Native South Floridians like me still miss a one-time New Year's Eve tradition - the King Orange Jamboree Parade.
Here's a clip of NBC coverage from 1977, featuring Joe Garagiola on the mike and the late Gilda Radner on the float:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYleIbyMNHo
But the richest coverage comes from Florida's oldest television station (then WTVJ-Channel 4), which gave the best detail. Here's hoping someone posts some clips of that local coverage on YouTube soon!
Meanwhile, have a Happy and Healthy 2009 - and Happy Viewing!
Friday, December 26, 2008
Friday, December 19, 2008
Week of 12/19: Classic Nutcracker
This week, PBS featured the San Francisco Ballet's version of "The Nutcracker." It made me hark back to the first version of the classic ballet I ever saw on television: The 1976 version, also by PBS, with Mikhail Baryshnikov and Gelsey Kirkland. To me, it's still the best version. Here's a clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3z3vvmuCuDg&feature=PlayList&p=BAF605CD0A898EE1&playnext=1&index=31
Baryshnikov has become a ballet legend. Kirkland, whose dancing career started when she was a teenager and ended in 1986, rebuilt her life after drug problems in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and now directs ballets and ballet companies. Both of them were exquisite in this American Ballet Theater version of Tchaikovsky's Christmas ballet.
Happy Holidays to all, and Happy Viewing!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3z3vvmuCuDg&feature=PlayList&p=BAF605CD0A898EE1&playnext=1&index=31
Baryshnikov has become a ballet legend. Kirkland, whose dancing career started when she was a teenager and ended in 1986, rebuilt her life after drug problems in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and now directs ballets and ballet companies. Both of them were exquisite in this American Ballet Theater version of Tchaikovsky's Christmas ballet.
Happy Holidays to all, and Happy Viewing!
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Week of Dec. 12: A Look At "Boston Legal" Castmembers
In its quirky style, ABC's "Boston Legal" signed off this week.
Quite a few of the cast members have a long television pedigree, of course, beginning with William Shatner, who rose to stardom as Capt. James T. Kirk on "Star Trek" and also had the cop series "T.J. Hooker" on ABC in the 1980s. All of "Star Trek" and the first two seasons of "T.J. Hooker" are available on DVD. Viewers can also catch episodes online; since Paramount produced "Star Trek," CBS.com has some of those episodes. "T.J. Hooker" can be found at Hulu.com.
Candice Bergen, of course, starred on "Murphy Brown," which I talked about a while back.
Rene Auberjonois joined "Benson" during the second season and stayed for the rest of that ABC comedy's run.
John Larroquette is no stranger to quirkiness; he won four of his Emmys playing the skirt-chasing Dan Fielding on "Night Court." Only the first season (13 episodes) of this hilarious NBC comedy have been released on DVD so far, but IMDB.com reports good news: Season 2 is coming in February.
Here's a link to a scene from the show:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlxwgoT-Yrc
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
Quite a few of the cast members have a long television pedigree, of course, beginning with William Shatner, who rose to stardom as Capt. James T. Kirk on "Star Trek" and also had the cop series "T.J. Hooker" on ABC in the 1980s. All of "Star Trek" and the first two seasons of "T.J. Hooker" are available on DVD. Viewers can also catch episodes online; since Paramount produced "Star Trek," CBS.com has some of those episodes. "T.J. Hooker" can be found at Hulu.com.
Candice Bergen, of course, starred on "Murphy Brown," which I talked about a while back.
Rene Auberjonois joined "Benson" during the second season and stayed for the rest of that ABC comedy's run.
John Larroquette is no stranger to quirkiness; he won four of his Emmys playing the skirt-chasing Dan Fielding on "Night Court." Only the first season (13 episodes) of this hilarious NBC comedy have been released on DVD so far, but IMDB.com reports good news: Season 2 is coming in February.
Here's a link to a scene from the show:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlxwgoT-Yrc
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
Friday, December 5, 2008
Week of 12/5: Whatever Happened To the Class Of '72?
Here's a link to a treat from YouTube; the CBS rookie Class of 1972:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Q-3rGavp1g
Class is right. From those shows, four - "M*A*S*H," "The Bob Newhart Show," "The Waltons" and "Maude" - went on to become television immortals.
A little bit about two that didn't quite succeed:
*"Anna and the King" was, of course, a serial version of the great musical "The King and I." Yul Brynner decided to try series television in the role that made him a legend, while Samantha Eggar played Anna Leonowens. The show is worth mentioning because the pilot episode, which also featured character actor Keye Luke, is one of the extras on the DVD release of "The King and I."
*"The New Bill Cosby Show" was show number 4 of 8 series he's done (so far, and counting the animated ones). It was a variety show, won a Golden Globe, but never really caught on. Cosby didn't have long to cry, though; he was already in a featured role on the PBS program "The Electric Company," and he had a Saturday morning hit with "Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids." Hey, hey, hey!
Now on to the ones that did succeed:
*"Maude": I believe the clip in the YouTube video is from an episode of "All In the Family," where the character of Maude Findlay, Edith Bunker's feminist (at least in her mind) cousin, originated. Beatrice Arthur played Maude with guts through many controversial episodes, including one in which the character has an abortion. Bill Macy played Maude's long-suffering husband, Walter, Adrienne Barbeau played her equally much-married daughter, Carol, and Rue McClanahan and Conrad Bain played their neighbors, Vivian and Arthur Harmon. Esther Rolle's character of Florida Evans ("Good Times") originated on this show as well. And then there's Donny Hathaway's great version of the theme song. ("Lady Godiva was a freedom rider....")Norman Lear continued his magic. The first season is available on DVD.
*"The Waltons": I talked about this show last week; the clips on the preview come from 1971's "The Homecoming: A Christmas Story," which featured the actors who played the Walton children in the series.
*"The Bob Newhart Show": Interesting clip on YouTube, because children were never part of the show, and Bob Newhart famously told a story that when the writers wanted Suzanne Pleshette's character of Emily to be pregnant, he told them, "Who are you going to get to play Bob?" It definitely is not from the show's very funny first episode, "Fly the Unfriendly Skies," (available, along with the show's first three seasons, at Hulu.com) in which Bob tries to get Emily to take a plane flight.
But the YouTube scene does show them in bed; interesting when one remembers the hilarious ending to "Newhart," in which Dick Loudon, the Vermont innkeeper, and all the characters around him turn out to have been a dream of Bob Hartley, who ate too much Japanese food. Much of "The Bob Newhart Show" is also available on DVD.
*"M*A*S*H": The clip on YouTube is from the pilot episode, but the show would really start to hit its stride halfway through the first season and go on to 251 episodes, including the highest-rated program in television history, the finale "Goodbye, Farewell and Amen." The entire series is available on DVD; the "Medicine and Martinis Collection," which includes the series, the movie and all televised retrospectives, is a good bargain buy.
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Q-3rGavp1g
Class is right. From those shows, four - "M*A*S*H," "The Bob Newhart Show," "The Waltons" and "Maude" - went on to become television immortals.
A little bit about two that didn't quite succeed:
*"Anna and the King" was, of course, a serial version of the great musical "The King and I." Yul Brynner decided to try series television in the role that made him a legend, while Samantha Eggar played Anna Leonowens. The show is worth mentioning because the pilot episode, which also featured character actor Keye Luke, is one of the extras on the DVD release of "The King and I."
