Tomorrow on Battle of the Network Shows...

 

Retro retro TV news #2

*Yesterday we linked to a Sitcoms Online article detailing changes to the Antenna TV and Rewind TV schedules. It's nice to see some "new" (really returning) series from the 1970s and 1980s, but it's not so cool to see the older shows get dumped. granted, Antenna has aired the likes of Father Knows Best and The Jack Benny Show for a long, long time, but I think there should be a place for them on TV.

*Last week I had a great time revisiting one of my all-time favorite books: This comic digest reprinting 1960s Dennis the Menace stories. Of course we talk about Dennis in this episode here.

This digest has a lot of great and hilarious Dennis adventures, including an epic in which he visits his grandfather in Bethlehem...Pennsylvania!

*A New Year's tradition is The Twilight Zone, and SyFy starts its marathon 5:00 AM EST December 31. it runs until Friday morning. Heroes & Icons starts its own marathon at 8:00 PM EST on Wednesday, and it will run until 6:00 AM EST on Friday.

 

Top Ten #386: Special "Is it really the most wonderful time of the year when That's My Mama is leaving Tubi again?" Edition!

1) Presents: Did anyone get some nice DVD or Blu-Rays this year? I mean, come on, they're still a thing, and I enjoy getting them!

2) Holiday cheer and warmth and giving: Of course giving beats getting, right? We hope all of you are enjoying a happy holiday season.

3) New Year's Day: The turning of the calendar brings resolutions, goals, and Guy Lombardo! Yes, Guy Lombardo! Everyone still remembers Dick Clark, but Lombardo was a staple of the holiday, too.

4) Toys: Hey, remember, we released a new bonus episode on Christmas Day! I shared a photo of this in our Facebook group, but here's another one of my favorite childhood toys. I didn't mention it on the podcast because I did not remember any TV ads:

5) United Negro College Fund Parade of Stars: Go back 40 years ago in time, and you will see that on the telethon Lou Rawls welcomes LeVar Burton, Robert Guillaume, Lola Falana, Gregory Hines, Danny Cooksey...Wait, a minute. Lola Falana?

6) Lost Horizon/Buck and the Preacher: Back in 1975, broadcast premieres of theatrical films was a big deal. On December 28, these two made their network debuts on NBC and ABC, respectively.

7) David Susskind: "How to Be a Jewish Son" was the theme of the episode 50 years ago this weekend, with the host welcoming guests Mel Brooks, David Steinberg, and George Segal. Surely it's a sobering, academic discussion.

8) Antenna TV/Rewind TV: The diginets announced their January schedule changes. New or returning: One Day at a Time, Sanford and Son, Mork and Mindy, and more. Some shows are moving from Antenna to Rewind. See the link for details!

9) Tannis Valelly: Happy 50th birthday to the former Janice from Head of the Class! I believe a Weekly Reader poll once named her only the fourth-most-annoying character on the series.

10) College football bowl games: 40 years ago today, we got the Sun Bowl and the Aloha Bowl! I miss the Aloha Bowl, maybe because a young Rick watched Penn State (kind of slumming it, to be honest, after a down year) in the second edition of the game. Below is a clip from the 1985 Sun Bowl and a promo for the 1989 Aloha Bowl:

Happy Boxing Day!

 

Credit to the Weird Hollywood Facebook page for the photo. You can hear us talk about this special on this episode.

Show Notes and Video Playlist: Bonus--Toy Ads!

 *Merry Christmas and Happy Even to everyone! Happy holidays to all who celebrate everything!

*We hope you enjoy this week's look at some vintage toy ads.

*Super Powers lasted 1984-1986 and was based on the DC Comics characters. A season of Super Friends was Galactic Guardians.

*Super Joe was on shelves from 1977 to 1978 but was apparently killed off by Kenner's Star Wars line.

*Babe Ruth was in the 1924 Harold Lloyd film Speedy.

*Touche was from Gabriel Games, which also produced Othello and Trouble.

*Minnesota Fats was known as "New York" Fats until The Hustler came out with a character named Minnesota. The real-life Fats (Rudolf Wanderone) adopted the new name to cash in, claiming the character from Walter Tevis' original novel was based on him.

*This week's video playlist contains the ads we mention on the podcast! We also include a few other things we talk about and an epic compilation of Atlanta TV ads from 1985.

List-o-rama: Favorite Toy Commercials

For a lot of us growing up, the holidays meant one thing above all others...TOYS...and for those of us glued to our TVs, nothing stoked the desire for those toys more than the TOY COMMERCIALS (except the half-hour cartoons based on those toys, which of course were really ads, but let's not talk about that)! What better way to celebrate the holiday season and Christmas day than to highlight some of our favorite toy commercials? After you've unwrapped your socks and gift cards and retro TV DVD sets and filled up on eggnog and fruitcake, join us for a little more holiday fun.

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

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#podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #toycommercials #toys

 

Check out this episode!

Tomorrow on Battle of the Network Shows...

 

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from BOTNS!

We're running this post a couple days early this year because, well, just keep your eyes and ears open the morning of December 25.

Thanks to everyone enjoying our current podcast season. There is much more to come!

Here for your convenience are some links to past holiday episodes if you want to enjoy a podcast to go with your Christmas cheer:

Our first Christmas episode combines The Leprechauns' Christmas Gold with A Family Circus Christmas! Keep listening for a bonus!

We enjoy the holiday toons! Here is The Bear Who Slept Through Christmas. An awe-inspiring array of classic characters gather for Yogi Bear's All-Star Comedy Christmas Caper! Speaking of classic characters, how about the Eighties special The Little Rascals Christmas Special?

Finally, enjoy our look at Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July!

Once again, from all of us at BOTNS to all of you, we wish you Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah, Happy Kwanzaa, and of course Happy EVEN, even!

YouTube Spotlight: The Zoo Gang and ITV

On the most recent podcast, we broke down The Zoo Gang, and today we spotlight one of the clips in the episode's video playlist.

You may be asking why this is in the list, but it's just an attempt to get some of the flavor of ITV 1974 (when Zoo Gang premiered) into the mix. I do love this set of promos, though, because of the variety of the subject matter--Benny Hill, followed by a peppy advert for TV Times, the absolute classic Thames TV indent...The only thing that would make this better would be to see an actual glimpse of the sobering epic documentary that followed, The World at War.

Top Ten #385

1) The Zoo Gang: On this week's podcast, we discuss this bit of 1970s telly, a 6-episode ITV series featuring a group of WWII buddies reuniting to fight wrongdoing. No truth to the rumor that Joan Embery headlined a pilot for an U.S. version in the early Eighties.

2) Christmas movies on TV: So on this night in 1985, CBN showed the 1951 version of A Christmas Carol, which is the one everyone says they love but never seems to be on TV anymore.

Some of you may be too young to remember the old joke about It's a Wonderful Life being on all the time every December. Well, CBN showed it before A Christmas Carol. Also, though, it was on a couple hours earlier on...Nickelodeon.

3) Winter: Well, it's finally here, and by that I mean it FEELS LIKE IT'S BEEN HERE FOR WEEKS because it's been really cold here. Oh, well, just the kind of weather that gets you in the holiday spirit...but also makes you want to work up a sweat.

Ahh! Been a while since we posted that clip.

4) Kojak: "How Cruel the Frost, How Bright the Stars" is the name of the episode that aired 50 years ago tonight on CBS. I know what you're thinking: Why did Rick have to post that Alan Thicke song again? But you're also thinking, that title's a bit artsy for Kojak, innit? Well, as I recall, it's a thoughtful Christmas episode, plus it offers bit parts for John Laroquette and Edward James Olmos. I may have to watch this again this week!

5) The Fall Guy: The episode that aired this night in 1985 has a title not nearly as artsy, but 5 times as funny: "Escape Claus." I'm not gonna look this one up. It can't top the title.

