What did you watch this week in classic TV on DVD(or Blu)? (7 Viewers)

[Doug Wallen]

Still finding the enjoyment of viewing my favorite medical series of all time on Hulu. My son and I have now made it to the final season. Ronny Cox joined the cast this season as hospital administrator, Dr. John Gideon. (Ecumena then became Wiegurt, I believe the change was due to Humana asking or seeking a lawsuit)
St. Elsewhere - Season 6 (Hulu)
Resurrection (6.1) St. Eligius is reopened thanks to a new corporate owner, whose plans please Craig but leave Westphall wondering; Elliot is missing from the returnees; Fiscus finds the first patients; the Craigs' marriage seems to be headed for court .

The Idiot And The Odyssey (6.2) Allen Williams, Jack Dodson, Patricia Wettig. A fantasy grips Ehrlich; the Morrison family is crowded by close quarters and a visitor; Gideon finds an error when he steps into Westphall's territory; a large man undergoes hypnosis for surgery.

A Moon For The Misbegotten (6.3) Lanie Kazan, Richard Kline, Kyle Secor, Dennis Patrick. Fed up with the changes imposed by the hospital's new owners, Dr. Westphall resigns from St. Eligius. As he quits, he moons Dr. Gideon.

Ewe Can't Go Home Again (6.4) Penelope Ann Miller, Byron Stewart, John Scott Clough, Kyle Secor. A student nurse's lie comes back to haunt her; Warren wants better conditions for the orderlies; Craig's artificial-heart program improves as his marriage deteriorates; Wade's hostelry is filled with hostility. Dr. Griffin is having trouble dealing with an Aids patient (Kyle Secor in a fantastic role).

Cannon - The Complete Series
He Who Digs A Grave (Part 1)(Part 2) (3.1) Apparently a two hour episode cut into two parts. Part 1 runs for 53-54 minutes and Part 2 runs for 46 minutes. Part 1 appears VHS quality while Part 2 is sharper but faded and has the Viacom logo on the end. Not sure is episode is complete, but seems to be. David Janssen, Barry Sullivan, Anne Baxter, Murray Hamilton, Tim O'Connor, R. G. Armstrong, Lee Purcell, Royal Dano, Dabbs Greer, Robert Hogan. Cannon investigates an alleged murder-suicide involving rich and powerful families in a small town.

Memo From A Dead Man (3.2) MArtin Sheen, Sheila Larken, Robert Webber. After swerving down a mountain road for several miles, Walter Shaw drives his Jaguar sedan into a ravine and is killed. By the terms of his will, Cannon is hired to determine if one of his beneficiaries was responsible.

Hounds Of Hell (3.3) Episode would not play to conclusion, seems to have a huge defect on the disc. Only affects the final act of this episode and I had already figured out the mystery. Geoffrey Duel, Ford Rainey, Jim McMullan. Cannon is hired to investigate two fatal dog attacks on former Vietnam combat unit members, and to stop another attack.

Target In The Mirror (3.4) Claude Akins, Frank Mrth, Paul Carr, Julie Gregg, Alex Rocco. Cannon turns down a client, and when she is killed in her house shortly after his visit, he is drawn into both her murder investigation and the reason she called him.

Murder By Proxy (3.5) Anne Francis, Linden Chiles, Marj Dusay. Cannon is hired by a woman who was slipped a mickey at a bar and then framed for murder.

Night Flight To Murder (3.6) John Vernon, David Hedison, Norman Alden, Barney Phillips. Cannon is hired by an insurance company to investigate the disappearance, while on final approach at a small Utah airstrip, of a twin-engine plane that was carrying $3 million of negotiable bonds.

M Squad - The Complete Series
The Golden Look (1.1) Henry Brandon, Morris Ankrum, Ken Lynch. The squad is on the lookout for a bank robbery suspect with a unique feature--witnesses said he has gold teeth.

The Watchdog (1.2) Peggy Webber, Gail Kobe, Harlan Warde, Olan Soule. Lt. Ballinger and the squad are out to catch a burglar, but there's another pressing reason for his quick capture--he may have rabies.

Neighborhood Killer (1.3) Grant Richards, Stafford Repp. The squad hunts down a cop killer.

Pete Loves Mary (1.4) Mike Connors, DeForest Kelley, Bobby Driscoll, Roberta Haynes. The squad goes after a jail inmate who's just escaped.

I have truly enjoyed my first foray into this show and will be viewing more this weekend. Biggest surprise was seeing Mannix and Dr. McCoy in the same episode. This show appeals to me as Ballinger seems tied to his emotions, not as dry and matter-of-fact as Joe Friday was. This was a blind buy and I am glad this show was spoken highly of by y'all.

Police Squad - The Complete Series Bluray
Can't do M Squad without viewing this one also. Such a great short run series.
A Substantial Gift (The Broken Promise) (1.1) Kathryn Leigh Scott. Frank investigates a murder case at a bank where a robber shot the clerk and then another staff member, Sally, shot the robber. The autopsy, however, shows differently.
Not much you can say about this that hasn't already been said. I just sat back and enjoyed the silliness all over again. Bluray looks very good.

Gunsmoke - Seasons 10-12
Jonah Hutchinson (10.9) Robert F. Simon, Richard Anderson, June Dayton, David Macklin. Hutchinson family patriarch returns to his homestead after many years in prison to find his land is smaller and he considers his son a weakling for allowing changes to take place. He wishes to return to the early pioneer days and sets about to retake his lost property, inciting a range war if necessary.

Big Man, Big Target (10.10) J. D. Cannon, Mariette Hartley, John McLiam, Mike Road. Ellie Merchant, the wife of farmer Joe Merchant, is having a passionate affair with outlaw Pike Beechum. Beechum intends to remove Joe and any other obstacle between him and Ellie. Very atypical performance from Mariette Hartley.

Chicken (10.11) Glenn Corbett, Gigi Perreau, John Lupton, L. Q. Jones. Mistakenly hailed as a hero who downed four robbers, a man rethinks his decision to let folks regard him as a gunfighter when protecting the woman he wants calls for a gunman's skill.

Innocence (10.12) Bethel Leslie, Michael Forest, Jason Evers, Claude Akins. Art and Bob both have an eye on a new girl in town. She works at the Long Branch but only has eyes for the most well liked man in town. On the eve of their marriage, it all comes to a head and the town is out for blood.

 

[BobO'Link]

My wife and I rarely missed an episode of St. Elsewhere during its original run and was one of those rare series we both greatly enjoyed. We both were rather annoyed by the last scene. Over the years I've grown to hate such endings and feel they're mostly a cop-out. That's been cemented by several comic series that, like St. Elsewhere, were examples of great writing but throw it all away with a poorly thought out final scene.

I'd like to watch this one again but would stop just before the last act of the final episode. It's currently on Amazon Prime "free with ads" via IMDB. I may start watching...

 

[JohnHopper]

Gunsmoke - Seasons 10-12
Jonah Hutchinson (10.9) Robert F. Simon, Richard Anderson, June Dayton, David Macklin. Hutchinson family patriarch returns to his homestead after many years in prison to find his land is smaller and he considers his son a weakling for allowing changes to take place. He wishes to return to the early pioneer days and sets about to retake his lost property, inciting a range war if necessary.

Big Man, Big Target (10.10) J. D. Cannon, Mariette Hartley, John McLiam, Mike Road. Ellie Merchant, the wife of farmer Joe Merchant, is having a passionate affair with outlaw Pike Beechum. Beechum intends to remove Joe and any other obstacle between him and Ellie. Very atypical performance from Mariette Hartley.

Chicken (10.11) Glenn Corbett, Gigi Perreau, John Lupton, L. Q. Jones. Mistakenly hailed as a hero who downed four robbers, a man rethinks his decision to let folks regard him as a gunfighter when protecting the woman he wants calls for a gunman's skill.

Innocence (10.12) Bethel Leslie, Michael Forest, Jason Evers, Claude Akins. Art and Bob both have an eye on a new girl in town. She works at the Long Branch but only has eyes for the most well liked man in town. On the eve of their marriage, it all comes to a head and the town is out for blood.

“Jonah Hutchinson” is the template for further episodes about traumatic flashbacks: see the season 13 “The Prodigal”, the season 14 “Lyle’s Kid”, the season 15 “Stryker”, the season 16 “The Noose” and “Mirage”, the season 18 “The Drummer”​

​

“Chicken” is my number one on this list because of the theme of the false hero.​

 

[bmasters9]

Murder By Proxy (3.5) Anne Francis, Linden Chiles, Marj Dusay. Cannon is hired by a woman who was slipped a mickey at a bar and then framed for murder.

Marj would later be in another episode by that name on another show on another network, also from Quinn Martin-- The Streets of San Francisco, a fourth-season episode also called "Murder By Proxy," OAD Thurs. Oct. 23, 1975 on ABC.

 

[morasp]

Still finding the enjoyment of viewing my favorite medical series of all time on Hulu. My son and I have now made it to the final season. Ronny Cox joined the cast this season as hospital administrator, Dr. John Gideon. (Ecumena then became Wiegurt, I believe the change was due to Humana asking or seeking a lawsuit)
St. Elsewhere - Season 6 (Hulu)
Resurrection (6.1) St. Eligius is reopened thanks to a new corporate owner, whose plans please Craig but leave Westphall wondering; Elliot is missing from the returnees; Fiscus finds the first patients; the Craigs' marriage seems to be headed for court .

The Idiot And The Odyssey (6.2) Allen Williams, Jack Dodson, Patricia Wettig. A fantasy grips Ehrlich; the Morrison family is crowded by close quarters and a visitor; Gideon finds an error when he steps into Westphall's territory; a large man undergoes hypnosis for surgery.

A Moon For The Misbegotten (6.3) Lanie Kazan, Richard Kline, Kyle Secor, Dennis Patrick. Fed up with the changes imposed by the hospital's new owners, Dr. Westphall resigns from St. Eligius. As he quits, he moons Dr. Gideon.

Ewe Can't Go Home Again (6.4) Penelope Ann Miller, Byron Stewart, John Scott Clough, Kyle Secor. A student nurse's lie comes back to haunt her; Warren wants better conditions for the orderlies; Craig's artificial-heart program improves as his marriage deteriorates; Wade's hostelry is filled with hostility. Dr. Griffin is having trouble dealing with an Aids patient (Kyle Secor in a fantastic role).

Cannon - The Complete Series
He Who Digs A Grave (Part 1)(Part 2) (3.1) Apparently a two hour episode cut into two parts. Part 1 runs for 53-54 minutes and Part 2 runs for 46 minutes. Part 1 appears VHS quality while Part 2 is sharper but faded and has the Viacom logo on the end. Not sure is episode is complete, but seems to be. David Janssen, Barry Sullivan, Anne Baxter, Murray Hamilton, Tim O'Connor, R. G. Armstrong, Lee Purcell, Royal Dano, Dabbs Greer, Robert Hogan. Cannon investigates an alleged murder-suicide involving rich and powerful families in a small town.

Memo From A Dead Man (3.2) MArtin Sheen, Sheila Larken, Robert Webber. After swerving down a mountain road for several miles, Walter Shaw drives his Jaguar sedan into a ravine and is killed. By the terms of his will, Cannon is hired to determine if one of his beneficiaries was responsible.

Hounds Of Hell (3.3) Episode would not play to conclusion, seems to have a huge defect on the disc. Only affects the final act of this episode and I had already figured out the mystery. Geoffrey Duel, Ford Rainey, Jim McMullan. Cannon is hired to investigate two fatal dog attacks on former Vietnam combat unit members, and to stop another attack.

Target In The Mirror (3.4) Claude Akins, Frank Mrth, Paul Carr, Julie Gregg, Alex Rocco. Cannon turns down a client, and when she is killed in her house shortly after his visit, he is drawn into both her murder investigation and the reason she called him.

Murder By Proxy (3.5) Anne Francis, Linden Chiles, Marj Dusay. Cannon is hired by a woman who was slipped a mickey at a bar and then framed for murder.

Night Flight To Murder (3.6) John Vernon, David Hedison, Norman Alden, Barney Phillips. Cannon is hired by an insurance company to investigate the disappearance, while on final approach at a small Utah airstrip, of a twin-engine plane that was carrying $3 million of negotiable bonds.

M Squad - The Complete Series
The Golden Look (1.1) Henry Brandon, Morris Ankrum, Ken Lynch. The squad is on the lookout for a bank robbery suspect with a unique feature--witnesses said he has gold teeth.

The Watchdog (1.2) Peggy Webber, Gail Kobe, Harlan Warde, Olan Soule. Lt. Ballinger and the squad are out to catch a burglar, but there's another pressing reason for his quick capture--he may have rabies.

Neighborhood Killer (1.3) Grant Richards, Stafford Repp. The squad hunts down a cop killer.

Pete Loves Mary (1.4) Mike Connors, DeForest Kelley, Bobby Driscoll, Roberta Haynes. The squad goes after a jail inmate who's just escaped.

I have truly enjoyed my first foray into this show and will be viewing more this weekend. Biggest surprise was seeing Mannix and Dr. McCoy in the same episode. This show appeals to me as Ballinger seems tied to his emotions, not as dry and matter-of-fact as Joe Friday was. This was a blind buy and I am glad this show was spoken highly of by y'all.

Police Squad - The Complete Series Bluray
Can't do M Squad without viewing this one also. Such a great short run series.
A Substantial Gift (The Broken Promise) (1.1) Kathryn Leigh Scott. Frank investigates a murder case at a bank where a robber shot the clerk and then another staff member, Sally, shot the robber. The autopsy, however, shows differently.
Not much you can say about this that hasn't already been said. I just sat back and enjoyed the silliness all over again. Bluray looks very good.

Gunsmoke - Seasons 10-12
Jonah Hutchinson (10.9) Robert F. Simon, Richard Anderson, June Dayton, David Macklin. Hutchinson family patriarch returns to his homestead after many years in prison to find his land is smaller and he considers his son a weakling for allowing changes to take place. He wishes to return to the early pioneer days and sets about to retake his lost property, inciting a range war if necessary.

Big Man, Big Target (10.10) J. D. Cannon, Mariette Hartley, John McLiam, Mike Road. Ellie Merchant, the wife of farmer Joe Merchant, is having a passionate affair with outlaw Pike Beechum. Beechum intends to remove Joe and any other obstacle between him and Ellie. Very atypical performance from Mariette Hartley.

Chicken (10.11) Glenn Corbett, Gigi Perreau, John Lupton, L. Q. Jones. Mistakenly hailed as a hero who downed four robbers, a man rethinks his decision to let folks regard him as a gunfighter when protecting the woman he wants calls for a gunman's skill.

Innocence (10.12) Bethel Leslie, Michael Forest, Jason Evers, Claude Akins. Art and Bob both have an eye on a new girl in town. She works at the Long Branch but only has eyes for the most well liked man in town. On the eve of their marriage, it all comes to a head and the town is out for blood.

