Mitchell Hadley's Blog: It's About TV!, page 145

What's on TV? Sunday, January 19, 1969

Well, here we are back in Philly again, back-to-back weeks. (I'll bet these two issues came from the same lot.) The professional football season finally comes to an end, with both leagues playing their all-star games, one week after the Jets' titanic Super Bowl upset of the Colts. If you're not in the mood for pigskin, there's also hockey, and if you want something a little brainerer, you can check out G-E College Bowl. Let's see what else there is.



 3  KYW (NBC)
Morning
    6:25 NEWS
    6:30 READ YOUR WAY UP   COLOR 
    7:00 MOVIE—Drama “The Proud Stallion” (Czech; 1964)
    9:00 INTERNATIONAL ZONE
    9:30 GUIDELINE   COLOR Guest: Archbishop John Cody
  10:00 FILM   COLOR “The Fish Story”
  10:30 FROM THE RELIGIOUS ANGLE—Interview   COLOR 
  11:00 SENATORS SCOTT AND SCHWEIKER—Discussion   COLOR 
  11:30 OPINIONS EXPRESSED   COLOR 
Afternoon
  12:00 WILD KINGDOM   COLOR 
  12:30 PENNSYLVANIA NEWS CONFERENCE   COLOR 
    1:00 MEET THE PRESS   COLOR Guest: George E. Christian, President Johnson’s press secretary
    1:30 COLLEGE BOWL—Quiz   COLOR Swathmore vs. Augustana
    2:00 AFL ALL-STAR GAME   SPECIAL    COLOR 
    5:00 MOVIE—Comedy“Strictly Dishonorable” (1951)
Evening
    6:30 BRANDED—Western
    7:00 NEW ADVENTURES OF HUCK FINN—Children   COLOR 
    7:30 WALT DISNEY’S WORLD   COLOR 
    8:30 MOTHERS-IN-LAW   COLOR 
    9:00 BONANZA—Western   COLOR 
  10:00 MY FRIEND TONY   COLOR 
  11:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS   COLOR 
  11:20 MOVIE—Drama “One Night in Lisbon” (1941)
    1:15 NEWS   COLOR 
The AFL All-Star Game is being held in Jacksonville; no AFL team exists there, but I suspect the game is being used as a stalking horse to test the area's viability for a future franchise. They got one, decades later.


 6  WFIL (ABC)
Morning
    7:00 GUIDEPOST—Religion   COLOR 
    7:05 DAVEY AND GOLIATH   COLOR 
    7:20 LIGHT TIME—Religion
    7:35 CHRISTIAN ANSWERS
    7:40 THIS IS THE LIFE   COLOR 
    8:10 LIVING WORD—Religion
    8:25 NASA REPORTS
    8:30 CARTOONS—Children   COLOR 
    9:30 MENORAH—Religion   COLOR 
    9:45 CHRISTOPHERS—Religion   COLOR 
  10:00 LINUS   COLOR 
  10:30 KING KONG   COLOR 
  11:00 LARRY FERRARI   COLOR 
  11:30 SKIPPY—Adventure   COLOR 
Afternoon
  12:00 GREATEST SHOW—Drama   COLOR 
    1:00 DIRECTIONS—Religion   COLOR 
    1:30 COLLEGE TALENT   COLOR 
    2:00 NEWS CONFERENCE   COLOR 
    2:30 I LOVE LUCY—Comedy
    3:00 COLLEGE FOOTBALL HIGHLIGHTS   COLOR 
    3:30 OPERATION: ENTERTAINMENT   COLOR Host: Tim Conway. Guests: Phil Ford and Mimi Hines; Honey, Ltd.; Alice Jones; Canestrelli Family
    4:30 DON RICKLES—Comedy   COLOR Guests: Mike Douglas, Peter Lawford, Penelope Tree, Paul Anderson
    5:00 MOVIE—Adventure   COLOR “The Adventures of Hajji Baba” (1954)
Evening
    7:00 LAND OF THE GIANTS   COLOR 
    8:00 FBI   COLOR 
    9:00 MOVIE—Suspense“The Dirty Game” (French-German-Italian-English; 1965)
  11:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS   COLOR 
  11:30 MOVIE—Drama“That Lady” (1955)
    1:30 NEWS—Keith McBee   COLOR 
    1:45 WESTERNERS—Drama
Since the college football season ended on January 1, I can only think that the college football highlights at 3:00 p.m. are either from the bowl games, or from the various all-star games that still played a role in college football before the flood of televised games and scouting combines that exist today.


 8  WGAL (LANCASTER) (NBC)
Morning
    7:00 FAITH FOR TODAY   COLOR 
    7:30 GUIDELINEGuest: John Cardinal Krol
    8:00 COURIERS—Music   COLOR 
    8:30 CHRISTOPHERS—Religion
    8:45 SACRED HEART—Religion
    9:00 THIS IS THE LIFE   COLOR 
    9:30 DOORWAY TO LIFE   COLOR 
  10:00
  10:15 DAVEY AND GOLIATH   COLOR CARTOONLAND   COLOR 
  10:30 F TROOP—Comedy
  11:00 MISTER ED—Comedy
  11:30 SEA HUNT—Adventure
Afternoon
  12:00 NEWS
  12:15 CHANGING TIMES   COLOR 
  12:30 CALL OF OUTDOORS   COLOR 
    1:00 MEET THE PRESS   COLOR Guest: George E. Christian, President Johnson’s press secretary
    1:30 CHAMPIONSHIP BOWLING   COLOR 
    2:00 AFL ALL-STAR GAME   SPECIAL    COLOR 
    5:00 FARM SHOW ’69   COLOR 
    5:30 JACQUES COUSTEAU   SPECIAL    COLOR 
Evening
    6:30 WILD KINGDOM   COLOR 
    7:00 NEW ADVENTURES OF HUCK FINN—Children   COLOR 
    7:30 WALT DISNEY’S WORLD   COLOR 
    8:30 MOTHERS-IN-LAW   COLOR 
    9:00 BONANZA—Western   COLOR 
  10:00 MY FRIEND TONY   COLOR 
  11:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS   COLOR 
  11:30 JOHNNY CARSON   COLOR 
    1:00 NEWS AND SPORTS   COLOR 
We read about that Jacques Cousteau documentary last week, another example of affiliate sharing.


10 WCAU (CBS)
Morning
    6:25 NEWS
    6:30 OFFICIAL REPORT
    7:00 BILL BENNETT SHOW   COLOR 
    7:30 TOM AND JERRY   COLOR 
    8:00 AQUAMAN—Children   COLOR 
    8:30 TELL IT LIKE IT WAS   COLOR 
  10:00 LAMP UNTO MY FEET   COLOR 
  10:30 LOOK UP AND LIVE   COLOR 
  11:00 CAMERA THREE   COLOR 
  11:30 CAPITOL HILL   COLOR 
Afternoon
  12:00 TV 10 MAN IN THE NEWS   COLOR 
  12:30 FACE THE NATION   COLOR 
    1:00 PRO HOCKEY   COLOR Toronto at Boston
    3:30 NFL PRE-GAME SHOW   SPECIAL    COLOR 
    4:00 NFL PRO BOWL   SPECIAL    COLOR 
Evening
    7:00 LASSIE   COLOR 
    7:30 GENTLE BEN   COLOR 
    8:00 ED SULLIVAN   COLOR Guests: Liza Minnelli, John Davidson, Gary Puckett and the Union Gap, the Lennon Sisters, Wayne and Shuster, Scoey Mitchell, Victor the Bear
    9:00 SMOTHERS BROTHERS   COLOR Guests: Ray Charles, Jackie Mason
  10:00 MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE—Adventure   COLOR 
  11:00 NEWS—Harry Reasoner   COLOR 
  11:15 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS   COLOR 
  11:30 MOVIE—Adventure“Seminole” (1953)
    1:10 I SPY—Adventure   COLOR 
    2:10 NEWS
The NFL Pro Bowl comes to us live from Los Angeles, where it was usually played before it was moved to Hawaii. Back in 1969, the all-stars took this game far more seriously than they do today.


12 WHYY (WILMINGTON) (NET)
Afternoon
    3:00 FRENCH CHEF—Cooking
    3:30 TV GARDEN CLUB   COLOR 
    4:00 BRIDGE—Jean Cox
    4:30 EASTERN EUROPE—Discussion   SPECIAL 
    5:30 CRITIQUE   COLOR 
Evening
    6:30 WORLD PRESS REVIEW—News   COLOR 
    7:30 WORLD WE LIVE IN   COLOR 
    8:00 PBL—Concert   COLOR 
  10:30 NET PLAYHOUSE   COLOR 
Nice to see NET moving to more color programming, although many local programs are still in black-and-white. And then, of course, there's the legendary French Chef.


17 WPHL (IND.)
Morning
    8:00 HERALD OF TRUTH   COLOR 
    8:30 DAY OF DISCOVERY   COLOR 
    9:00 A.A. ALLEN REVIVAL
    9:30 BEATLES   COLOR 
  10:00 UPBEAT—Variety   COLOR Guests: Bobby Goldsboro, Steppenwolf, the American Breed, the Lemon Pipers, 1910 Fruit Gum Company
  11:00 ROLLER DERBY   COLOR 
Afternoon
  12:00 MOVIE—Musical   COLOR “There’s No Business like Show Business” (1954)
    2:00 SUSPENSE THEATRE—Drama   COLOR “The Name of the Game”
    3:00 MOVIE—Musical   COLOR “There’s No Business like Show Business” (1954)
    5:00 MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.—Drama   COLOR 
Evening
    6:00 OF LANDS AND SEAS   COLOR 
    7:00 NOW—Jack McKinney
    8:30 MOVIE—Drama“5 Fingers” (1953)
  10:30 KUP’S SHOW—Discussion   COLOR Guests: Carol Channing, John Gavin, Diana Sands, Pauline Flanagan, Nipsey Russell, Larry Wilde
The legendary columnist and television personality Irv Kupcinet 's television show, based out of Chicago, ran from 1959 to 1986 and was nationally syndicated. The running time for tonight's show was three hours; the late Carol Channing could probably have filled most of that time herself.

29 WIBF (IND.)
Morning
    8:00 REV. McKINLEY WILLIAMS
    8:30 REV. BERT HARE—Religion
    9:00 FUNNY MANNS—Children
    9:30 ROBIN HOD—Adventure
  10:00 ZORRO—Adventure
  10:30 FOREST RANGERS—Adventure
  11:00 BULLWINKLE   COLOR 
  11:30 STORIES OF THE CENTURY
Afternoon
  12:00 BIG STORY—Drama
  12:30 SCARLETT PIMPERNELL
    1:00 LONE RANGER—Western
    1:30 ROY ROGERS—Western
    2:30 MOVIE—Drama “Craig’s Wife” (1936)
    4:00 MATCHES AND MATES   COLOR 
    4:30 MARSHAL DILLON—Western
    5:00 BURKE’S LAW—Mystery
Evening
    6:00 JOHN WAYNE—Western “Western Ho” (1935)
    7:00 COUNTRY AND WESTERN MUSIC   COLOR 
    8:30 WILBURN BROTHERS   COLOR Guest: Tommy Overstreet
    9:00 PORTER WAGONER—Music   COLOR Guest: Kenny Price
    9:30 BILL ANDERSON—Music Guest: Jim and Jesse
  10:00 HARRY BRISTOW—Religion
  11:00 CONVERSATION—William Fox
  11:30 DATELINE: EUROPE
A real block of country legends tonight, with the Wilburn Brothers, Porter Wagoner, and Bill Anderson, back-to-back-to-back. You'd be hard-pressed to find that kind of talent in any genre, any night of the week.


48 WKBS (IND.)
Morning
    9:00 GIGANTOR—Children   COLOR 
  11:00 HY LIT—Variety   COLOR Guests: Bob Atkins, Sam and Dave
Afternoon
  12:00 MOVIE—Adventure“Underwater!” (1955)
    2:00 MOVIE—Drama“Open City” (Italian; 1946)
    4:00 WAGON TRAIN—Western   COLOR 
    5:30 FLINTSTONES   COLOR 
Evening
    6:30 JOHN GARY—Variety   COLOR Guests: Steve Allen, Chita Rivera, Victor Buono, Guy Marks, Jane Kean, Avery Schreiber
    8:00 ROLLER GAME
  10:00 NEWS—Bob Wallace   COLOR 
  10:30 JOE PYNE—Discussion
  12:00 N.J. ROUNDUP   COLOR 
A program description you wouldn't see today, on Wagon Train: "Indian Lance Starbuck is in love with Kim Case—whose uncle has a deep hatred for redmen." Ouch. TV  

This week in TV Guide: January 18, 1969

It's the dawn of a new era in American politics, with the Inauguration of Richard Nixon and Spiro Agnew as President and Vice President of the United States. Out with the old, corrupt LBJ administration, and in with...wait, how did that all work out again?

     
Inauguration coverage starts at 10:00 a.m. ET on all three networks, and continues throughout the day, featuring the swearing-in at noon, the parade throughout the afternoon, and the inaugural balls following the late local news. For the first time, networks discuss the idea of providing political analysis of the president's inaugural address; as NBC producer Robert Shafer says, "I've felt the Inaugural has been covered in the past too much like a sporting event. I'd like to give this one more historical perspective."

Network anchors admit a decided lack of enthusiasm for the parade, which, Chet Huntley says, is "kind of a bore." His colleague David Brinkley is more delightfully pungent: "Every state demands to be seen in it, so it always drags on three hours or more, going into absolute darkness, and nobody can see the end of it." Concedes Walter Cronkite, "how can they [cut it out]? It's one of our ceremonials."

Security is expected to be tight for the parade; President Nixon will be riding in a new limo with bulletproof windows and, like LBJ in 1965, will be seated behind bulletproof glass in the review stand. The glass will make it impossible for famed cowboy actor Monty Montana to duplicate his 1953 trick of lassoing President Eisenhower. And once again there's the ghost that's present by its absence, something that happened between Eisenhower and Johnson that caused the increase in security, the bulletproof glass and limo. Five years later, it still hangs overhead.

     
And now, as Paul Harvey would put it, the rest of the story: the man to the right of Nixon in the Close-Up is Earl Warren, Chief Justice of the United States, whose duty it is to administer the presidential oath. Warren, wanting to ensure that his successor shared his liberal judicial views, had announced his retirement in June 1968 in order to allow President Johnson to nominate the new Chief. That man, Associate Justice (and LBJ confidant) Abe Fortas, would come under intense fire for alleged ethical violations and, after a contentious Senate filibuster, his nomination would be withdrawn.

Warren, stymied in his efforts to, frankly, manipulate the situation, agreed to remain on the bench until the next term (which wouldn't begin until after the election), in a deal in which his son-in-law acted as intermediary. His son-in-law was none other than John Charles Daly - the same John Daly who'd been host of What's My Line? for so many years and then moved on to head Voice of America, and had married Warren's daughter Virginia in 1960. Small world, isn't it?

     
During the 60s, the Ed Sullivan Show and The Hollywood Palace were the premiere variety shows on television. Whenever they appear in TV Guide together, we'll match them up and see who has the best lineup..
Ed Sullivan: Tentatively scheduled guests: Liza Minnelli; singer John Davidson; Gary Puckett and the Union Gap; the Lennon Sisters; comedians Wayne and Shuster, and Scoey Mitchell; and Victor the Bear.

Hollywood Palace: Roy Rogers and Dale Evans present a country show.  Guests: Burl Ives; George Gobel; "Beverly Hillbilly" Irene Ryan; singers Sonny James and Jeannie C. Riley; and the Stoney Mountain Cloggers.

Hmm. Both shows have strong lineups. Liza Minnelli was well on her way to a great career, and the Canadian comedians Johnny Wayne and Frank Shuster* appeared on the Sullivan show 67 times, more than any other guests. As for Victor the Bear - well, you be the judge.


*Frank Shuster's uncle was Joe Shuster - co-creator of Superman; Frank's daughter Rosie was for a time married to Lorne Michaels and served as one of Saturday Night Live's chief writers at the beginning (thanks, Kliph!) We're just full of tidbits like that this week.

The Palace has a big-name lineup, but this week's show is mostly country, and I'm not a big fan of country. Still, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans! Legends! My verdict is The Palace, bearly.*

*Oh, brother.

And now, a bonus track: Chuck Braverman's short film "The World of '68," first seen on 60 Minutes. but airing this week on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, broadcast right after Ed this Sunday. (The Brothers' other guests include Ray Charles and Jackie Mason.)


     
.Throughout the 60s and early 70s, TV Guide's weekly reviews were written by the witty and acerbic Cleveland Amory. Whenever we get the chance, we'll look at Cleve's latest take on the series of the era. 

Any time you have to spend more than half of a television review going over the premise of the show you're reviewing, I think you've got a problem. Or, according to Cleveland Amory, the network has a problem. And while you wouldn't think that explaining the setup for ABC's Land of the Giants would be that big a deal, it is. That's because every one of the "little people" that find themselves stuck in the land of the giants has a story: the financier (Don Matheson) trying to complete a multi-million dollar deal; the criminal (Kurt Kasznar) with a million dollars in stolen loot; the angry jet-setter (Deanna Lund) who complains about the lousy service.

And about the service: one of the things I find most hilarious about sci-fi stories taking place in the future is how much they get wrong. In this case, our heroes find themselves in the aforementioned giantsville because it's 1983, and their London-bound suborbital flight runs into trouble. Granted, these alternative universes only happen in sci-fi stories, but here we are in 2019, 36 years after Land of the Giants is supposed to have occurred, and we still haven't cracked suborbital passenger service, although Richard Branson is hard at work on it. Maybe he was the financier stuck in the land of the giants.

There are good guys and bad guys in Land of the Giants, and that doesn't make it much different from other programs on TV. Among the best of the good guys are the pilots, Gary Conway (who had much more to work with in Burke's Law) and Don Marshall, whose problems, in addition to having landed their passengers on the wrong planet, seem to revolve around basic survival. Then there's the stewardess (Heather Young) who has her own problem, as Amory points out: "In addition to sharing all the troubles the others have, she also is almost constantly strangled by her size-1 sweater." The characterizations are, for the most part, somewhat cartoonish, which goes for the series as a whole. Says Cleve, "if you're under 11, you're bound to enjoy this show. If you're over 11, lots of luck." Or, perhaps, lots of Heather Young.

     

Darren McGavin, star of NBC's Wednesday night private detective series The Outsider, is an outsider in more ways than one. Digby Diehl tells us that McGavin has a reputation for being egocentric and difficult to work with; says former costar Burt Reynolds (Riverboat), "Darren McGavin is going to be a very disappointed man on the first Easter after his death."  That's a very good line, very funny—I didn't know Burt had it in him.

Anyway, McGavin did several interviews for TV Guide in the 60s, and comes across as blunt, gruff, a straight-shooter who's free with his opinions and doesn't care whether you like them or not. A sampling: Mike Hammer, Mickey Spillane's famous detective, whom McGavin played for two years, was "a one dimensional person. Mike Hammer is of another era, another time. He's not a valid man in this world." Violence on television? "How can anybody seriously be surprised about violence on TV and movies or in ghettos and campuses when the United States Government is resolving a conflict today in Vietnam not only with violence, but more or less illegally." Gun control?  "Firearms, all firearms, should be abolished.  That includes sidearms and shotguns for the police. And then we would get rid of guns." He doesn't see it happening, though, as "the gun lobbies are too strong."

