Power Rankings: Chico and the Man!

The Power Rankings return to evaluate the characters on Chico and the Man. What more important pastime can there be than assigning rank to fictional people on a 1970s sitcom?

Remember, these ratings reflect how these individuals would fare against each other on a neutral playing surface in Malden, Massachusetts.

1) Chico and the Man (tie): Is this a cop-out? Of course it is, but the series relies so much on the tremendous chemistry between the two that it seems wrong to elevate one over the other. Prinze's Chico was the breakout, but Albertson's Ed Brown was the glue and was there the whole run (for better or worse).

3) Louie Wilson: Played with charismas as always by Scatman Crothers. Despite what I said above, don't think I didn't ponder putting Louie higher for a brief moment. Louie has to be one of the all-time great garbagemen (Future bonus episode idea?).

4) Della Rogers: Della Reese offered a surprisingly effective foil for Albertson after Prinze's death.

5) Charo: A little of Charo goes a long way, but the series needed some energy at the time, and, well, one thing Charo always provides is energy.

6 (tie): Mando, Mabel, and Reverend Bemis: The performers tried hard, but they just couldn't elevate these characters (Chico's pal, the mailperson, and, well, the reverend)  beyond solid contributors. They seem designed to be the kinds of characters who get rapturous applause when they show up, but I just have not gotten into them.

Also receiving votes: Raul and Monica. Don't blame the actors. They walked into an impossible situation.

Top Ten #324

1) Chico and the Man: This week on the podcast, we talk about a series which started blazing hot but ended early for obvious reasons. I enjoyed Chico and the Man more than I expected and am still watching it.

2) Freddie Prinze and Jack Albertson: What a team. You have a multitalented, charismatic superstar who commands the screen and who left us too soon...and Freddie Prinze was great, too!

3) Scatman Crothers: Scatman is always welcome on Battle of the Network Shows, whether he is in the series we discuss or not. Fortunately, he happens to be in 

4) James Komack: Say what you will about the executive producer, and many have, but he seems like a bit of a character.

5) Kmart: I for one bought many a cool toy at the store, the last of which closed this week. And by "bought," I mean, "asked my mom to buy for me."

6) Mannix: Check out the guest cast in the episode aired on CBS 50 years ago tonight, "The Green Man": Elisha Cook Jr., Russell Johnson, SCATMAN CROTHERS!

7) Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: The ceremony aired last night on Disney Plus. Congratulations to Cher, who we celebrated last season. She won the listener-voted Batty for Outstanding Duo with Sonny Bono! 

Meanwhile at the Hall, Allison Troy remains snubbed.

8) The Great Bear Scare: 40 years ago this weekend, many stations aired this 1983 Halloween-themed follow up to The Bear Who Slept Through Christmas.

9) Big Eddie: Let's take another look at the short-lived CBS sitcom that aired the same night as "Chico and the Van," the episode we talked about on the pod this week.

10) R.I.P.: Mitzi Gaynor and Sherry Coben (creator of Kate and Allie):

YouTube Spotlight: Can You Still Hear the Laughter?

One of the clips in our Chico and the Man playlist this week is this promo for the TV movie based on star Freddie Prinze's short life:

The full movie is also available on YouTube without looking too hard. Directed by Burt Brinckerhoff, it premiered on CBS Tuesday, September 11, 1979 after an episode of Wonder Woman. Opposition was a repeat of Part 2 of Holocaust on NBC and the ABC combo of new episodes of Three's Company, Taxi, and The Lazarus Syndrome. The sitcoms were season premieres.

Writing in The New York Times, critic John J. O'Connor called the movie "the bare scaffolding of the show-business structure constructed on the familiar story premise of 'too much, too soon.' As a magazine article, the form can still delvier narrative clout. As a dramatization, it demands much more than Can You Hear the Laughter?  was willing--or able--to make."

He says the movie is shallow and doesn't explain much about Prinze's life nor his death. He does praise star Ira Angustine, who resembles Prinze and "also manages to convey a good deal of his special warmth." Randee Heller and Kevin Hooks earn praise, too.

Show Notes and Video Playlist: Episode 12-9: Chico and the Man

*Chico and the Man aired on NBC 4 seasons from 1974 to 1978.

*Freddie Prinze was only 22 when he died. Jack Albertson lived 1907-1981, so he was well into his 60s when the series debuted.

*Freddie Prinze: Gone Before His Time is the documentary I refer to on the podcast.

*Here is an interesting contemporary article about Prinze's suicide from Time in February 1977.

*Mark Evanier writes about James Komack here and elsewhere on his site. Also, check out this 1978 People article about Welcome Back Kotter.

*The diner the characters enter is indeed seen elsewhere in the second season.

*Shout-out again to the 200 Dollars a Day Plus Expenses podcast with our friends Steve and Dave!

*"Chico and the Van" premiered October 17, 1975 as the sixth episode of the second season.

*Laverne and Shirley premiered in January 1976.

*Ann Gibbs and Joel Kimmel are credited as writers along with James Komack.

*Our look at Sammy Davis Jr.'s TV movie Poor Devil is right here.

*Fame was a hit movie for MGM in 1980, and it became a series in 1982, starting on NBC before moving to first-run syndication.

*The TV movie about Prinze's life is 1979's Can You Hear the Laughter?, which debuted September 11, 1979 on CBS.

*Finally, check out our video playlist for this episode, featuring all kinds of Seventies goodness--variety shows, a clip from a Dean Martin roast, commercials, promos, Farrah Fawcett, and more!

*And remember, you can always check out our official YouTube page for all of our past podcasts and episode-specific playlists for each one!

Episode 12-9: Chico and the Man

Things get rough for Chico and the Man when THE Man tells them Chico can't live in the Man's van. Also, they go to a diner and crack some jokes.

#podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #chicoandtheman #freddieprinze #jackalbertson #sitcom

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YouTube Spotlight: Blansky's Beauties

One of the clips in this week's bonus episode playlist is the opening to Nancy Walker's sitcom Blansky's Beauties.

Garry Marshall had an amazing career in film and television, producing many remarkable hits. This is not one of them! The series didn't get enough of a boost from being introduced on Happy Days and fizzled out in a matter of months in 1977.

Walker's character is sort of the den mother of a bevy of showgirls and also produces their show. It doesn't quite work, but it is interesting to see how much it attempts to leech off other Marshall shows.

One interesting thing is that Eddie Mekka was on this and on Laverne and Shirley at the same time. On this, his character is said to be a cousin of The Big Ragu. Other familiar faces include Pat Morita, who had been on (and would return to) Happy Days; and Lynda Goodfriend and Scott Baio, who would later join that series. If that isn't enough, Pinky Tuscadero (Roz Kelly) is in the debut episode. Marshall gave himself a role, too; and the series featured Caren Kaye in an early regular part.

For now, you can find many of the 13 episodes on YouTube if you want to check it out for yourself!

Top Ten #323: Special "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Halloween" Edition

1) Jan Miner/Nancy Walker: Actresses, pitchwomen, and now stars of our newest bonus episode game. talk about multitalented!

2) Marie Osmond: Happy 65th birthday to the co-star of Donny and Marie. She, of course, played Marie.

3) National Hockey League: Hockey is back! I doubt Hall and Oates are involved these days, though:

4) Nobel Prizes: Multiple awards were announced this past week. Mike and I are still in the running for the Nobel for TV Podcasting.

5) Sinatra--The Main Event: 50 years ago tonight, ABC aired this special taped from Madison Square Garden starring Ol' Blue Eyes. For some reason (boxing/MSG tie-in, I guess), Howard Cosell introduced him. What a pair: One guy wants to punch everyone, the other makes everyone wants to punch him.

6) Herb Alpert: Only one man could follow Sinatra in 1974, and that man was Herb Alpert, who had his own special right after the Sinatra one on ABC that night. He wasn't alone, though; he was helped by The Muppets, who were exiled to this one after Fozzie had accidentally no-showed a gig opening for Frank in Vegas in '72.

7) Archie Bunker's Place: The program, not part of the streaming package of All in the Family, is now on Roku Channel--sort of. Available are Season 1's 24 episodes, 19 episodes of Season 2, and a whopping 4 of Season 3. Imagine Archie Bunker sitting in his chair, leafing through his TV Guide and trying to find Season 4 of the show were he ran a bar.

8) Diff'rent Strokes: The series aired its second (by my count) bed-wetting episode 40 years ago tonight, this night with Sam doing it for real. The show dealt with this sensitive topic in typically tender fashion, depicting with gentle humor Drummond's solution to buy a brand-new mattress every day until the problem vanished.

9) Saturday Night Live: 40 years ago tonight, the show welcomed Bob Uecker and Peter Wolf.

10) R.I.P. Nicholas Pryor: More known for work in theatrical movies like Risky Business and for soap operas outside the time frame, but he was also in TV movies like this one:

Show Notes and YouTube Playlist: Bounty or Palmolive

*Jan Miner (1917-2004) also appeared in Cagney & Lacey and One Day at a Time.

*Nancy Walker (1922-1992) also had a recurring role on Family Affair. Her last regular role was in the 1990 Fox sitcom True Colors with Frankie Faison (later Cleavon Little) and Stephanie Faracy. It also starred Claude Brooks (no relation).

*Perry Mason the radio version aired 1943-1955 on CBS Radio. In addition to Jan Miner, Gertrude Warner and Joan Alexander played Della. 4 different actors played Mason.

*Do Re Mi, headlined by Phil Silvers with Walker, premiered December 1960 and ran until early 1962. Garson Kanin wrote the book, with lyrics by betty Comd

*Viva Madison Avenue! ran a mere two performances in 1960 according to the Internet Broadway Database.

*Paul Sand in Friends and Lovers was an MTM show from James L. Brooks and Allan Burns that premiered in Fall 1974 but lasted only a half season. Miner had a recurring role as Sand's character's mother.

*Montgomery Clift's serious car accident occurred in 1956 during production of Raintree County.

*Othello with Moses Gunn played Broadway in 1970.

*Can't Stop the Music (1980) is a notorious disco-era flop starring The Village People. It was Walker's only outing as a feature film director.

*The Allan Carr documentary I refer to is 2017's The Fabulous Allan Carr.

*Girl Crazy, the 1943 MGM musical from Arthur Freed, starred Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland and was a big hit.

*The Women with Jan Miner lasted less than two months on Broadway in Spring 1973.

*Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood was originally titled A Bark Is Born.

*Finally, here is our video playlist for this episode, featuring Bounty ads, Palmolive ads, movie trailers, and show intros! 

*And remember, you can always check out our official YouTube page for all of our past podcasts and episode-specific playlists for each one!

Bounty or Palmolive

In the seventies and eighties, two stars of screen and stage also graced our televisions in long-running ad campaigns, offering their advice and years of wisdom to to America. Nancy Walker played Rosie the Bounty paper towels lady, and Jan Miner played Madge the Palmolive dish soap lady. In this bonus game, Mike quizzes Rick on their careers and lives outside of those ad campaigns. Who worked with the Village People? Who once played Della Street? Who appeared in a terrible movie with nearly every actor in Hollywood?

#podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #games #nancywalker #janminer #bounty #palmolive

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YouTube Spotlight: The Tom Swift and Linda Craig Mystery Hour

Here's a clip from this week's Dungeons and Dragons playlist you may not recognize:

This is an attempt to launch a series based on the popular Tom Swift series of books for young readers. ABC had some success pairing The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew Mysteries in this time slot, so it tried to match Willie Aames and Lori Loughlin. All viewers got was this single outing, though, on July 3. 1983.

The interesting supporting cast includes William Windom, Janet Du'Bois, Carmen Zapata, Lucille Benson, and George DiCenzo. It was called the premiere of a new mystery series in the press, but nothing came of it. Presumably it didn't fare well against 60 Minutes and a Voyagers! rerun. The following Sunday, ABC ran a Ripley's Believe It or Not rerun in the spot.

Top Ten #322:

1) John Amos: We say a special goodbye to our Season 4 Genius Award recipient: The great John Amos, who combined a commanding screen presence with equally powerful reserves of hurt and vulnerability in his brilliant portrayal of James Evans. 

And I mean, he was also on Future Cop!

2) Dungeons and Dragons: This week on the pod, we look at the 1980s CBS cartoon and touch on the game on which it was based. The episode leads us in many different and fantastic directions, but we eventually find our way out! At least, I think we did.

3) Mazes and Monsters: It's just fun to think of Tom Hanks in this old TV movie.

4) Donny Most: To me his Eric is the real star of Dungeons and Dragons and a significant but overlooked part of the Most legacy.

5) Uni: Come on! The lil' creature is adorable! Even grizzled podcasters have to admit that.

6) Saturday Night Live: It began its tenth season 40 years ago tonight with the new additions like Billy Crystal, Marty Short, Rich Hall, Chris Guest, Pamela Stephenson, and a returning Harry Shearer, but no host, along with musical guest The Thompson Twins. This was the "all-star" season of the show and the last of the run of Dick Ebersol in charge while Lorne Michaels was absent.

7) National Coaches Day: Today let's pay tribute to the often-awkward, seldom-revelatory football coach shows on local TV stations!

8) The Bob Newhart Show: I was excited to see Prime Video had added this classic sitcom again for October, then I was dejected to learn it was only the first three seasons...again. Then I was more disappointed to see season 2 isn't even available yet.

At this point, I wonder if this is some kind of misguided attempt to pay homage to Newhart's comic delivery by delaying gratification. Sounds crazy, but so does adding the first and third seasons of a 6-season classic.

9) The Bizkitts: This series didn't do much other than happen to be airing an hour and a half before the D&D episode we cover this week, but, hey, when else are we going to mention this 13-episode wonder from Hanna Barbera? 

10) Drake Hogestyn: R.I.P. to the longtime Days star.

Show Notes and Video Playlist: Episode 12-8: Dungeons and Dragons

*Mazes and Monsters premiered December 28, 1982, on CBS.

*Dragon magazine was in print 1976 to 2007, and since then has remained more or less active as a digital publication.

*Mark Evanier's site is right here.

*Dungeons and Dragons aired 27 episodes and 3 seasons, September 1983 to December 1985. CBS ran reruns in 1987 and 1990.

*This episode we discuss premiered Saturday, October 15, 1983. I didn't mention the primetime shows on that day, just the Saturday morning lineup, but here is what was on that night:

CBS: Cutter to Houston, Movie: Trackdown: Finding the Goodbar Killer

ABC: T,J. Hooker, The Love Boat, Fantasy Island

NBC: Diff'rent Strokes, Silver Spoons, The Rousters, The Yellow Rose

And later, Saturday Night Live welcomed hosts Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman with musical guest Eddy Grant

*Let's salute Johnny Douglas, the series' composer, for that wonderful orchestral theme music!

*Finally, here is the video playlist for this episode, chock full of promos, that great theme song, commercials, and SID Miller on Barney Miller! All this plus Menudo!

*And remember, you can always check out our official YouTube page for all of our past podcasts and episode-specific playlists for each one!

Episode 12-8: Dungeons and Dragons

Just in time for the 50th anniversary of Dungeons & Dragons the game, we take a look at Dungeons & Dragons the Animated Series. The Dungeon Master goes missing, and the kids go looking for him, encountering frog men, pig men, Warduke, and of course Venger along the way. Will they find DM before his "life force" runs out? Plus, one of the group decides to go his own way and runs into a whole other set of problems.

#podcast #tv #retrotv #eighties #dungeonsanddragons #dandd #saturdaymorningcartoons

 

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Brooks on Books: "I, Rhoda" by Valerie Harper

Mike and I both mention this autobiography on the latest podcast episode. It does have info about the production of Rhoda, of course, but it has so much more. It's an easy read, conversational and accessible, and I mean that in a positive way. Valerie Harper comes across as an engaging storyteller in this simple but entertaining memoir.

I was interested to read about her early stage career. Her background as a dancer, her life in New York City, her appearing with Jackie Gleason and Lucille Ball--all of it's new to me. The sections on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Rhoda offer some good stories, but you will need to supplement them with other books to get satisfaction if those are your primary interests.

One thing that left me wanting more: Her account of the whole mess with Valerie--where she was kicked off her own show, which NBC continued as The Hogan Family--feels incomplete somehow. Don't get me wrong; she won the court case, and I have no trouble accepting that she was ill treated by Lorimar. Yet she glosses over what led to the wrongful firing by Lorimar, the difficult contract negotiations. I understand why she focuses on what happened after that process--the dismissal and lawsuit--but there is likely a lot of interesting stuff she leaves out about the vision of the series, the creative differences, etc. I don't recall her ever mentioning in the book her holdout after season 1 of Rhoda, which is interesting to consider when looking at this situation.

Her TV movie work gets short shrift, too, but that's not surprising in what is a fairly sparse volume.

She takes a pretty classy route in this book, though, doling out sincere praise to family, co-workers, her ex-husband, and many others. Her account of her health issues is compelling and offers a little more introspection than some of the rest of her life story. Any fan of Valerie Harper will be relieved to discover spending time with her in book form is a pleasant experience. 

YouTube Spotlight: A Double Shot of My David Groh

You can sing "A Double Shot of My David Groh" to the tune of "A Double Shot (of My Baby's Love)" by The Medallions since we're looking at two clips from the Rhoda video playlist that feature David "Joe" Grogh.

Or you could not do that. There are two problems with that.

1) Only one of these sitcom opening sequences actually includes David Groh.

2) Once you see that clip and hear the Paul Williams theme song, you aren't gonna have the original "Double Shot" in your head the way I did for some reason the other day.

Here is the opening to the James Komack CBS sitcom Another Day:

The uploader here says the "godawful" pilot consists of Groh and (Joan) Hackett's characters arguing loudly for the entire episode." Well, I kind of want to see this! Not many did see it in its original run, which lasted only 4 episodes in April 1979. I think Komack had about 4 or 5 failed sitcoms in a two-year span there.

Next up, a sitcom without David Groh but with Nancy Walker. Mama's Boy aired a whopping 6 episodes on a sporadic schedule on NBC, apparently filling in here and there until they just pulled the plug.

Bruce Weitz is a newspaperman whose mother moves in with him after his father dies. Want to bet she's a domineering mother? 

This looks hopelessly old-fashioned even taking into account there is irony intended with the use of a doo wop arrangement of "M-O-T-H-E-R" as the theme song. Even for 1987, I think this all feels out of place, like the show should have come out 5-10 years earlier.

In 1987, Weitz was coming off a scene-stealing role as Belker on Hill Street Blues, while NBC was finding success with The Golden Girls (The same producers created this show). This combination didn't work for the network, though, and the series ended its odd run in August of 1988.

Top Ten #321: Special "Bryant Gumbel's Birthday" Edition!

1) Rhoda: It seems like even though the series started out strong and outdid its predecessor for a while, the character and the spinoff always live in the shadow of The Mary Tyler Moore Show. We try to give it some attention in its own right on the podcast.

Oh, and don't forget to check out last week's episode, an encore presentation of, uh, The Mary Tyler Moore Show!

2) Valerie Harper and David Groh: Count us squarely in the "We like Rhoda and Joe" camp.

3) Julie Kavner: I feel like I owe her a high spot here after my remarks on the podcast. Brenda is fine; I just don't want all-Brenda, all the time!

4) Burt Mustin: Stole the show in his all-too-brief (and all-too-somnambulant) appearance on "The Honeymoon," the episode that tis our focus on the pod. I can't be the only one who wishes they would have brought him back as a potential love interest for Rhoda after the divorce.

5) Diff'rent Strokes: It's the 40th anniversary of the premiere of the Ghostbusters episode!

6) Connie Chung: The longtime newswoman is doing press for her new memoir. What do you think of the book? Come on, just whisper it, just between you and me.

7) Big Shamus, Little Shamus: So many popular shows debuted on this date in history: Cheers, Alice, McMillan and Wife...and this one.

8) National Coffee Day: I don't partake, so I tell you what, you can have my cup.

9) Saturday Night Live: The venerable institution (almost older than Burt Mustin at this point) began its 50th season last night.

10) The Oakland A's: Shame on MLB, not just the A's current ownership, for letting the team relocate.

YouTube Spotlight: The pinnacle of this feature

This is a wonderful week because the current podcast topic and one of our running jokes align this week right here in this very post. Well, actually, it already happened in this week's video playlist for Rhoda when we had a legitimate reason to post a clip from that fabled BOTNS fave...

OVER EASY!

Yes, in this clip of the daytime public broadcasting program aimed at seniors, Hugh Downs interviews Rhoda's Nancy Walker. There is no egg talk, sadly, but I am overjoyed at the opportunity to work Over Easy into the BONTS universe again, and I hope longtime listeners appreciate it as well!

(Over Easy aired 1977-1982 on PBS stations. Downs hosted the magazine-style show that aired primarily in afternoon timeslots.)

Show Notes and Video Playlist: Episode 12-7: Rhoda

*This week we look at Rhoda, which aired 1974-1978 (5 seasons) on CBS.

*Shout-out to these two books: I, Rhoda, Valerie Harper's autobiography; and Jennifer Keishin Armstrong's Mary and Lou and Rhoda and Ted; which looks at all the series in the Maryverse. I reviewed the latter here in 2018.

*"Rhoda's Wedding" premiered October 28. 1974 and is the eighth episode of the series. It drew an estimated audience of 52 million viewers (That's even more than the last Battys). Two days before, "The New Sue Ann" episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show led into Rhoda's wedding.

*Rhoda was a top 10 program on Monday nights in first couple seasons, and by the end was on Saturday nights and finished 95 with half as many viewers as in its first two years.

*As of this writing, the series is still not officially available on streaming.

*In 1976, the divorce rate in the USA was 5 per 1,000 people, an all-time high.

*The counseling episode I mention is Season 3's "Two Little Words: Marriage Counselor," guest-starring Rene Auberjonois.

*"The Honeymoon" first aired Monday, November 4, 1974 at 9:30 PM on CBS.

