Mitchell Hadley's Blog: It's About TV!, page 119

What I've been watching: March, 2020

Shows I’ve Watched:
Shows I’ve Bought: The Occult History of the Third Reich
The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich The Ernie Kovacs Show
Whodunnit? The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Somehow or other our Sunday night viewing had settled into a pattern of a documentary on the Third Reich and an episode of a Sherlock Holmes story. The fact that this has been going on for a number of months serves as a testimony not only to the number of documentaries about the Nazis—they’re legion—but the number of series built around Sherlock Holmes: Basil Rathbone, Ronald Howard, Douglas Wilmer, Peter Cushing, and now Jeremy Brett.

The fascination with Nazis started with two superb movies: Downfall, starring Bruno Ganz in what has to be the definitive portrayal of Adolf Hitler; and Conspiracy, the disturbing movie on the 1942 Wannsee Conference at which the Final Solution was drawn up, with Kenneth Branagh and Stanley Tucci. That was followed by Leni Riefenstahl’s Triumph of the Will, her account of the 1934 Nazi Party Congress in Nuremberg, one of the greatest cinematic pieces of propaganda ever made, which captures Hitler at his most mesmerizing. There were series such as Architects of Darkness, which included some incredible home movies of Hitler, some taken by Eva Braun, and did well to explain how and why Hitler became Hitler. One of the most fascinating was an extremely interesting, but very odd, documentary series called The Occult History of the Third Reich , which traced Nazism from a grotesque goulash of Germanic folklore, the Völkisch movement , Aryanism, Eugenics, antisemitism, paganism, and mysticism, and how Heinrich Himmler hoped to convert the SS into a new religion. After watching those, I'd defy anyone to not be fascinated with the subject.

Although the supply of Nazi documentaries seems to be limitless, and probably is, after a bit it tends to get a bit repetitive, which made it a perfect time to segue to the three-hour adaptation of William L. Shirer’s The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich , produced by the great David L. Wolper, which aired on ABC in 1968 in three one-hour episodes shown on consecutive nights. The fact that a network would spend three prime time hours on a black-and-white documentary about World War II says much not only about the quality of the program, but how television has changed since then.

Were it not for the fact that the legacy of the Third Reich goes beyond horrifying, I'd be tempted to refer to the hierarchy of the Nazi party as a motley group of colorful misfits, but that's a little too Runyonesque for what was essentially a band of gangsters. There was Julius Streicher, (publisher of the virulently antisemitic newspaper Der Stürmer); Josef Goebbels (who understood, better than today’s politicians, how to use the mass media); Hermann Göring, head of the Luftwaffe (whose disastrous advise to Hitler may have saved England during the Battle of Britain); Himmler (who emerges as one of the most interesting, as well as disturbing, of the Nazis); Albert Speer (a brilliant organizer who might have won the war for Germany if Hitler had given him control); and that's just the supporting cast, because any documentary about the Third Reich is going to have Adolf Hitler as the star.

Inside the Third Reich (the television series) isn't necessarily the definitive account—you couldn’t possibly do that in three hours, and it doesn’t even begin to get into the things, such as the Völkisch movement, that made Germany so susceptible to Hitler. Shirer has often been accused of a bias against the German nation and its people, and I think that's an accusation that is not without merit. What the series does, however, it does exceptionally well. We get footage of Hitler and the Nazis that is startlingly clear, quite unlike some of the grainy footage we’ve become used to seeing over the years. We see interviews with some people very close to Hitler and other members of the hierarchy (and several appearances by Shirer himself). It's all set against the backdrop of a pulsating, discordant score by Lalo Schifrin in which one can hear traces of his music for Mission: Impossible, and framed with a dignified narration by Richard Basehart.

I don’t pretend that a review of the documentary is a review of the book; as I said, you can’t cover a book of over 1,200 pages in such a short time. But as television goes, informed and enriched by multiple viewpoints and areas of interest, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich serves as a fitting epitaph to a time in history when the leaders of a modern nation tried to reinvent it into a Medieval killer state. And it reminds us, as events in the Middle East in recent years have shown, that there are those out there who would love to reboot the whole thing.

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The Third Reich is probably one of the few topics that could make a series on crime and punishment look lighthearted by comparison, but while Sherlock Holmes is the detective story par excellence, much of the charm and insight comes from the inner workings of the main character himself, Sherlock Holmes , and in the case of television, that of the actor playing him.

The Holmes routine began with the series of movies starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, and while they weren’t exactly true to the canon established by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle—as far as I know, Holmes never took on the Nazis or flew to Washington, D.C.—they were true to the spirit of the character, often using the bones of other Holmes stories to tell their tales. Most important, they were fun. Ronald Howard (son of Leslie) starred in a single-season half-hour series that was kind of lightweight, but again, fun. Douglas Wilmer’s take, from 1965-66. casts Holmes as serious, sarcastic and determined, with an arrogance that is both bracing and fully justified. Dr. Watson, played Nigel Stock, is still a boob, but more bumptious than stupid—after all, the man is an M.D. Fewer than a dozen of his episodes still exist, but they're terrific. Wilmer only played Holmes for one season; when it came back in 1968, Peter Cushing took over the role, with Stock continuing on as Watson.

That leaves only the definitive Holmes, Jeremy Brett. (Yes, I know there are other movies and series that are perfectly adequate, even excellent. I liked Robert Downey Jr. myself. And while Benedict Cumberbatch is fun—a word that always works well with Holmes—I prefer my Sherlocks as period pieces, or at least in that spirit. Besides, there's only so much room here.) Where was I? Yes, Brett—who played Holmes from 1984-94 and is everything you'd want Holmes to be. He's quirky, quick-witted, self-assured, occasionally tortured, frequently arrogant, and virtually always right. He's also surprisingly nimble, of body as well as mind, and I bring that up because it points out how important the physical portrayal of Holmes can be. That physicality projects not only his determination, but the rapidity of his mind; and his body language establishes that, for the criminal, he truly is a dangerous man.

Brett is aided, in this first season, by David Burke as Watson. This is a Watson who is very smart indeed; not at the level of Holmes, of course, but he's learned well from his compatriot, and each episode contains a bit in which Watson demonstrates how he's picked up on the art of observation, often listing the very same clues that Holmes has seen. The difference, of course, is that Watson fails to come to the same—that is, the correct—conclusion, and the cutting retort from Holmes can sometimes be painful, to us as well as to Watson, who is the most loyal of friends. Holmes is always quick to temper his remarks, though, and there's no doubt that when he compliments Watson, it is no mere flattery. Their chemistry is great.

Throw in literate, even elegant, scripts (many by John Hawkesworth) and period details that create a perfect atmosphere, and you've got just the thing to cleanse the palate after an hour with the Third Reich. TV  

What's on TV? Wednesday, April 15, 1953

Another thing about these old issues: they're very local. You'll remember that this is only the second national issue of TV Guide, and clearly not much has changed since this was Chicago's own TV Listings (which was all of two weeks ago). Not only are our four stations saturated with local programming, the features are all written by local writers and geared toward local personalities. There are no logos of any kind in use for the station numbers, and we see something that's never used in TV Guide: serif fonts. What this really reminds me of, more than anything else, is one of those TV digest types of magazines you used to be able to pick up for free in convenience stores. (Hopefully, you're old enough to know what I'm talking about.) At any rate, even in these early days of TV (and TV Guide), you're going to find shows that you recognize.



4 WBBM (CBS)
     9:00 Arthur Godfrey Time—Variety
   10:00 News At Ten—Late Report
   10:05 There’s One in Every Family
   10:30 Strike It Rich—Warren Hull
   11:00 “Three Weird Sisters”MOVIE
   12:00 Luncheon With Billy—Musical
   12:25 Midday News—Late Report            12:30 Garry Moore Show
     1:00 Double Or Nothing—Quiz
     1:30 Art Linkletter’s House PartyGuest: Audie Murphy
     2:00 Big Payoff—Quiz For Men
     2:30 Eddie Albert Show—Variety
     3:00 Shopping With O’Reilly
     3:15 “Those We Love”MOVIE
     4:30 Garfield Goose And Friend
     5:00 Kids Karnival Kwiz—Games
     5:30 Silhouettes Of The West—Film
     5:45 Chgo. Weather—Russ Reed
     5:50 Guest Star—Carmelita Pope
     6:00 Sports & Comments—Elson
     6:15 News With Fahey Flynn
     6:30 CBS News—Douglas Edwards
     6:45 Perry Como ShowGuest: Peggy Lee
     7:00 ARTHUR GODFREY & FRIENDS
     8:00 STRIKE IT RICH—Quiz ContestHost: Warren Hull
     8:30 MAN AGAINST CRIME—Drama
     9:00 BLUE RIBBON BOUTS—Boxing Joe Miceli vs. Pierre Langlois
     9:45 SPORTS SPOT—Review
   10:00 VIC PERRY—Man On The Street
   10:15 HARRINGTON ON SPORTS
   10:20 CHGO. WEATHER—Russ Reed
   10:30 OUR SONG—Favorite Tunes
   11:00 KUP’S COLUMN—Gossip
   11:30 MURDER BEFORE MIDNIGHT“File 113”
   12:00 “ONE THIRD OF A NATION”MOVIE
     1:20 LATE WORLD NEWS
I've mentioned Irv Kupcinet before, when his syndicated talk show pops up in various issues. Kup's Column, his 11:00 p.m. show, takes its name from the column Kupcinet writes for the Chicago Sun-Times; that column started in 1943 and ran almost until his death in 2003. His later talk show, the syndicated one, runs from 1959 to 1986. He also finds time to act as the color commentator on radio broadcasts of Chicago Bears football from 1953 to 1977, alongside Jack Brickhouse, who does the Cubs game today on WGN.


