Billie Rae Bates's Blog, page 24

Terrific TV Toys: Scooby-Doo Valentine gift set, 2020

No one's sweeter than our favorite mystery-solving canine, so what better gift for Valentine's Day than this Scooby plush set? This set actually was on the store shelves for Valentine's Day 2020, and tucked away for a special Valentine episode of Terrific TV Toys. It gets opened live (sorta) in this video ...

Collector James shares photos of his "Six Million Dollar Man" figures and more

This author loves hearing from fellow collectors, and I recently got an email from James, or J. for short. He collects "Six Million Dollar Man" and Batman-related stuff and shared these photos with BRBTV.

"As a kid, I had nearly EVERY item from the SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN and BIONIC WOMAN toy lines," J. says. "Sadly, like most kids' toys back then, they were sucked up by the garage sale vortex (LOL!).  Recently, I began re-acquiring SMDM items.  Currently, I have 3 STEVE's and 3 JAMIE's in various states of completeness.  In researching what "complete" versions of these figures/items should be, I was led to your videos.  They have been a tremendous help to me.  But, they've, also, been very entertaining."

(Well, thanks so much, J.! We love to hear from viewers as well as fellow collectors!)

"Of course, I'm a huge STAR WARS and STAR TREK fan, but I, also, loved watching reruns of  '66 Batman.  Batgirl's first episode appearance blew my mind!  I love what Yvonne Craig brought to the character.  I had several Batman/Batgirl MEGO figures in the '70's, but, you guessed it ... the garage sale vortex.  Currently, the only thing Batman-related in my collection is a Yvonne Craig Batgirl statue.  I bought it at a discount because the left-hand was broken.  I still need to repair it."

"I never was much of a comic book collector," J. says, "other than an occasional read here and there.  My mother would not let me spend much money on them.  Also, I never liked the cliffhanger aspect of comics. I prefer a beginning and an end as found in a graphic novel. But, back then in rural Mississippi, graphic novels were not available. So, my very first introduction to BATGIRL was through '66 BATMAN reruns. First, it was cool BATMAN had another sidekick, and it was a GIRL! Yeah, I admit, I had a little TV crush on BATGIRL (LOL!). Everything about her sizzled my senses -- the color of her costume, red hair, the kicks,  etc. But, what I really dug was her secret room with the revolving wall.  And, at the time, I was a HUGE Evel Knievel fan. So, when it was revealed BATGIRL drove a motorcycle -- my mind was blown! It was just totally freakin' awesome! I watched your review video of the anniversary BATGIRL statue. That's a great statue, but what made me decide to purchase the statue in my collection was not only the amazing likeness to Yvonne Craig, but that hatch door that leads to the motorcycle room."

Thanks so much, J., for sharing the love!

Photos courtesy of James; please do not copy without permission.

Green Hornet marks a whopping 85 years, and he still looks great

BRBTV passes along this special anniversary release from the family of Green Hornet creator George Trendle. Thanks, Mary Kay!

....,

(January 31, 2021 – Los Angeles, CA) – 

  The last day in January 2021 marks the 85th anniversary of the first appearance of The Green Hornet. A year-long virtual celebration to one of America’s earliest superheroes, his most powerful sidekick Kato, and the world’s first supercar, the Black Beauty.

  George W. Trendle wanted a timely, relevant, hero character on the radio at WXYZ-Detroit to appeal to voting age Americans, as opposed to his earlier creation, The Lone Ranger, created for children. 

  In an era without television or internet, news traveled slowly, primarily printed in a newspaper. Britt Reid, the alter ego of The Green Hornet, published such a newspaper, The Daily Sentinel, where he receives inside information about corruption and organized crime from his reporters’ sources. With his sidekick Kato, The Green Hornet uses his non-lethal weapons to subdue the criminals and leave them for law enforcement to arrest and prosecute. Because police see The Green Hornet as a vigilante, therefore a criminal, both sides of the law are after him, which forces him to wear a mask, so no one discovers his true identity.

  Whether it is an original radio broadcast, one of the serials, a TV episode, an issue of a comic book or a movie; the plot usually consists of corrupt government officials or organized crime leaders who seem innocent and above reproach. 

  George W. Trendle’s creation of The Green Hornet introduced many firsts to the American audience. The masked avenger in a modern city, Bruce Lee as a martial arts sidekick, and a black stealth supercar to keep Americans safe.

 

Terrific non-TV Toys: Batgirl Universe bust by Eaglemoss

This nifty little 2020 item comes from BRBTV's honorary chief of procurement, Mike, and it is rather lovely and fun. And it might just accidentally be the last Batgirl item until this fall. This author can't guarantee it, but she's pretty sure. Since the Backlog of Batgirls miniseries began last year on both the collectible series, Terrific TV Toys and Terrific non-TV Toys, these Batty gals have done a bit of a multiplying act. But we're basically caught up! Really!

This gal is straight out of recent DC Comics, and she's even doing a selfie.

Branson offers up some great '80s TV-related toys

This author's friend Patrick Shawn Bennett, creator, along with Lisa Everetts, of the Pop Ninja podcast you've seen highlighted on this very blog, took a trip to Branson, Missouri, during the holidays and saw all kinds of '80s goodies (we bet it will lead to material on the '80s-themed podcast!) and a lot of it was related to the TV shows we know and love from that era and beyond. He shares these cool photos with us -- thanks, Patrick! He visited the toy store "80s World" that you see pictured first below, and a Hollywood wax museum (the "Star Trek" transporter room, with one photo of Patrick himself!), and a toy museum.