*"The New Bill Cosby Show" was show number 4 of 8 series he's done (so far, and counting the animated ones). It was a variety show, won a Golden Globe, but never really caught on. Cosby didn't have long to cry, though; he was already in a featured role on the PBS program "The Electric Company," and he had a Saturday morning hit with "Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids." Hey, hey, hey!
Now on to the ones that did succeed:
*"Maude": I believe the clip in the YouTube video is from an episode of "All In the Family," where the character of Maude Findlay, Edith Bunker's feminist (at least in her mind) cousin, originated. Beatrice Arthur played Maude with guts through many controversial episodes, including one in which the character has an abortion. Bill Macy played Maude's long-suffering husband, Walter, Adrienne Barbeau played her equally much-married daughter, Carol, and Rue McClanahan and Conrad Bain played their neighbors, Vivian and Arthur Harmon. Esther Rolle's character of Florida Evans ("Good Times") originated on this show as well. And then there's Donny Hathaway's great version of the theme song. ("Lady Godiva was a freedom rider....")Norman Lear continued his magic. The first season is available on DVD.
*"The Waltons": I talked about this show last week; the clips on the preview come from 1971's "The Homecoming: A Christmas Story," which featured the actors who played the Walton children in the series.
*"The Bob Newhart Show": Interesting clip on YouTube, because children were never part of the show, and Bob Newhart famously told a story that when the writers wanted Suzanne Pleshette's character of Emily to be pregnant, he told them, "Who are you going to get to play Bob?" It definitely is not from the show's very funny first episode, "Fly the Unfriendly Skies," (available, along with the show's first three seasons, at Hulu.com) in which Bob tries to get Emily to take a plane flight.
But the YouTube scene does show them in bed; interesting when one remembers the hilarious ending to "Newhart," in which Dick Loudon, the Vermont innkeeper, and all the characters around him turn out to have been a dream of Bob Hartley, who ate too much Japanese food. Much of "The Bob Newhart Show" is also available on DVD.
*"M*A*S*H": The clip on YouTube is from the pilot episode, but the show would really start to hit its stride halfway through the first season and go on to 251 episodes, including the highest-rated program in television history, the finale "Goodbye, Farewell and Amen." The entire series is available on DVD; the "Medicine and Martinis Collection," which includes the series, the movie and all televised retrospectives, is a good bargain buy.
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
Friday, November 28, 2008
Week of Nov. 28: Remembering Family: "The Waltons"
Certainly one of the best family programs ever was the CBS drama "The Waltons," which ran from 1972-81.
The program was based on the real-life experiences of creator Earl Hamner, who grew up in Virginia during the depression. He first turned those experiences into the book "Spencer's Mountain," which became a feature film in 1964. It starred Henry Fonda, Maureen O'Hara and James MacArthur (Hawaii Five-O's Danny Williams).
"The Homecoming" was written in 1970 and followed by the 1971 CBS television movie "The Homecoming: A Christmas Story." For that movie, the names had been changed from Spencer to Walton, the number of children modified to seven, and the characters modified and, in some cases, softened from the novels. Patricia Neal played Olivia Walton and Edgar Bergen played Grandpa (Zeb) Walton. Character actors included Cleavon Little, William Windom and Andrew Duggan, who briefly played John Walton. However, eight cast members would stick around for the series: Ellen Corby, who played Grandma (Esther) Walton, Richard Thomas, who played John-Boy, and Judy Norton, Mary McDonough, Kami Cotler, Jon Walmsley, Eric Scott and David Harper, who played, respectively: Mary Ellen, Erin, Elizabeth, Jason, Ben and Jim Bob Walton.
For the series, of course, Michael Learned and Ralph Waite would play Olivia and John Walton, while the legendary Will Geer would play Grandpa. Joe Conley played storekeeper Ike Godsey, while Mary Jackson and Helen Kleeb played the bootlegging Baldwin sisters. John Ritter's rise to stardom included a recurring role on the show as Rev. Matthew Fordwick.
Behind the scenes, Jerry Goldsmith wrote the memorable theme song and Alexander Courage wrote background music. Hamner wrote most of the episodes. Directors included some of television's best (Philip Leacock, Alf Kjellin and Ivan Dixon, who had co-starred in the comedy "Hogan's Heroes.").
Geer, Corby, Learned and Thomas all won Emmys, as did the show itself. Its high point was the first six seasons, until Thomas left, Corby suffered a stroke and Geer died. Learned left the show in 1979. All the surviving cast members would return for televsion movies during the 1980s and 1990s.
Though the official Web site hasn't been updated recently, it has detailed information about the series:
http://www.the-waltons.com/
Also, most of the series is available on DVD. And there are tons of clips on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%22the+waltons%22&search_type=&aq=f
Until next week, Goodnight John Boy. And Happy Viewing!
The program was based on the real-life experiences of creator Earl Hamner, who grew up in Virginia during the depression. He first turned those experiences into the book "Spencer's Mountain," which became a feature film in 1964. It starred Henry Fonda, Maureen O'Hara and James MacArthur (Hawaii Five-O's Danny Williams).
"The Homecoming" was written in 1970 and followed by the 1971 CBS television movie "The Homecoming: A Christmas Story." For that movie, the names had been changed from Spencer to Walton, the number of children modified to seven, and the characters modified and, in some cases, softened from the novels. Patricia Neal played Olivia Walton and Edgar Bergen played Grandpa (Zeb) Walton. Character actors included Cleavon Little, William Windom and Andrew Duggan, who briefly played John Walton. However, eight cast members would stick around for the series: Ellen Corby, who played Grandma (Esther) Walton, Richard Thomas, who played John-Boy, and Judy Norton, Mary McDonough, Kami Cotler, Jon Walmsley, Eric Scott and David Harper, who played, respectively: Mary Ellen, Erin, Elizabeth, Jason, Ben and Jim Bob Walton.
For the series, of course, Michael Learned and Ralph Waite would play Olivia and John Walton, while the legendary Will Geer would play Grandpa. Joe Conley played storekeeper Ike Godsey, while Mary Jackson and Helen Kleeb played the bootlegging Baldwin sisters. John Ritter's rise to stardom included a recurring role on the show as Rev. Matthew Fordwick.
Behind the scenes, Jerry Goldsmith wrote the memorable theme song and Alexander Courage wrote background music. Hamner wrote most of the episodes. Directors included some of television's best (Philip Leacock, Alf Kjellin and Ivan Dixon, who had co-starred in the comedy "Hogan's Heroes.").
Geer, Corby, Learned and Thomas all won Emmys, as did the show itself. Its high point was the first six seasons, until Thomas left, Corby suffered a stroke and Geer died. Learned left the show in 1979. All the surviving cast members would return for televsion movies during the 1980s and 1990s.
Though the official Web site hasn't been updated recently, it has detailed information about the series:
http://www.the-waltons.com/
Also, most of the series is available on DVD. And there are tons of clips on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%22the+waltons%22&search_type=&aq=f
Until next week, Goodnight John Boy. And Happy Viewing!
Friday, November 21, 2008
Week of Nov. 21: Saluting "The Odd Couple"
Can two divorced men share an apartment without driving each other crazy?
No.
And because they couldn't, the saga of Felix Unger and Oscar Madison kept viewers laughing at the television version of "The Odd Couple" for five seasons (1970-75) on ABC. All five seasons are now available on DVD, with the release of the final season this week.
Few television stars have ever had better buddy chemistry than Tony Randall as Felix and Jack Klugman as Oscar. Randall had established himself as one of the best second-banana film actors in various comedies, including "Pillow Talk" with Doris Day and Rock Hudson. Klugman had also been featured in films, including the classic drama "12 Angry Men." Both men won Emmys for their "Odd Couple" roles.
Neil Simon, who wrote the play that begat the movie that begat the series, wrote various episodes. Jerry Belson, writer of various films and television shows, and Garry Marshall co-created the series; Marshall would go on to become a TV producing legend with shows like "Happy Days" and "Laverne and Shirley," before he directed comedies like "Pretty Woman."
Penny Marshall also cut her teeth on this program, as Oscar's secretary.
Here's a fan site with show information:
http://www.oddcouple.info/
And here's a link to the opening credits, which are also funny:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Af1h4ibpKJA
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing - and Happy Thanksgiving!
No.
And because they couldn't, the saga of Felix Unger and Oscar Madison kept viewers laughing at the television version of "The Odd Couple" for five seasons (1970-75) on ABC. All five seasons are now available on DVD, with the release of the final season this week.
Few television stars have ever had better buddy chemistry than Tony Randall as Felix and Jack Klugman as Oscar. Randall had established himself as one of the best second-banana film actors in various comedies, including "Pillow Talk" with Doris Day and Rock Hudson. Klugman had also been featured in films, including the classic drama "12 Angry Men." Both men won Emmys for their "Odd Couple" roles.
Neil Simon, who wrote the play that begat the movie that begat the series, wrote various episodes. Jerry Belson, writer of various films and television shows, and Garry Marshall co-created the series; Marshall would go on to become a TV producing legend with shows like "Happy Days" and "Laverne and Shirley," before he directed comedies like "Pretty Woman."
Penny Marshall also cut her teeth on this program, as Oscar's secretary.
Here's a fan site with show information:
http://www.oddcouple.info/
And here's a link to the opening credits, which are also funny:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Af1h4ibpKJA
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing - and Happy Thanksgiving!
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Week of 11/14: Celebrating "The Cosby Show"
"The Cosby Show" has a special 25th anniversary release (OK, technically it's only the 24th anniversary, but what the heck.). Whatever the number, it is richly deserved. The program is credited for bringing back the situation comedy, and certainly brought back NBC from the doldrums during the early 1980s.
Much has already been written about the show, so I won't add to it. Instead, here's a link to the very funny scene from the pilot episode, in which Theo (Malcolm-Jamal Warner) tells dad Cliff Huxtable (Bill Cosby), he wants to live like "regular people."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFY0HBkUm8o
Enjoy, and see you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
Much has already been written about the show, so I won't add to it. Instead, here's a link to the very funny scene from the pilot episode, in which Theo (Malcolm-Jamal Warner) tells dad Cliff Huxtable (Bill Cosby), he wants to live like "regular people."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFY0HBkUm8o
Enjoy, and see you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
Friday, November 7, 2008
Week of 11/7: Getting Smart and Taking a Look at "TV Guide"
In honor of this week's release of the film version of "Get Smart" and the entire series in a box DVD set, here's a link to a clip including the infamous "Cone of Silence":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLZKEre3yJ0&feature=related
*************************************************************************************
A few weeks ago, there was an announcement that "TV Guide" is being sold to a private equity firm. These days, the legendary publication looks like just another celebrity magazine, inside and out. Once upon a time, though, "TV Guide" was something special.
Its first issue came out in 1953, the week both the real Desi Arnaz, Jr. and the fictional Little Ricky Ricardo were born. The mom to both, Lucille Ball, was on the cover.
"TV Guide" is a treasure trove of most of the industry's history. But during the glory years of publisher Walter Annenberg, the magazine was not afraid to be hard-hitting, focusing on the worst of the industry and deflating the big egos of big stars. (And then there was my all-time favorite "TV Guide" headline from days gone by: "Why You Have Purple People In Your Living Room." )
There were also plenty of classic covers. Here's a link to one with "Hawaii Five-O" star Jack Lord:
http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/hawaii-o/photos/100202/7
It's infuriatingly difficult to try to find an online collection of classic covers. "TV Guide" itself doesn't make it easier with its confusing Web site.
A note to "TV Guide": If you want to save your future, get better at displaying your past on your Web site, as you do with your excellent books about television history.
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLZKEre3yJ0&feature=related
*************************************************************************************
A few weeks ago, there was an announcement that "TV Guide" is being sold to a private equity firm. These days, the legendary publication looks like just another celebrity magazine, inside and out. Once upon a time, though, "TV Guide" was something special.
Its first issue came out in 1953, the week both the real Desi Arnaz, Jr. and the fictional Little Ricky Ricardo were born. The mom to both, Lucille Ball, was on the cover.
"TV Guide" is a treasure trove of most of the industry's history. But during the glory years of publisher Walter Annenberg, the magazine was not afraid to be hard-hitting, focusing on the worst of the industry and deflating the big egos of big stars. (And then there was my all-time favorite "TV Guide" headline from days gone by: "Why You Have Purple People In Your Living Room." )
There were also plenty of classic covers. Here's a link to one with "Hawaii Five-O" star Jack Lord:
http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/hawaii-o/photos/100202/7
It's infuriatingly difficult to try to find an online collection of classic covers. "TV Guide" itself doesn't make it easier with its confusing Web site.
A note to "TV Guide": If you want to save your future, get better at displaying your past on your Web site, as you do with your excellent books about television history.
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
Friday, October 31, 2008
Week of Oct. 21: New DVDs and A Halloween Classic
A trio of hit shows are out on DVD this week.
The first is Season 1 of "The Donna Reed Show," the hit comedy that starred the actress who made a name for herself in movies including "It's a Wonderful Life," as well as a young Shelley Fabares, who later co-starred in "Coach" and "One Day At a Time," is related to Nanette Fabray (who was also on "One Day") and is married to "M*A*S*H" star Mike Farrell. During the series, Fabares made the hit parade with "Johnny Angel":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4832LQ0_T8g
Here's a link to a nice website about the show:
http://www.donnareedshow.com/intro.html
Also out this week are two series, in their entirety:
-"Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman": The popular CBS hit, which ran from 1992 until it was prematurely yanked in 1998, starred British actress Jane Seymour as Dr. Michaela Quinn, a pioneer in medicine who left Boston for a life on the frontier. Joe Lando ("One Life To Live") co-starred as Sully, who eventually became her husband. Other stars included Barbara Babcock and Orson Bean, and guest stars included Johnny and June Carter Cash, John Schneider ("The Dukes of Hazzard"), Willie Nelson, Barbara Mandrell, Kenny Rogers and Mr. Rogers (Yes, Fred Rogers). This show also has an official website:
http://www.drquinnmd.com/
And Sanford and Son, the very funny NBC comedy that starred Redd Foxx and Demond Wilson. The show was part of the Norman Lear dynasty of the 1970s, based on a British program called "Steptoe & Son." The show had a great theme song, composed by the legendary Quincy Jones:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WS_VH-Uk0U
***********************************************************************************
It's Halloween, and you know what that means:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecN9mLpM2mM
Happy Halloween - and Happy Viewing, until next week!
The first is Season 1 of "The Donna Reed Show," the hit comedy that starred the actress who made a name for herself in movies including "It's a Wonderful Life," as well as a young Shelley Fabares, who later co-starred in "Coach" and "One Day At a Time," is related to Nanette Fabray (who was also on "One Day") and is married to "M*A*S*H" star Mike Farrell. During the series, Fabares made the hit parade with "Johnny Angel":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4832LQ0_T8g
Here's a link to a nice website about the show:
http://www.donnareedshow.com/intro.html
Also out this week are two series, in their entirety:
-"Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman": The popular CBS hit, which ran from 1992 until it was prematurely yanked in 1998, starred British actress Jane Seymour as Dr. Michaela Quinn, a pioneer in medicine who left Boston for a life on the frontier. Joe Lando ("One Life To Live") co-starred as Sully, who eventually became her husband. Other stars included Barbara Babcock and Orson Bean, and guest stars included Johnny and June Carter Cash, John Schneider ("The Dukes of Hazzard"), Willie Nelson, Barbara Mandrell, Kenny Rogers and Mr. Rogers (Yes, Fred Rogers). This show also has an official website:
http://www.drquinnmd.com/
And Sanford and Son, the very funny NBC comedy that starred Redd Foxx and Demond Wilson. The show was part of the Norman Lear dynasty of the 1970s, based on a British program called "Steptoe & Son." The show had a great theme song, composed by the legendary Quincy Jones:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WS_VH-Uk0U
***********************************************************************************
It's Halloween, and you know what that means:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecN9mLpM2mM
Happy Halloween - and Happy Viewing, until next week!
Friday, October 24, 2008
Week of Oct. 24: In An Election Mood
If you're in an election mood (and who isn't these days?), how about a look back at Schoolhouse Rock, ABC's way in which millions of kids learned civics (as well as grammar, science and other subjects) during the 1970s and 80s? An election edition is out on DVD.
On YouTube, take a look (and sing a long) to "I'm Just a Bill":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEJL2Uuv-oQ
Or "Three-Ring Government," which is a perfect description:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5I2KFENjS8
And my all-time favorite, "The Preamble," recommended for presidential and vice presidential candidates everywhere:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_TXJRZ4CFc
See you next week! Until then, Happy Viewing (and singing)! And don't forget to vote!
On YouTube, take a look (and sing a long) to "I'm Just a Bill":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEJL2Uuv-oQ
Or "Three-Ring Government," which is a perfect description:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5I2KFENjS8
And my all-time favorite, "The Preamble," recommended for presidential and vice presidential candidates everywhere:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_TXJRZ4CFc
See you next week! Until then, Happy Viewing (and singing)! And don't forget to vote!
Friday, October 17, 2008
Week of Oct. 17: Remembering Eileen Herlie and a Partridge Family look
Eileen Herlie had a successful Broadway career. But she was best known for almost 30 years as boutique owner and everyone's confidant Myrtle Fargate on the soap opera "All My Children." Herlie died a few days ago.
Here's a link to a few scenes in a 1983 episode of "AMC." Herlie, as Myrtle, is in the scene with an unknown soap opera actress named Carol Burnett ;) :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhdRcYYt3So&feature=related
That was when Burnett, a big fan of the show, played Verla Grubbs, Langley Wallingford's long-lost daughter. And remember when Palmer and Donna were married? (Yikes!)
************
Season 3 of "The Partridge Family" was released on DVD this week. Earlier episodes of the show can be found on Hulu.com.
The show, which starred Shirley Jones, David Cassidy and University of Miami graduate Dave Madden, was about a family that started singing together after Jones' character, Shirley Partridge, was widowed. The show was loosely based on the real-life singing family The Cowsills.
The show was engaging (I was never a fan of Danny Bonaduce, whom I've always found annoying.), but the best part was unquestionably the performance of a song in each episode. I have an album of some of the earliest songs. Here's a YouTube link to one of them, the hit "I Think I Love You":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJYSu2OVCGM&feature=related
Producer Wes Farrell put together some good songwriting talent (including Terry Cashman, who would later write and sing the popular "Willie, Mickey and the Duke") for the show. Jones and Cassidy did their own singing; studio musicians would fill in for the rest of the cast, which included Susan Dey.
Here's a link to a few scenes in a 1983 episode of "AMC." Herlie, as Myrtle, is in the scene with an unknown soap opera actress named Carol Burnett ;) :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhdRcYYt3So&feature=related
That was when Burnett, a big fan of the show, played Verla Grubbs, Langley Wallingford's long-lost daughter. And remember when Palmer and Donna were married? (Yikes!)
************
Season 3 of "The Partridge Family" was released on DVD this week. Earlier episodes of the show can be found on Hulu.com.
The show, which starred Shirley Jones, David Cassidy and University of Miami graduate Dave Madden, was about a family that started singing together after Jones' character, Shirley Partridge, was widowed. The show was loosely based on the real-life singing family The Cowsills.
The show was engaging (I was never a fan of Danny Bonaduce, whom I've always found annoying.), but the best part was unquestionably the performance of a song in each episode. I have an album of some of the earliest songs. Here's a YouTube link to one of them, the hit "I Think I Love You":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJYSu2OVCGM&feature=related
Producer Wes Farrell put together some good songwriting talent (including Terry Cashman, who would later write and sing the popular "Willie, Mickey and the Duke") for the show. Jones and Cassidy did their own singing; studio musicians would fill in for the rest of the cast, which included Susan Dey.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Week of Oct. 10: Remembering Nightline, the Stock Market and the Muppets
The current economic troubles provide a chance to recall when television news decided (on purpose) not to take itself too seriously one night back in 1987. "ABC News Nightline" host Ted Koppel decided to have a program in which the Wall Street troubles of the day were explained in clear fashion - by the Muppets.
Sadly, I can't find a clip of the program online, but here's a link to a bit of a transcript:
http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/Nightline25/story?id=326163
Here's a link to more detail:
http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/ABC_News_Special:_Wall_Street_and_the_Economy
And the entire program is available on DVD for order:
http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/601-5969600-0037750?asin=B000IMVP18&afid=yahoosspplp_bmvd&lnm=B000IMVP18ABC_News_Nightline_Town_Meeting_on_Wall_Street_and_the_Financial_State_of_NY/Muppets_(2_DVD_set)_:_DVD&ref=tgt_adv_XSNG1060
David Letterman once said Koppel (who does a mean impression of Richard Nixon, BTW) is too funny to be a newsman. Maybe Koppel, who now works for Discovery, and the Muppets should get together for another program.
See you next week. Until then, Happy (if not profitable) Viewing!
Sadly, I can't find a clip of the program online, but here's a link to a bit of a transcript:
http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/Nightline25/story?id=326163
Here's a link to more detail:
http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/ABC_News_Special:_Wall_Street_and_the_Economy
And the entire program is available on DVD for order:
http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/601-5969600-0037750?asin=B000IMVP18&afid=yahoosspplp_bmvd&lnm=B000IMVP18ABC_News_Nightline_Town_Meeting_on_Wall_Street_and_the_Financial_State_of_NY/Muppets_(2_DVD_set)_:_DVD&ref=tgt_adv_XSNG1060
David Letterman once said Koppel (who does a mean impression of Richard Nixon, BTW) is too funny to be a newsman. Maybe Koppel, who now works for Discovery, and the Muppets should get together for another program.
See you next week. Until then, Happy (if not profitable) Viewing!
Friday, October 3, 2008
Week of October 3: Don Fedderson's Shows and a Word About Split Seasons On DVD
This week, the first part of the first season of "My Three Sons" was released on DVD. I'll get to the issue of split seasons on DVD in a moment, but first, a look at the work of Don Fedderson, who created "My Three Sons," "Family Affair" and other programming.