David Ross, the character McGavin plays in The Outsider, is one of the actor's favorite roles; the fictional man and the real one share a common background and characteristics. They're both outsiders, McGavin explains, having come up from broken families, spending time in jail, learning life on the streets. "[A]mongst herd animals in Africa a strange thing happens to an animal that has not had the normal herd experience, one whose mother is killed. That animal is always an outsider to the herd. They reject him inasmuch as he does not want to relate to the herd.  He develops his own path and ethic." No surprise that McGavin has a copy of Colin Wilson's existential study, The Outsider.

As for acting, McGavin acknowledges that the legitimate theater is his true love, but that "you can't go back and do play after play." For all of television's faults, "even in that context you can do something." And that is what he would do, for years to come.

      .
Leslie Raddatz gives us a sneak peak at what the networks might have in store for the 1969-70 season. According to his sources, five factors above all are at work influencing the programmers: 1) the national revulsion against violence in the wake of the assassinations of MLK and RFK; 2) the decline in audience interest in movies making the transition from theaters to TV; 3) the emergence of "Negroes" as a force in the entertainment industry; 4) the rising cost of filmed (as opposed to taped) programs; and 5) the popularity of half-hour sitcoms over hour-long dramas.

Crime, war and spy shows are out, and there are only two Westerns on the docket. A quick scan through the potential series yields a few tidbits: CBS has UMC, which with a different lead (Chad Everett instead of Richard Bradford) winds up being Medical Center; To Rome With Love with John Forsythe; and The Jim Nabors Show, starring (surprise, surprise!) Jim Nabors; NBC weighs in with a post-I Spy vehicle for Bill Cosby, which winds up being The Bill Cosby Show; The Whole World Is Watching, a drama about three lawyers that evolves into "The Lawyers" segment of The Bold Ones; and Flip Out, which becomes The Flip Wilson Show.  ABC doesn't have much, but the ones that stand out are The Courtship of Eddie's Father (with Bill Bixby); Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (with Monte Markham); and The Brady Bunch (enough said). Perhaps the most interesting story is Barefoot in the Park, based on the Neil Simon play, which was pitched to star Philip Clark and Skye Aubrey. Instead, the producers decided on an interesting tack: changing the leads and the majority of the cast from white to black. It winds up with Scoey Mitchell and Tracy Reed, and lasts for twelve episodes.*

*Barefoot in the Park was teamed up with another Neil Simon adaptation, which proved to be far more successful. Its name? The Odd Couple.

What doesn't wind up on our home screens doesn't bear much scrutiny; I never did see anything of Stefanie Powers (our loss) in Holly Golightly. We'll also never know what our lives might have been like had The Punxatilly Pioneer made it to the small screen.

     
Now here's an interesting program, on KYW at 7:30 p.m. ET. David Frost hosts How to Irritate People, with a cast that will soon be far better known in the United States, including John Cleese as the Chief Irratator, with Ruffling Assistants Connie Booth, Graham Chapman, Michael Palin, Tim Brooke-Taylor, Gillian Lind, and Dick Vosburgh. I think tht's worth preempting The Jerry Lewis Show, don't you?

Game shows featuring celebrity participants, while not what they once were, are still to be found in the late 60s. Longtime warhorses such as What's My Line?, I've Got a Secret, Password and To Tell the Truth have all disappeared in the last year or two, destined to return in diminished form via syndication strip programming, but you can still find your favorite B-list stars throughout the daytime network lineup.

NBC has a morning trio, starting at 10:00 Eastern with Snap Judgement, featuring Tony Randall and actress Ina Balin *, followed at 11:00 by Personality, this week with Godfrey Cambridge, Joan Fontaine and Peggy Cass. At 11:30 it's the king of celebrity shows, Hollywood Squares, with Wally Cox, Henry Gibson, Arte Johnson, Paul Lynde, Rose Marie, Jan Murray, Tony Randall (again!), Kaye Stevens and Charley Weaver. The afternoon continues at 3:30 with an additional pair: You Don't Say!, with Pat Buttram and Alice Ghostley, followed by the original Match Game, with Ethel Merman and Nipsey Russell. And here's one I've never heard of before, ABC's Funny You Should Ask, this week with Stu Gilliam, Shecky Greene, Rose Marie, Tony Randall (does that man have time to do anything else?) and Kaye Stevens.

*Ina Balin also starred in the Jerry Lewis movie The Patsy, which ABC happens to be showing that Wednesday. 

If celeb shows aren't your thing, you could still appreciate NBC's Concentration, Jeopardy and Eye Guess, while ABC offers Let's Make a Deal, Dream House, The Newlywed Game and The Dating Game. You notice CBS missing from this list; the network, which today airs the only network daytime game shows, had axed all of their games by 1969, concentrating instead on sitcom reruns and soaps.

Speaking of the sudsers, there are plenty of those as well: General Hospital, One Life to Live and Dark Shadows on ABC; Love of Life, Search for Tomorrow, As the World Turns, Love is a Many Splendored Thing, The Guiding Light, The Secret Storm, and Edge of Night on CBS (they also had the only talk show, Art Linkletter's); and Hidden Faces, Days of Our Lives, The Doctors and Another World on NBC.

So for your daytime television viewing, you had 14 soap operas, 13 game shows, five sitcom reruns, one morning show (Today), one morning news show (CBS), a children's show (Captain Kangaroo), an interview show, and a partridge in a pear tree.* Six hours were given back to local stations (half of that from ABC, which didn't begin its morning feed until noon), although preemptions were common throughout the daytime lineup.

*Actually, I made that last one up.

By contrast, today's daytime lineup is thus: four soap operas, three talk shows, three morning shows (with Today now running an extra two hours), two game shows,  and 10 hours of local programming, most of which is filled with more talk shows, fake judge shows and the like.

I grew up with these shows, in the summer months when school was out, during Christmas break in the winter, and on those days when I was home sick.  I loved watching them - well, maybe not each individual one, but the concept of them.  Sure, some of them might have been cheesy, but I miss them.  If I had children, I'm not sure I'd let them watch daytime TV today.

I didn't like the soaps, but my mother did and so they were on.  She was partial to the NBC lineup, especially Another World.  I actually - and quite unintentionally - share my first and middle name with a character from that show (albeit with a slightly different spelling), but . Say, that would be a great name for a daytime drama, wouldn't it? TV  

Around the dial

I'm not really sure just how much stock to put in lists, and that includes—perhaps especially—my own. They're always fun to read, though, which is why the Classic TV Blog Association , to which I proudly belong, recently polled its members on the 25 Greatest Classic TV Series of all time.

Part of the challenge with contributing to a list like this lies in the guidelines. In this case, programs were limited to those that aired in prime time, and debuted prior to 1990. We were also asked to consider criteria such as enduring popularity, social impact, and influence on other TV series. In other words, this isn't simply a list of favorite television shows.

The Twilight ZoneI Love Lucy The Mary Tyler Moore ShowColumboAll in the FamilyDragnetMonty Python’s Flying CircusStar TrekThe PrisonerM*A*S*HThe Dick Van Dyke ShowThe FugitiveDallasDoctor WhoThe Andy Griffith ShowThe DefendersThe Golden GirlsPerry MasonSCTVThe HoneymoonersAlfred Hitchcock PresentsHill Street BluesThe Odd CoupleThe Outer LimitsThe Avengers
For the record, I believe two of my choices made the top 10, and there are perhaps a half-dozen in the top 25 that I definitely wouldn't have put on any list. A couple of them are shows that I didn't have, but heartily approve of; likewise, I grudgingly included two that I don't particularly like, but had to acknowledge their cultural and/or historical significance. Some of you might be taken aback by shows that I omitted, or equally surprised by those I included. (Being a coward at heart, I'm refraining from being any more specific than that.)

The Last Drive In , Comfort TV, and Classic Film and TV Café have particularly good takes on the results. Ultimately, though, television is, or at least was, something very personal to people—as I've written before, the most personal of all communications media. A particular program may bring back memories of where you were, what you were doing, or what was happening when you watched it, and something like that is impossible to quantify. If there's any program here that you've never seen before but are encouraged to check out because it's on the list, then we've done our job as curators of the past. What are your thoughts—where do you agree or disagree?

In other news...

It was 67 years ago this week that The Today Show premiered on NBC, and at Garroway at Large, Jodie gives us a look at what the critics had to say on the morning after. Hint: I doubt many of them thought we'd be having this conversation 67 years later.

The Hitchcock Project moves on to writer James P. Cavanagh, as Jack at bare-bones e-zine looks at the first season episode "The Hidden Thing."  I'm afraid  I'll have to agree with Jack that what was most hidden in this episode was a satisfying resolution.

It's Bart Maverick's turn to lead on Maverick Mondays at The Horn Section, as Hal reviews the fifth-season episode "The Golden Fleecing." James Garner's long-since left Maverick, but Jack Kelly does his best in a good, but not quite great, evocation of the show's past.

At Cult TV, the emphasis is on the late '70s and the British police drama Target . As John points out, Target was a series known for its violence, and the episode "Blow Out" is perhaps one of the most violent, along with some suspect police methods.

The Broadcasting Archives at the University of Maryland links to this provocative article at Dazed on how Soul Train was " the most radical show on American television ." Never watched it myself, so I appreciate this kind of serious analysis as to its cultural weight.

