"That 70's Pilot" is the first episode of the American sitcom That 70s Show first season. It was written by Bonnie Turner, Terry Turner, and Mark Brazill, and directed by Terry Hughes. It originally aired on the Fox network on August 23, 1998.

In the episode, Eric's parents give him their old Vista Cruiser station wagon, and, against his dad's orders, Eric takes his five friends out of town to a Todd Rundgren concert. On the way, the battery dies, and they're forced to give up two tickets to get a replacement.

That '70s Show was created by the writing-producing team of Bonnie and Terry Turner and writer Mark Brazill.^[1] During its two year of production development, the show went through a lot of titles. In an interview with The Star-Ledger, the Turners originally wanted the show to be called Teenage Wasteland, after the song "Baba O'Riley" by the English rock band The Who. But, when they asked Who lead guitarist Pete Townshend for permission, he told them they could use any Who song but that one.^[2] The Turners suggested the title The Kids are Alright, another title of a song by The Who, but Townshend said they could not have that song, either. Finally, they settled on Feelin' Alright, a successful hit for English rock/blues singer Joe Cocker. Test audiences, however, could never remember the show's title, revealed Terry Turner, and the audiences would say in frustration, "You know, that '70s show."^[3] According to Terry Turner, "Everybody kept calling it that for so long that we started to say to ourselves, you know, 'I'm going to be over at the '70s show.' Finally, we gave up."^[3] Other primary working titles for the series was Reelin' in the Years and Feelin' Alright.^[3][4][5]

According to Bonnie Turner, "That '70s Show is an attempt to portray 1976 'in a very honest form.' I think that we would be criticized if we ignored (drug use) and criticized if we did it. It's sort of a two-way thing.... We want to celebrate the time. The time is controversial. It was somewhat irresponsible. The drugs in it are not an endorsement of it or a criticism of it."^[6]

The producers commented that the show is a "historical piece" that shows what America was like two decades ago, before AIDS, yuppies and 'Just Say No' anti-drug campaigns. "But it's also like more conventional sitcoms in that it deals with timeless teen subjects, including first kisses, getting a car and trying to fool parents who actually know what's going on because they've been there."^[7]

The show's producers told critics they felt almost obligated to include drug use in the series. "It would be like doing 'The Untouchables' but never mentioning prohibition or showing the effects of prohibition to leave out drug references", said Terry Turner. "We didn't want to pander to the audience or to say that that did not exist, or do revisionist history and say this was not going on in America at the time."^[6] The Turners compared the marijuana and alcohol references on That 70s Show to the alcohol references on shows like The Mary Tyler Moore Show and M*A*S*H.^[6] Some feared that the drug use in the show would effect children, due to the fact that the show would be seen right after The Simpsons, a show with a huge following among kids. Peter Roth, who at the time served as Fox Entertainment President, told critics that the network was considering putting a warning on the pilot episode of the program. And that he was talking with the producers about including some sort of consequences for the drug use in the episode.^[6] The producers, however, hemmed and hawed about that suggestion. The best the producers could do is promise that drug use will not be a weekly event in That 70s Show.^[6] Roth said that the scene is really no big deal. "It's not some crucially important element in the lives of these kids. But to sweep the issue under the carpet and pretend it didn't exist would be ridiculous."^[8]

Topher Grace, who plays Eric Forman, said: "I remember my first audition. All the kids, I knew. And all of them knew each other. Because they were all famous. Except for me. There was the guy from 'Blank' and the girl from 'Blank', and they were talking to each other, having a great time. And I was the total loser."^[9] "At my audition there was me, and this other girl who looked like a total cheerleader-teeny-bopper-Hanson-lover. I was like, 'They must not know what they want!'", said Laura Prepon who was cast as Donna Pinciotti.^[9]

Debra Jo Rupp, who plays Kitty Forman, says this was "the most pleasant period" of her career so far.^[10] Kurtwood Smith, who plays Red Forman, comments he has "always kind of pursued comedy" because he wanted a more varied career. Smith notes he "enjoys making people laugh" as his character Red, whom he partly based on his own father.^[10]

Ashton Kutcher, who plays Michael Kelso believed the show would "tap into the widespread renewal of interest in the decade of Charlie's Angels and Gerald Ford. "There's kind of a revival, I think, right now of the '70s in the general population. A lot of people are wearing vintage clothing from the '70s and listening to '70s music."^[11]

Critics at the Television Critics Association found the pilot episode "funny", but others voiced concern that it does not show any ramifications from drug use;^[12] Several critics expressed their displeasure that drug-related subject matter the producers deemed inappropriate for children would be wedged between The Simpsons and The X-Files on Sunday nights a time period when many kids are watching.^[11]

Phil Rosenthal of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote that Don Stark, Tanya Roberts, Debra Jo Rupp, and Kurtwood Smith "get the best lines."^[4] He goes on to say, "...That '70s Show is a sweet, smart look at a mediocre decade. So put that in your pipe and smoke it."^[4]