TV Jibe: Thanksgiving the way it should be

November 22, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Around the dial

≪ Previous: What's on TV: Thursday, November 25, 1965

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Around the dial

November 24, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: This week in TV Guide: November 27, 1982

≪ Previous: TV Jibe: Thanksgiving the way it should be

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday; I'm still cruising on a tryptophan high myself, but not so much that I don't have the energy to come up with some headlines for the week. Think of them as your Thanksgiving leftovers.

At Comfort TV, David has a thoughtful piece on the dilemma of David Cassidy. A sad story indeed.

When is the right time to start Christmas programming? As far as I'm concerned, once we get to December 1, all bets are off, but some of you may be ready even now. In any event, Joanna at Christmas TV History has a comprehensive list on where to watch Christmas programs.

Nice find by Carol at The Bob Crane Show:Reloaded: audio of Bob's guest-host stint on The Tonight Show on July 2, 1969.

"Quick-Quick Slow Death" is one of John's favorite Avengers episodes, and if you go to Cult TV Blog you'll find out why it's The Avengers at its best.

Last Saturday we spent a few moments recalling the great New York City blackout of 1965, and now at Garroway at Large Jodie takes us to a different kind of blackout. The Great Paris Blackout of 1959involves the Today show, Dave Garroway, union leaders, and Brigitte Bardot. Need we say more?

The Twilight Zone Vortex returns with another edition of The Twilight Zone Magazine, including an article by George Clayton Johnson on his experience writing for the program.

Martin Grams Jr. is out with another book, one that's sure to be of interest to OTR fans - The Top 100 Classic Radio Shows. Looks to be a great book, at an affordable price.

Jack's latest installment in the Hitchcock Project at bare-bones e-zine is the Cockrells'"There Was an Old Woman," with a very nasty turn by Charles Bronson.

At Television Obscurities, the kind of story that I love running across: how an episode of The Patty Duke Show was edited due to the assassination of President Kennedy.

That's about all I have time for today, but I think it should keep you busy until the next time we meet. In the meantime, have another piece of that pie. TV

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This week in TV Guide: November 27, 1982

November 25, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: What's on TV, eh? Saturday, November 27, 1982

≪ Previous: Around the dial

This week we have something a little different to offer: the Canadian version of TV Guide. It may look similar to what we're used to seeing here (other than not having Meredith Baxter Birney on the cover this week as does the United States edition), but in reality they're two different publications.

As the always-reliable Wikipedia notes, the Canadian version was actually split off from the U.S edition in 1977 when the Canadian rights were acquired by Telemedia. Eventually, the Canadian version would have a completely different editorial conent, predominently Canadian but including features on American programs that didn't appear in the U.S. version. This is true; the layout, the article layouts and fonts, are completely different from anything we've seen in TV Guide during the '80s. One note that I enjoyed reading was that "while the U.S. TV Guide began reducing its television listings in favor of incorporating more editorial content, until the 2000s, the bulk of the Canadian magazine's content remained the localized listings." Which is as it should be.

Even with that, I would have been likely to give this issue a pass were it not for this week's feature presentation - one with a definite Canadian angle.

◊ ◊ ◊
The legendary football coach Bud Grant, who took the Minnesota Vikings to four Super Bowls in the 1970s, once described the Super Bowl as the American version of the Grey Cup. When the first Super Bowl was played in 1967, the Grey Cup had already seen 54 editions. The championship game of Canadian football was first played in 1909. (The NFL, by contrast, wasn't even formed until 1920). Originally, both professional and amateur teams were eligible to play for the Cup, but by the 1950s the Cup had come into exclusive possession of the newly formed Canadian Football League, an amalgimation of the country's two major professional leagues.

The Grey Cup as it appeared
in 1982

Over the years, the Grey Cup has seen a series of extraordinary games, including the 1954 game, in which Montreal, leading late in the game, fumbled a pitchout (according to some, the result of a risky play designed to make sure the Alouettes would cover the point spread) that was returned 90 yards by Edmonton for the winning touchdown; the 1962 "Fog Bowl," won by Winnipeg 28-27 over Hamilton in a game that took two days to play due to a heavy fog that literally made the field impossible to see; and last year's game, which saw hapless Ottawa, with a regular season record of 5-11, nearly pull off the greatest upset in the history of the Grey Cup, leading 14-1-1 Edmonton (winner of the three previous Grey Cups) at halftime 20-1 before seeing the Eskimos rally to win with a last-second field goal, 26-23.

In the 1982 contest, the Esks are back and looking for a reccord fifth straight win, this time against the Eastern champion Toronto Argonauts from Toronto, broadcast live on both CBC and CTV. The coverage actually begins at noon on Saturday, with the Grey Cup Parade through the streets of Toronto - the theme is "The Magic of Canada." CTV presents a replay of the 1981 game, while CBC has a three-hour review of the 1982 season, along with coverage of the awards banquet held on Thursday night. Sunday, CBC looks a the history of the Grey Cup at 10:30 a.m., while CTV shows highlights of the Miss Grey Cup Pageant and other events of the festival week. Finally, at noon, it's to CNE Stadium and the game itself (French-language coverage is via SRC). TV Guide's special Grey Cup section includes Bruce Dowbiggin with ten ways to improve the CFL (several of which have since been implemented), Richard Hidei on the rich heritage of Canadian-born players in the Big Game, Eric Nicol and Dave More on what it takes to be a succes in professional football, and recipies galore for your Grey Cup parties - avocado stuffed with crabmeat and lime mayonnaise, candy apple fritters, raspberry bombe). In the game itself, played in a steady rain, Edmonton does indeed win its fifth straight Grey Cup, defeating Toronto 32-16.

I saw my first Canadian football game sometime in the 1960s; there was a weekly game shown on WTCN, Channel 11 in the Twin Cities. I was already a football fan, and there was something about the Canadian version that immediately captured my interest. The field was longer (110 yards) with 12 players to a side and only three downs, and the teams had exotic-sounding names like the Argonauts, Tiger-Cats, Blue Bombers, Rough Riders, and Roughriders. (Long story; I'll explain it to you sometime.) It hasn't always been easy to keep track of Canadian football; in addition to the syndicated game on Channel 11, Wide World of Sports showed the Grey Cup for a few years, and NBC picked up some of the games during one of the NFL strikes, but until the advent of cable TV and the internet, it could be a real challenge. ESPN covered the game during the network's early years, and returned in the last few years to provided weekly coverage on TV and online. ESPN2 will be carying the 105th edition of the Grey Cup tomorrow evening (5:00 p.m. CT) from Ottawa; Toronto is back for the first time in five years, this time taking on the Calgary Stampeders. Calgary enters the game a heavy favorite, but as we've seen over the years, the Grey Cup is played on the field, not on paper. It's been years since I've watched the NFL, but I've remained a fan of the CFL - a quicker game, a quirkier game, and frankly a more entertaining game. We'll see how it turns out on Sunday, but in the meantime, go Argos!

◊ ◊ ◊

You might ask yourself what the content difference is between CBC and CTV, on the one hand, and, say, CBS and NBC on the other. We'll see that in more depth on Monday, but the short answer is: not much. Although federal law requires a certain percentage of Canadian content on Canadian television (a running joke on SCTV; the "Great White North" feature was mockingly designed to satisfy the CanCon requirement), prime time television in Canada can look a lot like it does south of the border. For example, a typical night might include series such as Remington Steele, Knots Landing, The Facts of Life, Real People, The Fall Guy, Dynasty, M*A*S*H, Newhart, and Simon & Simon. On the other hand, there's also the CBC series Seeing Things and Hangin' In, the long-running nature program The Nature of Things, and the Lassie-like The Littlest Hobo.

It's also interesting to find out the kinds of things that are part of Canadian culture, such as a documentary tribute to champion skiier Steve Podborski, a celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Canada Council, The Tommy Hunter Show, a country-variety show which ran on CBC for over a quarter-century, and, of course, The Alan Thicke Show. The National, the CBC's 10 p.m. news program, runs under the guidance of chief correspondent Knowlton Nash.

Vic Cummings is another integral part of Canadian television. As the daytime announcer and host of his own talk show on Hamilton's CHCH, Cummings acts more like the impresario of a matinee movie, and in his own way he's become as famous as the soap opera stars whose activities he updates on his daily half-hour show, Soap Box. As Shelly Davis points out in her article, Cummings is expected to know everything about every soap on the air, and his live interactions with fans during his program have made him so well-known that he now emcees mall appearances by soap opera stars throughout the area.

Now, it's true that most of the soaps that Vic Cummings waxes on, like most of the prime-time programming on Canada's various stations, come from America. Even today, watching the commercials for CTV that run on subsidiary TSN's coverage of Canadian football, most of the programs advertised are ours. But there are exceptions, as there always have been and always will, and that's as it should be. One of the things I dislike most about today's television is the homogenization of it all, how there are seldom any regional differences anymore, how every local news program sounds like every other local news program, how onetime niche cable networks now look so identical, sharing so much programming, that one has to ask what point there is in them even existing. It may well also be the case in Canada, but as long as Canadian television doesn't become a carbon copy of the United States, there's still hope.

◊ ◊ ◊

To understand the power and the appeal of Norman Mailer's "non-fiction novel"The Executioner's Song, a four-hour TV-movie aired on NBC November 28 and 29, it's necessary to understand the story of Gary Gilmore, the murderer executed in Utah in 1977, whose life - and, particularly, death - is the basis of the story. The Supreme Court had supposedly declared the death penalty unconstitutional in 1972 in the case of Furman v Georgia; in fact, the Supremes merely found that death penalty laws as they were presently constituted were cruel and unusual; in Gregg v Georgia in 1976, the Court upheld a new series of laws, and the death penalty was back. Gilmore, who refused any attempts by the ACLU or any other organization to prevent his execution, was the first prisoner in the United States to be executed in nearly ten years, and the drama of the legal battle catapulted Gilmore to international attention.

In this issue, William F. Buckley Jr., who was what we would now think of as a "frienemy" of Mailer's and at whose house Mailier was a guest during the writing of The Executioner's Song, looks at the movie - at the whole story of Gilmore, in fact - and meditates on the value of both.

Gilmore, unlike, say, Dillinger or Bonnie and Clyde, was not an interesting person; his life, says Buckley, was "fearfully dull." Nor was he a compelling personality - "He is rude, ungrateful, stubborn, boisterous, sullen, cruel." No, the interest that Gilmore creates is one of a social kind. "We will learn about these people," writes Buckley, "and it is always instructive to know sometihng about hyuman confusion." Gilmore's quest to be executed for his crime carries its own fascination." Even the end of his life, which came at the hands of a firing squad, is devoid of any tragic overtone. "The grief evoked by his execution is strictly of the catechism variety. We must grieve any man's violent death, the Good Book tells us, because, after all, Jesus forgave his own executioners. That reminds us of what is already overwhelmingly redundant - namely, that we are not Jesus."

Ultimately, Buckley pronounces the movie version of The Executioner's Song to be a failure. No matter how brilliant the screenwriter and director, "they cannot rescue what is adamantly boring, becuase, although words can transfigure, the screen cannot. As a screenwriter, Mailer cannot accomplish those miracles he can accomplish as a prose writer." In this sense, I suppose Buckley is speaking, as did Hannah Arendt during the trial of Adolf Eichmann, of "the banality of evil." Gilmore's evil, like his life, is unremarkable; it will be "an eternity before anyone devotes four hours to dramatizing the life and death of someone the forgetting of whom is altogether therapeutic, even as we tend to forget pain." The decomposition of the mind, says Buckley, is of interest to professionals, in schools. "For nonprofessionals, it wasn't fun even then. We don't stand to get any credits for sitting through this one."

◊ ◊ ◊
What else do we have this week?

Saturday night is Hockey Night in Canada, a CBC staple, and tonight at 7:00 p.m. the original incarnation of the Winnipeg Jets* take on the Maple Leafs in Toronto. At 9:30 p.m., the cable service Teletheatre (available in Regina and Moose Jaw) presents the truly adult murder mystery True Confessions, with a strong cast including Robert De Niro, Robert Duvall, Charles Durning, and Ed Flanders. And while NBC may have Saturday Night Live, CBC has Ed Sullivan's old favorites Wayne and Shuster (left). Tonight, in a tribute to the Grey Cup, "Coach Saul King (Shuster) pits his Jericho Jets against the Philistines in the 1975 B.C. Matzoh Bowl. Starters include David and Goliath."

*Not to be confused with the new Winnipeg Jets, who used to be the Atlanta Thrashers. The original Winnipeg Jets are now the Arizona Coyotes. As I said earlier, it's a long story.

Besides the Grey Cup, Sunday brings Country Canada (CBC, 4:00 p.m.), including a look at the annual wheat harvest, which runs from Texas to Saskatchewan. At 6:00 p.m., CBC has Walt Disney's World, with Professor Ludwig von Drake. Later, at 7:30 p.m., the same network has Super Show, featiuring a reunion between Pete Seeger and the original Weavers. And at 9:00 p.m., it's the Canadian WWII drama Home Fires; next week in the same timeslot, it's part one of a three-part miniseries based on Laura Beatrice Burton's memoir I Married the Klondike. I suspect that's a series that you'd only see in Canada.

Monday features a host of popular American comedies on CBC: Happy Days, Private Benjamin, M*A*S*H, Newhart, while CTV counters with That's Incredible! and the Valerie Harper-Dennis Weaver thriller Don't Go to Sleep. Meanwhile, on Tuesday at 10:30 p.m., KSRE, the PBS station in Minot, North Dakota (about a four-hour drive from Regina, home of the Saskatchewan Roughriders) has PBS Latenight; the topic under discussion is X-rated videos. I so wanted to find out that the host of Latenight is Charlie Rose; alas, it's Dennis Wholey instead.

You can tell Christmas is just around the corner - on Wednesday the North Dakota stations feature Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (CBS, 7:00 p.m.) and the rarely-seen Ziggy's Gift (7:30 p.m., ABC). At 10:00 p.m., CFQC in Saskatoon has To Light a Candle, the story of Canadian missionary Mark Buntain, who worked with Mother Teresa in Calcutta. And on CJFB in Swift Current, Merv Griffin's guests are the opera greats Beverly Sills and Sherrill Milnes, and New York Times columnist Russell Baker.

I mentioned soap operas earlier, and Thursday gives me a chance to point out that CBC carries the legendary British soap Coronation Street (2:30 p.m.), which came to Canada in 1966, six years after its premiere on ITV. In 1982, the episodes were being aired approximately 10 months after their initial broadcast in the UK. And Friday wraps up the week with Falcon Crest on CTV and Dallas on CBC, both at 9:00 p.m. (Dallas features a great story - the wedding of J.R. and Sue Ellen. I wonder how many times the two had married each other at that point?) Finally, would you be surprised to learn that at 11:30 p.m. CBC has SCTV Network? One of the highlights is a seasonal feature: Neil Simon's "The Nutcracker Suite."

◊ ◊ ◊
Well, it's been a most interesting experience, this journey through a foreign edition of TV Guide. Hopefully, between some of the programs I highlighted, the listings above, and the listings to come on Monday, you'll have a flavor for Canadian television in the early '80s. So what do you say we end the week with a recipe for Quiche de la Coupe Grey - you can enjoy it during tomorrow's game!

9-inch uncooked pastry shell (shouldn't that be in centimeters or something?)
½ lb. bacon, cut into pieces
3 eggs, beaten
1¾ cups milk or light cream
2 tsp. all-purpose flower
½ tsp. salt
Pinch of nutmeg
½ lb. Swiss cheese, shredded
½ cup sliced mushrooms

Bake shell in a 450⁰F [or 232⁰C] oven 7 minutes, or until golden. Remove shell and lower heat to 325⁰F. Cook bacon until crisp. Drain, crumble and set aside. Combine eggs, milk, flour, salt and nutmeg, mix well. Fold in bacon, cheese and mushrooms. Bake in 325⁰F oven 35 to 40 minutes, or until middle sets and a tester comes out clean. Serve with grilled sausages and back bacon. Serves 6.

Let us know if you try it, OK? TV

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What's on TV, eh? Saturday, November 27, 1982

November 27, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: The "It's About TV" Interview: Adam-Michael James, author of I, Samantha, Take This Mortal, Darrin

≪ Previous: This week in TV Guide: November 27, 1982

I don't believe I've ever before had the opportunity to use the phrase "Moose Jaw" on this blog, and that alone makes this issue worth looking at. ("Swift Current" isn't bad either, but it could easily have been the title of an episode of Last of the Mohicans,) Anyway, as you can see, today's programs present a combination of the familiar and the foreign. Afternoon programming is dominated on both CBC and CTV by tomorrow's Grey Cup, but there's plenty else to note. For example, both networks have nightly news programs to go along with the late local news; CBC's is hosted by the legendary Peter Mansbridge, who assumed the weeknight edition of The National in 1988 and remained there until July of 2017. You might also note that the version of Wide World of Sports that airs on CTV is a Canadian version, running two hours and including Canadian content. Otherwise, let's get to it and see what we can find - this is classified as the Saskatchewan edition.

