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We've got a full slate of offerings for this day-after-Halloween, so let's get right to them.

I seem to recall a while back linking to an article lamenting the absense of TV theme songs, but since it happens to be true, I don't mind seeing it stated again, in this Chicago Tribute column by Nina Metz. Are we not as creative anymore, or is it that we can't stand to lose time that could be better sold to sponsors?

Perhaps I'm not as much of a classic TV historian as I thought I was, or maybe I just haven't paid as much attention to gossip as I should. In any event, I wasn't aware there was supposed to have been a feud between Barbara Eden and Elizabeth Montgomery, but I'm pleased to find that such rumors are false.

Seeing as how Burke's Law has been one of my favorites for many years, there's really no excuse for me not having seen one of the comic book adventures based on the series. Thanks to Captain Video, I've now been able to redress this egregious omission, with this succession of posts. #1, #2, and #3. 

At bare•bones e-zine, Jack's Hitchcock Project continues with the second season story "The Indestructible Mr. Weems," written by George F. Slavin, and utilizing the comic talents of some wonderful character actors, including Russell Collins, Joe Mantell, Robert Middleton, and Harry Bellaver. 

Some people are cake people, others prefer pie. Myself, since I've eliminated sweets from the diet, it's more like wistful thinking. But although I've tasted many fine pieces of pie (thank you, Agent Cooper), I've never been hit in the face by one. At Comfort TV, David looks back to those days when pies to the face were a staple of classic TV. Now I'm hungry.

I've enjoyed several of the British series that John's introduced me to at Cult TV Blog, thanks to YouTube and a region-free DVD player, and here's another I may have to check out: Inside No. 9, a "black comedy anthology" that just left the air after nine successful seasons. In time for Halloween, here's the 2018 Halloween special, "Dead Line."

Let's look next at another Halloween episode in the classic TV milleau, this one from Terence at A Shroud of Thoughts. It's "Catspaw," the only Star Trek episode devoted to a holiday; it aired on October 27, 1967, written by the great Robert Bloch, and has some wonderfully creepy moments for Kirk, Spock, and McCoy.

For some reason, one of the Twilight Zone episodes that made a great impression on my youthful self was "The 7th is Made Up of Phantoms," and I suppose the idea of a Sherman tank in the middle of the Little Big Horn is irresistible to a kid playing with G.I. Joes. But is the story any good. Read Brian's review at The Twilight Zone Vortex and find out.

How about a real-life horror story? At Drunk TV, Paul reviews the Director's Cut DVD of The Executioner's Song, an edited version of the original miniseries, starring Tommy Lee Jones in a dynamic performance as Gary Gilmore, the murderer who's 1977 execution by firing squad signaled the resumption of the death penalty in the United States.

At The View from the Junkyard, Roger takes part in something I enjoy doing myself: looking at thematic links between different shows and/or movies. In his case, it's Doctor Who, and a connection I wouldn't have thought to make myself: the original version of The Blob, and why the movie feels so much like an episode of the classic series.

Travalanche visits The Love Boat, appropriate given Jack Jones' passing last week, and Lauren Tewes' birthday this week, and looks at some of the episodes featuring vintage stars from classic movies and TV. Some will bring back fond memories, while others are bittersweet (or, as in the case of Ginger Rogers performing "Love Will Keep Us Together"), painful. TV  

Around the dial

What shows do you watch on a rainy (or snowy) day? For me, it's a mix between,  YouTube videos and Mystery Science Theater 3000, but everyone has their go-to shows to brighten up a gloomy day, and at Comfort TV, David has his own list, and it's hard to see how these shows wouldn't make your day better.

Speaking of lists, at Classic Film and TV Corner, Maddy has her list of six essential series from the 1960s. Again, you may have your own ideas, but I defy anyone out there to find fault with any of these six shows, which have to rank among the most literate, most provocative, and/or most enjoyable series of all time.

One of those shows, The Avengers, is the subject of the latest at Cult TV Lounge, with the episode, "Stay Tuned," which is a very good title for an episode of a TV show. It's also a very good story, in which Steed is suffering from a three-week memory gap, and it's up to Tara King to get to the bottom of things. 

At Cult TV Blog, John draws some conclusions from his series on The Prisoner, in which he looks at the possibility that Number 6, contrary to being a prisoner himself, is actually investigating the Village. It's a mark of the show's brilliance and ambiguity that even its very premise is subject to discussion; how many other shows can say that?

