77 Sunset Strip / Hawaiian Eye, etc. (3 Viewers)

[criblecoblis]

The 77 Sunset Strip plaque is back! Maybe I'll take a trip up there sometime and place a comb on it in tribute.

Yay! Thanks, Martin, for giving us the best news we've had here in a long time. I will have to make a point of visiting this shrine myself, when I have a half-day to blow; getting to the Westside from the Eastside has become quite a chore.

 

[timk1041]

Timothy, I respect your opinion regarding colorization as well. As I said, I completely share it in regards to films.

I could defend my position in greater detail, but I'll let the matter drop. I just want to make one more observation: colorization is effectively a non-destructive alteration if done properly. One can simply turn off the color and view the show as originally intended.

Yes. Turning it off is certainly an option and there are sets of shows or films that have B/W and colourized versions available. Thank you for your comments and happy viewing.

 

[cadavra]

Colorizing was proven a dead issue ages ago. "The kids" won't watch old movies and TV shows because they're in B&W; they won't watch them because they're old. You try to make them watch a film that was already shot in color, like SINGIN' IN THE RAIN or NORTH BY NORTHWEST or even THE WILD BUNCH, and they'll still be resistant. A few years ago I went to a double feature of GOLDFINGER and THUNDERBALL, and in the lobby during the intermission, a millennial dude was complaining about how slow, dull and boring GOLDFINGER was and he didn't want to stay for the second one. His friends agreed and they left. This is what we're dealing with today, and it's why almost nobody colorizes anymore. It's a waste of money and you just piss off the people who originally watched it in B&W and prefer it that way.

Mike S.

 

[criblecoblis]

Colorizing was proven a dead issue ages ago. "The kids" won't watch old movies and TV shows because they're in B&W; they won't watch them because they're old.

Mike,

Yes, you're probably right. And it's really not just the young. My best friend is in most respects a sophisticated and knowledgeable cinema fan, and even he admits an aversion to pre-widescreen era films because of their "technical limitations." He's not averse to B&W, but he really seems to hate the 4:3 aspect ratio. And forget about ever getting him to watch a silent film!

It's really a shame that, at a time when we have over a century of various audio-visual media available for us to appreciate, and an unprecedented level of access to it, there is such resistance to the experiencing of it on such superficial grounds.

It's not as if good creative product ever becomes obsolete, even though its medium may have.

 

[DeWilson]

....It's a waste of money and you just piss off the people who originally watched it in B&W and prefer it that way.

Mike S.

Tell that to CBS who keeps colorizing episodes of I LOVE LUCY every year! Now they wouldn't spend the money if people were not watching and weren't getting a return on their investment! If they were not, they'd just keep showing just the Colorized Christmas episode on it's own every holiday season, and not continue to do at least one "new" colorized episode each year. Millions of viewers hardly are "pissed off".

We're talking I LOVE LUCY - The biggest B&W library property CBS (ok, ViacomCBS now) owns.

West Wing Studios do an excellent job on the colorization - I don't think the technology can't get any better. I think it's reached it's peak.

Yeh, I'm pro-colorization. I think any series that switched from B&W to Color should be colorized. It's about time Warners spend the money to replace those BAD colorized GILLIGAN'S ISLAND episodes that Turner Entertainment did in the late 1980's - boy, are those's bad.

 

[Rustifer]

The 77 Sunset Strip plaque is back! Maybe I'll take a trip up there sometime and place a comb on it in tribute.

This is good news indeed, Martin! Probably 99% of the people walking over it have no idea of what it is or its history, unfortunately. But I'm glad the marker still there as the lone survivor of that era.

 

[Rustifer]

Timothy, I respect your opinion regarding colorization as well. As I said, I completely share it in regards to films.

I could defend my position in greater detail, but I'll let the matter drop. I just want to make one more observation: colorization is effectively a non-destructive alteration if done properly. One can simply turn off the color and view the show as originally intended.

Not to beat this subject to death as I am fairly ambivalent regarding colorization. I like that which is filmed in black & white, equally as much as I enjoy what is filmed in color. Turning one into the other doesn't keep me up at night with indecision.

I think you make a unique point though, Rob, in that coloring some of the WB detective shows might draw a younger crowd and thus preserve / extend the life of these series. However, I fear CGI has forever changed the anticipatory expectations of Millennials and Gen Xers regarding their viewing preferences. But it's a great subject for debate.

 

[Rustifer]

A new restaurant opened there not long ago...it's called Tesse.

Tesse is no Dino's. Mainly an avant-garde sort of place, its menu would be extremely foreign to our favorite PIs.

