What did you watch this week in classic TV on DVD(or Blu)? (3 Viewers)

[The 1960's]

The Mermaids of Sea Hunt (Series No. 3) ​

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Jan Harrison (1924–2014)
Jan Harrison was born on December 29, 1924 in Portland, Oregon, USA. She was an actress, known for Mike Hammer (1958), Fort Bowie (1958) and Sea Hunt (1958). She was previously married to Carl R. Bergquist and Carroll Shelby.

A former "Miss Washington State", she was disqualified from competing in the "Miss America" pageant because she had been secretly married. She appeared in 10 Sea Hunt episodes, more times than any other credited actress. Between 1958 and 1959, was featured on the cover of Stag, Joy, Rogue, Sir and Breezy magazine. A former school teacher. Crowned "Miss Calendar Girl of 1954" by the Specialty Advertising National Association in Chicago. She worked as an Earl Carroll showgirl in the 1940s. Here are four of her Sea Hunt appearances.

S02E08 The Search (Feb.22.1959)
Stars Lloyd Bridges Jan Harrison Paul Maxwell Paul Maxwell Lomax Study Jack Richardson Courtney Brown​

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Mike Nelson and three of his students search for a missing diver, who was dragged deep below the surface by a large fish that he speared.​

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S02E18 Underwater Curtain (May.03.1959)
Stars Lloyd Bridges Jack Hogan Jan Harrison​

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While on a research project, Mike encounters saboteur frogmen attempting to destroy the Panama Canal.​

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[The 1960's]

S02E27 The Getaway (Jul.05.1959)
Stars Lloyd Bridges Robert Karnes Jan Harrison Ken Drake Wayne Mallory Frank Warren Michael Masters​

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Mike attempts to rescue a kidnapped friend.​

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S04E20 The Octopus Story (May.20.1961)
Stars Lloyd Bridges Ken Curtis Jan Harrison​

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Mike and his diving team are attacked by a violent new breed of octopus.​

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[Jeff Flugel]

Jan Harrison (1924–2014)​

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Yowsa, what a doll! Thanks muchly for the heaping helping of cheesecake, Neal!

 

[Jeff Flugel]

My classic TV viewing has been put on the back burner a bit, due to my busy teaching schedule and being distracted by Halloween-themed movie viewing for the Annual HTF October Scary Movie Challenge...but I did manage to get a few things watched over the past couple of weeks:

The Munsters
1/26 "Far Out Munsters"
The Munsters rent their house to the rock group, The Standells. Herman and the family just can't get comfortable at the fancy, non-dusty, non-cobwebbed hotel suite the Standells' manager arranges for them, so head back to 1313 Mockingbird Lane and end up joining in the musical festivities. About half the runtime of this one is made up of musical performances. The Standells perform two songs (including a so-so cover of The Beatles' "I Wanna Hold Your Hand") and Herman does a funny parody of beat poetry:

"Ibbedy bibbedy, sibbedy sab. Ibbediy bibbedy canal boat. Dictonary down the ferry. Mary, Mary quite contrary. Ehm... Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear, Fuzzy Wuzzy lost his hair. Scooba doo and scooba dye. That chicken's not too young to fry. Life is real, life is earnest. If you're cold, turn up the furnace. Eh, I, I thank you."

Things then screech to a halt, as Yvonne DeCarlo (as Lily) strums the harp and warbles out "He's Gone Away." Ms. DeCarlo has a lovely voice, but the song goes on and on, eating up screentime. Also with Zalman King, as a bearded beatnik who somehow fails to hit on Marilyn.

2.2 "Herman, the Master Spy"little
This one's funnier than "Far Out Munsters." The gang head off for a picnic at Paradise Cove (where far too little attention is paid to Pat Priest in her swimsut for my liking). While out scuba diving, Herman is caught in the net of a Russian trawler. The Russian crew think they've somehow caught a missing link between man and fish. Moscow, however, is convinced Herman is a new kind of American spy. When Washington denies Herman's spy credentials, the Kremlin orders him eliminated. But by this point, Herman has completely bonded with his fisherman comrades.

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
1.9 The Greek Interpreter
An unsavory gang kidnaps a Greek interpreter (Alkis Kritikos) and forces him to relate their demands to an abductee who can only speak Greek. They release the interpreter with a warning to not speak a word about what he's witnessed...but the man is compelled to relate his story to Sherlock Holmes, via Sherlock's reclusive yet even smarter brother, Mycroft (Charles Gray). As is true of many of Doyle's Holmes tales, the crime at the heart of the story is a dark and nasty one. But the grimness is balanced by Gray's wonderful performance as the eccentric Mycroft, as well as the obvious delight Watson (David Burke) feels at getting to meet a heretofore unknown relative of his friend the great detective. Also with George Costigan (doing a knowing and effective Peter Lorre impression) and Nicholas Field as the vicious baddies.

Podcast fans take note: the hosts of the estimable Jeremy Brett Sherlock Holmes Podcast recently traveled to England to interview an elderly but still sharp David Burke and his wife, Anna Calder-Marshall. You can listen to the interview here. Both the interview and the podcast in general come highly recommended.

87th Precinct
1.17 "Give the Boys a Great Big Hand"
When a severed human hand is found in a flight bag that was thrown in a trash can on a dark and stormy night, NYC police detectives Steve Carella (Robert Lansing) and Bert Kling (Ron Harper) try to identify the potential victim. Their focus soon shifts to a merchant sailor (Michael Forest) who was reported missing by his wife (Suzi Carnell) after an argument that he was having a fling with a model. Other possible suspects crop up when it turns out that said model has also gone missing. Also with Roxanne Arlen (as a bubbleheaded roommate of the missing woman) and a typically creepy Barry Atwater. This episode keeps a consistently light and jocular tone, despite some of the grislier elements of the plot.

1.30 "Girl in the Case"
Public stenographer Cheryl Anderson (Janis Paige), who works out of a ritzy hotel, takes the dictation of a millionaire's last will and testament right before he dies. Shortly afterward, three apparent attempts are made her life, and she is approached by a man offering $100,000 if she claims the millionaire was not of sound mind at the time the will was dictated. Det. Roger Havilland (Gregory Walcott) is put in charge of the case and soon sparks are flying between him and the sultry Cheryl. As this was the last episode in the series, I held out a glimmer of a hope that ol' Havilland would get the girl (after a previous near miss with Beverly Garland in 1.7 "Killer's Payoff"...the man obviously has good taste). But alas, he's left holding his hat once more, as practical Cheryl decides to go for the wayward playboy son (Jerry Paris) who inherits his dead father's millions, rather than poor, working class schlub of a cop Rog. This one's got a nicely sharp, adult script, and Ms. Paige is very good (and very attractive) as a woman who's been around the block a few times but still retains some of her younger self's vulnerability and hope. Also with Joan Staley (as the playboy's good time girl) and Kathleen Freeman, funny as the homely, stolid police woman assigned protection duty. In the epilogue, Havilland's fellow cops, seeing his downcast face after reading about Cheryl's wedding in the newspaper, show their support for him in true manly man fashion - Kling, inviting him out on a double date with his girlfriend's cousin, and Carella, taking Havilland's mind off things by throwing a brand new case his way.

The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet
1.34 "Door Key for David"
David is given his first house key, and Ozzie makes a big song-and-dance about all the responsibility that goes with it. Of course, no sooner has Ozzie made his speech than he loses his own house key. So he swipes Harriet's to make a copy...then Harriet swipes David's...With Hal "Otis the drunk" Smith as a locksmith who has also lost the key to his own shop.

1.35 "The Play's the Thing"
Ozzie is brimming with enthusiasm about appearing in the PTA pageant's play, until he learns that his role is not the lead, but actually the front end of Robin Hood's horse. He tries to trick Thorny into switching roles, and ends up with an even worse part (of the horse).

1.36 "Monetary System"
David and Ricky would like an increase in their allowances, so Ozzie develops a point system regarding household chores. He includes every family member but comes to regret it as it becomes all to clear that one person - himself - is doing very little of the tasks.

1.37 "Who's Walter"
Ozzie and Harriet encounter an old man who worked the Ferris wheel at an amusement park she and Ozzie frequented back when they were dating. She invites the gentleman to dinner, which he gladly accepts. But for some reason, he keeps calling Ozzie "Walter." Ozzie grows increasingly insecure, wondering just who this Walter is that Harriet was seen smooching with back in the day.

1.38 "Curiosity"
Ozzie complains about Harriet asking him so many questions, and claims that women are just naturally more curious than men. So Harriet decides to play a joke on him by mentioning that an attractive young woman said something nice about him. Ozzie nearly drives himself crazy trying to figure out who the mystery woman is - even after Harriet tells him that she made the story up.

1.39 "Oscillating Ozzie"
After chatting with Harriet and ever-exuberant neighbor Emmy Lou (Janet Waldo), Ozzie starts to feel like he's stuck in a conservative routine, so sets out to prove how unpredictible he is, by engaging in such wild behavior as buying 3 quarts of Tutti Frutti ice cream, rather than the usual 1 quart of vanilla and one quart of chocolate. What a wild and crazy guy. With Herb Vigran as a rug delivery salesman.

There's a nice grace note at the end of this final S1 episode, as Ozzie, Harriet and Don DeFore as Thorny break the fourth wall again to plug DeFore's upcoming appearance on the summer replacement series taking the O & H show slot, then finish by saying farewell until the fall. A charming end to a very charming and reliably funny debut TV season.

