Billie Rae Bates's Blog, page 18

Terrific non-TV Toys: Dawn doll beauty parlor by Topper Toys, 1970s

Every beautiful doll needs a salon to visit, and this wondrous playset from the 1970s was designed to cater to the Dawn doll's every grooming need. You've got a comfy reclined chair, a hair dryer, a sink for shampooing, a mirror to behold the progress (it works), and bottles of various potions and whatnot. It's the perfect place for Dawn, Glori, Dale and all their friends to get ready for that big party. Call this episode a follow-up to an earlier episode on Dawn dolls, those amazing 6-inch dolls by Topper Toys, a a company that released several other playsets back then. This one was snagged on eBay a few years back.

See the other episodes in the Terrific non-TV Toys series.

Also, here is a "stationary" look at the photos of other Dawn stuff that you'll see at the end of the video. The first five are by this author, snapped at various toy shows in recent years, and the rest are from eBay and other online sources ...

Today's HD casts classic TV in a whole new light

A few years ago I was at my friend Andrea's house watching a 1970s "Wonder Woman" episode on DVD. She had just gotten a new wall-mounted flat-screen TV -- big, like 40-some inches. I had seen the episode many times before (I had recently completed my "Superchicks" book that required a few more viewings in addition to watching the show when it originally aired). As I watched the episode now, though, I was struck by what was on the screen. Was that lint on the shoulder of Steve's uniform? I could just about tell what kind of blend that fabric was. And was that something lying on the floor behind them in the scene that a crew member should have picked up, or swept up? I was surprised by the details. It was like seeing a new version of the show. I felt like I was on the set with them, watching the shoot.

Back then it was a golden tiara; nowadays it's a piece of flexible cardstock or plastic covered in a gold-colored metallic fabric like gold lame', or maybe paint.
 

More recently I've been watching the 1979 "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century" series (which airs on MeTV and is also on Tubi) on a 43-inch Samsung QLED TV I received for Christmas. In the second-season episode "Journey to Oasis," I'm seeing the craggy knit of Dr. Goodfellow's blue cardigan as if I could reach out and touch it, maybe try it on. I'm seeing every fold of Buck's billowy, pirate-like, white puffy shirt. I'm seeing Felix Silla as an alien in a pretty bad blue mask with white hair, his eye wells showing in their gap with the rubber.

He'll always be handsome, but somehow Gil Gerard looked younger when we originally watched!

Maybe I'm a tad late to the HD party, but hey, be patient with me -- I tend to use a product until it dies, and I just had to put a chunky '90s TV (working!) out on the curb a couple weeks ago because I knew Goodwill wouldn't take it! But yeah, I have to wonder as I watch the "new" look of these old shows, if the production crews back then knew just how many details America's then-standard-definition television sets were "forgiving." Just how much they could get away with on those plastic and cardboard set pieces, along with any impromptu safety-pin / duct tape / rope / rubber-band / whatever MacGyver fixes that had to be tried between takes. I went to an exhibit of original "Star Trek" props and wardrobe a couple years ago, and yes, that captain's chair and Sulu's console looked like painted foam board. I'm thinking today's technology has issued a much greater challenge to the Hollywood prop master.

Then there's the issue of how much our consumption of television has changed in the past decade or so. The producers of the 1960s "Dark Shadows" gothic daytime soap were planning on one airing -- one and done. So they shot fast, and they made mistakes. If they had a crystal ball they might have seen all those years and years of syndication and reairings, plus the modern on-demand thing, with us viewers watching yet another "mic shadow," as the critique goes, pass by. Or a lamp toppling over in the background of the action. An actor flubbing his words again. They shot that stuff like live TV and they were out. You watch nowadays and you're like ouch, lint and crow's feet notwithstanding.

 

The more detail I see on that ring, the more I want one!
 

None of this, of course, is any deterrent to my watching these beloved classic TV shows. If anything, it could make them even more endearing, even more interesting to watch. Yes, we've come a long way in technology. So queue up the next episode of "Buck"!

Photos: "WW" shot from IMDb, "Buck" shot from NBC, "DS" shot from TVLine / Shutterstock.

Terrific TV Toys: Pocket Pop! and Mighty Meeples blind bags by Funko, Cryptozoic

Everybody loves a mystery, right? And toy blind bags have become pretty popular in recent years. They're usually just a couple bucks, and you don't know what you've got 'til you open them! Last April this collector snagged a few at a local store. One of them, part of a "Batman: The Animated Series" set, I already opened, so you can watch the video to see which character Pocket Pop! keychain that was. The other two blind bags are part of a Mighty Meeples line of DC superheroes. There are three small figures in each bag, so there are lots of possibilities here. 

See what else is on the Terrific TV Toys playlist.

Happy 2022! Here's an updated episode guide to the BRBTV collectibles series

It's that time once again, when we recap the year's episodes of our two web series, Terrific TV Toys and Terrific non-TV Toys. Production of the two series will continue in 2022 at the same rate -- one episode of each per month. And remember that you can catch other great videos on the BRBTV YouTube channel ...

Terrific TV ToysSeason 8

156. Curious George plush by Gund, 1990s

157. Scooby-Doo Valentine gift set, 2020

158. Electra Woman figure by Living Toyz, 2000

159. Scooby-Doo clock by SofiClock, 2019

160. "B:TAS" figures by Kenner, 1990s: Harley, Ra's al Ghul and Bane

161. Supergirl figures by Kenner, 1998, Mattel, 2005

162. "Batman: The Animated Series" playing cards, 1992

163. Scooby-Doo model sheet mug, Enesco, 2019

164. Poison Ivy Barbie by Mattel, 2004

165. CatDog figure from Burger King Kids' Meals, 1999

166. General Lee Christmas tree ornament, 2019

167. Batgirl of DC Super Hero Girls Christmas tree ornament by Hallmark, 2019

 
Season 7
Season 6
Season 5
Season 4
Season 3
Season 1 and 2  

Terrific non-TV ToysSeason 4

32. Batgirl Universe bust by Eaglemoss, 2020

33. "Wizard of Oz" music box, 2009

34. Dawn dolls, case and clothing by Topper, 1970s

35. Marilyn Monroe doll by DSI, 1993-94

36. Scarlett O'Hara figurine by Avon, 1983

37. Johnny Cash Pop by Funko, 2019

38. Archie Comics Pops by Funko, 2020

39. Batman color change mug, Zak, 2019

40. Wonder Woman Barbie by Mattel, 2003

41. Halloween Batgirl statue by DC Collectibles Bombshells, 2016

42. Elvis Presley by Eugene Doll Co., 1984

43. Scrooge McDuck plush from "Mickey's Christmas Carol," 1983 

 Season 3
Season 2
Season 1

May 2022 be blessed for you and your family!

Terrific non-TV Toys: Scrooge McDuck plush from "Mickey's Christmas Carol"

This author was thinking "Mickey's Christmas Carol" first debuted on TV, but when I did a little digging around, I found that the film short was actually first released to theaters in December 1983, then debuted on television a year later. Interesting! It means that the adorable collectible below gets featured on the Terrific non-TV Toys series rather than Terrific TV Toys, but hey, that's neither here nor there!

This plush celebrates Scrooge McDuck, who took on the role he was born for -- Ebeneezer Scrooge -- in Disney's animated adaption of the beloved Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol." If you haven't seen the film short, which is just under an hour, you can watch it on the Disney+ app. The trailer is below, as well. 

Merry Christmas from BRBTV!!!!

Ben Jones hosts "Christmas @ Cooter's" featuring Tom Wopat

Fresh outta our in-box, it's the deets for a Christmas celebration at Cooter's Place in Nashville, coming up this month and featuring Tom ("Luke Duke") Wopat of "The Dukes of Hazzard" in concert:

Terrific TV Toys: Batgirl of DC Super Hero Girls Christmas tree ornament by Hallmark, 2019

Christmas time is here indeed, and we've got a couple Christmas-themed episodes on the collectibles series of BRBTV. (And we even had a Christmas episode last month!) This week, it's the DC Super Hero Girls once again on Terrific TV Toys. This Batgirl was snagged at Walmart a couple years back, part of the more-affordable line of Hallmark Christmas tree ornaments. It was just a few bucks, it's simple in design, but it's all Barbara!

Announcing the seventh e-edition of "Dynasty High"!

The CW's "Dynasty" reboot keeps cranking along, churning out tantalizing storylines as well as bedazzling wardrobe and scenery. It's been an interesting tribute to ABC's original "Dynasty" series, but so divergent in many ways. And hey, we keep watching, and we keep updating the "Dynasty High" fact book on the series to include the facts of the newer series. The fourth season of the CW reboot just ended last month, so BRBTV has added that latest continuity to "Dynasty High." You'll see a new chapter of episode synopses for Season 4, plus the fact that the cast list and character guide for the reboot have been separated out from the cast and characters for the original series, in this seventh edition, since the newer show is getting more and more different as the years pass.

The print edition of "Dynasty High" still covers just the original series and its spinoff  "The Colbys," but for the Kindle e-edition, you'll find not only all the lowdown on the reboot, but also color photos throughout.

Uh-huh-huh-uh ... It's Elvis on the latest episode of Terrific non-TV Toys!

Well, ain't this a hunka-hunka burnin' love, a 12-inch doll of Elvis Presley straight outta 1984, and wearing his iconic gold lame suit! How can you not love that!? In the latest episode of the Terrific non-TV Toys series, you'll get up-close to the bric-a-brac and everything else on this delightful piece by the Eugene Doll Co. and endorsed by that magical place that is Graceland. Shout-out to Slim on this one!!! She's the one who got me the postcard shot below of Elvis in that famous suit!

 

 

Check out a new tribute podcast for Joanna Cameron of "The Secrets of Isis"

We all lost a wonderful soul recently in actress Joanna Cameron, who portrayed the mighty Isis on Saturday mornings in the 1970s, and made history as the first female superhero starring in her own TV series. Cameron died just weeks ago. Last night, Roy's Tie-Dye Sci-Fi Corner hosted a special episode of its podcast to honor Cameron. The episode featured Cameron's "Isis" co-star Brian Cutler, as well as our friend Lisa Everetts of the Pop Ninja podcast, who was a friend of Joanna over the years. It was a very nice couple hours full of reminiscing about the actress and her legacy, from her early days on a Bob Hope movie in the late 1960s through her myriad work on TV commercials and her "Isis" role and beyond. Thanks to Roy and Ross for hosting this episode!