Top Ten #416

1) Bridget Loves Bernie: In an outta-nowhere kind of move, Sony announced it would release this one-season wonder (Canceled due to controversy, not ratings) on Blu-Ray in September. Maybe more short-lived series are on the way.

2) Ace: In this unsold pilot airing 50 years ago tonight, our boy DVP (Dick Van Patten) appears, but the star is Bob Dishy as bumbling private detective Edward R. Ace.

3) Network: This British company appears to be back in business, and though it does not distribute in the USA, it has brought many British shows to disc and seems set to deliver more!

4) The Bureau: Another unsold pilot from 50 years ago. Richard Gilliand and John Lawlor are two mismatched government agents in this sitcom. Other names in the show include Phil Leeds, Barbara Rhoades, Henry Gibson, and Arnold Stang.

5) National Aunts and Uncles Day:

6) San Diego Comic Con: Many of the entertainment industry's stars are gathered in San Diego this weekend to make announcements, hype stuff, etc. I think if I were there, I'd be focused on finding affordable reading copies of Jackie Gleason or Bilko comics!

7) Factory Entertainment action figures: Mike posted about this in our Facebook group:

Airwolf, Battlestar, Magnum, Miami Vice, and bionics! These are not all spectacular-looking, and they will likely be super pricy, but I think I want just about all of them.

8) "J. Digger Doyle": I haven't listened to this episode yet, but The Columbo Podcast recently released one of its "Cosy Crime Classics" installments devoted to "J. Digger Doyle." Longtime BOTNS fans may recall we discuss that very same show (and it's a good one) in our Magnum P.I. episode.

9) We're Puttin' on the Ritz: 40 years ago tonight, CBS ran this unsold pilot, which pairs Leah Ayers and Matt McCoy as secretary and chauffeur for a reclusive multimillionaire. They get into lighthearted adventures and capers. As Stephen Holden wrote in The New York Times, "Mr. McCoy is no Cary Grant or even Fred McMurray, but he plays the role with a cheeky insouciance, projecting the air of a man with an eyebrow perpetually arched."

10) An Evening with Perlman and Zuckerman: Also on this night in 1986, Bravo featured this program devoted to the music of Mozart. Yes, Bravo.

Top Ten #415

1) Amazing Stories: Secret Galaxy devoted a fun episode to the 1980s Spielberg series this week. One thing that stands out is how many commenters talk about how much they loved the show. And, hey, how cool would it have been to get a Spielberg TV boxset from Universal with episodes of Night Gallery, Owen Marshall, and the like?

2) Voyagers! Here's a cool video showcasing an amazing replica of the Omni:

Just don't look at the price. I think I'd have to do my own time travel, going back 40 years and playing the stock market, to afford it.

3) The Tonight Show: 50 years ago tonight, guest host Don Rickles (Seriously, did Johnny take the entire summer off?) welcomed Jack Klugman and Charo!

4) Emergency!: FETV has a marathon of the series today to honor the late Randolph Mantooth. As I write this, Mother Nature seems to be wreaking havoc on me, perhaps trying to pay tribute to the series by creating emergencies.

5) July 19, 1976: ABC had the Summer Olympics from Montreal, but CBS offered Christmas in July with a rerun of the "Christmas Party" episode of Maude. I don't remember offhand, but I wouldn't be surprised if Maude bellowed, 'Who am I, MARK SPITZ?" in that episode.

6) Perfect Strangers: Warners is releasing the complete series on Blu-Ray. Surely Search is right behind it.

7) Unsold pilots: 40 years ago tonight, 3 unsold pilots hit the network airwaves in prime time. 

Maggie is a lighthearted international intrigue series with Stefanie Powers working at a PR firm owned by Ava Gardner! Here's a clip:

She's With Me is from the team of David Duclon, Ron Leavitt, and Michael Moye. Dinah Manoff and Jerry Hall are comically different friends. The episode is below:

Crazy Dan from Glen Larson is described by Lee Goldberg as a "Dirty Harry spoof" starring John Beck. Goldberg adds, "The concept bears a striking resemblance to the subsequent 1986 ABC sitcom Sledge Hammer." A Larson show reminiscent of another series? A coincidence, I'm sure.

8) Just Men: Retro Rules took a look at the short-lived Betty White game show this week, and once again, you can get a glimpse of Robert Pine in the video (Of course, you will want to seek out one of the full episodes on which he appeared).

I find White's catchphrase at the intro kind of odd: "Why are we here? Because it's just men!"

9) Soccer: My heart is with Argentina today, but the rest of the year it's with the NASL.

10) R.I.P. Hal Williams, Scott Bryce: Obits seemed to highlight Sanford and Son, but I remember him best for his work as the cool dad Lester on 227. Bryce's character was on late-stage Facts of Life and actually married Jo at the end.