5 WNBQ (NBC)
     6:45 Town And Farm—Discussion
     7:00 Today—News & Commentary
     9:00 Ding Dong School—Nursery
     9:30 Animal Playtime­­—Kid’s Fun
   10:00 Ask Washington—News Panel
   10:30 Mrs. U.S.A.—Film Short(Or UN General Assembly Meeting)
   11:00 Creative Cookery—Recipes
   12:00 Noontime Comics—Kiddie Fun            12:30 Film Short
   12:55 News Report—Late Information
     1:00 “Paradise Isle”MOVIE
     2:00 Break The Bank—Quiz Show
     2:30 Welcome Travelers—Chats
     3:00 Kate Smith Hour—Musical
     4:00 Hawkins Falls—Sm. Town Tale
     4:30 Howdy Doody Show—Puppets
     5:00 Elmer, The Elephant—Movie
     5:30 Industry On Parade—Film
     5:45 Something To Talk About
     5:50 Clifton Utley And The News
     6:00 Joe Wilson’s Sports Corner
     6:15 Town Crier—Tony Weitzel
     6:30 Those Two—Comedy Skits
     6:45 News Caravan—John Swayze
     7:00 I MARRIED JOAN—Comedy
     7:30 CAVALCADE OF AMERICA“The Gingerbread Man”
     8:00 KRAFT THEATER—Drama“Rain No More”
     9:00 THIS IS YOUR LIFE—TaleHost: Ralph Edwards
     9:30 CURTAIN TIME—Drama
   10:00 WEATHERMAN—Clint Youle
   10:10 DORSEY CONNORS—New Tips
   10:15 CLIFTON UTLEY & THE NEWS
   10:30 HERBIE MINTZ SHOW—Musical
   11:00 “YOU CAN’T BEAT THE LAW”MOVIE
Clifton Utley had worked for NBC Radio and the Chicago Daily News before moving in front of the camera with WNBQ, which will soon change its call letters to WMAQ. He also does news and commentary for the network before heart problems leave him partially paralyzed. If the name sounds familiar to you, it's probably because he had a son named Garrick who went into the news business as well and had a pretty good career. One of his daughters-in-law, Carol Marin, has had a long and successful career at WMAQ. Talent runs in that family.


7 WBKB (ABC)
     9:45 INS Newsreel—Information
   10:00 Beulah Karney Presents—Tips
   10:30 Let’s Exercise With Ed Allen
   10:50 Your Weather—Wayne Griffin
   10:55 News With Ulmer Turner
   11:00 Bob & Kay Show—Variety
   11:30 Breakfast With Danny O’Neil
   11:45 News With Ulmer Turner
   12:00 Happy Pirates—Fun For Kids            12:30 Time For Fun—Nick Francis
   12:55 News With Ulmer Turner
     1:00 All About Baby—Discussion
     1:15 Movie—To Be Announced
     2:25 News With Ulmer Turner
     2:30 “Fangs Of The Wild”MOVIE
     3:55 News With Ulmer Turner
     4:00 Lucky 7 Ranch—Western Film“Devil Riders”
     4:45 Rootie Kazootie—Puppet Fun
     5:00 Laugh Time—Film Shorts“Charlie Chase”
     5:30 Adv. Time With Bob Atcher“Three Musketeers”
     6:00 Austin Kiplinger & The News
     6:10 Sports Highlights—Jack Drees
     6:25 Your Weather—Wayne Griffin
     6:30 Date With Judy—Comedy
     7:00 CHARLIE CHASE TIME—Film
     7:30 STU ERWIN SHOW—Comedy
     8:00 THE CARUSO SHOW
     8:30 WRESTLING FROM RAINBO
     9:30 LIBERACE SHOW—Musical
   10:00 FOREIGN INTRIGUE—Drama
   10:30 COMEDY CAMEO—Film Short
   11:00 NEWS WITH ULMER TURNER
   11:10 “FALSE FACES”MOVIE
   12:15 WHAT’S NEW?—Current News
Jack Drees, who gives the 6:10 p.m. sports, had a long career of his own, mostly with CBS. He does Pabst Blue Ribbon Bouts for many years (that's the Wednesday night fight, for those of you scoring at home, and even for those just reading); I remember him from his work calling football games for CBS in the late 1960s. He also spends five seasons calling games for the Chicago White Sox. Great announcing voice.


9 WGN (DuMONT)
     9:00 Your Figure Ladies—Fogarty
     9:30 Clete Roberts World Report
     9:45 Earl Nightingale Program
   10:00 A To Z Of Cookery—Recipes
   11:00 Bride & Groom—John Nelson
   11:15 Love Of Life—Serial Story
   11:30 Search For Tomorrow—Drama
   11:45 Guiding Light—Drama Serial
   12:00 Hi Ladies—Jack Payne            12:45 News Of The Day—S. Allen
     1:00 Batting Practice—Warm Up
     1:10 Lead Off Man—Interviews
     1:25 Baseball—Cubs vs Cincinnati
     3:45 Tenth Inning—Interviews
     4:00 Trail Blazers’ Theater—Film“Trigger Fingers”
     5:00 Time For Beany—Puppet Fun
     5:15 Junior Edition—News
     5:30 Robert F. Hurleigh—News
     5:45 Sports Review—Brickhouse
     6:00 Captain Video—Adventures
     6:30 Spencer Allen And The News
     6:45 Chicagoland Newsreel—Data
     7:00 “TAKE IT BIG”MOVIE
     8:00 FRONT PAGE DETECTIVE
     8:30 CAMERA CLASSROOM
     9:00 OLD AMERICAN BARN DANCEHost: Bill Bailey
   10:00 “HARPOON”MOVIE
   11:30 NEWS—Les Nichols Comments
In case you were going to ask, the Clete Roberts who hosts World Report at 9:30 a.m. is the very same Clete Roberts who plays himself on M*A*S*H. Of course, that's only part of the story; after Korea, he heads for Los Angeles, where he'll be a legendary local news figure into the 1980s, often traveling to cover national and international stories, shooting his own footage on his Bell & Howell camera. TV  

This week in TV Guide: April 10, 1953

Last week we were on hand for the first anniversary of TV Guide as a national publication. This week, we’ll go back one more year, to the second-ever issue of the magazine. We’ll also travel from Philadelphia west to another city with a rich television history, Chicago. Over the course of 2020, we’ll be looking at several 1953 issues from Chicago, and we’re bound to see some of the city’s early TV stars along the way. Since the Chicago edition began life as "TV Forecast," we’ll also see features unique to that publication, ones with a definite local angle.

First, though, we'll start with the cover, and a man sitting on top of the television world right now. Jack Webb is in his early 30’s, he weighs a trim 165 pounds, and Dragnet plays to an audience estimated at 38 million each week. (For context, 2018’s top-rated program, NBC’s Sunday Night Football, averaged about 19.3 million viewers, up about a million from the previous year.) And, according to this week’s article, "He plays every television scene as if it were a real police case."

Dragnet started on the radio in 1949, and from 1952 to 1957 was broadcast on both radio and television (different stories, of course). Webb got the idea while playing a police lieutenant in the movie He Walked By Night; he asked a Los Angeles police sergeant serving as technical advisor if it would be possible to do a radio series based on actual case files. After getting information from the department, creating his characters, and coming up with a format, he made the pitch to NBC and won the day. According to police chief C.B. Horrall, what made the show appealing is how it doesn’t make heroes out of ordinary policeman, and reflects "the day-to-day drudgery of police work." The sponsor suggested adding a TV version in 1951, and it made its debut on January 1, 1952.

No, Joe—the ratings are great!There's a good look backstage at how each episode is made. It stars with Webb and writer John Robinson reviewing case histories given to them by the department. Once they’ve chosen the week’s story, they do the script for the radio series (they’ll later adapt it for TV), which is then submitted to the department for technical corrections and the City Attorney’s office for any legal ramifications; a policeman from the appropriate department is on the set to guarantee authenticity. Webb makes liberal use of teleprompters to cut down on retakes (important since the budget for each episode is only about $30,000). He makes four episodes over a two-week period, then takes two weeks off for “careful planning and editing.”

