Top Ten #390

1) The Harlem Globetrotters: This week's podcast looks at the world's greatest showmen...that belong to a group that has been around a hundred years, are focused on basketball entertainment, and have starred in various media through the decades (Not to demean them, just want to cover ourselves).

2) ABC'S Wide World of Sports: Speaking of the Globetrotters, guess who was on ABC 50 years ago today this afternoon?

That's right, Hubert H. Humphrey, who guested on Issues and Answers! But the Globetrotters also appeared, starring in Wide World of Sports at...Attica!

Check out the description: "A 90-minute special featuring the famous basketball team performing for the inmates at the maximum security penitentiary in Upstate New York, the scene in 1971 of the bloodiest prison uprising in American history. Howard Cosell is the host."

Hey, sounds like a blast! Cue "Sweet Georgia Brown!"

3) Curly Neal: Meadowlark got so much of the love in the Seventies that I want to mention Curly, who was Mike's favorite Trotter!

4) Hello, Larry: I am still intrigued by the fact that Meadowlark Lemon was a regular on this short-lived sitcom. I feel like this should be talked about more. I don't have much more to say about it, but someone should!

5) Celebration: The American Spirit: ABC helped kick off bicentennial festivities with this 90-minute David L. Wolper special 50 years ago tonight. Among those celebrating were Gabe Kaplan, Frank Sinatra, and Don Adams!

6) Bob Hope's All-Star Super Bowl Party: Ain't no one throws a party like Bob Hope in 1986! This special aired on NBC 40 years ago tonight, and you know the joint was jumping with the likes of Morgan Fairchild, Emmanuel Lewis, and Dick Butkus.

OK, I just looked at the listing. this one has Donna Mills, Don Rickles, and Jim McMahon. The 1985 special DOES have Fairchild!

7) Everything 80s: Jamie Logie's podcast just released an episode discussing the most-watched TV broadcasts of the Eighties--events, sports, movies, and more! It's a great listen even if it somehow overlooks the premiere of The Rousters.

8) The Canadian Conspiracy Part 1: According to a newspaper listing from 40 years ago today, this aired as part of the Cinemax Comedy Experiment series, yet Wikipedia says the Canadian production premiered up there in June 1986. Did it debut in the States before showing up on CBC?

The mockumentary "exposed" the infiltration of prominent Canadians into the United States.

9) Blake's 7: A reboot is in the works, according to this article. Unlike some other recent announcements, I am not cringing at this one. I think that an updated perspective and new technology could make this a worthwhile reimagining of the original. However, I recognize that if you grew up on the show, you probably just fear that they will screw it up.

10) R.I.P. Bruce Bilson: Longtime TV director shot many episodes of series TV.

The Harlem Globetrotters Meet the White Shadow Q&A

Mike here. Inspired by our Harlem Globetrotters episode, I picked up the first two seasons of The White Shadow on DVD (alas, the third never made it) and watched the Globetrotters episode, titled appropriately enough "Globetrotters." It aired November 5, 1979, as the seventh episode of the second season. John Masius wrote it, and Bruce Paltrow directed.

I had Rick send me his burning questions about the episode and will try to answer them below. As you'll see, it, in fact, doesn't involve Coolidge considering dropping out to join the Trotters. (I think I confused that with episode 4, where Coolidge considers signing with an agent and ruining his chance at playing in college).

So how does Carver High get involved with the world-famous Harlem Globetrotters?

The Globetrotters are in L.A. to play a series of dates at the "The Dome," which I assume isn't a real venue. They're also helping out at a United Way car wash event that Coach Reeves is managing (I think). Players from the Lakers and Rams are at other locations. Reeves wants the team to volunteer on Saturday, but they're high on themselves after winning 10 straight and give him the brush-off. However, on Friday, he sends them to the car wash where the Trotters are volunteering. All nine of the team members (minus a few scrubs) pile into Salami's junky convertible and head over, where they don't recognize the Globetrotters and give them a hard time about doing "manual labor."

After the team runs rough-shod on the school and the neighborhood and runs up the score on another team, Reeves calls Nate Branch to bring in the Globetrotters to teach the guys a little humility and raise a few bucks for the school.

Please tell me Coach Reeves considers the Trotters "good friends from way back."

