50 years ago tonight, the nation learned...that men could cry.
Real-life subject Chicago Bears RB Brian Piccolo had died of cancer not a year and a half earlier, so the tragic situation was still fresh in minds when this dramatization of his career and friendship with Gale Sayers debuted.
Well, maybe not exactly, but one of the weepiest male-oriented TV movies of all time had a big impact and is still remembered with fondness today. In 2021 it isn't quite the cultural touchstone it was in the 1970s, 1980s, and even 1990s, but Brian's Song was a go-to reference for many years. It's not streaming anywhere officially, but that is more a sign of the lack of respect for TV movies than any lack of anything with Brian's Song.
Last night I dreamed I was arrested by Norman Fell.
This wasn't Fell as Mr. Roper, mind you, but levelheaded law enforcement type Fell who appeared in shows like 87th Precinct, Dan August, and most recently for me, Murder, She Wrote.
I wish I could remember the details, but I know I was innocent (sure, that's what they all say), and that Fell himself was somewhat apologetic, but he had no choice. Also, my grandmother was outraged that a major national restaurant chain (I won't mention it because it has been excellent for me) false-advertised something. She was angry enough to take a big ad flyer and bring it in so she could point it out to Fell, who shrugged it off.
If I 'm not mistaken, a since-forgotten teenage girl scored a novelty hit shortly after Ocean's Eleven with "I Wanna Be Arrested by Norman Fell."
1) Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts: The new TCM documentary King of Cool does a fine job covering Dean's lengthy career, but it gives scant mention to the roasts. To compensate, you can listen to our podcast on the subject.
Jimmie Walker liked the show!
2) David Cassidy: Man Undercover: The latest short-lived TV series added to Crackle's roster of short-lived TV series!
3) Knight Rider: Check this out, on the way from Super 7. It's an action figure for those who know the real star of the show was not the car, but the Hoff.
4) Alan King's Thanksgiving Special: This premiered November 25, 1980, and was just uploaded by Fuzzy Memories. It's slow going for a while despite BOTNS fave DVP, but the last full segment, in which King mocks the Fall TV lineup, is great.
6) Earth II: The ABC TV movie premiered this night in 1971, confusing half the country who thought they had missed Earth I and the other half who thought it was about the Justice Society of America.
The debut episode features Robert Webber, who also stars in the Rockford Files episode we cover in our Season 9 premiere. (Could we be hearing more about Webber in this season's Battys)? Darkroom lasted a mere 6 additional episodes and was off the air in the summer, but we think it deserves another look.
Like most (all?) genre shows, it has a cult following, but it has no home video release. It's in streaming limbo now as one of those Universal-owned shows that, for no known reason, was available on NBC.com for a while but has not appeared on Peacock yet.
I used a lot of space on this site complaining about various things this year, but I think given the holiday, it's a good time to show some gratitude. Of course Mike and I are thankful for all of you who listen to the podcast, visit us here at the website, and participate in our official Facebook group--not to mention those of you who supported us by purchasing some of our stuff at our merch store.
I am thankful that in a time when not everyone shows reverence for catalog material (trying to keep it positive here), Crackle and Tubi are licensing older material on a regular basis and making it available for free. Much of it is even in the original aspect ratio!
I'm thankful that for most streaming services, the default is to run older programming uncut and not to hack it up as if it were on broadcast TV.
I appreciate that enough copyright holders let enough go to make YouTube the user-generated television history archive that nobody else will create.
I'm grateful for the home tapers and collectors who saved all that stuff that they and others upload to video-sharing sites!
I like that I can still find cool stuff at affordable prices even as prices of high-end graded collectibles like baseball cards have gone through the roof.
I am thankful for the presence of One-Armed Pat Morita:
I'm beholden to the folks who kept their TV Guides for so many years, enabling me to assemble a collection of them decades after they were published.
I feel indebted to authors who create interesting TV reference books and the publishers who support them.
I love that we've been able to keep this podcast going for 5 years through various life changes and issues, and I love that it's still as fun now as it was at the beginning.
From all of us to all of you...Happy Thanksgiving!
If you have some spare time for audio on this festive occasion, here are some Thanksgiving-themed episodes from our archives. Thanks for your support, and keep watching this space for the Season 9 batty Awards!
40 years ago tonight, CBS led off the Monday night with a pair of animated seasonal specials. At 8:00, the classic A Charlie Brown's Thanksgiving had its annual showing. Following it was an interesting program I do not remember: No Man's Valley.
The environmental-themed program is produced and directed by Peanuts vets Lee Mendelsohn and Bill Melendez. Vincent Terrace describes it in his Television Specials: When a construction crew begins building on the sanctuary of a rare breed of California condors, the birds feel their lives are threatened. The story related their efforts to find No Man's Valley--a place where they can live in peace.
Oddly, Terrace lists the premiere date as September 12, 1983. Maybe it was rerun?
The cast includes Arnold Stang, Richard Deacon, Joe E. Ross, and Art Metrano (!) in addition to voice actors extraordinaire Henry Corden, Hal Smith, John Stephenson. I don't recall this show, but I plan to check out since Fuzzy Memories was nice enough to post it.