Other things that I find quite interesting: Webb reads and answers every letter he gets (about 400 per week; he estimates that each letter represents about 10,000 viewers), and if even ten letters suggest a change, he’ll consider it—after all, that translates to as many as 100,000 listeners who might feel the same way. It’s not a show that thrives on violence (and that alone makes it notable in the world of TV police shows); Webb estimates that only about 15 bullets have been fired during the life of the show, which would probably equal an average single episode of The Untouchables—before the first commercial break. (Ah, but we’re skipping ahead a few years, aren’t we?) He’s most proud of the letters he gets from real law enforcement officials praising the show’s realism. And while Webb is a stickler for accuracy, he also wants to make sure there’s nothing in the episode that would make the criminal recognizable in real life—he’s already paid his debt.

All this accuracy has helped make Dragnet the #3 rated show on television. It also reminds the public that “crime does not pay.”

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We’re always looking at Ed Sullivan’s competition around here, and in the first half of the 1950s, that competition is NBC’s Colgate Comedy Hour and its stable of rotating hosts. While Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis were the most famous (and most popular) headliners, there were a number of big-name entertainers who at one time or another were part of that rotation, including Donald O’Connor, Eddie Cantor, Abbott & Costello (separately and together), Jimmy Durante and Bob Hope. Although the show gave Ed a real run for his money early on (especially when Martin & Lewis hosted), by now Toast of the Town, as the Sullivan show was known for its first few years, is exercising ratings dominance, and by 1955 it’s off the air. For now, though, they’re still going head-to-head at 7:00 p.m. CT every Sunday. Let’s see what it looks like this week.

Sullivan : Ed presents Jane Powell in a scene from “Small Town Girl”; Rex Harrison and Lilli Palmer; Billy de Wolfe; Billy Ward’s Dominoes, singing and instrumental quartet; the University of Michigan Glee Club; and the Gae Foster Toastettes.

Comedy Hour : This week’s host is Eddie Cantor, with guests Gloria Grahame, the Will Maston Trio with Sammy Davis Jr., and Harry Kari, Japanese singing comedian.

You know, these are both pretty good, pretty typical lineups for the time. Ed has some real star power with Powell, Harrison and Palmer; on the other hand, you've got the young Sammy Davis Jr. performing with the Will Maston Trio, and you know I'm a fan of Sammy's. In the end, though, Ed just has too much star power; perhaps if Eddie Cantor had Harry Caray the baseball announcer, or Harry Carey Jr. the actor—but no. And so we'll toast Ed as this week's winner. 

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Another week, another big championship bout. Or not. Red Smith, perhaps the nation's premiere sportswriter, has an article on what to look forward to in the Rocky Marciano—Jersey Joe Walcott heavyweight championship fight, scheduled for Friday night from Chicago Stadium. The two had first met last September in Philadelphia with Walcott's title on the line, and ended in the 13th round with a spectacular Marciano knockout, one of the most famous in the long history of the sport. Friday night Marciano makes his first title defense in a rematch with Walcott. Not everyone is convinced that the rugged, rough-around-the-edges Marciano has what it takes to be a champion, and that his one-punch KO of Walcott was more a fluke than anything else. Red Smith's take is that Walcott, known affectionately as "The Old Man" ("the oldest heavyweight champion since Achilles outpointed Hector," Smith says), has reached the end of the line, and that Rocky, crude and inexperienced though he may be, should take him out in the seventh or eighth round.

Now, you'll notice how I mentioned that the fight was "scheduled" for Friday. So why, when you turn to Cavalcade of Sports at 9:00 p.m. on NBC, do you see Randy Sands scheduled to take on Willie Troy? Well, it's like this: just as the national section of TV Guide went to press, Marciano sustained a cut while in training, necessitating a postponement of the fight by one month, to May 15. The editors decided that Smith's article "still holds true for the May 15 match."* And when that fight does take place, still in Chicago, Marciano scores a knockout two minutes into the first round. It's a controversial ending; many think Walcott took a dive in return for the biggest payday of his career, even more than the champ was getting paid. We'll probably never know. What we do know is that on Monday night, young Floyd Patterson is scheduled to meet Dick Wagner in a light-heavyweight bout (8:30 p.m., DuMont). It's only the sixth professional fight for Patterson, the 1952 Olympic light-heavyweight gold medalist.

*FYI: since the fight was held in Chicago, it would have been blacked out in Chicagoland anyway.

The rest of the story: Jersey Joe Walcott never fights again after losing to Rocky Marciano. The Rock retires in 1956 as the only undefeated heavyweight champion in history (a distinction he holds to this day). A tournament is held to select his successor; it's won by—Floyd Patterson.

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If, like me, you believe that Ronald Reagan’s road to the presidency begins with his long association with GE Theater, you’ll note this from the New York TV Teletype, that the show, “which substituted for Fred Waring while the Pennsylvanians were on tour, will also replace the Waring show this summer.” It stays there, airing Sunday nights until 1962, as Reagan tours the country as commercial spokesman, meeting and impressing the public. Four years after the show goes off the air, Reagan moves into the governor’s mansion in Sacramento.

You might be surprised to see Perry Como with a 15-minute program, but until 1955, when he got an hour-long show (and moved to NBC), Mr. C made do with airing three times a week (6:45 p.m., CBS) in the remainder of the half-hour taken up by Douglas Edwards and the CBS news. (None other than Dinah Shore performed a similar function over on NBC Tuesday and Thursday nights). And yes, the Eddie Albert who hosts his own daily half-hour variety show on CBS (2:30 p.m.) is the same Eddie Albert who, 15 years later, lives on Green Acres.

And on Tuesday morning (7:00 a.m., NBC), Today throws "a birthday party for Mr. Muggs , who is one year old today." That's certainly a cause for celebration!

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What kind of letters are people writing about in 1953? The magazine doesn't have a national “Letters to the Editor” section yet, so the letter writers are going to be from the TV Forecast circulation area, Chicago and surrounding cities. Also, since this is only the second issue of TV Guide, they’re probably also all referring to articles that had appeared in TV Forecast. And there’s a heavy, though not exclusively, local slant to the correspondence.

For example, the Leptich Family of Chicago writes, “Your TV critics really can miss the boat. There is a real personality right here in Chicago. The warm, humorous off the cuff type such as Godfrey—And we mean Chuck Bill. Why not put him in charge of a panel show or variety show?” Chuck Bill is the host of Adventure Time Saturday mornings on WBKB; later on, he hosts the station's Serial Theater on Saturday afternoons, and later on he can be found on the radio at WLS Farm Special. As far as I know, he never got a national show of his own.

There are a couple of letters referring to the Fohrman family; alluding to their sponsorship of Saturday night wrestling on WGN. Mrs. Mack McIntyre of Hammond, Indana, thanks God that “we still have a few men in America like them that will spend part of their money in America for the American people,” and ads that her TV “wouldn’t be worth 10 cents to me without wrestling.” Mrs. Fred Coughenour of Gary, Indiana adds that “I’m for the Fohrman family 100% . . . Now don’t answer me and say I don’t know art.” I’m assuming that these two ladies (and remember how many wrestling fans of the 1950s were women) are referring to Fohrman Motors and Benjamin Fohrman, referred to in his obituary as “an early television advertiser.” In fact, that obituary mentions a remarkable and tragic story, which you can read more about here .

And then there are some stories that supersede regional interests. Mr. and Mrs. Henry Von Ogden of Chicago have some strong words for the star of the sitcom My Friend Irma .* “Why don’t they do something about the clothes Marie Wilson wears on “Irma”? We’re so disgusted we stopped smoking her sponsor’s product.” I looked around the internet and watched a couple of episodes of Irma, and while it’s not hard finding a cheesecake photo of Marie Wilson, this picture from the cover of TV Forecast is the only specifically “Irma” photo I could find that could conceivably fit the outrage from Mr. and Mrs. Von Ogden. (And she does look very friendly indeed, doesn't she?) Call the Morals Squad!

*Fun fact: Irma began on radio in 1943 and moved to television in 1952. A movie version of My Friend Irma was made in 1949; Marie Wilson played Irma, but it's mainly remembered today for introducing Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis to moviegoers

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Finally, here's something I can almost guarantee you won't see on WGN today: the grand opening of City & Suburban Heating, at 4:00 p.m. Saturday, or right after the ball game, with a host of personalities headed by WGN radio personality Jim Ameche (brother of Don, and cousin of Alan "The Horse," the great Baltimore Colts running back who scores the winning touchdown in overtime in the 1958 NFL Championship), and before you assume that this is just a collection of B-listers and brothers of more famous stars, Jim is a star in his own right, most prominently as the radio voice of Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy from 1933 to 1938—no surprise since the show originated on WBBM in Chicago. He'll continue with a long and successful radio announcing career before dying in 1983.

