Mitchell Hadley's Blog: It's About TV!, page 110

Diana Rigg. R.I.P.

At my age, it doesn’t take much to feel old, some days more than others. A lithe young woman in a black leather catsuit stirs the blood (especially one holding a gun), and when that young woman dies, aged 82, it serves as a reminder that the pot doesn’t require much more stirring before it’s finished.

If you’re of that age, you remember that catsuit, and Diana Rigg, the young woman who wore it, from The Avengers. You also probably remember her from the James Bond movie On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. If you’re of a different age, the first thing you think of might be Game of Thrones, or perhaps a stage show you’d seen her in (such as Medea, for which she won a Tony in 1994), or any one of countless movies, television shows, or productions in which she appeared over a remarkable career. The point is, you remembered.
The outpouring of memories immediately following the announcement of her death was, in fact, remarkable. It seems as if everyone had a favorite moment, mostly from either The Avengers or On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (after all, who else can lay claim to having been the one and only “Mrs. James Bond”?), but by no means all. There was, for example, her appearance in the Hallmark Hall of Fame version of Witness for the Prosecution, in which she held her own in the role made famous by Marlene Dietrich. Or perhaps you remembered her wonderful turn in Paddy Chayefsky’s wicked The Hospital, a portrayal laced with both absurd humor and pathos. You might have recalled her performance in Mother Love, or the way she played Mrs. Danvers in a TV adaptation of Rebecca; speaking of which, she was a wonderful host of PBS’s Mystery! for many years, taking over from Vincent Price, and that’s no mean feat. She was an acclaimed stage actress, in the classics but also more contemporary fare; in addition to her Tony for Medea, she was nominated three other times. People who saw her perform in person didn’t forget it. She even appeared, with her daughter Rachael Sterling, on Doctor Who, and if that doesn’t seal the deal, nothing does. Her fans, her admirers, those who had enjoyed her work: all spoke of her with affection, appreciation that so many of her performances are available on video, and a little bit of sorrow.

Returning to this idea of age, of an era having passed: in that picture on top, she’s almost painfully young, isn’t she? Young, and breathtaking. No matter your age, it makes you wonder if you were ever that young, and I don’t think that I was. (I’d better start trying to make up for lost time.) Samuel West, who co-starred with her in the remake of All Creatures Great and Small, said: "Doesn't really make sense to think of her having died. She generally lived the hell out of everyone." She lived the hell out of her career, that’s for sure, and that’s something we’ll never forget. TV  

What's on TV? Wednesday, September 14, 1977

Despite the fact I was still living in the World's Worst Town™ when this issue of TV Guide came out, I have a fondness for this time. For one thing, it was the start of my senior year in high school, which meant I only had one year left before being released out into the general population; for another, it was the year in which cable TV would finally come to the area. We were exposed to Channels 2, 4, 9 and 11 (KCMT had territorial claims to NBC), and when it hit in December, I felt like a prisoner being released from solitary confinement, blinking my eyes at the sudden appearance of the sun. I mention this only because I still recall my delight at getting to see some of these shows, such as Tom & Jerry (3:30 p.m., WTCN). It wasn't that I was such a big Tom and Jerry fan; it was just so—different from what I was used to seeing. Remember, to a man in the desert, even warm water is refreshing. In case you can't tell, we're in the Twin Cities this week.



 2  KTCA (PBS)
MORNING
     8:00 SESAME STREET—Children
     9:00 ELECTRIC COMPANY—Children
     9:30 VILLA ALEGRE—Children
   10:00 ZOOM—Children
   10:30 INFINITY FACTORY—Children
   11:00 M.D.—Health              11:30 SESAME STREET—Children
AFTERNOON
   12:30 MISTER ROGERS—Children
     1:00 ELECTRIC COMPANY—Children
     1:30 PAINT ALONG WITH NANCY KOMINSKY—Instruction
     2:00 BOOK BEATGuest: John Toland
     2:30 LILAS, YOGA AND YOU
     3:00 DICKENS OF LONDON
     4:00 MISTER ROGERS—Children
     4:30 SESAME STREET—Children
     5:30 ELECTRIC COMPANY—Children
EVENING
     6:00 ZOOM—Children
     6:30 MacNEIL/LEHRER REPORT
     7:00 UPSTAIRS, DOWNSTAIRS
     8:00 CHILDHOOD—Drama
     9:00 COUNTRY CORNERS—Documentary 
     9:30 BOOK BEATGuest: Clive Cussler
   10:00 DOCUMENTARY SHOWCASE
   11:00 UPSTAIRS, DOWNSTAIRS
Historian John Toland, Bob Cromie's guest on Book Beat, is discussing his seminal biography of Adolf Hitler . I read that book for a class on Hitler that I took in college; it's one of the few books I kept from my college days, and I've read it since a couple of times for the sheer reading pleasure. If you're interested in World War II, I highly recommend reading it.

 4  WCCO (CBS)
MORNING
     5:30 SUMMER SEMESTERLatin America
     6:00 CBS NEWS—Morton/Rudd
     7:00 BUGS BUNNY/CAPTAIN KANGAROO HOUR
     8:00 PHIL DONAHUEGuest: Dr. Mildred F. Jefferson
     9:00 HERE'S LUCY—Comedy
     9:30 PRICE IS RIGHT—Game
   10:30 LOVE OF LIFE—Serial
   10:55 LIVE TODAY—Religion
   11:00 YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS              11:30 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW—Serial
AFTERNOON
   12:00 MIDDAY
   12:30 AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial
     1:30 GUIDING LIGHT—Serial
     2:00 ALL IN THE FAMILY
     2:30 MATCH GAMEJoyce Bulifant, Gary Crosby, Richard Dawson, Charles Nelson Reilly, Brett Somers, Mary Wickes. Gene Rayburn is host.
     3:00 TATTLETALES—GameJohn Ritter and Nancy Morgan, Gary and Barbara Crosby, Charlie Brill and Mitzi McCall. Host: Bert Convy
     3:30 MOVIE—Drama BW “The Hurricane” (1937)
     5:30 CBS NEWS—Walter Cronkite
EVENING
     6:00 NEWS
     6:30 LAUREL AND HARDY—Comedy BW “Jitterbugs”
     7:00 MOVIE—Adventure“Spider-Man” (Made-for-TV; 1977)[Pre-empts regular programming.]
     8:30 MOVIE—Crime Drama“Relentless” (Made-for-TV; 1977)
   10:10 NEWS
   10:35 SCENE II—Dave Moore
   11:00 MOVIE—Crime Drama“The Daring Dobermans” (1973)
   12:50 NEWS
Combining Captain Kangaroo and Bugs Bunny? What a travesty. And all because WCCO wants to show the smarmy Phil Donahue at 8:00, the Captain's traditional slot in all timezones. Don't get me wrong; I love both the Captain and Bugs Bunny, and they're both essential in different ways to a youngster's education, but combining the two is jarring in a way that was never intended for a show like Captain Kangaroo.

 5  KSTP (NBC)
MORNING
     6:00 MINNESOTA TODAY
     6:30 COUNTRY DAY
     7:00 TODAY—Tom Brokaw
     9:00 TWIN CITIES TODAY
   10:00 WHEEL OF FORTUNE—Game
   10:30 IT’S ANYBODY’S GUESS—Game
   11:00 SHOOT FOR THE STARS—GameNipsey Russell, Pat Carroll              11:30 CHICO AND THE MAN
AFTERNOON
   12:00 GONG SHOW—Game
   12:30 DAYS OF OUR LIVES—Serial
     1:30 DOCTORS—Serial
     2:00 ANOTHER WORLD—Serial
     3:00 NEW MICKEY MOUSE CLUB
     3:30 BRADY BUNCH—Comedy
     4:00 EMERGENY ONE!—Drama
     5:00 HOGAN’S HEROES—Comedy
     5:30 NBC NEWS—Chacellor/Brinkley
EVENING
     6:00 NEWS
     6:30 GONG SHOW—GamePanel: Jaye P. Morgan, Elke Sommer, Rex Reed. Gary Owens is the host.
     7:00 BOXINGSpecial“A Night with the Heavyweights”[The series “The Oregon Trail” and “Big Hawaii” make their debuts in this time period next week.]
   10:00 NEWS
   10:30 JOHNNY CARSONGuest: Myron Cohen
   12:00 TOMORROW—Tom SnyderGuest: Fred Graham
     1:00 BEST OF GROUCHO—Game BW 
I talked about that heavyweight fight lineup on Saturday; it's a very good lineup. And check out the panel on The Gong Show. I can't believe they tried a host other than Chuck Barris. I mean, I know they did it and all, I just can't believe it.

 9  KMSP (ABC)
MORNING
     6:30 GOOD MORNING MINNESOTA
     7:00 GOOD MORNING AMERICA—David Hartman
     9:00 DINAH!Guests: Jack Jones, Robert Klein, Richard Jordan, Maynard Ferguson, David Horowitz
   10:00 HAPPY DAYS
   10:30 FAMILY FEUD—Game
   11:00 THE BETTER SEX—Game              11:30 RYAN’S HOPE—Serial
AFTERNOON
   12:00 ALL MY CHILDREN—Serial
     1:00 $20,000 PYRAMID—GameWilliam Shatner, Leonard Nimoy
     1:30 ONE LIFE TO LIVE—Serial
     2:15 GENERAL HOSPITAL—Serial
     3:00 MEDICAL CENTER—Drama
     4:00 MIKE DOUGLASCo-host: Diahann Carroll. Guests: Maynard Ferguson, Leslie Caron, Mary Jo Risher
     5:30 ABC NEWS—Reasoner/Walters
EVENING
     6:00 NEWS
     6:30 MUPPET SHOW
     7:00 EIGHT IS ENOUGHSeason premiere
     8:00 CHARLIE’S ANGELS—Crime DramaSeason premiere[Expands to two hours, pre-empting regular programming.]
   10:00 NEWS
   10:30 STARSKY & HUTCH—Crime Drama
   11:40 MYSTERY OF THE WEEK“If It’s a Man, Hang Up”
     1:10 RIFLEMAN—Western BW 
     1:40 NEWS
Dinah Shore has moved from NBC to syndication, and her guest lineup is about as good as it gets, whether daytime or latenight. You can tell Maynard Ferguson was hot back in 1977, with both Dinah and Mike Douglas. That's when you've got it made.

11 WTCN (Ind.)
MORNING
     5:30 WHAT’S NEW?
     6:00 PTL CLUB—Religion
     7:00 ROMPER ROOM
     7:30 POPEYE AND PORKY—Cartoon
     8:30 ARCHIES—Cartoon
     9:00 FRED FLINTSTONE & FRIENDS—Cartoon
     9:30 I DREAM OF JEANNIE—Comedy
   10:00 BEWITCHED—Comedy
   10:30 FATHER KNOWS BEST BW 
   11:00 COURTSHIP OF EDDIE’S FATHER—Comedy-Drama              11:30 WHAT’S NEW?
AFTERNOON
   12:30 ANDY GRIFFITH—Comedy
     1:00 VIRGINIAN—Western
     3:00 PARTRIDGE FAMILY—Comedy
     3:30 TOM AND JERRY—Cartoon
     4:30 LEAVE IT TO BEAVER BW 
     5:00 I LOVE LUCY—Comedy BW 
     5:30 MY THREE SONS—Comedy
EVENING
     6:00 FAMILY AFFAIR—Comedy
     6:30 ADAM-12—Crime Drama
     7:00 ODD COUPLE—Comedy
     7:30 MOVIE—Comedy/Drama“Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” (1967)
     9:30 NEWS
   10:00 FERNWOOD 2 NIGHT
   10:30 HONEYMOONERS—Comedy BW 
   11:00 GET SMART—Comedy
   11:30 LOVE AMERICAN STYLE
   12:00 FBI—Crime Drama
     1:00 ALFRED HITCHCOCK—Drama BW 
I don't have anything smart or smart-aleky to say; this is just a solid schedule for an independent station. If any of today's retro stations had this lineup, they'd be proud of it.