	2 CKTV (REGINA) (CTV)
	MORNING
	6:00	CIRCLE SQUARE
	6:30	CARTOONS
	7:00	HOUSE OF FRIGHTENSTEIN
	8:00	POPEYE – Cartoon
	8:30	LET’S GO – Children
	9:00	MIGHTY HERCULES
	9:30	YOU CAN’T DO THAT ON TELEVISION – Children
	10:00	SPIDER-MAN – Cartoon
	10:30	WOODY WOODPECKER
	11:00	SMURFS
	AFTERNOON
	12:00	GREY CUP PARADE
	2:00	FLINTSTONES
	2:30	RED FISHER
	3:00	WIDE WORLD OF SPORTS Tennis, Armwrestling, Gymnastics
	5:00	WRESTLING
	EVENING
	6:00	NEWS
	6:15	PAT CHAT
	6:30	BINGO
	7:00	DIFF’RENT STROKES (CC)
	7:30	CIRCUS
	8:00	MOVIE – Drama “Missing Children: A Mother’s Story” (1982)
	10:00	HEADLINE HUNTERS
	10:30	NASHVILLE SWING
	11:00	CTV NEWS – Rinaldo
	11:20	MOVIE – Adventure “The Eagle Has Landed” (1977)
	1:20	MOVIE – Documentary “Woodstock” (1970)

	4 CBKT-I (MOOSE JAW) (CBC)
	MORNING
	9:00	GUNSMOKE – Western
	10:00	STAR TREK
	11:00	WHAT’S NEW?
	11:30	GRANGE HILL – Drama
	AFTERNOON
	12:00	GREY CUP PARADE
	2:00	SPORTS-WEEKEND Grey Cup preview
	5:00	REACH FOR THE TOP
	5:30	CRIBBINS
	EVENING
	6:00	CBC NEWS – McLean
	6:30	THIS WEEK IN PARLIAMENT
	7:00	NHL HOCKEY Winnipeg at Toronto
	10:00	ONE DAY AT A TIME
	10:30	WAYNE AND SHUSTER (CC) – Comedy
	11:00	CBC NEWS – Peter Mansbridge
	11:15	PROVINCIAL AFFAIRS
	11:20	NEWS
	11:35	MOVIE – Drama “She’ll Be Sweet” (Australian; 1978)

	5 CKOS (YORKTON) (CBC)
	MORNING
	8:00	100 HUNTLEY STREET
	9:00	STAR TREK – Cartoon
	10:00	FLIPPER
	10:30	TOM & JERRY – Cartoon
	11:00	STAR TREK – Science Fiction
	11:30	WAYNE AND SHUSTER (CC)
	AFTERNOON
	12:00	GREY CUP PARADE
	2:00	SPORTS-WEEKEND Grey Cup preview
	5:00	FLINTSTONES COMEDY HOUR
	EVENING
	6:00	CBC NEWS – McLean
	6:30	KINSMAN BINGO
	7:00	NHL HOCKEY Winnipeg at Toronto
	10:00	TOMMY HUNTER Guests: Vern Gosdin, Iris Larratt, Sonny James, Kristy Lynn, Pat Buttram
	11:00	CBC NEWS – Peter Mansbridge
	11:15	PROVINCIAL AFFAIRS
	11:20	NEWS
	11:45	MOVIE – Comedy-Western “Desperate Women” (1978)

	5 CJFB (SWIFT CURRENT) (CBC)
	MORNING
	9:00	100 HUNTLEY STREET – Religion
	9:30	POPEYE
	10:00	TREEHOUSE CLUB – Children
	10:30	WORLD TOMORROW – Religion
	11:00	POINTS WEST
	AFTERNOON
	12:00	GREY CUP PARADE
	2:00	SPORTS-WEEKEND Grey Cup preview
	5:00	STAR TREK – Science Fiction
	EVENING
	6:00	KINSMAN BINGO
	6:30	THIS WEEK IN PARLIAMENT
	7:00	NHL HOCKEY Winnipeg at Toronto
	10:00	TOMMY HUNTER Guests: Vern Gosdin, Iris Larratt, Sonny James, Kristy Lynn, Pat Buttram
	11:00	CBC NEWS – Peter Mansbridge
	11:15	NEWS
	11:30	MOVIE – To Be Announced

	8 CFQC (SASKATOON) (CTV)
	MORNING
	6:00	UNIVERSITY OF THE AIR
	6:30	SASKATCHEWAN A.M.
	7:00	ROCKET ROBIN HOOD
	7:30	SPIDER-MAN – Cartoon
	8:00	YOU CAN’T DO THAT ON TELEVISION – Children
	8:30	MIGHTY HERCULES – Cartoon
	9:00	PINK PANTHER – Cartoon
	9:30	YOU CAN’T DO THAT ON TELEVISION – Children
	10:00	1981 GREY CUP REPLAY
	AFTERNOON
	12:00	GREY CUP PARADE
	2:00	WRESTLING
	3:00	WIDE WORLD OF SPORTS Tennis, Armwrestling, Gymnastics
	5:00	SUN COUNTRY
	5:30	HEADLINE HUNTERS
	EVENING
	6:00	NEWS
	6:30	BINGO
	7:00	DIFF’RENT STROKES (CC)
	7:30	CIRCUS
	8:00	MOVIE – Drama “Missing Children: A Mother’s Story” (1982)
	10:00	SPORTS HOT SEAT
	10:30	TOM JONES – Variety
	11:00	CTV NEWS – Rinaldo
	11:20	NEWS
	12:00	MOVIE – Adventure “The Three Musketeers” (1974)
	2:00	MOVIE – Comedy-Drama “In Praise of Older Women” (1978)

	9 CBKT (REGINA) (CBC)
	MORNING
	9:00	GUNSMOKE – Western
	10:00	STAR TREK
	11:00	WHAT’S NEW?
	11:30	GRANGE HILL – Drama
	AFTERNOON
	12:00	GREY CUP PARADE
	2:00	SPORTS-WEEKEND Grey Cup preview
	5:00	REACH FOR THE TOP
	5:30	CRIBBINS
	EVENING
	6:00	CBC NEWS – McLean
	6:30	THIS WEEK IN PARLIAMENT
	7:00	NHL HOCKEY Winnipeg at Toronto
	10:00	ONE DAY AT A TIME
	10:30	WAYNE AND SHUSTER (CC) – Comedy
	11:00	CBC NEWS – Peter Mansbridge
	11:15	PROVINCIAL AFFAIRS
	11:20	NEWS
	11:35	MOVIE – Drama “She’ll Be Sweet” (Australian; 1978)

	10 CICC (YORKTON) (CTV)
	MORNING
	9:00	700 CLUB – Religion
	10:00	LET’S GO – Children
	10:30	UNITEL
	11:00	UNTAMED WORLD
	11:30	YOU CAN’T DO THAT ON TELEVISION - Children
	AFTERNOON
	12:00	GREY CUP PARADE
	2:00	WRESTLING
	3:00	WIDE WORLD OF SPORTS Tennis, Armwrestling, Gymnastics
	5:00	UNIVERSITY OF THE AIR
	5:30	YOU CAN’T DO THAT ON TELEVISION – Children
	EVENING
	6:00	NEWS
	6:30	FAMILY BROWN COUNTRY
	7:00	DIFF’RENT STROKES (CC)
	7:30	CIRCUS
	8:00	MOVIE – Drama “Missing Children: A Mother’s Story” (1982)
	10:00	ALAN THICKE – Variety
	11:00	CTV NEWS – Rinaldo
	11:20	NEWS
	11:45	MOVIE – Musical “Three Little Words” (1950)

	11 CBKST (SASKATOON) (CBC)
	MORNING
	10:00	STAR TREK
	11:00	WHAT’S NEW?
	11:30	GRANGE HILL – Drama
	AFTERNOON
	12:00	GREY CUP PARADE
	2:00	SPORTS-WEEKEND Grey Cup preview
	5:00	REACH FOR THE TOP
	5:30	MARKET PLACE
	EVENING
	6:00	CBC NEWS – McLean
	6:30	THIS WEEK IN PARLIAMENT
	7:00	NHL HOCKEY Winnipeg at Toronto
	10:00	ONE DAY AT A TIME
	10:30	WAYNE AND SHUSTER (CC) – Comedy
	11:00	CBC NEWS – Peter Mansbridge
	11:15	NEWS
	11:35	BENNY HILL
	11:55	MOVIE – Comedy-Drama “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?” (1967)

	13 CBKFT (REGINA) (R-C)
	MORNING
	7:30	OUM, LE DAUPHIN BLANC
	7:45	GRANGALLO ET PETITRO
	8:00	CAPITAINE CAVERNE
	8:30	PASSE-PARTOUT – Enfant
	9:00	BELLE ET SEBASTIEN
	9:30	CANDY – Dessins animes
	10:00	VIRULYSSE – Marionettes
	10:30	NIC ET PIC – Marionnettes
	11:00	SEMAINE PARLEMENTAIRE
	AFTERNOON
	12:00	DEFILE DE LA COUPE GREY
	2:00	FESTIVITES DE LA COUPE GREY
	3:00	BAGATELLE – Dessins animés
	4:00	COURSE AUTOUR DU MONDE
	5:00	NOUVELLES
	5:05	NOIR SUR BLANC - Information
	EVENING
	6:00	MONDE DE DISNEY
	7:00	LNH HOCKEY Detroit c. Montréal
	9:30	NOUVELLES – Louise Arcand
	9:45	NOUVELLES DU SPORT
	10:00	POLITIQUE FEDERALE
	10:15	LES CINEMA – Comédie “Les Patates” (Français; 1969)
	11:30	CINEMA – Comédie BW “Un singe en hiver” (Français; 1962)

↧

The "It's About TV" Interview: Adam-Michael James, author of I, Samantha, Take This Mortal, Darrin

November 29, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: A "Bewitching" finale

≪ Previous: What's on TV, eh? Saturday, November 27, 1982

It's been over a year since we last talked with our old friend Adam-Michael James, author of The Bewitched Continuum, one of my favorite books of 2015 (and I don’t mean just the books I reviewed, either), so when I got the news that Adam-Michael had a new Bewitched project in the works, it presented a perfect opportunity to catch up.

Adam-Michael's new novel, I, Samantha, Take This Mortal, Darrin - which hit Amazon this week! - brings a sense of closure to the Bewitched universe. Like most series of its time, Bewitched made no attempt to bring the series to any kind of conclusion when it ended its eight-season run in 1972. "Final episodes" of popular television shows were a rarity back then (the most famous one to that time was the end of The Fugitive, but there had been a few others). It wasn't as if the characters were left in any kind of limbo; neither, however, was there any opportunity for them to say a proper goodbye to a loyal viewing audience that had grown to know and love Samantha and Darrin Stephens and the various characters that orbited around their world.

With I, Samantha, Take This Mortal, Darrin, Adam-Michael sets out to provide a fitting end to one of the most popular sitcoms of the '60s and early '70s. And I can't think of anyone better qualified to do it - so why don't I shut up and let him tell you about it himself?

◊ ◊ ◊
It's About TV: It has been a while since we last talked about Bewitched - so what have you been up to since then?

Adam-Michael James: Mostly promoting The Bewitched Continuum. [laughs] No, there have been other things, too – I’ve done some acting in theatre and some local video projects. Ended a 15-year relationship, moved back to L.A. but changed my mind and returned to Canada three months later...never a dull moment!

Bewitched, as we've said, came from a time when most TV series did not have "final episodes" that wrapped everything up, so tell me how the idea for the new book came about. What was it about the series that begged to you for such an episode - to clear up "final business," so to speak?

It was already something I’d thought of for The Bewitched Continuum, and that’s where the initial synopsis of this two-part “episode” is. I don’t know what viewers felt about it in 1972, but when you watch the show in order now, it just feels incomplete by the time you get to Episode #254, especially since it’s not only a regular episode, but one of the more blatant remakes with dialogue copied word for word. And, as you say, it’s not like the series finale concept was commonplace back then, so even if the cast and crew of Bewitched knew they were going off the air (and I don’t think they did), they wouldn’t necessarily have wrapped things up. I was already analyzing eight seasons for The Bewitched Continuum, so I thought, “Why don’t I come up with a series finale myself?”

Where did the idea for the story come from?

Well, as you know, Bewitched is not just about a cute little witch whose family causes problems for her mortal husband every week. It’s about prejudice – and overcoming it. The show itself constantly layered messages of equality and acceptance into its scripts, sometimes subtly, sometimes directly. And because this was in the middle of the civil rights movement, it was quite a bold thing to do. So it was only natural to think a final episode of Bewitched would double down on those messages, and do what any series finale would do: bring the show full circle, answer long-standing questions, and raise the stakes higher than they’d been in anything that came before it. Of course, in The Bewitched Continuum that was just two paragraphs; I had so much fun fleshing them out and finding ways to tie in key moments and have characters interact who had never shared a scene. I even ended up channeling backstories for Samantha and Darrin!

As an author myself, I'm always interested in how other writers approach the writing process - how long did it take you to flesh out the plot, and how long did it take to write?

I had the idea for Darrin’s backstory around this time last year – and then as things came to me I would make copious notes. Sometimes something would occur to me as I was trying to get to sleep and I’d have to get up and write something down or at least reach for the phone and record it. But the actual writing only took about four months – and that was including the three weeks I had to take off to go down to Florida and get my mother out of the path of Hurricane Irma. Fortunately her home survived and everything was fine, but it certainly shut down my creative engine for a while!

Tell us a little about the premise. What adventures do we find the Stephens engaged in this time?

Again, I wanted to bring things full circle. So how it starts off is, Darrin finally gets his promotion and becomes a partner at McMann, Tate, and Stephens, which is something that came up more than once over the course of the show. Samantha throws him a hip party filled with funk music – I referenced several songs, many of which I’d discovered for the first time and listened to on auto-repeat as I was writing. And long-missing mortals are in attendance. Most had only ever appeared in one episode, but I created a comprehensive list of endnotes so readers could tell what episode what character came from, or from what part of “The Bewitched Continuum” I built a story point around. Not to mention, I wanted to make it clear what was my idea and what was a creation of the show.

Anyway, all is going well until some witchcraft happens in front of this room full of mortals, and Samantha is unable to explain it away the way she was able to when it was one or two people witnessing magic. So she tells her guests she’s a witch – and before they can react, the Witches’ Council steps in, and Samantha has to fight for her way of life via a hearing that involves many witches and mortals. My other rule was, no new characters. Everyone who shows up was on screen at one point or another. It’s quite the reunion!

You suggest that there's a message in Bewitched that's applicable to today's world, aside from the sheer fantasy and sitcom humor of the show. Can you elaborate on that?

With pleasure. As I mentioned, Bewitched was all about equality and acceptance. Elizabeth Montgomery really believed in that. At one point Samantha said “all men are brothers, even if they’re girls.” Another time she called for the “acceptance of all differences, and a recognition of our common humanity.” That was very necessary during the ‘60s and ‘70s – regrettably, here in 2017 there’s a movement to drag society backwards into intolerance, prejudice, and the idea that one group of people is superior to another. If Bewitched were on the air today first-run, I’m willing to bet Samantha would be taking the same kind of stand she did 45 years ago, if not a stronger one. I feel I have a responsibility as an artist to take the messages of Bewitched and amplify them, because we really, really need to hear them right now. It’s all done subtly, but I think it’s what Elizabeth would have done and I hope she would be proud of it.

Do you think there are other shows out there that, like Bewitched, have this serious side, and a
kind of moral foundation that supports the show even if it remains mostly unsaid?

If you mean classic TV shows, it’s hard for me to say. I only know Bewitched and a handful of others this intimately. I’m sure issues of social justice were tackled in dramas of that day, but I’m hard pressed to think of another comedy that did. I think shows of all genres of television are much more apt to advocate for equality now. Because for as much as there are those lately who want to undo the progress of the past several decades, that progress is still there. It’s nice to think that Bewitched was at least in the forefront of taking a stand in the context of its magic and comedy.

In creating the backstories and writing the main story, did you find the characters saying or doing anything that surprised you, or situations occurring that you hadn't really expected?

Oh, all the time. Initially I’d just planned to follow the series finale synopsis I had laid out in The Bewitched Continuum. But as I went along it seemed these folks had more they wanted to say. Of course, the base for all of it was the show itself. For example, it was said in the pilot that Darrin was from Missouri, so I built on that; I figured he must have already been into advertising as a kid. With Samantha, of course, I had freer rein because she’s a witch, plus it had finally been confirmed in Season 7 that she was 300 years old. But a lot of stuff just came organically. Bits of humor revealing themselves in unorthodox places, dramatic parallels happening in others. Do you remember that
episode where Samantha was writing a play about the Civil War and she zapped up
characters that ended up telling her what to write?

Yes! [laughs]

Doing this book was not unlike that! [laughs]

One of the things I like about the book is how you mix comedy with drama, how you've created scenarios that create some very real danger for the Stephens family - after all, this is a last episode, anything can happen - and yet you maintain the natural humor of the characters that viewers will recognize. Difficult?

The show itself was already very adept at sprinkling drama into things – there were many moments, especially in the early seasons, that made you forget you were watching a sitcom. So I guess once I caught onto that wavelength, it wasn’t too difficult. I did worry a bit when I got to the showdown with the Witches’ Council that things might get overly serious, but sometimes you can find humor in the craziest situations, and that often helps you get through. A maxim I seem to have adhered by most of my own life!

So here's a scenario for you: the book has been optioned as a movie - tell me about your ideal cast, if there is one.

Man, I hate to turn down that check. [laughs] It just couldn’t be done. The way I crafted this, it “airs” a week after the final episode that audiences actually saw. That means the cast as it existed in 1972 are the stars here. Relegating it to fictional status even more is the brief appearance of a character whose portrayer passed away during the run of the show, which would have already been impossible back then because the actor could simply not have been recast. So I, Samantha... (or as I’ve started to call it, “iSam” [laughs]) can only exist in our minds, unfortunately!

Any more stories in the works, or does this bring the Bewitched story to a conclusion?

Certainly the intention with this book is to bring the series as we knew it to a close. But let’s just say, if there was enough interest in it, following Samantha, Darrin, and the kids into the ‘80s, ‘90s, and even the 2000s wouldn’t require much arm-twisting.

◊ ◊ ◊
Ah, that was fun! My thanks as always to Adam-Michael for graciously answering my questions. You can find out more about Adam-Michael and his other work at his website, www. adammichaeljames.com I, Samantha, Take This Mortal, Darrin, is available from Amazon, and I'll be back on Friday with a review. See you then, right? Right! TV

↧

A "Bewitching" finale

December 1, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: This week in TV Guide: December 2, 1961

≪ Previous: The "It's About TV" Interview: Adam-Michael James, author of I, Samantha, Take This Mortal, Darrin

I, Samantha, Take This Mortal, Darrin
by Adam-Michael James
Bright Horse Publishing, 210 pp, $9.99

You remember how on Christmas morning when you were little, when you opened the last present that Santa had left under the tree, you were convinced there had to be one more package somewhere under there? You'd sift through the discarded wrapping paper, look under other presents, even crawl under the branches and see if there was one hiding back there, somewhere you hadn't already looked. It wasn't that you were disappointed with what you had, it's just that you kept asking yourself, in Peggy Lee's words, if that was all there was.

Being a fan of a classic television show can be like that sometimes. As we've discussed in the past, the idea of a "final episode" is a relatively new development, at least in terms of the whole history of television. It wasn't that a final episode was denied, just that nobody really thought that way most of the time. Today's series all seem to be designed around some kind of arc, one that can digress for years at a time but will eventually force the writers to come full circle and tie up all the loose ends. And while many shows from the classic era simply ended, going their merry ways without so much as a "see you later," there have been the occasional series that begged for just a little bit more, that didn't leave us in limbo through countless cycles of reruns.

Bewitched is, I think, one of those series. Maybe not at first blush, since the show didn't end with any kind of cliffhanger dangling out there, leaving unanswered questions in its wake. But when you think about it, you are left wondering if the Stephens family was really going to have to keep that secret from Larry Tate, Darrin's boss-nemesis, and Mrs. Kravitz, the nosy neighbor, for the rest of time. I mean, isn't it bound to come out sooner or later, in a way that might be decidedly inconvenient? And, knowing the history of the program, aren't there bound to be unpleasant consequences should that come to pass? It's a scenario that really does beg for some type of closure.

Fortunately, Adam-Michael James has one. Author of the acclaimed The Bewitched Continuum, Adam-Michael has taken on the challenge of crafting the final episode that Bewitched never had, with his new novel I, Samantha, Take This Mortal, Darrin. If you read my interview with Adam-Michael on Wednesday (and if you haven't, why not?) you probably know a bit of the thinking that went into conjuring up the story. Now, however, it's time to take a look at the result. Does I, Samantha, serve as a proper send-off for the series?