As for City & Suburban Heating, it's still around, known today as City & Suburban Heating & Cooling. A pet grooming business now operates at 5434 South Archer, but City & Suburban has a location about 12 miles away, and they're an A-rated company by Angie's List. It's nice to know that, even after more than 60 years, some things don't change. TV  

Around the dial

This week saw the deaths of two of classic television's stars, and I defer to Terence at A Shroud of Thoughts for his remembrances. First:  James Drury , also known as The Virginian, one of the biggest westerns of the 1960s—and with a total of 249 episodes at 90 minutes each, I do mean big. With that kind of air to fill, The Virginian had to have a big cast, and James Drury was the one who could hold it together.

And then there's Mrs. Cathy Gale—or Pussy Galore, depending on your tastes— Honor Blackman , who mastered the art of creating chemistry with Patrick Macnee's John Steed on The Avengers. Her episodes weren't as well-known over here as those of Diana Rigg until much later, but you can't truly know or love The Avengers until you've seen her, and after that you'll never forget her. She's much more than those two roles, though, as Terence details.

One of the things I appreciate about Jack's Hitchcock Project summaries at bare•bones e-zine is how, by tracing the roots of many of the stories appearing on Hitchcock, we get a look at the magazines in which those stories originally appeared, a rich collection of mystery and crime magazines that well document a time and genre. This week, the first installment of the works of Morton Fine and David Friedkin gives us "Change of Address" from 1962, and it's a great example of what a talented writer (or writers) can do to flesh out a story when adapting it for television.

The roots of classic television can often be found in the programs from old-time radio, and The Abbott and Costello Program  is no exception. Learn more about the show, and enjoy episodes featuring some of the biggest names in Hollywood, over at Once Upon a Screen,

Comfort TV continues to provide comfort in these uncomfortable times, and this week David looks back at some memorable career moments of Cheryl Ladd, starting with her voice work on Josie and the Pussycats. We saw her back when in this edition of TV Guide .

What's in The Twilight Zone Vortex? This week, Jordan goes back to 1963 for a look at James Whitmore's memorable performance in one of the best of the hour-long episodes, and one of Rod Serling's finest scripts, the heartbreaking " On Thursday We Leave For Home ."

We'll wrap up for the week by returning to Terence for a look at the creation of one of the landmark shows in television history, Twin Peaks , on the 30th anniversary of its premiere. I feel for those who don't know what TV was like before Twin Peaks; many of the things that you take for granted today owe their existence to that show. I remember watching the premiere, and I can tell you that I'd never seen anything like it before, and I don't think I've seen any show do it as well since. It was, and is, an astonishing moment. Watch it again, and have a piece of pie while you're at it. TV  

TV Jibe: Now that's funny!

TV  

What's on TV? Tuesday, April 6, 1954

On Saturday I mentioned some of the differences between the TV Guide of 1954 and that of the later years we're more used to seeing, and there are more on display today. You'll notice right away that the familiar television-shaped channel number is nowhere to be seen; instead, the Philadelphia stations have a white sans-serif number inside a black circle, while the out-of-market stations have a black serif number inside a white square. And some of the descriptions that accompany the program titles are wonderful: Ramar is not just adventure, but "Jungle Adventure." A show like Art Linkletter's House Party is "Fun." (I like that; we could use more of that today.) Some programs appear on multiple stations, even within the same city. And apparently you have to be in prime time to have your name in ALL CAPS. But if everything was the same all the time, it would be just too dull, wouldn't it?

Loyal reader and commenter J.D. Rowe suggested I post an entire page from the issue to give you an idea of what this all looks like:



If you want to see more, this issue is available at the Internet Archive ; you can page through it at your leisure, or you can just read the listings below:
          ❸ WPTZ (NBC)

MORNING 
     6:55 Thought for Today
     7:00 Today—GarrowayGuest: Adm. Richard E. Byrd
     9:00 Let Scott Do It
   10:00 Ding Dong School
   10:30 Operation Blackboard
   11:00 Home—Women’s Features
AFTERNOON
   12:00 Bride and Groom
   12:15 Lunch with Uncle Pete
   12:45 Hawkins Falls—Serial
     1:00 MOVIE—One Hour“The Emperoro’s Nightingale”
     2:00 The Alan Schtt Spotlight
     2:30 Pots, Pans, Personalities
     3:00 Three Steps to Heaven
     3:15 Kate Smith Hour—Variety
     4:00 Welcome Travelers
     4:30 On Your Account
     5:00 Pinky Lee Show
     5:30 Howdy Doody
EVENING
     6:00 RANGE RIDER—Western
     6:30 WILD BILL HICKOK—Film
     7:00 NEWS REPORTER—McCutchen
     7:15 THE SPORTS PAGE
     7:25 WEATHER GIRL—Lynn Dollar
     7:30 DINAH SHORE—Songs
     7:45 NEWS—Swayze
     8:00 MILTON BERLEGuests: Judith Anderson, Cyril Ritchard
     9:00 FIRESIDE THEATER“Invitation to Marriage”
     9:30 CIRCLE THEATER“My Client, McDuff”
   10:00 JUDGE FOR YOURSELF—Fred Allen
   10:30 MR. DISTRICT ATTORNEY  DEBUT 
   11:00 NEWS—John B. Hughes
   11:10 SPORTS—Bosh Pritchard
   11:15 WEATHER—Jack Pyle
   11:20 WRESTLING—Ves Box
   12:20 NEWS—Fred Bennett
   12:25 THOUGHT FOR TOMORROW
I think you'd have a tough sell nowadays with a "Weather Girl," but they were all the rage once, and I'm old enough to remember when WTCN had them in Minneapolis. Today's meteorologists have all kinds of radar and forecasting tools at their disposal (which doesn't make them any more accurate), but it's nice to know that there was a time when you could still get fashion and beauty with your forecast.



          ❻ WFIL (ABC, DUMONT)
MORNING
     8:40 Wanted Persons—F.B.I.
     8:45 Televiews--Films
     9:00 Breakfast Club—Don McNeill
     9:30 Hymns of Faith—Music
     9:45 Record Room—Melodies
   10:00 Wifesaver—Allen Prescott
   11:00 Wiffil Schoolhouse
   11:15 University of the Air“Short Stories”
   11:30 University of the Air“American Life in the Contemporary Novel”
AFTERNOON
   12:00 Features for Women
   12:15 Ramar—Jungle Adventure
   12:45 Stop Look and Listen—Fun
     2:00 The Woman’s Page—Recipe
     2:30 Racket Squad—Drama
     3:00 Bandstand—Dancing
     5:00 Hopalong Cassidy—Western
EVENING
     6:00 RAMAR—Jungle Adventure
     6:30 SPORTS, NEWS
     6:45 TV NEWSREEL—Frank Hall
     6:55 WEATHER—Francis Davis
     7:00 VICTORY AT SEA—Navy Film
     7:30 CAVALCADE OF AMERICA
     8:00 LIFE IS WORTH LIVING“Three Times in the Nation’s History”Next week THE GOLDBERGS return at this time.
     8:30 PANTOMIME QUIZ—StokeyPanelists: Cliff Norton, Jerry Lester, Peter Donald, Jackie Cooper, Dorothy Hart, guests(This is the last show in this series)Next week LOVE STORY debuts in this spot
     9:00 DANNY THOMAS SHOW
     9:30 MOTOROLA TV HOUR“The Sins of the Fathers’
   10:30 MOVIE—One Hour, 15 Min.“The Macomber Affair”
   11:45 NEWSREEL—Frank Hall
   11:55 WEATHER—Francis Davis
   12:00 RACKET SQUAD—Drama
As I said on Saturday, Bob Horn was the original host of Bandstand when it was a local show. It still has the same spirit though, doesn't it?