More BOTNS-related stuff on YT: "Killdozer"

There have been a few new videos related to beloved (?) 1974 TV movie Killdozer! Mike and I discuss the movie in this episode.

Here's a vintage promo for the original broadcast. I believe we shared it before, but I saw it on a channel I follow:

And here's a fun video from Paul Van Scott looking at the movie:

"Star Quality" ("Partridge Family") is now on YouTube

Sony posted the Season 1 Partridge Family episode "Star Quality" on one of its YouTube channels recently. This is the episode we talk about in our discussion of the series!

If you haven't seen it, here is a chance to check out the full saga, including the treehouse scene, Dick Clark's cameo, and a group of alleged L.A. Dodgers.

Top Ten #414

1) TV Guide and the Bicentennial: I finally ran out of "50 years ago" TV Guide, but we had a good run the last two weeks, didn't we? If you only check out this feature each Sunday, I encourage you to go back and look at some pics from the 7/3/76 issue and the one before that and relive some of the Bicentennial Fever the nation had!

2) Emmy nominations: Congrats to all the nominees announced this week. Among BOTNS-era names who were recognized: Martin Short, Jean Smart, Jason Bateman.

3) Family Feud: Today is the 50th anniversary of the ABC debut of the long-running game show, then hosted by Richard Dawson.

4) Humphrey Bogart: Also of interest, in New York City 50 years ago tonight, WPIX premiered an hourlong look at the Hollywood legend, followed by Casablanca at 8:00. It must have been a nice alternative to viewers who weren't interested in the Democratic National Convention coverage that dominated the networks that night.

5) National Paper Bag Day:

6) Sisters in the Name of Love: 40 years ago tonight, this HBO special featured Patti LaBelle, Gladys Knight, and Dionne Warwick. Hey, wait a minute! They aren't sisters!

7) Cheryl Ladd: Happy 75th!

8) The Alan King Show: 40 years ago tonight, this unsold pilot debuted. King stars as a business hotshot who leaves Wall Street to take a gig as a professor. Also starring: Dina Merrill, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Catherine Keener.

9) Little House on the Prairie: A new version debuts on Netflix, and we repeat, as long as there's plague, pestilence, and abject suffering, we'll give it a shot. Still, I will probably lean toward the original:

10) R.I.P.  Louise Lasser, Randolph Mantooth, Joanna Pettet:

Inside the Guide: BICENTENNIAL FEVER! TV Guide 50 years ago today! (7/3/26 PART 8)

This is my favorite piece of this 50-year-old bicentennial L.A. edition of TV Guide, a look at themed station ID cards from around the nation!

Inside the Guide: BICENTENNIAL FEVER! TV Guide 50 years ago today! (7/3/26 PART 7: Friday, July 9)

Two more local ads on this day in TV Guide (L.A. edition) 50 years ago today:

Let's supplement today's post with some news from the "Teletype" column. This week, tidbits include another story on John Amos' departure from Good Times (this was a big story at the time in the TV press) and mentions of upcoming shows Wonder Woman and What's Happening!!

Inside the Guide: BICENTENNIAL FEVER! TV Guide 50 years ago today! (7/3/26 PART 6: Thursday, July 8)

We continue our look at the bicentennial issue of TV Guide, but we are several days past the big holiday, and now local TV ads continue to dominate the pages.

A reminder that this is a Los Angeles edition, and so we get some boxing from the historic arena:

Inside the Guide: BICENTENNIAL FEVER! TV Guide 50 years ago today! (7/3/26 PART 5: Wednesday, July 7)

Local ads still dominate in this Los Angeles edition of TV Guide. 

Here we see Mike Douglas:

Next up, Name That Tune. I miss when game shows were so big on daytime television.

Finally for today, a close-up on the state dinner PBS is covering:

Inside the Guide: BICENTENNIAL FEVER! TV Guide 50 years ago today! (7/3/26 PART 4: Tuesday, July 6)

Things have slowed down in the Guide this week after the weekend festivities.

We do see an ad for a movie with that beloved BOTNS favorite George Gobel:

KHJ really wants you to know about The Joker's Wild. It ran this ad several times this week and mentioned the show in at least one other ad, too:

Top Ten #413

1) Independence Day: We've been celebrating the bicentennial here on the site with a look back at TV Guide 50 years ago. What a glorious time it was in 1976, with many Americans coming together to celebrate the nation's history. 

And speaking of history:

2) Bicentennial Minutes: Love seeing any of these on YouTube! Here is all of them, or maybe all floating around at the moment.

