In our recent Game Shows episode, we also played another round of "The TV Guide Game." This time, we looked at Saturday morning, October 27, 1984, from the October 27-November 2 1984 edition of TV Guide.
Brooke caught herself a Burgess Meredith (Cameron from Search)!
Great art one, plus the great David Morse and Valerie Bertinelli.
Great art two!
Great art three!
Most of the schedule we used.
Not made up.
What good is a T.J. Hooker ad without Shatner?
We mentioned this Lynda Carter/Loni Anderson vehicle in our Wonder Woman episode.
1984 in music!
Ghosts of episodes past and possibly fu-CHA.
Did someone call Matt Houston a cut-rate Magnum?
File under What We'd Like To See!
Rick's been watching this show recently... strictly for research...TV research. Listen. An episode featured Burt, OK? Give the guy a break.
For our Run Joe Run YouTube play list, Rick found a clip of the NBC Saturday Morning Preview Revue from 1974, starring Jimmy Osmond (the youngest Osmond), a bunch of Sid and Marty Krofft puppets and characters, and a certain brown and black German shepherd. As per usual, the Kroffts created something equal parts gaudy, loud, and creepy. You should watch the whole play list, but if you're short on time, I've embedded the video below, and if you're even shorter on time, I've posted a bunch of screen grabs to pique your interest (or warn you far, far away). Shows previewed include Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch, Run Joe Run, Land of the Lost, Emergency +4 (an animated Emergency that included a team of 4 kids helping out), Go! (a live action show introduced by...the dudes from Emergency)*, Star Trek: The Animated Series, and Sigmund and the Sea Monsters.
*This preview mentions a segment where Jon Voight will tell kids about kayaking on whitewater. I can't help imagining his introduction. "Hey, kids. In my movie Deliverance, you might have seen me canoeing on whitewater and getting into some real jams. Now I want to tell you about the real-world fun and risks of kayaking on the rapids."
Petey the Peacock tries to pass himself off as the NBC Peacock and steal the show with his shrill vocal stylings. He gets the hook immediately but somehow ends up in almost every number.
Creepy puppets part one.
Creepy puppets part two, slightly inappropriate puppets part one.
Jimmy Osmond sings and dances with the creepy puppets.
We need to get one of these for our show.
Look who's in the audience--Joe (Heinrich of Midvale)!
Joe (Heinrich of Midvale) puts up with Petey.
Petey wears Jimmy down and gets to do a number with Dina Dinosaur. "Ain't she sweet?"
Johnny Whitaker and all the Ooze family (plus Petey natch) from Sigmund and the Sea Monsters perform a number.
The Sigmund preview promises the debut of Rip Taylor's Sheldon the Sea Genie.
Creepy puppets part three. Cooooool.
Jimmy "The Prince" Osmond with creepy puppets part--I lost count.
Creepy, etc. The Electric Mushroom.
So much happening here, making so little sense (those yellow things are like giant mop heads with lips).
"Down in front!" Seriously, how can that poor girl see anything?
Creepy puppets part whatever, slightly inappropriate puppets part two.
Because things weren't creepy enough-- bring in the clowns!
The commercials in the clip include this one, where this kid talks very sensibly to mothers about the economic and health benefits of Kool-Aid for the whole family.
I mentioned The Muppet Show Book on the Muppet Show episode of the podcast and thought I'd share a few scans. The book contains illustrated versions of many sketches from the first two seasons of The Muppet Show (alas, none from "Steve Martin). Abrams published The Muppet Show Book in 1978, and Romanian artist Tudor Banus* created the amazing illustrations and layout. The front matter lists the following show credits:
Producers: Jack Burns and Jim Henson
Directors: Peter Harris and Philip Casson
Writers: Jack Burns, Jerry Juhl, Marc London, Joseph A. Bailey, Jim Henson, and Don Hinkley
Creative Consultant: Frank Oz
Scenic Designers: David Chandler, Brian Holgate, Malcolm Stone
Executive Producer for Henson Associates: David Lazer
*I tried to learn more about Banus, but I only found things in French. Guess who doesn't know French.
Now..."It's time to play the music"...
Look closely in the circled area for Lil' Mike's signature.
This is what we call The Muppet Shooowww
"Muppets." -D. Brent
"I want nothing to do with this so-called Battle of the Network Shows."
