What did you watch this week in classic TV on DVD(or Blu)? (2 Viewers)

[Ron1973]

Every time a picture of Sheb is posted, I can't help but think of his alter-ego, Ben Colder!

"I said permit me to introduce myself. Ben Colder here."

"She said it ain't been no colder here than it has anyplace else!"

 

[Cardinals73]

I recently watched the TV mini-series of THE SHINING (Steven Weber is fantastic), and last night I watched part one of THE STAND. I'd seen them before, but it's been several years.

 

[Jack P]

I haven't had a chance to do any new marathons but the other day, as an extension of the Madlyn Rhue marathon I did a month back (which also as a byproduct included revisiting Star Trek II, a movie which while she doesn't appear, is a movie that succeeds as drama in part because of the shadow cast by her now deceased character from "Space Seed") I watched the final episode of "The Virginian" in its "Men From Shiloh" incarnation, "Jump Up" in which she appears.

I had never seen an episode of the "Men From Shiloh" format before, and as a result it was very jarring to see the show open without that epic Percy Faith theme and instead see this attempt to ape the spaghetti westerns of the day (and in truth I've never been a fan of that genre). Even more strange is to see Lee Majors, brought on as part of the retooling along with Stewart Granger, here in between "Big Valley" and "Six Million Dollar Man". I can see why he was brought in, but the problem is that notwithstanding the bad moustache they put on him (as well as Doug McClure who doesn't appear in this), his character really comes off as Heath Barkley with a new name and isn't very distinctive in his own right.

The real problem though is something I noticed that a friend has told me about when sampling other episodes of this season. The writers were clearly having trouble coming up with a compelling storyline to run in a 90 minute format so as a result we get a lot of scenes that just come off as tacked on like a shaggy dog story to justify the running time. I won't get into all the details, but at the 50 minute mark, Majors confronts John Astin, who is the real killer of someone Majors has been framed for. Astin's father, John McGiver, the man responsible for the railroading and cover-up is going to be in pursuit of Majors so we have Majors dragging Astin along across a big mountain to elude him. Then all of a sudden out of nowhere at the 55 minute mark (of a 70 minute show) we get them running into a pregnant Indian woman out of the blue so Majors can take her to a house (and only at this point does one of the other top-billed guest stars, Jan Sterling finally show up_ s so we can hear two cliched people kill three minutes more off the clock with your typical cliched anti-Indian dialogue. The fact that this new out of left-field development has no connection to the main story other than a "how do we take time off the clock" development is the ultimate comment on what happens when you've got a not very good script. This sort of thing certainly happened in the show's prime, but here in the last episode aired of a show that had run an incredible nine years, it really shows how much it was out of gas by this point.

 

[JohnHopper]

RAWHIDE SEASON 3

¶ Episode #22
“Incident in the Middle of Nowhere”
written by Louis Vittes
story by Howard Rigsby and Louis Vittes
directed by R.G. Springsteen
music composed and conducted by Jerry Goldsmith
guests: Cecil Kellaway, Fay Spain, Elisha Cook Jr, George Keymas, James Griffith, Charles Fredericks, X Brands, Olan Soulé, Ralph Smiley

It’s a weird Favor/Yates tandem episode in which they pay a guide at the town of Endicott to show them a pass through Dead Mountains to get some water for their beeves because Indians keep a close eyes on any intruders while a strange old man—former scholar/engineer—uses them to own the gold of the mountains. But the episode appears to be a gold rush/gold treasure hunt led by two crooks and a woman cheat that they call MacKay’s gold and not McKenna’s Gold (1969). Act 1 starts with an unusual scene at night: Favor and Yates stop their horses when they hear some chamber music in the middle of nowhere and they decide to follow the sound and discover a company of ballet dancers performing for an old eccentric gold owner named MacKay. Act 5 ends up with a number of French Can Can that Rowdy Yates enjoys very much especially when a Can Can dancer rushes towards him to show him the back of her panties. Guest actor Cecil Kellaway used to play the undertaker in the season 1 episode of The Twilight Zone entitled “Elegy”.

The sherry on top of the cake is that composer Jerry Goldsmith’s 1961 Rawhide score foreshadows the rhythmic leaning of the 1964 film score Rio Conchos.


