Gil Gerard

As Captain William "Buck" Rogers in the 1979 television series of the same name, actor Gil Gerard was the epitome of the wisecracking stud with the twinkle in his eye. Following the footsteps of other television action stars-of-the-day Lee Majors, Richard Hatch and even Dirk Benedict, Gerard always seemed to have fun with his roles. Despite never having been a superstar, he remained a fan favorite with a generation of kids who grew up in the 1970s and 1980s. As the years passed, however, his presence onscreen diminished precipitously - eventually Gerard fell out of the public eye in the late 1990s, thanks in large part to his ongoing battle with obesity. Instead of letting his weight destroy his career, Gerard instead underwent gastric bypass surgery - a procedure he allowed to be filmed for the Discovery Health Channel show, "Action Hero Makeover" (2007). The successful surgery allowed Gerard to re-enter the spotlight, while generating nostalgia for days gone by and possibly regenerating a once prominent television career.