I think it does. Although it's not written in script format, it takes as its premise a two-part episode that follows some days after the events of the final aired episode; thus, we're not dealing with some abstract future in which characters have developed out of our sight, but a clear continuation of the series. As the story opens, Darrin has, once again, been informed by Larry that he's finally about to be made a partner in McMann and Tate, the ad agency for which he's labored, often thanklessly, for these many years. He calls an overjoyed Samantha with the news, and the result is a giant party to celebrate Darrin's success - a party that, not coincidentally, reintroduces us to the familiar faces that populated the Bewitched universe for so many seasons. It's also where something happens that causes everyone - the Stephens', the guests, and even the Witches Council - to tackle the question at the heart of the show's premise, the one I mentioned at the beginning: how long can this keep going on?

Adam-Michael provides us with a look at the characters' lives before Bewitched - based, I'd say, on a keen understanding of their lives as portrayed in the series, combined with a flair for imagination - that adds an extra dimension to I, Samantha. At the same time, he makes sure we understand the story's place within the Bewitched' canon (not surprising for those who've read The Bewitched Continuum, probably the best TV series book of its kind), complete with footnotes referencing the episodes being referred to (a touch I really liked).

But does the story work, aside from a pleasant trip back to the past with likable characters? After all, I've mentioned before my distaste for phony cliffhangers, those "Perils of Pauline" moments that supposedly put series regulars in danger, only for them to scramble out of trouble before the episode ends - as if we're supposed to really believe that the star of the show might not make it through this one alive. It's often a cheap, lazy trick, and it's only really effective in two situations: if the star is in a contract dispute, or if it's a show's final episode. Fear not, then: the situation in which the Stephens family finds itself, the drama that carries the bulk of the book, is very real, an evolution of events that actually occurred in the series. In this "final episode," there are no guarantees, no promises that everyone will return next week. If a happy ending happens, it's been well-earned, just as an unhappy ending proceeds from a relentless logic. And for those who think this might be getting a little heavy, Adam-Michael has made sure that to keep the laughs present. They just don't overwhelm the story or cause us to take the situation less seriously. In other words, a lot like real life. And the lessons about justice and equality - themes that were present in the series as well - will strike many readers as being surprisingly relevant to today's world.

In short, I, Samantha, Take This Mortal, Darrin is a book that fans of the series will enjoy. Adam-Michael James has enabled us to return one more time to the suburbs of New York, the Madison Avenue ad agencies, the insufferable bosses and nosy neighbors and annoying in-laws, and simply enjoy. It's a story that takes both characters and reader and deposits them into a perfectly plausible scenario, struggling with the highest stakes. It allows us to understand our favorites just a little bit more, and see them react and evolve in ways that remain true to their television counterparts. It doesn't demand that you know every little bit of Bewitched trivia. It only asks you to come along for the ride, and it even provides the broomstick. TV

↧

This week in TV Guide: December 2, 1961

December 2, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: What's on TV? Friday, December 8, 1961

≪ Previous: A "Bewitching" finale

What with sexual harrassment dominating the entertainment headlines these days, it seems appropriate to take a closer look at the headline on this week's cover, "Why Television Is Tough for a Woman," and see if it gives us any insight into the cultural mores of the day.

There are a variety of answers offered, some of them more plausible than others. Mike Dann, head of programming at CBS, says it's because primetime is currently dominated by action-adventure shows. "How many female Perry Masons can you think of?" he says, a fact which apparently didn't stop the show from casting Bette Davis as a substitute for an ailing Raymond Burr in a 1963 episode.

A comedy writer who recently failed at a sitcom pitch that would hve starred "one of the established Great Ladies of TV" says that "men are tired of shows that women dominate," which is probably the most honest answer you'll get. A few seasons ago, women were everywhere: Eve Arden, June Allyson, Loretta Young, Barbara Stanwyck. But no longer, and one producer says it's because well-known female stars command too many dollars - for a star like Young, "it ends up costing you $5000 a week more just to have them int he first place," leaving little in the budget for other casting decisions. And then there's the fact that many big-name women (and some big-name male ones as well) are being pushed out of the market by the young, cheaper Troy Donahue-Doug McClure-Edd Byrnes types favored by Warner Brothers. One producer offered a Zsa Zsa Gabor and Ginger Rogers as possible leads, but the network instead went for young Cynthia Petter to star in Margie. "We frequently take stories written for characters in middle age and knock 15, 20 years off their ages," says Alfred Hitchcock Presents producer Joan Harrison. "It's what you have to do these days."

Shirley Booth and Gertrude Berg still have their own series, but as producer William Dozier points out, these are more character leads than glamor parts. Barbara Stanwyck, who was furious last year when her award-winning anthology series was cancelled, is philosophical about it now. "Maybe it will come around to our turn again." She's right, of course. Today nobody would look twice at a female Perry Mason, nor do they blink at female stars of action-adventure shows. Unlike the movies, television does offer leading roles for mature women, often with a higher quality script than they can find in on the big screen. It's a welcome development, as long as it's believable. It isn't always, which leads to an entirely different discussion than the one we're having now. Let's just say that, at least for now, youth rules.

◊ ◊ ◊
I'm always stressing the importance of reading things in context, of understanding what we see here not through contemporary eyes, but how it would have appeared at the time. That's why this week's documentary on Japan, "East is West" (Monday, 7:00 p.m., NBC) is so intriguing. It comes at us from a number of angles; it's only been 16 years since the end of the very bitter conflict in World War II, and yet in three years Tokyo will have a spectacular success with the Summer Olympics. The "foreignness" of the Far East is also in a state of transition; we think of its architecture, its gardens, its music and forms of dress and things like geishas, but the influence of the West in the post-war era is increasingly evident: rock music, television antennas, Western forms of dress like high heels and nylons, and of course a growing technology industry.

Japan's status vis-a-vis the United States has changed as well - they've become a strategic ally in an increasingly Communist-influenced area, with Red China, North Korea, and North Vietnam all in the spotlight or on the horizon. The fact that this documentary is in color, in prime time, underscores its importance. I wonder whether or noth this was part of the reintroduction of Japan to American viewers, trying to move beyond the lingering memories of the war (remember, most of the series about WWII tend to focus on the European theater), to win acceptance of them as one of the "good guys" and to open the area to further Western influence. Perhaps it isn't so significant, but it's interesting nonetheless - and after all, the Orient has always fascinated.

NBC offers another documentary on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. that, I think, underscores this sense of time and place. It's "Sentry Abroad," an episode of the occasional series Now...In Our Time. The Close-Up recalls that it's the 20th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, and shows how the American network of overseas bases, manned by the Strategic Air Command and NATO, among others, is designed to proted the United States from a similar attack. This isn't just tine-filler, a Big Picturetype of puff piece on the military - this is a program airing on a significant date in American history, at a point almost exactly between the Bay of Pigs and the Cuban Missile Crisis, when the tests from CONELRAD and its successor, the Emergency Broadcast System, remind us that the fear of a surprise attack from the Soviet Union is a very real one. A program like this is designed to reinforce a sense of confidence in the government's ability to protect us from such an attack. I wonder at this point if the networks felt they were being exploited by the government, or if they were doing their civic duty as Americans? I suspect the latter rather than the former.

◊ ◊ ◊

Let's see - what else have we got? Sunday night (9:00 p.m., NBC) CITGO, which back in the day was known as Cities Service, sponsors "Highways of Melody," billed as "the first of a Series of one-hour Specials saluting this land of ours." A land which, not concidentally, you really need to discover via road trips that can be faciliated through the use of the sponsor's product. What a coincidence! The host is Gordon MacRae - a big voice for a big country, you might say - with guests Dorothy Kirsten, Dolores Gray, Connie Russell, Eddy Arnold, the Brothers Four, and the West Point Glee Club.

On Wednesday night at 7:30, CBS's Breck Golden Showcase presents Oscar Wilde's thriller "The Picture of Dorian Gray," with a stellar cast including George C. Scott, Susan Oliver, and Louis Hayward, narriated by Sir Cedric Hardwicke, and "introducing" John Fraser as Dorian Gray (despite the fact Fraser'd already created a pretty good career for himself in England, including a BAFTA nomination for - believe it - The Trials of Oscar Wilde.)

On Friday, Westinghouse Presents (CBS, 9:00 p.m.), the successor to Studio One, has "Come Again to Carthage," with Piper Laurie starring as a nun given permission to a week with her dying father. Maurice Evans is the father, Ann Harding the mother, and Ina Balin, Arthur Hill, and Joan Hackett among the cast. It sounds to me a lot like the kind of play that used to be on the Hallmark Hall of Fame.

Notice something interesting about these three shows? They all have a title sponsor, a of the days when advertisers and ad agencies, not network executives, dominated the television schedule. There's also Voice of Firestone, Armstrong Circle Theatre, The U.S. Steel Hour, The Bell Telephone Hour (which airs opposite Westinghouse Presents), Kraft Music Hall and others. What does this mean? Could be that when an advertiser's name is attached to the program, and that the sale of the advertiser's own product is essential to the expenditure of the advertiser's money, the advertiser takes a greater interest in the contents of said program and its ability to please the audience and/or lend prestige to the advertiser's association with the program. That's the positive spin on it; we'll have to think about it and maybe return to the discussion another day.

◊ ◊ ◊

The highlight of the sports week comes in Philadelphia on Saturday, with the 62nd Army-Navy football game. (12:15 p.m., ABC)* We're still living in the era when both Army and Navy are considered part of college football's elite; in fact, in a couple of years Navy will finish as the #2 team in the country, led by Heisman Trophy winner Roger Staubach. Each team comes to the matchup with records of 6-3, and President Kennedy is on hand, along with 100,000 other spectators; true to tradition, JFK will spend one half on each team's side of the stadium, though the Navy vet can hardly be called neutral. In a tough, hard-fought contest, the Midshipmen come out on top, 13-7.

*Ever notice how it's never called the Navy-Army game? Not sure why, unless it's alphabetical. Maybe one of you out there knows the answer.

You might find yourselves puzzled by the rest of Saturday's sports. At 1:30, NBC's NBA game of the week has the Chicago Packers taking on the Syracuse Nationals from Syracuse, and the first thing most of you are probably thinking is: Who vs. Who? Easy answer: the Packers are an expansion team, changing their name to Zephyrs for the 1962 season before moving to Baltimore and becoming the Bullets; they're now the Washington Wizards. Likewise, the Syracuse Nationals would depart for greener pastures following the 1963 season, and they're now known to one and all as the Philadelphia 76ers. And now you know the rest of the story.

But did you know the story of the National Bowling League? It's true; for one season, a gentleman by the name of Leonard Homel had the idea of trying to turn the very popular sport of bowling into a team event, with two divisions comprised of five franchises each.* The Minneapolis franchise was known as the Twin Cities Skippers (after all, there are 10,000 lakes in Minnesota), and today they're taking on the San Antonio Cavaliers (2:30 p.m., WCCO) in a match taped November 24. It's a good thing this match was taped, for the NBL struggles from the very beginning. Unable to secure a national television contract, and with most of the top bowlers unwilling to move from the Pro Bowlers Association, the league is never able to secure a stable financial footing. San Antonio folds on December 17, just over two weeks after this broadcast; Omaha, Kansas City and Los Angeles follow suit. Meanwhile, the Skippers make it to the end of the season, losing in the finals to the Detroit Thunderbirds. After that, the entire league goes under. It's a footnote in America's professional sports history, and you can say you know about it because of TV Guide.

*In fact, with a total of 10 teams, it's bigger than the NBA, though not healthier.

◊ ◊ ◊

This week's starlet is 19-year-old Carole Wells, also known as older sister Edwina on NBC's National Velvet. She's not worried, as the article puts it, about "playing third string behind a child and a horse" - she's got a seven-year contract with MGM, and she's already done two features for them. (Lizzie and A Thunder of Drums.)

Young Carole is quite posed: "I've known I wanted to be a star since I was three years ago, but I guess I'm not quite ready for it yet." Once her family moved to California, she became friends with fellow actress Lurene Tuttle (Father of the Bride), moved quickly through commercials and sixteen TV guest spots before becoming part of the National Velvet cast. She's also dabbled in singing, with Capitol is bidding against MGM to sign her up.

And what happened to our Carole? Well, I don't know that she became a "star," exactly. She did appear in over a hundred television shows, plus another series, Pistols and Petticoats. She also did ten movies, and that singing career did blossom, as she performed in light opera productions throught the country. She's been an author, a teacher, and worked in various humanitarian projects. In other words, there's more than one kind of star that can shine.

◊ ◊ ◊

WCCO has a Saturday afternoon program at 12:15 called Hobby and Handycraft. I wonder if this morphed into the Woodcraft Hobby Show, a much-loved program when I was growing up, that aired in the same timeslot. In many ways the show functioned as a 15-minute infomercial for the Woodcraft Hobby store on Lake Street - I mean, look at what they're featuring, just in time for Christmas! Racing sets and trains! - but there was more to it than that. They did features on remote control airplanes and boats, building models, and woodburning. Many a kid who watched the show found a hobby they would live with for the rest of their lives. Now, I don't know if this was the same show or not - this one is a half-hour rather than 15 minutes - but I can't see it without being reminded of Woodcraft. The show isn't on anymore, of course; Woodcraft itself closed a few years ago, although there's a chain that goes by the same name that isn't related. But it just goes to show that you can sell product and give people something more than just a few minutes of entertainment at the same time.

◊ ◊ ◊
Finally, a different kind of TV Jibe, and one that all of you should be able to ace. It's the "Test Your TV Knowledge" test, guaranteed to "accurately test your knowledge and rate you against the experts." The answers follow; according to quizmaster Bill Baur, anyone caught trying to peek at them before finishing the text "will be struck by lightening." Ready?

1. How tall is Jim Arness?
a. 6'10" b. 5'2" c. 11'3½

2. How many good-looking, young, blond boys and girls have leading roles in
realistic adventure shows?
a. 14 b. About three c. 16,381

3. What is Rita Rascle's real name?
a. Pamela Glunk b. Vilma Smirker c. Sandra Blubber

4. With all the outcry against violence on TV, "The Untouchables" is going to
become an animated cartoon with funny animals in place of villains.
a. True b. False c. Perhaps

5. Who receives more fan mail than any other TV performer?
a. Bulwinkle Moose b. Rod Serling c. Bruce Cabot1

Answers: 1. None of these. Jim Arness is actually 7 inches tall. Next time you turn on Gunsmoke take a ruler up to your set and measure him.

2. There are no realistic adventure shows.

3. a. Pamela Glunk. It's a shame you never heard of Rita Rascle; you might have guessed this one.

4. b. False. The Untouchables already is an animated cartoon. It is very skillfully done.

5. b. Rod Serling. A great deal of this mail is from neighboring planets.

Score: Count 16 points for each right answer.

	0-32	You do not own a television set.
	48-80	You watch TV constantly. You are kind, considerate, a thoughtful companion and you weigh 127 pounds.
	100	You peeked. Watch out for bolts of lightning.

↧

What's on TV? Friday, December 8, 1961

December 4, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: TV JIbe: Is this what they mean by fake news?

≪ Previous: This week in TV Guide: December 2, 1961

It's the first week of December; I think I've mentioned this before, but although there were many more seasonal programs on television in the late '50s and '60s, they tended to air later in the month than they do now. Cartoons were always something of an exception, since their basic purpose has always been to sell toys. But Rudolph and Charlie Brown and the Grinch are all still a little ways away, and since the variety shows usually air their Christmas episodes right before December 25, things are pretty much as normal this week. The listings are from the Twin Cities, and although there's nothing too spectacular, I think you'll enjoy some of the familiar names and programs.

	2 KTCA (EDUC.) x
	MORNING
	9:55	SCIENCE – Grade 1
	10:20	GERMAN – Grade 5
	10:35	MUSIC – Grade 4
	11:00	YA HABLAMOS ESPANOL
	11:15	BRITISH CALENDAR
	11:30	ECONOMICS Ch 2 leaves the air until 1:30 P.M.
	AFTERNOON
	1:30	YA HABLAMOS ESPANOL
	1:45	KOMM, LACH UND LERNE
	2:00	EXPLORING SCIENCE – Grade 4
	2:30	BEGINNING GERMAN
	3:00	EFFICIENT READING – Brown Ch 2 leaves the air until 6 P.M.
	EVENING
	6:00	WORDS ON RELIGION – Education
	6:30	EFFICIENT READING – Brown
	7:00	ECONOMIC FORECAST – Lunde S
	7:30	SCORED FOR THREE – Music
	8:00	MUSIC OF GREGORIAN CHANT
	8:30	GOALS FOR AMERICANS
	9:00	INTRODUCTION TO THEATER
	10:00	AMERICANS AT WORK
	10:15	INDUSTRY ON PARADE
	10:30	BACKGROUND – Dr. Ziebarth
	10:40	SPEAK UP – Education

	4 WCCO (CBS) x
	MORNING
	6:30	COLLEGE OF THE AIR “New Biology”
	7:00	ON THE SCENE – Farm News
	7:05	FLYING SAUCER – Siegfried
	8:00	CAPTAIN KANGAROO – Children
	9:00	NEWS – Dean Montgomery
	9:10	DR. REUBEN K. YOUNGDHAL
	9:20	WHAT’S NEW? – Arle Haeberle
	9:30	I LOVE LUCY – Comedy
	10:00	VIDEO VILLAGE – Monty Hall
	10:30	YOUR SURPRISE PACKAGE
	10:55	NEWS – Harry Reasoner
	11:00	LOVE OF LIFE – Serial
	11:30	SEARCH FOR TOMORROW – Serial
	11:45	GUIDING LIGHT – Serial
	AFTERNOON
	12:00	NEWS – Dave Moore
	12:15	SOMETHING SPECIAL – Merriman
	12:25	WEATHER – Bud Kraehling
	12:30	AS THE WORLD TURNS – Serial
	1:00	PASSWORD – Allen Ludden Contestants: Betsy Palmer, Zachary Scott
	1:30	HOUSE PARTY – Art Linkletter Guest Host: Ralph Story Guest: Norman Rockwell
	2:00	MILLIONAIRE – Drama
	2:30	VERDICT IS YOURS – Drama
	2:55	NEWS – Charles Collingwood
	3:00	BRIGHTER DAY – Serial
	3:15	SECRET STORM – Serial
	3:30	EDGE OF NIGHT – Serial
	4:00	AROUND THE TOWN – Haeberle
	4:30	BOZO THE CLOWN – Children
	5:00	AXEL AND DOG – Clellen Card
	5:30	CLANCY THE COP – Children
	5:55	MR. MAGOO – Cartoon
	EVENING
	6:00	NEWS – Dean Montgomery
	6:10	WEATHER – Don O’Brien
	6:15	NEWS – Douglas Edwards
	6:30	RAWHIDE – Western
	7:30	ROUTE 66 – Adventure
	8:30	FATHER OF THE BRIDE – Comedy
	9:00	WESTINGHOUSE PRESENTS SPECIAL “Come Again to Carthage”
	10:00	NEWS – Dave Moore
	10:15	WEATHER – Bud Kraehling
	10:20	SPORTS – Ray Scott
	10:30	MOVIE – Drama “Drango” (1957)