Yates and Favor are amazed to discover some beautiful creatures dressed in white.

Favor and Yates are enjoying the performances of the sweet ballerinas.

Rowdy Yates is enjoying a number of French Can Can while sipping a glass of wine.

 

[Jeff Flugel]

Back in Osaka now, but during the last week of my visit Stateside, my dad requested we keep the Have Gun - Will Travel and My Three Sons viewing schedule going during our usual hour of TV watching before he heads off to bed. The other shows listed were mostly watched since my return. Have another 10 days or so of vacation left, so plan on a lot more classic TV watching...got a lot of new TV on DVD sets to dig into.

Have Gun - Will Travel
2.11 "A Snare for Murder" (with Harry Morgan)
2.12 "The Battle of Oscar Wilde"
2.13 "The Solid Gold Patrol"
2.14 "Something to Live For"

My Three Sons
1. 24 "The Lostling"
1.27 "Soap Box Derby"
1.35 "Sunday Drive"
1.36 "Fire Watch"
Regardless of the music substitutions, I am continuing to really enjoy this first season. A lot of these season one episodes seem quite unusual for a 60s sitcom. In fact, "Soap Box Derby" plays more like a drama, and ends on a rather surprising note. "Fire Watch" inspired some good conversation between me and my dad, as he (as well as my uncle and grandfather) spent time on summer fire lookouts in the Pacific Northwest. The funniest episode of these four was definitely "Sunday Drive," as Robert P. Lieb takes center stage as the Douglas' put-upon neighbor, who just wants to go for a quiet drive in the country, and never even gets out of the driveway.

The Magician - "Pilot"
Have only seen snippets of this show before, and so watched the pilot movie. Very slick and entertaining stuff. Bill Bixby is surprisingly suave and cool in this, and I love the set-up and back story for his character. I thought the video quality was quite nice on the VEI set, and am looking forward to watching more episodes of the series proper.

Petrocelli - Pilot - "Night Games"
The same can be said for this show, a nice 70s update on the Perry Mason crusading defense attorney scenario. I was immediately charmed by the central trio of Tony Petrocelli (Barry Newman), his super cute, supportive wife (Susan Howard) and ex-cop investigator (Albert Salmi). The story was good and I was esp. impressed by the supporting cast, which included Ralph Meeker, Jon Cypher, Henry Darrow and Luke Askew, not too mention a bevy of 70s beauties in the form of Stephanie Powers, Anjanette Comer and Isis herself, the drop dead gorgeous JoAnna Cameron (playing a real nasty piece of work here). An added bonus is the Tucson, Arizona setting; I get tired of shows always being set in N.Y.C., L.A. or Chicago. This makes for a welcome change in scenery. Will be watching more of these soon. And thanks again to Ben Masters (of this parish) for tipping me off to a nice sale price on this set.

Barnaby Jones - 1.5 "Perchance to Kill"
Not as strong as the first 2 episodes I watched, but still fun to watch Barnaby sidle his way past a criminal's defenses. The Rat Patrol's Eric Braedon makes for a fine, arrogant villain in the Columbo mold, but his murder is done spur of the moment and so is pretty sloppy - no real challenge for sneaky old raccoon Barnaby. Buddy Ebson almost cracks a smile this episode, but it looks more like he's suffering from indigestion. A young Richard Hatch also appears as a surly hippie.

Mannix - 2.2 "Comes Up Rose"
This was my first time viewing a Mannix episode past season 1. Basically, nothing's changed. Sure, Mannix is no longer working for Intertect (so no more Joseph Campanella, alas) and he's gained a secretary in the form of sweet Gail Fisher as Peggy, but everything else is present and accounted for: Joe tooling around town his his cool convertible, talking to miscellaneous hot women (including Sheree North and Barbara Rhoades), helping out an old friend (for free, of course), there are plenty of fisticuffs (including yet another near-coma for Joe) and gunfights. All in a day's work for Mannix.

The Mod Squad - 1.17 "Fear is a Bucking Horse"
Couldn't resist seeing the hip young stars hanging around a rodeo, investigating who might want to kill a selfish TV cowboy star (well played by Monte Markham). Seeing Clarence Williams III dressed up as a rodeo clown is something else. Peggy Lipton (despite a slight skin blemish on her left cheek when this was filmed) is as stunning as ever, and I'm warming to Michael Cole's slightly-mannered intensity. Ed Begley and familiar TV face Ross Elliott co-star.

