This Day in TV History: ABC's lineup Wednesday April 11, 1979

Watch the promos for these programs, all voiced by the great Ernie Anderson, and tell me you don't wish you were in 1979, sitting on the sofa with a Swanson and a Milwaukee's Best sixpack:

The first series is about a family of orphans whose parents die in a sailing accident and start living with a fisherman played by Clu Gulager. Hey, at least you get to see Hawaii! Amazingly, these episodes are online if you look around.

This particular clip shows that classic late 1970s ABC blend of titillation and modesty: "It'll fit some of me...but it won't fit enough of me."

The Charlie's Angels tease seems to give away the whole gimmick. I mean, we weren't really expecting definitive proof of a haunted house, but Ernie flat-out tells everyone it's "a very human madman" doing the shenanigans.

As for The Hal Linden Special...well, do we need to be sold on that? That's a rather saucy-looking shot of Linda Lavin, by the way.

Special thanks to SeanMC for posting this on his excellent YouTube channel!

Happy birthday, Kim Basinger!

BOTNS sends birthday wishes to Kim Basinger, who is of course best known for her appearance in the essential Charlie's Angels episode Angels in Chains.

I think she later did some stuff with Bruce Willis, too.

YouTube Spotlight: Kate Jackson on "The Mike Douglas Show"

One of the curios from this week's Charlie's Angels playlist is this clip from the week Kate Jackson and then-hubby Andrew Stevens co-hosted The Mike Douglas Show. In this clip, you see them singing and in old-age makeup:

Show Notes: Episode 5-5: Charlie's Angels

*This episode of Charlie's Angels, Lady Killer, premiered November 24, 1976 at 10:00 P.M. on ABC.

*The series lasted 5 seasons and 115 episodes, ending June 1981. Jaclyn Smith was the only angel who lasted all 5 seasons, and the "classic trio" only lasted the first season. In season 2, Cheryl Ladd replaced Farrah Fawcett, Shelley Hack replaced Kate Jackson in season 4, and Tanya Roberts replaced Hack in season 5. Fawcett had a recurring role in seasons 3 and 4.

David Doyle, whether he is an angel or not (we try to determine this on the pod), lasted all 5 seasons.

*Wikipedia reports that among the actresses considered to replace Jackson were Michelle Pfeiffer, Barbara Bach, and Connie Sellecca, and Shari Belafonte.

*The Quest, NBC's short-lived 1976 Western, featured Tim Matheson and...not Gary Collins, but Kurt Russell, Brian Keith, and Keenan Wynn! Hey, I was close.

*Hugh O'Brian passed away in 2016 but remains one of the beloved icons of the podcast. Please check out our episode on Search right here!

*The late Alan Fudge had a key role on The Man from Atlantis, which starred Patrick Duffy.

*Kelly quotes Gloria Steinem in this episode. Steinem herself went undercover at a Playboy Club location in the early 1960s and wrote the expose A Bunny's Tale.

*NBC exec Paul Klein coined the expression "jiggle television" in response to ABC's success with programs like Charlie's Angels. In other words, yes, he may well have been hatin'.

*Sue Milburn, the credited writer of this episode, has 9 total credits on IMDB, including episodes of Switch and The Bionic Woman.

Our epic Charlie's Angels YouTube Playlist is live!

Folks, you gotta check this one out to see the Charlie's Angels Mego dolls! Farrah and Joe Namath! Jaclyn plays Jackie O! The Tonight Show...with David Brenner! Plus promos, clips, and Alan Fudge vs. David Carradine!




Remember, you can always hit our official YouTube page for playlists for every single podcast episode!

Tomorrow on Battle of the Network Shows...

Happy Birthday to Kate Jackson!

BOTNS salutes birthday girl Kate Jackson, seen here on Charlie's Angels in a get-up designed to make her less attractive, but one which, IMO, has the opposite effect: