February 7, 2022

What's on TV? Friday, February 13, 1981




I never noticed at the time how many British comedies were being aired in the Twin Cities in 1981. Sure, there was Monty Python, but look at the rest: The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin on KTCA; Dave Allen and Morecambe and Wise on WCCO. (I was probably too preoccupied with my college studies.) Soon, you won't be able to spit without seeing Britcoms everywhere. (Of course, you might have had them even earlier in your market.) And that doesn't even include the ones that have been Americanized, from All in the Family to Sanford and Son to Three's Company. And yes, if you're sharp-eyed, you'll notice that those are TV Guide critic Robert MacKenzie's fingers drumming away on the typewriter on the left. Enjoy these listings from the Twin Cities edition.

 
-2- KTCA (PBS)
 
MORNING
 
     6:15
DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL CONFLICT
 
     6:45
A.M. WEATHER
 
    7 AM
VILLA ALEGRE—Children
 
     7:30
MISTER ROGERS—Children
 
    8 AM
SESAME STREET—Children
 
    9 AM
ELECTRIC COMPANY—Children
 
     9:30
ONCE UPON A CLASSIC
“The Mill on the Floss,” part 6
 
  10 AM
3-2-1 CONTACT—Children
 
   10:30
ELECTRIC COMPANY—Children
 
  11 AM
UP AND COMING
         
   11:30
SESAME STREET—Children
 
AFTERNOON
 
   12:30
MISTER ROGERS—Children
 
    1 PM
DICK CAVETT
Guest: Peter Ustinov
 
     1:30
OVER EASY
 
    2 PM
BEGIN WITH GOODBE
 
     2:30
OLD FRIENDS, NEW FRIENDS
 
    3 PM
JULIA CHILD & COMPANY—Cooking
 
     3:30
MISTER ROGERS—Children
 
    4 PM
SESAME STREET—Children
 
    5 PM
ELECTRIC COMPANY—Children
 
     5:30
3-2-1 CONTACT
 
EVENING
 
    6 PM
OVER EASY
 
     6:30
MacNEIL, LEHRER REPORT
 
    7 PM
THE BOTTOM LINE
 
     7:30
DICK CAVETT
Guest: Lillian Roberts
 
    8 PM
WASHINGTON WEEK IN REVIEW
 
     8:30
WALL STREET WEEK
 
    9 PM
HARD CHOICES—Medical Report
 
  10 PM
FALL AND RISE OF REGINALD PERRIN—Comedy
 
   10:30
MOVIE—Musical
“In the Good Old Summertime” (1949)
 
   12:15
SNEAK PREVIEWS
 
   12:45
NIGHTTIMES—Variety
 
 
 
-4- WCCO (CBS)
 
MORNING
 
    6 AM
CBS NEWS—Charles Kuralt
 
    7 AM
NEWS
 
     7:30
ALICE
 
    8 AM
PHIL DONAHUE
Guest: Mike Royko
 
    9 AM
HOUR MAGAZINE
 
  10 AM
PRICE IS RIGHT—Game
 
  11 AM
YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS—Serial
 
AFTERNOON
 
   Noon
MIDDAY
 
   12:30
SEARCH FOR TOMORROW—Serial
 
    1 PM
AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial
 
    2 PM
GUIDING LIGHT—Serial
 
    3 PM
JOKER’S WILD—Game
 
     3:30
JOHN DAVIDSON
Guests: Shelly Winters, Skip Stephenson, Stuart Damon, Marty Leshner
 
    5 PM
NEWS
 
     5:30
CBS NEWS—Walter Cronkite
 
EVENING
 
    6 PM
NEWS
 
     6:30
PM MAGAZINE
 
    7 PM
INCREDIBLE HULK
 
    8 PM
DUKES OF HAZZARD
 
    9 PM
DALLAS
 
  10 PM
NEWS
 
   10:30
CAROL BURNETT AND FRIENDS—Comedy
 
  11 PM
DAVE ALLEN AT LARGE
 
   11:30
MORECAMBE & WISE—Comedy
 
     Mid.
BONANZA—Western
 
    1 AM
NEWS
 
     1:30
NEWS
 
    4 AM
NEWS
 
 
 