         8  WGAL (Lancaster) (ABC, DUMONT, CBS, NBC)
MORNING
     7:00 Today—GarrowayGuest: Adm. Richard E. Byrd
     9:00 College of the Air“Ice”
   10:00 Ding Dong School
   10:30 One Man’s Family—Serial
   10:45 Three Steps to Heaven
   11:00 Hawkins Falls—Serial
   11:45 Jackpot—Phone Quiz
   11:30 Strike it Rich—Quiz
AFTERNOON
   12:00 TV Farmer—Crop Date
   12:15 Love of Life—Serial
   12:30 News of the World
   12:40 Regional News—Brandt
   12:45 The Guiding Light—Serial
     1:00 The Brighter Day—Serial
     1:15 Valiant Lady—Serial
     1:30 From the Kitchen Door
     2:00 Talent Patrol
     2:30 Search for Tomorrow—Serial
     2:45 Today with Kay—Features
     3:00 The Big Payoff—Quiz
     3:30 Kate Smith Hour—Variety
     4:00 Welcome Travelers
     5:00 Pinky Lee Show
     5:30 Howdy Doody
EVENING
     6:00 MOVIE—Western
     6:30 SPORTS, WEATHER, NEWS
     7:00 PLAYHOUSE—Anita Colby
     7:45 NEWS—Swayze
     8:00 MILTON BERLEGuests: Judith Anderson, Cyril Ritchard
     9:00 FIRESIDE THEATER“Invitation to Marriage”
     9:30 CIRCLE THEATER“My Client, McDuff”
   10:00 JUDGE FOR YOURSELF—Fred Allen
   10:30 SEE IT NOWGuest: Senator Joseph McCarthy
   11:00 ELEVENTH HOUR NEWS
   11:10 REGIONAL NEWS
   11:15 MAN AGAINST CRIME
   11:45 SPORTS NOTES
   11:50 WANTED PERSONS—F.B.I.
Dave Garroway's guest, Admiral Richard Byrd, is distinguished indeed; a winner of the Congressional Medal of Honor and two Distinguished Service Medals, an explorer who was the first to reach both the North and South Poles by air, and one of only four men to wear a medal with his own image on it. Which reminds me of the joke about how George Washington made decisions: by flipping a coin and calling, "me or tails."

        ❿ WCAU (CBS)
MORNING
     7:00 The Morning Show
     9:00 Mister and Missus—Features
     9:15 Get Happy—Variety
     9:45 The Brighter Day—Serial
   10:00 Arthur Godfrey Time
   11:30 Strike it Rich—Quiz
AFTERNOON
   12:00 Valiant Lady—Serial
   12:15 Love of Life—Serial
   12:30 Search for Tomorrow
   12:45 The Guiding Light—Serial
     1:00 Marian Kemp’s Kitchen
     1:30 Garry Moore—VarietyGuest: Harry Belafonte
     2:30 House Party—Fun
     3:00 Fun and Fortune—Contest
     3:30 Bob Crosby—Music
     4:15 Secret Storm—Serial
     4:30 Cinderella Weekend—Quiz
     5:00 Junior Hi-Jinx--Willie
     5:30 Gene Autry—Western
EVENING
     6:00 MOVIE—Early Show“Buffalo Stampede”
     6:55 TV NEWS—John Facenda
     7:00 THE BIG IDEA—Inventions
     7:30 NEWS—Douglas Edwards
     7:45 JO STAFFORD—Musical
     8:00 GENE AUTRY—Western
     8:30 RED SKELTON SHOW
     9:00 MEET MILLIE—Comedy
     9:30 AUTO SHOWGuests: Nancy Olson, Buff Cobb, Robin Chandler, Eva Gabor, Ann Rutherford, Roxanne, Phyllis Kirk, Peggy Ann Garner, and “Miss America” Host: Irene DunneSUSPENSE returns at this time next week
   10:00 DANGER—Mystery
   10:30 SEE IT NOWGuest: Senator Joseph McCarthy
   11:00 NEWS—John Facenda
   11:10 WEATHER—Phil Sheridan
   11:15 SPORTS FINAL—Whitaker
   11:30 KNOW IT OR SHOW ITPanelists: Bill Hart, Gene Crane, guest. Host: Ed McMahon
   12:00 MOVIE—Late Feature“Love, Honor and Goodbye”
This is not a picture of Irene Dunne at the Detroit Auto Show.

(It is, in fact, from the 1935 movie Magnificent Obsession, in which she starred with Robert Montgomery, who elsewhere in this issue hosts Robert Montgomery Presents on NBC.)




          12 WDEL (WILMINGTON, DE)  (NBC, DUMONT)
MORNING
     8:55 Delaware Today—Rhoads
     9:45 The Open Door—Religious
   10:00 Ding Dong School
   10:30 One Man’s Family—Serial
   10:45 Three Steps to Heaven
   11:00 Home—Women’s Features
AFTERNOON
   12:00 Bride and Groom
   12:15 Hawkins Falls—Serial
   12:30 Betty White Show
     1:00 Midday News—Bob Darby
     1:15 Buck’s Best—Buck Ross
     1:30 Music Box—Films
     2:00 Visit Ester Alderman
     2:30 Cosmopolitan Kitchen
     3:00 Kate Smith Hour—Variety
     4:00 Welcome Travelers
     5:00 Pinky Lee Show
     5:30 Howdy Doody
EVENING
     6:00 MOVIE TIME—Cartoons
     6:30 SIX-THIRTY EDITION
     6:45 SPORTING SCENE—Frick
     6:55 WEATHERMAN—Fariss
     7:00 LIBERACE—Pianist
     7:45 NEWS—Swayze
     8:00 MILTON BERLEGuests: Judith Anderson, Cyril Ritchard
     9:00 FIRESIDE THEATER“Invitation to Marriage”
     9:30 CIRCLE THEATER“My Client, McDuff”
   10:00 JUDGE FOR YOURSELF—Fred Allen
   10:30 MR. AND MRS. NORTH
   11:00 HEADLINE ROUNDUP
   11:10 HEADLINES IN SPORTS
   11:15 INDUSTRY ON PARADE
Fred Allen's intelligent sense of satire never did hold sway on television the way it did on radio, but that didn't stop him from making a few attempts in the medium. Here's the debut episode of his 10:00 p.m. show, Judge For Yourself.


TV  

This week in TV Guide: April 2, 1954

This week we get a brief glimpse into how the TV Guide empire was assembled, way back when. We're in Philadelphia, and just before the programming section, there's a preface called "Happy Birthday To Us!"

One year ago this week, TV Digest, Philladelphia's leading television magazine, was officially adopted by Triangle Publications and became the Philadelphia edition of TV GUIDE, a national television publication.

We've suffered "growing pains" . . . we've changed our size, undergone a face-lifting, enhanced our appearance with color . . . we've played "put and take" with ideas, always guided by the preferences of our readers.

We've grown! We've added many branches to our family tree until today we boast 19 sister books throughout the nation.

In this first year of our TV GUIDE life we've learned, time and time again, one must crawl before endeavoring to walk. But today we are confidently standing on a steady foundation and preparing not only to walk but to take giant steps in the months to come.

So, as we light the single candle on our Birthday No. 1, we immodestly point to our list of accomplishments in the past 12 months and lustily shout, "Happy Birthday to Us!".

The celebration continues on the
back cover.The prose is so purple it would make the Minnesota Vikings proud. In there, though, is an unmistakable sense of pride in what's been accomplished over that last year. Twenty issues nationwide! This is how TV Guide came together, through a combination of new issues being created and current publications being acquired, until by the mid-90s there were nearly 150 regional issues.

After one year, you can see the magazine still evolving into its familiar format. Channel numbers, for instance, are shown in circles and squares, and the television week begins on Friday rather than Saturday. For every show with a familiar name (I Love Lucy, Dragnet, Studio One, The Jack Benny Show, Arthur Godfrey Time), you'll see twice as many (Meet. Mr. McNutley, with Ray Milland; James Daly in Foreign Intrigue; Rocky King, the DuMont staple, with Roscoe Karns) known only to God and classic TV buffs. There's still the New York and Hollywood Teletypes, recipes to enjoy while you're watching your favorites, and plenty of ads, local and national. Let's see what's up.

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On March 9, Edward R. Murrow's See It Now presented what is often considered one of the most important programs in television history; the episode in which Murrow takes on Senator Joseph McCarthy. The McCarthy era was in its fifth year as Murrow's show aired; it was, for the most part, McCarthy in his own words, punctuated by Murrow's righteous indignation. A couple of days later, McCarthy countered with an accusation that Murrow, before the war, had been involved with exchange student programs that had helped spread the Soviet message on an international level.

Following the broadcast, CBS offered McCarthy equal time to respond, and that's what we see Tuesday (10:30 p.m., CBS). Tonight's See It Now listing includes both McCarthy's telegram accepting the network's equal-time offer, and Murrow's response to it. "If I am correct in my position that you have consciously served the Communist cause," McCarthy says, alluding to his charge against Murrow, "it is very important for your listeners to have the clear-cut, documented facts so that they can decide whether or not you are truthful, as you attempt to make out, or are deliberately misrepresenting the facts." Murrow replied, "Regarding your statement that I have consciously served the Communist cause, I deny it utterly."

Here are clips from both Murrow's original show and McCarthy's response, as well as a subsequent program with Murrow's final word on the subject.




It's difficult to say just how much Murrow's broadcast had to do with McCarthy's downfall; some suggest that McCarthy's star had already started to dim, or that lawyer Joseph Welch, who famously asked the senator during the Army-McCarthy hearings if he had “no sense of decency,” were more important in McCarthy’s downfall. Regardless, two things are certain: first, that by all accounts Murrow came out ahead in the confrontation between the two; and second, that it was a milestone moment in the history of the young medium. If you were around when this TV Guide came out, you could see it all.