Not counting the three holiday-centric episodes (which I'd already seen, and will watch again closer to their respective holidays), other S1 standouts for me include "Thorny's Gift," "Rover Boys," "Separate Rooms," "Valentine Show," "Pancake Mix," "Fish Story" and "Who's Walter"...though I enjoyed every single episode to some degree. Onward to S2!

 

[Purple Wig]

On the topic of the recently discussed Rat Patrol:

 

[tsodcollector]

On the topic of the recently discussed Rat Patrol:
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I've never watched rat patrol,my grandparents did.

 

[Bryan^H]

Is there a legit DVD release for this @JohnHopper? Or a streamer? I'd love to check it out. Ron Harper was always a fun lead.

Ron Harper made Planet of the Apes the great series that it is. Fantastic stuff, so sad ABC didn't pick it up for a second season.

 

[The 1960's]

Yowsa, what a doll! Thanks muchly for the heaping helping of cheesecake, Neal!

Funny Jeff, a heaping helping of cheesecake. Is that a reference the women of present day would appreciate? Ah, who cares, LOL.

While not my favorite Mermaid of Sea Hunt Jan Harrison lived until 90 years of age and certainly made her presence known utilizing her good looks. I searched for images of her cover appearances in Stag, Joy, Rogue, Sir and Breezy magazine but came up empty. Lots of hot girly pics though.

Lloyd Bridges sure had an eye for beautiful women. Many more mermaids ahead!

My classic TV viewing has been put on the back burner a bit, due to my busy teaching schedule and being distracted by Halloween-themed movie viewing for the Annual HTF October Scary Movie Challenge...but I did manage to get a bit watched over the past couple of weeks:

The Munsters
1/26 "Far Out Munsters"
The Munsters rent their house to the rock group, The Standells. Herman and the family just can't get comfortable at the fancy, non-dusty, non-cobwebbed hotel suite the Standells' manager arranges for them, so head back to 1313 Mockingbird Lane and end up joining in the musical festivities. About half the runtime of this one is made up of musical performances. The Standells perform two songs (including a so-so cover of The Beatles' "I Wanna Hold Your Hand") and Herman does a funny parody of beat poetry:

"Ibbedy bibbedy, sibbedy sab. Ibbediy bibbedy canal boat. Dictonary down the ferry. Mary, Mary quite contrary. Ehm... Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear, Fuzzy Wuzzy lost his hair. Scooba doo and scooba dye. That chicken's not too young to fry. Life is real, life is earnest. If you're cold, turn up the furnace. Eh, I, I thank you."

Things then screech to a halt, as Yvonne DeCarlo (as Lily) strums the harp and warbles out "He's Gone Away." Ms. DeCarlo has a lovely voice, but the song goes on and on, eating up screentime. Also with Zalman King, as a bearded beatnik who somehow fails to hit on Marilyn.

2.2 "Herman, the Master Spy"
This one's funnier than "Far Out Munsters." The gang head off for a picnic at Paradise Cove (where far too attention is paid to Pat Priest in her swimsut for my liking). While out scuba diving, Herman is caught in the net of a Russian trawler. The Russian crew think they've somehow caught a missing link between man and fish. Moscow, however, is convinced Herman is a new kind of American spy. When Washington denies Herman's spy credentials, the Kremlin orders him eliminated. But by this point, Herman has completely bonded with his fisherman comrades.

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
1.9 The Greek Interpreter
An unsavory gang kidnaps a Greek interpreter (Alkis Kritikos) and forces him to relate their demands to an abductee who can only speak Greek. They release the interpreter with a warning to not speak a word about what he's witnessed...but the man is compelled to relate his story to Sherlock Holmes, via Sherlock's reclusive yet even smarter brother, Mycroft (Charles Gray). As is true of many of Doyle's Holmes tales, the crime at the heart of the story is a dark and nasty one. But the grimness is balanced by Gray's wonderful performance as the eccentric Mycroft, as well as the obvious delight Watson (David Burke) feels at getting to meet a heretofore unknown relative of his friend the great detective. Also with George Costigan (doing a knowing and effective Peter Lorre impression) and Nicholas Field as the vicious baddies.

Podcast fans take note: the hosts of the estimable Jeremy Brett Sherlock Holmes Podcast recently traveled to England to interview an elderly but still sharp David Burke and his wife, Anna Calder-Marshall. You can listen to the interview here. Both the interview and the podcast in general come highly recommended.

87th Precinct
1.17 "Give the Boys a Great Big Hand"
When a severed human hand is found in a flight bag that was thrown in a trash can on a dark and stormy night, NYC police detectives Steve Carella (Robert Lansing) and Bert Kling (Ron Harper) try to identify the potential victim. Their focus soon shifts to a merchant sailor (Michael Forest) who was reported missing by his wife (Suzi Carnell) after an argument that he was having a fling with a model. Other possible suspects crop up when it turns out that said model has also gone missing. Also with Roxanne Arlen (as a bubbleheaded roommate of the missing woman) and a typically creepy Barry Atwater. This episode keeps a consistently light and jocular tone, despite some of the grislier elements of the plot.

