Thursday, March 13, 2008

Network Nights (1964)


What was on ABC on a Tuesday night in 1964? Plenty of cartoons!

At seven-thirty, the evening starts with Tang's The Bugs Bunny Show.

At eight o'clock it's the sitcom Bachelor Father. Recently we saw a hilarious episode of Valentine's Day featuring Jack Soo as an Asian lead character who did not speak in pigeon english or take part in any of the other shameful Hollywood characteristics that Asians were forced to portray. Unfortunately, the same can not be said for the part Sammee Tong was made to play in the Bachelor Father. His role as the slow-minded houseboy may have been what led to his suicide later in 1964 (okay, it was actually gambling debts).

At eight-thirty it was another cartoon, this one a bit more offensive, removed from the air due to some vocal protests. Calvin and Colonel was basically an Amos n' Andy soundtrack paired with splendid nineteen sixties TV animation. The cartoon was written by some of the people responsible for Leave it to Beaver and The Munsters. A nice glimpse into a serious rarity.

Watch the whole night's worth here.

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