Sequels to classic TV shows (1 Viewer)

[jperez]

I never said there was any actual connection, I just said with a little imagination you can see "Ice Station Zebra" fitting into the same universe because the movie version of "Ice Station Zebra" changes McGoohan's character from the book so that we never hear his real name. McGoohan is not a villain, he's a spy who ends up committing a screwup during the proceedigns because he gets led astray by Ernest Borgnine and ends up shooting dead an innocent man in Jim Brown because he trusted Borgnine when he shouldn't have. There is of course no actual connection in the writing/producing, but its a fascinating case how the viewer can easily *interpret* the three as running together.

I understand. I'll have to watch Ice Station Zebra again. I remembered McGoohan as being the villain in that film. As you describe him, then that was my interpretation from his not being the almost infallible hero he was in Danger Man... And yes, that kind of fatal screw-up could have lead him to try to resign the secret service fed up with it, not knowing that it was like trying to resign from the mafia... and end up as The Prisoner.

 

[Albert71292]

I saw one episode of the 1970's show "Ozzie's Girls" recently, a follow up to "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet". MAN that was painful to watch!

 

[bretmaverick2]

In regards to the HONEYMOONERS referenced above, I remember many years ago, late 70s maybe, reading an article that Jacie and Lucy had talked about a sitcom they would produce together in which Lil Ricky married a previously unknown daughter of Ralph and Alice. Then it was planned for Jackie and Lucy to make a few appearances each season.

Of course, nothing ever materialized but I have a feeling that this show would have made the 'unsuccessful' list.

 

[Neil Brock]

To me, Still the Beaver was the best. I was really excited about The Man From UNCLE reunion but the person who produced it, Michael Sloan, had never even seen the show and knew nothing about it. To make matters worse, he screened an episode from the abysmal third season to see what the show was like. And all UNCLE fans would agree that what made the show work was Vaughn and McCallum together. So what does he do? Once they reunite, he separates them for the rest of the movie.

 

[shoeshineboy]

I'd say the Lou Grant series was the best-evolved use of a character, although i understand why some would argue that the comedy MTM wasn't represented in the dramatic show. It can be said that one show has little to do with the other...
And like Neil, I too found Still the Beaver a cut above when it comes to revisiting an old show.

 

[Doug Wallen]

I always thought that "The Return of Ironside" really was better than most reunion telefilms. I realize it was a bit cliched to have Eve's daughter be the catalyst, but at least all of the originals returned. It felt like an actual case instead of just gathering the existing cast to play on nostalgia.

What about Columbo, a jump from NBC to ABC and 11 years later. Is that a sequel or just a continuation after a long hiatus?

 

[Jack P]

"Columbo" is hard to peg because to me, 90s Columbo is a pale, dismal echo of the classic show. Falk was playing the character like a caricature out of a variety show sketch and showing not a shred of subtlety that made the character great to begin with. In addition, the 90s episodes were poorly written compared to the originals in that (1) they foolishly went for a "film noir" tone in many episodes which is the wrong style for "Columbo" who is a drawing mystery type detective, not a hardboiled detective (2) the clues were weak. Many were often recycled and then to compensate for the lack of layered clues Columbo used to unravel a case, we would get longer buildups to the murder thus cutting down on the solving time.

 

[Jack P]

I always have visions of what it would be like if the uber-serious "Lou Grant" suddenly was turned upside down by a Ted Baxter guest shot.

 

[Neil Brock]

Here's a trivia question. Can anyone name the first TV reunion of the cast of a cancelled series? I finally got a chance to view it a few months ago at UCLA.

 

[FanCollector]

Here's a trivia question. Can anyone name the first TV reunion of the cast of a cancelled series? I finally got a chance to view it a few months ago at UCLA.

Was it that Tightrope follow up with Mike Connors?

 

[Neil Brock]

Was it that Tightrope follow up with Mike Connors?

Don't know what that is.

 

[FanCollector]

Don't know what that is.

A pilot called "The New Tightrope." According to various sources, it was an hour and done for ABC. Some sources say that "The Expendables," another pilot with Mike Connors was a sequel, but other sources say that it was the same concept and producer, but the character had a different name. Here's one write-up I just found:
http://www.murdermysteries.com/tv/tightrope.htm

 

[Richard V]

New Monkees (1987) Abysmal
The Return of Eliot Ness
Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge
The Time Tunnel (1986), a pilot, left me wanting more. Unfortunately not picked up for a series

 

[Pathfiner]

while there is no link between 'Danger Man' (aka 'Secret Agent' in the USA) and 'The Prisoner' re anything factual in the two shows (and not so due to the legal angle re show creators etc) nevertheless McGoohan had some fun with his viewers

Several actors in 'Danger Man' turn up in 'The Prisoner' playing similar characters - Richard Wattis, Peter Swanwick, etc...while Christopher Benjamin plays a character of 'Potter' in both shows (DM: "Koroshi' & The Prisoner 'Girl Who Was Death' - also both episodes have 'record booth' scenes that are an in joke tribute to 'Mission:Impossible')

the Port Merion village itself was in several earlier episodes of 'Danger Man' and the later show took several aspects of 'Colony Three' from 'Danger Man' (despite McGoohan's denials)

John Drake was the actor playing the cricket bowler in 'Girl Who Was Death' too...

while McGoohan's character John Drake was dressing in all black by the later 'Danger Man' episodes (such as 'Paper Chase') - just as 'Number Six' does in the opening of 'The Prisoner' and Number Six banner photo as candidate in 'Free For All' is McGoohan's old 'Danger Man' publicity photo

so clear similarity aspects between the shows were done by McGoohan, probably to intrigue his viewers

 

[Ron1973]

While not exactly a "sequel," I thought the idea of giving Buddy Ebsen a cameo as Barnaby Jones in the movie adaptation of The Beverly Hillbillies was a nice touch.

 

[FanCollector]

The Girl Who Was Death as a whole feels like a wink to fans of the old show. At that point, they were absolutely starved for material and that may have been part of the motivation, but I also think it was meant to bring a smile to both the crew and the viewers.

 

[KPmusmag]

I always have visions of what it would be like if the uber-serious "Lou Grant" suddenly was turned upside down by a Ted Baxter guest shot.

Since you mentioned Lou Grant, it made me think of The Mary & Rhoda TV movie from 2000. I could hardly watch it.

 

[jperez]

The Girl Who Was Death as a whole feels like a wink to fans of the old show. At that point, they were absolutely starved for material and that may have been part of the motivation, but I also think it was meant to bring a smile to both the crew and the viewers.

If I remember correctly, The Girl Who Was Death was an unused script from Danger Man...

 

[B-ROLL]

Since you mentioned Lou Grant, it made me think of The Mary & Rhoda TV movie from 2000. I could hardly watch it.

You forgot about PHYLLIS!!!

 

[KPmusmag]

I enjoyed Phyllis and would definitely buy a complete series DVD if they were to offer it.