3) Michael J. Fox/Roger Damon Price: Let's also give some love to Canada, which celebrated Canada Day last week. Also, these two were appointed to Order of Canada (The latter created You Can't Do That on Television).

4) This Is America, Charlie Brown: Apple TV added the 1988 miniseries this week. Ir's enjoyable, but, man, it bugs me that the kids are running around  The Mayflower in bare feet.

5) Fantasy Island: Prime Video added the original and appears to be adding more Sony shows such as Hazel and Archie Bunker's Place.

Speaking of Sony shows, Roku is adding or re-adding a bunch, including That's My Mama, Hardcastle and McCormick, and The Famous Teddy Z.

6) Liberty Weekend: ABC was all over the Statue of Liberty centennial, and 40 years ago tonight, it continued its coverage with a special featuring Placido Domingo, the New York Philharmonic, and more.

7) National Ice Cream Month: And it's been pretty hot here, too.

8) The Twilight Zone: I love that the original gets marathons every July 4 weekend, but here's a spot from the 1980s version/

9) Wimbledon: The tennis tournament is well underway here in 2026; on this day in 1986, Martina Navratilova beat Hana Mandlikova in the final, and on this day in 1980, Bjorn Borg topped John McEnroe in their classic showdown in the men's final.

10) R.I.P. Penelope Keith:

Inside the Guide: BICENTENNIAL FEVER! TV Guide 50 years ago today! (7/3/26 PART 3: Monday, July 5)

Well, the holiday is over, and TV is back to normal, it appears, with reruns dominating the lineup. the local stations dominate the advertising, taking the opportunity to promote movies, reruns, and game shows!

The holiday fun lingers, though, with some taped coverage of fireworks:

Finally, end the evening with John Davidson!

Inside the Guide: BICENTENNIAL FEVER! TV Guide 50 years ago today! (7/3/26 PART 2)

Today is the big day! 50 years ago today was the big bicentennial celebration, the culmination of a huge buildup, and TV Guide had everyone covered with this spread appearing before the day's actual listings:

NBC took out a full-pager:

How about a Bob Hope special? And check out the cool album you can buy!

I can't overstate how much TV was all about the bicentennial on this day. Among the shows, personalities, and specials with themed episodes on this day: Billy Graham, Firing Line, Lawrence Welk, and National Geographic. Local stations aired movies like Yankee Doodle Dandy.

Would there be a letdown when everyone went back to work Monday, July 5 and TV returned to normal? Come back tomorrow!

Inside the Guide: BICENTENNIAL FEVER! TV Guide 50 years ago today! (7/3/26 PART 1)

Yes, the nation had bicentennial fever in 1976, and we are here to revisit it with a look at the special issue of TV Guide (Los Angeles edition) dated July 3, 1976. We'll take a trip, Saturday through Friday, and the first few days are loaded with holiday coverage. Let's jump right into it!

Everyone was talking about the event, even Youth and the Issues:

Metromedia stations offer The Great American Celebration:

That's not to be confused with the Great American Music Celebration, which aired later in the evening and was hosted by Lorne Greene, Dionne Warwick, and Harve Presnell. 

Speaking of music, American Bandstand got in the act with a salute to the bicentennial featuring The Mugelsons, Paul Jabara, and comedia Kip Adotta. "Dick Clark is the host," the listing says. Well, i'm familiar with...Dick Clark.

A TV Movie adaptation of Huckleberry Finn was rerun on ABC tonight. In the cast: Ron Howard in the title role, Antonio Fargas as Jim, and Donny Most as Tom Sawyer!

Worried about the Fourth? CBS has you covered:

Don't feel the need to watch all day! "Drop in any time to see how it's going."

For you eggheads out there, NBC has a program about invention and discovery:

Inside the Guide: TV Guide 50 years ago today! (6/26/76 Part 7)

Today there isn't much to see in the Friday, July 2, 1976 listings, but let's talk about some of the features in the issue.

There is this page, which gets into two topics of interest to BOTNS fans: The decision to break up Rhoda and Joe and also the pending debut of In Search Of!

Other stories include the cover story on Mary Tyler Moore in Moscow, a light piece about a writer trying video dating, and experiments with "two-way cable" and interactive TV. There's a profile of Rich Little, then starring in The Rich Little Show, but there is no review column.

One interesting item in the news section relates how NBC's revenues jumped as its ratings went down. The explanation is that the economy's revival boosted ad spending at a time when CBS and ABC had already sold most of its ad inventory. NBC, in effect, benefited from its plummeting ratings because it had plenty of sports to sell to advertisers looking to spend.

Inside the Guide: TV Guide 50 years ago today! (6/26/76 Part 6)

It's still fairly slow in prime time this week, with reruns dominating, but I do like this local station ad in the Thursday, July 1, 1976 listings: