November 11, 2016

Around the dial

Another prime week in the classic television blogosphere, and some very things in store for those who click on the links. I can't promise you'll like them, because I have no control over your behavior, but hopefully I can influence you to check them out, with the intimation of my confidence that you'll be pleased with the finished product.

The Broadcasting Archives at the University of Maryland has a copy of a great ad from WICU in Erie, Pennsylvania, boasting the four networks from which the station can pick and choose its programming. Who needs one affiliation, when you can get the best of all worlds?

Comfort TV reviews the career of Gordon Jump, whom you'd recognize anywhere based on his many character appearances, but whom you'll always remember for the infamous turkey drop episode of WKRP.

Cult TV Blog looks at "The Desperate People," an episode from Francis Durbridge Presents, a thriller anthology series of the 1960s. In addition to a nice shout-out to yours truly, it's a wonderful description of how a program can capture so well the era in which it was made - one of the great sidelights to classic TV viewing.

British TV Detectives has a review of Chasing Shadows, a series from 2014. It's another one I haven't heard of before, but it co-stars Alex Kingston, whom I've liked since the movie Croupier, and who was so good in her guest appearances on Doctor Who.

A quick rundown of episode reviews:
Television Obscurities reviews the 1969 book The Only Complete Guide to TV 70, written by Dave Kaufman, a nice rundown of what to expect in the new season, including series, specials, sports, stars, and movies!

And of course there's my own essay for the week; if you haven't read it yet, it's a complex look at how television looks at lies told in the pursuit of criminal justice, and whether or not it can be justified.

That should cover this week, and I'll try to do my part to live up to these pieces with one of my own tomorrow. I trust I'll see you then, at least metaphorically. TV  

4 comments:

  1. I lived a few years in the Erie PA area. Because it was halfway between Buffalo and Cleveland, Erie could only be allocated one VHF channel WICU 12. It became a ''UHF island'' one of the few places where major network affiliates were UHF. I was surprised to see a sign-off from 1987, didn't think there were any non-24hr stations by then.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for writing! Drive safely!