Atmosphere aside, imagine Stu* or Jeff wandering into this place and tucking into a plate of bone marrow confit with soba noodles.

*Actually, on second thought, the more worldly Stu might find the dish extremely desirable.

 

[MartinP.]

Yeh, I'm pro-colorization. I think any series that switched from B&W to Color should be colorized. It's about time Warners spend the money to replace those BAD colorized GILLIGAN'S ISLAND episodes that Turner Entertainment did in the late 1980's - boy, are those bad.

I'd agree with Warner's redoing G.I. season one.

I think what you said is why colorization has never bothered me, really: series that switched to color. Not only that, but our family didn't have a color television for a long time. I grew up watching everything in black & white. Then much later I began to see everything that I'd seen in b&w in color. Either way, it's just a different way of viewing something I like.

I don't understand the arguments sometimes about shooting things specifically for b&w, but movies and shows filmed specifically for color were aired in b&w...should that never have happened? I have no prejudices against b&w, either. Colorization has never replaced anything in b&w, either. It's a choice. So those that don't like it are really against having that choice, I guess.

By the way, on occasion I have watched a favorite film that was shot in color in b&w on my TV just to experience it a little differently for a change. Like E.T. for example. I've also listened to some favorite films with the French or Spanish soundtrack.

I just wish we could get to SEE these Warner detective shows whenever we'd like!

 

[timk1041]

Colorizing was proven a dead issue ages ago. "The kids" won't watch old movies and TV shows because they're in B&W; they won't watch them because they're old. You try to make them watch a film that was already shot in color, like SINGIN' IN THE RAIN or NORTH BY NORTHWEST or even THE WILD BUNCH, and they'll still be resistant. A few years ago I went to a double feature of GOLDFINGER and THUNDERBALL, and in the lobby during the intermission, a millennial dude was complaining about how slow, dull and boring GOLDFINGER was and he didn't want to stay for the second one. His friends agreed and they left. This is what we're dealing with today, and it's why almost nobody colorizes anymore. It's a waste of money and you just piss off the people who originally watched it in B&W and prefer it that way.

Mike S.

Really valid points. Well said.

 

[criblecoblis]

I think what you said is why colorization has never bothered me, really: series that switched to color. Not only that, but our family didn't have a color television for a long time. I grew up watching everything in black & white. Then much later I began to see everything that I'd seen in b&w in color.

Martin, that's a great way to look at it!

 

[Gary16]

TVGuide article August 1961 about actors who also write scripts including Anthony Eisley (just making a small attempt to get this thread back on topic)

 

[Rustifer]

Episode Commentary
Bourbon Street Beat
"If A Body" (S1E28)

Cal's girlfriend, the delectable Lusti Weather (Nita Talbot) is in a peck of trouble. Her fellow singer at the Merry-Go-Round Club, Tammy (Maureen Arthur) is found murdered. Both had just performed on stage while Cal (Andrew Duggan and Kenny (Van Williams) delightfully ogled both from their bar stools. Tammy had put the moves on Cal, enraging Lusti into a hissy fit, thus becoming the chief suspect in Tammy's murder. It didn't help that she was found in Lusti's travel trunk with her decorative letter opener stuck in Tammy's generous chest. When Cal looks into the case, the body is suddenly gone.
"May I ask you a personal question, Cal?" queries Lusti in fear of being arrested.
"Sure, Sugar."
"Are you a good private investigator?"

Together, the two look through Tammy's dressing room, Cal doing a yeoman's job of opening and closing drawers and finding nothing. No knife, no body-- until they check out the most obvious place--the closet. Yep, there she is--as dead as a bad idea--just as the police walk in. Lusti is hauled off to jail in her best cocktail dress. Meanwhile, Kenny is still interviewing prospective secretaries to replace the very replaceable Melody. All candidates ably ring the sex-o-meter bell.

Maureen; Nita; Mr. DeBenning

Cal busts Lusti out on bail, only to find her apartment ransacked. What was the real killer looking for? I would guess her underwear, but that's just me. But no. Suspicion now falls on the skipper of a South American freighter, Captain Jensen (Jeff DeBenning), and a mysterious key. Leads begin to correspond to Rex's investigation of a South American diamond smuggling operation. The coincidence is just so...predictable. Kenny, in his best high school letterman's jacket, is sent to look into Captain Jensen and his freighter. He gets into a rip snortin' fight with the Captain and loses.