6) The Academy Awards: The announcement that the event is eventually headed to YouTube prompted a lot of jokes about who might be presenters or even hots. Laugh all you want, but streaming or not, it's not like Johnny Carson's walking through that door.

I think I came close to a point there.

7) Independence Bowl: Clemson vs. Minnesota: 40 years ago tonight, TV viewers got a random intersectional match-up between two decent teams on a local station. That's the way bowl games oughta be!

8) Julie Andrews Christmas Special: This program aired 50 years ago this weekend on Channel 5 in New York. I believe this was a rerun of her 1973 ABC special, in which Andrews welcomed Peggy Lee and Santa Claus as guests.

9) Crossword Day: I'd like to see Buzzr celebrate by showing a bunch of these:

10) R.I.P.: Rob Reiner, Tony Geary, Gil Gerard:

Show Notes and Video Playlist: Episode 13-8: The Zoo Gang

*The Zoo Gang aired in 1974 for 6 episodes on ITV in the UK. 

*John Mills is not in The Love Boat episode that we talked about, but he was in Dr. Strange!

*Lili Palmer and Rex Harrison were married from 1943-1957. She is indeed in two episodes of The Love Boat! She's in an extended episode/two-parter from 1984, starring with Loretta Swit, Marc Singer, and Catherine Oxenberg.

*Barry Morse is not in The Love Boat, though an unasked-for AI prompt told me he was.

*Might as well play this out: Brian Keith was not on The Love Boat, but John Mills was in an episode with daughters Hayley and Juliet.

*Band on the Run came out in late 1973.

*Shout-out again to The McCartney Legacy, the multi-volume biography written by Allan Kozinn and Adrian Sinclair.

*The Zoo Gang novel by Paul Gallico appeared in bookstores in 1971.

*Speaking of that playlist, please enjoy our video playlist for this episode with promos, intros, commercials, and more! It also contains the full episode that we discuss on the podcast as well as a series of promos. 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 13-8: Zoo Gang

In the short-lived British-produced Zoo Gang, an international cast plays a group of French Resistance fighters reuniting after 28 years in the Riviera. They use their espionage skills and friendship to take down bad guys and earn some money for a good cause. In the first episode, they have a target in their sights--the man who sold them out to the Germans. Oh, and Paul McCartney has something to do with all this, too.

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

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#podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #british #espionage #adventure #paulmccartney

 

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Tomorrow on Battle of the Network Shows...

 

Outside the timeline: Retro retro news

This may become a semi-regular feature: A roundup of items related to classic TV outside our standard 1970s/1980s timeline!

ITEM: Dick Van Dyke celebrated his 100th birthday this weekend, and PBS premiered a new American Masters devoted to him. Check your local listings or the PBS app.

We mentioned this in yesterday's Top Ten post, but Tubi now has The New Dick Van Dyke Show.

ITEM: Some relatively rarer Westerns are making their way to streaming platforms. Here are a pair that have been on diginets and are now on SVOD:

Stoney Burke: The 1962 series with Jack Lord as a rodeo star is now on Plex.

Whispering Smith: This 1961 series with Audie Murphy as the titular detective appears to be coming to Tubi. I say that because as of now there is only one single episode!

ITEM: ClassicFlix announced the latest in its Rare Television line of DVD releases, and, boy, is it a rare one: 1951's The Ad-Libbers!

Here is the complete story. I pre-ordered this one right away to show support for the line and to ClassicFlix for working on stuff like this--Oh, and also because it sounds fascinating!

Top Ten #384

1) That's My Mama: This week on the podcast, we talk about the 1970s ABC sitcom: How it holds up, how it changes in its second season, how awesome Teddy Wilson is. It's a series that doesn't get much attention, but we add to the conversation.

2) Dick Van Dyke: This weekend we celebrate the 100th birthday of the icon, star of stage, screen, and of course PSAs:

In addition to a new American Masters on PBS this weekend and a marathon of The Dick Van Dyke Show this weekend, Tubi has added The New Dick Van Dyke Show to its streaming library.