	5 KSTP (NBC) x
	MORNING
	6:00	CONTINENTAL CLASSROOM COLOR “Modern Algebra”
	6:30	CONTINENTAL CLASSROOM COLOR “American Government”
	7:00	TODAY – John Chancellor Guest: Cleveland Amory
	9:00	SAY WHEN – Art James
	9:30	PLAY YOUR HUNCH – Merv Griffin COLOR Guest: Minnie Pearl
	10:00	PRICE IS RIGHT – Cullen COLOR
	10:30	CONCENTRATION – Hugh Downs
	11:00	TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES
	11:30	IT COULD BE YOU COLOR
	11:55	NEWS – Ray Scherer
	AFTERNOON
	12:00	NEWS – John MacDougall
	12:15	WEATHER – Johnny Morris
	12:20	TREASURE CHEST COLOR
	1:00	JAN MURRAY – Game COLOR
	1:30	LORETTA YOUNG – Drama
	2:00	YOUNG DR. MALONE – Serial
	2:30	FROM THESE ROOTS – Serial
	3:00	MAKE ROOM FOR DADDY
	3:30	HERE’S HOLLYWOOD – Interviews Guest: Pat Carroll
	3:55	NEWS – Sander Vanocur
	4:00	TOPPER – Comedy
	4:30	KUKLA AND OLLIE – Tillstrom
	4:35	T.N. TATTERS – Children COLOR
	5:15	MAN FROM COCHISE – Police
	5:45	NEWS – Huntley, Brinkley
	EVENING
	6:00	NEWS – Bob Ryan
	6:15	WEATHER – Johnny Morris
	6:30	INTERNATIONAL SHOWTIME
	7:30	DETECTIVES – Robert Taylor
	8:30	BELL TELEPHONE HOUR – Music COLOR Guests: Joan Sutherland, Margot Fonteyn, Michael Somes, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans, Luboshutz and Nemenoff, Dorothy Collins and Raymond Scott
	9:30	HERE AND NOW – Frank McGee
	10:00	NEWS – John MacDougall
	10:15	WEATHER – Johnny Morris
	10:20	SPORTS – Dick Nesbitt
	10:30	JACK PAAR – Variety COLOR
	12:00	NEWS AND SPORTS – Krupp

	9 KMSP (ABC) x
	MORNING
	7:55	CHAPEL OF THE AIR – Religion
	8:00	BREAKFAST WITH CAP’N KEN
	8:30	OUR MISS BROOKS – Comedy
	9:00	JACK LA LANNE – Exercise
	9:30	MOVIE – Mystery “Donovan’s Brain” (1954)
	11:00	TEXAN – Western
	11:30	YOURS FOR A SONG – Bert Parks
	AFTERNOON
	12:00	CAMOUFLAGE – Don Morrow
	12:30	MAKE A FACE – Bob Clayton
	1:00	DAY IN COURT – Drama
	1:25	NEWS – Alex Drier
	1:30	MY LITTLE MARGIE - Comedy
	2:00	NUMBER PLEASE – Bud Collier
	2:30	SEVEN KEYS – Jack Narz
	3:00	QUEEN FOR A DAY – Bailey
	3:30	WHO DO YOU TRUST? – Carson
	4:00	AMERICAN BANDSTAND – Clark
	4:50	AMERICAN NEWSSTAND – Sharp
	5:00	LOONEY TUNERS CLUB – Children
	5:40	NEWS – Bob Allard
	5:45	NEWS – ABC Evening
	EVENING
	6:00	BUGS BUNNY – Cartoons
	6:30	STRAIGHTAWAY – Adventure
	7:00	HATHAWAYS – Comedy
	7:30	FLINTSTONES – Cartoon
	8:00	77 SUNSET STRIP – Mystery
	9:00	TARGET: CORRUPTORS – Drama
	10:00	NEWS – Bob Allard
	10:15	WEATHER – Jere Smith
	10:20	SPORTS – Tony Parker
	10:30	MOVIE – Mystery “I Confess” (1953)
	12:30	CHAPEL OF THE AIR – Religion

	11 WTCN (IND.) x
	MORNING
	9:45	CARTOON CIRCUS – Children
	10:00	ROCKY AND HIS FRIENDS
	10:15	ROMPER ROOM – Miss Betty
	11:15	BURNS AND ALLEN – Comedy
	11:45	NEWS – Jack Huston
	AFTERNOON
	12:00	LUNCH WITH CASEY – Children
	1:00	MOVIE – Drama “The Woman Accused” (1933)
	2:30	DR. HUDSON’S JOURNAL
	3:00	LIFE OF RILEY – Comedy
	3:30	AMOS ‘N’ ANDY – Comedy
	4:00	POPEYE AND PETE – Dave Lee
	4:45	ROCKY AND HIS FRIENDS
	5:00	SUPERMAN - Adventure
	5:30	DICK TRACY - Cartoons
	5:45	NEWS – Jack Huston
	EVENING
	6:00	TWO FACES WEST – Western
	6:30	ROCKY AND HIS FRIENDS
	7:00	HIGHWAY PATROL – Police
	7:30	MOVIE – Drama “The Locket” (1946)
	9:00	JOHNNY MIDNIGHT – Mystery
	9:30	NEWS – Jack Huston
	9:45	WEATHER – Stuart A. Lindman
	9:50	SPORTS – Buetel, Horner
	10:00	M SQUAD – Police
	10:30	MOVIE – Adventure “Sinbad the Sailor” (1947)
	12:30	NEWS AND WEATHER

↧

TV JIbe: Is this what they mean by fake news?

December 6, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Around the dial

≪ Previous: What's on TV? Friday, December 8, 1961

↧

Around the dial

December 8, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: This week in TV Guide: December 14, 1996

≪ Previous: TV JIbe: Is this what they mean by fake news?

It's been a couple of weeks since we visited the classic TV blogosphere, what with my book review from last week, but we're back to normal today, with some great things for you to gander at.

The Hitchcock Project continues at bare-bones e-zine, with Jack giving us a rundown on the Francis and Marian Cockrell teleplay "The Gentleman From America," based on the short story by Michael Arlan. I keep pointing out these features because I really like what Jack does; not only does he give us a synopsis of the episode, he goes into detail on the original story, showing how the teleplay changes it in order to convert it to something appropriate for television, as well as giving us more fun facts. It's very well done, and quite different from what we generally read elsewhere.

I don't usually do sneak previews of upcoming stories, but tomorrow's TV Guide review names the top 40 TV stars of all time, and one of them appears in the Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour episode "Lucy Wins a Racehorse," the subject of Aurora's review at Once Upon a Screen.

The Avengers episode "The Positive-Negative Man" is one of John's favorites over at Cult TV Blog, and one of mine as well. (With some great comments from our own Mike Doran.) The Avengers rotated out of our Friday night spot a couple of years ago when we watched the final Steed-Tara episode, but reading these recaps makes me want to go back and start over again. Maybe in 2018...

I reviewed Adam-Michael James'"final episode"Bewitched novel last week; this week David at Comfort TV has a similar review. (The fact that we both liked it should settle the question for anyone thinking about purchasing it, don't you think?) And I really like the link back to David's first blog piece, “Does how a television show ends have any impact on its legacy?" That's something worth considering by itself.

At Christmas TV History, Joanna relates her experience in the 2017 Christmas Story Run- who knew? I'm no runner, but it sounds like a fun time - where else are you going to see all those pink rabbits running a distance race? And for good measure, check out this spot on Joanna's Christmas podcast appearances.

The Broadcasting Archives at the University of Maryland has an interesting bit on "the Hitchcock of the [radio] airwaves," William Spier - the longtime producer-director of the legendary radio series Suspense.

Speaking of radio, here's something from a couple months back that I just noticed, courtesy Faded Signals - a picture of Miami radio station WIOD, with the motto "Wonderful Isle of Dreams." That describes classic radio to a T, and what television is capable - though too frequently falling short - of doing.

Can you take one more radio story? You'd better, because The Chairman, Frank Sinatra himself, is in it. Martin Grams shares with us the time in 1949 when Sinatra appeared in the Christmas story "The Enchanted Ghost" on Inner Sanctum.

A moment of whimsy indeed (and who amongst us couldn't use a bit of it nowadays?) - Jodie at Garroway at Large gives us a clip of Dave with Kukla, Fran and Ollie. If you don't smile after watching that, you have no heart.

Did you know that, in the off-season, the legendary baseball star Jackie Robinson sold television sets? I didn't either, until I read it in Andrew's piece at The Lucky Strike Papers. That's right - in the olden days, athletes used to work in the off-season, oftentimes as car or insurance salesmen, in order to make ends meet. Now, instead of selling TVs, they can buy a television station.

TV Obscurities returns with another obscure sitcom, this one from the 1964-65 season. It's The Baileys of Balboa, starring Paul Ford, whom you ought to remember as Bilko's nemesis. I've certainly heard of the show, but didn't know all that much about it until this terrific article.

Hopefully, you'll now stay out of trouble until the next time we meet - tomorrow! TV

↧

This week in TV Guide: December 14, 1996

December 9, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: What's on TV? Wednesday, December 18, 1996

≪ Previous: Around the dial

We're back with another of the special, themed issues that TV Guide occasionally dabbled in. Having looked in the past at greatest shows and greatest moments, we're now on to greatest stars. This isn't about the suspense of who's on the list; you can read it right here, without ever looking at the issue. But as I page through the list, my question is whether the list is meant as a historical record or a sign of the times. It is, after all, over 20 years old. If someone falls off the list, is it because they're less important, or less remembered? Are lists made by historians or fans?

Number One is Lucy, and I don't think that would surprise anyone - I actually wrote that sentence before looking at the list, it was that predictable. I mean this as no criticism of Miss Ball, but sometimes I think people who've never even seen her just vote her in as if the position were hers by some kind of divine decree; that's riduculous, of course, because what it proves is that her kind of humor is timeless. Does Roseanne Barr, who comes in at #28, share that trait? I don't think so; her comedy may have been cutting edge at one time, and she might have been a trailblazer in terms of how women are portrayed in sitcoms, but I'm not sure that translates to timelessness. I see her more as a product of her time, not someone a television historian would choose if limited to only 50 picks.

Johnny Carson is #2, and though Terry Teachout described him a while back as virtually unknown by the present generation, any television historian is going to include him on the list. Maybe you've got him at #2, maybe #8, but either way it's a pick you can defend. Less defensible, however, is the omission of Steve Allen, who invented late night television - if Carson refined it, someone still had to come up with it in the first place. Allen was a certifiable legend, not only with Tonight but What's My Line?, Meeting of Minds, and a score or more appearances through the decades. I understand you may not want to load up on talk show hosts, but I don't see how Steve Allen does not make the list, especialy when Phil Donahue is #42.

And then there's David Letterman at #45. TV Guide calls him the natural successor to Ernie Kovacs, and that may have been true back when Dave was doing Stupid Pet Tricks and the like, but by the time he got around to sexually harrassing his staff and espousing liberal politics, he'd lost a lot of his creativity. And yet - if this list were made today, would Letterman be ahead of Carson? He's not only more recent in people's minds, he's still revered by many viewers, and unlike Carson's time, it's now fashionable to get political on late night television. If the list is based on trendiness rather than historical significance, I think Letterman would get the edge. Speaking of Kovacs, he's nowhere to be seen on the list, and I think that's criminal. His greatest sin as an entertainer may have been that he was too far ahead of his time, but he was the first to realize and exploit the potential of television. I would have had him in the top ten. At least they remembered Sid Caesar, at #29.

See how easy it is to demonstrate he should be higher?

Raymond Burr is far too low on the list, at #41. Maybe realism is valued more in courtroom dramas than it was in the days of Perry Mason, but Burr created an iconic character, the symbol of TV lawyers for a generation, and that ought to count for something, don't you think? And while we're on the topic of crime, Jack Webb is another one missing from the list; while Webb might not be considered a great actor, Dragnet revolutionized the way police drama was portrayed on television; his "just the facts" persona and use of detailed realism really changed how the game was played. He was to cop shows what James Arness was to the Western, and Arness makes the list at #20. Fred Rogers is on the list at #35, but is there a Fred Rogers without Bob Keeshen? I don't think you can overlook Captain Kangaroo - but then, Mr. Rogers was on PBS. Why not include them both? And I like the choice of Don Knotts at #27, proving that second bananas have a place - but what about Art Carney? Jackie Gleason is #3, but would he be that high without Carney?

Bill Cosby is #9, and while I was never a great fan of Cosby, I'll certainly defend his place on the list, even though I suspect he wouldn't make the list today. Carroll O'Connor is #38, and rightfully so; starring on a show that redefined the sitcom, he was Archie Bunker. Michael J. Fox is #39, but I question his being on the list. It's not that he's not good, but in sports terms this should be the Hall of Fame, not the Hall of Very Good. Bob Newhart, on the other hand, is probably underrated at #17, having starred in two of the great sitcoms of the era.

Patty Duke is on the list at #40, and I'm not sure why - her signature series, The Patty Duke Show, only ran for three seasons, and while she appeared in 30 TV movies and miniseries, Jane Seymour has probably done the same, and she isn't on the list. My complaint about Patty, as it is with Telly Savalas (#33), is that her fame comes from movies as well as television; you might as well include Sally Field or Denzel Washington or George Clooney or Johnny Depp; they all featured on TV as well. Dinah Shore is #16 - if the list were being made today, would historians recognize her place in TV history? Same with George Burns and Gracie Allen at #13; a list made today probably wouldnot include them.

I do like the picks of Milton Berle (how could you leave out Mr. Television?), Michael Landon, Carol Burnett, and James Garner. I think Rocky and Bullwinkle was an inspired choice, but I'm not sure Bart Simpson falls in the same category; it wasn't long before he was eclipsed by Homer. I think Dick Van Dyke should be rated higher than Mary Tyler Moore, but they both belong there. I think Oprah's done more cultural damage than perhaps any other television personality, but for that very reason she has to be on the list.

Like any list, this one has its good points and bad. We're not quite done with it yet, though - stick around until the end.

◊ ◊ ◊

There are only 11 days until Christmas as the week begins, which means we should be able to find some seasonal tidbits to highlight.

What's striking about the mid-'90s, after having spent so much time looking at the '50s and '60s (and '70s), is how Christmas programming was dominated by variety shows. There was at least one on almost every night, and every one of them had a Christmas episode just before December 25. (And that doesn't include the one-off specials by stars like Bob Hope and Perry Como.)

By now, most of your Christmas TV consists of "holiday" episodes of sitcoms with vague, Hallmark-like storylines, such as Ellen (Wednesday, 9:30 p.m. PT, ABC), in which "Christmas goes to the dogs for Ellen, who adopts a stray and ends up not going on a Mexican vacation with Paige because of her new canine attachment." Now, there's nothing wrong with this, although I'd suggest that many of the episodes from years past tend to have at least some kind of more overtly Christmas message in them, such as the Yuletide variety show episode of The Dick Van Dyke show, which coincidentelly appears on Nick at Nite Sunday night as part of their 17-episode classic TV Christmas Party, which includes the Bewitched episode in which Samantha is determined to prove to a skeptical orphan that Santa Claus exists. Shows also love to do variations on It's a Wonderful Life or A Christmas Carol, and we have an example of the latter with Martin (Thursday, 8:00 p.m., Fox) as "Martin has a Dickens of a time scaring up some Yuletide sentiment in this takeoff on "A Christmas Carol" that finds him playing host to some unexpected ghosts.

There are, however, specials this week, and not surprisingly there's a good share of music to be found. For example, there's Opryland's Country Christmas (Saturday, 9:00 p.m., CBS), which features Patty Loveless, Clint Black and LeAnn Rimes. On Wednesday, it's the 15th annual Christmas in Washington (NBC, 10:00 p.m.), in which the cast of 3rd Rock from the Sun and others serenade President and Mrs. Clinton.* And a syndicated special at midnight on Saturday, This is Christmas (KCAL), stars Luther Vandross, with guests Mariah Carey Boyz II Men, U2, Melissa Ehtridge, and Gloria Estefan.

*Do they even do that show anymore? No - it turns out the 2014 edition was the last. They probably couldn't have found anyone to do it this year anyway.

There are also cartoons; ABC has an animated version of Lilly Tomlin's Edith Ann character on An Edith Ann Christmas (Saturday, 8:30 p.m.), while CBS offers a triple-header on Thursday night, beginning at 8:00 p.m. with A Charlie Brown Christmas, followed by A Garfield Christmas, and concluding with Mickey's Christmas Carol. (Not a bad lineup there.) And of course, it wouldn't be Christmas without movies, would it? On Tuesday, KTLA airs A Christmas Story (8:00 p.m.) long before it becomes a Christmas marathon staple; an hour later, Dolly Parton starsas an angel unlike any I've seen in Unlikely Angel (9:00 p.m., NBC). On Wednesday, The Angel of Pennsylvania Avenue (Wednesday, 8:00 p.m., Family) has Robert Urich as a falsely imprisoned mfsadan whose children appeal for help to President Hoover. There are also airings of White Christmas and A Christmas Carol on various stations through the week.

◊ ◊ ◊

This week's highlight in sports is on Tuesday night, as Shaquille O'Neal and the Los Angeles Lakers take on Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls on TNT. Good game, as the Bulls - en route to their historic 72-10 season - pull out an overtime win, 129-123. Shaq has 27 points and 13 rebounds, while Jordan scores 30, and his sidekick Scottie Pippen puts in 35. You'd want to point to a game like this for the historical record, for a number of reasons. Besides featuring two all-time greats (and a third, Kobe Bryant, coming off the bench for the Lakers), it gives us a chance to look at another way in which the context of sports has changed in society.

You may recall that Michael Jordan took a fair amount of heat from black political leaders for not being more outspoken on civil rights and other issues, to which Jordan made the famous reply that "Republicans buy shoes, too." Of course, social media didn't really exist back in 1996, unless you count talk radio, newspapers, and face-to-face communication; still, despite the flippant sound of the answer, Jordan made a point that many athletes seem to have forgotten today: athletes are salesmen, and fans are consumers. That doesn't mean an athlete, or anyone else, has to give up their individuality, or their rights of speech, just because they've become famous.

No, the larger point - and I'm not trying to take sides here or get political myself - is that the successful businessperson knows that it's never a good idea to antagonize the customer. The NFL is finding this out now. Granted, we can't know what Jordan may have done had social media been in existence in 1996, nor are today's athletes the first to become politically active - see John Carlos and Tommie Smith in the 1968 Summer Olympics. Nonetheless, in an age when Taylor Swift is criticized for not being political, one can see how different the entertainment landscape has become. The Michael Jordan of 1998 is a reminder of that.

◊ ◊ ◊

Let's take a look at what else the week has to offer.

On Saturday, it's a first-ever prime-time episode of General Hospital (9:00 p.m, ABC), as the shockiung story from Friday is continued. Boy, that's classic soap opera jargon, isn't it? Sunday's highlights include the Yuletide classic Christmas in Connecticut (WGN, 2:00 p.m.), and a Louis & Clark episode that features Howie Mandel as an alien intruder. Meanwhile, A&E's Holiday at Pops (9:00 p.m.) features Tony Bennett with John Wiliams and the Boston Pops Orchestra.

Monday night is something of a remembrance of series past: Melrose Place on Fox (8:00 p.m.), The Jeff Foxworthy Show on NBC (also 8:00 p.m.), Murphy Brown and Cybil (9:00 and 9:30 p.m., CBS). Oh, the Bills play the Dolphins on Monday Night Football (ABC, 6:00 p.m.)

Tuesday, Dan comes home to Roseanne to spend the holidays with the family (8:00 p.m., ABC), Fox tries (and fails) to recapture the magic with The Munsters Scary Little Christmas (8:00 p.m.) featuring none of the original cast, and in the night's winner, PBS plays a pair of Wallace and Gromit shorts, "A Grand Day Out" and "A Close Shave" (8:00 p.m.)

On Wednesday Nick at Nite takes home the prize, with Season's Greetings from the Honeymooners (9:00 p.m.), two hours of bits first shown on The Jackie Gleason Show. If you don't like that, there are holiday-themed episodes of NewsRadio (NBC) and Drew Carey (ABC). Thursday brings the first college bowl game of the year, the don't-miss Las Vegas Bowl between Ball State and Nevada (ESPN, 6:00 p.m.) Seriously, these are two pretty good teams, with combined records of 16-6. Many of this year's games should do so well. And Friday has highlights at the beginning and end of the day; Sandi Patti: O Holy Night brings us Christmas music (9:00 a.m., Family), while the prime-time spectacular is NBC's airing of The Sound of Music (8:00 p.m.), or as co-star Christopher Plummer allegedly called it, "The Sound of Mucus."

◊ ◊ ◊
Since this was kind of a short entry this week, that leaves us time for a little self-indulgence. You may be thinking, after reading my comments on the 50 Greatest Stars list, what my choices would have been. (Or maybe not; just play along here.) Do I think I could do any better?

Well, sure. After all, why do anything if you don't think it can be just as good as, if not better than, anyone else's? That doesn't mean it is better, but it does mean it's out there for others to pick on for a change. The list is updated to include stars who appeared after 1996, as well as to rectify oversights from the first one. And as a historian, I tend to take a long view of things; I'm hesitant to include stars who are too recent, whose stardom hasn't yet had a chance to ferment. Real stars have staying power, so it doesn't hurt to be a little cautious.

And so, for what it's worth, here's how I would have done it.

	1. Lucille Ball	26. Andy Griffith
	2. Johnny Carson	27. Art Carney
	3. Ernie Kovacs	28. Edward R. Murrow
	4. Steve Allen	29. Robert Young
	5. Raymond Burr	30. David Janssen
	6. Carol Burnett	31. Bob Keeshan
	7. Jack Webb	32. James Arness
	8. Regis Philbin	33. Betty White
	9. Oprah Winfrey	34. Don Knotts
	10. Michael Landon	35. Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca
	11. Dick Van Dyke	36. Fred Rogers
	12. James Garner	37. Phil Silvers
	13. Mary Tyler Moore	38. Jerry Seinfeld
	14. Jon Stewart	39. Rocky & Bullwinkle
	15. William Shatner	40. Bob Hope
	16. Jackie Gleasonllen DeGeneres	41. Carroll O’Connor
	17. Ellen DeGeneres	42. Jim McKay
	18. Bob Newhart	43. Lawrence Welk
	19. Bill Cosby	44. Julia Child
	20. Milton Berle	45. Howard Cosell
	21. Walter Cronkite	46. Barbara Walters
	22. Ted Danson	47. Ed Sullivan
	23. Peter Falk	48. Chris Berman
	24. Tom Sellick	49. Jane Seymour
	25. Julia Louis-Dreyfus	50. Chet Huntley and David Brinkley

There - the floor is now yours. TV

↧

What's on TV? Wednesday, December 18, 1996

December 11, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Yuletide Greetings, Part 1

≪ Previous: This week in TV Guide: December 14, 1996

I neglected to mention on Saturday that this issue comes to us courtesy of Steve Harris, who graciously gifted me the three TV Guides that make up the "Greatest" series (greatest shows, greatest stars, greatest moments).

If you're wondering why Bill Cosby was on that list on Saturday, you have no further to look than today's listings. Count the number of sitcoms on today - both original prime-time runs, and reruns during the daytime, and then remember that when The Cosby Show hit the airwaves in 1984, experts were proclaiming them dead. Everything's cyclical, of course, but it was Cosby's success that triggered the resurgence we see here.

The listings today are from the Los Angeles edition, and I could have included a lot more if I'd wanted to. I didn't want to - I think this is enough.

	2 KCBS (CBS)
	MORNING
	5 AM	CBS News – Kristin Jeannette-Meyers/Cynthia Bowers
	5:30	News
	6 AM	News
	7 AM	This Morning – CBS/Local News
	8 AM	This Morning – Diaz-Balart/McEwen/Robelot Guest: Debbie Reynolds
	9 AM	Guiding Light – Serial
	10 AM	Price is Right – Game
	11 AM	Young and the Restless
	11:30	Court TV: Inside America’s Courts
	AFTERNOON
	Noon	News
	12:30	Bold and the Beautiful
	1 PM	As the World Turns
	2 PM	Gordon Elliott – Discussion
	3 PM	Geraldo Rivera – Discussion
	4 PM	Day & Date – Newsmagazine
	5 PM	News
	5:30	CBS News – Dan Rather
	EVENING
	6 PM	News
	6:30	NBC News – Tom Brokaw
	7 PM	Hard Copy – Newsmagazine
	7:30	Entertainment Tonight
	8 PM	The Nanny – Comedy
	8:30	Pearl – Comedy
	9 PM	M My Cousin Vinny– Comedy (1992)
	11 PM	News
	11:35	David Letterman Guest: Harry Connick Jr.
	EARLY THURSDAY
	12:35	Tom Snyder Guest: Maureen O’Hara
	1:35	Stories of the Highway Patrol
	2:05	Gordon Elliott – Discussion
	3:05	Up to the Minute – News

	4 KNBC 4 (NBC)
	MORNING
	5 AM	NBC News
	5:30	News
	6 AM	News
	7 AM	Today – Couric/Gumbel Guest: Michael Bolton
	9 AM	Leeza – Discussion
	10 AM	Leeza – Discussion
	11 AM	News
	AFTERNOON
	Noon	Days of Our Lives – Serial
	1 PM	Another World – Serial
	2 PM	Maureen O’Boyle
	3 PM	Rosie O’Donnell – Variety Guests: Albert Brooks, Kenneth Branagh, Natalie Merchant
	4 PM	News
	5 PM	News
	EVENING
	6 PM	News
	7 PM	Extra!
	7:30	Access Hollwyood – Magazine
	8 PM	Wings – Comedy
	8:30	Caroline in the City – Comedy
	9 PM	NewsRadio – Comedy
	9:30	Men Behaving Badly
	10 PM	Christmas in Washington
	11 PM	News
	11:35	Jay Leno Guests: Rob Reiner, Courteney Cox, LeAnn Rimes
	EARLY THURSDAY
	12:35	Conan O’Brien Guest: Kenneth Branagh
	1:35	Later – Interview
	2 AM	News
	2:35	Nightside
	4:30	This Morning’s Business

	5 KTLA (WB)
	MORNING
	5 AM	News
	5:30	News
	6 AM	News
	7 AM	Morning News Guests: The All-American Boys Choir
	9 AM	Sally Jessy Raphael
	10 AM	Scoop with Sam and Dorothy
	11 AM	News
	11:30	Sally Jessy Raphael
	AFTERNOON
	Noon
	12:30	Pat Bullard – Variety
	1:30	Blossom – Comedy
	2 PM	Dinosaurs – Comedy
	2:30	Full House – Comedy
	3 PM	Bugs ‘n’ Daffy – Cartoon
	3:30	Animaniacs – Cartoon
	4 PM	Beverly Hills, 90210
	5 PM	Saved by the Bell: The College Years – Comedy
	5:30	Family Matters – Comedy
	EVENING
	6 PM	Fresh Prince – Comedy
	6:30	Fresh Prince – Comedy
	7 PM	Bzzz
	7:30	Seinfeld – Comedy
	8 PM	Sister, Sister – Comedy
	8:30	Nick Freno: Licensed Teacher
	9 PM	Wayans Bros. – Comedy
	9:30	Jamie Foxx – Comedy
	10 PM	News
	11 PM	Cheers – Comedy
	11:30	Murphy Brown - Comedy
	EARLY THURSDAY
	Mid.	News
	1 AM	Hunter – Crime Drama
	2 AM	Infomercials
	3 AM	M Heart Condition– Comedy-Drama (1990)

	7 KABC (ABC)
	MORNING
	5 AM	ABC News – Thalia Assuras
	5:30	News
	6 AM	News
	6:30	News
	7 AM	Good Morning America – Gibson/Lunden Guest: Andie MacDowell
	9 AM	Regis & Kathie Lee Guest: Andie MacDowell
	10 AM	Caryl & Marilyn
	11 AM	The City – Serial
	11:30	News
	AFTERNOON
	Noon	All My Children – Serial
	1 PM	One Life to Live – Serial
	2 PM	General Hospital – Serial
	3 PM	Oprah Winfrey Guest: Natalie Cole
	4 PM	News
	5 PM	News
	EVENING
	6 PM	News
	6:30	ABC News – Peter Jennings
	7 PM	Jeopardy! – Game
	7:30	Wheel of Fortune – Game
	8 PM	Grace Under Fire – Comedy
	8:30	Townies – Comedy
	9 PM	Drew Carey – Comedy
	9:30	Ellen – Comedy
	10 PM	PrimeTime Live
	11 PM	News
	11:35	Nightline – Ted Koppel
	EARLY THURSDAY
	12:05	M Ernie Kovacs: Between the Laughter– Drama (Made for TV; 1984)
	2 AM	News
	2:40	World News Now – Thalia Assuros/Mark Mullen

	9 KCAL (Ind.)
	MORNING
	5 AM	Faith 20
	5:30	Ultraforce – Cartoon
	6 AM	Dennis the Menace – Cartoon
	6:30	Bananas in Pajamas
	7 AM	The Mask – Cartoon
	7:30	Masked Rider – Fantasy
	8 AM	Vor-Tech – Cartoon
	8:30	B.R.U.N.O. the Kid – Cartoon
	9 AM	Toon Town Kids – Cartoon
	10 AM	M Tell Me My Name– Drama (Made for TV; 1977)
	AFTERNOON
	Noon	News
	1 PM	Maury Povich
	2 PM	News
	3 PM	Bewitched – Comedy
	3:30	Darkwing Duck – Cartoon
	4 PM	Gargoyles – Cartoon
	4:30	Aladdin – Cartoon
	5 PM	Quack Pack – Cartoon
	5:30	Funniest Home Videos
	EVENING
	6 PM	Funniest Home Videos
	6:30	NBA Basketball Los Angeles Lakers at Milwaukee
	9 PM	News
	10 PM	News
	11 PM	Jerry Springer – Discussion
	EARLY THURSDAY
	Mid.	Maury Povich
	1 AM	Rolonda – Discussion
	2 AM	Infomercials
	3 AM	Bounty Hunters
	4 AM	The Hitchhiker – Thriller
	4:30	America’s Black Forum

	11 KTTV (Fox)
	MORNING
	5 AM	I Love Lucy – Comedy BW
	6 AM	News
	7 AM	Good Day L.A.
	9 AM	After Breakfast
	10 AM	Dating Game
	10:30	Newlywed Game
	11 AM	I Love Lucy – Comedy BW
	11:30	I Love Lucy – Comedy BW
	AFTERNOON
	Noon	Andy Griffith – Comedy BW
	12:30	Andy Griffith – Comedy BW
	1 PM	Beverly Hillbillies – Comedy
	1:30	Beverly Hillbillies – Comedy
	2 PM	Bobby’s World – Cartoon
	2:30	Peter Pan & the Pirates
	3 PM	Batman & Robin – Cartoon
	3:30	Spider-Man – Cartoon
	4 PM	Big Bad BeetleBorgs – Fantasy
	4:30	Power Rangers ZEO – Fantasy
	5 PM	Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper
	5:30	Married…With Children
	EVENING
	6 PM	Home Improvement – Comedy
	6:30	Simpsons – Cartoon
	7 PM	Home Improvement – Comedy
	7:30	Simpsons – Cartoon
	8 PM	Beverly Hills, 90210
	9 PM	Party of Five – Drama
	10 PM	News
	11 PM	Married…With Children
	11:30	*MASH**
	EARLY THURSDAY
	Mid.	Cops
	12:30	Cops
	1 AM	Infomercials
	2 AM	Beverly Hillbillies
	2:30	Andy Griffith – Comedy
	3 AM	Gilligan’s Island – Comedy
	3:30	Flintstones - Cartoon
	4 AM	Perry Mason – Drama BW

	13 KCOP (UPN)
	MORNING
	6 AM	700 Club – Religion
	7 AM	Mega Man – Cartoon
	7:30	Samurai Pizza Cats – Cartoon
	8 AM	Pink Panther – Cartoon
	8:30	Step by Step – Comedy
	9 AM	Jenny Jones – Discussion
	10 AM	Dr. Quinn – Drama
	11 AM	News Scope – Newsmagazine
	AFTERNOON
	Noon	Baywatch – Drama
	1 PM	Richard Bey – Discussion
	2 PM	Jenny Jones – Discussion
	3 PM	Judge Judy
	3:30	News
	4 PM	Montel Williams
	5 PM	Ricki Lake – Discussion
	EVENING
	6 PM	Martin – Comedy
	6:30	Martin – Comedy
	7 PM	Deep Space Nine
	8 PM	The Sentinel
	9 PM	Star Trek: Voyager
	10 PM	News
	11 PM	Mad About You – Comedy
	11:30	Strange Universe – Magazine
	EARLY THURSDAY
	Mid.	LAPD: Life on the Beat
	12:30	Infomercials
	2:30	M The Wild Bunch– Western (1969)

	18 KSCI (Ind.)
	MORNING
	6 AM	News from France
	6:30	News – In Japanese
	7:30	Iran Sima – In Farsi
	8:30	Omid, Today’s Physician – In Farsi
	9 AM	Thailand Today – In Thai
	10 AM	Infomercials
	11:30	News – In Mandarin
	AFTERNOON
	Noon	Mandarin Drama – In Mandarin
	1:30	Tea Time – In Mandarin
	2 PM	Panda TV Drama – In Mandarin
	3 PM	Infomercials
	4 PM	Harvest Time – In Japanese
	4:30	News – In Pilipino/English
	5 PM	News – In Vietnamese
	5:30	News – In Cantonese
	EVENING
	6 PM	Panda TV Magazine – In Mandarin
	7 PM	News – In Mandaran
	8 PM	News – In Korean
	9 PM	News – In Korean
	9:30	Idadoshi’s Korea Experience – In Korean
	10:10	KTE Column – In Korean
	10:15	First Love – In Korean
	11:15	TV Jangter – In Korean
	11:30	Infomercial
	EARLY THURSDAY
	Mid.	Walking in the Anointing – Religion
	12:30	Infomercials
	2 AM	Shepherd’s Bible Study

	22 KWHY (Ind.)
	MORNING
	5 AM	Infomercials
	6 AM	Market Wrap-Up
	6:15	Chart Watch – Finance
	6:30	Opening Bell Report
	7 AM	Market Watch News
	7:30	Market Watch News
	8 AM	Market Watch News
	8:30	Market Watch News
	9 AM	Market Watch News
	9:30	Market Watch News
	9:50	Technologically Speaking
	10 AM	Market Watch News
	10:30	Market Watch News
	11 AM	Market Watch News
	11:20	California Stocks
	11:30	Market Watch News
	AFTERNOON
	Noon	Market Watch News
	12:30	Market Watch News
	1 PM	Closing Bell Report
	1:30	Market Wrap-Up
	1:45	Chart Watch – Finance
	2 PM	You’re on the Line
	2:30	Programa commercial
	3 PM	A las tres – Revista
	3:30	De frente al sol
	4 PM	La sombra del desco – Novela
	4:30	Triangulo – Novela
	5 PM	M Locus por ellas – Comedia BW
	EVENING
	6:30	Acontecio aqul…LA
	7 PM	M El pocho – Comedia
	9 PM	M Ilegales y mojandos
	10:30	Acontecio aquil…LA
	11 PM	Programas comerciales
	EARLY THURSDAY
	1 AM	Programas comerciales
	3 AM	Programas comerciales

	28 KCET (PBS)
	MORNING
	5 AM	Bloomberg Business News
	5:30	Trailside – Outdoors
	6 AM	Sesame Street
	7 AM	Mister Rogers – Children
	7:30	Storytime – Children
	8 AM	Lamb Chop’s Play-along!
	8:30	Arthur – Cartoon
	9 AM	Barney & Friends – Children
	9:30	Puzzle Place – Children
	10 AM	Sesame Street
	11 AM	Storytime – Children
	11:30	Shining Time Station
	AFTERNOON
	Noon	Puzzle Place
	12:30	Reading Rainbow – Children
	1 PM	Magic School Bus
	1:30	Arthur – Cartoon
	2 PM	Starting Over: Japanese-Americans After World War II
	3 PM	Newshour with Jim Lehrer
	4 PM	Wishbone – Children
	4:30	Carmen Sandiego – Children
	5 PM	Bill Nye the Science Guy
	5:30	Cooking at the Academy
	EVENING
	6 PM	Nightly Business Report
	6:30	Newshour with Jim Lehrer
	7:30	Life & Times
	8 PM	New Explorers
	9 PM	Store – Documentary
	11 PM	Charlie Rose – Discussion
	EARLY THURSDAY
	Mid.	Life & Times
	12:30	Around the World in 80 Days

	40 KTBN (TBN)
	MORNING
	5 AM	Pamela Carter
	5:30	Networking – Religion
	6 AM	Richard & Lindsay Roberts - Religion
	6:30	John Hagee Today – Religion
	7 AM	Breakthrough – Religion
	7:30	Marilyn Hickey – Religion
	8 AM	Kenneth Copeland – Religion
	8:30	Lifestyle Magazine – Health
	9 AM	Doctor and the Word – Religion
	9:30	Music That Ministers
	10 AM	Behind the Scenes
	10:15	John Avanzini – Religion
	10:25	The Word – Religion
	10:30	Casey Treat – Religion
	11 AM	Life Today – Religion
	11:30	This is Your Day – Religion
	AFTERNOON
	Noon	To Be Announced
	1 PM	John Hagee Today – Religion
	1:30	Marilyn Hickey – Religion
	2 PM	Praise the Lord
	5 PM	Behind the Scenes
	5:30	Creflo A. Dollar – Religion
	EVENING
	6 PM	Bill Gather – Gospel Music
	6:30	Jack Van Impe – Religion
	7 PM	Praise the Lord
	9 PM	Jerry Savelle – Religion
	9:30	Jesse Duplantis – Religion
	10:30	This Is Your Day
	11 PM	Dave Roever - Religion
	11:30	Myles Munroe - Religion
	EARLY THURSDAY
	3 AM	Behind the Scenes
	3:15	John Avanzini – Religion
	4 AM	The Answer – Religion
	4:30	Walt Mills – Religion

	56 KDOC (Anaheim) (Ind.)
	MORNING
	5:30	Joyce Meyer - Religion
	6 AM	This is Your Day - Religion
	6:30	Kenneth Copeland - Religion
	7 AM	News – In Japanese
	8 AM	Infomercials
	9 AM	Joyce Meyer - Religion
	9:30	Infomercial
	10 AM	Headline News
	10:30	Southland Today - Discussion
	11 AM	Rifleman – Western BW
	11:30	Rifleman – Western BW
	AFTERNOON
	Noon	Perry Mason – Drama BW
	1 PM	Barnaby Jones – Crime Drama
	2 PM	Gunsmoke – Western
	3 PM	Froozles – Children
	3:30	WKRP in CIncinnati
	4 PM	Wild Wild West BW
	5 PM	Bonanza – Western
	EVENING
	6 PM	Rockford Files – Crime Drama
	7 PM	WKRP in Cincinnati
	7:30	Hogan’s Heroes – Comedy
	8 PM	Hollywood Park – Horse Racing
	8:30	Infomercial
	9 PM	Bonanza – Western
	10 PM	Gunsmoke - Western
	11 PM	Old Time Gospel Hour
	EARLY THURSDAY
	Mid.	Infomercials
	1 AM	Hot Seat with Wally George

↧

Yuletide Greetings, Part 1

December 13, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Around the dial

≪ Previous: What's on TV? Wednesday, December 18, 1996

For the next couple of Wednesdays, I thought I'd focus on some Christmas-type programming that doesn't often get seen anywhere. I think it's important for television to recognize that this time of the year is an important cultural milestone, and not just in a commercial sense.

