shows that have been destroyed (1 Viewer)

[Neil Brock]

"A Man Called Shenandoah" lost 5 of 34 episodes somewhere along the way. That's a filmed series, and you would have thought all the films or tape transfers were stored together.

Who at Warner Brothers vaults told you this? Or are you going by the fact that that was all that TNT ran?

 

[oldtvshowbuff]

Beulah (ABC 1950-53) has been largely lost forever for over half a century. Only seven episodes exist today out of the 87 that were filmed, and it was every bit as controversial as "Amos and Andy" for its racial stereotyping of its characters. No wonder why NAACP put up such a big fuss!

 

[tonysam2]

I never found the show stereotypical at all. Some observers have compared it to Hazel, and I think it is apt.

 

[Ron1973]

Beulah (ABC 1950-53) has been largely lost forever for over half a century. Only seven episodes exist today out of the 87 that were filmed, and it was every bit as controversial as "Amos and Andy" for its racial stereotyping of its characters. No wonder why NAACP put up such a big fuss!

I never found anything "stereotypical" of Amos & Andy based on the few shows I remember from when my dad rented them on VHS in the 80's. If anything, Sanford and Son or Good Times portrayed black people in a negative light well worse than A & A ever did. Fred and Esther were WAY over the top in their caricatures. They were funny and played off each other well but they were over the top.

 

[Kevin Segura]

The oldest individual game show episode that still exists in original videotape quality and is complete is a September 1960 episode of the ABC daytime version of "Beat The Clock" which was saved beacuse it shows a bonus stunt for $20,100 (a high total in the post-scandal days) being won after the stunt had gone 51 weeks without being won (and with $100 added each day).

Not to be **too** pendantic on this topic (well, OK, a **bit** pedantic), but the earliest known original game show videotape is now the 9/15/58 episode of "Top Dollar", which was found on a quad reel a few years back in the Arthur Godfrey archives...

And on a different note, there are some color network slides that still exist for some of NBC's 1950's color game show broadcasts-- "Truth or Consequences" is one of them.

- Kevin

 

[LouA]

Not to be **too** pendantic on this topic (well, OK, a **bit** pedantic), but the earliest known original game show videotape is now the 9/15/58 episode of "Top Dollar", which was found on a quad reel a few years back in the Arthur Godfrey archives...

And on a different note, there are some color network slides that still exist for some of NBC's 1950's color game show broadcasts-- "Truth or Consequences" is one of them.

- Kevin

Do any episodes of Truth Or Consequencs still exist? I've never seen any on home video.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Do any episodes of Truth Or Consequencs still exist? I've never seen any on home video.

I asked that question in another thread a while back, Lou. Here's the answer I got. What fun! Bob Barker will always be one of my heroes in broadcasting.

 

[Kevin Segura]

Do any episodes of Truth Or Consequencs still exist? I've never seen any on home video.

I'm sure there are more than a few in the Ralph Edwards vault, but there's not sufficient demand to release them. The 1st Barker NBC episode (with a lengthy intro of the new host by Mr. Edwards himself) has surfaced in recent years.

- Kevin

 

[PatrickGoodluck]

I asked that question in another thread a while back, Lou. Here's the answer I got. What fun! Bob Barker will always be one of my heroes in broadcasting.

Thanks for sharing, Mike. Fabulous to view.

 

[Neil Brock]

Beulah (ABC 1950-53) has been largely lost forever for over half a century. Only seven episodes exist today out of the 87 that were filmed, and it was every bit as controversial as "Amos and Andy" for its racial stereotyping of its characters. No wonder why NAACP put up such a big fuss!

78 episodes were made, 26 per season. A complete set on 16mm recently found its way to UCLA archives.

 

[Neil Brock]

Do any episodes of Truth Or Consequencs still exist? I've never seen any on home video.

From what I've been told, hundreds exist but Bob Barker prevented anything from being done with them, either on GSN or DVD.

 

[AndyMcKinney]

From what I've been told, hundreds exist but Bob Barker prevented anything from being done with them, either on GSN or DVD.

I would've figured the bigger problem would be with Ralph Edwards' estate, not Barker (unless they regularly offered fur coats as prizes).

 

[LouA]

78 episodes were made, 26 per season. A complete set on 16mm recently found its way to UCLA archives.