Sadly, they're only professional acquaintances, but Reeves admits he always wanted to be a Globetrotter. Curly says if they need a slow white forward, they'll give him a call.

Does Coach Reeves suit up and do some stunts?

No, but Geese hops up in the stands, while wearing Goldstein's glasses, and kisses his cheek or something. It's a little unclear.

Does anyone get doused with a bucket of water?

Yes! Goldstein as the finale of a series of humiliations throughout the episode that starts with the guys throwing him in the back of Salami's open convertible as it goes through the car wash, then continues with Thorpe smashing his face into a slice of banana cream pie and Coolidge shoving him in the seats of the car.

Who fares better: The show's cast interacting with the Trotters on the court or the Trotters interacting with the show's cast on screen?

The Trotters interacting with the show's cast on the screen. They might not be natural actors, but they're having fun busting Reeves' chops and looking down on the players.

Is it wrong that I want the Globetrotters to demolish the kids?

No! They act like jerks most of the episode and get what they deserve--demolition!

Their sins during the episode include taking advantage of their "fame" and all that brings their way (girls), talking smack to adults, shirking the volunteer opportunity, considering a dine-and-dash (Coolidge and Thorpe with Goldstein as their conscience), shoplifting and causing general chaos in a sporting good store (Salami and his cousin Nick), flirting with Miss Buchanan (Thorpe), and beating up a guy in the bathroom (Salami, but that guy had it coming after hogging a stall to smoke and stepping on Thorpe's contact lens).

Which is more realistic, this episode or the average episode of Super Globetrotters?

Well, Sweet Lou Dunbar doesn't pull anything out of his afro, so I'll have to go with Super Globetrotters.

Does anyone learn a lesson, and if so, what is it?

Yes! The team. They learn humility and the difference between winning and being winners and sportsmanship, and Reeves throws a bunch of platitudes at them. 

Also, they miss out on comps to the Globetrotters game because they ditched volunteering.

Bonus feature: fun items from the commentary by Kevin Hooks (Thorpe), Byron Stewart (Coolidge), Erik Kilpatrick (Jackson), Ira Angustain (Gomez).

• Much of the cast had basketball experience, including Hooks and Stewart, who both played in high school. Others, who go unnamed, didn't.
• Much like the Globetrotters, the Carver High guys played against the same players every week, who'd wear different uniforms to represent different teams.
• The production used a special ramp for scenes where Ken Howard had to dunk.
• Hooks thinks "Globetrotters" was their first episode to crack the top 10 and says their level of fame changed after that.
• A lot of love for Bruce Paltrow and the opportunities he gave people.
• Hooks and Stewart say Meadowlark was there, but he wasn't.
• Angustain left the show with Paltrow's blessing to play Freddie Prinze in Can You Hear Me Laugh? The Story of Freddie Prinze.
• Russell Philip Robinson, the infamous team manager, tried to get into every shot regardless of how it affected continuity. Stewart tried to get out of master shots because he knew getting in one would mean staying on set all day.

A Globetrotter memento

My wonderful wife Laurie got this for me as a surprise to celebrate this week's Harlem Globetrotters episodes:

As you can see, the set is dated 1992. I don't remember this at all, but I love having this card, one of 90 in the collection. Love that play on the front. It's just like they drew it up, I'm sure!

Show Notes and Video Playlist: Episode 13-11: The Harlem Globetrotters

*We hope you enjoy our discussion of the Harlem Globetrotters as not just TV stars, but as phenomena of popular culture.

*The official Globetrotters website is right here.

*The book I refer to is Spinning the Globe: The Rise, Fall, and Return to Greatness of the Harlem Globetrotters by Ben green. I am intrigued by but have not read 2024's Globetrotter: How Abe Saperstein Shook Up the World of Sports by Mark and Matthew Jacob.

*The Harlem Magicians started in 1953 and featured Globetrotter Marques Haynes, who had left that team after issues with Saperstein.

*Meadowlark Lemon starred on several Globetrotter-like barnstorming squads, like the Shooting Stars.

*1970's The Harlem Globetrotters aired on CBS for 22 episodes and had multiple rerun stints.1979's Super Globetrotters was an NBC cartoon. The Popcorn Machine aired in 1974 on CBS.