Good choice, I really enjoy Cannon. Just purchased a new AVR that seems to have pretty good video processing. I'll have to try an episode of Cannon to see if it improves the picture quality.

 

[Jack P]

Well it took me a LONG time but finally the ultimate Mariette Hartley marathon, spread out over a period of multiple weeks, is over. I saved the best genre for last, the sci-fi area and it was perhaps the most illuminating. "Twilight Zone" is not included since I watched that way way back at the start of this in the "early years" portion of the marathon. This is what I watched and its not grouped chronologically but more thematically.

Marooned (1969)
-This underrated big-screen film of three astronauts trapped in orbit unfairly got the MST3K treatment. It's flawed, but it is effective for the most part, headed by a great cast with Gregory Peck as the head of the space program and David Janssen (in his post-Fugitive phase of trying to launch a big-screen career that stalled out and saw him finally go back to TV in 1971) as the astronaut who decides to head a dangerous one-man rescue attempt of the crew (Richard Crenna, James Franciscus, Gene Hackman). Three terrific actresses, Lee Grant, Nancy Kovack and Mariette get the seeming thankless small parts as the astronaut wives who in their brief moments must be concerned etc. but all of them make the most of it. Mariette gets perhaps the best moment of the three when she tries to put up a brave front for her husband (Hackman) who is the one member of the crew that's flipped out the most and she finally flees the Mission Control room to avoid breaking down. While the film slows down too much at its climax, it's still a good effort for the time.

Earth II (1971)
-Thematically it makes sense to follow "Marooned" with this 1971 TV-movie and failed series pilot since this time Mariette gets to go into orbit herself! We are given the very shaky conceit that an American launched space station will be able to declare itself a sovereign nation and in effect do things entirely its own way as part of some never-clearly defined effort to bring the world together and open up new opportunities. The manner in which the American voters give their "approval" to this frankly comes across as incredibly arrogant and full of disregard for every basic Constitutional protocol I can think of, but I digress. The lofty pretensions of "Earth II" are undermined not by this but because Gary Lockwood, who is the head of all this, has the character name of, I kid you not "DAVID SAVILLE!" What were they thinking????

-Mariette plays wife to Tony Franciosa. They and their son have come to this station (it is now several years later and it is flourishing). Mariette is an idealistic believer in wanting to escape to the utopia Earth II is supposed to represent, whereas Franciosa is the hawkish skeptic who thinks the pacifistic goals of the station can never endure and wants to prove them wrong. The test comes in the form of a Red Chinese warhead operating in close proximity to the station. Franciosa prevails upon getting the population to agree to disabling the missile to eliminate the threat and we get a long drawn out scene of this taking place. But when the missile is rendered inoperable but not destroyed it sets up another conflict when the missile is brought back and Franciosa wants to argue for keeping it and making Earth II a nuclear power. This causes pacifist Mariette to flip out and decide to take matters into her own hands, which is the straw man for the "extreme Left" activism to her husband's "extreme Right" thinking and it must be up to Lockwood to then save the day. The amazing thing is that while there is a lot of tension with the Chinese about how they'd react to their missile being disabled, once action is taken this matter becomes completely forgotten! This pilot, rather than give us a good linear narrative instead sets up straw man type scenes and then makes the F/X set piece action way too drawn out to the point of tediousness. A total misfire that frankly never would have worked as as series.

Now we come to two sci-fi guest shots where Mariette gives fine performances in stories that reveal the weaknesses of the series they were part of.

Logan's Run-"Futurepast"
-"Logan's Run", like "Planet Of The Apes" were shows that suffered from the same fatal flaw that condemned both to runs of just a half-season. You can not give us "The Fugitive" in a sci-fi setting that consists of endless wandering in the CA desert and yet the pursuers from the starting point are always managing to keep pace as a threat, and your ultimate goal is never going to get close meaning each episode is basically a "time out" distraction. In this case, we find Logan and Jessica being subjected to a "dream analyzer" by Mariette to give us lengthy nightmare sequence set pieces while meanwhile, the revelation that Mariette is an android like Rem (Donald Moffat) gives him the chance to start thinking about human emotions such as love etc. It's a fine performance by Mariette (though I'm not a fan of her now chopped short hairstyle. Her 70s long hair was her best look) but the story that ends with pursuing Sandmen led by the hapless Francis being thwarted only serves to remind the viewer that if this series had continued they were going to have to shake up the dynamic at some point.

Incredible Hulk, S2-"Married"
-Mariette won an Emmy and deservedly so for her guest shot as a psychiatrist dying from a terminal disease that David (who has sought her out in Hawaii hoping to find ways to cure his condition) falls in love with and then marries in her final days. The two hope that perhaps the cells in the "creature's" blood (it's worth noting that the term "Hulk" was never used in the series. Always "the creature" which was in keeping with how much Kenneth Johnson wanted to de-emphasize the comic book origins of the character) might help cure Mariette's condition.

-But while the romance between the two is credible and touching (though David's frequent Charlie Chan imitations while fixing dinner would NEVER pass muster today), the story itself is very thin and ends up exposing big time what made the premise of the show very hard to take for me over a multi-year period. In my opinion the BIGGEST mistake the show made was never letting Jack McGee (Jack Colvin) figure out that Dr. Banner was alive and was the creature. This meant that for four years the writers had to resort to all kinds of gymnastics to keep the pursuer and pursued from ever seeing each other face-to-face except in contrived circumstances of amnesia, bandaged face etc. It's shocking to think that the moment the series is most remembered for, "Mr. McGee, don't make me angry....you wouldn't like me angry" which is shown every week is the ONLY time in the series the two characters really face each other. We never get the kind of great occasional moments that "The Fugitive" gave us between Kimble and Gerard because the format has forbidden it and after awhile it starts to make Jack McGee look like the DUMBEST "reporter" who ever walked the Earth. It means he lacks the imagination to ponder a basic question that should seem obvious and while its true that most of the people David helps won't be cooperative later, others would react to a picture of Dr. Banner and be able to identify him quickly. It would have been MUCH better for McGee to figure out the real truth but realize that unless he can get Banner in custody, he'll never be able to run the story. That way you could have had the occasional scene of actual face to face confrontation that we could have used in these episodes more.

-I mention this weakness in format centered on McGee (who only makes one quick appearance in this episode and is then gone) because when the episode gets to the point where David and Carolyn (Mariette) get married, a curious thing happens. We see a close-up of the marriage certificate and David has signed his own name to it. Hello??? How can he do this if legally he's supposed to be dead? I get that maybe he's done this so the marriage can be truly legal and real but come on, this is a point that should have come up in the dialogue because it totally undermines the premise the show has set up. Granted, McGee isn't around at this point so maybe he thinks he can get away with it, but considering that the epsiode is already stretching its length by giving us overly long montage/dream sequences, I think addressing this point was more in order.

-So as with Logan, while Mariette gets plaudits for her acting with me, the episode reveals why "The Incredible Hulk", unlike "The Fugitive" is not a show I can take in large dosages. I grant it helps that when I watch "The Fugitive" I take comfort in knowing Dr. Kimble is vindicated in the last episode. This show never came close to resolving its premise (and those post-series TV movies do not count with me).

Anyway.....on now to the last three, which I group together because they showcase Mariette at her best in terms of (1) acting and (2) allure.