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You remember how a couple of weeks ago I mentioned how popular boxing used to be on television? Well, here's the proof:

Boxing (Friday, 10:00 p.m., NBC) The Gillette Cavalcade of SportsBoxing (Saturday, 9:00 p.m., ABC) The Saturday Night FightsBoxing (Monday, 10:00 p.m., DuMont) General Tire BoutsBoxing (Wednesday, 10:00 p.m., CBS) Pabst Blue Ribbon Bouts
Of the four nights of boxing, the one fight that stands out is Friday's bout for the world middleweight title, pitting middleweight champ Bobo Olson against welterweight title holder Kid Gavilan, from Chicago, Illinois. Writing for TV Guide, NBC's announcer Jimmy Powers calls this "One of the biggest matches of all time," and for once this isn't hype. It's only the fifth time the welterweight champ has moved up in weight to take on the middleweight title holder, and you have to remember this was a time when boxing had only eight weight classes, and only one champion in each of them, so you're seeing 25% of the world's champs tonight. In a tough, brilliant fight, Olson wins a majority decision to retain the middleweight title.

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One more thing about this issue that makes it challenging to find out what the TV week is all about: the program descriptions don't always give much of a description of what you can actually expect to see on the show. For instance, check out this one from Tuesday night's Red Skelton Show: "Comic antics and characterizations made famous by the popular comedian." Yeah, that helps a lot. Seriously, I suspect that with a show like Skelton's, which is live, the list of guests might still have been up in the air as the issue went to press, so we'll give this a pass. Besides, there are plenty of highlights we can still look at.

On Friday, Dave Garroway takes a break from Today to look back on the "good old days" in Chicago, where he learned his trade. (8:00 p.m. ET, NBC) Among the guests are other Windy City alums: Burr Tillstrom with Kukla and Ollie; actor and radio announcer Cliff Norton, the announcer on Dave's radio program (you might recall him as Boss on It's About Time); dancers Ken Spaulding and Diane Sinclair; and singers Jill Corey and Jack Haskell. The history of Chicago television, and its contributions to television history overall, is a fascinating one.

NBC continues on Saturday with a pair of shows that any classic TV fan will recognize: Your Show of Shows (9:00 p.m.), the 90-minute extravaganza with Sid Caesar, Imogene Coca, Carl Reiner and Howard Morris, which a lot of people will consider one of the funniest shows ever done; and Your Hit Parade (10:30 p.m.), sponsored by Lucky Strike, counting down "the top tunes all over America, as determined by your hit parade survey." This week features yet another appearance from Kukla, Ollie and Tillstrom, along with regulars Dorothy Collins, Gisele MacKenzie, Snooky Lanson, Russell Ames, and conductor Raymond Scott.

Sunday sees Toast of the Town (8:00 p.m., CBS), which next year will change its name to The Ed Sullivan Show. An interesting theme for the show, one I wager you wouldn't see today, is that the show is celebrating its fifth year with its current sponsor; the listing doesn't actually tell you who that sponsor is, but since it's just you and me, I'll whisper in your ear the name "the Lincoln-Mercury Division of the Ford Motor Company." But I digress; the gimmick is that all of tonight's guests made their first television appearances on that initial Lincoln-Mercury-sponsored show, including Sophie Tucker, Ben Hogan, Eartha Kitt, Billy De Wolfe, Teresa Brewer, and Metropolitan Opera stars Roberta Peters, Cesare Valletti, Cesare Siepi and Fernando Corena. Opposite that on NBC is The Colgate Comedy Hour, hosted this week by Eddie Cantor, with singer Connie Rusmean sell and a "surprise mystery guest." And at 10:00 p.m., it's Loretta Young and her swirling dresses, in her eponymous anthology series, tonight co-starring John Hoyt and Aunt Bee herself, Frances Bavier.

Monday is I Love Lucy night (9:00 p.m., CBS); tonight Lucy "creates havoc in the Ricardo household" (since when is that new?) when she decides to write a novel. Lucy's far from the only familiar name tonight; Burns and Allen is on CBS at 8:00 p.m., 8:30 sees the long-running Voice of Firestone (ABC; it's listed only as "Concert," but I know what it is), followed at 9:00 p.m. by one of Jack Benny's old foils, The Dennis Day Show, with Charley Weaver (Cliff Arquette).* And at 10:00 p.m., t's it's the CBS anthology series Studio One with the drama "Stirmugs," a play that doesn't particularly mean anything except that one of the stars is the young Joanne Woodward.

*Something else you wouldn't see in later years: the show's description concludes with "Sponsored by RCA Victor." Lincoln-Mercury must not have greased the palm of someone at TV Guide.

And if you want even more stars? You'll have them on Tuesday, with Uncle Miltie (8:00 p.m., NBC); it's not Texaco Star Theater anymore, but The Buick-Berle Show. By either name, though, it has to be beat Jackpot Bowling. His guests this week are the great British actors Judith Anderson and Cyril Ritchard (and I can guarantee you wouldn't see them on Jackpot Bowling). Bishop Fulton J. Sheen's Life is Worth Living (8:00 p.m., DuMont) discusses "Three Times in the Nation's History," a warning about the challenges facing America, "Sponsored by The Admiral Corporation." (Yes, they bought ad space in the issue.) Make Room for Daddy, starring Danny Thomas, airs at 8:30 p.m. on ABC; meanwhile, on CBS, it's the aforementioned Red Skelton (I'm afraid that's about all I can tell you about it), followed at 9:00 p.m. by Roddy McDowell and Patricia Breslin* starring in another of the era's great anthologies, Armstrong Circle Theater. 

*Married, until her death, to Art Modell, owner of the Baltimore Ravens and the most hated man in Cleveland.

It's another of Arthur Godfrey's programs on Wednesday; Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts airs on Monday, and tonight it's Arthur Godfrey and His Friends (Wednesday, 8:00 p.m., CBS), with the McGuire Sisters numbering among the guests. At 9:00 p.m. it's Kraft Theatre (NBC) with Carlos Montalban, brother of Ricardo; Kraft Theatre runs from 1947 to 1958, and it leaves the air as the longest-running anthology series in history to that time. The panel show I've Got a Secret is on at 9:30 p.m. (CBS) with special guest Billie Burke trying to stump the panel, and at 10:00 p.m. it's This Is Your Life (NBC); you won't read who the honoree is in TV Guide because the show's live, but it's former Olympian and WWII hero  Louis Zamperini , the subject of Laura Hillenbrand's 2010 book (and subsequent Coen Brothers movie) Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption.

Let's start Thursday with a look at some weekday afternoon programming that has nothing to do with soap. Since Philadelphia is the home of American Bandstand, we'll start over at WFIL, where at 3:00 p.m. Bandstand (it doesn't become American until the show is picked up by ABC in 1957), hosted by Bob Horn. In 1956 Horn loses his job after a drunk-driving bust;* he's replaced by Dick Clark, who hosts American Bandstand until 1989. If you're not a teen, you might opt for The Kate Smith Hour, also at 3:00, on NBC. Later in the afternoon, NBC has a double-bill of kids' shows, with The Pinky Lee Show at 5:00, followed by Howdy Doody (before it moved to Saturday monings) at 5:30. You've also got a pair of Westerns with strong kid appeal: Hopalong Cassidy at 5:00 (WFIL) and Gene Autry at 5:30 (WCAU). The prime time highlight is our old favorite favorite Dragnet (9:00 p.m., NBC); this week, Friday and Smith investigate a dead body in a hotel. It doesn't sound good. More on them next week.

*The Philadelphia Inquirer was doing a series on drunken driving at the time, and the arrest embarrassed the owner of both the Inquirer and WFIL: Walter Annenberg, also the publisher of TV Guide. Amazing how incestuous this all is, isn't it? 

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Finally, here’s something that—I suppose—we should be proud of, at least as a TV milestone: the first color commercial. It’s for Pall Mall cigarettes (see photo on left), and the plan is to show it on the first Pall Mall-sponsored show to be broadcast in color. (It was also filmed in black-and-white so it could be used right away.) Filming this milestone commercial was no easy task; it took 15 hours to film the 60-second ad, plus weeks of set construction, costume design, rehearsal, and so forth. The mastermind of the commercial is Peter Elgar, who made his trade through educational and religious films in Europe; he’d never done a commercial until 1951. “It is like making any other motion picture,” he says, “except that the finished film is 60 seconds long.”