*Ray Buktenica is the actor who plays Benny on the series.

*Here is the Mike/Richard Masur action figure:

*Mell Lazarus' Momma ran in newspaper syndication from 1970-2016.

*Mike did the research on how many episodes of TV Burt Mustin and Charles Lane were in together:
https://www.imdb.com/search/title/?role=nm0485272,nm0615993

This sounds like the obvious highlight:
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0591273/?ref_=sr_t_30

*Phyllis with Cloris Leachman ran 2 seasons on CBS, 1975-1977.

*Finally, here is our video playlist for this week, which includes the very episode we discuss (If you like that, there's more in the same place), plus commercials, promos, and more! See, not just hear, Lorenzo Music!

*And remember, you can always check out our official YouTube page for all of our past podcasts and episode-specific playlists for each one!

Episode 12-7: Rhoda

After four seasons on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Mary's best pal Rhoda (Valerie Harper) returned to New York City for a visit and ended up staying for her own show, aptly titled Rhoda! At the behest of the man with the golden gut Fred Silverman, the creative team rushed her into marriage with Joe (David Groh), a decision that ultimately led to major creative changes. We delve into that, then look at episode 10 "The Honeymoon," which doesn't turn out exactly how Rhoda and Joe expected it to thanks Rhoda's parents.

#podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #rhoda #valerieharper #marytylermooreshow #spinoff

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This Day in TV History: Cheers and Hill Street Blues win at the 1984 Emmys

40 years ago tonight, the big winners at the Emmys were Cheers and Hill Street Blues.

It's no surprise, in retrospect, those shows won the big Comedy and Drama prizes, but I do find the other nominees in that Comedy category interesting:

Buffalo Bill
Family Ties
Kate and Allie
Newhart

Top Ten #320: Special "Full week or so after the Emmys" Edition!

1) Mary Tyler Moore Show: We posted our previous episode covering the show as a Special Encore Presentation this week, but we are back Thursday with a brand-new podcast. Attentive listeners may be able to speculate on the show we discuss next! 

We love our inattentive listeners, too, though!

2) Batman: Wednesday is National Comic Book Day, yesterday was Batman Day, but every day should be Adam West Day.

3) The Sonny Comedy Revue: Today in 1974, Sonny Bono, finally free of the shackles of his less charismatic and less talented partner, launched his own variety show on ABC and went on to a long and fruitful run, never having to reunite with Cher for another go.

(This has been another installment of TV Alternate History, brought to you by delusion)

4) Matlock: The Kathy Bates 2024 show premieres tonight, but I might have be on Team Grandpa Simpson and watch the original.

5) The Man from UNCLE: Outside the time frame, but the spy show premiered 60 years ago tonight and did come back with a 1980s reunion movie.

6) Jabberjaw: The old Hanna-Barbera toon is now playing weekends on Discovery Family, which is still around!

7) Hispanic Heritage Month: It's well underway, and I celebrated by watching this episode of Viva Valdez:

8) Fannie Flagg: The frequent guest on BLANK turns 80 today!

9) Series Premieres in 1984: 40 years ago tonight saw these shows debut in prime time: Finder of Lost Loves, Cover Up, Partners in Crime, Hot Pursuit. Pretty much all these lasted about as long as The Sonny Comedy Revue.

10) National States and Capitals Day: How about a shout-out to the man who practically ran the state of, uh, whatever it was: Benson!

Promo Theatre: Robert Guillaume sounds almost as cool as Ernie Anderson

In this 1985 ABC promo, come to hear Benson DuBois mutter, "Welcome to the Love Boat," and stay for a look at the premiere of short-lived program The Quest!

This episode of Benson, "Death in a Funny Position," is the fourth-season premiere and offers guests like Michael Constantine, Ron Carey, Keene Curtis, Lynda Day George, and Tab Hunter!

The Quest lasted a mere 8 episodes, but it offered an interesting cast in a show about a tiny European principality offering some Americans a chance to be its ruler. Stars include Perry King, Karen Austin, Ray Vitte, John Rhys-Davies, and Noah Beery Jr.

Encore: The Mary Tyler Moore Show

Love is all around as we revisit our episode about the iconic sitcom The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Mary wants a raise. Instead, she has to mastermind WJM's new "fun" news format. Everything should run smoothly as long as no one tells Ted he's the straight man. Oops! Plus...Gilligan's Island?

#podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #marytylermoore #themarytylermooreshow #mtm

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RetroFan Magazine brings it

The latest RetroFan is another interesting blend of topics. I recently read that longtime TwoMorrows editor Michael Eury is retiring, and I hope the magazine continues on the same course without him.

The cover story spotlights CHiPs, and how can you not appreciate an article that includes a nice big photo of our guy Robert Pine? Herbie Pilato seems to be a regular contributor now, and this is a good overview of the series even if its list of standout episodes somehow lacks "Roller Disco."

Oh, and I want this toy pictured in the story (Thanks to swfigures.com for the pic):

Mark Voger's feature on Tiny Tim includes a lot of info beyond the famous Tonight Show wedding. Though Tim was not as much an icon in the BOTNS era as in the Sixties, he was a common cultural reference who grew up in the Seventies/Eighties, and I think this piece is of interest to all of us! Voger strikes a nice balance between trying to capture the weird appeal of the persona and the man as an individual.

I really like Scott Shaw!'s column this week, a personal remembrance of John Candy. Shaw! worked with the late actor on the NBC toon Camp Candy, and I enjoy the details of his own experiences combined with an overview of Candy's career.

The other big story that is relevant to the world of BOTNS is Andy Mangels's deep dive into the Plastic Man cartoon. It's frustrating that so much of the animated Plas remains unavailable, though some of the ABC show did make its way to DVD years ago. Mangels does a great job laying out the history of the character in cartoon form.

There's more, including features on Steve Reeves, Remo Williams, and Weird-Ohs model kits, and it's the usual solid effort from everyone involved. As always, I recommend it!

This Day in TV History: Marjoe's BLISTERING performance on Medical Center would earn him a Batty

50 years ago tonight, CBS went up against the season premiere of Monday Night Football and TV movie What's the Matter with Helen? (NBC) at 10:00 with a new episode of Medical Center called "Demi-God."

This episode is the one we talk about on our 2017 episode from Season 3 in which we look at Medical Center. Guest star Marjoe Gortner plays a faith healer in "Demi-God," and his performance would get him a Genius Award in our Season 3 Battys!

Helen is a 1971 horror movie with Debbie Reynolds and Shelley Winters. Here's a look at the trailer:

Top Ten #319: Special "Emmy Fever" Edition!

1) Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous: You can tell how well Mike and I just blended into the glamorous world of the series; you know, two guys who host a free podcast about old TV shows.

2) Robin Leach: I think we're far enough from his Eighties peak that he isn't overexposed anymore. I wouldn't swear to it, though.

3) The Emmys: Hey, I wonder who will win the Outstanding Facial Hair award or the Robert Pine Genius award, or if the random number generator will come into play. SPOILER: None of that will happen, unlike on other shows (Ahem!).

However, you will see reunions featuring some BOTNS stars. Among the reported segments is a Happy Days reunion. Will they do the Elephant Dance again?

4) The Love Boat Fall Preview Party: ABC did a couple of these, and I really want to see the one that aired 40 years ago tonight previewing the 1984 Fall season. Here's a glimpse of the 1983 version:

5) WJAC: Today is the 75th anniversary of the broadcast debut of this Johnstown TV station, which happens to be the NBC affiliate I grew up watching!

6) MTV Video Music Awards: Last week's show didn't seem to have much to interest me, but there was a day when maybe you would see an Outstanding Hair category there.

7) Joan Collins: One of the stars of the Lifestyles episode we discuss on this week's podcast, Collins is still around and doing well.

8) Saturday morning television in 1984: 40 years ago this morning, among the debuting programs on the networks: Shirt Tales, Snorks, GetAlong Gang, Pink Panther and Sons, Going Bananas, Muppet Babies.

9) CHiPs: Speaking of Robert Pine, this show premiered on this date in 1977!

10) R.I.P. James Earl Jones and Frankie Beverly: The latter was not a TV star, but he was a big part of the episode of Soul Train we discussed!

YouTube Spotlight: 007 on MTV

One interesting clip in this week's video playlist is Roger Moore on MTV in 1985, perhaps not too distant from his appearance on the Lifestyles episode we discuss, promoting A View to a Kill with Nina Blackwood.

The movie had Duran Duran do the theme song, but does it feel like a MTV 1985 film? I like that the first question Nina asks is about Duran Duran, like Roger was the one who arranged the soundtrack production.

Moore should have struck around and introduced some more clips, like David Lee Roth, Whitney Houston, Simple Minds...

Show Notes and Video Playlist: Episode 12-6: Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous

*Thank you again for voting in last season's 80s infotainment poll, which brings us to this week's episode after Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous lost a narrow decision to Entertainment Tonight.

*Announcer David Perry, AKA David Greenspan, was the brother of famed Olympic filmmaker Bud Greenspan and narrated many of those movies. 

*Runaway with the Rich and Famous (1991-1998) and Fame, Fortune, and Romance (1986-87) are the two spinoffs of the series. Apparently Robin Leach donated a bunch of VHS tapes to UNLV! Someone digitize this material!

*S.D. "Special Delivery" Jones was active in the WWF from 1974-1990.

*There was an ABC version of the show, re-edited episodes, on daytime weekdays in 1986.

*The St. James Club is still around today!  It now has pickleball! It still offers all-inclusive services, and we hope it remains "discreetly opulent."

*This episode of Lifestyles aired Saturday, February 9, 1985 in many markets.

*WPXI has been a station in the Pittsburgh market since 1957, though it was WIIC before changing call letters in 1981. For most of its run, it has been an NBC affiliate. In its early days, it aired prominent local shows like studio wrestling and Chiller Theater, both with Bill Cardille.

*Morris the Cat is still affiliated with 9Lives! His original commercial run lasted from 1969 to 1978.

*"Fat and Furry," premiering September 16, 1989 on CBS, is the Garfield episode Mike mentions. In a show on the show called Lifestyles of the Fat and Furry, Robin Leach shows viewers the luxury lives of spoiled felines.

*Charlene Tilton's single "C'est la Vie" was released in Germany, The Netherlands, and France in 1984. It was not even released in the USA.

*Regine Zylberberg (1929-2022) was a torch singer turned nightclub manager in France. She built an empire of nightclubs for the jet set all over the world. See an incredible disco music video of her and Charo in our video playlist!

*Roger Moore was James Bond in 7 movies from 1873 to 1985.

*Capitol was a CBS daytime soap from 1982 to 1987. other stars included Carolyn Jones, Ed Nelson, Julie Adams, and Rory Calhoun.

*George Michael's Sports Machine launched in 1984 as a production of WRC in Washington D.C. and was syndicated to other NBC stations before getting wider clearance in the Nineties.

*Joan Collins married Peter Holm in November 1985, but they divorced in August 1987, and the marriage was over well before then for practical purposes. She has been married to current husband Percy Gibson for over 20 years.

*Phlibin S. Flanagan was vice President and General Manager of Television Program Enterprises. You can read a 2015 obituary here.

*Finally, click below to enjoy our video playlist for this week, including promos, commercials, and more! Note that we included something out of the time frame, from the mid Nineties, to give you a taste of the Giant Eagle jingle I mention on the show.

*And remember, you can always check out our official YouTube page for all of our past podcasts and episode-specific playlists for each one!

Episode 12-6: Lifestyles of the Rich And Famous

This week, we cover another listener poll runner-up, Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous with Robin Leach. As you'd expect, this 1985 episode includes a lot of rich and famous people living their lives in style from the "discreetly opulent" St. James Club in Antigua to Beverly Hills to Miami to Mexico City. We're possibly more interested in Sucrets and aspirin than champagne and caviar but keep an ear out for the likes of Joan Collins, Julio Iglesias, Liza, Ann-Marget, and Esther Williams.

#podcast #tv #retrotv #robinleach #eighties #lifestylesoftherichandfamous

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

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Tomorrow on Battle of the Network Shows...

 

Power Rankings: 10 who did NOT have variety shows (but could have) in the 1970s

A common talking point about the peak of the variety show in the 1970s is that "Everyone had a variety show" in the decade. I mean, Mike and I probably said it a few times after talking about Sonny and Cher last season and Donny and Marie this past episode.

Believe it or not, it's not the case! Yes, the existence of The Keane Brothers Show may convince you otherwise, but many celebrities of the era never got their own program.

Here's our list of 10, ranked in order of who would win if they played head to head on a neutral field in Television City, Los Angeles, California.

1) Robert Pine: 'Nuff said.

2) Herve Villechaze: Of course the show would be called HERVE! and would co-star Jeff Altman.

3) Beth Howland: Can you believe TV's Vera never had a variety show? Crazy, right?

4) Ann Jillian: You know what? Maybe this one actually should have happened. She was more a presence on stage than on screen in the Seventies.

5) Jim McKay: Famous for being inflappable, McKay really proved his ability to handle any situation with his flawless call of the breakdancing at the 1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony.

6) Theodore Wilson: One of the coolest performers of the decade worked steadily, including regular roles on That's My Mama and Good Times, so he didn't NEED to host his own variety hour. Maybe the public needed it, though.

7) Jodie Foster: She was in tons of stuff in the Seventies, including commercial TV, series like Paper Moon, and guest shots plus even voice-over work (The Addams Family cartoon). Networks were chasing that 2-11-year-old demo even then. Why not The Jodie Foster Hour with some skits and songs?

8) Gary Sandy: Despite his proven versatility as an actor and frontman of a platinum-selling rock band, he never got the shot.

9) Grape Ape: He shared a high-profile gig with a diverse cast on The Tom and Jerry/Grape Ape/Mumbly Show. I think he could have pulled off a prime-time variety series.

10) Herb Edelman: I know. It stuns us, too.

YouTube Spotlight: Go Hawaiian!

I think I knew Donny and Marie from their Hawaiian Punch ads than I did their actual TV work. The commercials were on all the time, and I loved Hawaiian Punch! Or was it Kool-Aid? Or maybe Hi-C?

I think I drank all of those.

We included one ad in the playlist this week, but here are a couple more just in case you are in the need for even more sugary sweetness.

Did you know that when Donny and Marie were hired as spokespersons, the beverage was owned by RJ Reynolds? And today it is owned by Dr. Pepper.

Top Ten #318: Special "Here we go" Edition!

1) Donny and Marie: This week's all-new, all-fun episode of the podcast features the wholesome brother/sister duo's 1970s variety program.

2) Paul Lynde: What more can you say about Paul Lynde that Gilbert Gottfried and Frank Santopadre didn't already say better? I'm still not really sure what he was doing as a regular on the Osmonds' weekly show, but some mysteries may be better left unsolved.

By the way, thanks (I think?) to our pal in our Facebook group, Charlie, for putting this in my head:

3) George Gobel: We are still waiting to hear from all the Double G superfans out there after his appearance on Donny and Marie, but in the meantime, here is an extended glimpse of the comedian.

4) Desi Arnaz: Milton Berle became a member of the 3-Timers' Club with his appearance on the pod this week, but i want to celebrate Desi, whose appearance on this episode of Donny and Marie followed his release of the awesomely titled autobiography A Book. Let's visit with Johnny again:

5) Laugh Busters: 40 years ago tonight, NBC previewed its new Saturday morning lineup with this special. Get the scoop on Kidd Video!

6) The NFL: Pro football is back! This year, the NFL continues its takeover of every day of the week and every special occasion with high-profile games on Christmas Day on Netflix. BOTNS does not fear the league, though, and will continue releasing episodes on Thursdays despite the presence of Thursday Night Football.

7) Star Trek Day: This holiday celebrates the anniversary of the premiere of the original series on NBC. To all who celebrate, may the force be with you!

8) Heather Thomas: Happy birthday to the Fall Guy star!

9) World Ampersand Day: Let's take a moment to celebrate great duos like Siskel & Ebert, Laverne & Shirley, and Steak & Lowenbrau.

It's been too long since we posted that!

10) R.I.P. James Darren and Jim Riswold: The latter, who died in August, but posthumously announced his death last week, is credited with creating Nike's legendary Air Jordan and Bo Knows commercials.

Show Notes and Episode Playlist: Episode 12-5: Donny and Marie

*Apologies for the lateness of this post this week!

*I was unable to find the exact study, but I believe research in the 1960s revealed that being rock and roll or country is not a strict all-or-nothing proposition, but that it is more of a fluid scale on which people have different degrees of rock-and-rollness and/or countryness.

*Thanks again to everyone who voted in last year's variety shows poll. If you want to listen to or revist last season's Sonny and Cher episode, click here.

*Frampton Comes Alive by Peter Frampton is a double album from 1976 that was the biggest LP of the year and remains one of the biggest-selling live albums ever. Aja, released Fall 1977, is Steely Dan's biggest album.

*Goin' Coconuts (1978), the attempt to bring the Donny and Marie magic to the big screen, was a huge flop.

*Mike writes about Jimmy Osmond's Saturday morning preview special here.

*Here is my own take on an Osmonds Christmas special.

*One show we do not mention on the podcast is the Rankin Bass Saturday morning cartoon The Osmonds. it ran for 17 episodes in Fall 1972. The series featured the voices of the actual Osmonds...and of course Paul Frees!

*This episode premiered Friday, September 24, 1976, on ABC. It ran 4 seasons, January 1976 to May 1979, with 78 episodes.

*Serpico lasted a half-season on NBC.Co-starring with David Birney was Tom Atkins of The Rockford Files.

*"I Just Want to Celebrate" was a #7 hit for Rare Earth 5 years earlier, but its cover of The Temptations' "Get Ready" was its biggest hit at #4.

*Peggy Fleming was a gold medalist in figure skating at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France.

*Art Linkletter hosted House Party and People Are Funny on TV and radio.

*The New Howdy Doody Show premiered August 1976 in daily first-run syndication but only lasted until January.

*Finally, check out this week's video playlist, with commercials, promos, theme songs, and somehow, Rip Torn!

*And remember, you can always check out our official YouTube page for all of our past podcasts and episode-specific playlists for each one!

Episode 12-5: Donny and Marie

Last season, Sonny and Cher narrowly beat out Donny and Marie in a listener poll, but we promised to cover Donny and Marie this season, and here we are! In our cutest episode to date, the brother-sister duo celebrates the history of TV with regular Paul Lynde and the likes of Milton Berle, Art Linkletter, and the one and only George Gobel! This one has everything you'd expect from a seventies variety show: celebrities, singing, dancing, "comedy"...and ice skating.

#podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #varietyshow #donnyandmarie #osmonds

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

 

Check out this episode!

Tomorrow on Battle of the Network Shows...

 

YouTube Spotlight: Norman Fell

 One of my favorite clips from this week's YouTube playlist is this Norman Fell commercial.

On one hand, we all love the image of Fell as Stanley Roper grinning at the camera. Let's try, difficult as it is, to remove that picture from our mind. If you take out the mugging Stanley from Fell's repertoire (not that I want to), is there any better combination of pitchman and product than he and Pepto?

New to streaming for September

Here are some interesting new adds from the various streamers for us to enjoy on this Labor Day holiday (here in the States).

Roku Channel added Voyagers! and In the Heat of the Night. I think I missed that Police Story was on here, too. I tell you something: Roku Channel does a great job of burying material that interests me.

The channel also has some of the old MGM shows that make the rounds: Sea Hunt, Flipper, Bat Masterson, The Outer Limits. You know what I would like to see? Highway Patrol. That one has been on a lot of different TV channels in recent years but has never made it to streaming.

Warner Brothers Discovery continues its strategy of loading up MAX with the "Discovery" portion of its catalogue while dumping the "Warner Brothers" on the free streamers. Plex is the big recipient lately.

It now has the two original V miniseries as well as Max Headroom (1987), which I believe are streaming debuts. It also acquired Perfect Strangers, which has been MIA after a stint on Hulu. Soap fans should be happy, as Falcon Crest returns to streaming and, in an even bigger deal, Knots Landing debuts on streaming here on Plex.

It's great news for fans who get to watch the stuff for free, but I continue to be amused that WBD takes content away from MAX like Looney Tunes and Super Friends and doesn't bother with so much of its TV library, instead stuffing its offerings with stuff from TLC and HGTV. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to see more of the old shows on services we pay for?

Top Ten #317: Special "National Square Dance Month" Edition!

1) Dan August: Mike and I have a great time discussing this 1970 series on BOTNS this week. It's not the best cop show of its era, but it has its virtues, and I wish it had more than one season.

2) Quinn Martin: It was great to get QM on the podcast. I sometimes wish I were IN a Quinn Martin Production. The production values and guest stars would be better, at least.

3) Norman Fell: I see Burt Reynolds insisting his co-star get the slot above him on the Top Ten list, then "dropping by to support him" and smirking for the remaining 10 minutes of his segment. All in good fun, of course.

4) Burt Reynolds: See? Here he is already!

5) Harrison Ford: It was just so cool seeing him show up on Dan August for the pod this week. Has anyone ever asked him about this appearance? I bet he'd play it all cool, like he barely remembered playing an ultimately insignificant drifter for a few scenes on a single-season show that has largely been forgotten nearly 55 years after it aired...but we know better!

6) Gary Coleman: The late star is the subject of a new documentary that Peacock just premiered, and honestly, it looks really, really sad. I might have to revisit some of those TV movies after watching this.

7) Hardcastle and McCormick: RIDE! The boys are back, and this time they are streaming on Roku Channel. Your move, Netflix.

8) The Fall Guy: With the 2024 movie hitting Peacock, isn't it about time the series made it to streaming again? Hulu had the first two seasons a couple years ago. This feels like a Tubi show, if Disney will let it go.

9)  The Odd Couple: There's a marathon of the show this weekend, but don't ASSUME you have the channel (Catchy Comedy) because, as Felix tells us, when you assume...

10) R.I.P. Sid Eudy: The man who ruled the world!