Star Trek, S3-"All Our Yesterdays"
-What can be said that hasn't been said before about the signature performance of Mariette's career? As I've said, when I was an impressionable child, she became the first crush of my life when she removed that parka and revealed her cavegirl/jungle woman costume underneath. But Mariette's Zarabeth is more than just an incredibly beautiful woman you'd love to be stranded with. She brings a depth and nuance to the part that makes "All Our Yesterdays" a far more compelling tale of tragic romance than even "City On The Edge Of Forever" because in that story, Kirk's love of Edith Keeler had not reached the stage of being fully reciprocated. Trek had plenty of women who could look great in a costume but few could bring more than what Mariette does here. With her interesting formal way of speaking (more on that later), one can buy her as a medieval princess type sent into exile. And its fascinating to watch her subtly reveal the back story just through a simple smile and faint nod of the head, when Spock first asks, "You said you were sent her as a prisoner?" before she goes into the explanation. You might start by looking at Mariette because of how she looks, but you keep watching because it's a great performance without the cringe-inducing moments a lesser actress might demonstrate. IMO this is among the three best episodes of Trek, alongside "The Doomsday Machine" and "The Trouble WIth Tribbles" which show Trek in different realms (action and comedy). This wins first prize in the romance department.

-Just as a sidebar, I'd note that in the tangential connection to Mariette's past roles in this marathon, the "Mort" Kirk tries to unwisely save when he goes into the past is played by Anna Karen, who was Mrs. Chernak (mother of Lee Grant's character) on "Peyton Place" during the time when Mariette was finishing her run on that show. And has anyone noticed that when Spock is first thrown into the frozen ice age past and is freezing the cold makes him say the word "Through" with a British sounding accent?


Genesis II (1973)
-We've heard the apocryphal story that because Mariette's costume in Trek didn't show the navel (frankly they more than compensated on the sides!) that in this busted pilot set in a post-apocalyptic future, she was purposefully given two! I'm not sure I buy it, but Mariette as always looks incredibly good. And she gives another winning performance showing that with a more formalized way of speaking, it's easy to accept her in this kind of role and you never once think of any of her fine performances in contemporary parts. In this case she at her core is playing a role not dissimilar from the one in the "Mannix" episode where she is saying she's an ally and helps our lead "escape" but she is not what she seems. Only this time we see her playing a queen of a rival society who knows how to use her own strength and can command respect from those under her. Until sadly, under Gene Roddenberry's not so enlightened writing, she is made to bend to our virile hero's charm through flimsy deception that appeals to her emotional feeling (we saw Kirk do this ENDLESSLY with his conquests in Trek, and after seeing Mariette play a different kind of woman in Trek it's less satisfying to see her thrust into a part that's ultimately more in line with that of say, Kathie Browne in "Wink of An Eye")

-As for the premise of the film and it's would-be potential as a series, it has more promise than "Earth II" (easy to mix the two up!) but it suffers from some pretentious Roddenberry style writing reminiscent of his lesser S3 Trek scripts. Another problem is that it almost seems like the film was scripted for two hours and they had to cut things back because the entire climax of what Dylan Hunt has to do is all off-camera and has to be explained in dialogue when it called for dramatization! (and this also is needed to explain what happened to Mariette's character. There is an ambiguity that suggests her character would appear again in a series) And IMO Dylan is shown to be too submissive to this all-knowing "Pax" at the end. It would have been MUCH better for Dylan to point out that while he's happy to align himself with "Pax" he is still his own man and if he thinks differently, he'll do it and not submit to anyone. That would set up a believable bit of conflict for the series itself but Roddenberry clearly wants "Pax" to represent his own utopian, perfect vision of the future as he sees it, that it's as if this kind of nuance can't be permitted.

-I'll note that I did at one time see the attempted "follow-up" to this with John Saxon recast in Alex Cord's part "Planet Earth" and it is beyond dreadful. Not even a one star of ten effort. I wouldn't even include that again in a future Diana Muldaur marathon!

Conan-"Heir Apparent."
-Mariette appeared in this 1997 syndicated series that capitalized on the Xena/Hercules craze by giving us low-budget CGI in fantasy setting with modern sounding actors. It lasted just one year. But what I found amazing in seeing this alongside Trek is how Mariette was channeling Zarabeth to really rise above the lame material. Like Zarabeth, she plays a queen type who has spent years in exile inside a cave. This time the stakes are that an evil sorceror she left in charge of her kingdom is doing the bidding of evil Jeremy Kemp (series regular out to destroy Conan. All his scenes were always done in his castle conversing with a skeleton) and threatening her daughter, the heir. Conan (played by one Ralf Moeller who purposefully tries to sound like Ah-nold) gets her out of the cave to use her own power to save her daughter though it means she will age and die. (much like Zarabeth's problem of not being able to "go back" or else she will die!) Mariette gets her noble death scene as she passes on the reins of power to her daughter.

-That's the most I want to summarize but I'll again note that Mariette manages to again show how good an actress she is. When she speaks it's with that formal, medieval style of talking that makes her seem "at home" in the setting just as was the case in Trek, and I was struck immediately by how she had summoned the Zarabeth "sound" if you will. By contrast, the actress who plays her daughter (I can't recall her name) might look great in her more abbreviated costume, but she has a totally modern voice and delivery that sounds more at home on a California beach or a Baywatch movie. It's the biggest contrast between a talented actress and a nobody you could ask for and it shows again that the secret to Mariette's longevity and diversity that makes a marathon like this possible is her ability to be perfectly at home in ANY setting, fantasy or contemporary. Not many can make that statement.

And now after this long and exhausting marathon, I need a respite from future ones for a bit!

 

[JohnHopper]

Logan's Run-"Futurepast"
-"Logan's Run", like "Planet Of The Apes" were shows that suffered from the same fatal flaw that condemned both to runs of just a half-season. You can not give us "The Fugitive" in a sci-fi setting that consists of endless wandering in the CA desert and yet the pursuers from the starting point are always managing to keep pace as a threat, and your ultimate goal is never going to get close meaning each episode is basically a "time out" distraction. In this case, we find Logan and Jessica being subjected to a "dream analyzer" by Mariette to give us lengthy nightmare sequence set pieces while meanwhile, the revelation that Mariette is an android like Rem (Donald Moffat) gives him the chance to start thinking about human emotions such as love etc. It's a fine performance by Mariette (though I'm not a fan of her now chopped short hairstyle. Her 70s long hair was her best look) but the story that ends with pursuing Sandmen led by the hapless Francis being thwarted only serves to remind the viewer that if this series had continued they were going to have to shake up the dynamic at some point.

Laurence Rosenthal - Jessica Nightmare (1978)

 

[Flashgear]

it shows again that the secret to Mariette's longevity and diversity that makes a marathon like this possible is her ability to be perfectly at home in ANY setting, fantasy or contemporary. Not many can make that statement.

And now after this long and exhausting marathon, I need a respite from future ones for a bit!

Jack, fantastic marathon recounting (effort appreciated!) of some of the finest of Mariette Hartley's contributions to our classic TV (and movie) viewing...and of her effect on our once fevered and youthful imaginations, ha, ha...especially as Zarabeth in Trek's All Our Yesterdays...I have her memorable Gunsmoke season 8 episode, Cotter's Girl , in my upcoming viewing soon...

Hounds Of Hell (3.3) Episode would not play to conclusion, seems to have a huge defect on the disc. Only affects the final act of this episode and I had already figured out the mystery. Geoffrey Duel, Ford Rainey, Jim McMullan. Cannon is hired to investigate two fatal dog attacks on former Vietnam combat unit members, and to stop another attack.

