tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post4783403057537667183..comments2024-03-17T18:19:49.076-04:00Comments on It's About TV: This week in TV Guide: January 8, 1966Mitchell Hadleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08695771505209080030noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-49414142208620275692018-03-24T17:54:18.487-04:002018-03-24T17:54:18.487-04:00i'm sad to say that Dorothy Malone passed away...i'm sad to say that Dorothy Malone passed away in February 2018 only weeks after your comment of herphillatiohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13588812609089591755noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-19628794389050531062018-01-14T23:56:07.820-05:002018-01-14T23:56:07.820-05:00To add to the Playoff Bowl mention, that was the s...To add to the Playoff Bowl mention, that was the season Baltimore Colts running back Tom Matte had to take over for injured quarterbacks Johnny Unitas and Gary Cuozzo, and had just come off their Western Conference playoff tiebreaker loss to Green Bay, aided by a controversial game-tying field goal by Packers kicker Don Chandler.<br /><br />I have a book that I just drew a blank on the title, but it covered that tiebreaker game and ended by noting Matte threw 3 touchdown passes vs. the Cowboys in the Playoff Bowl. Jacob Burke Jrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03290739968701326807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-2747385749420788012018-01-12T06:55:41.582-05:002018-01-12T06:55:41.582-05:00I always get Denny Miller and Victor Lundin confus...I always get Denny Miller and Victor Lundin confused. Both big guys, had similar voices.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-69822702004721143062018-01-11T15:46:37.629-05:002018-01-11T15:46:37.629-05:00What a fun an eventful issue of TV Guide this was!...What a fun an eventful issue of TV Guide this was! <br /><br />Batman: Bruce Wayne did reference the murder of his parents by criminals in that first episode - which, along with the death of Jill St. John's character (spoiler) made that first show a bit more serious than every episode that followed. <br /><br />I'm sure Amory was right about Mona McCluskey, but it's always a treat to see Denny Miller pop up in other classic TV shows, from The Fugitive to The Brady Bunch to Charlie's Angels. David Hofstedehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15288510542472710879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-65154018389401658712018-01-10T23:58:27.094-05:002018-01-10T23:58:27.094-05:00"THE WIZARD OF OZ" is one of the true ma..."THE WIZARD OF OZ" is one of the true masterpieces of cinema. Growing up in KC, I became acquainted with its' annual showings on NBC, usually around Easter Sunday (CBS regained the rights years later). Before there was such a thing as "Must-See TV", this was it. And in what must've been a film rights battle that could have gone to fisticuffs, NBC secured the rights to show GWTW in 1976 (the US Bicentennial-and their golden anniversary year as a TV and radio network). This was a real coup for the peacock net in a season that saw ABC knock CBS from its' lofty perch as the #1 net in primetime. <br />At ABC, Fred Silverman had the golden touch, but when NBC hired him 2 years later, things seemed to have the opposite effect (remember The Waverly Wonders, Dick Clark's Live Wednesday, Who's Watching the Kids, Supertrain? HA! I didn't think so).<br /><br />That the Batman 1966 TV series scored so low with potential viewers yet soar so high with its' campiness was a testament to ABC for not giving up on a project-no matter how dull or mundane it was to some folks. As I now recall once having a pair of blue Batman slippers at the time, I enjoyed the adventures of the Dynamic Duo, mostly thru syndicated repeats on both KMBC and WDAF. He may be "The Dark Knight", but with Adam West's demise last June, the "Bright Knight" can now be a shining light for all to follow. I followed him-from broadcast to cable TV to the internet. And it's gratifying <br />to see how well it still holds up. If only ABC had that same stick-to-itiveness with Tammy Grimes' sitcom, or O.K. Crackerby-or even Honey West, they all could have had longer lives. <br /><br />In pinch-hitting for Dorothy Malone, I think Lola Albright-much like Earl Morall on the '72 Dolphins-had the greatest fill-in role in television history. Cleve showed no mercy for Mona-he must have thought that show was a real stinkeroo! And BTW, I'm surprised that Daktari bested Batman by better than a year. Star Trek lasted three years, and look at the cultural impact it had! (not 2 mention the movie and series sequels it rought)<br /><br />Things were goin' great in '66-and with prime time's 1st color season on the horizon, they were only getting better.Ken Douglashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15658517406339380796noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-66830389432279262982018-01-08T13:30:18.286-05:002018-01-08T13:30:18.286-05:00I've forgot that the Techincolor begins at the...I've forgot that the Techincolor begins at the shot when Dorothy is reaching the door!!!Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12502707360040238028noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-88004092541201100452018-01-08T13:27:46.102-05:002018-01-08T13:27:46.102-05:00It's seems that 22 minutes is a little long fo...It's seems that 22 minutes is a little long for the black-and-white opening of THE WIZARD OF OZ, concerning that we have DVD (And Blu-ray) players to timed the scenes correctly!!!<br /><br />BTW, the opening (And the ending) are in black-and-white, but, since video, DVD and Blu-Ray editions released in the early-to-mid-1990's (As does airing on TBS, TNT and TCM), have shown it in sepia-toned, since this is exactly the way that filmgoers in 1939 have seen it!!!Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12502707360040238028noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-58877945460664247772018-01-07T10:48:33.346-05:002018-01-07T10:48:33.346-05:00The major impact of BATMAN (and, to a lesser exten...The major impact of BATMAN (and, to a lesser extent, CBS's DAKTARI) was a quick hook for underperforming series the next couple of seasons. In years before, few Fall shows were cancelled at mid-season. After BATMAN dramatically turned ABC's fortunes around in two time slots, there were many more mid-season replacements tried in 1966-67: 22 combined, to be exact.<br /><br />The only one to even so much as crack the top 50 was MR. TERRIFIC, a BATMAN spoof that sank quickly after debuting in the top 15 in its first Nielsen report in January 1967.<br /><br />In some cases trigger-happy ABC wasn't even waiting until mid-season: THE TAMMY GRIMES SHOW was cancelled before the end of September 1966, replaced by the low-budget DATING GAME.<br /><br />I'd say at least in the short-term that the impact on ABC was negative: ABC developed a quick hook with too many shows when patience might have been more prudent. BATMAN and DAKTARI ended up being anamolies: in the seasons to come CBS and NBC would be rewarded for being patient with slow starters like MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE (# 65 at mid-season in 66-67) and THE HIGH CHAPARRAL (to name two). Halhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09291930694234773688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-46666868350289027692018-01-07T05:24:10.715-05:002018-01-07T05:24:10.715-05:00Bits, and a few Pieces:
- The correct title of t...Bits, and a few Pieces:<br /><br /> - The correct title of the <i>Batman</i> premiere was "Hi Diddle <b>Riddle</b>" (I checked the DVD to be certain).<br />Of more interest would be that Close-Up, which I'm guessing is from one of your Minn-StP issues. I've got the Chicago edition, and it has the same Close-up - with one notable exception:<br />In my issue, Lorenzo Semple Jr. is <i>not</i> identified as having done "the script for ... <i>Casino Royale</i>" - which in fact would have been in pre-production at the start of 1966 ... and which, at any rate, Lorenzo Semple received no credit when it was finally released nearly two years later (almost everybody else in the film business had a hand in the <i>Royale</i> film, one of the legendary disasters in movie history - but that's <i>another</i> story ...).<br />And no, this can't be referring to the only earlier version of CR, which was a live broadcast (<i>Climax!</i>, I think) in the mid-'50s; Semple had nothing to do with that either.<br />As it happens, Semple did write a James Bond screenplay, but that was <i>Never Say Never Again</i> - in <b>1983</b>. (Prophecy, maybe?)<br /><br /> - About <i>Ichabod And Me</i>:<br />I remember this series in its first run.<br />CBS had some confidence in this one: they slotted it on Tuesday night, in between Red Skelton and Garry Moore (in the business, it's called "hammocking"; much of the time it works, this time not so much).<br />Of those six partners that J. Harvey Howells refers to, two of them were Joe Connelly and Bob Mosher, who were rounding the clubhouse turn with <i>Leave It To Beaver</i>, then in its next-to-last season on ABC.<br />By the way, that "adenoidal boy-child" was Jerry Mathers's kid brother Jimmy, who did not duplicate big bro's success in TV, so there too.<br /><i>Ichabod</i> has since seemed to disappear, which is a shame; I'd really love to see the episode in which Rod Serling makes an acting appearance as a friend of Me's.<br /><br /> - I was scouting the listings, trying to anticipate which day you're going to do on Monday.<br />Should you choose Friday, I think you ought to take a close look at the listing for <i>Camp Runamuck</i>, a comedy which nobody can figure out how it got on in the first place.<br />Just read the listing, and tell us all your reaction to it ...<br />(No spoilers - this is a test.)<br /><br /> - In the color sectio, I'd call your attention to the profile of a pre-<i>Columbo</i> Peter Falk - long before he adopted the persona that made his star status permanent.<br />It still surprises some people when they see early Falk performances that are totally opposite from the Columbo style.<br /><br /> - ... and so on and so forth ...Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05527404061764217504noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-31472404205385121782018-01-07T00:09:03.856-05:002018-01-07T00:09:03.856-05:00My vote for least cultural impact from a long-runn...My vote for least cultural impact from a long-running TV show would be Gunsmoke, on the air for 20 years and 635 boring episodes (my opinion--I am not a fan of that show).<br /><br />Dorothy Malone, for all her illness in 1966, is still alive at this writing, at age 92. Bless her heart, as we say in the South.JSowershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04861951820274833865noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-72121666491219467722018-01-06T21:33:52.631-05:002018-01-06T21:33:52.631-05:00Great column as usual.
On the "what short liv...Great column as usual.<br />On the "what short lived series had as big an impact as 'Batman', the only one in the running would be "Mary Hartman Mary Hartman" which lasted a mere 16 months in 1976-77. Of course if we included long term cultural impact the original Honeymooners would be the runaway winner.<br />That brings up another question: What long running show had the least cultural impact? Al Leosnoreply@blogger.com