17 KTCI (PBS)
EVENING
     6:30 MEDIA 5
     7:00 NOVA
     8:00 GUPPIES TO GROUPERS
     8:30 LOWELL THOMAS REMEMBERS
     9:00 LEAF FROM A TOWN RECORD—Documentary
     9:30 CONSULTATION—Medicine
   10:00 ANYONE FOR TENNYSON?
   10:30 ABC NEWS—Reasoner/WaltersCaptioned for the hearing-impaired

I think I've mentioned before that KTCI had, over the years, gone between being a rebroadcast source for shows originally shown on KTCA, and a station for secondary PBS programs that didn't fit on the KTCA schedule. This is early in the history of the station, and as you can see, they have a very limited broadcasting lineup. They don't broadcast on the weekends. TV  

This week in TV Guide: September 10, 1977

I don't know when the last time was that we looked at a Fall Preview edition. (It certainly would have been at least a year ago, for obvious reasons.) I don't have that many of them considering all the issues I've done here, probably because they tend to be more expensive than the normal weekly issue. But this one only cost a buck, and so here we are with a week full of premieres, specials, awards shows, and all other kinds of folderol.

Let's start with a look at the new shows, many of which premiere this week. It's probably a good thing to mention them here, because in the intervening 43 years some of then have barely been mentioned since. For instance, Monday gives us Lucan, the wolf boy played by Kevin Brophy, which airs only 11 times, although to be fair it was irregularly scheduled over a 16-month period. It shares a timespot on ABC with The San Pedro Beach Bums; they only manage ten episodes, even serving as lead-in for Monday Night Football. They're joined in failure by CBS's Young Dan'l Boone; even Rick Moses can't lead that show to the promised land opposite NBC's powerhouse Little House on the Prairie, lasting a mere four episodes. Don't worry, Dan'l; things get better when you grow up to be Fess Parker. The Betty White Show features a memorable lead in a memorable parody of an existing series (a police show called "Undercover Woman") but lasts only 14 weeks. And don't forget Rafferty, with Patrick McGoohan as a no-nonsense doctor who practices on CBS for 13 weeks. That's only one night out of seven; can there be much hope for the rest of the week?

Tuesday gives us a pair of dramas, The Fitzpatricks on CBS and Mulligan's Stew on NBC, the former runs for 13 episodes, the latter for only six. Rod Taylor stars in NBC's The Oregon Trail, which airs only six of its 13; that's followed by Big Hawaii with Cliff Potts, which manages to see nine of its 13 make it to the screen. Tony Roberts and Squire Fridell team up as laywers Rosetti and Ryan, but they can't appeal their six-episode cancellation with NBC. Redd Foxx ditched Sanford and Son in favor of an ABC variety show that doesn't last more than a month; meanwhile, at the retooled Sanford Arms, only half of its eight episodes see the light of day. Logan's Run, based on the sci-fi classic, runs out of steam after 14 Friday nights on CBS. And Saturday's responsible for We've Got Each Other, which is a nice thought, but what they really need is an audience, which they don't got, departing the mortal coils of CBS after 13 weeks. Lisa Hartman's Bewitched sequel Tabitha, like Lucan an irregularly-scheduled series, makes it through 11 episodes. The CBS sitcom On Our Own sounds as if it should be an abject failure, but to its great credit it survives the entire season.

After all that, you'd probably be justified in wondering whether this season produces any success stories, but let me assure you there are indeed. While We've Got Each Other might not have been a success, a glamorous, romantic cruise ship called The Love Boat ► certainly was, running nine seasons plus a few specials, and those wacky highway patrolmen Jon and Ponch at CHiPs had a very successful six seasons. Soap, which debuts on Tuesday nights opposite CBS's One Day at a Time, runs for four heralded seasons; Carter Country, named after the new president, takes advantage of small-town Georgia for two seasons; Operation Petticoat, which at least has Jamie Lee Curtis for its inaugural season, also makes it to season two. And while The Man From Atlantis followed up four successful telefilms with a mere 13-week run, it's still fondly remembered by many sci-fi fans.

And then there's one of the best-remembered of the new series, which is also one of the most spectacular failures of the year. Why anyone at NBC would think that The Richard Pryor Show was a good idea is beyond me. Don't misunderstand; Pryor was one of the hottest comics around back then (no pun intended) and I always enjoyed him, but while five or ten minutes of Pryor on the Sullivan or Carson shows was hilarious, someone had to be on a bad trip to think you could give the edgy comedian an hour-long show and not run into 1977-type censorship controversies. The show started with an emasculation joke that I thought was kind of funny, but it's kind of hard to build a show around what you can't do. Today, things would be different; I suspect a Pryor show would be a big hit, especially on one of the cable networks. I don't blame Pryor for this; did NBC know what they were getting themselves into?

Courtesy of RwTd09's YouTube channel, here's a video review of all 22 shows of the new season, which should prove I'm not making these up.


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Specials dominate the week's programming, starting with Saturday's Miss America Pageant (9:00 p.m. CT), broadcast on CBS for the first time since 1965. Phyllis George, Miss America 1971 and co-host of CBS's The NFL Today (fancy that!) joins Bert Parks in crowning Miss Ohio, Susan Perkins, as Miss America 1978. NBC, the spurned suitor of the pageant, counters with a Saturday Night at the Movies presentation of Dirty Harry, much more my style.

Sunday—well, Sunday seems to be nothing but specials, starting at 6:00 p.m. on WTCN with the final episode of Nixon: For the Record, the former president's series of interviews with David Frost. In this conversation, the two discuss the infamous 18½ gap in the White House tapes, Nixon's relationship with cabinet officers including Henry Kissinger and John Mitchell, the historic trip to China, and Nixon's last day in office. On the other hand, if you prefer fantasy to fact, then you'll want to follow this up with the dramatic conclusion of Washington: Behind Closed Doors (8:00 p.m., ABC), based on the best-seller by former Nixon henchman John Erlichman, starring Jason Robards as Richard Monchton as Richard Nixon, and co-starring every Hollywood actor looking for work, including Cliff Robertson, Stefanie Powers, Robert Vaughn, John Houseman, Barry Nelson, Andy Griffith, Harold Gould, and more. As I recall, Behind Closed Doors was ABC's first major miniseries after Roots, at a time when the miniseries was premium television, an invitation to print money. It aired, a la Roots, for six consecutive nights, but it sorely lacked the acclaim of the former.

To see the culmination of that acclaim, tune to NBC at the same time for the Emmy Awards, hosted by Robert Blake and Angie Dickinson. The Emmys were originally scheduled to air on May 15, in their traditional end-of-the-TV-season slot, but were delayed for four months due to an internecine dispute between the New York and Hollywood branches of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. The show has continued in September ever since, but to me it makes a lot more sense to be shown when it did. Anyway, Roots comes to the show with an unprecedented 37 nominations, including all the nominees in the convoluted "Outstanding Lead Actor for a Single Appearance in a Drama or Comedy Series" category, and most of the nominees in the other miniseries categories. It wins six, including "Outstanding Limited Series." Again, if you're not interested in either political soap operas or awards shows, you might check out The Duke in Cahill, U.S. Marshal on CBS. And if the Emmys aren't enough for you, the third (and final) Rock Music Awards air on Thursday (8:00 p.m., ABC), with Peter Frampton and Cher doing the hosting duties.

Of course, what would a week of specials be like without the always-popular "making-of" documentary? In the days before DVDs and their extra features, these would pop up from time to time on the networks, especially when they had to do with movies that wouldn't be on TV for awhile. Hey, gotta find some way to capitalize on them, right? On Sunday at 8:00 p.m., CBS goes in-depth with a look at The Making of "The Deep" and the challenges of underwater filming. On Friday at 7:00 p.m., it's ABC's turn, witgh The Making of "Star Wars," "as told by C3PO and R2D2." It promises "incredible secrets," and who am I to argue with that? In case you're curious, and I was (either that, or I'm just trying to fill up the page), neither of these movies, when they finally made it to TV, were shown on the networks that broadcast these specials. The Deep eventually aired on ABC (with additional footage), and Star Wars was shown on CBS, after having made the run of cable and pay-TV.

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We've got two of them on tap here, and Sports are big in this week's prime time scene as well. The NFL has yet to expand to 16 games, so their season doesn't kick off until next week; ABC fills the Monday Night Football gap with a season-opening clash between UCLA and Houston, live from the Astrodome (8:00 p.m.). It's a grim start to a grim season for UCLA; they lose this game 17-13, and wind up having to forfeit their seven victories after the season due to having used ineligible players. Tuesday and Wednesday, we have an unprecedented six hours of boxing, starting Tuesday on CBS (7:00 p.m.), with "Night of the Champions," headlined by Carlos Palomino defending his WBC Welterweight title, Danny Lopez defending his WBC Featherweight title, and the fifth professional fight for future heavyweight champion Michael Spinks. The next night at the same time, NBC counters with "A Night With the Heavyweights," featuring six of the world's top-10 heavyweights, including Ken Norton (#1), Jimmy Young (#2), Ron Lyle (#3), future champion Larry Holmes (#6), Howard Smith (#8, not to be confused with the newsman) and Lorenzo Zanon (#10). Even in the glory days of televised boxing, back in the 1950s and early 1960s, there were never back-to-back nights like this. (In case you're wondering, ABC isn't left out; Alfredo Escalera defends his WBC Junior-Lightweight crown on Wide World of Sports Saturday at 1:00 p.m. As I said, quite a week.)

A couple of other events round out the sports week; Notre Dame takes on the defending national champion Pitt Panthers in the season debut of ABC's college football (Saturday, 2:30 p.m.). The Fighting Irish win 19-9, on the way to winning the national championship themselves. The U.S. Open tennis championships finish up in New York, with the woman's final (won by Chris Evert) on Saturday (11:00 a.m., CBS), and Guillermo Vilas upsetting Jimmy Connors in the men's final (Sunday, 11:00 a.m., same network). It's not only the end of this year's tournament, it's the end of an era: after this year, the Open moves from Forest Hills to a monstrosity of a stadium in Flushing Meadow. The Minnesota Twins are along for the ride, with a trio of games against the Chicago White Sox that nobody cares about.