At Television Obscurities, Robert is once again taking on the task of documenting a year in TV Guide, from beginning to end. This time it's 1989 , and since that's not a time period that I generally write about myself, I'm very much looking forward to these weekly recaps.  TV  

The Cincinnati legend and the legendary day

It's not my place to go telling you all out there about my problems (unless they have to do with TV), but I do have a point to this. Currently, I'm going through what people euphemistically refer to as a period between careers, when what they really mean is that someone is unemployed.

Anyway my current temporary assignment allows me to wear headphones while I work, which has enabled me to listen to David Von Pein's remarkable long-form audio from Cincinnati's WLW radio : 33 hours, documenting the broadcast days of November 22 and 23, 1963. The significance, of course, is obvious: the JFK assassination. But while that continuous coverage is interesting, what most intrigues me is what comes before the first bulletins are broadcast, a little after 1:30 p.m. ET.

To all appearances, November 22, 1963 was an absolutely ordinary day—it's only in retrospect that the sheer ordinariness of it all is apparent; at the time, nobody would have given it a thought, which is what makes it so engaging. And the most outstanding example of that is a live, 90-minute program which airs five days a week and is simulcast on WLW radio and WLW-T television, called The 50-50 Club, hosted by Ruth Lyons; you might recognize it from some of the Cincinnati-area TV Guides we've looked at. It has been said that history swallows up the ordinary folks, but the preservation of this particular program—the television version of ordinary folks, as it were—simply by circumstance, gives us a wonderful snapshot of its time, from popular music to an economy built around, and advertised to, the vast majority of women who stayed at home raising their children. It is an example of ordinary folks telling the history.

One essayist called Ruth Lyons the inventor of the daytime talk show, and that's a pretty fair description, I think. Doubtless she would be appalled by what has happened to her creation in the nearly 73 years since her program debuted in Cincinnati on February 5, 1946. It was called The 50 Club at first, because the studio audience was comprised of 50 women; the audience was expanded to 100 in 1953, when the show became known as The 50-50 Club. In addition to WLW-T, the show was also carried on the other three stations owned by Crosley Broadcasting, in Dayton, Columbus, and Indianapolis. In his 1988 obituary for Lyons , columnist Bob Greene gives you a pretty good idea of the impact The 50-50 Club had:

Sponsors had to wait a full year for a chance to advertise on her show; when they did, and when Ruth mentioned the product, stores could not keep the items in stock. There was a three-year wait for tickets to ''The 50-50 Club.'' And when Ruth Lyons noticed, during a visit to Cincinnati`s Children`s Hospital, that there was a lack of toys for the young patients, she said so. Over the years the fund she started brought in more than $12 million. John Kiesewetter, TV columnist for the Cincinnati Enquirer, remembers that when he was hospitalized as a 7th grader in Middletown, Ohio, the plastic model ships he received from Ruth Lyons` toy fund were the bright spot of his convalescence. And five years ago, when Kiesewetter`s own infant son was placed in an oxygen tent in a Cincinnati hospital, a toy from the same fund ''brought the sparkle back to his eyes.''

In 1957, Cincinnati mayor Charles Taft, proclaimed "Ruth Lyons Day"; WLW-T received 100,000 requests for tickets. The 50-50 Club was the top rated daytime television program in America from 1952 to 1964. I'd call that a pretty fair legacy, wouldn't you?

An add for the Ruth Lyons show in Broadcasting Magazine, March 18, 1963Back in the day when nightclubs were still a vital part of American entertainment, Cincinnati had one of the most famous, the Lookout House. This meant that every entertainer doing the circuit had to pass through Cincinnati, and if you were passing through Cincinnati you had to appear with Ruth Lyons on The 50-50 Show. Arthur Godfrey, whom you can see cavorting with Lyons at the top of this piece, was there, as were Bob Hope, Andy Williams, Hugh O'Brien, George Gobel, Jack Webb, Helen Hayes, Milton Berle, Bob Newhart, Vic Damone, Van Cliburn, Pearl Bailey—in fact, just about anyone with a nightclub act.*

*And even those who didn't, such as Henry Cabot Lodge, Oscar Robertson, Adela Rogers St. Johns and Hedda Hopper. If you were in Cincinnati for any reason, you were on with Ruth.


On the show of November 22, Lyons talks about Troy Donahue, who had just recently appeared on the show and had dined with the family. She and her daughter Candy were very impressed with him; he was a nice young man, and he seemed genuine. This day's audience contains members of a "Twins Club"—women who'd given birth to twins; another group present is called the "Secret Sisters Club." One woman in the audience has 12 children, ages two to 20, and hardly looks old enough for that to be possible.

The show is in the midst of its Christmas Fund drive, Ruth Lyons' lasting legacy , raising money for those toys that Bob Greene wrote about, distributed to hospitalized children during Christmas. (At this point, the contributions were in excess of $160,000.) Everyone in the audience donates, and then they sing "Do It Now" (to the tune of "Frère Jacques"), urging viewers to make their contributions "for the little children."  Sponsors donate prizes—pretty nice ones, in fact—for a drawing that will be held the following Thursday, Thanksgiving Day, from all those people who'd contributed to the Fund.

We find out that Lyons is a big fan of Cole Porter, whom she calls one of America's greatest songwriters (Porter is still living at this point; he doesn't die until August, 1964), and Porter's songs factor significantly in an interactive segment she conducts with the audience. There are other songs and games, and everyone has a good time; your ticket to the show specifies the date, and so it's completely by chance that audience members are part of the November 22 program.

The 50-50 Club was the last regularly scheduled program that aired on WLW radio that Friday, in its customary noon-1:30 p.m. timeslot. Shortly thereafter, just as the afternoon program "Tune Time" was to begin (on tap: the original cast recording of "Lil' Abner"), a bulletin came into the WLW newsroom with the first details of an unknown sniper firing three shots at the presidential motorcade in Dallas, Texas. A subsequent bulletin from WLW features a couple of technicians speaking in the background; it would have been hilarious had it not been so traumatic. Kennedy's been shot, one man says, to which the other replies, the President ? (It could have been his brother, the Attorney General, targeted by an angry henchman of Jimmy Hoffa; but his time had not yet come.) After that, Ruth Lyons and her Christmas Fund and the upcoming drawing on Thanksgiving day are about as far away from your mind as you can get.

Cincinnati mourned Lyons' death in 1988; here's the story as it was broadcast on Cincinnati's WLWT.


It's ironic, don't you think, that one of the anchors on WLWT's news is Jerry Springer?

There are tributes to Ruth Lyons, features on Ruth Lyons, highlights of The 50-50 Club. But nowhere online do I see a copy, audio or video, of a complete show, except for this one. I'm sure that neither Lyons nor anyone else appearing on that show thought anything of it, imagined anything significant about it, had no reason to think that this particular show would live forever as a testimonial to a 21-year run. But when you think about it, this wasn't just any show—because of the timing of the news bulletins, we hear the entire program; because Kennedy's assassination occurs in November and not, say, April, we hear the campaign for the Christmas Fund.

We benefit from the circumstances, which tell the story of an extraordinary woman and her show, as broadcast on November 22, 1963. It was an absolutely ordinary day—until it wasn't. TV  

What's on TV? Wednesday, January 15, 1969

Here we are in Philadelphia, and while there's nothing on today that would occupy a place in television history, I like this lineup. Even though we're only a year from the start of the '70s, today's programming strikes me as being firmly rooted in the '60s, if that makes sense. Although there were listings for other cities in Pennsylvania (Harrisburg, York, Lancaster), only the network listings were included; no percentage in including them. Anyway, see them for yourself.


 3  KYW (NBC)
Morning
    6:05 FARM MARKET REPORT
    6:10 NEWS
    6:15 COMMUNICATION IS
    6:45 FARM, HOME AND GARDEN   COLOR 
    6:55 TODAY IN PHILADELPHIA
    7:00 TODAY   COLOR Guests: Edward Tatum, Aline Sarrinen. tribute to Martin Luther King Jr.
    9:00 CONTACT—Interview   COLOR 
  10:00 SNAP JUDGMENT   COLOR Guests: Shari Lewis, Joe Garagiola
  10:25 NEWS—Dickerson   COLOR 
  10:30 CONCENTRATION   COLOR 
  11:00 PERSONALITY—Game   COLOR Celebrities: Peter Lawford, Julie Newmar, George Hamilton, Pearl Bailey
  11:30 HOLLYWOOD SQUARES   COLOR Players: Kaye Ballard, Gypsy Rose Lee, Paul Lynde, Greg Morris, Jan Murray, Donna Jean Young, Wally Cox, Charley Weaver, Abby Dalton
Afternoon
  12:00 NEWS, WEATHER   COLOR 
  12:30 MIKE DOUGLAS   COLOR 
    2:00 DAYS OF OUR LIVES—Serial   COLOR 
    2:30 DOCTORS—Serial   COLOR 
    3:00 ANOTHER WORLD   COLOR 
    3:30 YOU DON’T SAY!—Game   COLOR Guests: Marge Redmond, Brian Kelly
    4:00 MATCH GAME   COLOR Guests: Soupy Sales, Fannie Flagg
    4:30 MERV GRIFFIN   COLOR Guest: Karen Morrow
Evening
    6:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS   COLOR 
    6:30 NEWS—Chet Huntley, David Brinkley   COLOR 
    7:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS   COLOR 
    7:30 VIRGINIAN—Western   COLOR 
    9:00 MUSIC HALL   COLOR Host: Jack Jones. Guests: Debbie Reynolds, Godfrey Cambridge, Johnny Cash
  10:00 BLUE MINORITY—Report   SPECIAL    COLOR 
  11:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS   COLOR 
  11:30 JOHNNY CARSON   COLOR 
Blue Minority asks about "the function of the police in a democratic society," a particularly relevant question in the late '60—and today, for that matter. The documentary focuses on the Boston Police Department; I think that department has had a reputation for being both racist and corrupt, although I don't know if this program deals with it. 