*Rodney Allen Rippy starred in a series of Jack in the Box TV ads in 1973 and became a short-lived but substantial phenomenon.

*The Impossibles is a series of cartoons produced by Hanna Barbera for CBS in 1966. They were paired with Frankenstein Jr. on Saturday mornings.

*The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island premiered May 15, 1981 on NBC, followed by TV's Censored Bloopers.

*The Trotters' appearance on The Love Boat is from the show's seventh season, an episode titled "Aunt Emma, I Love You/Hoopla/The First Romance." It premiered January 21, 1984 on ABC.

*Gold Key produced some Globetrotter comic books in the Seventies, and Milton Bradley released a board game in 1971.

*Please enjoy our epic video playlist for this episode with promos, intros, commercials, and more! The list contains Six Decades of Magic, a documentary hosted by Louis Gossett Jr.  about the team's history. There is footage of the team and full episodes. It's a larger list than usual, but we wanted to share with you (most of) what we looked at for the podcast. Click below to go right to it, or you can always visit our official YouTube page for all of our past episodes and similar lists for each one of them!

Episode 13-11: The Harlem Globetrotters

Just in time for their centennial, this week, we talk about the Harlem Globetrottres. Like Doug Henning from earlier this season, the Globetrotters seemed to be all over TV in the seventies and early eighties. From ABC's Wide World of Sports to guest appearances, two cartoons and a Saturday-morning variety show, the Globetrotters brought their special brand of basketball and entertainment to audiences across the country--all while literally trotting the globe as ambassadors for the game. We take in an overview of this period and dip back into their history to celebrate the team and some of its personalities.

Read full show notes and more at https://www.battleofthenetworkshows.com/

Join our Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/371670863237699

Support the show by buying merch at http://tee.pub/lic/FM0uOqq3xzE

 

#podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #harlemglobetrotters #baskettball

 

 

Check out this episode!

Tomorrow on Battle of the Network Shows...

 

Top Ten #389

1) Basketball: This week's encore presentation is a trip all the way back to our second episode, an examination of The White Shadow. It's not just about basketball; it's about...life. I wish this show had an official streaming outlet.

Somehow I think we may not be done with basketball this season.

2) Gimme a Break!: The 1980s sitcom, one of NBC's semi-bright spots of the early Eighties, is now on streaming, with most (maybe all?) episodes available on Roku Channel. Which theme song do you prefer? 

Hey, wait. Why must we pick one?

3) Here We Go Again: I watched the pilot of this 1973 sitcom this week, and I am sad to report it was a tough watch. Larry Hagman and Diane Baker are newlyweds who find themselves living near and interrupted by their exes, Nita Talbot and Dick Gautier. Perhaps the show found its footing after the debut, but, oof, it makes BOTNS favorite Talbot annoying--a character I dreaded seeing.

4) The Redd Foxx Show: The 1986 sitcom premiered 40 years ago tonight, and though it lasted a mere 13 episodes, it's now available on Plex. Teddy Wilson, who we love so much on That's My Mama, joins the cast of The Redd Foxx Show during its run.

By the way, Roku Channel has some episodes of Foxx's 1977 variety show of the same name. I'm not sure why it has the ones it does and not the others (some of which are on the Clown Jewels YouTube channel).

5) That's My Mama: Catchy Comedy runs a marathon of the series from 10:00 AM EST to 10:00 PM EST today. If you want to check out the episode we discussed earlier this season, "The Witness," tune in at 7:00 (or see it on Tubi like we did).

6) The Rockford Files: NBC ordered a pilot for a new version of the classic James Garner series, which we discuss here. You can hear our pals Steve, Dave, and Jon discuss this on their podcast this week.

7) Monte Carlo Circus Festival: Remember when the circus used to be a big part of broadcast television? Maybe it wasn't always there, but you would get a circus-themed show every now and then, you would get variety specials like this one, and for sure you would see ads touting an event coming to your area.

50 years ago tonight, a special on CBS featured Peter Graves and an assortment of acts from the festival in Monte Carlo.

8) National Granola Bar Day: Have one on us!

9) Star Search: Netflix unveils a new version of the competition series on Tuesday. Does it have Ed McMahon? No. Make of that what you will.

10) Columbo: Last but not least this week, this comic by Joe Chouinard was the best thing I read all week. It's a crossover with Frasier!