-5- KSTP (ABC)
 
MORNING
 
    6 AM
COUNTRY DAY—Gary Schendel
 
     6:30
NEWS
 
    7 AM
GOOD MORNING AMERICA
 
    9 AM
TWIN CITIES TODAY
 
  10 AM
LOVE BOAT
 
  11 AM
FAMILY FEUD—Game
         
   11:30
RYAN’S HOPE—Serial
 
AFTERNOON
 
   Noon
ALL MY CHILDREN—Serial
 
    1 PM
ONE LIFE TO LIVE—Serial
 
    2 PM
GENERAL HOSPITAL—Serial
 
    3 PM
MATCH GAME
David Doyle, Charles Nelson Reilly, Brett Somers, Marcia Wallace, Susan Howard, Gary Burghoff
 
     3:30
STARSKY & HUTCH—Crime Drama
 
     4:30
HAPPY DAYS AGAIN—Comedy
 
    5 PM
NEWS
 
     5:30
ABC NEWS—Frank Reynolds
 
EVENING
 
    6 PM
NEWS
 
     6:30
TIC TAC DOUGH—Game
 
    7 PM
BENSON
 
     7:30
I’M A BIG GIRL NOW—Comedy
 
    8 PM
MOVIE—Drama
“Inmates: A Love Story”
 
  10 PM
NEWS
 
   10:30
FRIDAYS
Guests: Kool and the Gang
 
   11:40
AMERICA’S TOP 10—Music
 
   12:10
DON LANE
Guests: Tiny Tim, the Dance Theater of Harlem Inc.
 
     1:10
LAUREL AND HARDY—Comedy BW 
 
     1:40
MOVIE—Drama BW 
“Now and Forever” (1934)
 
     3:20
MOVIE—Comedy BW 
“The Palm Beach Story” (1942)
[Time approximate.]
 
    5 AM
TO BE ANNOUNCED
 
 
 
-9- KMSP (Ind.)
 
MORNING
 
    6 AM
700 CLUB—Religion
 
    7 AM
FRED FLINTSTONE & FRIENDS
 
     7:30
GREAT SPACE COASTER
 
    8 AM
KROFFT SUPERSTARS—Children
 
     8:30
ROCKY & FRIENDS—Cartoon
 
    9 AM
CANDID CAMERA
 
     9:30
DICK VAN DYKE—Comedy BW 
 
  10 AM
MERV GRIFFIN
Guests: Bill Cosby, Elliot Gould, Susan Anspach, Julie Budd, Adam Rich
         
   11:30
MIKE DOUGLAS
Co-host: Anthony Geary. Gusts: Leigh McCloskey, Lauren Chapin, the Imperials, Hildegard Knef, Liona Boyd
 
AFTERNOON
 
    1 PM
$50,000 PYRAMID—Game
 
     1:30
LET’S MAKE A DEAL—Game
 
    2 PM
YOU BET YOUR LIFE—Game
 
     2:30
HOLLYWOOD SQUARES—Game
 
    3 PM
CASPER—Cartoon
 
     3:30
POPEYE—Cartoon
 
    4 PM
SCOOBY-DOO—Cartoon
 
     4:30
GILLIGAN’S ISLAND
 
    5 PM
BRADY BUNCH—Comedy
 
     5:30
GOOD TIMES
 
EVENING
 
    6 PM
BARNEY MILLER—Cartoon
 
     6:30
ALL IN THE FAMILY
 
    7 PM
GUNSMOKE—Western
 
    8 PM
TONI TENNILLE
Guests: Flip Wilson, Betty White and Allen Ludden, Mumenschanz, Stephanie Mills
 
    9 PM
WORLD OF PEOPLE
 
     9:30
NEWS
 
  10 PM
RHODA—Comedy
 
   10:30
MOVIE—Thriller
“Frenzy” (English; 1972)
 
     Mid.
MOVIE—Mystery
“Look Back in Darkness” (English; 1975)
 
     1:30
NEWS
 
 
 