 6  WFIL (ABC)
Morning
    6:30 OPERATION ALPHABET
    7:00 WORLD AROUND US   COLOR 
    8:00 POPEYE THEATER   COLOR 
    9:00 ON CAMERA   COLOR 
    9:25 PAUL HARVEY   COLOR 
    9:30 GREATEST SHOW—Drama   COLOR 
  10:25 CONNIE ROUSSIN
  10:30 DICK CAVETT   COLOR Guests: Agnes Moorehead, Mariene Shaw
Afternoon
  12:00 BEWITCHED—Comedy
  12:30 FUNNY YOU SHOULD ASK—Game   COLOR 
  12:55 CHILDREN’S DOCTOR   COLOR 
    1:00 DREAM HOUSE   COLOR 
    1:30 MAKE A DEAL   COLOR 
    2:00 TELEVISION KITCHEN   COLOR 
    2:30 DATING GAME   COLOR 
    3:00 GENERAL HOSPITAL—Serial   COLOR 
    3:30 JERRY’S PLACE   COLOR 
    4:00 DARK SHADOWS   COLOR 
    4:30 I LOVE LUCY—Comedy
    5:00 STEVE ALLEN—Variety   COLOR Guests: Leonard Nimoy, Charley Weaver, Henson Cargill, Alexis Linchine
Evening
    6:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS   COLOR 
    6:30 NEWS—Frank Reynolds   COLOR 
    7:00 WHAT’S MY LINE—Game   COLOR Panelists: Soupy Sales, Peggy Cass, Bert Convy, Arlene Francis
    7:30 HERE COME THE BRIDES   COLOR 
    8:30 PEYTON PLACE—Serial   COLOR 
    9:00 MOVIE—Drama“Compulsion” (1959)
  11:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS   COLOR 
  11:30 JOEY BISHOP   COLOR 
    1:00 WESTERNERS—Drama
What a menagerie of programming: Here Come the Brides, Peyton Place, and the movie Compulsion. A little something for everyone, I guess.

 8  WGAL (LANCASTER) (NBC)
Morning
    7:00 TODAY   COLOR Guests: Edward Tatum, Aline Sarrinen. Tribute to Martin Luther King Jr.
    9:00 MIKE DOUGLAS—Variety   COLOR Guests: Cliff Robertson, Gwen Verdon, London Lee
  10:00 SNAP JUDGMENT   COLOR Guests: Shari Lewis, Joe Garagiola
  10:25 NEWS—Dickerson   COLOR 
  10:30 CONCENTRATION   COLOR 
  11:00 PERSONALITY—Game   COLOR Celebrities: Peter Lawford, Julie Newmar, George Hamilton, Pearl Bailey
  11:30 HOLLYWOOD SQUARES   COLOR Players: Kaye Ballard, Gypsy Rose Lee, Paul Lynde, Greg Morris, Jan Murray, Donna Jean Young, Wally Cox, Charley Weaver, Abby Dalton
Afternoon
  12:00 NOONDAY ON 8   COLOR 
  12:55 NEWS 
    1:00 TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES—Game   COLOR 
    1:30 HIDDEN FACES   COLOR 
    2:00 DAYS OF OUR LIVES—Serial   COLOR 
    2:30 DOCTORS—Serial   COLOR 
    3:00 ANOTHER WORLD   COLOR 
    3:30 YOU DON’T SAY!—Game   COLOR Guests: Marge Redmond, Brian Kelly
    4:00 MATCH GAME   COLOR Guests: Soupy Sales, Fannie Flagg
    4:30 MERV GRIFFIN   COLOR Guest: Karen Morrow
Evening
    6:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS   COLOR 
    6:30 NEWS—Chet Huntley, David Brinkley   COLOR 
    7:00 AMERICA!—Travel   COLOR 
    7:30 VIRGINIAN—Western   COLOR 
    9:00 MUSIC HALL   COLOR Host: Jack Jones. Guests: Debbie Reynolds, Godfrey Cambridge, Johnny Cash
  10:00 OUTSIDER—Crime Drama   COLOR 
  11:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS   COLOR 
  11:30 JOHNNY CARSON   COLOR 
    1:00 NEWS
I'd never heard of Hidden Faces prior to this issue, and after looking at Wikipedia I now know why: this soaper was only on the air for six months before the plug was pulled. It was the first of NBC's efforts to replace Let's Make a Deal after the game show moved to ABC in a contract dispute. Based around a murder trial, it sounds like it would have been a much better fit in daytime than primetime.

10 WCAU (CBS)
Morning
    5:55 NEWS
    6:00 SUNRISE SEMESTER   COLOR 
    6:25 NEWS
    6:30 MAJOR AMERICAN WRITERS—Dr. Charles Bassett   COLOR 
    7:00 MORNING REPORT
    7:05 NEWS—Joseph Benti   COLOR 
    7:30 GENE LONDON   COLOR 
    8:00 CAPTAIN KANGAROO   COLOR 
    9:00 PIXANNE—Children   COLOR 
    9:30 DENNIS THE MENACE—Comedy
  10:00 LUCILLE BALL   COLOR 
  10:30 BEVERLY HILLBILLIES   COLOR 
  11:00 ANDY GRIFFITH
  11:30 DICK VAN DYKE
Afternoon
  12:00 LOVE OF LIFE—Serial   COLOR 
  12:25 NEWS   COLOR 
  12:30 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW—Serial   COLOR 
    1:00 FARMER’S DAUGHTER   COLOR 
    1:30 AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial   COLOR 
    2:00 LOVE IS A MANY-SPLENDORED THING   COLOR 
    2:30 GUIDING LIGHT—Serial   COLOR 
    3:00 SECRET STORM—Serial   COLOR 
    3:30 EDGE OF NIGHT—Serial   COLOR 
    4:00 ART LINKLETTER   COLOR 
    4:30 SEA HUNT—Adventure
    5:00 I SPY—Adventure   COLOR 
Evening
    6:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS   COLOR 
    7:00 NEWS—Walter Cronkite   COLOR 
    7:30 DAKTARI   COLOR Last show of the series
    8:30 GOOD GUYS   COLOR 
    9:00 BEVERLY HILLBILLIES   COLOR 
    9:30 GREEN ACRES—Comedy   COLOR 
  10:00 HAWAII FIVE-O—Crime Drama   COLOR 
  11:00 NEWS, WEATHER AND SPORTS   COLOR 
  11:30 MOVIE—Comedy   COLOR “Son of Paleface”
    1:30 MOVIE—Western   COLOR “Apache Drums” (1951)
    3:00 NEWS
Farewell, Daktari. By the way, I wonder how much Son of Paleface contributed to Bob Hope's fortune?

12 WHYY (WILMINGTON) (NET)
Morning
    9:10 CLASSROOM(9:10) Art; (9:30) World of Words; (10:05) Jr. High Science; (10:30) R for Rhythm; (10:50) Jr. High Math; (11:20) 4th Grade Spanish; (11:40) Sr. High Biology
Afternoon
  12:05 LET’S INVESTIGATE
  12:20 LOOKING AT CAREERS
  12:45 FRIENDLY GIANT
    1:00 CLASSROOM—Education (1:00) Franklin to Frost; (1:30) French I; (1:50) French II; (2:30) French III; (2:30) Window Sill World
    2:45 ROUNDABOUT—Children
    3:00 CONCERT 12—Music
    4:00 ROUNDABOUT—Children
    4:15 MERLIN THE MAGICIAN
    4:30 SING HI—SING LOW—Music
    4:45 FRIENDLY GIANT—Children
    5:00 MISTEROGERS—Children
    5:30 WHAT’S NEW—Children
Evening
    6:00 FRENCH CHEF—Cooking
    6:30 ON GUARD—Instruction
    7:00 HIGH SCHOOL OF THE AIR
    7:30 FOLK GUITAR PLUS
    8:00 ACTORS COMPANY—Drama
    9:00 EASTER EUROPE—Discussion   COLOR 
  10:00 WEDNESDAY AT TEN   COLOR 
  10:30 BOOK BEAT—InterviewGuest: Norman Mailer
  11:00 LOCAL NEWS—Bill Hudson
Norman Mailer is on Book Beat plugging The Armies of the Night, his Pulitzer-winning "non-fiction novel" about the 1967 antiwar march on the Pentagon. 

17 WPHL (IND.)
Morning
  10:30 AT YOUR SERVICE   COLOR 
  11:00 JACK LA LANNE   COLOR 
  11:30 I LED THREE LIVES—Drama
Afternoon
  12:00 JEOPARDY   COLOR 
  12:30 FUNNY YOU SHOULD ASK—Game   COLOR Guests: Jim Backus, Nanette Fabray, Noel Harrison, Jan Murray, Della Reese
  12:55 NEWS—Newman   COLOR 
    1:00 ONE LIFE TO LIVE   COLOR 
    1:30 HIDDEN FACES   COLOR 
    2:00 DR. KILDARE—Drama
    3:00 CRUSADER RABBIT   COLOR 
    3:15 ROCKY AND HIS FRIENDS—Children   COLOR 
    3:30 PRINCE PLANET—Children
    4:00 JOHNNY CYPHER   COLOR 
    4:15 ROCKY AND HIS FRIENDS—Children   COLOR 
    4:30 MARINE BOY—Children   COLOR 
    5:00 EIGHTH MAN—Children
    5:30 SPEED RACER   COLOR 
Evening
    6:00 GILLIGAN’S ISLAND—Comedy   COLOR 
    6:30 TWILIGHT ZONE—Drama
    7:00 COLLEGE BASKETBALL   COLOR Pittsburgh vs. Temple at Philadelphia
    8:45 COLLEGE BASKETBALL   COLOR Villanova vs. Penn at Philadelphia
  10:30 M SQUAD—Police
  11:00 ONE STEP BEYOND—Drama
  11:30 MOVIE—Drama “The Long Night” (1947)
A big basketball night, with three of Philadelphia's " Big 5 " in action at the legendary Palestra. This doubleheader would be quite a treat.