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1.30 "Girl in the Case"
Public stenographer Cheryl Anderson (Janis Paige), who works out of a ritzy hotel, takes the dictation of a millionaire's last will and testament right before he dies. Shortly afterward, three apparent attempts are made her life, and she is approached by a man offering $100,000 if she claims the millionaire was not of sound mind at the time the will was dictated. Det. Roger Havilland (Gregory Walcott) is put in charge of the case and soon sparks are flying between him and the sultry Cheryl. As this was the last episode in the series, I held out a glimmer of a hope that ol' Havilland would get the girl (after a previous near miss with Beverly Garland in 1.7 "Killer's Payoff"...the man obviously has good taste). But alas, he's left holding his hat once more, as practical Cheryl decides to go for the wayward playboy son (Jerry Paris) who inherits his dead father's millions, rather than poor, working class schlub of a cop Rog. This one's got a nicely sharp, adult script, and Ms. Paige is very good (and very attractive) as a woman who's been around the block a few times but still retains some of her younger self's vulnerability and hope. Also with Joan Staley (as the playboy's good time girl) and Kathleen Freeman, funny as the homely, stolid police woman assigned protection duty. In the epilogue, Havilland's fellow cops, seeing his downcast face after reading about Cheryl's wedding in the newspaper, show their support for him in true manly man fashion - Kling, inviting him out on a double date with his girlfriend's cousin, and Carella, taking Havilland's mind off things by throwing a brand new case his way.

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The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet
1.34 "Door Key for David"
David is given his first house key, and Ozzie makes a big song-and-dance about all the responsibility that goes with it. Of course, no sooner has OZzie made his speech than he loses his own house key. So he swipes Harriet's to make a copy...then Harriet swipes David's...With Hal "Otis the drunk" Smith as a locksmith who has also lost the key to his own shop.

1.35 "The Play's the Thing"
Ozzie is brimming with enthusiasm about appearing in the PTA pageant's play, until he learns that his role is not the lead, but actually the front end of Robin Hood's horse. He tries to trick Thorny into switching roles, and ends up with an even worse part (of the horse).

1.36 "Monetary System"
David and Ricky would like an increase in their allowances, so Ozzie develops a point system regarding household chores. He includes every family member but comes to regret it as it becomes all to clear that one person - himself - is doing very little of the tasks.

1.37 "Who's Walter"
Ozzie and Harriet encounter an old man who worked the Ferris wheel at an amusement park she and Ozzie frequented back when they were dating. She invites the gentleman to dinner, which he gladly accepts. But for some reason, he keeps calling Ozzie "Walter." Ozzie grows increasingly insecure, wondering just who this Walter is that Harriet was seen smooching with back in the day.

1.38 "Curiosity"
Ozzie complains about Harriet asking him so many questions, and claims that women are just naturally more curious than men. So Harriet decides to play a joke on him by mentioning that an attractive young woman said something nice about him. Ozzie nearly drives himself crazy trying to figure out who the mystery woman is - even after Harriet tells him that she made the story up.

1.39 "Oscillating Ozzie"
After chatting with Harriet and ever-exuberant neighbor Emmy Lou (Janet Waldo), Ozzie starts to feel like he's stuck in a conservative routine, so sets out to prove how unpredictible he is, by engaging in such wild behavior as buying 3 quarts of Tutti Frutti ice cream, rather than the usual 1 quart of vanilla and one quart of chocolate. What a wild and crazy guy. With Herb Vigran as a rug delivery salesman.

There's a nice grace note at the end of this final S1 episode, as Ozzie, Harriet and Don DeFore as Thorny break the fourth wall again to plug DeFore's upcoming appearance on the summer replacement series taking the O & H show slot, then finish by saying farewell until the fall. A charming end to a very charming and reliably funny debut TV season.

Not counting the three holiday-centric episodes (which I'd already seen, and will watch again closer to their respective holidays), other S1 standouts for me include "Thorny's Gift," "Rover Boys," "Separate Rooms," "Valentine Show," "Pancake Mix," "Fish Story" and "Who's Walter"...though I enjoyed every single episode to some degree. Onward to S2!

Great commentary and I highly recommend 87th Precinct for those who haven't seen it. It will go OPP sooner than later.

Finally, for my Halloween obsessed good buddy I have a surprise photo essay coming just for you!