Back in the day, it wasn't unusual to find a album in the music aisle that featured covers of popular TV themes, often performed by orchestras like the 101 Strings Orchestra. That's just what the Metzingers have come across at Silver Scenes, however, and while I prefer the original versions, something like this is still great fun, don't you think?

We're all familiar, or should be, with CBS's infamous "Rural Purge," in which the network jettisoned some of its most popular shows, simply because their audiences were too old, too rural, or both. But there was an outlier to theses shows: The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour. At A Shroud of Thoughts, Terence looks at how Glen kept his head (and that hair!) off the chopping block.

If you're a fan of classic shows (and if you're not, what are you doing here?), you'll recognize the name John Doucette, or at least his face. If he wasn't on every television show of the time, he was on most of them, and Those Were the Days runs through some of the credits of this hard-working character actor.

Can you imagine Tammy Grimes as Samantha Stevens on Bewitched? Apparently, it could have been, had Grimes accepted the role. That's just one of the many facts I learned at Travalanche, where we get to see the vast range that Grimes displayed during her career on stage, screen, television, albums, and voice work. 

Was Star Trek's Dr. McCoy actually a good doctor? I'll wait until the shouting dies down to point out that this is not my question; it comes from Mike at The View from the Junkyard, and while he's just kidding, there are some things, after watching the animated episode "Albatross," that do make you wonder. . .

And by the way, happy Groundhog Day, but don't think you'll see this same column up tomorrow. TV  

Around the dial

We start the week with a couple of articles from The Ringer; first, Michael Baumann hearkens back to the days of the opening title sequence, for both TV and movies, and says it's time to bring them back. He's absolutely right: a great title sequence can tell you everything you need to know about a show's story and tenor—think, for instance, of The Fugitive and The FBI, two of the very best.

The other Ringer piece, by Claire McNear, has nothing to do with classic television whatsover, except insofar as to illustrate the difference between then and now. It's about Too Hot to Handle, the new Netflex reality series, which sounds as godawful as any show that's ever appeared on television. I don't think it's to strong to say that this is what the fall of Western Civilization looks like. Just don't read it on an empty stomach.

After that, I think I might need something a little stronger that a soft drink (were I a drinking man), but it's welcome nonetheless to see these pop/soda/Coke/whatever-your-region-calls-it ads from the past, courtesy of Michael's TV Tray.

At bare•bones e-zine, it's time for another Hitchcock episode from the writing duo of Morton Fine and David Friedkin, as Jack looks at the 1964 episode "The McGregor Affair," with the great Andrew Duggan and John Hoyt among those in a standout episode that is very nasty indeed.

The Horn Section salutes the late Andrew J. Fenady, a television vet who died last weekend at the age of 91. Among his many credits are the three westerns he produced in the 1960s: The Rebel, Branded, and the series that's near and dear to Hal's heart, Hondo. R.I.P.

Another passing in the classic TV family is Tom Lester, Eb Dawson in Green Acres, who was 81 when he died on April 20. At A Shroud of Throughts, Terence looks back on the career of the man who was the last surviving cast member from a much-loved show.

The October 1982 issue of The Twilight Zone Magazine is a best-of-1982 issue, with the greatest stories of the year, and Jordan from The Twilight Zone Vortex is here to review it all, including stories by Stephen King, George R.R. Martin, Harlan Ellison, Joyce Carol Oates, and Rod Serling himself, among others.

Last, but most certainly not least, it's time for another episode of the Eventually Supertrain podcast, as Daniel and I discuss the further adventures of Bourbon Street Beat, plus more fun features!

Steady on, and we'll be back tomorrow with—well, I don't remember what issue we're looking at tomorrow, so it will be a surprise for all of us. A good one, though. TV  

Around the dial

This week David Hofstede takes a look at the TV books that inspired Comfort TV. It's a great list; I even have a couple of them on my own shelf. Hopefully my TV book, when it comes out, will be able to find a place on David's distinguished shelf. Now if I can only find one of his publishers...

Like Rick at Classic Film and TV Café , I've always liked James Garner's performance as Philip Marlowe in the 1969 movie of the same name. I also agree that Bogart's version of The Big Sleep, as much fun as it is, is not my favorite Marlowe movie. (Too much Bacall, to the detriment of Chandler's story. The Maltese Falcon is much better.)  I would have enjoyed seeing Garner tackling that story, about the men and women sleeping the big sleep.

In our British TV section, British TV Detectives reviews Taggart, the long-running, gritty police drama, while Cult TV Blog looks at the Special Branch episode "Intercept." Between these two blogs and Stephen Bowie's piece from last week, I'm finding more and more Brit TV that looks worth exploring.

The Twilight Zone Vortex reviews "Little Girl Lost," one of my favorite TZ episodes. I agree with the various shortcomings that Jordan mentions, but like him I'm most impressed by Charles Aidman's terrific performance as a physicist exploring a new dimension, and Bernard Herrmann's brilliant score. The Twilight Zone did very well by those two, not to mention Richard Matheson, who wrote the script.

A tip of the hat to the return of Profesor Barnhardt's Journal, which links to several Slate articles on how Twin Peaks changed television, and related topics. I'm hopeful that the new show will retain some of the magic of the original (the returning cast members certainly helps), but there's no way for people who didn't see the original series to understand how that series was unlike anything that had ever been seen on television, or at least anything I'd seen.

Ken Levine goes off-topic for a moment to explain why he no longer engages in text conversations. I'll go off-topic as well and say I agree with him! For as many times as I lament the loss of collective experiences - like watching TV - I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't give a thumbs-up to the idea that personal conversations might be a nice thing to resurrect.

Television Obscurities is taking a tour down memory lane with a look (or listen) to TV theme songs. I had two or three of those albums (when we bought albums), and I'm a sucker for those compilation videos on YouTube. Do people still feel as attached to today's themes? Not rhetorical; I really do wonder.

One thing I don't wonder about: I'l be back tomorrow with yet another TV Guide, this time taking a trip back to the 1960s for the first time in almost two months! TV  

Around the dial

This week gets off to a flying start with Comfort TV's look back at the TV career of Veronica Cartwright, from Leave it to Beaver to The X-Files. 

A trio of episode reviews is next: "Dear Uncle George" is the episode du jour as bare-bones e-zine continues its study of James Bridges' output on The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, The Twilight Zone Vortex takes a closer look at the TZ comedy-western "Showdown with Rance McGrew," and The Horn Section delights with "Pawn Ticket for Murder" on Get Christie Love!

Back when we lived in Maine, we picked up a number of those albums featuring TV theme songs - a great way to spend the evening with friends. Classic Film and TV Cafe tests your knowledge of these themes with a great video quiz.

On our way from Texas to Minnesota we passed by (but not through) Kansas City, which is as good a reason as any to enjoy Faded Signals look at the career of early KC TV personality Bea Johnson.

Care for some holiday viewing? Christmas TV History keeps the season alive with a review of Family Matters Christmas, while Once Upon a Screen spends Valentine's Day with Jack Benny.

Finally in this somewhat abbreviated edition, a shout-out to Andy Stark's new website on Chet Allen, who played the title role in the historic first broadcast of Amahl and the Night Visitors. Regular readers know my affinity for that opera, and I'm always delighted to share a website that not only gives us more information on it, but also gives us a closer look at television from that era. Do Andy - and yourself - a favor by visiting the site and spiking his hits. He'll appreciate it - and so will you. TV  

Classic sports, classic theme songs, classic shows, classic actors, all on Around the Dial!

I'm always a fan of old sports broadcasts, so naturally it was great to see Classic TV Sports post the first game of the 1973 National League Championship Series between the Mets and the Reds.  I'm fairly sure I saw this game when it was on, even though I was living in the world's worst town; I know I was rooting for the Mets.  As much fun as it is to watch, it's also painful in a way, as it reminds me of how slow and plodding the game has become.  Nowadays, you'd be lucky to get through six innings in two hours.

Classic Film and TV Cafe gives us seven things to know about Ross Martin.  I've always enjoyed watching Martin; he's best known for The Wild Wild West but he did some terrific work in a couple of episodes of The Twilight Zone, and was fun to watch in the old series Mr. Lucky.  I was sorry when he died; a literate, likable actor.

When I was of the right age, I watched F Troop, and must have liked it well enough that I had one of those TV tie-in books about it.  I've seen a few episodes now and again, and parts of it wear better than others, but Larry Storch always seems to come up with a way to steal the scene.  This week The Horn Section continues looking at F Troop with the abusrdist, appropriate seasonal episode "V is For Vampire."