29 WIBF (IND.)
Morning
  10:00 STOCK MARKET REPORT
  11:00 STOCK MARKET REPORT
  11:30 WOMAN’S VIEW—Stock Market
Afternoon
  12:00 STOCK MARKET REPORT
    1:00 STOCK MARKET REPORT
    2:00 STOCK MARKET REPORT
    3:00 STOCK MARKET REPORT
    4:00 MAKE ROOM FOR DADDY
    4:30 MATCHES AND MATES   COLOR 
    5:00 PDQ—Game   COLOR 
    5:30 F TROOP—Comedy
Evening
    6:00 BATMAN—Adventure   COLOR 
    6:30 LOST IN SPACE—Adventure
    7:30 HONEYMOONERS—Comedy
    8:00 MOVIE—Western “Guns of Nevada” (Italian; 1967)
  10:00 RAWHIDE—Western
  11:00 ADVENTURES IN PARADISE
The precursor to CNBC, perhaps?

48 WKBS (IND.)
Morning
  11:25 NEWS   COLOR 
  11:30 MICKEY MOUSE CLUB
Afternoon
  12:00 ROMPER ROOM   COLOR 
  12:30 CARTOONS—Children   COLOR 
    1:00 MOVIE—Drama“Twelve O’clock High” (1949)Interrupted for “Dialing for Dollars”
    3:00 KIMBA—Children   COLOR 
    3:30 HUCK AND YOGI   COLOR 
    4:00 SUPERMAN—Adventure
    4:30 LITTLE RASCALS—Comedy
    5:00 FLINTSTONES   COLOR 
    5:30 MUNSTERS—Comedy
Evening
    6:00 McHALE’S NAVY—Comedy
    6:30 PERRY MASON—Mystery
    7:30 PAY CARDS!—Game   COLOR 
    8:00 TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES—Game   COLOR 
    8:30 DONALD O’CONNOR—Variety   COLOR Guests: James Mason, Lee Grant, Dick Kallman, Colvin and Wilder, Jody Miller
  10:30 ALFRED HITCHCOCK—Drama
  11:00 OUTER LIMITS—Science Fiction
  12:00 NEWS   COLOR 

It occurs to me that while their schedules would fit right in with any of our retro-themed networks nowadays, these independent stations aren't showing "classic TV," at least not the way they would have thought of it. They're just showing the available shows of the time: their versions of Last Man Standing, King of Queens, Mike & Molly, Rules of Engagement. To them, The Outer Limits was no big deal; it had been on the network less than five years ago. It goes to show that everything is relative, and speaking of which: will there even be retro networks twenty years from now? And will people look back at those "classic" shows with the same affection that we do with ours? TV  

This week in TV Guide: January 11, 1969

There is no mention of it on the cover, no story on the inside, no viewer's guide with recipes for the parties held on the big day. Instead, at 3:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, January 13, there is just a simple listing: "Super Bowl." It's accompanied by a full-page closeup containing the lineups of the two teams: the AFL champion New York Jets, and the NFL champion Baltimore Colts.

It is, of course, one of the most celebrated football games ever played, and one of the most consequential. When the Jets defeated the Colts 16-7, the result catapulted Jets quarterback Joe Namath from simple stardom to a cultural fame so pervasive that the remnants of it continue to this day. It gave a final, unmistakable credibility to the American Football League, and an abject humiliation to the National Football League, ensuring that the AFL would never again be thought of as a junior partner in the professional football business (an equality sealed the following season with Kansas City's victory over Minnesota). If Baltimore's victory over the New York Giants in the 1958 sudden death championship game had established pro football as a major league sport, the third Super Bowl game guaranteed its place in the pantheon of American pop culture.

Did you ever notice the NFL logo on
this program is wrong?It was a very painful experience for my eight-year-old self; as observant readers may recall, the Colts were my second-favorite team, next to the invincible Green Bay Packers. Oh, I enjoyed the AFL a great deal; it's just that when push came to shove, my allegiance was squarely with the Colts, as it had been with the Packers, and as it would be the following year with the hometown Vikings. The defeat was a bitter pill to swallow, and as the outcome became evident in the waning minutes, my frustration overcame me and I bit the coffee table in exasperation, leaving an impression of eight or ten teeth in what must have been rather soft wood. (It was still there nearly 30 years later, when the table was sold, although Old English Leather does wonders with hiding the defects.) I don't need to go into the sordid details, nor the ramifications of said action, but it gave me a lifetime animus toward Namath, who must surely be the most overrated player in the Hall of Fame—statistically he was a lousy quarterback, his lasting contribution being due more to what he did for the AFL (as well as his off-field activities). It left me unimpressed with Colts coach Don Shula, who clearly didn't have his team prepared. It even made me resent the Miami Dolphins in a sort of guilt-by-association, simply because they played in the Orange Bowl, site of the debacle. Well, there's no accounting for pre-teenage reasoning.

And yet there's nothing particularly remarkable about it in this issue. The full-page closeup is no more than that given to the first two Super Bowls. The Seagram's ad urging viewers to "Watch the Game with a Friend" is the same one that appears for every big sporting event. That ad for Chap Stick is there because it's the official lip balm of the National Football League, not the American. There's no indication that this game is more important than any other championship game. It doesn't dominate the pages; there are no variety shows built around it, no Super Bowl-themed episodes of any regular series, and if, for some absurd reason, you were to skip the Sunday listings, you wouldn't  know anything was going on. It's not even in prime time, for heaven's sake. Actually, it's all kind of nice, don't you think?

Around the dial

The Broadcast Archives at the University of Maryland links to this article at Closer on the death of Edith Bunker on All in the Family , and the kind of impact it carried.

At The Horn Section, Hal looks at one of television's greats, Larry Storch , and some of his most memorable roles. Yes, there's a lot more to him than F Troop!

The Twilight Zone Vortex recalls the classic 1963 episode "Jess-Belle," starring James Best and Anne Francis, and written by Earl Hamner, Jr. It's an eerie, atmospheric episode, both well-written and well-acted.

I happen to know that Garroway at Large's Jodie is a cat person, and that one of her little friends bid us adieu a few days ago, so it's certainly right that she gives us a look at the Master Communicator with some little friends of his own .

Suzanne Pleshette is the subject of David's Top TV Moments at Comfort TV, and nothing more needs be said, other than: well played, sir

I wrote a bit in my book about Mary Kay and Johnny, the late '40s sitcom that was the first television show to feature a husband and wife sharing the same bed; at Television Obscurities, we find that Mary Kay, aka Mary Kay Stearns, died two months ago at age 93 . A true link to television history.

We're up to 1961 in Television's New Frontier: the 1960s, and a look at the final season of what is generally considered the first "adult" television Western, The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp , starring Hugh O'Brian. An annoying musical score (in my opinion), but a series I've always enjoyed nonetheless. Perhaps we should consider this the first series to actually have a "final" episode? TV  

TV Jibe: Realty TV

What's on TV? Thursday, January 8, 1970

Well, I don't think we've ever seen anything quite like this. It's our first trip to Montana, and I think it speaks to the state's wide-open spaces that every single local station has at least two, if not three, affiliations. Not only that, but we've got shows being programmed at different times all over the place. Who would expect to see Jackie Gleason at 5:30 p.m., or Jim Nabors at 6:00 p.m,  You have no idea how challenging it was to keep all of this straight. It's worth it though, right?

 2  KOOK (BILLINGS) (CBS, NBC, ABC)
MORNING
     7:00 CAPTAIN KANGAROO -C- 
     8:00 NEWS—Joseph Benti -C- 
     9:00 JACK LA LANNE -C- 
     9:30 JACKIE BENNETT -C- 
   10:00 WHERE THE HEART IS—Serial -C- 
   10:25 NEWS -C- 
   10:30 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW—Serial -C- 
   11:00 TO BE ANNOUNCED              11:30 AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial -C- 
AFTERNOON
   12:00 LOVE IS A MANY-SPLENDORED THING—Serial -C- 
   12:30 NEWS, SPORTS -C- 
     1:00 SECRET STORM—Serial -C- 
     1:30 EDGE OF NIGHT—Serial -C- 
     2:00 GOMER PYLE -C- 
     2:30 MIKE DOUGLAS -C- Guests: Douglas Fairbanks, Vivian Vance, the First Edition
     4:00 ANDY GRIFFITH -C- 
     4:30 NEWS—Cronkite -C- 
     5:00 NEWS, SPORTS -C- 
     5:30 WAGON TRAIN—Western -C- 
EVENING
     7:00 JIM NABORS—Variety -C- Guests: Tennessee Ernie Ford, Julie Budd
     8:00 MOVIE—Drama “My Blood Runs Cold” (1965)
   10:00 NEWS -C- 
   10:30 MERV GRIFFIN -C- Guests: Sandler and Young, Pam Meyers