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I don't want you to think that everything this week is a special, but there are some returning shows with season premieres that you might think special. For instance, Happy Days (Tuesday, 7:00 p.m., ABC) expands to an hour as Fonzie heads to Hollywood, with the rest of the gang in tow; Cheryl Ladd makes her debut as the newest of Charlie's Angels (Wednesday, 8:00 p.m., ABC); Fish disappears on his retirement day at Barney Miller (Thursday, 8:00 p.m., ABC); and Wonder Woman expands to 90 minutes to celebrate its move to a contemporary timeframe and a new network (CBS, Friday, 7:00 p.m.). On The Rockford Files fourth-season opener (Friday, 8:00 p.m., NBC), James Garner's old Maverick buddy, Jack Kelly, joins in the fun when Rockford becomes the victim of identity theft. That's followed by Quincy at 9:00 p.m., and as the ad says, "The doctor is never at a loss for clues. . . or clients." And that's one of the problems I always had with Quincy: a coroner's clients are all dead. He's not a private detective!

We may not have the "NBC Week" of the old days, but the Saturday morning kids' lineup debuts on all three networks, and let's see what we've got. There are still a few old favorites around, like The Pink Panther, Superfriends, Archie, Scooby Doo and a new version of Mr. Magoo, but it's not the Saturday morning I remember growing up to.

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Finally, TV Guide's publisher, Walter H. Annenberg, has an article with a provocative title that seems particularly apropos for our times. It's called "The Cult of Vulnerability Endagers the United States," and it's about the need to recognize the dangers that America faces from abroad, but there are a couple of sentences that really seem to leap out. The "cult of vulnerability," according to Annenberg, looks to reduce defense spending and "sap our political strength to further their muddled ideas of social progress." Annenberg describes it as "a cult that has low regard for American traditions, that invariably criticizes our Government and our economic system," and that their attitudes are "broadcast by radio and television, printed by newspapers and magazines, believed by all too many citizens who are willing to let others think for them." Annenberg quotes historian Henry Steele Commager (who's written for TV Guide in the past) that "It is surprising we should be skeptical of a society that achieved a larger degree of political and social democracy, constitutional order, effective limits on the pretensions of government, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, civil liberties, popular education and material well-being than any other on the globe."

To this, Annenberg says, "We can, while honoring our traditions and taking pride in our Nation's achievements, still recognize our failings and strive to correct them in an intelligent, responsible manner. We can, if we look to the past to give us confidence in the future, eliminate the inequalities that remain in our society and pursue solutions to the other problems that face us." Annenberg doesn't deny that problems exist, but that the solution is to reform things, not replace them. And in the face of threats from foreign powers, he wonders why we don't hear more about them on the network news. "Can they be too busy blaiming blackout looting on flaws in our society, or condemning the CIA for errors long since corrected?" Annenberg concludes with an ominous caution. "The cult, the manner of thinking that finds nothing right about our society and nothing wrong about helping unfriendly countries gain real or potential power over us is strongest in the area where it can do the most harm—in broadcast and print journalism." I won't trot out that old line about how the more things change, but as the pages of TV Guide frequently remind us time and again, we seem to face the same problems over and over, without ever learning. Rita Mae Brown called that the definition of insanity. Perhaps it's just business as usual. TV  

Around the dial

This week's Hitchcock Project at bare•bones e-zine is the kind I really like, not that I don't like them all, but Jack prefaces his episode description by putting it into historical context—what was happening in the country at the time the episode was originally broadcast. It informs how the viewer of the time would have watched it, and by pointing this out, Jack helps us to appreciate the episode even more. That episode, by the way, is Harold Swanton's "Bang, You're Dead," from October 1961, directed by Hitch himself.
At Classic Film & TV Cafe, Rick takes us on another of his "Seven Things to Know About" features; this week's honoree is the popular Karen Valentine , who was a very busy actress through the 1980s, but will always remain best-known and loved for her role in Room 222.
The comic strip "Blondie" is turning 90 , and Once Upon a Screen celebrates the anniversary by looking at the history of the strip, the long-running movie series, the less well-known radio series, and the two unsuccessful attempts to bring the Bumsteads to television.
Jodie's reached a milestone at Garroway at Large: she's concluded her Newspapers.com search for clippings about the Master Communicator. The number tops out at over 3,000 (and that's just through Dave's death) and now it comes time to put those clippings to work in telling the story of Dave's life.
At A Shroud of Thoughts, Terence pays tribute to the great  Diana Rigg , who died yesterday at 82. I'll have my own thoughts on that next Wednesday.
Howard Duff is terrific in the Twilight Zone episode "A World of Difference,"  and at Shadow & Substance, Paul looks at the two interpretations of this story of a man's dual identity, and how it fits into the Serling portfolio.
Finally, today is September 11, and 19 years ago it was one of the worst days in American history, one of those occasions when anyone who was alive remembers where they were and what they were doing when they heard the news. Most of us were gathered around the television watching the unbelievable unfold, and the sight of those two towers coming down is something that can't be forgotten. The thought that people in their early twenties don't have any memory of it is sobering. It also makes me feel old—but then, what doesn't? Anyway, take a moment when you have time today to reflect on September 11, 2001, and how it changed the world. Even after 19 years, it remains a day of profound sadness. TV  

The life and death of the greatest radio program

Why, you may ask, am I reviewing a book about classic radio on a blog devoted to classic television? Aside from the obvious connection between the two media, it's absolutely necessary for one to understand the role that television played in the creation of Monitor, the NBC radio program that ran for nearly 20 years from 1955 to 1975.

By the mid-50s, it was clear that television had forever changed the way network radio functioned. Most of radio's brightest stars and programs had already transitioned from radio to television (or were in the process of doing so), and the advertising dollars were following. It was pretty clear to most people that if something wasn't done, and soon, network radio could well cease to exist. This is where Pat Weaver comes in, and where Dennis Hart's engrossing story begins.

Monitor: The Inside Story of Network Radio's Greatest Program, by Dennis Hart, iUniverse, Inc., 270 pages, $21.95

Weaver, of course, was the L'enfant terrible of early television; as president of NBC, he'd created everything from the Today and Tonight shows to the concept of the TV special, or "spectacular." His idea to save network radio was equally audacious: a continuous, 40-hour program running from Saturday morning to Sunday midnight, featuring some of the biggest names in entertainment presenting literally everything: news, sports, comedy, live concerts, interviews with celebrities, recorded music, and remote reports from around the world—in other words, a show that would become known for "going places and doing things." Weaver described his baby as a "kaleidoscopic phantasmagoria," but settled on a much simpler name: Monitor.

As Hart points out, this was an incredibly risky move: by putting all its eggs in one basket, large though that basket might be, NBC was literally staking its future on Monitor. If the show failed to attract advertisers and listeners, the network would likely go under. The fact that it didn't, that Monitor became an epic adventure that would run from the last of the big bands through Vietnam and Watergate and acid rock, was a testimony not only to Weaver's vision but to the talents of the producers and directors, writers, technicians, and personalities that helped assemble the mammoth show each week. And it is this story that Hart brings so wonderfully to life.

Dave Garroway, the first "communicator"The list of people who appeared on Monitor over the years reads like something of a who's who of the entertainment world. The list of hosts alone (or "communicators," as they were initially called) would have been enough: the very first voice of Monitor, Dave Garroway; newsmen such as Frank McGee, David Brinkley and Frank Blair; television personalities from Ed McMahon and Hugh Downs to Gene Rayburn and Art Fleming; DJs such as Big Wilson, Wolfman Jack and Don Imus; and actors whom one wouldn't picture as radio hosts: David Wayne, Barry Nelson, James Daly and Tony Randall, all of whom helped create a conversational intimacy with the listener that made everyone feel as if they were part of an extended family.

There were comedy stars as well: Bob and Ray (who initially were to be on call throughout the weekend, ready to fill in on a moment's notice should a technical glitch prevent a particular report from being broadcast), Nichols and May, Jonathan Winters, Ernie Kovacs and more. Feature presentations and reviews throughout the weekend were provided by names like Arlene Francis, Betty Furness, Gene Shalit and Dr. Joyce Brothers. And no overview of Monitor would be complete without the immortal " Miss Monitor ," played by Tedi Thurman, the sexy, alluring voice who read the national weather while romantic music played in the background.

The program itself was a true magazine, covering it all: breaking news, in-progress sports reports, live big band and jazz concerts, interviews with celebrities and newsmakers, features on all aspects of life and the latest in popular culture. It's a rich, colorful history, and Dennis Hart takes full advantage of it. He was fortunate enough to connect with and interview many of Monitor's key people while they were still living, collecting insightful (and often hilarious) stories from those both in front of the mic and behind the control room glass, assembling them in a way that gives the reader a real picture (so to speak) of what made Monitor such a special show. He also does a good job of placing Monitor's role in radio's rich history, particularly the bold advertising timeshares with affiliates that allowed the show to thrive well into the '60s.

In fact, though, some of the most interesting segments of Hart's story come from the anecdotes provided by those who listened to the shows, both adults and those who grew up with Monitor as a regular weekend ritual. Nobody expected to listen to the entire show, and that was the point: it was always there, ready whenever you happened to tune in to it. Monitor took full advantage of growing American mobility to position itself as the listener's friend, whether you were at the beach, driving in the car, working in the garage or basement, or just spending time with friends. There's one scene in particular, in which a listener describes the effect of walking down the street, hearing Monitor coming continuously from every house along the block, that illustrates just how much we've lost in our headlong rush to embrace the world of individuality and fragmented demographics.

Nothing lasts forever, though, and such was the case with Monitor, which eventually fell victim to a number of circumstances, most of all the desire of big-market affiliates to control their own commercial and broadcasting time. When Monitor went off the air, in 1975, there were still over 120 stations, but hardly any were in the major markets. And if there's any criticism of Hart's book, it's in his description of Monitor's downfall; chapter after chapter discusses the program's success in terms of stars, segments, features and the like, so the story of its demise (a gradual reduction in hours from 40 to a mere 12, plus 9 hours of repeats; loss of stations, advertising schemes with affiliates that cannibalized the show's flow and hastened its death) comes as something of a shock, with little foreshadowing provided to give it context. It also serves to somewhat diminish the show's remarkably long run; without the twists, turns and surprises that surrounded the show's existence, one feels less the weight of the show's passing years, and its ability (or inability, as in the case of popular music) to change with the times.

That's a minor quibble, to be sure, in this fascinating book. I have to admit that I have no memories of Monitor myself, although I must have just missed being aware of it, for I still have a great fondness for the all-news format that replaced it (NBC's News and Information Service, whose slogan was, "All News, All Day, Every Day"). Or perhaps Monitor had already disappeared from the airwaves where I lived back then. All the more reason, then, for this book (and the companion website, to which new soundchecks are constantly being added), to introduce those of us without memories to the remarkable show that was Monitor. For those fans of old time radio programs, the claim that Monitor was network radio's "greatest program" might seem a bit spurious, or at least somewhat grandiose.

But a 40-hour program that was born of desperation, a program that helped save an entire network for twenty years, a program that went around the world and broadcast anything and everything that was worth broadcasting, all without losing a sense of fun and wonder: well, that makes it pretty great in my book. TV  

What's on TV? Wednesday, September 6, 1961

At first glance, nothing seems to pop out from today's listings, but a deeper look gives us some gems. For instance, this afternoon's Science Fiction Theater features Vincent Price as a police scientist; Ian Hendry, one of the originals on The Avengers, is being blackmailed into treason on Kraft Mystery Theater; future Oscar winner Beatrice Straight is on Route 66; Naked City highlights Martin Balsam as the guest star; more powerful, and more disturbing, are the turns by Frank Sutton and Robert Blake as a pair of psychopath brothers who meet a bad end; and Rhonda Fleming is "The Woman in Gray" on Hong Kong. Not bad, hmm? The listings this week are from the Utah-Idaho edition.