Doug, sorry to hear that you had trouble playing through to the end of Season three's Hounds of Hell...after seeing your post (great reviews of many prime episodes, as usual), I revisited this episode in my Cannon complete series set (20 disc version), and it again played without problem to the end on one of my players, as well as my computer disc drive, where I took these captures...other than a quick disc cleaning or perhaps a scratch or blemish that can't be polished out, this disc is burdened with hosting 7 episodes, perhaps too much for some players to contend with...

Cannon - The Complete Series
He Who Digs A Grave (Part 1)(Part 2) (3.1) Apparently a two hour episode cut into two parts. Part 1 runs for 53-54 minutes and Part 2 runs for 46 minutes. Part 1 appears VHS quality while Part 2 is sharper but faded and has the Viacom logo on the end. Not sure is episode is complete, but seems to be. David Janssen, Barry Sullivan, Anne Baxter, Murray Hamilton, Tim O'Connor, R. G. Armstrong, Lee Purcell, Royal Dano, Dabbs Greer, Robert Hogan. Cannon investigates an alleged murder-suicide involving rich and powerful families in a small town.

It's too bad that the season three 2 part premiere episode, He Who Digs A Grave, doesn't look better... though it's completely watchable, it's such a landmark QM episode...first and foremost with David Janssen returning to a QM production for the first time since The Fugitive six years before!...scenic filming at small town Grass Valley California...and check out the "event programming" cast...Anne Baxter, Barry Sullivan, Murray Hamilton, Tim O'Conner, R. G. Armstrong, Royal Dano, Dabbs Greer, Virginia Gregg, Robert Hogan, Bill Quinn...a very young Cathy Lee Crosby...and drop-dead gorgeous Lee Purcell in one of her most memorable appearances...I was in high school when this first aired, and it had a thermonuclear impact on my hormones...I had to hose myself down with cold water in the back yard...Lee Purcell is also a very good actress as well, but that's beside the point, ha, ha...

M Squad - The Complete Series
The Golden Look (1.1) Henry Brandon, Morris Ankrum, Ken Lynch. The squad is on the lookout for a bank robbery suspect with a unique feature--witnesses said he has gold teeth.

The Watchdog (1.2) Peggy Webber, Gail Kobe, Harlan Warde, Olan Soule. Lt. Ballinger and the squad are out to catch a burglar, but there's another pressing reason for his quick capture--he may have rabies.

Neighborhood Killer (1.3) Grant Richards, Stafford Repp. The squad hunts down a cop killer.

Pete Loves Mary (1.4) Mike Connors, DeForest Kelley, Bobby Driscoll, Roberta Haynes. The squad goes after a jail inmate who's just escaped.

I have truly enjoyed my first foray into this show and will be viewing more this weekend. Biggest surprise was seeing Mannix and Dr. McCoy in the same episode. This show appeals to me as Ballinger seems tied to his emotions, not as dry and matter-of-fact as Joe Friday was. This was a blind buy and I am glad this show was spoken highly of by y'all.

Glad you got the TMG complete series of M Squad, such an essential '50s cop show...just as with Cannon, a very enjoyable series despite the less-than-desirable film and video sources...with M Squad there's just so many great action packed episodes, in concert with good ol' Frank Ballinger's darkly sarcastic commentary...for another essential '50s cop show, but this time with first rate transfers, I hope you can get Highway Patrol too...hopefully at least a few of it's 4 seasons are still affordable on DVD...great ZIV series, but aren't they all?

Police Squad - The Complete Series Bluray
Can't do M Squad without viewing this one also. Such a great short run series.
A Substantial Gift (The Broken Promise) (1.1) Kathryn Leigh Scott. Frank investigates a murder case at a bank where a robber shot the clerk and then another staff member, Sally, shot the robber. The autopsy, however, shows differently.
Not much you can say about this that hasn't already been said. I just sat back and enjoyed the silliness all over again. Bluray looks very good.

So ironic that what is deemed as a parody of M Squad is conversely available in a splendid Blu-ray treatment...I have the older DVD set (and the Naked Gun trilogy), but I'd want the new HD release...I might binge-watch it over a fresh box of doughnuts and some fine, fine, coffee...

 

[morasp]

It's very subjective but I sampled the Cannon episode He Who Digs a Grave and the PQ looked pretty good. Not HD quality but the images were sharp and the color seemed bright. This new AVR seems to have pretty good video processing and the other thing that seemed to help was using the 4K SecuoMax HDMI cables from the player to AVR and AVR to the TV. My Cannon set is the older one that had four episodes per disc.

The Yogi Bear Show Season 1 episode 1 Air Date JAN 30 1961,
Yogi loses his cave to the three little pigs but in the end he has the last laugh. Snagglepuss eludes the mighty hunter but in the end they come to an agreement. Yankee Doodle Duck meets his new friend and protector Chopper the dog.

Daniel Boone season 1 episode 10 Pompey Air Date DEC 10 1964
Daniel runs afoul of Carolina law when he helps Pompey, a runaway slave, remove his leg iron and refuses to turn him over to Calhoun, the bond servant in charge of him.

Road to Avonlea Season 2 episode 8 Sea Ghost Air Date JAN 20 1991,
After dark one evening, Sara, Felicity, Felix and Gus see a clipper off shore with no flag identifying its origin. They aren't sure if it's real or a figment of their imagination. Initially they believe it is a ghost ship that's come to take away reclusive Ezekiel Crane, a former sea captain who currently is the lighthouse operator. Ezekiel shows specific interest in Gus. Gus soon learns a secret that Ezekiel has been keeping, and the real reason why he has taken Gus into his confidence. Based on a later encounter, Sara and Felix then believe that the ship's purpose is for rum running. Rumors take Avonlea by storm when evidence is found that someone has been camping in the local cemetery, that evidence which includes a jug of rum and shackles. Most of the townsfolk believe the rum running story, and that Ezekiel and Gus are part of the smuggling ring. Sara tries to protect her new friend Gus from this witch-hunt, she who knows that even if there are rum runners that Gus is not

 

[Flashgear]

Great stuff, Randall! This looks like a typically lively Mannix episode. You remind me that I need to pick up at least seasons 3 and 4 of this show on DVD sooner rather than later...

Thanks Jeff. I appreciate your support as always! And your expertise in classic TV as well. As you know, Mannix is a strong series, with many great episodes in it's eight year run. You should be able to pick up seasons 3 and 4 for reasonable prices, or maybe the complete series box set at a bargain price. I'm glad to have all 8 seasons in the original single season releases. Part of the joy in watching this series is held in just how gorgeous the series looks like on DVD...

For me, season three's Who Killed Me? (Dec. 13, 1969) is another highlight...the battle of the blue-eyed beauties... Yvonne Craig (Batgirl of course, and here in sexy Bad Girl mode), and Susan Howard (later in Petrocelli of course)...supposedly both involved with Paul Richards, of whom his magnetic attraction to both of these lovelies being indecipherable to me...but hey, Joe Mannix gets to kiss both of these blue-eyed beauties!

Richards plays an aerospace executive who's company has a pressure-packed deadline to fulfill defense department contracts for some new high-tech guidance system...then his plane is sabotaged, causing him to crash into the sea of Cortez off Baja...presumed dead, he goes into hiding, hiring Joe to find out "Who killed me?"...Yvonne Craig, very much a calculating vamp and mercenary widow, is among the suspects...Susan Howard, also of interest, is Richard's none-too secret squeeze...but Richard's problematic business partners Anthony Eisely (of Hawaiian Eye and Special agent Chet on The FBI) and threatening lug-nut Hal Baylor are other suspects...Jack Bannon (son of Bea Benaderet and later of Lou Grant) plays the guy who, without knowing it, holds the essential missing clue in Joe cracking the case wide open...the production company got phenomenal access to California Air National Guard facilities, with many Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter tanker aircraft on display...my screen caps from the season three DVDs, no spoilers...