 3  KRTV (GREAT FALLS) (CBS, NBC)
MORNING
     6:00 SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE
     6:15 OUR WORLD—Education -C- 
     6:45 SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE
     7:00 TODAY -C- Guests: photographer Lennart Neilsen, conservationist Roger Caras
     8:00 MONTANA TODAY—News
     9:00 SALE OF THE CENTURY—Game -C- 
     9:30 HOLLYWOOD SQUARES—Game -C- Guests: Stu Gilliam, Connie Hines, Joan Rivers, Mickey Rooney, William Shatner, Paul Winchell, Wally Cox, Rose Marie, Charley Weaver
   10:00 JEOPARDY—Game -C- 
   10:30 WHO, WHAT OR WHERE—Game -C- 
   10:55 NEWS—Kalber -C- 
   11:00 NAMEDROPPERS -C-               11:30 AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial -C- 
AFTERNOON
   12:00 DAYS OF OUR LIVES -C- 
   12:30 DOCTORS -C- 
     1:00 ANOTHER WORLD—Serial -C- 
     1:30 EDGE OF NIGHT—Serial -C- 
     2:00 GOMER PYLE -C- 
     2:30 MIKE DOUGLAS -C- Guests: Douglas Fairbanks, Vivian Vance, the First Edition
     4:00 ANDY GRIFFITH -C- 
     4:30 NEWS—Cronkite -C- 
     5:00 LUCILLE BALL—Comedy -C- 
     5:30 NEWS—Huntley/Brinkley -C- 
EVENING
     6:00 NEWS -C- 
     6:30 FAMILY AFFAIR—Comedy -C- 
     7:00 MOVIE—Drama “My Blood Runs Cold” (1965)
     9:00 DEAN MARTIN -C- Guests: Petula Clark, Peter Graves, Gale Gordon, Don Rice III
   10:00 NEWS -C- 
   10:30 JOHNNY CARSON -C- Guests: David Susskind, Marilyn Maye, Charlie Manna


 3  KYUS (MILES CITY) (Ind.)
AFTERNOON
     4:00 DAVEY AND GOLIATH—Religion
     4:15 NEWS, SPORTS, WEATHER -C- 
     4:30 COMPASS—Travel
     5:00 HIGH SCHOOL NEWS -C- 
     5:30 RANCHER ’69—Farm News -C- 
EVENING
     6:30 NEWS, SPORTS -C- 
     7:00 MUSIC
     7:30 ARREST AND TRIAL—Drama
     9:00 MOVIE—To Be Announced


 4  KXLF (BUTTE) (CBS, ABC)
MORNING

     7:00 CAPTAIN KANGAROO -C- 
     8:00 NEWS—Joseph Benti -C- 
     9:00 JACK LA LANNE -C- 
     9:30 LOVE OF LIFE—Serial -C- 
   10:00 WHERE THE HEART IS—Serial -C- 
   10:25 NEWS -C- 
   10:30 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW—Serial -C- 
   11:00 TO BE ANNOUNCED              11:30 AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial -C- 
AFTERNOON
   12:00 LOVE IS A MANY-SPLENDORED THING—Serial -C- 
   12:30 GUIDING LIGHT—Serial -C- 
     1:00 SECRET STORM—Serial -C- 
     1:30 EDGE OF NIGHT—Serial -C- 
     2:00 GOMER PYLE -C- 
     2:30 MIKE DOUGLAS -C- Guests: Douglas Fairbanks, Vivian Vance, the First Edition
     4:00 ANDY GRIFFITH -C- 
     4:30 NEWS—Cronkite -C- 
     5:00 NEWS, SPORTS, WEATHER
     5:30 FAMILY AFFAIR—Comedy -C- 
EVENING
     6:00 JIM NABORS—Variety -C- Guests: Tennessee Ernie Ford, Julie Budd
     7:00 FLYING NUN—Comedy -C- 
     7:30 BEWITCHED—Comedy -C- 
     8:00 MOVIE—Drama “My Blood Runs Cold” (1965)
   10:00 NEWS, SPORTS -C- 
   10:30 ABC NEWS SPECIAL—Report -C- Special: Year End Review


 5  KFBB (GREAT FALLS) (ABC, NBC, CBS)
MORNING
     6:30 NEWS—Joseph Benti -C- 
     7:00 CAPTAIN KANGAROO -C- 
     8:00 IT TAKES TWO—Game -C- Guests: Abby Dalton, Dick Gautier, John Saxon and their spouses
     8:25 NEWS
     8:30 CONCENTRATION—Game -C- 
     9:00 JACK LA LANNE -C- 
     9:30 GALLOPING GOURMET -C- 
   10:00 WOMAN’S WORLD—Creecy
   10:25 NEWS -C- 
   10:30 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW—Serial -C- 
   11:00 ALL MY CHILDREN -C-               11:30 LET’S MAKE A DEAL -C- 
AFTERNOON
   12:00 NEWLYWED GAME -C- 
   12:30 DATING GAME -C- 
     1:00 SECRET STORM—Serial -C- 
     1:30 ONE LIFE TO LIVE -C- 
     2:00 DARK SHADOWS -C- 
     2:30 MANY-SPLENDORED THING -C- 
     3:00 GENERAL HOSPITAL -C- 
     3:30 LIFE WITH LINKLETTER -C- 
     4:00 THAT GIRL—Comedy
     4:30 BEWITCHED—Comedy
     5:00 NEWS, SPORTS, WEATHER
     5:30 JACKIE GLEASONGuests: Marilyn Maye, Art Carney, Sheila MacRae, Jane Kean
EVENING
     6:30 DANIEL BOONE—Adventure -C- 
     7:30 BEWITCHED—Comedy -C- 
     8:00 BOB NEWHART—Comedy -C- Special: “A Last Laugh at the ‘60s”
     9:00 ABC NEWS SPECIAL -C- Special: Year End Review
   10:00 NEWS, SPORTS -C- 
   10:30 MERV GRIFFIN -C- Guests: Sandler and Young, Pam Meyers


 5  KXGN (GLENDIVE) (CBS, NBC, ABC)
MORNING
     7:00 CAPTAIN KANGAROO -C- 
     8:00 NEWS—Joseph Benti -C- 
     9:00 SALE OF THE CENTURY—Game -C- 
     9:30 TODAY IN MONTANA—News
   10:00 WHERE THE HEART IS—Serial -C- 
   10:25 NEWS -C- 
   10:30 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW—Serial -C- 
   11:00 TO BE ANNOUNCED              11:30 AS THE WORLD TURNS—Serial -C- 
AFTERNOON
   12:00 LOVE IS A MANY-SPLENDORED THING—Serial -C- 
   12:30 DOCTORS -C- 
     1:00 SECRET STORM—Serial -C- 
     1:30 EDGE OF NIGHT—Serial -C- 
     2:00 GOMER PYLE -C- 
     2:30 CONCENTRATION—Game -C- 
     3:00 GENERAL HOSPITAL -C- 
     3:30 LIFE WITH LINKLETTER -C- 
     4:00 DUSTY THE CLOWN—Children  
     5:00 NEWS—Walter Cronkite -C- 
     5:30 GLEN CAMPBELL -C- Guests: Walter Brennan, Joey Heatherton, Norm Crosby
EVENING
     6:30 JULIA—Comedy -C- 
     7:00 JIM NABORS—Variety -C- Guests: Tennessee Ernie Ford, Julie Budd
     8:00 MOVIE—Drama “My Blood Runs Cold” (1965)
   10:00 NEWS, SPORTS -C- 
   10:30 MERV GRIFFIN -C- Guests: Sandler and Young, Pam Meyers


 8  KULR (BILLINGS) (ABC, NBC)
MORNING
     7:00 TODAY -C- Guests: photographer Lennart Neilsen, conservationist Roger Caras
     8:00 CARTOONS—Children
     8:30 CONCENTRATION—Game -C- 
     9:00 SALE OF THE CENTURY—Game -C- 
     9:30 HOLLYWOOD SQUARES—Game -C- Guests: Stu Gilliam, Connie Hines, Joan Rivers, Mickey Rooney, William Shatner, Paul Winchell, Wally Cox, Rose Marie, Charley Weaver
   10:00 JEOPARDY—Game -C- 
   10:30 GALLOPING GOURMET -C- 
   11:00 ALL MY CHILDREN -C-               11:30 LET’S MAKE A DEAL -C- 
AFTERNOON
   12:00 NEWLYWED GAME -C- 
   12:30 NEWS, SPORTS -C- 
     1:00 GENERAL HOSPITAL -C- 
     1:30 ONE LIFE TO LIVE -C- 
     2:00 LIFE WITH LINKLETTER -C- 
     2:30 BEWITCHED—Comedy
     3:00 DATING GAME -C- 
     3:30 DARK SHADOWS
     4:00 CARTOONS
     4:30 NEWS—Mahn/Olsen/Bader -C- 
     5:00 NEWS—Huntley/Brinkley -C- 
     5:30 GHOST AND MRS. MUIR -C- 
EVENING
     6:00 JULIA—Comedy -C- 
     6:30 DANIEL BOONE—Adventure -C- 
     7:30 IRONSIDE -C- 
     8:30 DRAGNET -C- 
     9:00 DEAN MARTIN -C- Guests: Petula Clark, Peter Graves, Gale Gordon, Don Rice III
   10:00 NEWS -C- 
   10:30 JOHNNY CARSON -C- Guests: David Susskind, Marilyn Maye, Charlie Manna