 2  KUTV (Salt Lake City) (NBC)
    MORNING   
    7:00 TODAY—John Chancellor
    8:00 SAY WHEN
    8:30 PLAY YOUR HUNCH—Merv Griffin  COLOR 
    9:00 PRICE IS RIGHT—Bill Cullen  COLOR 
    9:30 CONCENTRATION
  10:00 TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES—Bob Barker
  10:30 IT COULD BE YOU—Bill Leyden  COLOR 
  10:55 NEWS—Ray Scherer
  11:00 TROUBLE WITH FATHER
  11:30 WOMAN’S PAGE—Interview
  AFTERNOON 
  12:00 JAN MURRAY  COLOR 
  12:30 LORETTA YOUNG
    1:00 YOUNG DR. MALONE
    1:30 FROM THESE ROOTS
    2:00 MAKE ROOM FOR DADDY
    2:30 MOVIE—Comedy“Every Girl Should Be Married” (1948)
    4:00 BARNEY BEAR—Children
    4:15 DROOPY THE DOG—Cartoon
    4:30 POPEYE—Cartoons
    4:45 CHILDREN’S NEWS
    5:00 DICK TRACY—Cartoon
    5:15 BOZO THE CLOWN—Cartoon
    5:30 YOGI BEAR—Cartoons
     EVENING    
    6:00 LOCAL NEWS—Doug Mitchell
    6:10 WEATHER
    6:15 NEWS
    6:30 PRICE IS RIGHT—Bill Cullen  COLOR 
    7:00 MYSTERY THEATER“Flight from Treason”
    8:00 IT COULD BE YOU  COLOR 
    8:30 DEATH VALLEY DAYS—Drama
    9:00 WAGON TRAIN
  10:00 NEWS
  10:15 WEATHER
  10:20 SPORTS
  10:30 JACK PAAR—Variety  COLOR Guest host: Orson Bean


 2  KBOI (Boise) (CBS)
    MORNING   
    9:00 DOUBLE EXPOSURE
    9:30 KARTOON KARNIVAL
  10:00 LOVE OF LIFE—Serial
  10:30 LOVE THAT BOB!
  11:00 CAMOUFLAGE
  11:30 AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial
  AFTERNOON 
  12:00 NEWS
  12:05 RAY MILLAND—Comedy
  12:30 HOUSE PARTYGuest: Jean Louis
    1:00 MILLIONAIRE
    1:30 VERDICT IS YOURS
    2:00 BRIGHTER DAY
    2:15 SECRET STORM
    2:30 EDGE OF NIGHT
    3:00 BONNIE WALLIS—Variety
    4:00 BURNS AND ALLEN—Comedy
    4:30 FUNLAND EXPRESS—Cowan
    5:25 NEWS, WEATHER, SPORTS
    5:45 NEWS—Douglas EdwardsCharles Collingwood substituting
     EVENING    
    6:00 YOGI BEAR—Cartoons
    6:30 DANGER MAN—Adventure
    7:00 MALIBU RUN—Adventure
    8:00 U.S. STEEL HOUR—Drama“Delayed Honeymoon”
    9:00 I’VE GOT A SECRET—PanelPanelists: Betsy Palmer, Bess Myerson, Henry Morgan, Bill Cullen. Host: Gary Moore
    9:30 HONG KONG—Adventure
  10:30 NEWS
  10:40 MAGIC MOMENTS IN SPORTS
  10:45 MOVIE—DramaMovie Time: “The Way Out” (English; 1956)


 3  KID (Idaho Falls) (CBS, ABC)
    MORNING   
    9:00 DOUBLE EXPOSURE
    9:30 ROMPER ROOM—Children
  10:00 LOVE OF LIFE—Serial
  10:30 LOVE THAT BOB!
  11:00 CAMOUFLAGE
  11:30 AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial
  AFTERNOON 
  12:00 TO BE ANNOUNCED
  12:30 HOUSE PARTYGuest: Jean Louis
    1:00 MILLIONAIRE
    1:30 VERDICT IS YOURS
    2:00 BRIGHTER DAY
    2:15 SECRET STORM
    2:30 EDGE OF NIGHT
    3:00 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW
    3:15 GUIDING LIGHT
    3:30 AMERICAN BANDSTAND
    4:00 WHAT’S COOKING?—Women
    4:30 LONE RANGER—Western
    5:00 CARTOONS
    5:30 MALIBU RUN—Adventure
     EVENING    
    6:30 PETE SMITH—Comedy
    6:45 NEWS AND WEATHER
    7:00 FIVE STAR JUBILEE
    7:30 I’VE GOT A SECRET—PanelPanelists: Betsy Palmer, Bess Myerson, Henry Morgan, Bill Cullen. Host: Gary Moore
    8:00 LAW AND MR. JONES
    8:30 DANGER MAN—Adventure
    9:00 ROUTE 66—Adventure
  10:00 HAWAIIAN EYE—Mystery
  11:00 YOUR ALL STAR THEATER


 4  KCPX (Salt Lake City) (ABC)
    MORNING   
    7:00 CAPTAIN KC AND PIXIE
    8:30 ABBOTT AND COSTELLO
    9:00 LIFE OF RILEY—Comedy
    9:30 JACK LaLANNE—Exercise
  10:00 TEXAN—Western
  10:30 LOVE THAT BOB!
  11:00 CAMOUFLAGE
  11:30 NUMBER PLEASE—Collyer
  AFTERNOON 
  12:00 NEWS—Kever and James
  12:30 BURNS AND ALLEN—Comedy
    1:00 DAY IN COURT—Drama
    1:30 SEVEN KEYS—Jack Narz
    2:00 QUEEN FOR A DAY
    2:30 WHO DO YOU TRUST?
    3:00 AMERICAN BANDSTAND
    4:00 CAPTAIN KC—Cartoons
    4:30 NEWS
    5:00 LONE RANGER—Western
    5:30 WHIRLYBIRDS—Adventure
     EVENING    
    6:00 LOCAL NEWS—Roy Gibson
    6:10 WEATHER
    6:15 NEWS
    6:30 HONG KONG—Adventure
    7:30 OZZIE AND HARRIET—Comedy
    8:00 HAWAIIAN EYE—Mystery
    9:00 NAKED CITY—Drama
  10:00 NEWS
  10:15 WEATHER
  10:20 SPORTS
  10:30 CORONADO 9—Adventure
  11:00 DAYTON ALLEN—Comedy
  11:05 MOVIE—DramaBig Movie: "Two-Faced Woman" (1941)


 5  KSL (Salt Lake City) (CBS)
    MORNING   
    7:00 NEWS—Dallas Townsend
    7:15 CAPTAIN KANGAROO—Children
    8:00 I LOVE LUCY—Comedy
    8:30 VIDEO VILLAGE—Monty Hall
    9:00 DOUBLE EXPOSURE
    9:30 MID-MORNING MATINEE
  10:00 LOVE OF LIFE—Serial
  10:30 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW
  10:45 GUIDING LIGHT—Serial
  11:00 ROMPER ROOM—Children
  11:30 AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial
  AFTERNOON 
  12:00 CELEBRITY PLAYHOUSE
  12:30 HOUSE PARTYGuest: Jean Louis
    1:00 MILLIONAIRE
    1:30 VERDICT IS YOURS
    2:00 BRIGHTER DAY
    2:15 SECRET STORM
    2:30 EDGE OF NIGHT
    3:00 DR. HUDSON—Drama
    3:30 HIGHWAY PATROL
    4:00 SUPERMAN—Adventure
    4:30 BROKEN ARROW—Western
    5:00 SCIENCE FICTION THEATER
    5:30 NEWS—Don Spainhower
    5:40 WEATHER—Tom Bradshaw
    5:45 NEWS—Douglas EdwardsCharles Collingwood substituting
     EVENING    
    6:00 HIGHWAY PATROL—Police
    6:30 DANGER MAN—Adventure
    7:00 ANGEL—Comedy
    7:30 I’VE GOT A SECRET—Panel
    8:00 U.S. STEEL HOUR—Drama“Delayed Honeymoon”
    9:00 MALIBU RUN—Adventure
  10:00 NEWS
  10:15 WEATHER
  10:20 SPORTS
  10:30 HIGHWAY PATROL—Police
  11:00 MOVIE—WesternLate Show: “Geronimo” (1939)


 7  KUED (Salt Lake City) (Educ.)
    MORNING   
    9:00 NATURAL SCIENCE
  11:00 UTAH IN PERSPECTIVE
  AFTERNOON 
    1:30 NATURAL SCIENCE
     EVENING    
    7:00 DISCOVERY—Science
    7:30 ANATOMY OF A REVOLUTION
    8:00 INQUIRING MIND—Education
    8:30 RETROSPECT—Paul Cracoft
    9:00 BIBLICAL MASTERPIECES
    9:30 FOOD FOR LIFE—Nutrition


 7  KTVB (Boise) (NBC, ABC)
    MORNING   
    7:00 TODAY—John Chancellor
    8:00 SAY WHEN
    8:30 PLAY YOUR HUNCH—Merv Griffin  COLOR 
    9:00 PRICE IS RIGHT—Bill Cullen  COLOR 
    9:30 CONCENTRATION
  10:00 TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES—Bob Barker
  10:30 ROMPER ROOM—Children
  11:15 CARTOON COMEDIES—Children
  11:30 NUMBER PLEASE—Collyer
  AFTERNOON 
  12:00 JAN MURRAY  COLOR 
  12:30 LORETTA YOUNG
    1:00 DAY IN COURT—Drama
    1:30 SEVEN KEYS—Jack Narz
    2:00 QUEEN FOR A DAY
    2:30 WHO DO YOU TRUST?
    3:00 AMERICAN BANDSTAND
    4:00 PERISCOPE—Discussion
    4:40 BOZO THE CLOWN—Children
    5:00 MERRY MILKMAN—Children
    5:30 LONE RANGER—Western
     EVENING    
    6:00 HOMETOWN REPORTER
    6:10 WEATHER
    6:15 NEWS
    6:30 PRICE IS RIGHT—Bill Cullen  COLOR 
    7:00 MYSTERY THEATER“Flight from Treason”
    8:00 GREAT GHOST TALES
    8:30 JIM BACKUS—Comedy
    9:00 NAKED CITY—Drama
  10:00 DEADLINE—Drama
  10:30 NEWS
  10:45 JACK PAAR—Variety  COLOR Guest host: Orson Bean


 8  KIFI (Idaho Falls) (NBC)
    MORNING   
    8:00 SAY WHEN
    8:30 PLAY YOUR HUNCH—Merv Griffin  COLOR 
    9:00 PRICE IS RIGHT—Bill Cullen  COLOR 
    9:30 CONCENTRATION
  10:00 TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES—Bob Barker
  10:30 IT COULD BE YOU—Bill Leyden  COLOR 
  10:55 NEWS—Ray Scherer
  11:00 NEWS—Don Oliver
  11:05 TO BE ANNOUNCED
  AFTERNOON 
  12:00 JAN MURRAY  COLOR 
  12:30 LORETTA YOUNG
    1:00 YOUNG DR. MALONE
    1:30 FROM THESE ROOTS
    2:00 MAKE ROOM FOR DADDY
    2:30 TO BE ANNOUNCED
    3:00 MOVIE—Drama“The Big Wheel” (1949)
    5:00 CARTOONS
    5:30 THREE STOOGES—Comedy
     EVENING    
    6:00 NEWS, WEATHER, SPORTS
    6:30 PRICE IS RIGHT—Bill Cullen  COLOR 
    7:00 MYSTERY THEATER“Flight from Treason”
    8:00 IT COULD BE YOU  COLOR 
    8:30 HOW TO MARRY A MILLIONAIRE—Comedy
    9:00 WAGON TRAIN
  10:00 M SQUAD--Police
  10:30 JACK PAAR—Variety  COLOR Guest host: Orson Bean