3) Happy Hannukah:

4) Clifton Davis: I want to give another shout-out to the star of That's My Mama. I think he does a fine job on the show.

5) Live-action Christmas specials: I often declare that CBS was the king of the holidays in the BOTNS era, but look at this lineup on NBC 50 years ago tonight: Bob Hope (with guests Redd Foxx, Angie Dickinson, The Osmonds), Dean Martin Califormia Christmas, and Mac Davis Christmas Special!

Note this clip is for 1977's Christmas in California, not to be confused with 1975's California Christmas.

6) Olan Soule: The great Word Balloon podcast just dropped an episode devoted to longtime radio/TV/voice actor Olan Soule, and I am here for it!

7) Animated Christmas specials: Before all that live-action cheer on NBC, The Little Drummer Boy aired at 7, followed by The Tiny Tree. The latter is a DePatie-Freleng production, and I don't remember it at all!

8) Police Story: This 1970s anthology series has popped up on a few streaming outlets in recent years but is now on Tubi.

9) Stroker Ace: CBS gave the Burt Reynolds vehicle a network TV showing 40 years ago tonight. The New York Times described it as a "witless retread" in its listings.

10) The New Fred and Barney Show: Warner Archive surprised everyone by announcing a DVD release of this series (Sorry, no Thing nor Shmoo in this set) is coming in January. Folks, this could turn the tide in the corporate battle for Warner Brothers.

YouTube Spotlight: Sanford Arms is open for business

One clip in our playlist this week for That's My Mama is from Sanford Arms, the short-lived attempt to keep the Sanford and Son franchise going. Isn't it funny to call it a franchise?

Teddy Wilson (Earl from That's My Mama) couldn't make this work, and it lasted a mere 4 episodes (some more were made but unaired). An official Sanford YT channel posted the above clip and many others, but I don't think it is making full episodes available. 

Show Notes and Video Playlist: Episode 13-7: That's My Mama

*Thanks again to my cousin and Friend of the Show Kevin for suggesting this one!

*That's My Mama aired on ABC for two seasons and 37 episodes on Wednesday nights and is--as of this writing--available on Tubi (though not all episodes are there). It was on Crackle years ago and received DVD releases as well.

*You can see the Jet report on the Lynne Moody/Joan Pringle changeover right here.

*And for good measure, here is an earlier Jet piece on the series.

*"The Witness" debuted February 5, 1975.

*Jester Hairston was about 74 years old at this time.

*Lee Kolima plays Croaker. 

*Teddy Wilson was not Earl in the show's first episode, though he did appear in it. Ed Bernard, who Mike notes became the principal on The White Shadow, played Earl at first.

*You can see a glimpse of Lisle Wilson in Sisters in this week's video playlist.

*Speaking of that playlist, please enjoy our video playlist for this episode with promos, intros, commercials, and more! 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 13-7: That's My Mama

On short-lived sitcom "That's My Mama," barber Clifton lives with his mama and gets into hijinks with his best friend Earl, and in the episode "The Witness," Earl moves in with Clifton and Mama after testifying against criminal Croaker Connelly. If he's not careful, Mama will kill him before Croaker does. Plus Ted Lange and Gordon Jump!

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 #sitcom #thatsmymama

 

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Tomorrow on Battle of the Network Shows...

 

Top Ten #383

1) The Love Boat: Love...exciting and--Well, not new, but this week on the podcast, enjoy an encore presentation of what I like to call the quintessential series of the BOTNS era. We talk about an interesting episode, and, hey, if you haven't heard it, it's new to you!

2) Warner Brothers: I'm not going to repeat the old joke about Mike and I having a bid rejected. Obviously there's no way we could approach a purchase of any piece of the WB empire.

If the rights to Search were up for bid, though...

3) Snow: We got a winter blast this week at BOTNS Headquarters, which reminds us of the perils of the season.