 9  KCFW (KALLISPELL) (NBC, ABC)
MORNING

     7:00 TODAY -C- Guests: photographer Lennart Neilsen, conservationist Roger Caras
     8:00 IT TAKES TWO—GameGuests: Abby Dalton, Dick Gautier, John Saxon and their spouses
     8:25 NEWS -C- 
     8:30 CONCENTRATION—Game -C- 
     9:00 SALE OF THE CENTURY—Game -C- 
     9:30 HOLLYWOOD SQUARES—Game -C- Guests: Stu Gilliam, Connie Hines, Joan Rivers, Mickey Rooney, William Shatner, Paul Winchell, Wally Cox, Rose Marie, Charley Weaver
   10:00 JEOPARDY—Game -C- 
   10:30 WHO, WHAT OR WHERE—Game -C- 
   10:55 NEWS—Kalber -C- 
   11:00 NAMEDROPPERS -C-               11:30 LIFE WITH LINKLETTER—Interview -C- 
AFTERNOON
   12:00 HI NEIGHBOR—Dan Schendel
   12:30 DOCTORS -C- 
     1:00 ANOTHER WORLD—Serial -C- 
     1:30 DAYS OF OUR LIVES -C- 
     2:00 ALL MY CHILDREN -C- 
     2:30 LET’S MAKE A DEAL -C- 
     3:00 NEWLYWED GAME -C- 
     3:30 DATING GAME -C- 
     4:00 GENERAL HOSPITAL -C- 
     4:30 TO BE ANNOUNCED
     5:00 THAT GIRL—Comedy -C- 
     5:30 NEWS—Huntley/Brinkley -C- 
EVENING
     6:00 NEWS, SPORTS, WEATHER
     6:30 DANIEL BOONE—Adventure -C- 
     7:30 IRONSIDE -C- 
     8:30 DRAGNET -C- 
     9:00 DEAN MARTIN -C- Guests: Petula Clark, Peter Graves, Gale Gordon, Don Rice III
   10:00 NEWS, SPORTS -C- 
   10:30 JOHNNY CARSON -C- Guests: David Susskind, Marilyn Maye, Charlie Manna


12 KBLL (HELENA) (NBC, ABC)
MORNING
     7:00 TODAY -C- Guests: photographer Lennart Neilsen, conservationist Roger Caras
     8:00 IT TAKES TWO—Game -C- Guests: Abby Dalton, Dick Gautier, John Saxon and their spouses
     8:25 NEWS -C- 
     8:30 CONCENTRATION—Game -C- 
     9:00 SALE OF THE CENTURY—Game -C- 
     9:30 HOLLYWOOD SQUARES—Game -C- Guests: Stu Gilliam, Connie Hines, Joan Rivers, Mickey Rooney, William Shatner, Paul Winchell, Wally Cox, Rose Marie, Charley Weaver
   10:00 JEOPARDY—Game -C- 
   10:30 WHO, WHAT OR WHERE—Game -C- 
   10:55 NEWS—Kalber -C- 
   11:00 SHIRLEY CUMMINS—Women -C- 
   11:25 WOMEN’S NEWS—Roseta -C-               11:30 LIFE WITH LINKLETTER—Interview -C- 
AFTERNOON
   12:00 DAYS OF OUR LIVES -C- 
   12:30 DOCTORS -C- 
     1:00 ANOTHER WORLD—Serial -C- 
     1:30 BRIGHT PROMISES—Serial -C- 
     2:00 DARK SHADOWS -C- 
     2:30 NAME DROPPERS—Game -C- 
     3:00 GENERAL HOSPITAL -C- 
     3:30 LET’S MAKE A DEAL—Game -C- 
     4:00 NEWLYWED GAME -C- 
     4:30 BOZO—Children -C- 
     5:00 SKIPPY—Adventure -C- 
     5:30 NEWS—Huntley/Brinkley -C- 
EVENING
     6:00 NEWS -C- 
     6:30 DANIEL BOONE—Adventure -C- 
     7:30 IRONSIDE -C- 
     8:30 DRAGNET -C- 
     9:00 DEAN MARTIN -C- Guests: Petula Clark, Peter Graves, Gale Gordon, Don Rice III
   10:00 NEWS -C- 
   10:30 JOHNNY CARSON -C- Guests: David Susskind, Marilyn Maye, Charlie Manna



13 KGVO (MISSOULA) (NBC, ABC)
MORNING
     7:00 TODAY -C- Guests: photographer Lennart Neilsen, conservationist Roger Caras
     8:00 IT TAKES TWO—Game -C- Guests: Abby Dalton, Dick Gautier, John Saxon and their spouses
     8:25 NEWS -C- 
     8:30 CONCENTRATION—Game -C- 
     9:00 SALE OF THE CENTURY—Game -C- 
     9:30 HOLLYWOOD SQUARES—Game -C- Guests: Stu Gilliam, Connie Hines, Joan Rivers, Mickey Rooney, William Shatner, Paul Winchell, Wally Cox, Rose Marie, Charley Weaver
   10:00 JEOPARDY—Game -C- 
   10:30 WHO, WHAT OR WHERE—Game -C- 
   10:55 NEWS—Kalber -C- 
   11:00 NAMEDROPPERS -C-               11:30 LIFE WITH LINKLETTER—Interview -C- 
AFTERNOON
   12:00 HIGH NOON -C- 
   12:30 DOCTORS -C- 
     1:00 ANOTHER WORLD—Serial -C- 
     1:30 DAYS OF OUR LIVES -C- 
     2:00 ALL MY CHILDREN -C- 
     2:30 LET’S MAKE A DEAL -C- 
     3:00 NEWLYWED GAME -C- 
     3:30 DATING GAME -C- 
     4:00 GENERAL HOSPITAL -C- 
     4:30 TO BE ANNOUNCED
     5:00 THAT GIRL—Comedy -C- 
     5:30 NEWS—Huntley/Brinkley -C- 
EVENING
     6:00 NEWS -C- 
     6:30 DANIEL BOONE—Adventure -C- 
     7:30 IRONSIDE -C- 
     8:30 DRAGNET -C- 
     9:00 DEAN MARTIN -C- Guests: Petula Clark, Peter Graves, Gale Gordon, Don Rice III
   10:00 NEWS -C- 
   10:30 JOHNNY CARSON -C- Guests: David Susskind, Marilyn Maye, Charlie Manna
  TV  

This week in TV Guide: January 3, 1970

It's not only the start of a new year, it's a whole new decade, and something about the 1970s seems to contain the promise of exciting, dynamic change. After all, we've already landed on the moon; can the world of The Jetsons be far behind? TV Guide takes advantage of the occasion to devote this entire issue to a look at what the future has in store; namely, "a startling communications revolution that will change the way you live." Three of TV Guide's best—Neil Hickey, Richard K. Doan and David Lachenbruch—have talked with experts to find out more about this Communications Revolution: what it entails, and how it will "alter life in America." For the most part, their predictions have come true—not all of them in the decade of the '70s, and not all of them in the way that was forecast, but I think you'll agree that their view of the future is at least as good as that of, say, Gene Roddenberry.

Your Home Wired for Sight, Sound. This will come primarily from cable TV, which will still be in its infancy during the '70s, but will eventually provide most American homes with 50 or 75 channels, providing not only minority-interest programming, but "handing the family's varied needs via special hook-ups with stores, ban, airlines and post offices; plugging into college-credit courses for home study; reading the day's newspapers off the face of the tube and receiving automatic print-out copies of pages one wishes to preserve; tapping the almost infinite resources of computer-fed storage banks for data on every imaginable subject." In other words, the internet.

The World Will Become a Village. Satellites will unite the world's communications systems, and I don't think anyone would disagree that this has come true; predictably, however, TV Guide's experts saw this as providing more than entertainment, thinking of the potential for world leaders to hold joint summits on vital issues with the world's viewers tuning in. However, notes Comsat's Dan Karasik, "By the end of the 1970s, I can't think of an event of any importance that won't be on television world-wide." True dat.

Add ERV, SV to Your Stock of Initials. What does this mean? For ERV and SV, substitute DVR. Check another one off the list of correct predictions. One expert predicted that eventually, "TV cartridges may be sold as paperback books or phonograph records are sold today." They also think the TV will be used to transmit things called "facsimiles," which are already widespread in business. I think this might be one area in which technology moved even faster; I had a fax machine at home, but by the time it became practical for everyone, email attachments might already have taken their place.

Programming? A Mystery. Prime time movies might be cutback due to a shortage of Hollywood features that can be shown on TV (because of their sex and language content). Because of the cyclical nature of programming trends, formats that are currently on the outs, such as crime shows, Westerns, and action-adventure dramas, will likely come back. Well, got 'em al; except the horse operas. Here's one that's flat-out wrong, although we couldn't have known it at the time: NBC's program head Mort Werner says TV will never reach the levels of violence it had before, say, RFK's assassination; and that the networks will never adopt the BBC formula of series running for limited lengths of, say, 12 weeks. And here's one that's right, but for the wrong reason: TV viewing will decline sharply—they say it will be due to bland programming, but they couldn't possibly have known about social media.

The News: Space May Be The Story. Not outer space, but the amount of space devoted to news on the networks. Most experts see news expanding, but nobody predicts all-news cable stations. And actually there is a lot of talk about the space program and how it will be covered; live pictures of Mars and Venus will come from unmanned vehicles, and activities on space stations will be covered heavily. It's true that we'll be fascinated by the pictures coming from Mars and beyond, but they're wrong that manned space exploration "seems secure, at least through Apollo 20, by which time the astronauts will be staying on the moon for days at a stretch, and chugging over the lunar surface in vehicles." Yes, but if you can't remember Apollo 20, you're not alone...

Public TV 's Future Hinges on Funds. Duh. Although John Macy, head of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, thinks it would be swell to have Senate and House sessions opened to TV cameras. They have been, but again, nobody had expected C-SPAN.

We Must Move Information, Not People, Things. Very true. You don't need a library when you can call up books online, for example. This idea of bringing information to the people, rather than the other way around, will help alleviate traffic, overcrowding, and pollution. Even more important is the ability of individuals "to choose for themselves what they will know and with whom they will communicate." That's perhaps the truest statement of them all.

All in all, I'd say the future envisioned in this article has more or less come to pass. Now, as to whether or not it's a good thing, I'll leave that up to you.