The above stills courtesy of the Moon in the Gutter blog.

 

[bmasters9]

Down to the home stretch of The Streets of San Francisco-- just four episodes to go!

 

[JohnHopper]

RAWHIDE SEASON 3

¶ Episode #23
“Incident of the Phantom Bugler”
written by Louis Vittes
story by Buckley Angell and Louis Vittes
directed by George B. Templeton
guests: Jock Mahoney, Vaughn Taylor, Kathie Browne, Hardie Albright

It’s an engrossing entry about two failures (a former officer and farmer married to the daughter of an old crooked judge acting as a gangster) willing to build a city in the middle of nowhere and blackmail anyone crossing the river that becomes increasingly vibrant. Some scenes shine: the night bugler who stirs up a stampede, the final bloody fistfight between Favor and former Captain Donahoe and whose stake is an exchange of prisoners—the wife against the confiscated herd. The wife of Darren McGavin, actress Kathie Browne, makes a good performance as the runaway wife of Captain Donahoe, fooled by her father, megalomaniac Judge Brady. The photography of John M. Nickolaus Jr is particularly inspired and naturalistic. Actor Clint Eastwood has the beginning of a beard that foreshadows his “man with no name” style from the Sergio Leone films. The music editor tracks cues from a Twilight Zone score entitled “And When The Sky Was Opened” by Leonard Rosenman.


Reflection on Gil Favor, trail boss.

Ramrod Rowdy Yates has a proto-“Man with No Name/Joe Kidd” look (Part 1).

Ramrod Rowdy Yates has a proto-“Man with No Name/Joe Kidd” look (Part 2).

Ramrod Rowdy Yates has a proto-“Man with No Name/Joe Kidd” look (Part 3).

The sign-off of trail boss Gil Favor.

 

[bmasters9]

Petrocelli - Pilot - "Night Games"
The same can be said for this show, a nice 70s update on the Perry Mason crusading defense attorney scenario. I was immediately charmed by the central trio of Tony Petrocelli (Barry Newman), his super cute, supportive wife (Susan Howard) and ex-cop investigator (Albert Salmi). The story was good and I was esp. impressed by the supporting cast, which included Ralph Meeker, Jon Cypher, Henry Darrow and Luke Askew, not too mention a bevy of 70s beauties in the form of Stephanie Powers, Anjanette Comer and Isis herself, the drop dead gorgeous JoAnna Cameron (playing a real nasty piece of work here). An added bonus is the Tucson, Arizona setting; I get tired of shows always being set in N.Y.C., L.A. or Chicago. This makes for a welcome change in scenery. Will be watching more of these soon. And thanks again to Ben Masters (of this parish) for tipping me off to a nice sale price on this set.

Not a problem-- glad I could get you into something else that I'm sure you'll enjoy!

 

[bmasters9]

Bumping this up:

I am now...

on...

And let me tell you, it's been great, and Karl Malden and Michael Douglas (and Richard Hatch, through the one and only season's worth he had [the fifth and final one, 1976-77] before the series was cancelled) have made the CBS DVD release of this 1972-77 ABC police/detective series more than worth every penny I paid for it!

And, to boot, I also have James Rosin's 2011 book on that series, and it is as much worth having as the DVDs!

 

[Jeff Flugel]

Bumping this up:

I am now...

View attachment 49043

on...

View attachment 49044

And let me tell you, it's been great, and Karl Malden and Michael Douglas (and Richard Hatch, through the one and only season's worth he had [the fifth and final one, 1976-77] before the series was cancelled) have made the CBS DVD release of this 1972-77 ABC police/detective series more than worth every penny I paid for it!

And, to boot, I also have James Rosin's 2011 book on that series, and it is as much worth having as the DVDs!

View attachment 49045

I admire your dedication on working straight through 5 seasons of a single show, Ben. Looks like you have the all-in-one Streets set that I saw on sale at Walmart. Was tempted, but I already have the first 2 seasons, which is maybe enough for me for this show. Though it's good to hear that the final Richard Hatch season still holds up in quality.