This first one is one that ought to please our own Mike Doran, because it's about as long-form as you can get: an entire Christmas week's worth of episodes from NBC's daytime drama The Doctors. This was broadcast December 25-29, 1969.

This second clip is from CBS's Search for Tomorrow. It aired on December 26, 1966. The quality may be a bit rocky, but you'll still get the point.

I'll be back next week with a couple more rare shows! TV

↧

Around the dial

December 15, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: This week in TV Guide: December 18, 1965

≪ Previous: Yuletide Greetings, Part 1

First, this seasonal note: at the other blog, In Other Words, we're doing the "25 Days of Ad-Vent" again this year - a look at some fun (and occasionally strange) Christmas ads from the past. If you're in the mood for some seasonal cheer, take a moment and take a look. And now to the TV stuff.

We'll begin with a question from reader Brian Stevens who asks if we recall the kids' game "Booby Trap"?

Basically a spring loaded rectangle wooden box with round pieces of varying size. You pulled out a piece -- piece by piece -- until the spring triggered and the rest of the pieces came flying out of the box. Simple game. Cheap to make. Parker Brothers, I believe.

Well...here's how it pertains to you. The game came with its very own kids TV game show of the same name. Life-sized version of the game board, host and kids who played the game for prizes. Thinking about it, it had to be locally hosted. I know it aired in Indianapolis sometime in the mid 1960s I'd guess. But I can't imagine Indpls being its only market.

Went looking for it online and can't seem to find a thing about it. Came across your website and thought perhaps you'll know a little more about it. One of those things you forget until something brings it to mind 50 years later.

Hoping you can help.

Can anyone out there shed any light on this?

Meanwhile, it's a hail and farewell at Vote 4 Bob Crane. The bad news: they're calling it a day at the blog. The good news: the website continues on as a repository for information on Bob's life and legacy, and the continued campaign to elect him to the Radio Hall of Fame. As a personal friend of Carol Ford, I can testify as to how much and how hard everyone worked on that blog, not to mention telling the truth on Bob Crane's story, and I think we owe everyone there a great thanks for all the time and effort that went into it.

At The Twilight Zone Vortex, a look at a disturbing (and not wholly satisfying) episode from the show's third season, "Young Man's Fancy," written by Richard Matheson. I know someone in a situation similar to that of the young female protagonist in the story - it has all the makings of a great creep-fest, but unfortunately this version falls somewhat short.

The Broadcasting Archives at the University of Maryland links to this storythat shows, if we needed further proof, that Mel Blanc was a genius.

Cult TV is spending a little time surveying this side of the pond, as indicated by this review of the Get Smart episode "Casablanca," which not only points out the series' strengths, but delights in its penchant for parody.

At Comfort TV, David has another of those posts that make TV fans think, as he discusses ten forgotten TV shows he'd like to watch. In this he's basically talking about my entire life; looking over and over at the TV Guides from my early years of life created something of an aura about the era; every one of those shows became one that I wanted to watch, at least until I found out more about them. That hobby, though, did lead to the creation of this website!

A wonderful tale at Garroway at Large, as Jodie tells the story of the life and times of a particular television camera. Think of all the history it must have seen through that lens. Bonus points if you can link this story to a particular Christmas cartoon.

Television's New Frontier: the 1960s returns with a look at one of the more enduring sitcoms of the late '50s and early '60s: The Real McCoys, starring three-time Oscar winner Walter Brennan. Did you know, by the way, that Walter Brennan is the only three-time Oscar winner to star in a television series? And he did it multiple times!

Something you should do multiple times - return here for more TV fun. Why not do it tomorrow? TV

↧

This week in TV Guide: December 18, 1965

December 16, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: What's on TV? Tuesday, December 21, 1965

≪ Previous: Around the dial

Jim Nabors is on the cover this week, and it gives me the opportunity to say a word or two about the star, who died last month. The news of his death prompted an outpouring of affection, which shouldn't really surprise anyone since Jim Nabors was one of those stars whose stardom far exceeded the sell-by date of most celebrities. His two biggest hits, Gomer Pyle and The Jim Nabors Hour, were both from the 1960s, but he never really disappeared from the public eye: he made frequent guest appearances on TV (he was Carol Burnett's good-luck charm on every season opener). did a handful of movies, toured the country with his nightclub act, released records, and sang "Back Home Again in Indiana" every year at the Indianapolis 500. Gomer Pyle is always on television somewhere, entertaining a new generation with the stories of the dimwitted but kind-hearted and lovable Marine, and making more fans for Jim Nabors. He was, by all accounts, a good and decent man, as I think is indicated by the lack of any scandal after he married his longtime partner Stan Cadwallader. As I've said before, being good to your fans is one way to ensure you always remain in the spotlight (even if the brightness is slightly less at the edges), and you bank an entire reservoir of good will at the same time.

Anyway, this week's cover story revolves around Jim's trip to Waseca, Minnesota, this year's site of the National Plow Matches (an event that appears to continue to this day). Up to 100,000 people have been known to crowd into Plowville, U.S.A., as the host site is renamed for the week, to witness what is called the "World Series of Plowing," and during election years it's a prime attraction for politicians looking to court the important rural-farm vote. This year's an off-election year, so to pump up attendence organizers latched onto the idea of "a show-biz draw," which turned out to be Nabors.

However the event might have turned out is not how it did turn out. First Jim makes a quick tour of Minneapolis, where he appears on the radio (and is misidentified as a tenor rather than a baritone), meets with Governor Karl Rolvaag, who is supposed to give him the key to the state (except nobody can find it), and eventually heads for Waseca, which is about an hour and a quarter from Minneapolis. Torrential rains have turned Plowville into a muddy quagmire, and now the fog is moving in. The expected huge crowds do not materialize, the governor never makes it down, and immediately a debate ensues as to what exactly Nabors is supposed to do. Says his manager, "Jim is not going to entertain. That's for his night-club act. He's just to appear." Replies Nabors, "Those people are waiting in the rain; I've got to do something for them." He winds up telling jokes, singing a few songs, dancing with Miss Minnesota, and signing countless autographs. He then appears at a reception at the Waseca Country Club, being staged by his sponsor, Birds Eye, which has a huge plant in Waseca. He glad-hands the crowd with a polish formed by years of experience, and by that night he's back in Minneapolis; the next day he's on a plane for California, and Monday he's back in front of the cameras as lovable Gomer. Such is the life of a television star.

◊ ◊ ◊

Christmas is one week away, so show 'em if you've got 'em.

There are two versions of Tschaikowski's Nutcracker for you to choose from: Sunday at 8:00 p.m. CT with the San Francisco Ballet on Channel 11, and Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. with stars from the New York City Ballet, and narrated by Eddie Albert, on CBS. Both are in color, both are good, both are abridged for time. There are also two versions of Handel's "Messiah": KTCA, the educational station in the Twin Cities, broadcasts a version by the Minnetonka Philharmonic Society on Thursday (repeated Friday), while KMSP's version is at 12:15 a.m. Christmas morning by the First Baptist Church of Dallas.

Variety shows are all-in for the occasion: the King Family show kicks off Saturday on ABC, followed by Lawrence Welk and his annual Christmas show - it includes "Holly Jolly Christmas," which had only been introduced the previous year on Rudolph. Martha Scott hosts the annual Christmas show on a live broadcast of The Bell Telephone Hour (Sunday, 5:30 p.m., NBC), Jerry Lewis and a host of children take over Hullabaloo on Monday (NBC, 6:30 p.m.), and Perry Como (NBC, Monday), Red Skelton (CBS, Tuesday), Danny Kaye (CBS, Wednesday) and Mitch Miller (NBC, Friday) round out the week.

Dramas and sitcoms don't want to be left out, either - on Branded (NBC, Sunday), an orphans home is threatened - but not of Chuck Connors has anything to say about it. The Dick Van Dyke Show presents a rerun of its Alan Brady Christmas Show episode (CBS, Wednesday), Stingray has time for an orphan (Thursday), and Daniel Boone presents a story of an Indian brave and his pregnant wife looking for a place to stay (Thursday). And of course the week wouldn't be complete without Holiday Inn, with Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire. It's on Monday night at 10:00 p.m. on WTCN.

What would Christmas be without choirs? KTCA, the educational station in the Twin Cities, has choral concerts on Holiday Festival Monday through Friday, presenting music from local churches and schools, and the local stations have plenty of local choral groups throughout the week, including the University of Minnesota Glee Club, the Minneapolis Apollo Club, the boychoir from the Church of the Holy Childhood, and choirs from Bloomington Kennedy and Southwest high schools.

On Christmas Eve, Carmen Dragon (father of Daryl, the Captain half of Captain & Tennille), conducts the Glendale Symphony in a half-hour of Christmas music on WTCN, while KSTP has a concert by the Naval Academy Choir. Later, at 10:30 p.m. Skitch Henderson hosts The Heart of Christmas, the traditional half-hour that fills the first third of The Tonight Show timeslot before the Midnight Mass, broadcast life from St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City. Channel 4 has a concert by the Bloomington Kennedy High School choir before CBS's midnight (ET) Baptist church service. After that, it's a program that has "The Sixties" written all over it: "Tell It on the Mountain," with Judy Collins, Ossie Davis and Chad Mitchell doing folk music, poems and prose readings to celebrate Christmas.

That should keep you in the spirit.

◊ ◊ ◊
No Sullivan vs. The Palace this week due to a preemption - ABC presents a look at Montana's Big Sky Country, hosted by Robert Preston. My wife asked why it wasn't Chet Huntley hosting, since he actually owned a ranch in Montana. "Huntley's on NBC," I said. "This program's on ABC.""Oh," she replied. Politics.

No review by Cleveland Amory this week either, but that's because Cleve's writing about his disasterous experience with the series O.K. Crackerby!, which will run for a scant 17 episodes before leaving the air in January (an editor's note at the end of his article says the final episode is scheduled for January 6).

Two years ago, Amory came up with the concept for a series called My Man St. John, the story of "a lovable old millionaire from Oklahoma named O.K. Crackerby, a man with a fortune in, in more ways than one, natural gas. He is a widower, one with three children, an older girl and two younger boys, a man who has come East to ply the Eastern resort circuit, since he promised his 'missus,' before she passed on, that someday he would stop just making money and do right by the kids. To do this, he has acquired the services of something he has learned the Eastern resort families have - a 'tutor companion.'" St. John (pronounced Sinjin) Quincy, the tutor, would be the star of the show, which would satirize mores and manners of East Coast society. ABC loved it, and the show went into development - although Amory was given pause when ABC executive Leonard Goldberg asked him "what the heck is a two-door companion?" which, in hindsight should have given him an idea of what was to follow.

The article is lengthy even for TV Guide, so we'll just give you the basics: the idea of St. John being the focus of the show evaporated about the time Burl Ives was cast as Crackerby; suddenly, the show was being called O.K. Crackerby!, and Ives, as the focal point, would attempt to simply buy his way into high society. Abe Burrows was employed as what we would today call the showrunner, and the next thing Cleve knew, the series was being billed as "Created by Abe Burrows and Cleveland Amory." Burrows was also listed as writer, story consultant, co-director, and co-writer of the show's theme.

Burrows also changed the tone of the show - rather than being a live-in tutor, St. John was now Crackerby's "agent," to help him " bust" into society. The show went through at least two producers; Amory thought there might have been a third somewhere there, but he wasn't sure. By the time the show was on the air, any resemblance between the original idea and the series was virtually invisible. Amory complained to the production company, United Artists; he complained to the network, all to no avail. When a screening of the show for network and studio honchos and sponsors goes poorly - Amory said the script was literally about nothing - the show is described as "awful, a crime against not only the industry but humanity." And eyes turn to Amory - what do you have to say about it? And he pitches them an idea for a new show - it's about "a lovable old millionaire from Oklahoma named O.K. Crackerby, a man with a fortune in, in more ways than one, natural gas. He is a widower, one with three children, an older girl and two younger boys, a man who has come East to ply the Eastern resort circuit, since he promised his 'missus,' before she passed on, that someday he would stop just making money and do right by the kids. To do this, he has acquired the services of something he has learned the Eastern resort families have - a 'tutor companion.'"

"And you know what?" Amory concludes. "They loved it."

◊ ◊ ◊
This week's starlet is Laraine Stephens, who for a few more weeks will be part of the cast of the aforementioned O.K. Crackerby!, and she's here to model some fashions for the holidays.

Don't worry - the red mohair tweed with the pink chifon overblouse only runs you $150.

◊ ◊ ◊
Finally, the end of the Gemini VII mission. Astronauts Frank Borman and Jim Lovell splash down early Saturday morning after a successful two-week flight, and television cameras are located on the aircraft carrier Wasp to provide live coverage via Early Bird satellite.

The mission started on Saturday, December 4, and as For the Record reports, it was quite the adventure for NBC. The network had to go to split coverage to cover the launch alongsite coverage of the Penn State-Maryland football game, and on occasion play-by-play man Lindsey Nelson and spacecaster Merrill Mueller were "fighting for attention." David Brinkley, of course, is the man to put this all in perspective. Said Brinkley, "This will be the first time a rocket takes off on the 50-yard line or that football is played on pad 19." TV

↧

What's on TV? Tuesday, December 21, 1965

December 18, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Yuletide Greeting, Part 2

≪ Previous: This week in TV Guide: December 18, 1965

A fair amount of Christmas programming today. KTCA has Christmas music and CBS has The Nutcracker and Red Skelton's annual Christmas show (with guest star Greer Garson). There's also a big movie premiere and other goodies, so let's get to it.

	2 KTCA (EDUC.)
	Morning
	10:10	CLASSROOM – Education Ch. 2 leaves the air from 10:25 A.M. to 12:30 P.M.
	Afternoon
	12:30	CLASSROOM – Education Ch. 2 leaves the air until 5 P.M.
	5:00	KINDERGARTEN – Education
	5:30	FRENCH – Anne Slack
	Evening
	6:30	OSSEO HIGH SCHOOL CHOIR
	7:00	HOLIDAY FESTIVAL – Music SPECIAL
	8:30	PRIVATE COLLEGE LECTURES
	9:00	SKIING – Cy Smythe
	10:00	ST. OLAF CHOIR
	10:30	ST. JOHN’S MONKS CHOIR

Lovely music from KTCA - in addition to the Osseo High School choir, the Holiday Festival features the choirs from Alexander Ramsey and Mound High Schools, and of course the St. Olaf College Choir is world-famous. The night ends with the monks from the monastery of St. John's in Collegevile, Minnesota.

	4 WCCO (CBS)
	Morning
	6:00	SUNRISE SEMESTER – Education
	6:30	SIEGFRIED – Children
	7:00	ALEX AND DEPUTY DAWG
	7:30	CLANCY AND COMPANY
	8:00	CAPTAIN KANGAROO – Children
	9:00	DR. REUBEN K. YOUNGDAHL
	9:05	NEWS – Dean Montgomery
	9:10	MIKE DOUGLAS – Variety Guests: Phil Ford and Mimi Hines, Florian Zabach, Ed Ferrar, Len Barry
	10:00	ANDY GRIFFITY – Comedy
	10:30	DICK VAN DYKE – Comedy
	11:00	LOVE OF LIFE – Serial
	11:25	NEWS
	11:30	SEARCH FOR TOMORROW
	11:45	GUIDING LIGHT – Serial
	Afternoon
	12:00	NEWS – Dean Montgomery
	12:15	SOMETHING SPECIAL
		WEATHER – Bud Kraehling
	12:30	AS THE WORLD TURNS – Serial
	1:00	PASSWORD – Game Celebrities: Audrey Meadows, Douglas Fairbanks
	1:30	HOUSE PARTY – Art Linkletter
	2:00	TO TELL THE TRUTH – Panel
	2:25	NEWS – Douglas Edwards
	2:30	EDGE OF NIGHT – Serial
	3:00	SECRET STORM – Serial
	3:30	I LOVE LUCY – Comedy
	4:00	MOVIE – Comedy “Ricochet Romance” (1954)
	5:30	NEWS – Walter Cronkite
	Evening
	6:00	NEWS – Dave Moore
	6:15	SPORTS – Don Dahl
	6:20	DIRECTION – Dr. R. Gornitzka
	6:25	WEATHER – Don O’Brien
	6:30	CHRISTMAS BALLET SPECIAL COLOR “The Nutcracker”
	7:30	RED SKELTON – Comedy COLOR Guest: Greer Garson
	8:30	PETTICOAT JUNCTION – Comedy COLOR
	9:00	WORLD TOWN MEETING SPECIAL
	10:00	NEWS – Dave Moore
	10:15	WEATHER – Bud Kraehling
	10:20	SPORTS – Hal Scott
	10:30	MOVIE – Western COLOR “Take Me to Town” (1953)
	12:00	MOVIE – Drama “Mr. Wise Guy” (1942)

The World Town Meeting, or Town Meeting of the World if you prefer, was a debate over United States policy in Vietnam, broadcast via satellite, between teams from Harvard and Oxford. Speaking for the policy is the Harvard team, a strange combination of political bedfellows including Henry Kissinger, future Nixon Secretary of State, student and future law professor Lawrence Tribe (who was frequently mentioned as a possible Democratic appointee to the Supreme Court), and Robert Shrum, who goes on to be a Democratic consultant and speechwriter. Head of the Oxford team is Socialist MP Michael Foot, whom Chris Berman surely would have referred to as "Michael 'My Left' Foot."