11 WTCN (NBC)
 
MORNING
 
     5:30
WHAT’S NEW—Nelson/Martin
 
    6 AM
JIM BAKKER—Religion
 
    7 AM
TODAY—Tom Brokaw
 
    9 AM
LAS VEGAS GAMBIT—Game
 
     9:30
BLOCKBUSTERS—Game
 
  10 AM
WHEEL OF FORTUNE—Game
 
   10:30
PASSWORD PLUS—Game
Audrey Landers, Nipsey Russell
 
  11 AM
TO TELL THE TRUTH—Game
         
   11:30
DOCTORS—Serial
 
AFTERNOON
 
   Noon
DAYS OF OUR LIVES—Serial
 
    1 PM
ANOTHER WORLD—Serial
 
    2 PM
TEXAS—Serial
 
    3 PM
MY THREE SONS—Comedy
 
     3:30
WELCOME BACK, KOTTER—Comedy
 
    4 PM
CHICO AND THE MAN—Comedy
 
     4:30
M*A*S*H
 
    5 PM
M*A*S*H
 
     5:30
NEWS
 
EVENING
 
    6 PM
NBC NEWS—John Chancellor
 
     6:30
FAMILLY FEUD—Game
 
    7 PM
HARPER VALLEY P.T.A.—Comedy
 
     7:30
BRADY GIRLS—Comedy
 
    8 PM
NERO WOLFE—Crime Drama
 
    9 PM
NBC MAGAZINE WITH DAVID BRINKLEY
 
  10 PM
NEWS
 
   10:30
TONIGHT
Scheduled: Bob and Ray.
 
   11:30
MIDNIGHT SPECIAL
Host: Bob Uecker. Guests: Howard Cosell, Rick Nelson, Devo
 
    1 AM
MARY TYLER MOORE—Comedy
 
 
 
17 KTCI (PBS)
 
AFTERNOON
 
     5:30
VILLA ALEGRE—Children
 
EVENING
 
    6 PM
DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL CONFLICT
 
     6:30
DICK CAVETT
 
    7 PM
WASHINGTON WEEK IN REVIEW
 
     7:30
WALL STREET WEEK
 
    8 PM
MacNEIL, LEHRER REPORT
 
     8:30
OVER EASY
 
    9 PM
LAWMAKERS
 
     9:30
OLD FRIENDS, NEW FRIENDS
 
  10 PM
DICK CAVETT
 
   10:30
CAPTIONED ABC NEWS
 
TV  

6 comments:

  1. I'm surprised KSTP-TV was still calling its morning program TWIN CITIES TODAY, as I'd think it would rename it to a title more in line w/ its new network's morning show, something like GOOD MORNING TWIN CITIES. WATE-TV in Knoxville, TN, another NBC to ABC affiliate since 1979, renamed its morning show from TODAY IN TENNESSEE to GOOD MORNING TENNESSEE.
    Seeing your opening image w/ the DALLAS listing reminds me that a week later, TV GUIDE got in trouble w/ DALLAS producers for giving away too many details of a major plot twist in its listing for that night. A character named Dusty Farlow came back from a long absence, and TV GUIDE mentioned that, including his physical & mental state at the time. DALLAS producers were so incensed that they switched from sending scripts to the magazine to sending sketchy details from then on, at least for awhile. I remember reading this in the tv listings digest a few weeks later in the NEW ORLEANS TIMES PICAYUNE, which I think I found in the Nashville library back then. I'm not sure if this was ever cleared up between the show & the magazine. I was surprised to see that's how TV GUIDE got its information for its listings. I imagine TV GUIDE had a nice collection of tv scripts if that was the case for all shows.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Just saw channel 9's listing of the Toni Tenille Show at 8 pm with Allen Ludden being among the guests, considering he would've been too ill to appear on TV by that date, just four months before he passed away. I have just seen other newspapers' lisitngs and saw them air the previous October or November, just after Ludden's final illness began October 7.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Test Run, because my confuser is going wonkola on me.
    If it goes, I may be back soon.
    Count three and curse ...

    ReplyDelete
  4. Was "Match Game" still on CBS's daytime schedule?

    If so, WCCO Channel 4 refused to clear it and ABC affiliate KSTP Channel 5 ran it instead.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was the 1979-82 syndicated version, apart from Match Game PM.

      Delete
  5. Toni Tennille show - this was one of Allen Ludden's last TV appearance.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for writing! Drive safely!