 

[Susan Nunes_329977]

I am alternating between Season 5 of The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet and Season 2 of The Phil Silvers Show. I am enjoying both tremendously. I have to say that Phil Silvers was as good an actor as any who ever appeared in front of a camera. There is a reason why he won acting awards both on television and on the stage. There was one episode of where there was a new sergeant who was known to be super strict, and Bilko (Silvers) suggested using psychology in order to tap into what this man truly was. Now I don't know if writer Nat Hiken or his other writers wrote the monologue or whether Silvers improvised it or both, but he went on for a couple of minutes at least talking about psychology (probably Freudian, which was popular in the fifties). He had to have improvised at least part of it because there was no way any actor, no matter how skilled, could possibly memorize that much of a monologue in front of a live audience in one take. I was just in awe of it. Silvers doesn't get enough credit as the great actor he was.

 

[Rustifer]

The Mermaids of Sea Hunt (Series No. 3)

Sea Hunt was one of my favorite shows as a kid. It inspired me to take up scuba diving when I was at school--yeah, my University actually had a course in scuba diving which I figured to be an easy 2 credits. Our "open water" was the school's indoor swimming pool--not exactly a wonderworld of undersea mysteries and delights. The only thing I remember from that course is to never jump feet first into the water with the tank strapped to your back for fear of the regulator cap situated on top bouncing up at smacking you in the back of the noggin. You could well end up seeing phantom mermaids swirling around you before being hauled unconscious out of the water.

Thanks, Neal, for sprinkling in some nice cheesecake among the myriads of your screencaps.

"Ibbedy bibbedy, sibbedy sab. Ibbediy bibbedy canal boat. Dictonary down the ferry. Mary, Mary quite contrary. Ehm... Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear, Fuzzy Wuzzy lost his hair. Scooba doo and scooba dye. That chicken's not too young to fry. Life is real, life is earnest. If you're cold, turn up the furnace. Eh, I, I thank you."

Surprisingly enough, my wife claims I burble out this same poetry in my sleep after one too many martinis...

My classic TV viewing has been put on the back burner a bit, due to my busy teaching schedule and being distracted by Halloween-themed movie viewing for the Annual HTF October Scary Movie Challenge...but I did manage to get a few things watched over the past couple of weeks

A "few" things indeed, Jeff--all well done as per usual.

 

[bmasters9]

A fifth-season Emergency! episode called "Tee Vee" (OAD Sat. Nov. 29, 1975 on NBC); one scene from this episode stands out for me above the rest of the episode. Specifically, Dr. Brackett had an aquarium mistakenly installed in his office at Rampart General Hospital (he didn't order it); as the fish were going into the tank, one (a catfish, scientific name Ictalurus punctatus, or I. punctatus for short) fell out on the ground.

Brackett picked it up, and was about to put it back in the tank, when it stung him (his co-worker, Nurse Dixie McCall, called it a bite). Later, he suffered some of the effects of said sting/bite when he was helping Dr. Morton examine an ulcer patient; he became dizzy and almost passed out.

Brackett ended up in another treatment room, out of his lab coat, and explained what happened (Nurse McCall corroborated it); Dr. Early suggested holding the affected area in hot water, and Dr. Morton looked up catfish stings in a medical book, and lo and behold, such was the prescribed treatment (and, believe it or not, is in real life); apparently, it worked for Dr. Brackett.

Screenshots from that scene in that episode on Disc 3 of the fifth go of Emergency!:

































And for comparison, here is an example of a real-life catfish sting (to show you how bad it hurts if you handle a catfish the wrong way); has some cursing and graphic content...

 

[Rustifer]

Episode Commentary
Dragnet
"Burglary: DR-31" (S3E20)

Lest we forget, despite his stoic by-the-book demeanor, Joe Friday never achieved a higher rank than Sergeant in the lowly Burglary Division of the Los Angeles Police Department. In addition, he's saddled with fairly addled partner Officer Bill Gannon (Harry Morgan) who requires written instructions to tie his shoes each morning. Befitting their rank, the two officers are assigned what appears to be a library table from which to work--equipped with one black rotary dial phone as the apex of urban police technology.

On this particular day as Bill Gannon is rambling about the horrors of fresh air (as if any exists in LA), Sgt. Friday is assigned a case where movie posters are being swiped from local theaters. Not exactly rising to the level of expertise required of Hercule Poirot, Friday and Gannon jump on the case as if it represents an eventual official commendation and ultimate career boost. At least it gives the officers a chance to vacate their library table and hit the streets. They visit one of the robbed theater's managers who shows them some samples of the movie posters being stolen. Considering the $17-per-episode budget of the series, the posters look as if drawn up by the kids of the film crew.

Toiling at the station desk; The Crimson Crusader; An example of the show's elaborate set decorations

Adding absurdity to this already inane case, the thief is dressed as a comic book super hero calling himself the "Crimson Crusader". Twenty-three year old Stanley Stover (Tim Donnelly) claims he's a crime fighter who hopes to protect the world from thieving rascals. It's never a clear connection of dots between his thieving and trying to protect others from the same crime. Stanley has overcompensated for his chubbiness and plain looks by posing as a caped hero--torn between that or dressing up as Lana Turner and hanging out in drug stores. After a cream puff interrogation by Friday, Stanley repents his misdeeds and is unceremoniously hauled home by his mom. Case closed.

As a kid, I always had an empty feeling watching this show. I think it was due to an unconscious absorption of the obviously cheap sets, simplistic plots and Joe Friday's rapid deadpan delivery of his uninspired lines. I preferred a diet of Toody and Muldoon for my police procedurals back then.

 

[The 1960's]

Episode Commentary
Dragnet
"Burglary: DR-31" (S3E20)

Lest we forget, despite his stoic by-the-book demeanor, Joe Friday never achieved a higher rank than Sergeant in the lowly Burglary Division of the Los Angeles Police Department. In addition, he's saddled with fairly addled partner Officer Bill Gannon (Harry Morgan) who requires written instructions to tie his shoes each morning. Befitting their rank, the two officers are assigned what appears to be a library table from which to work--equipped with one black rotary dial phone as the apex of urban police technology.

On this particular day as Bill Gannon is rambling about the horrors of fresh air (as if any exists in LA), Sgt. Friday is assigned a case where movie posters are being swiped from local theaters. Not exactly rising to the level of expertise required of Hercule Poirot, Friday and Gannon jump on the case as if it represents an eventual official commendation and ultimate career boost. At least it gives the officers a chance to vacate their library table and hit the streets. They visit one of the robbed theater's managers who shows them some samples of the movie posters being stolen. Considering the $17-per-episode budget of the series, the posters look as if drawn up by the kids of the film crew.

View attachment 156944 View attachment 156945 View attachment 156946
Toiling at the station desk; The Crimson Crusader; An example of the show's elaborate set decorations

Adding absurdity to this already inane case, the thief is dressed as a comic book super hero calling himself the "Crimson Crusader". Twenty-three year old Stanley Stover (Tim Donnelly) claims he's a crime fighter who hopes to protect the world from thieving rascals. It's never a clear connection of dots between his thieving and trying to protect others from the same crime. Stanley has overcompensated for his chubbiness and plain looks by posing as a caped hero--torn between that or dressing up as Lana Turner and hanging out in drug stores. After a cream puff interrogation by Friday, Stanley repents his misdeeds and is unceremoniously hauled home by his mom. Case closed.

As a kid, I always had an empty feeling watching this show. I think it was due to an unconscious absorption of the obviously cheap sets, simplistic plots and Joe Friday's rapid deadpan delivery of his uninspired lines. I preferred a diet of Toody and Muldoon for my police procedurals back then.

Superb! If you recall back in May during my Dragnet Marathon and The Sgt. Joe Friday “Friday” Marathon you were kind enough to repost your Dragnet "The Fur Job" (S1E9) Episode Commentary. Great to see you finally wrote this one up Russ! Can my other all-time favorite, S01E01 The LSD Story (Jan.12.1967) be far behind?

S03E20 Burglary: DR-31 (May.06.1969)
Stars Jack Webb Harry Morgan Tim Donnelly Robert Brubaker Mickey Sholdar John Nolan Stuart Nisbet Vince Williams Jeff Malloy Don Ross​

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Another Jack Webb Joe Friday classic.

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
The Copper Clapper Caper (February 20, 1968) Segment​

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[Doug Wallen]

Isn't that the one with Blue Boy?

 

[tsodcollector]

China beach season one,on tsod.very rare and very hard to find.

 

[Doug Wallen]

Matlock
The Therapist (1.20) Steve Bond, Sarah Douglas, Michael Durrell, Kevin Hagen, Susan Seaforth Hayes, Kari Lizer, Donna Mitchell, Deborah Wakeham. A famous actor (Bond) undergoing treatment for (gasp) sex addiction is uncovered by a reporter. The actor is arrested when the doctor is murdered.

The People vs Matlock (1.21) Alan Blumenfeld, Richard Kuss, Dakin Matthews, Arthur Rosenberg, Julie Sommars, Jason Wingreen. Ben is set up for taking bribes and then the suspected briber is murdered and Ben finds himself arrested. Needing a good attorney, Julie leaves the DA's office to so she can defend Ben. Nice change of pace episode.

The Photographer (1.22) Scott Burkholder, Loyita Chapel, Jack Heller, Richard McKenzie, Julie Ronnie, Robin Thomas, Billy Bob Thornton. How quaint, an episode revolving around a blackmailing photographer. An episode that involves darkrooms, film, developer and negatives. How the face of photography has changed in the last 35 years.

The Adventures Of Ozzie And Harriet
New Chairs (2.1) Rebroadcast. Did you ever have a misunderstanding about the delivery of anything? If you have, you can easily understand the frustration Ozzie experiences trying to straighten out a delivery address as well as his name. Customer service hasn't changed much in 70 years.

The Party (2.2) Rebroadcast with Rick singing “Wonder Like You”. “That gosh-darned Will Thornberry!” Sometimes, you just need to talk openly to your neighbors. I can laugh at these issues as we have all been there where we think we know what someone is saying without really listening to them.

The Boys Paper Route (2.3) Rebroadcast with Rick singing “The Christmas Song”. Dad to the rescue who left the house without checking to see if he had the right list. Simple mistake, potentially bad problem that resolves itself perfectly.

The Window Pane (2.4) Ozzie to the rescue who has a procrastination gene when it comes time to actually making home repairs. Harriet guilts Ozzie into fixing the backdoor window, which Thorny proceeds to break.

David's Pipe (2.5) Family friends send David a gift (a pipe). They believe he is now in college. David is intrigued and goes everywhere with the pipe in his mouth. O&H are worried that David may actually want to smoke. The fear becomes real when Thorny reports that David was seen buying tobacco. When questioned, David says he is buying it for his mother. Another good episode where misunderstandings and incomplete information create the issue.

David's Birthday (2.6) Rebroadcast with Rick singing “Glory Train”. David has a blind date with a young lady who has a reputation for only dating “older” men (18 as opposed to David's 17). David wants to do anything to look older. This gives Ricky a chance to really “rag” on David (give him the business). Another very funny episode.

No Noise (2.7) The two loudest citizens are doing their best to become members of the Anti-Noise Society.

The Hustler (2.8) Rick becomes a door-to-door salesman selling a homemade spot remover called Spots Away. Thorny and Ozzie are trying to determine who created the remover. Turn on “Dragnet” mode as Ozzie and Thorny grill Ricky in the style of Sgt. Friday and Ben. Very funny. Probably my favorite on this disc.

Young City Officials (2.9) Neighborly discussions get Ozzie and Thorny arrested. Do Ozzie and Thorny actually understand what “Civic Day” actually mean? Leave it to their children to teach them.

The Suggestion Box (2.10) Ozzie thinks a suggestion box would be a great way to find out about his family's attitudes toward each other. When the box is opened, all family members are in for a surprise.

“I don't mess around boy!!!”

Alfred Hitchcock Hour
A Home Away From Home (2.1) Ray Milland, Claire Griswold, Ben Wright, Mary LaRoche, Virginia Gregg, Ronald Long. A grand example of the inmates running the asylum. Ray Milland gives an excellent performance as a psychiatrist who has a new style of therapy for persons who have problems fitting in. His “niece” arrives and finds things are warped. Excellent episode to start off season 2.

A Nice Touch (2.2)Anne Baxter, George Segal, Harry Townes, Charlene Holt. A story told in flashback showing how a talent agent (Baxter) lost control of her life to a manipulative actor (Segal). Great performances from the leads that really sold the fall.

Terror At Northfield (2.3) Dick York, Jacqueline Scott, R. G. Armstrong, Peter Whitney, Dennis Patrick, Katherine Squire, Curt Conway. Interesting revenge story where the avenger only has partial information and is unwilling to wait for the authority (York) to determine the truth. The avenger decides to exact his revenge on anyone who even remotely is involved. Not a lot of suspense in the who, but plenty of tension in the viewing. Another strong episode.

You'll Be The Death Of Me (2.4) Robert Loggia, Pilar Seurat, Barry Atwater, Hal Smith, Carmen Phillips, Norman Leavitt, Kathleen Freeman. A truck driver (Loggia) with a temper, a new wife and an old, jealous ex-girlfriend finds they are on a collision course with murder.

Rawhide
Incident Of The Boomerang (3.20) Michael Pate, Woody Strode, Patricia Medina, James Drury, Frank DeKova. The cattle drive runs across an Aussie (Pate), his intended (Medina) and his personal guard (Strode). The fiance is only seeking money. A conflict with Indians causes truths to be exposed and decisions made. Nice to see Pate playing something other than an Indian. Always enjoy seeing Woody Strode make an appearance in anything.

Incident Of His Brother's Keeper (3.21) Jack Lord, Susan Oliver, Jeff Richards, Norman Leavitt. A wheelchair bound ranch owner (Lord) uses Pete Nolan to try and keep his wife and brother in line.

Incident In The Middle Of Nowhere (3.22) Cecil Kellaway, Fay Spain, Elisha Cook, Jr., Olan Soule. Looking for water brings our boys in the middle of a search for a lost vein of gold. Indians, an unusual prospector and a lying woman with partners make for an intriguing search.

Incident Of The Phantom Bugler (3.23) Vaughn Taylor, Jock Mahoney, Kathie Browne, Hardie Albright, Ken Mayer. A “jay-hawker” (Taylor) has designs on owning land and becoming a legitimate robber/baron. He maintains control by keeping a former officer (Mahoney) in line through his daughter (Browne).