	5 KSTP (NBC)
	Morning
	6:00	BUSINESS SYSTEM
	6:30	CITY AND COUNTRY COLOR
	7:00	TODAY COLOR Guest: Zero Mostel
	9:00	FRACTURED PHRASES COLOR
	9:25	NEWS – Edwin Newman
	9:30	CONCENTRATION – Game
	10:00	MORNING STAR – Serial COLOR
	10:30	PARADISE BAY – Serial COLOR
	11:00	JEOPARDY – Game COLOR
	11:30	POST OFFICE – Game COLOR
	11:55	NEWS – Ray Scherer
	Afternoon
	12:00	NEWS – MacDougall COLOR
	12:10	WEATHER – Morris COLOR
	12:15	DIALING FOR DOLLARS – Game COLOR
	12:30	LET’S MAKE A DEAL COLOR
	12:55	NEWS – Floyd Kalber
	1:00	DAYS OF OUR LIVES COLOR
	1:30	DOCTORS – Serial
	2:00	ANOTHER WORLD – Serial
	2:30	YOU DON’T SAY! – Game COLOR Guests: Robert Vaughn, Michael Landon
	3:00	MATCH GAME COLOR Celebrities: Bill Cullen, Joan Rivers
	3:25	NEWS – Nancy Dickerson
	3:30	DIALING FOR DOLLARS – Game COLOR
	4:30	LLOYD THAXTON – Variety COLOR Guest: Marvin Gaye
	5:25	DOCTOR’S HOUSE CALL – Fox
	5:30	NEWS – Huntley, Brinkley COLOR
	Evening
	6:00	NEWS – Bob Ryan COLOR
	6:15	WEATHER – Morris COLOR
	6:25	SPORTS – Al Tighe COLOR
	6:30	MY MOTHER THE CAR – Comedy COLOR
	7:00	PLEASE DON’T EAT THE DAISIES – Comedy COLOR
	7:30	DR. KILDARE – Drama COLOR
	8:00	MOVIE – Drama COLOR Tuesday Night at the Movies: “The Savage Innocents” (Italian-English; 1960)
	10:00	NEWS – MacDougall COLOR
	10:15	WEATHER – Morris COLOR
	10:20	SPORTS – Al Tighe COLOR
	10:30	JOHNNY CARSON COLOR
	12:15	MOVIE – Mystery “The Lone Wolf Returns” (1935)

No seasonal programming on NBC tonight, since it's movie night. The Savage Innocents, directed by Nicholas Ray - that's one of my favorite Christmas movies. Well, it features an Eskimo hunter who accidentally kills a missionary, so at least there's snow.

	9 KMSP (ABC)
	Morning
	7:30	MY LITTLE MARGIE - Comedy
	8:00	RILEY ‘ROUND THE TOWN
	8:30	GRANDPA KEN – Children
	9:00	ROMPER ROOM – Miss Betty
	10:00	SUPERMARKET SWEEPSTAKES – Game
	10:30	DATING GAME
	11:00	ELEVENTH HOUR – Drama
	Afternoon
	12:00	BEN CASEY – Drama
	1:00	NURSES – Serial
	1:30	A TIME FOR US – Serial
	1:55	NEWS – Marlene Sanders
	2:00	GENERAL HOSPITAL – Serial
	2:30	YOUNG MARRIEDS – Serial
	3:00	NEVER TOO YOUNG – Serial
	3:30	WHERE THE ACTION IS – Variety Guests: Little Richard, Keith Allison
	4:00	SOUPY SALES – Comedy
	4:30	DENNIS THE MENACE – Comedy
	5:00	NEWS – Peter Jennings
	5:15	NEWS – Don Riley
	5:30	LEAVE IT TO BEAVER – Comedy
	Evening
	6:00	DOBIE GILLIS
	6:30	COMBAT! – Drama
	7:30	McHALE’S NAVY – Comedy
	8:00	F TROOP – Comedy
	8:30	PEYTON PLACE – Serial
	9:00	FUGITIVE – Drama
	10:00	NEWS – Bill Fahan
	10:15	WEATHER – Jerry Smith
	10:20	SPORTS – Tony Parker
	10:30	MOVIE – Drama “My Forbidden Past” (1950)

I can't think that you'll see too many more listings like this: a network affiliate broadcasting from morning until midnight with not one color program shown.

	11 WTCN (IND.)
	Morning
	9:15	NEWS
	9:30	MOVIE – Musical “Melody in Spring” (1934)
	10:55	NEWS – Gil Amundson
	11:00	DONNA REED
	11:30	FATHER KNOWS BEST – Comedy
	Afternoon
	12:00	LUNCH WITH CASEY - Children
	12:45	KING AND ODIE – Cartoon
	1:00	MOVIE – Drama “Interns Can’t Take Money” (1937)
	2:45	MEL’S NOTEBOOK – Interview
	3:00	GIRL TALK – Panel
	3:30	AMOS ‘N’ ANDY – Comedy
	4:00	POPEYE AND PETE – Children
	4:30	CASEY AND ROUNDHOUSE
	5:15	ROCKY AND FRIENDS COLOR
	5:30	BACHELOR FATHER – Comedy
	Evening
	6:00	RIFLEMAN – Western
	6:30	BOLD JOURNEY – Travel
	7:00	WILD CARGO – Travel
	7:30	THEATER PREMIERE SPECIAL
	8:00	WRESTLING – Minneapolis
	9:30	NEWS – Stuart A. Lindman
	9:45	WEATHER – Warren Martin
	9:50	SPORTS – Frank Buetel
	10:00	MOVIE – Drama COLOR “Flame of the Islands” (1955)
	12:00	SLEEPY TIME – Drama Time approximate.

The theater premiere at 7:30 is the Northwest premiere of the blockbuster war epic Battle of the Bulge live from the Cooper Theater in St. Louis Park, hosted by Mel Jass and featuring movie co-star Robert Shaw.

↧

Yuletide Greeting, Part 2

December 20, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Around the dial

≪ Previous: What's on TV? Tuesday, December 21, 1965

Last week we looked at some Christmastime episodes of daytime dramas (aka soap operas) of the 1960s. This week, we're going back a bit further, to the 1950s.

First is a very rare color video of CBS's Playhouse 90 broadcast of "The Nutcracker," shown on December 25, 1958. It's the famed version choreographed by the legendary George Balanchine, one made famous by the New York City Ballet. Balanchine himself appears as Herr Drosselmeyer, with the great Edward Villella, Bonnie Bedelia, and (an unnecessary) narration by June Lockhart. This is one of the first-ever television broadcasts of "The Nutcracker," and the first in color.

The second is also from CBS. Broadcast on December 23, 1956 it's the repeat of the 1955 telecast of G.E. Theater's "A Child is Born." You might recognize the longtime host of G.E. Theater: Ronald Reagan, here appearing with Nancy and Maureen.

Make sure you watch a Christmas program of your own tonight! TV

↧

Around the dial

December 22, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: This week in TV Guide: December 23, 1967

≪ Previous: Yuletide Greeting, Part 2

(That's not me there, by the way. Just wanted to make that clear up front.)

It's Christmas week, perhaps the best week of the year (along with Thanksgiving week), and Christmas plays a role in our look at the classic TV blogosphere. I think you'll have a better time than our friend up there is having.

First, the sad news that the legendary broadcaster Dick Enberg died yesterday at the age of 82. My first exposure to Enberg came in the game that he called the most historically significant he ever covered: the Houston -UCLA "Game of the Century" in 1968 that changed the face of college basketball forever. I wrote about that game here; suffice it to say that while we've become accustomed to this kind of hype today, college basketball had never seen a game like this before. Enberg did the play-by-play on that game, and many other college basketball games through the years, first for TVS and then for NBC. He was the announcer for the California Angels and San Diego Padres, he did football, tennis and the Olympics, hosted game shows, and was one of those Big Game voices that I'm often writing about. His work over the years will remain a shining memory for sports fans everywhere.

I usually get my Twilight Zone information from The Twilight Zone Vortex, but this week Fire-Breathing Dimetrodon Time has a great recap on showing their six-year-old son the classic shocker "The Invaders." This episode has a great payoff; I wish I could remember the first time I saw it, to see if it packed that kind of punch for me.

Ah, Hal's back at The Horn Section with another installment of "F Troop Friday." This week: "Johnny Eagle Eye," a very funny episode that we saw at the Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention in September. It has the usual combination of silliness, satire, and Bilko-like deviousness that we've come to know and love from Fort Courage.

As part of the "What a Character!" blogathon, The Last Drive-In has a piece on one of my favorite character actors, Martin Balsam. He was one of those actors who was terrific in both movies and television, and early next month I'll be writing about an episode of Naked City in which he was utterly compelling.

At Comfort TV, David uses classic TV appearances by a couple of characters named "Charlie" to illustrate how television can capture the deeper meaning of Christmas. I haven't seen either of these episodes, but their message is something we could use a little more of in real life nowadays. Likewise, Classic Television Showbiz pulls out a Christmas episode from the short-lived World War II sitcom Roll Out.

If, like me, you bemoan the deterioration of Hallmark movies from the superior quality of the '50s-'60s Hall of Fame to the sentimental treacle that the company pumps out on an assembly line basis, you'll enjoy this piece by Hans Fiene at The Federalist on how the latest Hallmark Christmas movie dares to be different!

The latest episode in Jack's Hitchcock Project at bare-bones e-zine is "Conversation Over a Corpse," written by Marian Cockrell and Norman Daniels, featuring Ray Collins in a very good turn. For those who only recognize Collins as Lt. Tragg in Perry Mason, I can guarantee you'll enjoy seeing him in a new light.

Finally, if you haven't done so yet, there's still time to watch a version of A Christmas Carol this weekend, but which one? At Vox, former AV Club writer Todd VanDerWerff, whose writing I've always admired even when I haven't agreed with it, might be able to help you out with that - he takes a serious look at the 15 best portrayals of Ebenezer Scrooge.

You should make it back here tomorrow, but with everything that's going on this weekend, I'll understand if I don't see you here until early next week. In that case, my best wishes to you for a Merry Christmas! TV

↧

This week in TV Guide: December 23, 1967

December 23, 2017, 5:00 am

≫ Next: What's on TV? Saturday, December 23, 1967

≪ Previous: Around the dial

All the anticipation of the past month is close to evaporating; it's Christmas week, the greatest week of the year for a kid, and while many of the seasonal shows aired last week, there're still some treats out there for TV viewers. For example, the greatest Christmas movie of all, Miracle on 34th Street, shines forth on Saturday afternoon on KGLO. Let's see what else we've got.

If you want musical variety, there's plenty of it: Jackie Gleason and his Honeymooners cast act out nursery fables (Saturday, 6:30 p.m., CBS), while Lawrence Welk and his Champagne Music Makers celebrate Christmas with their families. (Saturday, 7:30 p.m., ABC) On Sunday morning, Christmas Eve (9:00 a.m.), CBS preempts Lamp Unto My Feet and Look Up and Live for an hour of Christmas music, hosted by Margaret Truman Daniels. Later on (11:30 a.m., CBS), Gospel singer Marian Williams has more tunes for the season. Local choirs appear on KSTP and KMSP, and on WTCN Carmon Dragon conducts the Glendale Symphony in a Christmas concert that looks suspiciously like the one that was broadcast on the same station in last week's issue.

You say you'd like sacred programming for Christmas? The French Nativity story "Christmas in the Marketplace" airs at noon Christmas Eve on some of the area's ABC affiliates (not KMSP, however), and at 6:00 p.m. the network reruns the acclaimed documentary "Christ is Born," narrated by John Huston and John Secondari and presented without commercial interruption. At 10:30 pm. on CBS, "Experiencing Great Joy" features Robert Ryan reading the Nativity, and opera star Roberta Peters singing a motet by Vivaldi. At the same time on ABC, it's the Christmas festival opera "The Shephardes Playe" by Pulitzer winner John LaMontaine. At 11:00 p.m. NBC covers Midnight Mass from St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City, while on CBS it's the poignant "Christmas in Vietnam," with films taken earlier today, including a Christmas Eve service, a trip to a Vietnamese orphanage, and interviews with soldiers and chaplains.

Christmas Day begins with the New York Pro Musica performing on Today (7:00 a.m.), singing traditional songs against a backdrop of works from the Cloisters, the medieval art museum. At 9:00 a.m., the network presents an ecumenical worship service from the National Cathedral in Washington D.C., a program I watched for years because of the lovely music. Fr. Patrick Peyton, the famed founder of the "Family Rosary Crusade," presents a series of three episodes dramatizing the life of Christ, beginning at 10:00 a.m. on WTCN. Jeanne Crain, Dolores Hope, and Jane Wyatt are the guests. Ray Coniff hosts an hour of music at 3:00 p.m. on WCCO, and the annual Christmas skating ice show from the Metropolitan Sports Center in Bloomington, Minnesota is shown on WTCN at 5:30 p.m.

And we couldn't very well have Christmas without Bing singing "White Christmas," could we? He does it several times tonight in the perennial favorite Holiday Inn (8:00 p.m., WTCN), as he and Fred Astaire battle over Marjorie Reynolds. Finally, the day comes to an end - in Duluth, at least - with the Christmas episode of The Rogues (10:30 p.m.), the charming caper series about a family of charming criminals (David Niven, Charles Boyer, Gig Young, and - in this episode - Larry Hagman). A pity this series only lasted for one season.

◊ ◊ ◊

During the 60s, the Ed Sullivan Show and The Hollywood Palace were the premiere variety shows on television. Whenever they appear in TV Guide together, we'll match them up and see who has the best lineup..

Sullivan: Ed's scheduled guests are Arthur Godfrey, who reads a Christmas story illustrated by the Muppets puppets; Bobbie Gentry; Gilbert Price; the Cowsills; dancer-choreographer Peter Gennaro; and organist Virgil Fox.

Palace: Jimmy Durante is the ringmaster for the "Palace" circus show, with Anissa Jones of Family Affair, the Roselle Troupe acrobats, Kay's Pets animal act, high-wire artist Sensational Parker, Great Rudos and his performing elephans, trapeze performer Canday Cavaretta, and the Hannerford Family, clowns on horseback.

I suppose your preference this week is going to depend on how much you like circuses. For me they're OK but nothing special. I'd hoped for a little more Yule cheer from Ed, but aside from Godfrey and the Muppets, his show is average at best. Under other circumstances I'd rate the weeka push, but since Godfrey is reading a Christmas story with the Muppets, I'll spread a little Christmas cheer around and give the nod to Sullivan.

◊ ◊ ◊
This week the American Football League (NBC) wraps up its regular season on Christmas Eve with a TBA depending on which game is most important to the title race. The AFL has yet to expand its playoffs, which means the two division winners meet next week to determine the league's representative for the second Super Bowl. Based on my look at the league standings, I'm betting it's the New York Jets - San Diego Chargers game, as the Jets still have a chance to catch the Houston Oilers for the Eastern Division crown.

Over in the National Football League (CBS), the playoffs are already underway, and the expanded four-division lineup means it's a double-header weekend. On Saturday the Central Division champion Green Bay Packers play the Coastal Division champions, the Los Angeles Rams. Meanwhile, on Sunday the Century Division-winning Cleveland Browns meet the Capitol Division champion Dallas Cowboys. (Don't you dig those division names?) The Packers might be slight underdogs to the Rams, who lost but one game during the regular season, but the defending Super Bowl champs flex their muscles with a 28-7 win, which means next week they'll take on the Cowboys in a rematch of last year's NFL Championship, after the Pokes route the Brownies 52-14. That game next week will be known as the Ice Bowl - but that's another story.

There's more sports on tap: Saturday afternoon, ABC gets into the act with the Bluebonnet Bowl in Houston (3:00 p.m.), pitting Colorado and Miami, while on Sunday it's the season premiere of the NBA, featuring the defending Western Division champion San Francisco Warriors and the expansion Seattle SuperSonics. (4:00 p.m.) And on Christmas Day, it's the annual North-South all-star game (1:00 p.m.), telecast from the Orange Bowl in Miami. Being the sports junkie I was back then, I'm sure the week worked quite nicely for me.

◊ ◊ ◊
This week the TV Teletype reports on a slew of TV pilots in the works. Robert Stack, formerly of The Untouchables, is working with Universal on "Companions for the Night," a movie that could become a series. Craig Stevens, once Peter Gunn, may be an ad man in Walt's Girls, Sidney Sheldon's trial balloon for NBC. Tige Andrews, who used to be one of The Detectives with Robert Taylor, is an inspector in The Mod Squad, an Aaron Spelling pilot for ABC. Pioneer Spirit, the story of "three families who bumble their way to Alaska, looking for life on a frontier," is a project by Green Acres proucer Jay Sommers for NBC. Ryan O'Neal guests on the European Eye adventure pilot for CBS. And Ernest Borgnine and Frankie Michaels ("Mame") are the leads in the proposed Billy and the Kid for CBS. Keeping in mind that titles often change and plots morph, how many of these pilots do you recognize as becoming full-fledged series?

◊ ◊ ◊
While Christmas may overshadow the rest of the week, there's plenty of interesting non-holiday programming for us to look at as well.

Saturday: Jeremy Clyde, one half of Chad and Jeremy, plays - what else? - a musician who helps out Chip on My Three Sons. (7:30 p.m., CBS) Later on CBS (9:00 p.m.), it's a rerun of the pilot episode of Mannix, with Joe Campanella as Mannix's boss, and a guest cast including Lloyd Nolan, Kim Hunter, and Ironside co-star Barbara Anderson.