So, what's next in your "to be watched" queue?

 

[bmasters9]

I admire your dedication on working straight through 5 seasons of a single show, Ben. Looks like you have the all-in-one Streets set that I saw on sale at Walmart. Was tempted, but I already have the first 2 seasons, which is maybe enough for me for this show. Though it's good to hear that the final Richard Hatch season still holds up in quality.

So, what's next in your "to be watched" queue?

I may try to do The Untouchables now-- I'd like to get more into that 1959-63 ABC period detective series.

And BTW, it wasn't exactly straight through-- I had picked up where I left off in the middle of the first go, and had seen some later episodes out of order, but nonetheless, Karl Malden, above all, made an excellent tour guide, in a manner of speaking, and very well defined why the series was called The Streets of San Francisco.

 

[Doug Wallen]

Mission:Impossible - Season 2
Slave Part 1 (2.5) Joe Ruskin, Percy Rodrigues, Warren Stevens, Steve Franken, Antoinette Bower. Moslem country with all white actors as well as fake bats???
Slave Part 2 (2.6) More tension as the plot picks up, still disorienting to see actors in heavy makeup trying to look arabic.
Operation "Heart" (2.7) Pernell Roberts, Michael Strong, Michael Fox. Standard guest star agent as a medical specialist to aid our team.
The Money Machine (2.8) Brock Peters, Davis Roberts. Using a computer to print phony money. Far fetched at the time. Interesting to see Barney be the "printer"!

Gunsmoke - Season 3
The Joke's On Us (3.27) Virginia Gregg, Bartlett Robinson. Innocent man hanged for stealing horses. Revenge story with a twist ending back then. Understandable ending if just a bit depressing. Times were tough seems to be the underlying theme on the episodes I viewed on this disc.
Bottleman (3.28) Ross Martin, John Dehner, Peggy McKay, Barney Phillips. Town drunk sobers up to exact revenge on a showy visitor to Dodge.
Laughing Gas (3.29) Dean Harens, June Dayton. Sideshow presenter harbors a dark secret. Matt takes the blame for a death out of compassion.
Texas Cowboy (3.30) Allan Lane, Ned Glass. Texas cowboys don't like Kansas justice and set about causing issues in Dodge.
Amy's Good Deed (3.31) Jeanette Nolan, Lou Krugman. Hateful woman wisihng to be killed by Matt has a change of heart and warns Matt of a potential threat.
Hamging Man (3.32) Louis van Rooten, Zena Provendie, Helen Kleeb, Robert Osterloh. Hanging or murder, that is the question???
Lou and Linda (3.33) Ed Kemmer, Myrna Fahey, Aaron Saxon. Whirlwind courtship and stolen stage money bring strangers to Dodge. Matt has to untangle why?

As I said, this is a pretty grim set of episodes with the exception of "Amy's Good Deed". Plenty of death involved in these stories, some caused by Matt and others just a consequence of time and place.

Looking forward to adding a new series into my rotation, High Chapparal Season 1 is coming to me soon from Amazon. Can't wait to rewatch this series. Have caught some episodes on Me-TV and I am really looking forward to seeing these. Haven't seen most of these since their original run.

 

[Jeff Flugel]

Looking forward to adding a new series into my rotation, High Chapparal Season 1 is coming to me soon from Amazon. Can't wait to rewatch this series. Have caught some episodes on Me-TV and I am really looking forward to seeing these. Haven't seen most of these since their original run.

Figures, the first season High Chapparal set comes out just a few days after I leave the U.S.
Oh, well...will look forward to getting this soon. Thanks for the reminder, Doug. Had no idea this set was coming quite so soon.