 9  KVOG (Ogden) (IND.)
  AFTERNOON 
    4:30 TO BE ANNOUNCED
    5:30 MOVIE—Drama“Kansas City Confidential” (1953)
     EVENING    
    7:00 MR. DISTRICT ATTORNEY
    7:30 MOVIE—Drama“Berlin Correspondent” (1942)
    9:00 NEWS, WEATHER, SPORTS
    9:30 MOVIE—Mystery“The Brasher Doubloon” (1947)


11 KLIX (Twin Falls) (CBS, NBC, ABC)
    MORNING   
    7:55 NEWS—Wright and Bickley
    8:00 SAY WHEN
    8:30 PLAY YOUR HUNCH—Merv Griffin  COLOR 
    9:00 PRICE IS RIGHT—Bill Cullen  COLOR 
    9:30 CONCENTRATION
  10:00 TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES—Bob Barker
  10:30 IT COULD BE YOU—Bill Leyden  COLOR 
  10:55 NEWS—Ray Scherer
  11:00 CAMOUFLAGE
  11:30 AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial
  AFTERNOON 
  12:00 NEWS
  12:30 HOUSE PARTYGuest: Jean Louis
    1:00 MILLIONAIRE
    1:30 VERDICT IS YOURS
    2:00 BRIGHTER DAY
    2:15 SECRET STORM
    2:30 EDGE OF NIGHT
    3:00 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW
    3:15 GUIDING LIGHT
    3:30 AMERICAN BANDSTAND
    4:00 THREE STOOGES—Comedy
    4:30 LONE RANGER—Western
    5:00 CARTOONS
    5:30 MALIBU RUN—Adventure
     EVENING    
    6:30 NEWS, WEATHER, SPORTS
    7:00 FIVE STAR JUBILEE
    7:30 I’VE GOT A SECRET—PanelPanelists: Betsy Palmer, Bess Myerson, Henry Morgan, Bill Cullen. Host: Gary Moore
    8:00 LAW AND MR. JONES
    8:30 DANGER MAN—Adventure
    9:00 WAGON TRAIN
  10:00 HAWAIIAN EYE—Mystery
  11:00 MOVIE—To Be Announced




x TV  

This week in TV Guide: September 2, 1961

How to watch TV:

1. Walk over to set. 2. Turn on. 3. Watch.

Well, that's how I learned to watch television when I was a kid, anyway. Obviously, Leo Rosten has something a little more in mind. His idea, however, is even more radical: if you want better television, turn it off.

Rosten, political scientist, author and social critic, calls the current fare on television "dreary at best and ghastly at worst," but that doesn't make it much out of line from other forms of mass media; many newspapers are "sensational and shoddy," paperbacks "that are part of the alleged 'cultural revolution' are shallow and worthless," and "much of what appears on the Broadway stage is banal and unworthy of a civilized man's attention." In that sense, TV is no different. "The public appetite for the silly and the trivial, for sheer distraction, the national mania for "escape" and narcotic "fun"—these are so great and so widespread that one can only wonder how our schools and families and churches have turned out so many people whose taste is so abominable."

Just when you want to dismiss Rosten as another anti-television elitist, however, he confesses: "I love television. I do. I love it and I use it." It is a place to catch up with the news, to view superior dramas, to watch a sporting event without freezing. It gives him "access to a thousand things I could not otherwise experience." And that's the point: it's because Rosten loves television, and because it is here to stay, that he becomes outraged by bad programs. And that's why he says that "[p]arents can surely teach their children how to use TV—instead of letting TV use them." Television did not abolish parents, he notes, nor teachers, preachers and critics, "and I wish they would stop acting as if they were dead."

If you want better TV, Rosten says, vote by turning off the tube. "There is no swifter or more effective way of influencing Madison Avenue than by registering your vote for or against a program—that is, by listening to programs which are superior and by not listening to programs which are bilge." That we spend so much time agonizing over the quality of television programming is a direct indictment of—ourselves. "The chief trouble with television is nothing more or less than the lazy public which patronizes it with so little sense or taste or judgment." Networks would give us better shows, he concludes, "if enough Americans helped them by supporting excellence and throttling that venality which surrounds us." I wonder what he'd think of TV today?

t  t  t
In the December 31, 1966 issue of TV Guide, Neil Hickey and Joe Finnigan wrote about a "TV disaster" called The Tammy Grimes Show. The reason I bring it up, and I'm counting on you to click on the link and check that article out for yourself, is because this week Edith Efron has a profile of "a truly unusual girl," none other than Tammy Grimes herself.

She's become a star, thanks to her turn in the Broadway hit The Unsinkable Molly Brown. "She drives critics and reporters into frenzied explosions of prose when they try to describe her appearance," Efron writes. One called her "a sexy little screwball," another described her as "sea spray in the Rockies, calypso in a New England cemetery, and Cinderella in a strip tease." And then there's that voice, that "grits like a key turning in a boudoir lock," that "combines froggy throatiness with an amusing squeak." "She talks in a stream-of-consciousness patter, appears to say whatever comes into her mind and almost never answers direct questions," according to a reporter who's interviewed her. There's an oversized quality to her, one made for the stage, that worked to her detriment on The Tammy Grimes Show.

However, says Efron, there's also a "savagely shy, withdrawn girl with wistful little eyes that nibble at one in sidelong glances, a girl with a twisted, crooked smile that looks more like a grimace of pain." She is a private person at heart, one uncomfortable talking about the things that mean the most to her. She admits that she's suspicious about people; "Sometimes I get terribly enthusiastic. I put them up on a pedestal. Then . . they fall down from the pedestal and I am disappointed." For a moment, as she tells Efron this, she seems to relax for the first time. Her desires are not the same as others; "They don't go after something because they want it. They're really not seeking pleasure for themselves at all. They just imitate each other blindly." When she says things like this, one wonders if she isn't talking about her ex-husband, actor Christopher Plummer, father of her daughter and future actress Amanda. ("I never saw a girl child who resembled her father so much. She looks like Henry the Fifth.")

Her desires are simple: the theater, one man, and children. She goes through two more marriages: one to actor Jeremy Slate, which lasts less than two years, and another to composer Richard Bell, which lasted until his death in 2005. Efron notes that once she broached the subject of happiness, she went back into her protective shell. Reading all this, it's easy to picture how this fits in to the disaster of The Tammy Grimes Show. Whether she was "let down" by people who convinced her they knew best about the show, if her personality wasn't suitable for the small screen, or if it was just a lousy show—we'll probably never know this for sure. What we do know is that Tammy Grimes is, as Efron puts it, an "unusual girl," or, as the press calls her, "a kook."

t  t  t
Care for some morning baseball? Why not, thanks to the Mountain time zone. At 10:55 a.m. Saturday and Sunday, the Detroit Tigers face off at Yankee Stadium against the New York Yankees, with the American League's three top candidates for MVP: Norm Cash of the Tigers (who wins the batting title this season), and Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle of the Yanks. CBS brings you the games, with Dizzy Dean and Pee Wee Reese (◄) behind the microphones. Meanwhile, on NBC the action begins at 11:00 a.m. both days, with Lindsey Nelson and Joe Garagiola calling the play-by-play. Saturday it's the Los Angeles Dodgers at the Milwaukee Braves; Sunday it's the Cleveland Indians in Baltimore against the Orioles. If baseball's not your thing, Wide World of Sports has the World Water Ski Championships from Long Beach, with Jim McKay and Jim Simpson reporting. (3:00 p.m., ABC)

It is indeed a really big shew for Sunday's Ed Sullivan (6:00 p.m. MT, CBS), a rerun from last year with headliners Bobby Darin, Edith Piaf and Trude Adams, plus comedians Wayne and Shuster, Jackie Kannnon, the late Lord Buckley (who died in November, 1960), impressionist Rex Ramer, and the Pompoff Thedy Family of clowns. It's too bad I don't have anything to put up against it, because Ed would be a sure winner.

We've got an article about the resurgence of interest in the Glenn Miller Orchestra, led for the last five years by Ray McKinley, who calls it "real music"; "The kids, brought up on a diet of rock 'n' roll, sit there bored until they begin to listen to the music. Then they join their parents on the dance floor. I guess they find the old folks are right, that our music is pleasant and danceable." Find out for yourself Monday on Glenn Miller Time (8:00 p.m., CBS)

Playhouse 90 has a provocative offering on Tuesday night (7:30 p.m., CBS). "Journey to the Day" shows us what takes place in a group psychoterapy session through the eyes of six patients in a state mental hospital and their doctor. John Frankenheimer directs a stellar cast including Janice Rule, Mike Nichols, James Dunn, Vivian Nathan, James Gregory, and a rare TV appearance by Mary Astor, with Steven Hill as their doctor. A half-hour later, NBC presents a drama about the famed news photographer  Margaret Bourke-White  (who was played by Farrah Fawcett in a 1989 TV-movie), focusing on her dramatic battle for recovery from Parkinson's disease. Teresa Wright stars as Bourke-White, with Eli Wallach as fellow photographer  Alfred Eisenstaedt .

Jack Paar's in Berlin the latter part of the week, so his seat in New York is being filled by Orson Bean on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Fortunately, as far as I know there were no international incidents as a result of Jack's trip.


Thursday at 9:30 p.m. KCPX, the ABC affiliate in Salt Lake City, has Tightrope, the police drama starring the pre-Mannix Mike Connors as an unnamed undercover agent who assumes a different persona in each episode; while KTVB, the ABC affiliate in Boise, has The Case of the Dangerous Robin, a ZIV-produced crime drama starring the pre-Combat Rick Jason as an insurance investigator. It's the time slot that, until February, was the home of Take a Good Look, Ernie Kovacs' bizarre panel show, co-starring wife Edie Adams. Ernie and his wild sense of humor (he says he's 10 5/8 years ahead of his time) are the subject of an article by Dwight Whitney. The show was not terribly successful in its two-year stint; Kovacs insists it was a satire of a panel show, but Whitney says the problem was that "he tried to pull his punches, to kid himself and his audience into thinking they actually were watching a panel show." It is a given by now that Kovacs has the most, well, unique sense of humor in the business; Jack Benny once told him that "Normally I hate what I don't understand, but I love this." He is said to have spent $3,000 on one three-second gag ("the used-car salesman whose car dropped through the concrete."). Studio crew members have been known to fight for the privilege of working on his shows. Dutch Masters, his loyal sponsor (even though he smokes only Cuban cigars), loves him; they even liked Take a Good Look. Even though that show is now history, ABC has signed him for a series of specials—three this year, six next year, which he, sadly, will not live to complete. He's not for everyone, but I think Ernie Kovacs is one of the funniest men ever born, and while you can see his influence in many shows over the years, I've yet to see anyone succeed him. And speaking of influence: tonight's Tightrope features a character named "Emile Kovacs." Coincidence?