The Museum of Broadcast Communications has a good synopsis about "My Three Sons":
http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/M/htmlM/mythreesons/mythreesons.htm
And here's the intro, from YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-PbwJ0VXhs
It's been a long while since I was able to watch the show; syndicators haven't had it since at least the early 1980s, and I didn't have a cable connection to watch it on TV Land. I watched the color (CBS) episodes with William Demarest as Uncle Charlie, and some of the later seasons. I found the show entertaining. I think "Full House," which ABC produced in the late 1980s and early 1990s, is a good modern-day comparison show to "My Three Sons."
Don Fedderson produced "Life With Elizabeth," which starred Betty White in one of her early roles, and was an executive producer of "Who Do You Trust?" a game show that brought together Johnny Carson and Ed McMahon. He was a producer on "The Millionaire," a character study kind of program in which a millionaire would give money to people he had never met, and the show would follow what they did.
Probably the best and most beloved Fedderson series was "Family Affair," which ran on CBS from 1966-71. In the show, Brian Keith played Bill Davis, a bachelor engineer with "gentleman's gentleman" Mr. French (played so well by Sebastian Cabot). Their lives are turned upside down when Bill's brother and sister-in-law die in a plane crash, and he and French wind up having to raise the three children: Teenager Cissy (Kathy Garver) and young twins Jody (Johnnie Whitaker) and Buffy (Anissa Jones, whose performance as Buffy and tragic real life both broke hearts). One of the best things about "Family Affair" was its diversity - people of different cultures, backgrounds and financial conditions.
Here's a clip from an early episode:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3lPf11LvMo
All five seasons have been released on DVD, and a full-show box set is planned for release around Thanksgiving. Kathy Garver has hosted extras on all five seasons, and from the show's background to collectibles to the child star issue, she and the crew have done a good job, as has MPI Home Video with the release. Incidentally, Gregg Fedderson, who played Cissy's boyfriend on the show, is Don Fedderson's son, as is Michael Minor, who played Betty Jo's husband on "Petticoat Junction" (and was married for a time in real life to Linda Kaye Henning, who played Betty Jo), and was also on "All My Children" in the early 1980s.
************************
The release of only the first part of "My Three Sons" first season compels me to write about the most annoying trend in the release of classic television shows on DVD: Partial season releases.
Shows such as "Ironside" and "Perry Mason," which both starred Raymond Burr, have been subjected to this treatment. It is true that television shows often filmed at least 30 episodes a season during the 1950s and 60s (These days, networks are lucky to get 20 episodes a season from most scripted shows.). But especially in a bad economy, there's only so much money for people to spend, and they should be able to get a whole season at a time if they wish.
During the early days of DVD, some shows, such as "M*A*S*H" and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" kept up what they'd done with VHS and released collector's sets. That's not a bad idea. Eventually, those shows released full seasons (MTM is still releasing seasons; "M*A*S*H" has released the entire series individually and on a very good box set.). But giving half a slice to someone who's paid for a whole slice is a bad idea. Studios and distributors need to get their seasons together for loyal viewers.
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
The Museum of Broadcast Communications has a good synopsis about "My Three Sons":
http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/M/htmlM/mythreesons/mythreesons.htm
And here's the intro, from YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-PbwJ0VXhs
It's been a long while since I was able to watch the show; syndicators haven't had it since at least the early 1980s, and I didn't have a cable connection to watch it on TV Land. I watched the color (CBS) episodes with William Demarest as Uncle Charlie, and some of the later seasons. I found the show entertaining. I think "Full House," which ABC produced in the late 1980s and early 1990s, is a good modern-day comparison show to "My Three Sons."
Don Fedderson produced "Life With Elizabeth," which starred Betty White in one of her early roles, and was an executive producer of "Who Do You Trust?" a game show that brought together Johnny Carson and Ed McMahon. He was a producer on "The Millionaire," a character study kind of program in which a millionaire would give money to people he had never met, and the show would follow what they did.
Probably the best and most beloved Fedderson series was "Family Affair," which ran on CBS from 1966-71. In the show, Brian Keith played Bill Davis, a bachelor engineer with "gentleman's gentleman" Mr. French (played so well by Sebastian Cabot). Their lives are turned upside down when Bill's brother and sister-in-law die in a plane crash, and he and French wind up having to raise the three children: Teenager Cissy (Kathy Garver) and young twins Jody (Johnnie Whitaker) and Buffy (Anissa Jones, whose performance as Buffy and tragic real life both broke hearts). One of the best things about "Family Affair" was its diversity - people of different cultures, backgrounds and financial conditions.
Here's a clip from an early episode:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3lPf11LvMo
All five seasons have been released on DVD, and a full-show box set is planned for release around Thanksgiving. Kathy Garver has hosted extras on all five seasons, and from the show's background to collectibles to the child star issue, she and the crew have done a good job, as has MPI Home Video with the release. Incidentally, Gregg Fedderson, who played Cissy's boyfriend on the show, is Don Fedderson's son, as is Michael Minor, who played Betty Jo's husband on "Petticoat Junction" (and was married for a time in real life to Linda Kaye Henning, who played Betty Jo), and was also on "All My Children" in the early 1980s.
************************
The release of only the first part of "My Three Sons" first season compels me to write about the most annoying trend in the release of classic television shows on DVD: Partial season releases.
Shows such as "Ironside" and "Perry Mason," which both starred Raymond Burr, have been subjected to this treatment. It is true that television shows often filmed at least 30 episodes a season during the 1950s and 60s (These days, networks are lucky to get 20 episodes a season from most scripted shows.). But especially in a bad economy, there's only so much money for people to spend, and they should be able to get a whole season at a time if they wish.
During the early days of DVD, some shows, such as "M*A*S*H" and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" kept up what they'd done with VHS and released collector's sets. That's not a bad idea. Eventually, those shows released full seasons (MTM is still releasing seasons; "M*A*S*H" has released the entire series individually and on a very good box set.). But giving half a slice to someone who's paid for a whole slice is a bad idea. Studios and distributors need to get their seasons together for loyal viewers.
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
Friday, September 26, 2008
Week of Sep. 26: A Look At Presidential Debates and "60" Turns 40
Tonight is the first of three debates between presidential candidates Sen. John McCain and Barack Obama. The debate lineup will also include one meeting between vice presidential candidates Sen. Joe Biden and Gov. Sarah Palin.
The first televised presidential debate took place in 1960 between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QazmVHAO0os
*************************************************************************************
Eight years after Nixon lost to Kennedy, he and Vice President Hubert Humphrey, as the major presidential candidates of 1968, were the first people interviewed for a new CBS news magazine program called "60 Minutes." The original hosts were Mike Wallace and Harry Reasoner - both of whom have gone on to journalism immortality, along with Morley Safer, Ed Bradley, Steve Kroft and Lesley Stahl. Other prominent correspondents have included Dan Rather and Diane Sawyer.
Safer, who has been a "60 Minutes" correspondent since 1970, Kroft and Stahl are still part of the program, along with Bob Simon and Scott Pelley, and sometime correspondents, including Anderson Cooper, Lara Logan and, once in a while, Wallace. Also, commentator Andy Rooney has been part of the program since 1978.