At The A/V Club, Stephen Bowie (who usually writes for his great blog Classic TV History) has a very good article on the '60s countercultural series Then Came Bronson.  Based on my own cultural philosophy I suspect this show would have driven me nuts (as does its progenitor, Route 66), and in fact I don't remember whether or not I ever watched it, though I was certainly aware of it.  Bravos for its serious, existential side, though; that's the kind of TV I'd like to see more of.

Also at The A/V Club, John Teti has a piece dissecting the themes to six TV game shows.  This is precisely the kind of timewaster that I'll get sucked into watching and reading, and I'll be enjoying every minute of it.  Got to agree with the '70s version of the TTTT theme.

At Classic Television Showbiz, Kliph has another of his terrific interviews - this time part three of his chat with Orson Bean.  I like Bean a lot, and have defended him in the past from people (who obviously don't know much about the entertainment biz) who classified him as being known for being known.  He's still the best Bilbo Baggins as far as I'm concerned.

I've never wanted to live in either Los Angeles or New York, but that doesn't prevent me from being envious of their television museums.  Television Obscurities makes mention of UCLA's Film and Television Archive and their upcoming free screening of "Light's Diamond Jubilee."  An interesting concept, to be sure, though I'm not sure it wasn't more infomercial than variety special.  But, 1) why aren't there shows like that today?, and 2) why don't we have a museum like that here in Dallas?

I can't answer either of those questions, but I can urge you to be back here on Saturday for yet another great issue of TV Guide! TV  

Around the dial

The fact that this is appearing on Friday rather than Thursday should be a tip-off that I've had my hands full this week. Now, that doesn't mean I'm going to ignore you loyal readers - Heaven forbid! - but I'll probably go in even more of a bullet format that I usually do. Herewith, for your reading enjoyment:

Paul Temple!  Why didn't I know about this series before?  And it even has a theme by Ron Grainer!  Thanks, Cult TV Blog - another series to add to my ever-growing list.

Classic Film and TV Cafe tells us why the '50s is classic cinema's most important decade.  Very true, and I think many of these points could be made about television in the '50s as well.

Speaking of decades, Comfort TV continues to look at TV themes, this time of the '80s.  Yay Twin Peaks!

Another classic interview at Classic Television Showbiz - this time, part two of an interview with Frankie Ray.

Finally got to do a same-day link to Television Obscurities' latest TV Guide piece, instead of being a week behind!

Sorry for the brevity - but I promise I'll more than make up for it tomorrow! TV  

Around the dial

The series Ozzie and Harriet is often included with other sitcoms of the '50s and '60s as shows idealizing an America that never really was.  Television's New Frontier: the 1960s takes a closer look at the show and its stars, and explains why it doesn't exactly fit the mold of those other sitcoms.



At Classic TV History Blog, Stephen Bowie offers an interesting obituary of Jerry McNeely, one of the finest television writers of the early '60s.  It's a behind-the-scenes piece that tells us a lot about how exciting those early days were, and how large a role chance can play in a successful career (although talent helps).

All Thinks Kevyn gives us a fun list of the ten best unseen, or mostly unseen, TV characters.  It's an interesting idea, when you think of it, and Kevyn produces some classic examples of how an unseen character can add a great deal to a television show.

Of all the members of the Mills family, my favorite was Juliet, probably from her **sigh** inducing performance in Nanny and the Professor, but Classic Film and TV Cafe is all about her sister Hayley, no slouch herself, and her five best film performances.

And now, some brief highlights of continuing series:

Cult TV Blog continues to look at allegory in The Prisoner with the classic "Living in Harmony," and shows - in so doing, find how "the episodes lend themselves to different interpretations."  Terrific stuff.

Television Obscurities' TV Guide review is up to October 3, 1964.  Mia Farrow is on the cover, and there's plenty of interesting info between the covers.

The Secret Sanctum of Captain Video covers the '60s British weekly TV Tornado and it's latest Man From U.N.C.L.E. story.

Comfort TV continues with the top TV theme songs - this week, the '70s!

That's it for today - on Saturday, we open up a new TV Guide from a new part of the country!

Around the dial

Last week I linked to Classic Film and TV Cafe write-up of the '60s British spy drama Man In a Suitcase.  This week, my go-to blog for Brit shows, Cult TV Blog, presents a dissenting opinion on Suitcase.  I think I come down somewhere in-between; I said last week that based on the episodes I'd seen, the series was very good.  However, I think it could have been much better.  (By the way, I like the new picture in the header!)