Another thing on Thursday: Rocky Marciano, the former heavyweight champion, is one of Groucho's guests on You Bet Your Life (8:00 p.m., NBC). His mother was a guest on last week's episode. Friday, KBOI has a classic episode of The Twilight Zone (10:00 p.m.) starring Keenan Wynn and Phyllis Kirk; besides being a humorous episode, it marks the first on-screen appearance of Rod Serling, who actually gets sucked into the story.

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There's an unbylined profile of Dwayne Hickman, star of Dobie Gillis. It's a standard look at a young, level-headed man who's become an accomplished young light comedian, but there's a quote in here I think is worth noting. Rod Amateau, producer-director of Dobie Gillis, says, "I will surprise you. There is Steve McQueen, who has a cute little personality and could be a very fine young light comedian. With that single exception, Dwayne is all alone. Jack Lemmon? He's not young any more." Now there's a thought—Steve McQueen? True, he does have a nice light touch that he displays from time to time, but the King of Cool as a light comedian? The star of Bullitt, The Sand Pebbles, The Magnificent Seven, The Towering Inferno, The Thomas Crown Affair? Yes, a very interesting thought.

Henry Harding's "For the Record" feature at the beginning of the programming section has some notes worth mentioning. There's Robert Wood, the manager of broadcast standards for NBC, i.e. the network censor, talking about the challenge he faces from the myriad number of complaints his office gets from "people or groups "who feel they have been maligned"—anyone from plumbers to milliners. "I don't blame them," he says, "but it sure makes things difficult. If we paid attention to all the complaints, our villains would be faceless, formless, backgroundless and with no visible means of support." And he's not even talking about sponsors, who've been known to meddle a time or two in the details of a story.

Rhode Island Senator John Pastore*, who's had more than one run-in with the television industry, has issued a stern warning to broadcasters about liquor commercials on television. Along with Washington Senator Warren Magnuson, Pastore has said that it would be "foolhardy" for the industry to try and get liquor commercials on television "in these trying times with criticism of the broadcasting industry mounting." The dividing line traditionally has been whiskey; beer and wine are OK to advertise, but nothing harder. Such commercials "would certainly be taken into consideration" when time came for a station's license renewal. The National Association of Broadcasters promises they'll keep their members in line. Pastore, you may recall, was the senator in front of whom Fred Rogers famously testified on the need for funding for public broadcasting back in 1969.

*Fun fact: Pastore won reelection to the Senate in 1970 by defeating an anti-war Catholic priest named John McLaughlin. McLaughlin would later leave the priesthood and become a political pundit and television host. His show—The McLaughlin Group.

I mentioned the New York Yankees earlier; well, WPIX, Channel 11 in New York City, is delirious about its ratings for Yankees baseball this season. They're up 16 percent, not because the Yanks are headed for another American League pennant (they are), but because the M&M Boys, Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle, are both threatening Babe Ruth's storied single-season record of 60 home runs. "Even former Brooklyn Dodger fans are watching, pulling against them, natch!" Maris breaks the record on the final day of the season, finishing with 61, while Mantle, hobbled by an injury, winds up with a mere 54.

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Finally, it's always good to catch up with the Letters section, to find out what the viewers of America are thinking.

Mrs. E. Schlenger of Stamford, Connecticut is one of a number of letter writers who thought to invoke Dorothy Parker in commenting on last month's article about Joyce Gordon, the glamour girl who wears glasses. She says, "As one of the many who wear glasses, I have come to realize that: "Men who make passes seldom stop at glasses!" Speaking as a man, I have no quarrel with this.

Diane Read Haeselbarth of Maywood, New Jersey, noticed that last month's article on "The Working Mother" was written by a man (George Lefferts, "unless we have another George Sand"), and has a bone to pick with him. "I am a college-educated, ex-newspaper reporter, but according to apparent Lefferts-Margaret Mead standards, I am now a simple, bored housewife." She concludes with an opinion that, a scant ten years later, would be quite unfashionable: "Let us hope for the sake of our own and future generations that the American woman has the sensitivity to recognize challenge in the world, wifehood and motherhood, if she is lucky enough to be so blessed." Hear, hear!

Finally, a couple of anonymous letters on "Is Television Aimed at the 12-Year-Old Mind," from the August 19 issue. (You can see that kids and TV was a continuing topic in TV Guides of the time.) A writer in Kimberly, Wisconsin speaks up for the kids who aren't fooled by the pablum that television gives them: "They know what they want even if they put it forth in a childlike manner. The article proves that kids today won't be satisfied with shows that are mediocre, repetitious, uninteresting and unbelievable." Would that I had so much confidence it today's youth—but, of course, they don't watch TV.

The letter of the issue, however—if not of the year—comes from someone signing his/herself as "A 12-Year-Old" in DeWitt, New York, who offers a contrary opinion. "Where did you pick up those oblong 12-year-olds? All the kids around here love bank-bang, shoot-'em-up type of TV shows. As for classics, they're the squarest." And then: "P.S. Please withhold my name for certain personal reasons. Namely my mother." There's not much else one can say after that, is there? TV 

Around the dial

My friend David at Comfort TV is someone whose opinion I trust, so when he asks the immortal question "purchase or pass" about the 1970 Fugitive-lite series The Immortal , starring Christopher George. What's the verdict? Well, you'll have to head over thereto find out.
Growing up, I developed an affection for Kukla, Fran and Ollie, the whimsical puppet show masterminded by Burr Tillstrom, with the lovely Fran Allison as human companion to the Kuklapolitan Players. At Garroway at Large, Jodie reminds us that Dave Garroway often stopped by as a guest , and now you can catch those vintage episodes at YouTube!
Sharpe's World is one of those British series—well, a series of movies, but you know what I mean—that exported to America very, very well, and at Classic Film & TV Café, Rick gives us an introduction to the series , which starred Sean Bean and Daragh O'Malley.
Speaking of TV from across the pond, John at Cult TV Blog takes us to the world of Queenie's Castle , the early '70s sitcom starring the "blonde bombsite" Diana Dors, who was once married to Richard Dawson. It's yet another example of how a television show serves as an inadvertent documentary of the time in which it's made.
At the Broadcasting Archives at the University of Maryland, a really cool look at some stills from the live broadcast of Twelve Angry Men  with Bob Cummings, which I compare favorably to the later, better-known movie version starring Henry Fonda.
The delightfully offbeat Inner Toob takes us on a tour of television shows that in one way or another incorporate Gunsmoke as part of the storyline . Example: an episode of Car 54, Where Are You? in which "Wearing a cowboy hat, while working undercover, Muldoon is mistaken for Marshal Dillon."
Television Obscurities, which I enjoy a lot (but you'd know that if you subscribed to my Twitter feed) has an interesting article about Andy Griffith's failed post-Mayberry series Headmaster , which quickly failed and was replaced by The New Andy Griffith Show, which quickly failed and was replaced by Headmaster. . .

At Shadow & Substance, Paul tells how the first Twilight Zone episode he ever saw hooked him for life. Now there's a discussion we should have sometime: what episode of a TV series made you realize you were hooked on the show? Could be a topic for next week?
Finally, I've mentioned several times that I've never seen an episode of Mad Men, which often surprises people. "You're so interested in that era," they say, "I'd have thought you'd be into it." Well, I'm not, and this article from The New Criterion kind of tells why, in this flashback to a  critique of the History Channel documentary series The Fifties . I continue to say that the best way to learn about a particular time is not to watch a series about it, but to watch one made in that era. Judging by this article, I'd say that you'll learn more about the '50s and '60s by watching Route 66 and The Fugitive than by watching History. But that's just me, your mileage may vary. Although you should make good time if you take Route 66, unless you keep stopping to help damsels in distress. TV  

What I've been watching: Summer, 2020

I'm not here to tell you my problems, and I rather suspect you're not here to listen to them, so I'll only say that having gone through another period of unemployment, as well as moving to a new apartment, tends to put a damper on any new video purchases. Now, I'm back to work, at least temporarily for what it's worth, but what this all means is that our look back at the summer will focus on what I've watched, and we'll return to what I've bought whenever—well, whenever I buy something.

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N.Y.P.D. isn't a sequel to Naked City, at least not formally, but it functionally serves as one, and not because both shows were on ABC. Whereas Naked City, which aired from 1958 to 1963, portrayed a New York that might be thought of as in a state of tired, shabby chic, N.Y.P.D., (1967-69) finds the city in free fall, a place of crime and grit and decay, of vigilanties roaming the streets because they doubt the city's ability or desire to protect its citizens. While the characters propelling the stories in Naked City were often eccentric misfits, N.Y.P.D.'s streets are populated by grifters and thieves, gang members, racists, and common killers. And the city itself, still colorful and bold in the early part of the decade, is now comprised of mean streets that decent people avoid after dark. In other words, New York's descent from glory, hinted at earlier, is now undeniable—and it hasn't come close to hitting rock bottom yet.

New York's finest (L-r): Frank Converse, Jack Warden,
and Robert HooksOne thing that hasn't changed, though, is the squadroom, a thankless place far removed from the technocenters portrayed in modern procedurals. Here, in this stark setting, are our heroes, Lt. Mike Haines (Jack Warden) and his two right-hand men, detectives Jeff Ward (Robert Hooks) and Johnny Corso (Frank Converse). They're good cops: hard working, honest, looking out for each other, frustrated at the challenges of being a policeman in New York City. (Just imagine how they'd feel now.) And while we're spared the soap opera elements that seem to saturate today's procedurals, thanks to a half-hour running time that mandates a lean, tight plot, that doesn't mean the characters are reduced to two-dimensional figures just there to keep the story moving. In one episode Ward is accused of taking kickbacks to buy a fur coat for his wife, while in another he confronts a subtle racism that never hits you over the head but exists nonetheless; Converse has to deal with second-guessing himself after killing a suspect, and in a later story faces an internal affairs investigation after being charged with assulting a woman. And Haines, who spends most of his time confronting rising crime, dealing with bureaucracy, and worrying about his men, is taken advantage of when a friend uses him to provide himself with an alibi. It's never over the top, but represents the kind of stress that cops have to deal with, a message that couldn't be more timely.

One interesting technique that, thankfully, isn't overused, is a brief voiceover allowing us to hear what's running through a character's mind at a point where it isn't feasible or practical for him to speak those thoughts out loud. It's a nice touch; sometimes it allows you to see the wheels turning in a detective's mind as he sorts out the pieces of a case, while on other occasions you get an insight into what makes him tick, what he thinks about, who he is.

The three leads are very good, which isn't surprising considering their acting credentials, and they're easy to root for—again, unlike so many of today's TV cops. The location shooting, echoing Naked City, works in tandem with the show's tense, tough soundtrack to lend the show a gritty realism that isn't surprising, considering that David Susskind (East Side/West Side) was executive producer. It's remarkable how much drama and action a show can pack into thirty minutes, actually. Today's showrunners might consider taking a page from that script.

