones, who played the Black Ranger Zack, Dubois was fired after she asked for more money.
This is a bit ironic because, as we mentioned before, that is the same reason why Jones, Austin St. John, and Thuy Trang were eventually let go.
The character of Trini was played by a different actress. That’s right, the original Yellow Ranger was played by an actress named Audri Dubois. After being let go from the show, Dubois would work in Hollywood as a stunt choreographer and stunt double.
According to Walter Emanuel Jones, who played the Black Ranger Zack, Dubois was fired after she asked for more money.
This is a bit ironic because, as we mentioned before, that is the same reason why Jones, Austin St. John, and Thuy Trang were eventually let go.
