The movie itself is so-so, meandering around a lot and ending up more or less nowhere. Michael Parks' "Bronson" character says little, and makes even less sense. I suppose the fact that it is a pilot for the series somewhat mitigates this criticism. Nevertheless this movie is a must-watch, if only for a gorgeous Bonnie Bedelia in her early twenties, well before her "Die Hard" days.

Then Came Bronson was seminal and what I remember most about it (since I was 12 when I saw it for the first time) was the notion that you could lose yourself in America by simply getting on a motorcycle and disappearing. The imagery was perfect for young guys like myself who were watching people come back from Vietnam, utterly broken by the events of the period. The theme of "no ties" was utterly appealing to many people who felt that any connection to the "establishment" was empty and devoid of the satisfaction one could get from simply getting lost and "being free." The main character was far less hardened than other similar leading dropouts of the same genre (Fonda, Brando, Hopper) and far less psychodelic than guys pushing the "trippy" side of late 60's America. Bronson was more of a workin man's dropout and that's what I loved about him. And the mountain climb was unique. I think a whole generation of dirt-bikers caught the bug after seeing this movie for the first time.Very cool, man.

"Then Came Bronson" was the baby boomer's introduction to buy and ride motorcycles. After being discharged from the Marine Corp and wanting to just enjoy my life and freedom in this country and this show came on a few years after my adjusting to civilian life I was hooked from the first show. I bought 3 motorcycle within 5 yrs the 3rd was a Harley Davidson Sportster very much like the one used on this show. I am also surprised this show hasn't been on the cable channels. It would be a nice change from the shows that most cable channels run over and over until the viewers know the lines of the characters like they are reading the scripts. The show was very peaceful, just a guy that wanted to see this great country and meet some of the people that live here. Most people you mention this show to from that era remember it and seem to feel it would be enjoyed by a whole new and much younger audience now and I certainly agree with that.

When I heard the name Michael Parks in "Kill Bill 2", I said I know that name, and a motorcycle image was in my mind. Of course, he is now 150 years old and resembles nothing like the young kid 'Brando' image I had."Along came Bronson" was that 1969 kid I had in mind.It was the year I joined the Air Force and later (1971) went to Vietnam. Michael Parks' name rang an old bell today, in 2005,in this person's mind and I had to look up his name at Yahoo to complete my search and prove my theory.Thank God for the Internet and for postings like this site!