Speaking of Classic Film and TV Cafe, this week's entry is on the Ava Gardner Museum in Smithfield, North Carolina.  I remember one of the first movies I saw Ava Gardner in - I don't remember the name anymore, but I remember clearly thinking, "That's Ava Gardner."  I lived in North Carolina for thirteen months, drove past billboards advertising the Museum, but do you think I ever made it there?  The answer would be no.

It looks to me as if I'm always going to be about a week late with this, but from last Friday, it's the second installment of Television Obscurities' look at TV Guide for the season 1964-65, this time the issue of September 26, 1964 - another issue I don't have, so I enjoyed the recap immensely.  As I said last week, Robert really gives you a feel for what the issue is like.

Comfort TV is back with another look at TV themes, this time from the 1960s.  What an iconic list of themes!  If you're my age, you know them all, can sing along with them whenever they're on TV, and probably even remember what the credits backing them looked like.  Several of them are better than the shows themselves.  Hawaii Five-O is fortunate to not be using the Sammy Davis Jr. version.  The only bone I'd pick with the list is that it's missing my favorite theme of the decade, The FBI.

Over at Professor Barnhardt's Journal, the good Professor takes a look at fall previews over the years from each of the four networks (Fox, NBC, CBS and ABC).  They come from a variety of decades; I'll let you decide for yourself as to whether or not things have gotten better.

A great article at TV Party from frequent contributor Cary O'Dell on how the TV you watch now is different from how it used to be, i.e. when I was young.  Among the things: the national anthem to signal the end of the broadcast day, news breaks between programs, and the networks giving new series the time to succeed.  I remember them all.

All Things Kevyn presents the '80s version of The Alphabet Game, with a number of those letters having a television connection.  My favorite:  M is for Martha Quinn.  Remember her?  She was one of the original MTV veejays (back, as Kevyn says, when they actually played videos).  "Dwight Garner recalled: 'Every sentient straight male in the country developed a schoolboy crush on Martha Quinn, one of the first V.J.'s, fresh out of New York University and so cute she could make your cranium detonate.' Yup. Sounds about right to me."  Sounds about right to me too, Kevyn.

Well, that ought to keep you busy for awhile, hmm?  Back here on Saturday for another trip to the '80s with TV Guide. TV  

Around the dial

I've mentioned this series before, but it's worth repeating with Rick's fine write-up at Classic Film and TV Cafe regarding the British spy series Man In a Suitcase.  I've managed to catch a couple of episodes (so far) of this on YouTube, and it's very good.  Rick's right - it may well be the best of its type that you've never heard of.  I just wish the price on the DVDs would go down!

At Captain Video, Britt Reid (love that name!) gives us a different look at The Saint, via a comic strip.  The Saint is one of my favorite Brit series from the time; Roger Moore has, I think, much more of an edge to him than Patrick McNee's Steed, and maybe even more than Moore himself when he played James Bond.  I've also heard Vincent Price's version of Simon Templar on OTR - Price is always good, but only Roger Moore is The Saint.

Keeping with the British theme, Cult TV Blog continues looking at allegory in The Prisoner, this time with one of the series' strangest episodes - "Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling."  Despite the title, this is not the Prisoner episode that takes on the Western genre - that would be "Living In Harmony," which comes later.  I always thought this a great episode, and there's some very interesting analysis in this week's piece.

We've talked about TV themes before, particularly the dreadful covers done by Sammy Davis Jr. (starting here), but Comfort TV takes us through a list of the top 20 TV themes of the '50s.  Of course, the theme from Peter Gunn takes first place with me, but all of these themes do a great job of presenting their respective programs - nowadays with the truncated openings and closings that so many programs have, we lose sight of how important themes are in setting the stage for a program.

At Television's New Frontier: the 1960's, we get a really good look at a series I've heard of but never seen, the syndicated Western Shotgun Slade, starring Scott Brady.  On the other hand, now that I read more of the article, I think I have seen this before, at least one episode.  What I remember is the "jazz-Western theme music," which at the time I thought was both unusual and kind of neat.  So much Western music sounds the same.  Unfortunately, it was perhaps the most distinctive part of this two-season show.

Classic TV History Blog takes on The New York Times this week, as Stephen Bowie tells us "how to get away with being a terrible critic."  My own personal feeling is that this is a problem that's endemic to the Times as a whole, not just the TV section, but the things Stephen points out are appalling in and of themselves.  I don't pretend to be a journalist, even one good enough to write for the Times, but I hope I give you better quality than what they're doing.