Which gets me to thinking: you can find collections of classic commercials all over YouTube (not to mention on DVD); I enjoy them myself. Their appeal, you have to think, is based on nostalgia: either for the product itself ("I played with that when I was a kid!") or for the actors who wound up being big stars. You have to remember, though, that with few exceptions, the people who saw those commercials at the time found them every bit as annoying as we find ours today. TV Guides of the era are filled with complaints about how much louder the commercials are than the programs they constantly interrupt. And don't forget that commercials back then were a lot longer; many of them, as we read, were one minute long, and some of them were even longer. The commercials that were integrated into the shows themselves, or were done by the stars themselves, could be more interesting, but that didn't hide the irritation they caused. And this from a time when there were fewer commercials interrupting our favorite shows than today (unless you're on premium cable).

And so I wonder, as Peter Elgar compares his commercials to 60-second movies, I wonder if he had any idea how much people would be cursing him and his progeny, from now to eternity? TV  

Around the dial

That picture up there reminds me of an old saying, or at least it was meant to be old; I think I first heard it on the miniseries Captains and the Kings. It goes, "Never tell people you don't think, or people will think you don't." Some days, we're headed in the direction of not thinking for ourselves at all. Are we there yet? Not sure.

It must be the week for old sayings; this week's Love That Bob! episode at The Horn Section is called "The Models Revolt," and that brings to mind a Wizard of Id strip from many years back, where Rodney the knight tells the King, "The peasants are revolting," to which the King replies, "You can say that again." This episode isn't revolting, though; once again it involves Our Hero and girls, and it's the first directorial appearance in the show of star Bob Cummings. It's a bit rough, but he'll get better at it rapidly.

You'll recall that The Twilight Zone Vortex is offering us monthly stories from the TZ comic book to help us get through the quarantine, and this month Jordan gives us a carnival and kewpie dolls , and you know that's not a good combination when you're in the Twilight Zone. Or anywhere else, for that matter.

At Garroway at Large, Jodie explains her recent silence on the blog front (although her Facebook posts continue to be hilarious), and demonstrates amply that it's no fun being a teacher during an epidemic. No fear, though; everyone's healthy, and as the Great Communicator himself might say, it's not an end, just a pause.

Rick reviews what looks like a really interesting book, Cinema '62 , at Classic Film & TV Café. In it, authors Stephen Farber and Michael McClellan make the case that 1962 was the greatest film year ever; arguable, but certainly plausible. You know, someone should do a similar book about television. What year would you pick?

At A Shroud of Thoughts, Terence shares the details of the TCM Classic Film Festival: Special Home Edition , necessitated by you-know-what. Some very interesting films on tap during the April 16-19 festival; it's an excellent way to spend some more time with your TV.

Finally, don't forget to join Dan and me for another look at Bourbon Street Beat, along with more fun, at the latest Eventually Supertrain podcast!

As was the case last week, we're still doing well here; drop us a comment and let us know if things are well with you, too. TV  

TV Jibe: April Fool!

There's always been a next frontier when it comes to television: from smaller pictures to large, black-and-white to color, analog to HD, 2-D to 3-D. All interesting, to be sure, but what if you could not only see, but smell what you saw on TV? And imagine where that could lead.

That's the idea the BBC had on April 1, 1965—click here to read about one of the great April Fools' hoaxes of all time. And laugh, because we could use it. TV  

What's on TV? Tuesday, March 31, 1970

In this week's "As We See It," Merrill Panitt takes a moment to look at the dilemma of counterprogramming in children's programming. When Sesame Street took to the airwaves, the producers specifically asked educational stations not to program the show against CBS's Captain Kangaroo; there were so few good options for children to watch, they didn't want to automatically eliminate one of them by having them both on at the same time. "Unfortunately," Panitt notes, "a few stations have moved Captain Kangaroo in opposite Sesame Street. Sometimes there are good reasons for this, but we can't think of any reason more important than giving youngsters a chance to see both programs." There's no problem in Philadelphia, as we can see: WCAU dutifully carries the Captain at 8:00 a.m., while WHYY accommodates by showing Sesame Street at 9:00 a.m. (WLVT, the second NET affiliate in the area, doesn't visit the Street until 4:00 p.m.) And with that example of brotherly love between stations, let's look at the rest of what Philly viewers have in store.



 3  KYW (NBC)
MORNING
    6:00 FARM MARKET REPORT -C- 
    6:10 NEWS
    6:15 MEDICAL KNOWLEDGE
    6:45 FARM, HOME AND GARDEN -C- 
    6:55 TODAY IN PHILADELPHIA -C- 
    7:00 TODAY -C- Guests: Dr. Judianne Densen-Gerber, Charles Evers
    9:00 CONTACT—Interview -C- 
  10:00 IT TAKES TWO—Game -C- Guests: Joseph Campanella, Suzanne Pleshette
  10:25 NEWS—Dickerson -C- 
  10:30 CONCENTRATION -C- 
  11:00 SALE OF THE CENTURY -C- 
  11:30 HOLLYWOOD SQUARES -C- Guests: Nanette Fabray, Henry Gibson, Harvey Korman, Paul Lynde, Jeannine Riley, Dick Sargent
AFTERNOON
  12:00 NEWS, WEATHER -C- 
  12:30 MIKE DOUGLAS—Variety -C- Co-host: Nancy Wilson
    2:00 DAYS OF OUR LIVES—Serial -C- 
    2:30 DOCTORS—Serial -C- 
    3:00 ANOTHER WORLD/BAY CITY—Serial -C- 
    3:30 BRIGHT PROMISE -C- 
    4:00 ANOTHER WORLD/SOMERSET—Serial -C-  
    4:30 DAVID FROST -C- Guests: Tom Smothers, Rich Little, Alan Sues
EVENING
    6:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS -C- 
    6:30 NEWS—Huntley/Brinkley -C- 
    7:00 NEWS, WEATHER, SPORTS -C- 
    7:30 HERB ALPERT—Variety -C- Special: Guests: Petula Clark, the Tijuana Brass[“I Dream of Jeannie” and Debbie Reynolds are pre-empted.]
    8:30 GOLDILOCKS—Musical -C- Special: Bing Crosby and his family[“Julia” is pre-empted.]
    9:00 MOVIE—Comedy -C- “The Shakiest Gun in the West” (1968)
  11:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS -C- 
  11:30 JOHNNY CARSON -C- Guests: Friends of Distinction, Penny Fuller, Patty Roosevelt


 6  WFIL (ABC)
MORNING
    6:30 OPERATION ALPHABET -C- 
    7:00 WORLD AROUND US -C- 
    9:00 FASHIONS IN SEWING -C- 
    9:10 CONNIE ROUSSIN -C- 
    9:20 NEWS -C- 
    9:30 EXERCISE WITH GLORIA -C- 
  10:00 DEAR JULIA MEADE -C- 
  10:30 ON CAMERA—Rose DeWolf -C- 
  11:00 BEWITCHED -C- 
  11:30 THAT GIRL -C- 
AFTERNOON
  12:00 BEST OF EVERYTHING -C- 
  12:30 WORLD APART—Serial -C- 
    1:00 ALL MY CHILDREN -C- 
    1:30 LET’S MAKE A DEAL -C- 
    2:00 NEWLYWED GAME -C- 
    2:30 DATING GAME -C- 
    3:00 GENERAL HOSPITAL -C- 
    3:30 MOVIE GAME -C- Guests: Don Adams, Michael Ansara, Red Buttons, Barbara Eden, Lee Grant, Lee Meriwether
    4:00 DARK SHADOWS -C- 
    4:30 I LOVE LUCY
    5:00 BEAT THE CLOCK—Game -C- 
    5:30 STUMP THE STARS—Game -C- Guests: Peter Brown, Will Hutchins, Vera Miles, Barbara Stewart
EVENING
    6:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS -C- 
    6:30 NEWS—Reynolds/Smith -C- 
    7:00 WHAT’S MY LINE?—Game -C- Panel: Soupy Sales, Sheila MacRae, Bert Convy, Arlene Francis. Host: Wally Bruner
    7:30 MOD SQUAD -C- 
    8:30 MOVIE—Drama -C- “Seven in Darkness” (1969)
  10:00 MARCUS WELBY, M.D. -C- 
  11:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS -C- 
  11:30 DICK CAVETT -C- Guests: Robert Morganthau, Edmonds and Curley
    1:00 NEWS -C- 
    1:15 RIFLEMAN—Western