That's good news. I loved that show as a child, but have only see a few episodes (which I enjoyed) as an adult.

 

[Seanhtf]

78 episodes were made, 26 per season. A complete set on 16mm recently found its way to UCLA archives.

Actually, only two seasons of The Beulah Show were produced, each consisting of 39 episodes. Season one aired on ABC from October 3, 1950 through June 26, 1951. These episodes were repeated from July 3, 1951 through March 25, 1952. Season two aired from April 1, 1952 through December 23, 1952, and was repeated from December 30, 1952 through September 22, 1953.

The Beulah Show starred Ethel Waters in its first season and was filmed in New York. Production shifted to California for season two, and the role of Beulah was recast with Hattie McDaniel. Illness forced her to withdraw after completing only six episodes and Louise Beavers took over the part. The move to California is also why the entire supporting cast changed with season two.

Louise Beavers episodes ran from April 1, 1952 through July 15. The Hattie McDaniel episodes were aired from July 22 through August 26. The remaining Louise Beavers episodes ran from September 2 through December 23. The Beavers episodes were repeated from December 30, 1952 through August 11, 1953, with repeats of the Hattie McDaniel episodes finishing up the show's prime time run from August 18 through September 22.

All of which is probably much more than anybody ever wanted to know about The Beulah Show.

I can't help but think that nine long months of reruns can't have helped the show's ratings, especially in an era when people weren't that accustomed to them.

Sean

 

[Matt Hough]

I appreciate the intricate information about this show. Anyone know why Ethel Waters left? She didn't want to work in LA or she didn't want to play a domestic?

 

[Neil Brock]

All I know is that one of the great quips of all time came from one of the Beulah actresses, although I'm not sure which one it was. She was getting criticized for portraying a domestic by the black community and she said that she could either make $500 a week for playing a maid or else make $5 a week for being a maid.

As for the show itself, thanks so much Sean for the info. Its one of those shows that is almost impossible to get detailed information about. I had almost located the series around 6-7 years ago, tracking down the last known syndicator who had had prints. Unfortunately, he and his wife were both in their late 80s, he had a couple of strokes and the whereabouts of his prints were a mystery. Luckily, containers of 16mm prints of the show somehow managed to find their way to UCLA's doorstep. Having managed to see some episodes, other than for historical significance, its really not a very good show. About on par with The Stu Erwin Show from that era.

 

[Rob_Ray]

All I know is that one of the great quips of all time came from one of the Beulah actresses, although I'm not sure which one it was. She was getting criticized for portraying a domestic by the black community and she said that she could either make $500 a week for playing a maid or else make $5 a week for being a maid.

As for the show itself, thanks so much Sean for the info. Its one of those shows that is almost impossible to get detailed information about. I had almost located the series around 6-7 years ago, tracking down the last known syndicator who had had prints. Unfortunately, he and his wife were both in their late 80s, he had a couple of strokes and the whereabouts of his prints were a mystery. Luckily, containers of 16mm prints of the show somehow managed to find their way to UCLA's doorstep. Having managed to see some episodes, other than for historical significance, its really not a very good show. About on par with The Stu Erwin Show from that era.

That quip is usually attributed to Hattie McDaniel. I watched a couple of episodes with Hattie on one of those public domain compilations a while back. It certainly was interesting from a historical perspective, as Neil says, and contained nothing objectionable racially, but it was nothing special either. Watching Hattie here reminds me of a friend who is a fan of Shirley Booth and can't stand "Hazel": "It's like watching Secretariat give pony rides."

 

[Brian Himes]

Do the complete unedited broadcast versions of The Guns of Will Sonnett exist? I know that the episodes that MeTV run are severely edited. This show is perhaps one of the worst edited shows that I've ever seen on TV. Most of the time the edits are really noticeable and distracting.

 

[Ron1973]

Do the complete unedited broadcast versions of The Guns of Will Sonnett exist? I know that the episodes that MeTV run are severely edited. This show is perhaps one of the worst edited shows that I've ever seen on TV. Most of the time the edits are really noticeable and distracting.

I believe Neil said they existed. Why they haven't been released unedited is another story....perhaps only the 35mm prints exist and were never transferred to tape?

 

[Vahan_Nisanain]

What about The Ed Sullivan Show (Formerly known as Toast of the Town)? Which episodes exist, other than, of course, all the Beatles' appearances.