The sketchy owner of the Melody-Go-Round and his bartender are also somehow connected to the whole scheme. Oh, what a tangled web we weave. Well, if there's a bottom to be gotten to, Cal's the man to do it. He investigates the club only to find the owner dead, and so makes a beeline to Lusti's.
"Oh", she says, wearing a skimpy robe. "You almost caught me in the shower."
"My timing's been off all day", laments Cal.
Since the owner had just fired Lusti, she once again becomes the main suspect. The mysterious key becomes the proverbial key to the whole affair. It's a good script with some snappy dialog between Lusti and Cal. A fun little episode.

Oh--And what happened to Kenny? No one cares since his only job seemed to be finding a new secretary for the office.

Notes:
The police Lieutenant in this episode is named Girard. No relation to the same guy chasing Richard Kimball.

 

[criblecoblis]

Gary,

Thanks as always for the TV Guide post. I'm sorry that you felt the thread was getting unacceptably off-topic. I was just happy to have a bit of interaction occur here. When I do post specifically on-topic I get extremely little response.

 

[Rustifer]

(just making a small attempt to get this thread back on topic)

That has been, and continues to be your job, Gary. and we thank you for it.
Sometimes we take side roads because the moon is in the seventh house, and Jupiter aligns with Mars. Imagine.

 

[Rustifer]

I've been kinda stuck indulging on Midsommer Murders and Netflix's You. I promise to get back to this subject matter in the next day or so.

 

[Jeff Flugel]

Episode Commentary
Bourbon Street Beat
"If A Body" (S1E28)

Cal's girlfriend, the delectable Lusti Weather (Nita Talbot) is in a peck of trouble. Her fellow singer at the Merry-Go-Round Club, Tammy (Maureen Arthur) is found murdered. Both had just performed on stage while Cal (Andrew Duggan and Kenny (Van Williams) delightfully ogled both from their bar stools. Tammy had put the moves on Cal, enraging Lusti into a hissy fit, thus becoming the chief suspect in Tammy's murder. It didn't help that she was found in Lusti's travel trunk with her decorative letter opener stuck in Tammy's generous chest. When Cal looks into the case, the body is suddenly gone.
"May I ask you a personal question, Cal?" queries Lusti in fear of being arrested.
"Sure, Sugar."
"Are you a good private investigator?"

Together, the two look through Tammy's dressing room, Cal doing a yeoman's job of opening and closing drawers and finding nothing. No knife, no body-- until they check out the most obvious place--the closet. Yep, there she is--as dead as a bad idea--just as the police walk in. Lusti is hauled off to jail in her best cocktail dress. Meanwhile, Kenny is still interviewing prospective secretaries to replace the very replaceable Melody. All candidates ably ring the sex-o-meter bell.

View attachment 67559

View attachment 67560
Maureen; Nita; Mr. DeBenning

Cal busts Lusti out on bail, only to find her apartment ransacked. What was the real killer looking for? I would guess her underwear, but that's just me. But no. Suspicion now falls on the skipper of a South American freighter, Captain Jensen (Jeff DeBenning), and a mysterious key. Leads begin to correspond to Rex's investigation of a South American diamond smuggling operation. The coincidence is just so...predictable. Kenny, in his best high school letterman's jacket, is sent to look into Captain Jensen and his freighter. He gets into a rip snortin' fight with the Captain and loses.

The sketchy owner of the Melody-Go-Round and his bartender are also somehow connected to the whole scheme. Oh, what a tangled web we weave. Well, if there's a bottom to be gotten to, Cal's the man to do it. He investigates the club only to find the owner dead, and so makes a beeline to Lusti's.
"Oh", she says, wearing a skimpy robe. "You almost caught me in the shower."
"My timing's been off all day", laments Cal.
Since the owner had just fired Lusti, she once again becomes the main suspect. The mysterious key becomes the proverbial key to the whole affair. It's a good script with some snappy dialog between Lusti and Cal. A fun little episode.

Oh--And what happened to Kenny? No one cares since his only job seemed to be finding a new secretary for the office.

Notes:
The police Lieutenant in this episode is named Girard. No relation to the same guy chasing Richard Kimball.

Great review, Russ! I'd sure like to be able to watch some episodes of Bourbon Street Beat...it sounds like a fun show. My main image of Nita Talbot is from her appearance as a chatty chick on a singles cruise with a werewolf onboard, in an episode of Kolchak: The Night Stalker in the early '70s. She still looked good then, but she was really something else back in her ingenue days.

 

[Rustifer]

Episode Commentary
Bourbon Street Beat
"False Identity" (S1E33)

Opening Scene: A fat guy with a suitcase is trying to hitch a ride in the middle of nowhere. Another fat guy picks him up. Next day, cops find the deserted car in the bushes at the side of the road. Just goes to show that although clumsily large, apparently fat men can disappear at will.