 8  WGAL (LANCASTER) (NBC)
MORNING
    6:30 COUNTRY MUSIC -C- 
    7:00 TODAY -C- Guests: Dr. Judianne Densen-Gerber, Charles Evers
    8:00 POPEYE THEATER -C- 
    9:00 MIKE DOUGLAS—Variety -C- Guests: Jimmy Dean, Willie Morris, Julie De John
  10:00 IT TAKES TWO—Game -C- Guests: Joseph Campanella, Suzanne Pleshette
  10:25 NEWS—Dickerson -C- 
  10:30 CONCENTRATION -C- 
  11:00 SALE OF THE CENTURY -C- 
  11:30 HOLLYWOOD SQUARESvCGuests: Nanette Fabray, Henry Gibson, Harvey Korman, Paul Lynde, Jeannine Riley, Dick Sargent
AFTERNOON
  12:00 JEOPARDY—Game -C- 
  12:30 NOONDAY ON 8 -C- 
    1:00 DICK VAN DYKE—Comedy
    1:30 LIFE WITH LINKLETTER -C- Guest: Arlene Van Breems
    2:00 DAYS OF OUR LIVES—Serial -C- 
    2:30 DOCTORS—Serial -C- 
    3:00 ANOTHER WORLD/BAY CITY—Serial -C- 
    3:30 BRIGHT PROMISE -C- 
    4:00 TO TELL THE TRUTH -C- 
    4:30 DAVID FROST -C- Guests: Tom Smothers, Rich Little, Alan Sues
EVENING
    6:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS -C- 
    6:30 NEWS—Huntley/Brinkley -C- 
    7:00 TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES -C- 
    7:30 HERB ALPERT—Variety -C- Special: Guests: Petula Clark, the Tijuana Brass[“I Dream of Jeannie” and Debbie Reynolds are pre-empted.]
    8:30 GOLDILOCKS—Musical -C- Special: Bing Crosby and his family[“Julia” is pre-empted.]
    9:00 MOVIE—Comedy -C- “The Shakiest Gun in the West” (1968)
  11:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS -C- 
  11:30 JOHNNY CARSON -C- Guests: Friends of Distinction, Penny Fuller, Patty Roosevelt
    1:00 NEWS -C- 


10 WCAU (CBS)
MORNING
    6:00 SUNRISE SEMESTER -C- African social anthropology
    6:30 TEMPLE UNIVERSITY SEMINAR—Dr. Ellis Katz -C- 
    7:00 NEWS—Joseph Benti -C- 
    8:00 CAPTAIN KANGAROO -C- Guests: Willie Smith, the Billy Taylor Trio
    9:00 BETTY HUGHES—Variety -C- 
    9:30 FARMER’S DAUGHTER -C- 
  10:00 LUCILLE BALL -C- 
  10:30 HILLBILLIES -C- 
  11:00 ANDY GRIFFITH -C- 
  11:30 LOVE OF LIFE -C- 
AFTERNOON
  12:00 WHERE THE HEART IS—Serial -C- 
  12:25 NEWS -C- 
  12:30 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW—Serial -C- 
    1:00 GALLOPING GOURMET -C- 
    1:30 AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial -C- 
    2:00 LOVE IS A MANY SPLENDORED THING—Serial -C- 
    2:30 GUIDING LIGHT -C- 
    3:00 SECRET STORM -C- 
    3:30 EDGE OF NIGHT -C- 
    4:00 GOMER PYLE -C- 
    4:30 MOVIE—Drama“Operation Pacific” (1951)
EVENING
    6:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS -C- 
    7:00 NEWS—Walter Cronkite -C- 
    7:30 LIONS ARE FREE—Documentary -C-
Special[“Lancer” will not be seen.]
    8:30 RED SKELTON -C- Guests: George Gobel, the Original Caste
    9:30 GOV. AND J.J. -C- 
  10:00 60 MINUTES -C- Special
  11:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS -C- 
  11:30 MERV GRIFFIN -C- Guest: Buffy Sainte-Marie
    1:00 MOVIE—Mystery“Twenty Plus Two” (1961)
    3:00 NEWS


12 WHYY (PBS)
MORNING
    9:00 SESAME STREET—Children -C- 
  10:00 CLASSROOM—Education
AFTERNOON
  12:00 CLASSROOM—Continued
    3:45 FRIENDLY GIANT—Children
    4:00 SESAME STREET -C- 
    5:00 MISTEROGERS -C- 
    5:30 WHAT’S NEW—Children
EVENING
    6:00 LOCAL NEWS—Don Dunwell
    6:30 FRANKLIN TO FROST
    7:00 PHILA. SCHOOL REPORT -C- 
    7:30 DIAMOND STATE PROFILE
    8:00 WILLIAM F. BUCKLEY JR. -C- Guest: David Frost
    9:00 BLACK JOURNAL -C- Special
  10:00 FORSYTE SAGA—Drama
  11:00 LOCAL NEWS


17 WPHL (Ind.)
MORNING
    9:30 APPLIED MANAGEMENT SCIENCE -C- 
  10:00 JACK LaLANNE—Exercise -C- 
  10:30 MR. PIPER—Children -C- 
  11:00 PRINCE PLANET—Children
  11:30 ASTROBOY—Children
AFTERNOON
  12:00 JEOPARDY—Game -C- 
  12:30 WHO, WHAT OR WHERE -C- 
  12:55 NEWS—Floyd Kalber -C- 
    1:00 ONE LIFE TO LIVE—Serial -C- 
    1:30 LIFE WITH LINKLETTER -C- Guest: Arlene Van Breems
    2:00 HE SAID! SHE SAID! -C- 
    2:30 BARBARA COLEMAN -C- 
    3:00 CARTOON CLUB -C- 
    3:30 JOHNNY CYPHER—Children -C- 
    4:00 PRINCE PLANET –Children
    4:30 EIGHTH MAN—Children
    5:00 BUCK ROGERS—Children
    5:30 SPEED RACER—Children -C- 
EVENING
    6:00 GILLIGAN’S ISLAND -C- 
    6:30 MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. -C- 
    7:30 OF LANDS AND SEAS -C- 
    8:30 TO TELL THE TRUTH -C- 
    9:00 MOVIE—Musical“Lillian Russell” (1940)
  10:55 WORLD OF SPORT
  11:00 TWILIGHT ZONE—Drama
  11:30 MOVIE—Musical“Alexander’s Ragtime Band” (1938)


29 WTAF (Ind.)
MORNING
  10:00 THE ANSWER—Religion -C- 
  10:30 FUNNY MANNS—Children
  11:00 CARTOONS -C- 
  11:30 ROMPER ROOM -C- 
AFTERNOON
  12:30 ALEX DREIER—Comment -C- 
  12:35 BRICKLINS—Discussion
    1:00 STOCK MARKET REPORT -C- 
    2:30 STOCK MARKET REPORT -C- 
    3:30 QUICK DRAW McGRAW -C- 
    4:00 TOP CAT—Children -C- 
    4:30 BATMAN—Adventure -C- Guest villain: Cesar Romero (The Joker)
    5:00 ADDAMS FAMILY—Comedy
    5:30 DENNIS THE MENACE—Comedy
EVENING
    6:00 LOST IN SPACE—Adventure -C- 
    7:00 HONEYMOONERS—Comedy
    7:30 TENPINS AND DOLLARS -C- 
    8:00 REAL McCOYS—Comedy
    8:30 DELLA REESE—Variety -C- Guest: Gloria Loring
    9:30 PASSPORT—Travel -C- 
  10:00 NIGHT TALK—McKinney -C- 
  11:30 NEWS, WEATHER -C- 


39 WLVT (ALLENTOWN-BETHLEHEM) (NET)
AFTERNOON
    3:45 FRIENDLY GIANT—Children
    4:00 SESAME STREET -C- 
    5:00 MISTEROGERS -C- 
    5:30 WHAT’S NEW—Children
EVENING
    6:00 POCKETFUL OF FUN
    6:30 SCHOOL OF THE WEEK
    7:00 MISTEROGERS—Children -C- 
    7:30 MANAGER’S CHAT—Interview
    7:45 SOCIAL SECURITY
    8:00 FOLK GUITAR—Music
    8:30 FASHIONS FROM ORTSpecial
    9:00 FORSYTE SAGA—Drama
  10:00 NEWSFRONT
  10:30 INTERFACE—Science -C- 


48 WKBS (Ind.)
MORNING
  11:25 NEWS -C- 
  11:30 BEETLE BAILEY—Children -C- 
AFTERNOON
  12:00 PIXANNE—Children -C- 
    1:00 MOVIE—Drama“Canyon Crossroads” (1955)
    2:50 NEWS -C- 
    3:00 KIMBA—Children -C- 
    3:30 STINGRAY—Children
    4:00 LITTLE RASCALS—Comedy
    4:30 ABBOTT AND COSTELLO
    5:00 FLINTSTONES—Children -C- 
    5:30 MUNSTERS—Comedy
EVENING
    6:00 STAR TREK—Adventure -C- 
    7:00 DICK VAN DYKE—Comedy
    7:30 TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES -C- 
    8:00 PAY CARDS!—Game
    8:30 CANDID CAMERA
    9:00 PERRY MASON—Mystery
  10:00 NEWS—Carl Grant -C- 
  10:30 ALFRED HITCHCOCK—Drama
  11:30 MOVIE—Comedy“Once Upon a Honeymoon” (1942)
    1:30 NEWS -C- 
TV