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Speaking of half-hour crime dramas, Blake Edwards came to prominence as the creater of one such show that ran for four years on radio: Richard Diamond, Private Detective. It starred Dick Powell, who had made a brilliant transition from song-and-dance man to the star of hard-boiled detective stories, and while it was standard P.I. fare (aside from the song that Powell would invariably sing at the end of each episode as he played the piano for his girlfriend Helen), it was immensely entertaining, a natural for television. And indeed, Powell's production company, Four Star, brought Richard Diamond to the small screen in 1957, with David Janssen taking over the lead role. Unlike Powell, Janssen may not have had a song in his heart, but he often had a half-smirk on his face, part of the wisecracking persona that remained one of Diamond's trademarks, even as his Diamond resides in a tougher, less lighthearted universe than his radio counterpart. There are other differences between the two versions; the TV Diamond lacks both regular girlfriend Helen and police sidekick Walt, for example. Both radio and TV iterations have that same smoothness and charm, though; no Diamonds in the rough here.

"It's Sam, Mr. D. I have a message for you."Diamond (his friends call him Rick, never, ever Dick) works hard for his fee; like every detective, he has his moments of brilliant insight, but just as often he comes to his conclusions (and the bad guys come to justice) through dogged determination and resourcefulness. (And occasionally dumb luck.) He also has a hard head, which comes in very handy for those times, and there are many, when he gets conked in the back of the head by some goon with a gun. Even in the first few episodes, the number of concussions that Diamond must have suffered is appalling; fortunately, thanks to that half-hour running time, the show moves at such a pace that you don't have time to consider what the long-term side effects probably were. Anyway, Diamond seldom ever lets one of these slights go unpunished; he may have a hard head, but he also has a long memory.

During the course of the series Diamond moves cross-country, from New York (the location of the radio series) to Hollywood (where the glamourous detectives hang out on the Sunset Strip), and picks up both a car phone and an answering service, manned—an inappropriate word if ever there was one—by the legs-only "Sam," played most memorably by young Mary Tyler Moore. The stories are pretty routine, with many of the early shows adapted directly from the radio version, but Janssen, in the role that made him famous and set him up for stardom in The Fugitive, is an eminently likeable hero, as quick with a smartass retort as he is with his fists, and his wry voiceover narration—which helps bridge the gaps that come with the half-hour format—immediately brings the viewer into the case. The two Richard Diamonds, Dick Powell and David Janssen, are two sides of the same coin, two different ways of portraying the same person, Either way you look at him, though, he comes up a winner.

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I've mentioned the documentaries of David L. Wolper several times, so it shouldn't be any surprise to you that we've moved on to another such series, Hollywood and the Stars, which ran on NBC for 31 episodes in the 1963-64 season. It was a good time for documentaries on television; ABC had taken season-long looks at both FDR and Winston Churchill, NBC adapted John F. Kennedy's Profiles in Courage, and CBS had taken an in-depth look at World War I, as well as its long-running 20th Century. Hollywood and the Stars has a decidedly lighter tone, though, and while it's not the in-depth look at the stuff of dreams that, say, Ken Burns might have produced, it's also a reminder of just what it is that we used to love about the movies.

That about says it all, doesn't itwould be?The celebrity narrator is a trademark of a Wolper doc, and Hollywood is no exception, with the distinguished actor Joseph Cotton doing the honors, and he combines an authoritative gravitas with an occasionally dry humor to serve as a able guide to the remarkable story of the film industry. (He only appears on-screen once in the entire series; it would have been nice to see him at the start of each episode, at least) Various episodes focus on the Hollywood musical, great comedians, famous swashbucklers, glamour girls, and the history of monster movies; others take us behind the scenes with "making of" looks at The Cardinal and The Night of the Iguana. Some of the best are the biographies of the screen's great heroes, from men known by one name (Bogart, Crosby, Jolson) to contemporary stars like Paul Newman, Kim Novak and Natalie Wood. It's occasionally jarring to see clips from familiar blockbuster color extravaganzas being shown in black-and-white, but then this is a black-and-white series. (If, say, TCM were to ever acquire this series, I wonder if they'd use clips from the versions in their own film library, as they did with their episodes from The Dick Cavett Show a few years ago.)

Like N.Y.P.D. and Richard Diamond, Hollywood and the Stars has never received a proper commercial DVD release, but a significant number of episodes are available thanks to YouTube, which makes up at least in part for its myriad faults. Perhaps Hollywood and the Stars isn't as hard-hitting and comprehensive as we'd expect to see today, but Hollywood itself is a fantasyland; I guess if any documentary series is entitled to give us the legend instead of the facts, it would be this one. TV  

What's on TV? Thursday, September 4, 1980

We've talked about half-hour shows, hour shows, 90-minute shows, and even 45-minute shows, but here we see an exampe of the 70-minute show. What's that, you say? You don't remember 70-minute programs? Of course not, because there aren't any. In reality, they're nothing more than hour-long shows with ten extra minutes of commercials! As if some of these shows weren't already long enough, the late-night timeslot has become dominated by bonus commercials. Look at WCCO and KMSP, for example, or the ABC affiliates. All of a sudden, instead of programs starting on the hour or half-hour, they begin at 11:40 or 12:10. Yes, just what we need: more commercials. Well, never mind me; enjoy these listings from the Minnesota State Edition. Meanwhile, I have to tell some kids to get off my lawn.

 2  KTCA (PBS)
MORNING
    6:45 A.M. WEATHER
   7 AM MAGGIE AND THE BEAUTIFUL MACHINE—Exercise
    7:30 MISTER ROGERS—Children
   8 AM SESAME STREET—Children
   9 AM ELECTRIC COMPANY—Children
    9:30 STUDIO SEE—Children
 10 AM FLOWER SHOW
  10:30 VICTORY GARDEN
 11 AM INTERNATIONAL KITCHEN
  11:30 SESAME STREET
AFTERNOON
  12:30 MISTER ROGERS
   1 PM ELECTRIC COMPANY—Children
    1:30 HERE’S TO YOUR HEALTH
   2 PM OVER EASY—Hugh DownsGuests: Mary Martin, Larry Hagman (part 1)
    2:30 DICK CAVETTGuest: Sherrill Milnes
   3 PM LORD MOUNTBATTEN
   4 PM MISTER ROGERS—Children
    4:30 SESAME STREET
    5:30 STUDIO SEE—Children
EVENING
   6 PM REBOP—Children
    6:30 MacNEIL, LEHRER REPORT
   7 PM DICK CAVETTGuest: Dudley Moore
    7:30 OLD FRIENDS, NEW FRIENDS
   8 PM FLAMBARDS—Drama
   9 PM FALL OF EAGLES—Drama
 10 PM MONTY PYTHON’S FLYING CIRCUS
  10:30 SUMMERFEST ‘79
    Mid. CAMERA THREE
  12:30 IMAGES OF INDIANS


 3  KDLH (DULUTH) (CBS)
MORNING
    6:55 FIVE MINUTES TO LIVE BY
   7 AM THURSDAY MORNING—Bob Schieffer
   8 AM CAPTAIN KANGAROO
   9 AM MAGAZINESpecial: Profiles of Larry Hagman, Nancy Raffa[Pre-empts regular programming]
 10 AM PRICE IS RIGHT—Game
 11 AM NEWS
  11:05 TOWN AND COUNTRY—Linda
  11:30 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW
AFTERNOON
  Noon YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS
   1 PM AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial
   2 PM GUIDNG LIGHT—Serial
   3 PM ONE DAY AT A TIME
    3:30 MARY TYLER MOORE—Comedy
   4 PM JIM ROCKFORD, PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR—Crime Drama
   5 PM BOB NEWHART—Comedy
    5:30 CBS NEWS—Walter Cronkite
EVENING
   6 PM NEWS
    6:30 TIC TAC DOUGH—Game
   7 PM WALTONS
   8 PM BARNABY JONES—Crime Drama
   9 PM KNOTS LANDING
 10 PM NEWS
  10:30 U.S. OPEN TENNIS UPDATESpecial
 11 PM JEFFERSONS
  11:30 MOVIE—Adventure“El Cid” (1961)[Shown in two parts, the movie concludes tomorrow night.]


 4  WCCO (CBS)
MORNING
   6 AM THURSDAY MORNING
   7 AM FRED FLINTSTONE & FRIENDS
    7:30 CARTOON TIME
   8 AM PHIL DONAHUEGuest: Ralph Nader
   9 AM MAGAZINESpecial: Profiles of Larry Hagman, Nancy Raffa[Pre-empts regular programming]
 10 AM PRICE IS RIGHT—Game
 11 AM YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS—Serial
AFTERNOON
  Noon MIDDAY
  12:30 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW
   1 PM AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial
   2 PM GUIDNG LIGHT—Serial
   3 PM JOKER’S WILD—Game
    3:30 JOHN DAVIDSONCo-host: Richard Crenna. Guests: Cathryn Damon, Jay North, Julia Kessler, Louis L’Amour, the Dirt Band
   5 PM NEWS
    5:30 CBS NEWS—Walter Cronkite
EVENING
   6 PM NEWS
    6:30 PM MAGAZINE
   7 PM WALTONS
   8 PM BARNABY JONES—Crime Drama
   9 PM KNOTS LANDING
 10 PM NEWS
  10:30 CAROL BURNETT AND FRIENDS—Comedy
 11 PM AVENGERS—Adventure
  12:10 MOVIE—Crime Drama“Crime Knows No Age” (Made-for-TV; 1974)
    1:50 NEWS
    2:20 NEWS
   4 AM NEWS


 5  KSTP (ABC)
MORNING
   6 AM NEWS
    6:20 FARM/MARKET REPORT
    6:30 COUNTRY DAY
   7 AM GOOD MORNING AMERICA—David Hartman
   9 AM TWIN CITIES TODAY
 10 AM LOVE BOAT
 11 AM FAMILY FEUD
  11:30 RYAN’S HOPE
AFTERNOON
  Noon ALL MY CHILDREN—Serial
   1 PM ONE LIFE TO LIVE—Serial
   2 PM GENERAL HOSPITAL—Serial
   3 PM MATCH GAMEBrett Somers, Betty White, Jamie Lee Curtis, Charles Nelson Reilly
    3:30 STARSKY & HUTCH
    4:30 HAPPY DAYS AGAIN—Comedy
   5 PM HOGAN’S HEROES—Comedy
    5:30 ABC NEWS—Reynolds
EVENING
   6 PM NEWS
    6:30 PRISONER: CELL BLOCK H—Drama
   7 PM MORK & MINDY
    7:30 ANGIE
   8 PM BARNEY MILLER[Expands to an hour.]
   9 PM 20/20—Newsmagazine
 10 PM NEWS
  10:30 ABC NEWS—Ted Koppel
  10:55 CHARLIE’S ANGELS—Crime Drama
    Mid. BARETTA—Crime Drama
    1:10 DON LANE
    2:10 NEWS
    2:40 SUPERMAN—Adventure BW 
    3:10 MOVIE—Mystery BW “The Glass Web” (1953)
   5 AM TO BE ANNOUNCED