Broadcasting & Cable had a special report on the program in its Sep. 20 issue:
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/index.asp?layout=article&articleid=CA6597840
And when CBS celebrated its 75th anniversary, the program featured a tribute (The YouTube clip obviously came from a local station....):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPkiJSAy8Go
So Happy 40th to 60 Minutes. Long may it tick.
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
The first televised presidential debate took place in 1960 between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QazmVHAO0os
*************************************************************************************
Eight years after Nixon lost to Kennedy, he and Vice President Hubert Humphrey, as the major presidential candidates of 1968, were the first people interviewed for a new CBS news magazine program called "60 Minutes." The original hosts were Mike Wallace and Harry Reasoner - both of whom have gone on to journalism immortality, along with Morley Safer, Ed Bradley, Steve Kroft and Lesley Stahl. Other prominent correspondents have included Dan Rather and Diane Sawyer.
Safer, who has been a "60 Minutes" correspondent since 1970, Kroft and Stahl are still part of the program, along with Bob Simon and Scott Pelley, and sometime correspondents, including Anderson Cooper, Lara Logan and, once in a while, Wallace. Also, commentator Andy Rooney has been part of the program since 1978.
Broadcasting & Cable had a special report on the program in its Sep. 20 issue:
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/index.asp?layout=article&articleid=CA6597840
And when CBS celebrated its 75th anniversary, the program featured a tribute (The YouTube clip obviously came from a local station....):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPkiJSAy8Go
So Happy 40th to 60 Minutes. Long may it tick.
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
Friday, September 19, 2008
Week of Sept. 19: Oh, Mr. Grant! And Emmy Stuff
Mary Tyler Moore and Betty White will be presenters at this Sunday's Emmy Awards, a good excuse to go back and look at one of the all-time great television sitcoms.
Hulu has the first three seasons of "The Mary Tyler Moore Show":
http://www.hulu.com/the-mary-tyler-moore-show
"The Lars Affair," in which Betty White made her debut as Sue Ann Nivens, the Happy Homemaker with more than a touch of arsenic, would be shown in Season 4, but here's a YouTube clip about the character:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2t-jpYWNaKw
*****************************
Speaking of Emmys, did you know that Betty White's first Emmy nomination came in 1951? That's one of the fun facts you can find out by looking at the database of past Emmy awards:
http://cdn.emmys.tv/awards/awardsearch.php
Enjoy the Emmys! And until next week, Happy Viewing!
Hulu has the first three seasons of "The Mary Tyler Moore Show":
http://www.hulu.com/the-mary-tyler-moore-show
"The Lars Affair," in which Betty White made her debut as Sue Ann Nivens, the Happy Homemaker with more than a touch of arsenic, would be shown in Season 4, but here's a YouTube clip about the character:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2t-jpYWNaKw
*****************************
Speaking of Emmys, did you know that Betty White's first Emmy nomination came in 1951? That's one of the fun facts you can find out by looking at the database of past Emmy awards:
http://cdn.emmys.tv/awards/awardsearch.php
Enjoy the Emmys! And until next week, Happy Viewing!
Friday, September 12, 2008
Week of Sep. 12: A Look Back At Murphy Brown
Diane English's version of "The Women" is in theaters this week. So it's a good time to take a look at English's best-known creation - "Murphy Brown," which ran on CBS from 1988-98.
The show starred Candice Bergen in an Emmy-winning and truly star-making role as the title character, a newswoman ("Mike Wallace in high heels") who is a recovering alcoholic - out of the Betty Ford Center as the series begins. Murphy Brown is one of the correspondents of "FYI," along with anchor Jim Dial (Charles Kimbrough), daredeveil Frank Fontana (Joe Regalbuto) and former beauty queen Corky Sherwood (Faith Ford). The executive producer is 25-year-old Miles Silverberg (Grant Shaud). They all hash out life at the bar Phil's (Pat Corley played Phil.). Murphy comes home to a townhouse being remodelled by rebel Eldin Bernecky (Robert Pastorelli). During the course of the series, Murphy lost her mother (played by Colleen Dewhurst, who died in real life) and had a baby, and Corky got married and divorced. The series poked fun at two targets that are lots of fun to poke at - politicians and the press.
Sadly, only the first season of this very funny sitcom has been released on DVD so far - presumably because of music rights issues (The introductions frequently had Motown songs.) -but YouTube has tons of clips.
The show was never funnier than when it poked at the dumbing down of television news. Here is a link to a clip from the first season, when Murphy and Corky filled in on a morning show for a week:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFOAbZ83alY
There is also the famous/infamous episode, "You Say Potato, I Say Potatoe," filmed after then-Vice President Dan Quayle decided to take issue with fictional Murphy becoming a single mom. Here's the link to the first part of that episode, and the rest is available at the same page:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Btgn3qUD8Q8
Sorry to say, there are no clips from what was probably my favorite episode, Season 2's "Brown and Blue," when an offensive comedian (played by Michael Chiklis of "The Shield") tests Murphy's patience and Miles' bleeper.
After the contretemps with Quayle, the show slowly began to lose steam; the brightest spot was Garry Marshall's spot-on network executive, which he later said he'd based on real-life executives. Shaud would leave the show, to be replaced by Lily Tomlin, the gifted comedienne who has developed a reputation for joining series after they've peaked (The West Wing). Pastorelli, who sadly died of a drug overdose in 2004, also left before the series took its last bow.
Here's hoping the music issues can be worked out, and more seasons of this very funny series can be released on DVD.
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
The show starred Candice Bergen in an Emmy-winning and truly star-making role as the title character, a newswoman ("Mike Wallace in high heels") who is a recovering alcoholic - out of the Betty Ford Center as the series begins. Murphy Brown is one of the correspondents of "FYI," along with anchor Jim Dial (Charles Kimbrough), daredeveil Frank Fontana (Joe Regalbuto) and former beauty queen Corky Sherwood (Faith Ford). The executive producer is 25-year-old Miles Silverberg (Grant Shaud). They all hash out life at the bar Phil's (Pat Corley played Phil.). Murphy comes home to a townhouse being remodelled by rebel Eldin Bernecky (Robert Pastorelli). During the course of the series, Murphy lost her mother (played by Colleen Dewhurst, who died in real life) and had a baby, and Corky got married and divorced. The series poked fun at two targets that are lots of fun to poke at - politicians and the press.
Sadly, only the first season of this very funny sitcom has been released on DVD so far - presumably because of music rights issues (The introductions frequently had Motown songs.) -but YouTube has tons of clips.
The show was never funnier than when it poked at the dumbing down of television news. Here is a link to a clip from the first season, when Murphy and Corky filled in on a morning show for a week:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFOAbZ83alY
There is also the famous/infamous episode, "You Say Potato, I Say Potatoe," filmed after then-Vice President Dan Quayle decided to take issue with fictional Murphy becoming a single mom. Here's the link to the first part of that episode, and the rest is available at the same page:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Btgn3qUD8Q8
Sorry to say, there are no clips from what was probably my favorite episode, Season 2's "Brown and Blue," when an offensive comedian (played by Michael Chiklis of "The Shield") tests Murphy's patience and Miles' bleeper.
After the contretemps with Quayle, the show slowly began to lose steam; the brightest spot was Garry Marshall's spot-on network executive, which he later said he'd based on real-life executives. Shaud would leave the show, to be replaced by Lily Tomlin, the gifted comedienne who has developed a reputation for joining series after they've peaked (The West Wing). Pastorelli, who sadly died of a drug overdose in 2004, also left before the series took its last bow.