Finally, over at The Hits Just Keep on Comin', jb has a touching piece on "the man who took an interest" and his effect on jb's radio career.  I really enjoyed reading that - to have someone like that play a part in your life like that, large or small, is very special.  And by the way, I also want to link back to jb's terrific piece from a while back on NBC Radio's Monitor, since I reviewed a book about that just the other day.

Gotta run now - see you back here on Saturday, right?

Around the dial

A day late, perhaps, but that just gave me a little extra time to find some worthwhile links for you to check out.

Fun post from Rick at Classic Film and TV Cafe, listing the five best classic television detectives. I might have found a place for the erstwhile British inspectors Morse, Lewis or Foyle, and I would agree with those who might have taken a pass on Jessica Fletcher, but a great piece nonetheless, and a very perceptive choice of Poirot as number one.

Speaking of lists, Amy at Embarrassing Treasures has her list of five favorite classic TV show openings. Regular readers know that from time to time I've enjoyed talking about my own favorites in this category - specifically, The FBI, The Fugitive and Perry Mason. Again, not only catchy, but recognizable to any TV fan. It's our loss that so many series have moved away from more substantial openings (and theme songs).

Anyone out there remember Josie and the Pussycats? I watched this cartoon Saturday mornings, although I'm not sure if it's because of the cartoon itself, or because at that age I'd watch any Saturday cartoon. (A few years later, and me a few years older, and I figure I would have been at the age where the Pussycats had a distinct appeal...) At Comfort TV, David takes us back to those neat, sweet, groovy days.

I've been putting the finishing touches of a couple of future "This Week in TV Guide" entries, in which a highlight of the week's broadcasting is the broadcast of afternoon World Series games. (One year starting at 10:45am CT, if you can believe it.) In a similar vein, Jeff at Classic Sports TV and Media gives us a rundown on weekday daytime major sports broadcasts. Great information for detail buffs like me, who also enjoy living in the past...

Todd VanDerWerff at The Onion A.V. Club tells us that the Golden Age of TV is dead, long live the Golden Age. Some very interesting thoughts here on everything from what makes a TV series a classic to what makes a TV era a golden one. I think he's particularly right in talking about how the scarcity today of 50s programming may make the era seem better than it is, and how the 60s (at least the early part) weren't as bad as we might remember. I won't dispute the labeling of the last few years as another Golden Age, even as I concede that I fail to appreciate its appeal.

And also from The Onion, as well as other sources, this note on NBC's proposed miniseries biopic on Johnny Carson. For as much as we revere Carson's memory and his impact on television, I wonder how relevant he is to the viewers of today, considering how long he's been off the air, and how invisible he became as soon as he left. Has Carson become one of those figures your grandparents watched? I don't know. But as an added bonus, Grantland's Ken Tucker has some ideas on his dream casting lineup for the miniseries.

Finally, at the Classic TV History Blog, Stephen has a terrific "true story" take on The Fugitive. The details are terrific, from the photo captions to the tone of the story. I won't tell you any more - read it for yourself!

Think that's enough for today? Let's call it a wrap, and meet back here tomorrow for another episode of TV Guide! TV  

Variations on a theme

It's surprising what you can run across on YouTube when you're not looking for it.  Take the opening credits and theme song for a series.  Nowadays, due to time constraints (i.e. the need for more commercial time), these are crunched beyond recognition (especially the closing credits, which as an art form have completely disappeared).  So I don't know that we'll be able to have as much fun in the future with items like the following.

Most of you are probably familiar with Alvin and the Chipmunks, and some of you (those my age or so) might even remember the original animated Alvin Show, which bears virtually no resemblance to the current chipmunks. Here's the theme.

Now, recalling our festival of Sammy Davis Jr. cover themes from a while back, here's one I would have had no inkling of: the Alvin theme by Nelson Riddle, of all people, better known for his Route 66 theme and his work with Sinatra. 

Well, that was different, wasn't it? But it turns out Nelson Riddle had an entire album of TV theme covers. Who knew? Here's his cover of the theme to The Andy Griffith Show:

There are a bunch more you can check out on YouTube if you want. But if you want the one that takes the cake, I think I have it. It's this faux Led Zeppelin version of the theme to the cartoon George of the Jungle. (For contrast, here's the original.)

You almost expect to see Sammy appear at the end, don't you? TV