Cut to Cal's office. Mrs. Nichols (Irene Hervey) is complaining her hubby has been missing for two weeks. Not in the least sorrowful, she's more bent over the fact that he's cleared out their joint account. There goes the money for gas, milk, hemmorhoid cream. She's so distressed as to almost execute an unplanned bowel movement in Cal's fine leather guest chair. Cal calls the cops, mainly to get rid of this hysterical harpy in his office. Surprisingly, he learns they've found Mr. Nichols--as his body is lying on a morgue slab, cold as a county prosecutor's heart Oh gee, there goes all of Mrs. Nichols' egg money.

Cause of death is certified as having been drowned in a swamp next to the aforementioned deserted car. Cal learns that Nichols had a hitchhiker in the car with him. Well now, there's a clue to chew on.
Meanwhile, the ongoing parade of temp secretaries for the detective's office continues. All candidates are pin-up queens with brains of bubble gum.The latest one offers Cal some valuable insight: "My, you're tall!"

One simply can't post enough cheesecake of Lisa Gaye; Irene Hervey wearing the remnants of a dead parrot: A smarmy John Hubbard

Cal decides the Nichols case is certainly now a matter for the police, but Mrs. Nichols won't hear of it. She produces a court restraining order against her husband's business partner, Henry Bryant (John Hubbard). She asks a very reluctant Cal to deliver the court order to Bryant--confident that he can succeed in doing so.
"I don't know what it is about you", she begins.
"No one does", affirms Cal.

Cal visits the the partners transport company, a hodge podge of trucks seemingly left over from the Depression era. He runs into the comely receptionist, Miss Landers (Lisa Gaye), who's clearing out her desk after being fired. Bryant proves to be a first class dick and refuses to accept the court order, instead ordering a couple of his worker goons to try and beat up Cal. No dice--Cal kicks the crap out of them. The order is duly served. Landers later joins Cal at the Absinthe House to watch him chow down a place of garlic snails awash in a pernod and tabasco sauce. Note to self, she thinks: Avoid at all costs any lip-locking with this guy. Cal presses her for information only to learn she admits to having sweaty panties over Mr. Nichols at one time. She also fesses up that she's seen him since his death.

The cops soon confirm that the body they recovered is not Nichols. Things are getting sticky now, by god. Nichols goes to see his wife to kill her, but she accommodates him by dropping dead from a heart attack. A fine welcome home is that. But no problem--by this time Cal has it all figured out. Tall guys always do.

Notes:
Lisa Gaye was sister to movie star Debra Paget and lived in her 26 room mansion. Both of them eventually retired to Texas.

 

[Rustifer]

Great review, Russ! I'd sure like to be able to watch some episodes of Bourbon Street Beat...it sounds like a fun show.

Jeff, my opinion is that BSB is the least successful of Warner's private eye series. It could have been much better had the show's scripts drawn more liberally on its New Orleans location. As I've mentioned before, the series may well have been shot in Muncie, Indiana for all the NOLA atmosphere that's ever utilized. Also Van Williams is completely wasted in a secondary role, Arlene Howell is easily the least sexy of all gal pals peppering these shows, thus leaving only Andrew Duggan as the most charismatic of the bunch.

That being said, it still contains a certain nostalgic feel of the era--which is why we all watch this now-dead WB genre. There's also a significant number of familiar WB guest stars that are shuffled between these shows that are always great to catch.

 

[cadavra]

Tell that to CBS who keeps colorizing episodes of I LOVE LUCY every year! Now they wouldn't spend the money if people were not watching and weren't getting a return on their investment! If they were not, they'd just keep showing just the Colorized Christmas episode on it's own every holiday season, and not continue to do at least one "new" colorized episode each year. Millions of viewers hardly are "pissed off".

We're talking I LOVE LUCY - The biggest B&W library property CBS (ok, ViacomCBS now) owns.

West Wing Studios do an excellent job on the colorization - I don't think the technology can't get any better. I think it's reached it's peak.

Yeh, I'm pro-colorization. I think any series that switched from B&W to Color should be colorized. It's about time Warners spend the money to replace those BAD colorized GILLIGAN'S ISLAND episodes that Turner Entertainment did in the late 1980's - boy, are those's bad.

Well, first of all, there's a considerable difference between colorizing a half-hour TV show, which was produced under vastly different conditions, and a feature film. But more importantly, if you look at the 18-49 ratings for these broadcasts, they're terrible. Total viewership is decent, but it's almost entirely the over-50 crowd, which confirms my original statement that "the kids" aren't watching these, even in "color."

Mike S.