If you've ever enjoyed the pieces on British TV from Cult TV Blog, please take a moment to head over there and wish John a speedy recovery from some health problems he's been having. I'm sure he'll appreciate it as much as you've appreciated his writing on cult TV.
At The Twilight Zone Vortex, Jordan looks at one of Charles Beaumont's semi-autobiographical stories, "In His Image," which overcomes some of its weak spots thanks to a superb performance from George Grizzard as a man forced to confront the man he'd like to be.
Back about 25 years or so ago, I bought several of those TV theme albums, which offered much pleasure despite some of the cheesy remakes used when they couldn't get rights to the original. Naturally, then, I enjoyed reading Classic Film and TV Café's "Five awesome themes you may never have heard of." Number five is a personal favorite of mine!
Some Polish American Guy is back with another BJ and the Bear recap - this time, we're looking at the season three episode "The Fast and the Furious," which sounds like a great title for a movie, doesn't it? And don't forget the seven lady truckers! The mark of a successful episode recap, I think, is that you can enjoy it even if you're not a particular fan of the program, and Dan's is among the best.
I would think that Ken Berry would be the perfect actor for Comfort TV, and so does David, who shows us that the likable "song-and-dance man" is more than Captain Parmenter and Sam Jones. And by the way, David, speaking of your comment on Mama's Family - no, it's not just you. It's at least me as well.
At A Shroud of Thoughts, Terence takes time to recognize Eve Arden's 110th birthday, and looks at her most famous role, that of the schoolteacher Connie Brooks in the radio and television show Our Miss Brooks. I must admit more experience with the radio version, and while I wouldn't consider it one of my favorites, Eve Arden is always worth listening to.
One of the integral roles on The Today Show is that of the newsreader - the one I grew up with was Frank Blair, who was Mr. Dependable - no matter who the host was, Frank was there with his no-nonsense presentation of the news. (Did you know that on ABC's short-lived AM America, this task was performed by none other than Peter Jennings?) At Garroway at Large, Jodie remembers Today's first newsreader, Jim Fleming.
And one final article, not from a TV journalist but political writer Rod Dreher, who takes a serious look at whether or not it's right to take Bill Cosby out of the TV Hall of Fame. TV
Thanks, Mitchell! I like to hold up "In His Image" as one of the bright spots of the much-maligned fourth season. Despite some really terrible episodes in the fourth season I think there are some hidden gems which I hope to convince viewers to try out.
ReplyDeleteAbout Frank Blair, I found it interesting that he died on the 20th anniversary of his last appearance on TODAY, March 14, 1995 [1975]. 20 years is a good retirement length, though I hope I can eventually do better myself.
ReplyDeleteA closer look at the photo for this post would reveal that the lady adjusting her set is British, and the TV screen lists the program lineup for UK afternoon viewing, mostly children's programming: BLUE PETER, THE FLASHING BLADE, THE MAGIC ROUNDABOUT...
ReplyDeleteThank you, Mitchell! Oh those confusing Seven Lady Truckers. I think it's only going to get worse as we go, sadly. Plus, if you head on over to my blog http://eventuallysupertrain.blogspot.com/, you may hear a gentleman you know. (No, not me. You will hear me, though.) - Dan, The "Polish American Guy Reviewing Things"
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