 

[JohnHopper]

RAWHIDE SEASON 3

¶ Episode #25 (S3)
“Incident of the Running Man”
written by David Lang
directed by Justus Addiss
guests: Lloyd Corrigan, Donald Barry, Robert Wilke, Luana Anders, Walter Coy, Pete Mamakos, Pete Adams, Russ Conway, James Anderson, Lew Brown, Robert Donner

It’s a thrilling solo Yates episode that plays like a fugitive on the run adventure combined with a conspiracy plot. In other words, by accident, Yates has the whole world against him. Actor Clint Eastwood displays his typical western persona as the injured Cassandra undergoing the prejudices and the hard disbelief of the people. Yates must prevent a military coup at Camp Henley led by a putschist Lieutenant but Yates ends up with a wanted poster against him and three devious plotters at his tail: two gunslingers and a cunning undertaker who insists to give him the lethal shave. The cast of characters is impressive—from the wounded and threatening deputy sheriff (actor Robert Donner) to the bored housewife (actress Luana Anders) who supports Yates—and the Film Noir photography of John M. Nickolaus Jr intensifies the drama because it takes place during the night. Contain some stock music from Jerry Goldsmith’s “Mysterious Storm” culled from the CBS Production Library Music and Leonard Rosenman’s “And When The Sky Was Opened” from The Twilight Zone.

Highly recommended!

Parts of this conspiracy scheme will be reworked on three episodes of The Wild Wild West entitled “The Night of the Red-Eyed Madman” (season 1), “The Night of the Legion of Death” (season 3) and “The Night of the Pistoleros” (season 4).


Ramrod Rowdy Yates meets and fights the bully deputy sheriff Toland.

Ramrod Rowdy Yates is a wanted criminal on the run.

Ramrod Rowdy Yates is looking for a hideout in the hostile town.

Ramrod Rowdy Yates is on the brink of undergoing the lethal shave!

Ramrod Rowdy Yates escapes from death but gets wounded in the process!

 

[Doug Wallen]

Perry Mason - Season 4
The Case of The Misguided Missle (4.25) Bruce Bennett, Jeanne Bal, Simon Oakland, William Schallert. Military court action, rockets and treachery.
The Case of The Duplicate Daughter (4.26) Don Dubbins, Anne Helm, Walter Kinsella. Illegitimate twins and blackmail.
The Case of The Grumbling Grandfather (4.27) Patricia Barry, Otto Kreuger, Gavin MacLeod, Karl Held (soon to be semi-regular as David the law student)
The Case of The Guilty Clients (4.28) Lisa Gaye, Charles Bateman, Alan Bunce, Faith Domergue. Divorce, true love and an airplane error. End of Season 4, 2 more seasons to go in this mega pack.

The Outer Limits -Season 1 Blu-ray
Specimen: Unknown (1.22) Stephen McNally, Richard Jaeckel, Gail Kobe, Russell Johnson, Dabney Coleman. Interesting premise, poor execution and an illogical ending.
Second Chance (1.23) Simon Oakland, Don Gordon, John McLiam. A favorite character study concerning missed opportunities and the people who want to take their second chance. Talky, but one I enjoy.
Moonstone (1.24) Tim O'Connor, Ruth Roman, Alex Nicol, Hari Rhodes. Intriguing "bear" for this one and that is about it. Seems that the space suits get a continual workout, really love the sandal/boot combination , must be really airtight.
The Mutant (1.25) Warren Oates, Larry Pennell, Walter Burke. Fried egg eyes, I have memories of the trading cards with this image. Oh, how I wanted to be able to watch this series, but as a 6 year old I was not allowed.

Star Trek:The Next Generation - The Next Level Blu-ray
Encounter at Farpoint (1.1) John de Lancie, Michael Bell, DeForest Kelley. Great pilot and excellent presentation.
Sins of the Father (3.17) Tony Todd, Charles Cooper. Worf gains a brother and loses face in front of the High Council. The Duras family treachery exposed.

Barney Miller - Season 8
Bones (8.19) Howard Platt, Ivor Francis, Luis Avalos. Discovery leading to the series only three part episode, the finale.
Landmark: Part 1 (8.20) Philip Sterling, Al Ruscio, Susan Tolsky. A representative from the State Division for Historic Preservation is shopping the 12th precinct due the buildings possible historic significance. The 12th is the last to know.

Trying to finish up Barney Miller over this holiday weekend as the entire family is together.