 

[Flashgear]

It's very subjective but I sampled the Cannon episode He Who Digs a Grave and the PQ looked pretty good. Not HD quality but the images were sharp and the color seemed bright. This new AVR seems to have pretty good video processing and the other thing that seemed to help was using the 4K SecuoMax HDMI cables from the player to AVR and AVR to the TV. My Cannon set is the older one that had four episodes per disc.

Steve, that's interesting. Could you tell us a little more about your new AVR? I have loads of bad PQ DVDs, both commercial releases and hoards of home made, so any intermediary signal processing that might boost resolution (or the illusion of improved PQ with noise reduction), and perhaps even out contrast values might be worth getting. I already have quality HDMI cables. My Cannon screen caps were taken from the newer, reduced 20 disc set. You know, it's funny, but those captures really overemphasize the drawbacks of those old transfers, as they strangely look better in active playback. So they might only be of limited value, I certainly wouldn't want to deter anyone from buying the VEI set, which I've greatly enjoyed, especially as I got it at a terrific bargain price. I have been able to compare the first two seasons on this VEI set to the original CBS releases of S1 and 2 that I also have. As you say, it's somewhat subjective, but I can't discern much of a difference in PQ, certainly nothing that would compel me to get the earlier (33 disc?) VEI set, even if it includes the reunion movie. I'm not a completest when it comes to reunion telefilms, as they're usually inferior to the series that spawned them. VEI generally does a good job, and I have their new set of The Smith Family shipping soon.

I also posted those stunning Mannix screen caps for the purpose of contrast. That's the way that Cannon (and Barnaby Jones S2-8) should look like too, had CBS not been deterred from doing new transfers via remastering seasons one and two from 35mm film vault elements. I suspect they used the old Viacom transfers because of the market uncertainty caused by the economic shocks of the 2008-9 recession and Paramount divestment. Same thing with the disappointing CBS releases of Bonanza season 2 (not bad anyway) and Rawhide season 4 (a woebegone disaster, just terrible, about equal to the prehistoric HGWT sources used for seasons 1-3). It's obvious that the budget for CBS Home Entertainment has varied dramatically from one year to the next. The number and quality of releases in any given year being a barometer of that.

Edit: Another thing that must have factored into the CBS TV on DVD follies over the years is the costs and necessary budgetary diversions of their own self-imposed hell as a result of the epic (and for us, traumatic) Fugitive music substitution disaster...totally unnecessary, and tremendously costly in finally producing the Most Wanted Edition complete series. But thank God (and some of our MVP HTF members), they did deliver that to us fans.

 

[morasp]

Steve, that's interesting. Could you tell us a little more about your new AVR? I have loads of bad PQ DVDs, both commercial releases and hoards of home made, so any intermediary signal processing that might boost resolution and perhaps even out contrast values might be worth getting. I already have quality HDMI cables. My Cannon screen caps were taken from the newer, reduced 20 disc set. You know, it's funny, but those captures really overemphasize the drawbacks of those old transfers, as they strangely look better in active playback. So they might only be of limited value, I certainly wouldn't want to deter anyone from buying the VEI set, which I've greatly enjoyed, especially as I got it at a terrific bargain price. I have been able to compare the first two seasons on this VEI set to the original CBS releases of S1 and 2 that I also have. As you say, it's somewhat subjective, but I can't discern much of a difference in PQ, certainly nothing that would compel me to get the earlier (33 disc?) VEI set, even if it includes the reunion movie. I'm not a completest when it comes to reunion telefilms, as they're usually inferior to the series that spawned them. VEI generally does a good job, and I have their new set of The Smith Family shipping soon.

I also posted those stunning Mannix screen caps for the purpose of contrast. That's the way that Cannon should look like too, had CBS not been deterred from doing new transfers via remastering seasons one and two from 35mm film vault elements. I suspect because of the market uncertainty caused by the economic shocks of the 2008-9 recession and Paramount divestment. Same thing with the disappointing CBS releases of Bonanza season 2 and Rawhide season 4. It's obvious that the budget for CBS Home Entertainment has varied dramatically from one year to the next. The number and quality of releases in any given year being a barometer of that.

The Receiver is the Marantz NR1509 and was $400 at Crutchfield. I haven't done any tweeking of the settings but left them all in their defaults. The only other component is the Samsung Blu ray player that at the time I purchased it was praised for it's upsampling ability. I've compared it to the Sony UBP-X800 player and on lower quality transfers prefer the Samsung. On better transfers I thought the Sony was a little better but haven't compared the two since I purchased the Marantz. I don't mean to sound like a PQ snob or make people feel bad that have the 20 disc sets but when VEI accidentally substituted a four disc season in the Cagney and Lacey complete series I noticed a pretty big difference. The images in the four disc season looked very processed and two dimensional compared to the older six disc season which looked more organic and three dimensional.

 

[Flashgear]

The Receiver is the Marantz NR1509 and was $400 at Crutchfield. I haven't done any tweeking of the settings but left them all in their defaults. The only other component is the Samsung Blu ray player that at the time I purchased it was praised for it's upsampling ability. I've compared it to the Sony UBP-X800 player and on lower quality transfers prefer the Samsung. On better transfers I thought the Sony was a little better but haven't compared the two since I purchased the Marantz.

Thanks for that info. I'm going to check out that Marantz receiver. I have 4 DVD/Blu-ray players, 2 Samsung and 2 older Sony. My Cannon DVDs are acceptable for viewing on my 55" LG LED HDTV, as are other substandard sets like M Squad, The Monroes, Branded, Guns of Will Sonnett, etc...I have loads of great and rare B+W TV shows on homemade DVDs too, that I don't often watch because of poor PQ. So I have a lot of incentive to try to maximize PQ. I sometimes use an old CRT analog Tube TV for the worst offenders, ha, ha...nostalgic...Truth be told, I'm probably spoiled by the many remastered DVDs and great Blu-rays in my collection...which makes reverting to the other stuff so jarring at times...

 

[Montytc]

Starsky & Hutch - Season 1
Ep.5 - The Fix
In this one, Hutch has perhaps the worst vacation in recorded history. In the course of two weeks he is beat up, abducted, turned into a junkie and looses the girl of his dreams. With the help of Starsky he at least gets the bad guy, played by Robert Loggia.


I Spy - Season 1
Ep. 5- Dragon's Teeth
A good episode that becomes very good with a twist towards the end that I'll admit I didn't see coming. The episode almost felt like it had a Wild Wild West vibe. Cosby still feels a little unsure as an actor but the two stars already share a good chemistry.

 

[morasp]

Thanks for that info. I'm going to check out that Marantz receiver. I have 4 DVD/Blu-ray players, 2 Samsung and 2 older Sony. My Cannon DVDs are acceptable for viewing on my 55" LG LED HDTV, as are other substandard sets like M Squad, The Monroes, Branded, Guns of Will Sonnett, etc...I have loads of great and rare B+W TV shows on homemade DVDs too, that I don't often watch because of poor PQ. So I have a lot of incentive to try to maximize PQ. I sometimes use an old CRT analog Tube TV for the worst offenders, ha, ha...nostalgic...Truth be told, I'm probably spoiled by the many remastered DVDs and great Blu-rays in my collection...which makes reverting to the other stuff so jarring at times...

