November 22, 2019

Around the dial

I never could stand watching myself on television, which I suppose is one reason why I never succeeded in politics. Back then it bothered me because I'd critique everything from the sound of my voice (which I never liked hearing) to the way I pronounced certain words, the way I kept looking down at my notes, how I said one thing when I should have said something else, and so on. You get the point. Nowadays, I just don't like to see how young and in-shape I looked back then. A psychiatrist would probably tell me that this is why I retreat to hide behind words, but unless it's Dr. Thompson or Dr. Corder, I'm not listening.

Anyway, a video note for you: the YouTube site JFK1963NewsVideos has recently come up with some fascinating footage, including rarely seen excerpts from ABC's coverage of JFK's funeral, hosted by Howard K. Smith and Edward P. Morgan. It's worth a look, especially today.

In other news, John at Cult TV Blog discusses the British drama anthology series Armchair Cinema, which sounds like an odd title but in reality provides some excellent dramatic productions. Think of it as what might have happened had Studio One or Playhouse 90 had continued.

At bare•bones e-zine, Jack completes his Hitchcock Project review of the works of Bill S. Ballinger with the sixth season episode "Deathmate," a dark but ultimately kind of disappointing tale of murder and deceit. Doesn't take away from Ballinger's overall fine work for the show, though.

It's been awhile since we've been treated to a "Maverick Monday" at The Horn Section, but Hal's back this week with 1960's "The Bold Fenian Men," an episode featuring Roger Moore. As with "Deathmate" above, the episode isn't as good as you might have hoped, but Roger Moore, right?

Classic Film & TV Cafe presents "The Three-Word TV Series Game," and no matter when you read this, it's worth heading over to see how well you do. No cheating by reading the comments section in advance; Rick's puzzles deserve to be figured out on their own.

If you want to know more about upcoming Christmas specials, I can't think of a better place to go than Christmas TV History, and this week Joanna has the rundown on what, where, and when. Don't miss it.

Before he became host of Good Morning America, David Hartman was earnest schoolteacher Lucas Tanner, in the TV series of the same name. I'm familiar with the show only because it was on NBC during my term in The World's Worst Town™; otherwise, I'd likely never have watched it. Television Obscurities reminds us with a review of the Lucas Tanner pilot.

At the beginning of today's roundup, we were reminded of the grim anniversary that is November 22, but now here's something you'll really like: the 60th anniversary of Rocky and Bullwinkle, as brought to you by Terence at A Shroud of Thoughts. That's the way to head into the weekend! TV  

4 comments:

  1. Thanks, Mitchell, and Happy Thanksgiving!

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  2. Watching NBC's original coverage on David VonPein's excellent YouTube channel now...

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  3. For the last couple of weeks I have been listening and watching various uploads of the television and radio coverage from that dark day (including NBC coverage today).

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Thanks for writing! Drive safely!