Well, I finally forced myself to finish the final disc of Night Gallery. The change to a half hour format and second rate stories seemed to put the final nail in this series coffin. I found only a couple of these mildly interesting. Seems that several of these have already been on disc.
Night Gallery - Season 3
She'll Be Company For You (3.10) Leonard Nimoy. Strange story of a freakly house cat/lion/spirit of a hateful wife?
The Ring With The Red Velvet Ropes (3.6) Chuck Connors, Joan Van Ark, Gary Lockwood. Boxing story that is very easy to see where it is leading. Predictable. Tolerable because of the acting talent involved.
Something In The Woodwork (3.11) Geraldine Page, Leif Erickson. Shrewish ex-wife with a grudge befriends a reluctant ghost to murder her exhusband. Not much to redeem this one, except for the O. Henry twist.
Death On A Barge (3.12) Lesley Ann Warren, Lou Antonio, Brooke Bundy. Interesting take on the vampire story. I also had a huge crush on Ms. Warren ever since her debut as Cinderella back in '65.
Whisper (3.13) Dean Stockwell, Sally Field, Kent Smith. Bad story that makes no sense. Good practice for Sally Field before she portrays Sybil.
The Doll Of Death (3.14) Barry Atwater, Alejandro Rey, Susan Strasberg, Murray Matheson. Voodoo with a twist. Not to bad.
Hatred Unto Death/How To Cure The Common Vampire (3.15) Steve Forrest, Dina Merrill, Fernando Lamas, Richard Deacon. Bad gorilla (man in a suit) and a horrible comedy bit. Such a sorry way to end the series.
Lost Tales From Season 2
Die Now, Pay Later (3.16) Slim Pickens, Will Geer. I will admit I liked this one. It had a playfulness that most of their comedy segments did not have.
Room For One Less (3.17) Elevator humor that did not rise to the occasion.
Witches Feast (2.2) Agnes Morehead, Ruth Buzzi. Bad comedy about a sandwich.
(2.22) William Windom, Ed Nelson, Ivor Francis. Scientist fantasy and end of the world scenario.

*** Interesting when viewing these over a week or so to see some guests show up across the decades and end up in all types of series.

 

[Jack P]

Well after a month, it was time for yet another Madlyn Rhue marathon!

Route 66, S3-"Every Father's Daughter"
Mission: Impossible, S7-"Ultimatum"
Land Of The Giants, S2-"The Deadly Dart"
Streets Of San Francisco, S4-"Clown Of Death"
Cannon, S4-"Voice From The Grave"
Cannon, S5-"Snapshot"
The Nurses, S1-"A Question Of Mercy" (on YT)

The last one was something I was unaware of. I have made no secret of the fact that I am not a fan of the shows produced by Herbert Brodkin. I had never seen an episode of "The Nurses" before until I came across this and the only reason I watched it was because it was a star vehicle for Madlyn (she had a *lot* of these in the early and mid-60s. By the 70s, while her guest shots were still extensive she never really had a focal point one like in this period) and also it was incredible to see her in a romance with William Shatner, four years before "Space Seed". I wonder how many Trek fans are aware of this because it's really fascinating in that context.

The episode and story though offered me a reminder of why I can't stand Brodkin shows. This one deals with the very touchy subject of euthanasia and we see a lot of speeches by various characters about euthanasia but with the final bias of the episode clearly evident. The problem is that while Madlyn does a great acting job, the conceit of this story to give us the euthanasia storyline is beyond ludicrous. Madlyn is a nurse who has pulled the plug on a terminal patient, Dr. William Shatner whom she has had a romance with and was about to become engaged to. The episode starts with the death and the euthanasia and flashes back to scenes of her developing relationship with Shatner.

The problem though is that the premise is just idiotic. What hospital in their right mind would allow a nurse to be assigned to the care of a patient (*especially* a dying doctor!) that she's had an ongoing personal relationship with that above all, the staff *knows* exists?! That is beyond the level of unprofessionalism to defy credibility and shows that this has been set up as a straw man to serve up a soapbox issue to hit us over the heads with. And that is simply bad writing and storytelling from my standpoint.

After I finished that episode I took a break from the Rhue marathon to go back to a far more intelligent and better written episode that touches on the matter of euthanasia, which is Dr. Kildare, S1-"For The Living." In this one, the issue is raised as a result of an outgrowth of a better-written through-line narrative. There is more intelligent and fair-minded debate and discussion that springs more organically from the plot than from the artificial, "Insert Speech A, Insert Speech B, Insert Argument A" that came off in the "Nurses" episode.

 

[John*Wells]

Dallas Season 13-14

 

[Doug Wallen]

Mission: Impossible - Season 2
The Seal (2.9) Darren McGavin, Mort Mills. Stolen jade, mysticism and a feline thief.
Sweet Charity (2.10) Fritz Weaver, Hazel Court. When it comes to thieves, divide and conquer still seems appropriate.
The Council: Part 1 (2.11) Paul Stevens, Vince Gardenia, Paul Lambert, Nicholas Colasanto, Joan Staley. Rollin infiltrates the mob.
The Council: Part 2 (2.12) Edited as a feature film, Mission Impossible Versus the Mob

The Muppet Show - Season 2
John Cleese (2.23) Sadly lacking in funny. I expected more from the guest.
Petula Clark (2.20) Better use of guest star.

The Twilight Zone - Season 2
The Invaders (2.15) Agnes Moorehead. One of my favorites. A near perfect episode utilizing existing props, great sound and budget effects to totally creep me out to this day.
A Penny For Your Thoughts (2.16) Dick York, June Dayton, Dan Tobin, Cyril Delevanti, Hayden Rorke. Great 60's cast and a very cool story about mind reading that brings out the hidden talents of Hector B. Poole.
Twenty Two (2.17) Barbara Nichols, Jonathan Harris, Arlene Martel. "Room for one more, honey!" Haunted, repetitive dreams that freak out a dancer, as well as the audience. I believe this one might have been more frightening initially since this storyline has been done to death. Shot on videotape instead of being filmed.

Barney Miller - Season 8
Landmark: Part 2 (8.21) Al Ruscio, Robert Costanza, Florence Halop. The 12th is sold, Luger proposes and the squad wondeers where they will be assigned.
Landmark: Part 3 (8.22) Final episode that reunites the cast with former visitors to the squad room ending with a touching final scene as our detectives say goodbye and Barney remembers departed cast before turning out the lights one last time.
Goodbye to the Ol' One-Two.
I have really enjoyed my time reminiscing with the 12th. glad to have this set. Thanks Shout!.

Star Trek: TNG - Season 7 Bluray
All Good Things (7.25) John deLancie, Denise Crosby, Andreas Katsulas, Clyde Kusatsu, Colm Meaney. Just got the all region all-in-one and am checking this out. I haven't seen this since it originally aired. Still an intriguing story and very well done. Patrick Stewart is phenomenal in this.

The High Chaparral - Season 1
Destination Tucson (1.1) Joan Caulfield. Great looking version of a long sought after region 1 release. We know the story and it doesn't disappoint. Big John moves his family cross country to settle in Indian territory hoping to find a way to bring peace. Idealism like that can get you in trouble. John has a difficult relationship with his son, basically he needs to "man up". Interesting premise that is rife for all types of problems, not the least of which is his cattle theiving "neighbor", Don Sebastian Montoya
The Arrangement (1.2) Frank Silvera, X Brands. A diverse cast and Ol Tucson locations truly aid this series in looking more real than the other studio bound westerns of the day (Bonanza, The Big Valley). Interesting solution to the neighbor problem that just intensifies the strained relationship between father and son.
A wonderful addition to my "classic" television rotation.

 

[Jack P]

The Madlyn Rhue marathon continued for me. These were episodes from earlier in her career when she was always the lead guest star.

Adventures In Paradise, S3-"The Assassins." (YT)
-Like "The Nurses", I'd never seen an episode of this series before. Madlyn is the passenger kicked out of Tahiti who may or may not be the reason why a bomb's been planted aboard the schooner. The episode was a bit too slow-paced for my liking.

M Squad, S2-"Death Is A Clock"
-Very early in her career. Even though she's just 23, they put a bad wig and a drab wardrobe on her to make her believable as the desperate wife of a death row inmate who's in his mid-40s at least! This was something I've seen happen a lot in the 50s especially where they would often cast younger actresses made to look drab to sell them as the longstanding wives of men in their 40s.

Cheyenne, S4-"Prisoner of Moon Mesa."
-This one is a little eerie in that Madlyn, as the kept daughter of tyrannical ranch owner Robert F. Simon, plays a crippled woman unable to walk. The eeriness is knowing this was what eventually happened to her when she became stricken by MS for the final quarter century of her life and could only appear in a wheelchair.