It may be discontinued but if it is the last time I looked there was a seven channel model in that line that was a little bit more. Crutchfield has a very generous 60 day return policy, just make sure to be careful with the packing box and the receiver.

 

[MatthewA]

The Internet helped me find a few short-lived shows:

Brothers and Sisters: "High Time" (1/26/1979): The second of three shows to capitalize on the success of Animal House, this one was on NBC and produced by Paramount. Here, Crandall University president Larry Crandall (William Windom, Murder She Wrote) is aghast to find his daughter Charlene (Ilene Graff, then part of another Fred Silverman-era NBC flop, Supertrain, before becoming the mother on the more successful Mr. Belvedere) passed out in the fraternity after curfew. When she comes to and he tries to forbid her to go out anymore, she refuses to let him treat her like a child.

Even if network TV of the 1970s could take the R-rated movies M*A*S*H, Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, and Cooley High and turn them into hit TV shows despite (or maybe because of in some circles?) being systematically stripped of four-letter words, National Lampoon's Animal House managed to defy television adaptation. It's easy to see why none of the network's attempts to capitalize on its massive success managed to do so: network TV of 1979 could not do justice to that movie's anarchic ribaldry. The "seven dirty words" rule was still in full effect. Studios were not yet interested in making original shows for cable, where they would get more leeway with sex, violence, and language, though they were already selling movies to it; euphemisms were not going to cut it for an audience old enough to see R- and X-rated movies and stay up late, an audience that in 1979 was likely not staying home and watching TV on a Friday night. Even more importantly, none of them had John Belushi as he was still on Saturday Night Live. As a result, this theoretical audience never materialized; their younger brothers and sisters didn't stick around after Diff'rent Strokes, nor did it put a sizable dent in Wonder Woman's viewership over on CBS nor that of What's Happening!! on ABC (which, ironically, moved to Saturday night to replace Delta House, the actually authorized TV version of Animal House, when it also proved a flop). What the networks wanted to do would be like trying to turn Pink Flamingos into an hour-long family drama and putting it on after The Waltons. Likewise, the older-skewering Rockford Files audience didn't tune in early to catch it. Unlike the actual movie, this show is not a period piece and is set in the present day despite the use of "Roll Over Beethoven" as the theme song. Even when brought into the present, the few laughs are merely mild chuckles. William Windom hams it up as the straight-laced adversary of the more laid-back fraternity members (Chris Lemmon, Jon Cutler, Larry Brooks), but his bark is worse than his bite, and he never really feels like much of a threat. Mary Crosby was also in the show before she went on to play Kristin Shepard on Dallas; she was put to better use there. None of the frat guys left much of an impression. Almost all the writers and producers worked on better shows before and after this one.

Ironically, the show this replaced, Who's Watching the Kids, had Jim Belushi as a cast member.

One of the Boys: "Double Trouble" (2/6/1982): In this short-lived NBC sitcom, the last show to come from Bud Yorkin's TOY partnership with former Sanford and Son producers Saul Turteltaub and Bernie Orenstein — with Columbia actually co-producing it this time and not just syndicating it — Mickey Rooney plays Oliver Nugent, a senior citizen who breaks out of a nursing home with a friend named Bernard Solomon (Scatman Crothers) and moves in with his college-aged grandson Adam Shields (Dana Carvey) and his roommate Jonathan Burns (Nathan Lane). In this episode, the landlady, Mrs. Green (Francine Beers) warns the men about a rash of burglaries in the neighborhood, and Oliver gets taken into police custody when he can't account for a large sum of money he claims to have won at the track and when he matches the description of the suspect. Despite appearing on TV Guide's list of the 50 Worst Shows of All-Time, a list that also inexplicably includes Hogan's Heroes, I enjoyed the show much more than I thought I would. It felt like a male prototype for The Golden Girls, where Rooney was a guest star in an episode with a plot that also involved allegedly stolen money. On the list of the 50 biggest declines in the quality of a magazine, TV Guide would be in my top 10. Making it bigger in size did not make it better in content.

Unlike most sitcoms of the era, this one was shot in New York and occasionally used exterior footage to prove it, as minicam technology made it possible to shoot outside on tape by the end of the 1970s.

Episode director Lee Bernhardi also directed several episodes of What's Happening!! but was not part of What's Happening Now!! because he took over as the regular director of Webster, another show that went from ABC to first-run syndication.

Coincidentally, after the TOY partnership dissolved, Turteltaub and Orenstein went back to Embassy while Norman Lear still owned it to co-produce the short-lived sitcom Double Trouble on NBC.

The Cavanaughs: "Gimme Shelter" (10/3/1988): Produced by Paramount, this CBS sitcom had a checkered production and scheduling history despite a run that spanned three calendar years, 1986-1989, but produced only two actual seasons' worth of shows. It was about an elderly Irish-American man (Barnard Hughes) living with his daughter kit (Christine Ebersole, who had also been on Valerie around the same time and used the time between seasons to shoot Mac and Me), son Chuck (Peter Michael Jacobs), and grandchildren Chuck Jr. (John Short), Mary Margaret (Mary Tanner Bailey), and John (Parker Jacobs), and Kevin (Danny Cooksey, formerly of Diff'rent Strokes, later of Tiny Toon Adventures) in South Boston. In this episode, Chuck Jr. thinks about giving up the priesthood after he falls in love with a homeless Latina woman (Kenia) who has a baby. The elder Mr. Cavanaugh will disown him if he goes through with it. Not a great show, but the casting is good. Ebersole's role as an ex-showgirl is a contrast to her accomplished stage career in real life; for the most part, Hollywood just didn't seem to know what to do with her. CBS canceled it in March 1987 after playing switch with it and Designing Women only to bring it back in the summer of 1988 in the midst of a writer's strike that pushed back the start of the fall season's new shows. This was the last episode before the show's third and final chance in the summer of 1989. It's hard for any show to find an audience under those circumstances. I almost feel like CBS subconsciously wanted this show to fail, yet not enough to bury it after its first cancellation like countless others worse than this.

Despite the airdate, the Blue Mountain Paramount Television logo was still in use.

Barnard Hughes was the originally intended lead for Sanford and Son before Redd Foxx replaced him. Coincidentally, series producer Robert Moloney produced Foxx's last sitcom, The Royal Family, also at Paramount, in 1991.

LA Law: “Badfellas” (11/21/1991): Frank does battle with new D.A. Ruby Thomas (Lynne Thigpen, Gimme A Break!, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?) and assistant DA Margaret Flanagan over a mobster (James Luisi) accused of murdering his archrival. Guilty or innocent, Leland isn’t sure he wants them associated with the firm. Stuart mediates a case of sexual discrimination in a basketball team. Roxanne confides in Douglas about her doubts about her relationship with Arnie.

LA Law: “Lose the B*ss” (11/28/1991): When Arnie gets upset at Gwen for her performance at work, she confides in Roxanne about her feelings. Roxanne tells her the firm has given her a pay raise. Susan represents the defense in the case of an obese man (Peter Boyden) suing a health food store owner (Larry Hankin) over a diet shake that didn’t work and, in his claim, led to weight gain that destroyed his life and his marriage. Grace takes the case of Douglas’s ex-sister-in-law Veronica (Anne de Salvo) trying to get a better education for her son Ricky (Joseph Gordon-Levitt, 10 Things I Hate About You) than a public school can provide when he has autism, cerebral palsy, and a severe auditory processing disorder. Gwen argues the law with Frank. Arnie goes live on the news, and he is asked to give advice about a situation the caller described that’s a little too close for comfort.

