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I've been doing a weekly podcast for close to a year and a half and it just dawned on me that I should be promoting it on Classic Television Showbiz, as it would probably interest a lot of people who enjoy this site. It doesn't always have much to do with old TV, but in the broadest sense, it certainly incorporates a great deal of show biz.
Listen to it here.
Playlist for Friday, March 14th, 2008.
Listed: Song - Artist - Album
Mr. Yunioshi - Henry Mancini - Breakfast at Tiffany's
Bah-Bah-Bah - The Surpremes - Reflections
Wild Thing - The Baroque Inevitable - The Baroque Inevitable
From Me to You - Ena Baga - The Happy Hammond Plays Lennon & McCartney Hits Atlantis - Les Baxter - Kaleidoscope
Just a Little While Longer - The Foundations - Baby, Now That I've Found You
A Perfect Day - Jackie Wilson - Jackie Wilson at The Copa
At the Carnival - The Blackbyrds - Cornbread, Earl and Me
Ironside - Henry Mancini - Big Screen, Little Screen
TV Themes Medley - Bill Holcombe Stage Band - '77 Super Sounds of the Seventies
The People's Court - Alan Tew - N/A
N/A - LaWanda Page - Preach On Sister, Preach On
Put Yourself in My Place - The Hollies - Love n' Flowers
Find the archive of previous podcasts here.
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.
This rare sitcom aired for one season on ABC and is not related in any way to the superior My Little Margie. This was set in the 1920s, but other than references to Paul Whiteman and Rudy Vallee, you wouldn't know it.
This has to go down in history as the episode of Dragnet with the least amount of action. Nothing happens. A minor crime occurs right at the very end just so the whole show isn't a total write-off. It's actually quite amusing thanks to the deadpan comedic talents of Harry Morgan. It also features a surprise turn from Millie, the neighbor on The Dick Van Dyke Show. Turns out she was also Detective Gannon's neighbor!
Marvin Kaplan is one of my favorite character actors of the fifties and sixties. His wonderful voice will forever be identified with the character of Choo Choo on Hanna-Barbera's Top Cat. Recently I've been seeing a lot of him on Make Room For Daddy where he plays a waiter at Lindy's. Here he appears in an episode of a seriously mediocre sitcom with a high sense of style. Gidget only lasted one season. It was no skin off the nose of Sally Field who followed it up with The Flying Nun.
What was prime time TV like on ABC in 1964?
Starting at 7:30 pm, it was the greatest of the Hanna-Barbera adventure cartoons, Johnny Quest. It was followed by the not-so-greatest of sitcoms, The Farmer's Daughter. This is actually my first exposure to The Farmer's Daughter, and probably my last. It survived a solid three seasons and three years after its cancellation, the program's star, Inger Stevens, committed suicide. Just prior to eight-thirty we see a soup commercial narrated by Sterling Holloway and featuring Mickey Mouse and then it is time for The Addams Family. This episode features the hilarious Frank "Yuhhhhhh-essssss?" Nelson as guest star. Next up it's a serious obscurity that's got absolutely everything going for it. Starring future Barney Miller favorite Jack Soo, it's Valentine's Day. The sitcom didn't last much longer than the annual event of the same name, and that's a damn shame. This hilarious episode features Mamie Van Doren as herself and an appearance by the voice of Judy Jetson (and several other teenage cartoon and radio characters), Janet Waldo. It is not only the funniest show on ABC's Friday night line-up, but also the most adult.
We move over to CBS for the end of the night. We're treated to a typical episode of Gomer Pyle, USMC and the George C. Scott drama East Side, West Side.
Check out all the fun here!
And as if those two familiar faces weren't enough, the episode also features a cameo from the moderator of What's My Line, Mr. John Charles Daly.