4) The Carol Burnett Show: Sitcoms Online reports that FETV purchased rights to the uncut episodes (The Carol Burnett Show was syndicated in truncated form for years) and will begin showing them on New Year's Day. Harvey Korman just broke up.

5) Christmas Specials: 40 years ago tonight, CBS brought us this combo: Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas followed by Frosty the Snowman.

6) Barbara Mandrell's Christmas Special: This syndicated program also aired 40 years ago tonight. We associated Mandrell and her sisters with NBC, but just a few months earlier, she starred in her first CBS variety special, and here she was doing a holiday event for first-run syndication.

So here's a mystery: The New York TV listings for the date contain this program. However, IMDB does not list a 1985 show, but it does list a "Christmas Family Reunion" special for 1986. Someone in the comments on the above video asks if the promo is really for 1986. I believe that person is basing the question on IMDB, but I think these may be two distinct specials. The 1986 special was on CBS. Yet I can't find any other reference to this special. Anyone have any more info?

7) 60 Minutes: The program's eighth season premiered 50 years ago tonight, and if you think it's weird that the series kicked off a season on December 7, well, so do I. CBS had been running Three for the Road in the 7:00 EST slot since September.

8) Chartbusters Year End Special: Remember this music video show on TBS? It was a countdown show that was a companion to Night Tracks. 40 years ago tonight, the series looked back at the hits of 1985. I don't see a clip for that one, but here is a glimpse of the series:

9) Sports: A couple notable televised sporting events on this date in 1985: Bo Jackson won the Heisman Trophy, and later, Martina Navratilova topped Chris Evert in the Australian Open final. This was the last year the tennis tournament happened in December; Beginning in 1987, it was a January event.

10) Priscilla Barnes: According to most sources, it's the star's 70th birthday, and we send well wishes to the star of The American Girls!

Encore: The Love Boat

While we recover from all the delicious Thanksgiving Mulligan Stew, enjoy this special encore presentation of our episode about The Love Boat. As usual, you get a heaping helping of of guest stars, including Maureen McCormick, the late Bobby Sherman, Vicki Lawrence, DVP, Vernee Watson, and the great Scatman Crothers! We'll be back next week with a brand-new episode. Hoo-whee!

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

 

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Mulligan Stew: The Comic Book (Part 2)

We continue our look inside the Mulligan Stew comic book today! 

Here is a recipe for that 4-4-3-2 superstar, pizza!

And here is another page of story. Note that the stories are not adaptations of the TV episodes, but many seem to be continuations or at least reference those episodes.

Here's a groovy game that is inside the comic. 

Finally, here is another recipe, but not just any recipe. Read on to learn how to make Mulligan stew! "Everybody likes it!"

Tomorrow and Previously on Battle of the Network Shows...

 

Mulligan Stew: The Comic Book (Part 1)

Today and tomorrow, we present some pics from the Mulligan Stew comic book we discuss on the latest podcast! Thanks again to Mike for getting this for me and setting us down this path!

Here's the cover and back cover of the comic, which is pretty thick. There's a lot of value in here, what with the stories, recipes, games, songs, and more!

There are more lyrics inside, like the following. Check out my personal favorite, "Good Nutrition":

And here's a look at an actual story page. The original owner of the comic book beat me to the puzzles in this issue!

Tomorrow, we'll look at a recipe!

Inside the Guide: Thanksgiving Day 1975!

I may be a few days late with this, but after all, we are talking about 50 years ago! I don't want to miss the chance to share a few items from a TV Guide in my collection: A Northern Indiana edition for November 22-28, 1975.

Let's focus on Thursday, the Thanksgiving holiday. On the Wednesday page is this ad for some morning programming for the kids:

Speaking of the kids, it's interesting that ABC was just like, hey, let's make this a Saturday morning all day:

You may remember this Waltons episode from our podcast!

Of course there are parades galore:

But here is the oddest thing: Look at the second Donahue here. 

On Thanksgiving Day?