From the "We Just Keep Running Into Each Other" Department: Larry Hankin played the dog catcher in the 1982 film of the musical Annie. Another cast member of that movie, Lois de Banzie (Eleanor Roosevelt), also appeared in Naked Gun 33 1/3, as did Earl Boen, who returns as Judge Swanson here. She was never on this show, but she was on Hill Street Blues the same year she was on Punky Brewster, where Boen appeared as a banker twice.

From the “Love and Marriage” Department: Sharyn Leavitt (Jury Foreperson) was the wife of Ron Leavitt, co-creator of It’s Your Move and Married with Children who also wrote for The Jeffersons and Silver Spoons. She died in 2005.

From the "Back in the Day" Department: Autism factors into this episode’s plot. One of Conchata Ferrell’s earliest roles was on one of Norman Lear’s flops: Hot L Baltimore, an adaptation of the play by Lanford Wilson that ran for 13 weeks on ABC in 1975. The show also co-starred Charlotte Rae as a woman with a schizophrenic son. That hit close to home for her since her real-life son Andy was severely autistic.

LA Law: “The Nut Before Christmas” (12/19/1991): Arnie’s client is a woman suing her ex-husband for custody of their kids … and her ex-girlfriend just happens to be C.J.! Eventually, she has to take the stand. No one wants to do much with the Christmas party this year except Benny when he gets a little extra money in his bonus check. Douglas and Roxanne learn that Rosalind’s Christmas card service hadn’t been canceled yet, so they have to stop Leland from getting one. The firm has to fire Billy, while an incompetent temp named Betty causes problems at the office. Jonathan and Zoey argue over travel plans. Stuart misses Matthew’s 2nd birthday party, and thus misses Ann getting a Christmas present from Ned, their male nanny.

Music: “Joy to the World,” “Our Love is Here to Stay,” “In the Mood” “I Can See Clearly Now”

LA Law: “Guess Who’s Coming To Murder?” (1/9/1992): Accused murderer John Harvey (Timothy Carhart) maintains his innocence, but Tommy gives him a grim outlook on his chances of acquittal, and the firm’s other members want nothing to do with the case for fear of his effect on their image; Zoey is prosecuting the case along with Ruby. Grace is now a full partner in the firm again. Eccentric film producer Giles Keenan (Kevin Spacey, A Bug’s Life) has an offer for managing investments in a start-up film production company that stands to bring a multi-million dollar windfall to the firm … if they can manage to accommodate all his personality quirks. Susan finds videotape of security camera footage of Leland and Grace and makes it into an affair to remember. Leland warns Susan not to cross that line again. Tensions between Tommy and Jonathan reach a boiling point when Jonathan calls him out on making remarks about Zoey’s personal life in court. A not guilty verdict proves deadly.

Music: “Beir Mist du Schon,” “Oklahoma!” “Also Sprach Zarathustra,” “Blueberry Hill,” “Dulcinea”

LA Law: “Back to the Suture” (1/16/1992): Benny has been taking care of a homeless 12-year-old boy named Sam Perry (James Larson), but since he can’t prove legal guardianship, this could be considered kidnapping in the eyes of the law, so the cops bring in social services to take him away, even after Arnie and Roxanne try to mediate the situation. Susan has a potential break for Arnie’s TV career as a legal expert on The Sun-Up Show, but it requires him to commute to New York. Roxanne is concerned about the effect this will have on their relationship now that they’ve moved in together. Veronica goes out to dinner with Douglas to show her gratitude for his financial assistance with Ricky’s education. When dinner and drinks turn to romance, Sheila finds out about it. Ann represents a woman (Maggie Baird) who became paralyzed because of an operation.

LA Law: “All About Sleaze” (1/30/1992): C.J. turns down a settlement for her client from the government for gross negligence that resulted in a woman being murdered. Her husband (Bryan Cranston, Loving, Breaking Bad) takes the stand. Arnie begins his new TV position, but it’s not quite what he expects. Eventually, he learns that the whole humiliating spectacle was just the result of him being a pawn in Susan’s showbiz war games. Tommy feels guilty about the act that saved Zoey’s life. Jonathan questions whether he can be in a relationship with her after he finds the two of them in bed together.

From The "To Be Or Not To Be" Department: Watch for a brief glimpse of the previous year’s promo ID, “NBC, The Place to Be,” which they didn’t use first. WRAL-TV 5 in Raleigh, N.C., an NBC station now but a CBS station during this show’s run, was also not the first to use that slogan though they used it three years earlier. Even before that, ABC said “This is the Place to Be” all the way back in the 1970s.

*Is that the best they could do for a title? Why not "The Weight of Evidence"?

 

[bmasters9]

One of the Boys: "Double Trouble" (2/6/1982): In this short-lived NBC sitcom, the last show to come from Bud Yorkin's TOY partnership with former Sanford and Son producers Saul Turteltaub and Bernie Orenstein — with Columbia actually co-producing it this time and not just syndicating it —

What made CPT become an actual co-production company here (IIRC, this was one of the last to use the Sunburst/Abstract Torch of that studio), unlike before w/What's Happening!!, Carter Country, et al.?

 

[MatthewA]

They made a deal to produce the show that I assume was separate from the deal for the ABC shows. For some reason, it required Turteltaub/Orenstein/Yorkin to re-form the partnership and call it "TOY II". The other show to come from the TOY II/Columbia contract was One in a Million, which also was on ABC. I have a theory that even before the Coca-Cola merger, Columbia wanted a deal with Bud Yorkin because they wanted to use him to get control of Norman Lear's operation, which they ultimately did. Lear's company already had a syndication division by the end of the 1970s so they no longer had to make deals with Viacom or Filmways.* That's also why Coke/Columbia was willing to part with the home video and theatrical divisions of Embassy outside of TV distribution rights to movies made by Embassy Pictures both pre- and post-1982. As for why I think they wanted it so much: All in the Family beat Bewitched soundly in the 1971-1972 Nielsens, Maude trounced Temperature's Rising the following year, and after those and The Partridge Family ended and they dropped the "Screen Gems" name, they had trouble launching hit sitcoms in-house. Dramas were another matter. But they were making a lot of deals with independent producers.

By this time, I think they made a similar deal with Aaron Spelling for T.J. Hooker. That was an actual CPT production while the other Spelling shows they syndicated (Charlie's Angels, Family) were not. Spelling made deals for other distributors for other shows, as did Witt/Thomas/Harris for everything outside of Soap and Benson.

This was at the end, just for reference:



*Much like how Walt Disney's product bounced from distributor to distributor until he formed Buena Vista.

 

[bmasters9]

for another essential '50s cop show, but this time with first rate transfers, I hope you can get Highway Patrol too...hopefully at least a few of it's 4 seasons are still affordable on DVD...great ZIV series, but aren't they all?

Just checked Amazon, and the third and fourth-and-final gos of Highway Patrol are admirably priced ($9 for the third one, $18 for the fourth and final one); unfortunately, the first go is $59, and the second one is broken up in unavailable volumes.

 

[morasp]

Just checked Amazon, and the third and fourth-and-final gos of Highway Patrol are admirably priced ($9 for the third one, $18 for the fourth and final one); unfortunately, the first go is $59, and the second one is broken up in unavailable volumes.

I have 2-4 and always wanted 1 but the price was too steep. Watched season 1 on MeTV and the stories seem a little better than the later seasons.