  
   









 There are a few items shown above that you have seen on the Terrific TV Toys series, and there's one particular item (a set, if that's a clue) that you will see on an upcoming episode! On New Year's Day, Patrick was at Cooter's Garage in Nashville, and he snapped this photo for us while he was standing at the register. Thanks so much, Patrick, and thanks, Cooter's, for continuing to carry "Them Dukes! Them Dukes!" along with these other great "Dukes" books. This author really appreciates it. 
 

 Photos by Patrick Shawn Bennett; please do not copy without permission.

Canadian artist Jim Wilson crafts Mr. Dressup's treehouse for a good friend

For any of the Canadian readers out there (like you, Wendy! :) ), you might have grown up with "Mr. Dressup," a Canadian children's television series that originally ran on CBC from 1967 to 1996. As Mr. Dressup, actor Ernie Coombs would lead children through a series of songs, stories, arts, crafts and imagination games, with the help of his puppet friends Casey and Finnegan, Wikipedia says. This author's good friend Jim Wilson of Canada, whose fine art you've seen on this blog before -- art of "The Dukes of Hazzard," "Green Hornet" and more -- has now turned his creative eye to the beloved TV icon of his youth. He has crafted a replica of the treehouse featured on "Mr. Dressup" for his friend, Rob. 

This is the treehouse where those puppets Casey and Finnegan lived, on the show. How fun! If you're sensing some "Mr. Rogers" vibes, those of you in the U.S., it might be because Coombs and Fred Rogers once knew each other as colleagues, and yes, they took very similar career paths.

Here's the real thing as seen on the show:

And here are shots of Jim's work on the replica:

  

Thanks, Jim, for sharing these photos with us! And congratulations, Rob (that's him below), on a one-of-a-kind piece! By the way, be sure to like Jim's new Facebook page to see more of his work!

 

Photos courtesy of Jim Wilson; please do not copy without permission.

Terrific TV Toys: Curious George plush by Gund, 1990s

Let's start out the new year on a bright note, for the series! What can be brighter than the adorable Curious George and his pal the Man With the Yellow Hat? That little monkey loves to get into trouble, and did you know he's a world traveler? Well, find out more in this week's episode, examining a plush toy from Gund that was purchased new in the 1990s ... 

Canadian artist Jim Wilson crafts Mr. Dressup's treehouse for a friend

For any of the Canadian readers out there (like you, Wendy! :) ), you might have grown up with "Mr. Dressup," a Canadian children's television series that originally ran on CBC from 1967 to 1996. As Mr. Dressup, actor Ernie Coombs "would lead children through a series of songs, stories, arts, crafts and imagination games, with the help of his puppet friends Casey and Finnegan," Wikipedia says. This author's good friend Jim Wilson of Canada, whose fine art you've seen on this blog before -- art of "The Dukes of Hazzard," "Green Hornet" and more -- has now turned his creative eye to the beloved TV icon of his youth. He has crafted a replica of the treehouse featured on "Mr. Dressup" for his friend, Rob.

Here's the real thing as seen on the show:

And here are shots of Jim's work on the replica:

  

Thanks, Jim, for sharing these photos with us! And congratulations, Rob, on a one-of-a-kind piece!

Photos courtesy of Jim Wilson; please do not copy without permission.

A channel showing just "Three's Company" 'round the clock? How can that be?

Yea, that's what this author thought, when her pal Brian gave her the heads-up on Pluto TV, which, truth be told, I'd heard of but just hadn't really watched. Maybe I even added the app to my Amazon Firestick. But nonetheless, now I have checked it out more fully, and it is a veritable smorgasbord where classic television is concerned. "Happy Days," "The Love Boat," "Family Ties," "One Day at a Time" ... too many to mention, really. Even the "Dark Shadows" episodes I've been watching on Tubi! Just oodles of classic TV shows there at your fingertips, 24-7, and free! No subscriptions! You can watch on your laptop, phone or tablet. So crazy. Somebody get these guys some revenue, because we don't want this to stop!!! Gives a whole new mechanism for binge-watching, for sure. (Oh, and there are movies there, too, along with documentaries, reality TV, and other assorted goodies.)

Happy new year! Here's your updated episode guide for the two BRBTV collectibles series

Congratulations! If you're reading this, you just survived a difficult year. And it's all about survival, right? Time marches on here at BRBTV, thank the Lord, and the two collectibles series on YouTube, Terrific TV Toys and Terrific non-TV Toys, have marched on, as well. As is our custom, we present the updated episode guide for the two series, as we look forward to highlighting many more great toys in the 2021. We've got a packed schedule! And the plan is to continue one episode per month for each series on the BRBTV YouTube channel. Until then, here's your recap ...

Terrific TV ToysSeason 7 140. Batgirl figures from "DC Super Hero Girls," Part 1 141. Batgirl figures from "DC Super Hero Girls," Part 2 142. "DC Super Hero Girls" book and Pez 143. Wonder Woman Hallmark ornament, 2020 144. Scooby-Doo playsets by Playmobil, Part 1: Mystery Machine 145. Scooby-Doo playsets by Playmobil, Part 2: Mystery Machine cont'd, plus Scooby and Shaggy 
Season 6
Season 5
Season 4
Season 3
Season 1 and 2  

Terrific non-TV ToysSeason 3 25. Batman Black and White blind bags, Series 1-3  Backlog of Batgirls Series:
26. Batgirl "DC Bombshells" statue 27. Batgirl DC Core statue 28. Batgirl on scooter, DC Artists Alley series, 2019 29. Batgirl figure by Funko / 5 Star, 2018 30. Batgirl and Donatello from DC Collectibles, 2020 31. Batgirl Multiverse figure by McFarlane Toys, 2020

Season 2
Season 1

May 2021 be blessed for you and your family!