We went back to the world of variety--true 1970s variety in all its glory--with Donny and Marie for our fifth episode. The show was loaded with guest stars due in part to its "TV Museum" concept. We also got an homage to the Marx Brothers! Are the Osmonds Batty material? What about potential breakout star George Gobel?
Anonymous Batty insider says: "Variety hasn't exactly cleaned up at the Battys outside of the Song category. Last year at the Season 11 Battys, Sonny and Cher won a listener-voted award for Outstanding Duo but were shut out in the other categories.
The series may be hurt by all the old Donny and Marie episodes being purged from YouTube, possibly making it harder to revisit the show. Another thing to look out for is the barrage of guest stars padding the nominee count. I'm surprised that Paul Lynde buzz is kind of muted this award season. Maybe this show isn't his best shot. I don't see Donny and Marie as huge winners this year, but you never know; they could ride a wave of support led by the positive reaction to all the George Gobel talk in the episode."
In our haste to revisit Dan August last week, we skipped over The Kid with the Broken Halo, but don't you skip over our TV movie selection of Season 12. Our episode was really a celebration of all the NBC Gary Coleman movies of the era but with a focus on the 1982 fantasy with Robert Guillaume, June Allyson, Mason Adams, Ray Walston, and of course George Sanford Brown as Rudy Desautel!
Angels, life lessons, and pro football combine in this entertaining comedy-drama from the time when Coleman was the biggest little star on TV. No hardcore theology in this one, but we do discuss work/life balance, crushing on elderly movie stars, and dads that day-drink! I also recommend The Kid from Left Field and The Kid with the 200 IQ to round out the Coleman/Guillaume Kid Trilogy.
Anonymous Batty insider says: "Will this TV movie be a big winner outside of the Outstanding Character Name category, where Rudy Desautel has to be the favorite? I don't know. It certainly has starpower, and only on BOTNS can Lani O'Grady add to a sense of something being loaded with starpower. One thing that makes me wonder is that Rick in particular seemed to prefer 200 IQ to this one. Will that preference hurt Halo come Batty time?"
1) The Six Million Dollar Man: 50 years ago tonight, the episode "Look Alike" featured Lee Majors in a rare dual role as an imposter infiltrated the OSI. Also appearing in this one: George Foreman!
2) It's Your Move: 40 years ago tonight, a classic sitcom left us, airing its final episode, one titled, "Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen." That show is, of course...It's Your Move?
Yes, the short-lived Jason Bateman comedy borrowed the name of its last episode from MASH, a move that makes me love it even more. Move aired 18 episodes, MASH aired over 250.
3) That's My Mama: Catchy Comedy runs a bunch of episodes of the 1970s sitcom today. Anything with Ted Lange and Theodore Wilson is worth seeing.
4) Jessica Fletcher: Laurie added another Jessica action figure to our collection this weekend. Yes, I said another; what a time to be alive when two different J.B. Fletcher Murder, She Wrote figures are on the market.
5) The Adventures of a Two-Minute Werewolf: 40 years ago today, ABC's Weekend Special debuted part 1 of this story about a boy who becomes a werewolf for two minutes at a time. Hey, a lot of those Universal movies didn't give us more than two minutes at a time of monster footage.
6) North American Soccer League: As MLS returns this weekend, let's remember the NASL! One of these years, pro soccer really will become a thing, or so they say!
Anonymous Batty insider says: "Burt has a proven track record with Batty voters, but is Dan August really prime Burt? More importantly, is it prime QM? That may be the key question because later this season, the guys did Streets of San Francisco, and the two shows may cancel each other out. I bet the guys saw more of this than many other programs they have covered, though, which might help. DA could score in the downballot acting categories, though, since the episode they discussed was so loaded with guest stats. I mean, Harrison Ford and Gary Busey didn't even make the opening credits!"
1) Saturday Night Live50: The big story in television this weekend is tonight's live special on NBC. Hey, wouldn't this be the perfect spot for Andy Kaufman to make his long-awaited return?
2) Super Bowl ratings set records: Well done, NFL. Now we have a target for the next Battys.
3) The 1984 Summer Olympics: Speaking of the Season 12 Battys, we took a quick look back at our Olympics episode this week. The so-called Batty insider doesn't think sports-themed episodes stand much of a chance at the Battys. Hey, no one ever made money betting against Al Oerter.
4) NBA All-Star Game: Let's keep the sports train running with a mention of today's event in the Bay Area. Hey, remember Lionel "L-Train" Simmons? Great player at La Salle, but he didn't make an All-Star Game.
I tell you who did, though: George Gervin.
Ok, that ad is out of the time frame. To make up for it:
5) Cher: Her solo series aired its first regular episode on CBS 50 years ago tonight and mere weeks after Sonny's solo series ended its brief run.
6) The Captain and Tennille: Seeing all the Donny and Marie episodes leave YouTube prompted me to pick up the Ultimate Collection DVD set from Hamilton Book. Don't worry, though, after the Osmonds and Sonny & Cher, we're taking a break from that variety format. So we don't have a Captain and Tennille episode planned...yet.
7) That's Life: We celebrated Black History Month this week by heading into Wink's Vault again for this 1979 game show pilot. It is very reminisicent of Family Feud and a few other shows, but I really enjoyed it. Russell is fun to watch and elevates the premise. Thanks again, Wink, for bringing these ratities.
8) House of Hanna Barbera: Me-TV Toons has a 3-hour special tonight launching its new showcase devoted to a lot of those TV toons we grew up watching on independent stations and USA Network's Cartoon Express. Squiddly Diddly makes his triumphant return to the airwaves!
9) National Do a Grouch a Favor Day: I really feel we owe Oscar a solid after not showcasing him in our Sesame Street episode.
We celebrated the 40th anniversary of the 1984 Summer Games of Los Angeles by sampling a lot of the original American coverage on ABC, with a focus on the epic Closing Ceremonies in the Coliseum. This episode has it all: Sports, Eighties geopolitics, and breakdancing!
Anonymous Batty insider says: "I'm a showbiz guy, not a sports guy, not an international affairs guy, but I thought Mike and Rick did a good job of blending all that stuff. But sports-based material doesn't usually clean up at the Battys. Usually they get their noms in the Outstanding Performance as Oneself category and not much else, but there could be some surprises."
1) TV itself: Here at Stately Brooks Manor, we had to get a new set this week, and I think we found a good deal on a great new television. In fact, it might be too good; it really exposes how bad these Season 5 "Alice" episodes I'm watching look.
2) The Streets of San Francisco: Head over to our Facebook group to see the thoughts Mike and I posted about Episode Club selection "Before I Die" from SOSF's second season. In short, it's a great episode with fine guest work by Leslie Nielsen, and it's still available for free viewing on Pluto.
3) The Big Game: After you watch "Before I Die," you can check out the Super Bowl tonight. I don't suffer from Chiefs Fatigue, but I do have a strong case of Irritated the Steelers Can't Get Backitis.
4) Commercials: The SB ads were better before they started appearing everywhere the week before. Actually, they were better, period. OK, I sound like a grumpy old man, but this is a site dedicated to 50-40-year-old TV shows.
5) Shows that debut after the Big Game: Shame on FOX for showing an episode of The Floor in that valuable real estate that has been used to launch the likes of Davis Rules and Brothers and Sisters.
6) Saturday Night Live: TBD is showing a marathon of the series next weekend to celebrate the 50th anniversary, and it includes some of the early episodes. See, I know what TBD is! I'm not that old!
By the way, it looks like pretty much every day has an SNL marathon on this channel. Not a lot of programming on there.
7) Jm J Bullock: Happy 70th birthday to the "funnyman," as he was introduced on Hollywood Squares.
8) National Pizza Day: I could use some pizza right now! Yes, no matter what time you are reading this, I could use some pizza.
9) Hubie Brown: The 91-year-old former NBA coach will call his final game as a broadcaster today. Brown began his career as an analyst in the Eighties, then went back to coach for several stints.
10) R.I.P. Dick Button: The skating icon died January 30, and I missed it last week.
As we navigate Batty season and prepare for the Season 12 Batty Awards, we will run a series of posts reminding you of this year's episodes and speculating on how they could fare at The Biggest Night in Retro TV Podcasting. First up: Our Season 12 premiere!
We began our most recent season with one of the most iconic sitcoms of the entire medium's history, let alone the BOTNS era: All in the Family. After talking about the Learverse on previous podcasts and dissecting spinoffs like The Jeffersons and Maude, we finally got to the flagship.
We talked about our own relationships with the show and the point of view the producers and creative team took. We discussed the dim visual aesthetic. However, I think we were most impressed with the performances, although we were of course delighted to bring bowling back to the podcast with "Archie and the Bowling Team."
Anonymous Batty insider says: Anytime you have a series that won 22 Emmys, it's gonna be a threat to win multiple Battys. Rick and Mike may not have embraced the show as it was on, but you can tell they were impressed by All in the Family, and I think the main acting categories could be dominated by this one, even though it wasn't a big showcase for Gloria and Mike. Expect AITF to be a big or maybe even the big winner.
1) FETV: This weekend, the cable channel debuts its new lineup and its new novel strategy: Showing most of its programs uncut! Let's hope this works for them. Right now they have Barney Miller, My Three Sons, Quincy, and more.
2) The Streets of San Francisco: In case you missed, BOTNS Episode Club this week spotlights this series and Season 2's "Before I Die" with guest star Leslie Nielsen!
3) Little House on the Prairie: First, it gets an award from Nielsen for being one of the most-streamed "legacy" TV shows (Thanks to our FB group friend John for the tip), and Is this series...having a moment?
Well, if it is, it will surely be followed by a plague of locusts and a devastating natural disaster.
4) The Grammys: Tonight the awards celebrate...uh, a bunch of people. I will look back to the 1985 Grammys:
5) The Sullivan Years: A Tribute to Ed: As opposed to Susan, I guess. This special celebrated Ed's amazing run on CBS. It was hosted by Dick Cavett, who may have accidentally slipped in a tribute to Woody Allen at some point.
6) Gunsmoke: This is another show cited by Nielsen as being a huge legacy show on streaming. Believe it or not, this is technically a BOTNS-era show because, well, it spanned the entire history of the medium.
7) Tater Tot Day:
8) Police Woman and Police Story: I believe most of the two NBC 1970s cop shows, formerly on Crackle (and maybe even formerly on Roku), are now streaming on Roku Channel. Otherwise February looks like a lean month for "new" old shows.
9) The Nuclear Threat to You: 50 years ago tonight, John Chancellor hosted this NBC special talking about the chances for nuclear catastrophe and how to prepare for it. You mean on top of all the other misery going on in the 1970s, they still had to worry about the bomb?