Sunday: It's hard to find any non-Christmas programming on Christmas Eve, but a show that caught my eye was Face the Nation (5:00 p.m., CBS), with Dr. Christiaan Barnard, the pioneering heart transplant surgeon from South Africa. Famed heart surgeon Dr. Michael DeBakey and CBS news scorrespondent Martin Agronsky are among the panelists. Hard to imagine any of the Sunday chat shows doing anything but politics nowadays; I don't know what to make of that, but it's not progress.

Christmas: At 4:00 p.m., Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic begin the 11th season of Young People's Concerts with baritone Walter Berry and his wife, soprano Christa Ludwig. Carol Burnett's show (9:00 p.m., CBS) isn't particularly a Christmas episode, although Carol and guest star Sid Caesar do portray a married couple reminiscing about Christmases past. Ella Fitzgerald also guests. Victor Borge begins a week as guest host on The Tonight Show. (NBC, 10:30 p.m.) I've always thought Borge one of the funniest men to appear on TV, but somehow I don't imagine him as host of a talk show. Highlight of the week must have been Thursday's show with guest Morey Amsterdam.

Tuesday: A fascinating episode of The Red Skelton Hour (CBS, 7:30 p.m.), with the great Maurice Evans narrating as Red illustrates Shakespeare's "Seven Ages of Man," using pantomime, songs and sketches. At 8:00 p.m., NBC's Thursday Night at the Movies presents the 1964 movie Wild and Wonderful, starring Tony Curtis and Christine Kaufmann, who's identified in the ad under the subtitle "Mrs. Tony Curtis." Even in 1967 you see that a lot; earlier in the day (4:00 p.m.) on WCCO's airing of The Mike Douglas Show, one of the guests is "Mrs. Richard J. Hughes, wife of the governor of New Jersey." Her name was actually Elizabeth, but I had to look that up.

Wednesday: Is it only me who finds it interesting that one of the co-stars of Lost in Space (CBS, 6:30 p.m.) is Mark Goddard, and one of the pioneers of rocketry - the very technology that got the Robinsons lost in space - was Robert Goddard? Maybe it was done intentionally. Anyway, Leslie Nielsen guest-stars as the heavy in tonight's episode of The Virginian (NBC, 6:30 p.m.) - easy to forget in the wake of Police Squad! and the subsequent movies that Nielsen was a fine dramatic actor, and quite often an effective bad guy. And the variety shows tonight have a wide range of guests: first, Woody Allen hosts the Kraft Music Hall (NBC, 8:00 p.m.), with a supporting cast of Aretha Franklin, Liza Minnelli, William F. Buckley Jr. and John Byner. And Jonathan Winters kicks off his new weekly show (CBS, 9:00 p.m.) with Red Skelton, Barbara Eden, Ivan Dixon, and The Doors (singing "Light My Fire").

Thursday: Broderick Crawford, former star of Highway Patrol, is on the other side of the law on CBS's 90-minute Cimarron Strip (6:30 p.m.), while Catwoman and the Joker (Eartha Kitt, Cesar Romero) team up against Gotham City on Batman (6:30, ABC). As TV Guide says, "Holy criminalities!" And Dean Martin's guests (NBC, 9:00 p.m.) are Polly Bergan, Jackie Vernon, Pat Cooper, and the Mills Brothers, who heavily influenced Deano's own style.

Friday: First, it's one of the most famous and best-loved Star Trek episodes of all time. Tonight (NBC, 7:30 p.m.), "Captain Kirk, assigned to protect a vital grain shipment at a space station, finds that he has troubles with tribbles."* Meanwhile, farewell to Hondo, (ABC, 7:30 p.m.), which leaves the air after tonight, to be replaced by Operation: Entertainment. Meanwhile, Gomer Pyle (CBS, 7:30 p.m.) finds an excuse to stage a base variety show, which gives Jim Nabors a chance to sing "The Desert Song" and "Song of the Vagabond." It would be nice to report that these two songs are, coincidentally, on Nabors' latest album - but, alas, such is not the case. Elsewhere, Judd for the Defense (9:00 p.m., ABC) features a very strong guest cast: Vera Miles, Claude Akins and Charles Grey.

*Best exchange:
Nilz Baris (William Schallert): You heard me.
Capt. Kirk: I heard you.
Spock: (Helpfully) He simply could not believe his ears.

Late night, the 1965 movie The Outlaws Is Coming! (10:40 p.m., KGLO) stars the Three Stooges as wacky newspaper printers-tured lawmen dealing with every tough gunslinger in the Old West. It co-stars a Batman-era Adam West, which I think tells you the kind of pandemonium this movie must have produced. According to the always-reliable Wikipedia, "In a nod to television's key role in the resurgence of the Stooges' popularity, the outlaws were played by local TV hosts from across the U.S. whose shows featured the trio's old Columbia shorts." Nice touch.

◊ ◊ ◊
Our starlet of the week is former Miss America Mary Ann Mobley, and the very first set of creditentials that Dwight Whitney presents us are 35-22-34. The more things change, I guess, the more they stay the same. A profile of Richard "Dick" Dawson of Hogan's Heroes presents him as smart and sensitive, and a warm personality, although as I recall, by the time of Family Feud many people described him as distant and aloof. Did he change, or was this profile a bit flattering? Richard Warren Lewis writes about the night of the all-British lineup on The Hollywood Palace, also known as "the night the British stormed the Palace."

All in all, quite a week, with a wonderful collection of Christmas programs. They just don't make them quite like that, do they? TV

↧

What's on TV? Saturday, December 23, 1967

December 25, 2017, 9:20 am

≫ Next: A "Christmas Carol" the likes of which you haven't seen before!

≪ Previous: This week in TV Guide: December 23, 1967

As is the case this year, December 23, 1967 was the final Saturday before Christmas. Unlike this year, the NFL playoffs were underway on December 23, and the networks had Christmas specials. We'll see a little of each in today's listings. This is the Minnesota State Edition, but I thought I'd do something a little different from my usual take on these issues. In addition to the four main Twin Cities stations, I'm offering KGLO in Mason City, Iowa; WKBT in LaCrosse, Wisconsin, and WEAU and WKBT in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. We also have stations in Rochester and Austin, Minnesota - ones that we don't generally get a look at. But before that, on this fine Christmas Day, my wishes to each and every one of you for a safe and healthy, blessed and Merry Christmas! This site is for you!

	3 KGLO (MASON CITY) (CBS)
	Morning
	7:00	CAPTAIN KANGAROO – Children COLOR
	8:00	FRANKENSTIEIN JR. – Cartoons COLOR
	8:30	HERCULOIDS – Cartoons COLOR
	9:00	SHAZZAN! – Cartoons COLOR
	9:30	SPACE GHOST – Cartoons COLOR
	10:00	MOBY DICK – Cartoons COLOR
	10:30	SUPERMAN/AQUAMAN – Cartoons COLOR
	11:30	JONNY QUEST – Cartoons COLOR
	Afternoon
	12:00	LONE RANGER – Cartoons COLOR
	12:30	NFL PRE-GAME – Football COLOR
	1:00	NFL WESTERN CHAMPIONSHIP SPECIAL COLOR Green Bay vs. Coastal Division winners at Milwaukee
	3:45	MOVIE – Drama “Miracle on 34^th Street” (1947)
	5:30	NEWS – Mudd COLOR
	Evening
	6:00	NEWS COLOR
	6:15	WESTERN MUSIC COLOR
	6:30	JACKIE GLEASON – Musical Fantasy COLOR
	7:30	MY THREE SONS COLOR
	8:00	HOGAN’S HEROES – Comedy COLOR
	8:30	PETTICOAT JUNCTION – Comedy COLOR
	9:00	MANNIX COLOR
	10:00	NEWS COLOR
	10:30	MOVIE – Comedy COLOR “Good Neighbor Sam” (1964)

	4 WCCO (CBS)
	Morning
	6:00	SUNRISE SEMESTER – Education
	6:30	SIEGFRIED – Children
	7:00	CAPTAIN KANGAROO – Children COLOR
	8:00	FRANKENSTIEIN JR. – Cartoons COLOR
	8:30	HERCULOIDS – Cartoons COLOR
	9:00	SHAZZAN! – Cartoons COLOR
	9:30	SPACE GHOST – Cartoons COLOR
	10:00	MOBY DICK – Cartoons COLOR
	10:30	SUPERMAN/AQUAMAN – Cartoons COLOR
	11:30	JONNY QUEST – Cartoons COLOR
	Afternoon
	12:00	HOBBY SHOW COLOR
	12:15	FOOTBALL PREVIEW COLOR
	12:30	NFL PRE-GAME – Football COLOR
	1:00	NFL WESTERN CHAMPIONSHIP SPECIAL COLOR Green Bay vs. Coastal Division winners at Milwaukee
	4:00	COMMERCIAL – Music COLOR
	4:15	MOVIE – Fantasy COLOR Time approximate. “The 7th Voyage of Sinbad” (1958)
	5:30	NEWS – Mudd COLOR
	Evening
	6:00	NEWS COLOR
	6:30	JACKIE GLEASON – Musical Fantasy COLOR
	7:30	MY THREE SONS COLOR
	8:00	HOGAN’S HEROES – Comedy COLOR
	8:30	PETTICOAT JUNCTION – Comedy COLOR
	9:00	MANNIX COLOR
	10:00	NEWS COLOR
	10:30	MOVIE – Biography COLOR “Young Bess” (1953)
	12:35	NEWS, WEATHER COLOR
	12:55	THIS MUST BE THE PLACE COLOR Guests: The Dickens Village Quartet
	1:25	NITE KAPPERS - Comedy

	5 KSTP (NBC)
	Morning
	7:00	MOVIE – Western “Melody Ranch”
	8:00	SUPER 6 – Cartoons COLOR
	8:30	SUPER PRESIDENT – Cartoons COLOR
	9:00	FLINTSTONES – Cartoon COLOR
	9:30	SAMSON & GOLIATH – Cartoons COLOR
	10:00	BIRDMAN – Cartoons COLOR
	10:30	ATOM ANT/SECRET SQUIRREL – Cartoons COLOR
	11:00	TOP CAT – Cartoons COLOR
	11:30	COOL McCOOL – Cartoons COLOR
	Afternoon
	12:00	FOREST RANGERS – Adventure COLOR
	12:30	SCIENCE FICTION THEATER COLOR
	1:00	MOVIE – Comedy “You Can’t Cheat an Honest Man” (1939)
	2:30	ROY ROGERS – Western
	3:30	WEST POINT – Drama
	4:00	AFL HIGHLIGHTS – Football COLOR
	4:30	OUTER LIMITS – Science Fiction
	5:30	NEWS – McGee COLOR
	Evening
	6:00	NEWS COLOR
	6:30	MAYA COLOR
	7:30	GET SMART COLOR
	8:00	MOVIE – Drama “Wild Seed” (1965)
	10:00	NEWS COLOR
	10:30	JOE PYNE – Discussion COLOR
	12:00	ALAN BURKE – Discussion COLOR Guest: Joey Adams

	6 KAUS (AUSTIN) (ABC)
	Morning
	8:00	CASPER COLOR
	8:30	FANTASTIC FOUR – Cartoons COLOR
	9:00	SPIDER-MAN COLOR
	9:30	JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH COLOR
	10:00	KING KONG COLOR
	10:30	GEORGE OF THE JUNGLE – Cartoons COLOR
	11:00	BEATLES COLOR
	11:30	AMERICAN BANDSTAND – Music COLOR Guests: Bruce Channel, The Beatles (on film)
	Afternoon
	12:30	LEROY-OSTRANDER HIGH SCHOOL CHOIR – Concert
	1:00	DEATH VALLEY DAYS – Drama
	1:30	MOVIE – Documentary “The Great Adventure” (Swedish; 1955)
	3:00	BLUEBONNET BOWL – Miami vs. Colorado SPECIAL COLOR
	5:30	AUSTIN MALE CHORUS
	Evening
	6:00	NEWS, WEATHER, SPORTS
	6:30	DATING GAME COLOR Guest: Rod McKuen
	7:00	NEWLYWED GAME COLOR
	7:30	LAWRENCE WELK COLOR
	8:30	IRON HORSE – Western COLOR
	9:30	THAT GIRL – Comedy
	10:00	NEWS – McBee COLOR
	10:15	NEWS
	10:30	MOVIE – Comedy “Passport to Pimlico” (English; 1949)
	12:00	NEWS

	8 WKBT (LA CROSSE) (CBS)
	Morning
	7:00	CAPTAIN KANGAROO – Children COLOR
	8:00	FRANKENSTIEIN JR. – Cartoons COLOR
	8:30	HERCULOIDS – Cartoons COLOR
	9:00	SHAZZAN! – Cartoons COLOR
	9:30	SPACE GHOST – Cartoons COLOR
	10:00	MOBY DICK – Cartoons COLOR
	10:30	SUPERMAN/AQUAMAN – Cartoons COLOR
	11:30	JONNY QUEST – Cartoons COLOR
	Afternoon
	12:00	LONE RANGER – Cartoons COLOR
	12:30	NFL PRE-GAME – Football COLOR
	1:00	NFL WESTERN CHAMPIONSHIP SPECIAL COLOR Green Bay vs. Coastal Division winners at Milwaukee
	4:00	MOVIE – To Be Announced
	5:30	HOGAN’S HEROES – Comedy COLOR
	Evening
	6:00	BEWITCHED – Comedy
	7:30	LAWRENCE WELK COLOR
	8:30	PETTICOAT JUNCTION – Comedy COLOR
	9:00	MANNIX COLOR
	10:00	NEWS
	10:30	MOVIE – Comedy “The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders” (English; 1965)

	9 KMSP (ABC)
	Morning
	7:00	MAGILLA GORILLA
	7:30	MILTON THE MONSTER
	8:00	CASPER COLOR
	8:30	FANTASTIC FOUR – Cartoons COLOR
	9:00	SPIDER-MAN COLOR
	9:30	JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH COLOR
	10:00	KING KONG COLOR
	10:30	GEORGE OF THE JUNGLE – Cartoons COLOR
	11:00	BEATLES COLOR
	11:30	AMERICAN BANDSTAND – Music COLOR Guests: Bruce Channel, The Beatles (on film)
	Afternoon
	12:30	MOVIE – Drama “O. Henry’s Full House” (1952)
	2:30	TONY PARKER COLOR
	3:00	BLUEBONNET BOWL – Miami vs. Colorado SPECIAL COLOR
	5:30	LIEUTENANT – Drama
	Evening
	6:30	DATING GAME COLOR Guest: Rod McKuen
	7:00	NEWLYWED GAME COLOR
	7:30	LAWRENCE WELK COLOR
	8:30	IRON HORSE – Western COLOR
	9:30	DEATH VALLEY DAYS – Drama COLOR
	10:00	NEWS COLOR
	10:30	MOVIE – Drama “Soldier of Fortune” (1953)
	12:20	NEWS - McBee COLOR

	10 KROC (ROCHESTER) (NBC)
	Morning
	8:00	SUPER 6 – Cartoons COLOR
	8:30	SUPER PRESIDENT – Cartoons COLOR
	9:00	FLINTSTONES – Cartoon COLOR
	9:30	SAMSON & GOLIATH – Cartoons COLOR
	10:00	BIRDMAN – Cartoons COLOR
	10:30	ATOM ANT/SECRET SQUIRREL – Cartoons COLOR
	11:00	TOP CAT – Cartoons COLOR
	11:30	COOL McCOOL – Cartoons COLOR
	Afternoon
	12:00	MISTER ED – Comedy
	12:30	LEAVE IT TO BEAVER – Comedy
	1:00	CISCO KID – Western COLOR
	1:30	CHAMPIONSHIP BOWLING COLOR
	2:30	MOVIE – Musical “The Big Beat” (1958)
	3:45	COMMERCIAL – Music COLOR
	4:00	TOPPER – Comedy
	4:30	G-E COLLEGE BOWL COLOR Washington vs. Barnard or Jackson
	5:00	IT’S A SMALL WORLD – Travel COLOR
	5:30	NEWS – McGee COLOR
	Evening
	6:00	MUSICAL SPOTLIGHT COLOR
	6:30	MAYA COLOR
	7:30	GET SMART COLOR
	8:00	MOVIE – Drama “Wild Seed” (1965)
	10:00	NEWS COLOR
	10:30	MOVIE – Musical COLOR “Let’s Be Happy” (English; 1957)

	11 WTCN (IND.)
	Morning
	9:00	FARM FORUM
	9:30	MOVIE – Double Feature 1. “Ski Patrol” (Drama; 1040) 2. Beast of Babylon Against the Son of Hercules” (Italian adventure; 1963)
	Afternoon
	12:00	LUNCH WITH CASEY – Children
	1:00	CARTOON CUT-UPS COLOR
	1:30	BOLD JOURNEY - Travel
	2:00	DICK POWELL THEATRE
	3:00	UPBEAT – Music
	4:00	POLKA VARIETIES – Music
	5:00	HAWAII CALLS – Music COLOR
	5:30	ALL-STAR WRESTLING
	Evening
	7:00	PRO HOCKEY – North Stars COLOR Minnesota vs. Pittsburgh
	10:00	NEWS
	10:30	MOVIE – Adventure Time approximate “Venus Against the Son of Hercules” (Italian; 1963)

	13 WEAU (EAU CLAIRE)(NBC)
	Morning
	7:00	SERGEANT PRESTON
	7:30	SALVATION ARMY – Religion
	7:45	LIGHT TIME - Religion
	8:00	SUPER 6 – Cartoons COLOR
	8:30	SUPER PRESIDENT – Cartoons COLOR
	9:00	FLINTSTONES – Cartoon COLOR
	9:30	SAMSON & GOLIATH – Cartoons COLOR
	10:00	BIRDMAN – Cartoons COLOR
	10:30	ATOM ANT/SECRET SQUIRREL – Cartoons COLOR
	11:00	TOP CAT – Cartoons COLOR
	11:30	COOL McCOOL – Cartoons COLOR
	Afternoon
	12:00	BULLWINKLE – Cartoons
	12:30	DISCOVERY ’67 – Children
	1:00	TO BE ANNOUNCED
	2:00	FILM FEATURE
	2:30	DEATH VALLEY DAYS COLOR
	3:00	WIDE WORLD OF SPORTS Pool, Tobogganing, Barrel Jumping
	4:30	G-E COLLEGE BOWL COLOR Washington vs. Barnard or Jackson
	5:00	CHIPPEWA FALLS HIGH SCHOOL CHRISTMAS CONCERT
	5:30	ERNIE RECK – Music
	Evening
	6:00	THIS DAY OF GRACE – Religion
	6:15	SPORTS, WEATHER, NEWS
	6:30	MAYA COLOR
	7:30	GET SMART COLOR
	8:00	MOVIE – Drama “Wild Seed” (1965)
	10:00	NEWS
	10:30	COWBOY IN AFRICA
	11:30	MOVIE – Comedy COLOR “The Private War of Major Benson” (1955)

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