Here's hoping the music issues can be worked out, and more seasons of this very funny series can be released on DVD.
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
Friday, September 5, 2008
Week of Sep. 5: TV and the 49th and 50th States, and A Shout-Out To Cheers
Each presidential ticket has someone from either Alaska (Sarah Palin) or Hawaii (Barack Obama), so this week's look is at television shows from those states.
Alaska: There's really only one, and it's "Northern Exposure," the story of a New York doctor who went to Alaska. It ran on CBS from 1990-95, and during its glory years, starred Rob Morrow and Janine Turner. Here's a fan site with details:
http://www.moosechick.com/
The series is available on DVD, with cool packaging for individual seasons and the series.
Hawaii: "Lost" is filmed there now, of course. Shows that have been shot there include "Jake and the Fatman," "Baywatch Hawaii," "One West Waikiki" and more. ("Hawaiian Eye" was actually filmed in Hollywood, but did feature native Hawaiian Doug Mossman, who was also featured in the shows I'll mention below.)
Two shows stand above all the others, however:
*"Magnum, P.I." --Ran on CBS from 1980-88, starring Tom Selleck in his Emmy-winning role as Naval intelligence officer turned private investigator Thomas Magnum, as well as Texan John Hillerman as the very British Jonathan Quayle Higgins, Larry Manetti as Rick and Roger E. Mosley as T.C. Too many classic episodes to mention, with stars that included Carol Burnett, Eugene Roche, and Ol' Blue Eyes himself, Frank Sinatra. The show was the first hit of the Donald Bellisario dynasty that also includes "JAG" and "NCIS." But Magnum wouldn't have gotten very far without:
*"Hawaii Five-O" --The granddaddy of them all ran on CBS from 1968-80 and starred Jack Lord as Five-O's chief Steve McGarrett, James MacArthur as second-in-command Dan Williams (from the second episode through the end of the 1978-79 season), Kam Fong as Chin Ho Kelly (1968-78), Zulu as Kono Kalakaua (1968-72), Al Harrington as Ben Kokua (1972-75) and Herman Wedermeyer as Duke Lukela (1971-80). A bridge between the "Dragnet"-style police shows of the 1950s and 60s and more introspective shows like "Cagney & Lacey" and the current format favored by "Law & Order." Creator Leonard Freeman proved that Hawaii could shine on a weekly television series, and the series brought the role of Lord's career.
*********************************
A note that the 10th season of "Cheers" is available on DVD. "Cheers" ran on NBC from 1982-93 and produced, in my opinion, an even better spinoff, "Frasier."
Here's a link to the great theme song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FD8ljNobUys&feature=related
By the way, Nicholas Colasanto, who played "Coach" until his untimely death in 1985 also has a Hawaii Five-O link, having directed a few early episodes. He was a prolific director as well as actor.
Assuming that my computer has power after Hurricane Ike's planned assault, see you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing and may the hurricanes miss you!
Alaska: There's really only one, and it's "Northern Exposure," the story of a New York doctor who went to Alaska. It ran on CBS from 1990-95, and during its glory years, starred Rob Morrow and Janine Turner. Here's a fan site with details:
http://www.moosechick.com/
The series is available on DVD, with cool packaging for individual seasons and the series.
Hawaii: "Lost" is filmed there now, of course. Shows that have been shot there include "Jake and the Fatman," "Baywatch Hawaii," "One West Waikiki" and more. ("Hawaiian Eye" was actually filmed in Hollywood, but did feature native Hawaiian Doug Mossman, who was also featured in the shows I'll mention below.)
Two shows stand above all the others, however:
*"Magnum, P.I." --Ran on CBS from 1980-88, starring Tom Selleck in his Emmy-winning role as Naval intelligence officer turned private investigator Thomas Magnum, as well as Texan John Hillerman as the very British Jonathan Quayle Higgins, Larry Manetti as Rick and Roger E. Mosley as T.C. Too many classic episodes to mention, with stars that included Carol Burnett, Eugene Roche, and Ol' Blue Eyes himself, Frank Sinatra. The show was the first hit of the Donald Bellisario dynasty that also includes "JAG" and "NCIS." But Magnum wouldn't have gotten very far without:
*"Hawaii Five-O" --The granddaddy of them all ran on CBS from 1968-80 and starred Jack Lord as Five-O's chief Steve McGarrett, James MacArthur as second-in-command Dan Williams (from the second episode through the end of the 1978-79 season), Kam Fong as Chin Ho Kelly (1968-78), Zulu as Kono Kalakaua (1968-72), Al Harrington as Ben Kokua (1972-75) and Herman Wedermeyer as Duke Lukela (1971-80). A bridge between the "Dragnet"-style police shows of the 1950s and 60s and more introspective shows like "Cagney & Lacey" and the current format favored by "Law & Order." Creator Leonard Freeman proved that Hawaii could shine on a weekly television series, and the series brought the role of Lord's career.
*********************************
A note that the 10th season of "Cheers" is available on DVD. "Cheers" ran on NBC from 1982-93 and produced, in my opinion, an even better spinoff, "Frasier."
Here's a link to the great theme song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FD8ljNobUys&feature=related
By the way, Nicholas Colasanto, who played "Coach" until his untimely death in 1985 also has a Hawaii Five-O link, having directed a few early episodes. He was a prolific director as well as actor.
Assuming that my computer has power after Hurricane Ike's planned assault, see you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing and may the hurricanes miss you!
Friday, August 29, 2008
Week of Aug. 29: Remembering the Jackson 5
Today is Michael Jackson's 50th birthday. Oh, it should have been so different......He has turned into a living, walking tragedy of what happens when you don't get to be a child, or get to live a normal life.
What makes it more tragic is the unquestionable singing and dancing talent he has. Here's a look back at a 1971 Jackson 5 television special, "Goin' Back To Indiana." That's Bill Cosby (resembling Groucho Marx) at the beginning, with Tom Smothers sneaking in:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6DYgf_Cl59o
See you next week. Don't know about a happy birthday for Michael, but happy viewing for lovers of classic television.
What makes it more tragic is the unquestionable singing and dancing talent he has. Here's a look back at a 1971 Jackson 5 television special, "Goin' Back To Indiana." That's Bill Cosby (resembling Groucho Marx) at the beginning, with Tom Smothers sneaking in:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6DYgf_Cl59o
See you next week. Don't know about a happy birthday for Michael, but happy viewing for lovers of classic television.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Week of Aug. 22: Remembering a Classic McDonald's Olympic Ad From 1988
I've been looking for a classic McDonald's ad from 1988 online all week, but haven't found it.
The ad, shown before and during the Seoul Olympics, showed "Future Olympic Hopefuls" - babies presented for weighlifting (a boy lifting a box), Greco-Roman Wrestling (a boy wrestling his teddy bear), equestrian events (a little girl riding one of the rides at a McDonald's) and discus (a little boy sitting in his high chair and throwing his plate on the floor).
If anyone knows an Internet location for this precious ad, please let me know. (Sadly, it isn't on YouTube, at least not yet.)
See you next week. Until then, happy viewing!
The ad, shown before and during the Seoul Olympics, showed "Future Olympic Hopefuls" - babies presented for weighlifting (a boy lifting a box), Greco-Roman Wrestling (a boy wrestling his teddy bear), equestrian events (a little girl riding one of the rides at a McDonald's) and discus (a little boy sitting in his high chair and throwing his plate on the floor).
If anyone knows an Internet location for this precious ad, please let me know. (Sadly, it isn't on YouTube, at least not yet.)
See you next week. Until then, happy viewing!
Friday, August 15, 2008
Week of Aug. 15: Hawaii Five-O Times 2?
No kidding: CBS is thinking of doing a new version of the classic series "Hawaii Five-O":
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3id0839a35f93f4784baf0ead3bc3ea388
In television history, roughly 60 years plus of programming, there has been only one television series that has been fully successful with successors: Star Trek. That's probably because the original series creator, Gene Roddenberry, was also behind the creation of "Star Trek: The Next Generation." Sadly, "Hawaii Five-O"'s creator, Leonard Freeman, died in 1974, halfway through the show's run.
The idea for the new show would seem to follow conventional wisdom - too conventional, I think. Freeman's series broke taboos in many ways, including location filming, diversity of the cast and interracial relationships. I believe it was also among the first dramas, if not the first, to use the word "rape" in a plotline. The DVDs have been selling extremely well, which may be one reason for the interest in a new version of the show.
If they're going to make a "Five-O" for the 21st century, I have a suggestion: Instead of Chris McGarrett, the son (which brings back bad memories for Five-O fans who know the "V For Vashon" episodes), how about Christine McGarrett, the daughter? Steve McGarrett had a reputation as a chauvinist; what better way to put a modern twist on the series than to make the Five-O head a woman?
****
New DVDs this week include Season 1 of "Dave's World," a show loosely based on the life of syndicated columnist Dave Barry that starred the very funny and underrated Harry Anderson. "Dave's World" was funny until real life intervened, and Barry divorced his first wife, Beth, who was portrayed in the series by DeLane Matthews.
Speaking of Harry Anderson, there has to be a way to get the rest of "Night Court" after the first season available, either on DVD or online. I believe Sony has the rights to the series, and only the first 13 episodes, with Karen Austin and Paula Kelly, were ever released. None of the episodes with Markie Post et. al, when the show truly became a hit. The show was always funny, though.
Also new on DVD: Season 4 of "That Girl."
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3id0839a35f93f4784baf0ead3bc3ea388
In television history, roughly 60 years plus of programming, there has been only one television series that has been fully successful with successors: Star Trek. That's probably because the original series creator, Gene Roddenberry, was also behind the creation of "Star Trek: The Next Generation." Sadly, "Hawaii Five-O"'s creator, Leonard Freeman, died in 1974, halfway through the show's run.
The idea for the new show would seem to follow conventional wisdom - too conventional, I think. Freeman's series broke taboos in many ways, including location filming, diversity of the cast and interracial relationships. I believe it was also among the first dramas, if not the first, to use the word "rape" in a plotline. The DVDs have been selling extremely well, which may be one reason for the interest in a new version of the show.
If they're going to make a "Five-O" for the 21st century, I have a suggestion: Instead of Chris McGarrett, the son (which brings back bad memories for Five-O fans who know the "V For Vashon" episodes), how about Christine McGarrett, the daughter? Steve McGarrett had a reputation as a chauvinist; what better way to put a modern twist on the series than to make the Five-O head a woman?
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New DVDs this week include Season 1 of "Dave's World," a show loosely based on the life of syndicated columnist Dave Barry that starred the very funny and underrated Harry Anderson. "Dave's World" was funny until real life intervened, and Barry divorced his first wife, Beth, who was portrayed in the series by DeLane Matthews.
Speaking of Harry Anderson, there has to be a way to get the rest of "Night Court" after the first season available, either on DVD or online. I believe Sony has the rights to the series, and only the first 13 episodes, with Karen Austin and Paula Kelly, were ever released. None of the episodes with Markie Post et. al, when the show truly became a hit. The show was always funny, though.
Also new on DVD: Season 4 of "That Girl."
See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!
Friday, August 8, 2008
Greetings
Hello and welcome to Rabbit Ears, a new blog about old television.
At this blog, I'll talk about classic TV shows and include what's being released on DVD, take a look at some shows either on DVD or online, and publish various news items and tidbits that focus on the shows themselves.
Classic television can be as old as the 1940s and as recent as the end of "The West Wing" in 2006. The blog will talk mostly about scripted shows (generally produced by ABC, NBC and CBS), and there could be some mention of classic news/public affairs and sports programs. There will be no so-called "reality" shows (or what I refer to as "lab rat" television) on this blog.
Feel free to comment, but keep it clean.
Now....on with the shows!
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Get Smart Season 1 on DVD
This week, would you believe....Season 1 of the comedy spy series "Get Smart" has been released, at very good prices. The show poked fun at James Bond and company during the mid-1960s and may have set cellphone creators in motion with the phone in Maxwell Smart's shoe. Smart, of course, was Control Agent 86, played so memorably by Don Adams. He teamed up with Agent 99, played by Barbara Feldon. Their harassed (mainly by Max) chief was played by Edward Platt. Sorry about that, Chief.
Who can forget the visual gags, including Agent 13's many different disguises, the Cone of Silence (which I always think of when the expression is used in government) and, of course, the memorable opening and closing of the series, created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry.
Here's a link to a website with show details:
http://www.wouldyoubelieve.com/
By the way....you might have gone into stores and already seen a "Get Smart" DVD before this week; that's not from the original series. It's from a 1990s re-do that starred Adams and Feldon.
Sorry about that, Chief.
*******
Catch the Classics at Hulu.com
Hulu.com, a site created by NBC/Universal, has tons and tons of classic television series produced by a number of companies available for viewing online:
http://www.hulu.com/browse/alphabetical/tv
What a feast.
See you next week. Until then, happy viewing!
At this blog, I'll talk about classic TV shows and include what's being released on DVD, take a look at some shows either on DVD or online, and publish various news items and tidbits that focus on the shows themselves.
Classic television can be as old as the 1940s and as recent as the end of "The West Wing" in 2006. The blog will talk mostly about scripted shows (generally produced by ABC, NBC and CBS), and there could be some mention of classic news/public affairs and sports programs. There will be no so-called "reality" shows (or what I refer to as "lab rat" television) on this blog.
Feel free to comment, but keep it clean.
Now....on with the shows!
****
Get Smart Season 1 on DVD
This week, would you believe....Season 1 of the comedy spy series "Get Smart" has been released, at very good prices. The show poked fun at James Bond and company during the mid-1960s and may have set cellphone creators in motion with the phone in Maxwell Smart's shoe. Smart, of course, was Control Agent 86, played so memorably by Don Adams. He teamed up with Agent 99, played by Barbara Feldon. Their harassed (mainly by Max) chief was played by Edward Platt. Sorry about that, Chief.
Who can forget the visual gags, including Agent 13's many different disguises, the Cone of Silence (which I always think of when the expression is used in government) and, of course, the memorable opening and closing of the series, created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry.
Here's a link to a website with show details:
http://www.wouldyoubelieve.com/
By the way....you might have gone into stores and already seen a "Get Smart" DVD before this week; that's not from the original series. It's from a 1990s re-do that starred Adams and Feldon.
Sorry about that, Chief.
*******
Catch the Classics at Hulu.com
Hulu.com, a site created by NBC/Universal, has tons and tons of classic television series produced by a number of companies available for viewing online:
http://www.hulu.com/browse/alphabetical/tv
What a feast.
See you next week. Until then, happy viewing!
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