The Lieutenant, S1-"The Alien"
-Captain Robert Vaughn unexpectedly finds himself saddled with a Korean orphan and he tries to woo stewardess Madlyn, who brought the boy over initially as a possible wife so he can find a way to keep the boy. It's not often she played a role that showed a maternal side.

And finally I saw the only feature film of note she did in the 60s with a big role, the obscure Jim Brown movie "Kenner" which was filmed in India and has Madlyn hearkening back to her exotic ethnic roles of the late 50s and early 60s playing Indian. The script is weak and the film lame, but she gives her part her all and it shows her at her most maternal as mother to a boy Brown befriends in the course of his not well-defined revenge search in Bombay.

Might be a few more to go through but it's been fascinating to get a better appreciation for the sweep of her career. Like Vera Miles, Lois Nettleton and other actresses I've spotlighted in these marathons, she was the type of performer that just doesn't exist any more. Never big in films, never noted for a TV series, but who was very familiar in the guest star circuit and built up an impressive resume in so many different shows over several decades.

Within all this, there was room for a three episode Diana Muldaur minithon.

The Virginian (Men From Shiloh), S9-"The Politician"
The Virginian, S6-"Masquerade"
Mod Squad, S2-"The Loser"

 

[Jeff Flugel]

The Madlyn Rhue marathon continued for me. These were episodes from earlier in her career when she was always the lead guest star.

Adventures In Paradise, S3-"The Assassins." (YT)
-Like "The Nurses", I'd never seen an episode of this series before. Madlyn is the passenger kicked out of Tahiti who may or may not be the reason why a bomb's been planted aboard the schooner. The episode was a bit too slow-paced for my liking.

M Squad, S2-"Death Is A Clock"
-Very early in her career. Even though she's just 23, they put a bad wig and a drab wardrobe on her to make her believable as the desperate wife of a death row inmate who's in his mid-40s at least! This was something I've seen happen a lot in the 50s especially where they would often cast younger actresses made to look drab to sell them as the longstanding wives of men in their 40s.

Cheyenne, S4-"Prisoner of Moon Mesa."
-This one is a little eerie in that Madlyn, as the kept daughter of tyrannical ranch owner Robert F. Simon, plays a crippled woman unable to walk. The eeriness is knowing this was what eventually happened to her when she became stricken by MS for the final quarter century of her life and could only appear in a wheelchair.

The Lieutenant, S1-"The Alien"
-Captain Robert Vaughn unexpectedly finds himself saddled with a Korean orphan and he tries to woo stewardess Madlyn, who brought the boy over initially as a possible wife so he can find a way to keep the boy. It's not often she played a role that showed a maternal side.

And finally I saw the only feature film of note she did in the 60s with a big role, the obscure Jim Brown movie "Kenner" which was filmed in India and has Madlyn hearkening back to her exotic ethnic roles of the late 50s and early 60s playing Indian. The script is weak and the film lame, but she gives her part her all and it shows her at her most maternal as mother to a boy Brown befriends in the course of his not well-defined revenge search in Bombay.

Might be a few more to go through but it's been fascinating to get a better appreciation for the sweep of her career. Like Vera Miles, Lois Nettleton and other actresses I've spotlighted in these marathons, she was the type of performer that just doesn't exist any more. Never big in films, never noted for a TV series, but who was very familiar in the guest star circuit and built up an impressive resume in so many different shows over several decades.

Within all this, there was room for a three episode Diana Muldaur minithon.

The Virginian (Men From Shiloh), S9-"The Politician"
The Virginian, S6-"Masquerade"
Mod Squad, S2-"The Loser"

That's quite a Madlyn Rhue marathon you had there, Jack! Some interesting series and episodes in those lists...I'm not a huge fan of her, personally, but there's no denying she had a ton of acting credits in many, many fine shows. I remember her best as Lt. Reid in the Cary Grant submarine comedy Operation Petticoat. Her large, expressive eyes are her most impressive feature, IMO.

My (lack of) regard for Diana Muldaur has been recounted several times before now, so I won't belabor that point.

As you know, I quite like your "star or starlet guest starring" marathon idea, and have tried it myself in the past (with Barbara Luna and Beverly Garland). It's been a while since I've done one, and I've been wanting to do one again, but no actor or actress has particularly inspired me recently.