 6  KBJR (DULUTH) (NBC)
MORNING
   6 AM PTL CLUB—Religion
   7 AM TODAY
   9 AM PHIL DONAHUEGuest: Yusuke Suga
 10 AM DAVID LETTERMANGuest: Roger Kahn
 11 AM WHEEL OF FORTUNE—Game
  11:30 DOCTORS
AFTERNOON
  Noon DAYS OF OUR LIVES
   1 PM ANOTHER WORLD
   2 PM TEXAS—Serial
   3 PM CARD SHARKS—Game
    3:30 EMERGENCY!—Drama
    4:30 LUCY SHOW
   5 PM WEEKDAY
EVENING
   6 PM NBC NEWS—John Chancellor
    6:30 M*A*S*H
   7 PM GAMES PEOPLE PLAY
   8 PM MOVIE—Drama“Midway” (1976), conclusion
 10 PM NEWS
  10:30 TONIGHTGuests: Buddy Rich, Fred Rogers, Andy Williams
    Mid. TOMORROW—Tom Snyder


 6  KAAL (AUSTIN) (ABC)
MORNING
   7 AM GOOD MORNING AMERICA—David Hartman
   9 AM PHIL DONAHUEGuest: Janet Beller
 10 AM LOVE BOAT
 11 AM FAMILY FEUD
  11:30 RYAN’S HOPE
AFTERNOON
  Noon ALL MY CHILDREN—Serial
   1 PM ONE LIFE TO LIVE—Serial
   2 PM GENERAL HOSPITAL—Serial
   3 PM EDGE OF NIGHT
    3:30 LEAVE IT TO BEAVER BW 
   4 PM JOKER’S WILD—Game
    4:30 TIC TAC DOUGH—Game
   5 PM ABC NEWS—Reynolds
    5:30 NEWS
EVENING
   6 PM ODD COUPLE—Comedy
    6:30 BOB NEWHART—Comedy
   7 PM MORK & MINDY
    7:30 ANGIE
   8 PM BILLY GRAHAM CRUSADE—ReligionSpecial
   9 PM 20/20—Newsmagazine
 10 PM NEWS
  10:30 ABC NEWS—Ted Koppel
  10:55 CHARLIE’S ANGELS—Crime Drama
    Mid. BARETTA—Crime Drama


 7  KCMT (ALEXANDRIA) (NBC, ABC)
MORNING
    6:15 NEWS
    6:20 FARM/MARKET REPORT
    6:30 COUNTRY DAY
   7 AM TODAY
   9 AM DAVID LETTERMANGuest: Roger Kahn
 10 AM WHEEL OF FORTUNE—Game
  10:30 PASSWORD PLUS—GameGina Hecht, Ron Masak
 11 AM CARD SHARKS
  11:30 FARM TODAY
  11:50 COMMUNITY BILLBOARD
AFTERNOON
  Noon DAYS OF OUR LIVES
   1 PM ANOTHER WORLD
   2 PM TEXAS—Serial
   3 PM DOCTORS—Serial
    3:30 FAMILY FEUD—Game
   4 PM BUGS BUNNY AND FRIENDS
    4:30 I DREAM OF JEANNIE
   5 PM HOGAN’S HEROES—Comedy
    5:30 NBC NEWS—John Chancellor
EVENING
   6 PM NEWS
    6:30 THAT NASHVILLE MUSIC
   7 PM BILLY GRAHAM CRUSADE—ReligionSpecial
   8 PM MOVIE—Drama“Midway” (1976), conclusion
 10 PM NEWS
  10:30 TONIGHTGuests: Buddy Rich, Fred Rogers, Andy Williams
    Mid. TOMORROW—Tom Snyder


 8  WDSE (DULUTH) (PBS)
AFTERNOON
    3:30 OVER EASY—Hugh DownsGuest: Gore Vidal
   4 PM MISTER ROGERS—Children
    4:30 SESAME STREET
    5:30 ELECTRIC COMPANY
EVENING
   6 PM PAVAROTTI AT JULLIARD
    6:30 MacNEIL, LEHRER REPORT
   7 PM BILL MOYERS’ JOURNAL
   8 PM FREE TO CHOOSE
   9 PM MASTERPIECE THEATRE“Lille,” part 10
 10 PM DICK CAVETTGuest: Dudley Moore
  10:30 CAPTIONED ABC NEWS


 9  KMSP (Ind.)
MORNING
   6 AM 700 CLUB—Religion
   7 AM KROFFT SUPERSTARS
    7:30 JETSONS—Cartoon
   8 AM POPEYE—Cartoons
    8:30 BULLWINKLE—Cartoosn
   9 AM I DREAM OF JEANNIE—Comedy
    9:30 CANDID CAMERA
 10 AM PERRY MASON BW 
 11 AM PLAY THE PERCENTAGES
  11:30 MIKE DOUGLASCo-host: Erin Gray. Guests: Rosemary Clooney, Tom Dressen, Jeff Greenfield, Burt Reynolds
AFTERNOON
   1 PM DINAH! & FRIENDSGuests: Jack Klugman, Robert Urich, Patrick Duffy
    2:30 BEST OF GROUCHO—Game BW 
   3 PM CASPER—Cartoon
    3:30 POPEYE—Cartoon
   4 PM MUNSTERS—Comedy
    4:30 GILLIGAN’S ISLAND
   5 PM GOOD TIMES
    5:30 SANFORD AND SON—Comedy
EVENING
   6 PM DICK VAN DYKE—Comedy
    6:30 ALL IN THE FAMILY
   7 PM GUNSMOKE—Western
   8 PM BILLY GRAHAM CRUSADE—ReligionSpecial
   9 PM MAUDE
    9:30 NEWS
 10 PM TIC TAC DOUGH—Game
  10:30 JIM ROCKFORD, PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR
  11:40 STREETS OF SAN FRANCISCO—Crime Drama
  12:50 TWILIGHT ZONE—Drama BW 
    1:20 GONG SHOW—Game
    1:50 NEWS


 9  KAWE (BEMIDJI) (PBS)
AFTERNOON
   3 PM SESAME STREET
   4 PM MISTER ROGERS—Children
    4:30 ELECTRIC COMPANY
   5 PM ZOOM—Children
    5:30 OVER EASY—Hugh DownsGuests: Mary Martin, Larry Hagman (part 1)
EVENING
   6 PM DICK CAVETTGuest: Dudley Moore
    6:30 MacNEIL, LEHRER REPORT
   7 PM BILL MOYERS’ JOURNAL[“Every Four Years,” a three-part series on the Presidency, begins repeats next week at this time.]
   8 PM OLD FRIENDS, NEW FRIENDS
    8:30 VICTORY GARDEN
   9 PM MASTERPIECE THEATRE“Lille,” part 10
 10 PM DICK CAVETTGuest: Dudley Moore
  10:30 CAPTIONED ABC NEWS


10 WDIO (DULUTH) (ABC)
MORNING
    6:30 COUNTRY DAY
   7 AM GOOD MORNING AMERICA—David Hartman
   9 AM MERV GRIFFINGuests: Charles Nelson Reilly, Brian Kerwin, Roberta Peters
 10 AM LOVE BOAT
 11 AM FAMILY FEUD
  11:30 RYAN’S HOPE
AFTERNOON
  Noon ALL MY CHILDREN—Serial
   1 PM ONE LIFE TO LIVE—Serial
   2 PM GENERAL HOSPITAL—Serial
   3 PM EDGE OF NIGHT
    3:30 MOVIE—Western “5 Card Stud” (1968)
    5:30 ABC NEWS—Reynolds
EVENING
   6 PM NEWS
    6:30 PM MAGAZINE
   7 PM MORK & MINDY
    7:30 ANGIE
   8 PM BARNEY MILLER[Expands to an hour.]
   9 PM 20/20—Newsmagazine
 10 PM NEWS
  10:30 ABC NEWS—Ted Koppel
  10:55 CHARLIE’S ANGELS—Crime Drama
    Mid. BARETTA—Crime Drama


10 KTTC (ROCHESTER) (NBC)
MORNING
    6:50 WEATHER
   7 AM TODAY
   9 AM DAVID LETTERMANGuest: Roger Kahn
 10 AM WHEEL OF FORTUNE—Game
  10:30 PASSWORD PLUS—GameGina Hecht, Ron Masak
 11 AM CARD SHARKS
  11:30 DOCTORS
AFTERNOON
  Noon TODAY AT NOON
  12:30 DAYS OF OUR LIVES
    1:30 ANOTHER WORLD—Serial
    2:30 TEXAS—Serial
    3:30 MIKE DOUGLASCo-host: Lynn Redgrave. Guests: Richard Haynes, Daryl Anderson, Eddie Rabbitt
   4 PM BEWITCHED—Comedy
    4:30 MAVERICK—Western BW 
    5:30 NBC NEWS—John Chancellor
EVENING
   6 PM NEWS
    6:30 PETTICOAT JUNCTION—Comedy
   7 PM GAMES PEOPLE PLAY
   8 PM MOVIE—Drama“Midway” (1976), conclusion
 10 PM NEWS
  10:30 TONIGHTGuests: Buddy Rich, Fred Rogers, Andy Williams
    Mid. TOMORROW—Tom Snyder


11 WTCN (NBC)
MORNING
   6 AM PTL CLUB—Religion
   7 AM TODAY
   9 AM DAVID LETTERMANGuest: Roger Kahn
 10 AM WHEEL OF FORTUNE—Game
  10:30 PASSWORD PLUS—GameGina Hecht, Ron Masak
 11 AM WHAT’S NEW?—Nelson/Martin
  11:30 DOCTORS
AFTERNOON
  Noon DAYS OF OUR LIVES
   1 PM ANOTHER WORLD
   2 PM TEXAS—Serial
   3 PM I LOVE LUCY—Comedy BW 
    3:30 MY THREE SONS—Comedy
    4:30 WELCOME BACK, KOTTER
   5 PM M*A*S*H
    5:30 NEWS
EVENING
   6 PM NBC NEWS—John Chancellor
    6:30 NEWLYWED GAME
   7 PM GAMES PEOPLE PLAY
   8 PM MOVIE—Drama“Midway” (1976), conclusion
 10 PM NEWS
  10:30 TONIGHTGuests: Buddy Rich, Fred Rogers, Andy Williams
    Mid. TOMORROW—Tom Snyder
   1 AM DATING GAME



12 KEYC (MANKATO) (CBS)
MORNING
    6:20 FARM/MARKET REPORT
    6:30 COUNTRY DAY
   7 AM THURSDAY MORNING—Bob Schieffer
   8 AM CAPTAIN KANGAROO
   9 AM MAGAZINESpecial: Profiles of Larry Hagman, Nancy Raffa[Pre-empts regular programming]
 10 AM PRICE IS RIGHT—Game
 11 AM YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS—Serial
AFTERNOON
  Noon NEWS
  12:30 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW
   1 PM AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial
   2 PM GUIDNG LIGHT—Serial
   3 PM ONE DAY AT A TIME
    3:30 I LOVE LUCY—Comedy BW 
   4 PM GILLIGAN’S ISLAND
    4:30 BIG VALLEY—Western
    5:30 CBS NEWS—Walter Cronkite
EVENING
   6 PM NEWS
    6:30 KEY TO HAPPINESS—Religion
   7 PM BILLY GRAHAM CRUSADE—ReligionSpecial
   8 PM BARNABY JONES—Crime Drama
   9 PM KNOTS LANDING
 10 PM NEWS
  10:30 U.S. OPEN TENNIS UPDATESpecial
 11 PM JEFFERSONS
  11:30 MOVIE—Adventure“El Cid” (1961)[Shown in two parts, the movie concludes tomorrow night.]
TV