The Paper Chase
Voices Of Silence (1.5) David Aykroyd, Len Birman, Pepe Serna. Logan drags Hart to participate in a prison program where students get a taste of acting as an advocate for prisoners in minor disputes. Logan finds out there is a misunderstood activist (Aykroyd) and becomes attracted by his charisma. Is she being used?

Nancy (1.6) Elyssa Davalos, Earl Boen, Allan Miller, Timothy Patrick Murphy. Hart's girlfriend Nancy (Davalos), brings Hart home to meet Dad (Miller) who just happens to be a mob lawyer. Although never explained, Dad is murdered and Hart and Nancy soon find themselves in the limelight. Hard choices must be made concerning both futures.

Da Da (1.7) Gerard Prendergast, Philip Abbott, Kim Cattrall, Jane Daly. An episode that I find to be very sadistic. Kingsfield totally humiliates a student for coming in late and not being fully prepared to discuss the case. Kingsfield has been shone to be demanding and a bully, but never this sadistic. I did like the teaching scene with Hart and others imitating Kingsfield. Partially redeemed this episode.

The Seating Chart (1.8) The things we do to be anonymous. Bell seems to think he gets singled out by Kingsfield because of his goofy seating chart picture. He enlists Hart in a hare-brained scheme to replace it. Hart has overextended himself in agreeing to index Kingsfield's newest book, watch the bar, see that the plumbing is repaired, make a deposit of the profits and go with Bell. Obviously, nothing goes right and he and Bell become locked in a closet in Kingsfield's office. Since this happens on a Friday, they are stuck with no food for a weekend.

I was feeling in the mood for some TZ that I don't watch often. I picked these two episodes. The first one I have maybe seen once before, I really enjoy the acting in the second one.
The Twilight Zone
Mute (4.5) Frank Overton, Ann Jillian, Barbara Baxley, Oscar Beregi, Jr. Telepathy run rampant.

Death Ship (4.6) Jack Klugman, Ross Martin, Fred Beir. What an actors episode. This story lives on the quality of the acting. Jack Klugman's determined leader, Ross Martin's willing obedience to his captain and Fred Beir's natural ease. Such a sad tale well told.

The Waltons
The Lie (3.15) Cindy Fisher, Warren Kemmerling. Ben is eager to help a girl he is interested in. He borrows John-boy's car to drive Nancy (Fisher) to a clandestine meeting with her mother in Charlottesville. While there, someone else borrows the car and involves it in a hit-and-run. A deputy shows up and John-boy is in trouble. Ben cannot tell as he promised Nancy. Good drama giving Ben (Eric Scott) an excellent showcase.

The Matchmakers (3.6) Ronnie Claire Edwards, Joe Conley. Introduction to Corabeth Walton (a cousin) who is traveling to Richmond and decides to visit her kinfolk (seems more like a force of nature settling in) although for some unknown reason, Ike is knocked out and seeks romantic help from John and Olivia.

The Beguiled (3.7) Willie Aames, Beeson Carroll, Darleen Carr. A spoiled coed (Carr) makes trouble for John-boy and Danny (Aames).

The Caretakers (3.8) Britt Leach. John feels that Grandpa is not taking his heart condition seriously and keeps trying to get him to slowdown. Grandpa and John have words as do Olivia and Grandma. Feeling like they are in the way and not wanted, Grandpa and Grandma accept a job acting as caretaker for a neighbors home.

The Shivaree (3.9) Bruce Davison, Deborah White, Robert Donner, James Gammon, E. J. Andre, Lee Philips, Wilford Brimley. Olivia is helping a young lady (White) have a traditional mountain wedding even though her fiance (Davison) just wants a quick impersonal civil ceremony. The mountain tradition of “shivaree” is not something he is eager to experience.

 

[JohnHopper]

Rawhide
Incident Of The Boomerang (3.20) Michael Pate, Woody Strode, Patricia Medina, James Drury, Frank DeKova. The cattle drive runs across an Aussie (Pate), his intended (Medina) and his personal guard (Strode). The fiance is only seeking money. A conflict with Indians causes truths to be exposed and decisions made. Nice to see Pate playing something other than an Indian. Always enjoy seeing Woody Strode make an appearance in anything.

Incident Of His Brother's Keeper (3.21) Jack Lord, Susan Oliver, Jeff Richards, Norman Leavitt. A wheelchair bound ranch owner (Lord) uses Pete Nolan to try and keep his wife and brother in line.

Incident In The Middle Of Nowhere (3.22) Cecil Kellaway, Fay Spain, Elisha Cook, Jr., Olan Soule. Looking for water brings our boys in the middle of a search for a lost vein of gold. Indians, an unusual prospector and a lying woman with partners make for an intriguing search.

Incident Of The Phantom Bugler (3.23) Vaughn Taylor, Jock Mahoney, Kathie Browne, Hardie Albright, Ken Mayer. A “jay-hawker” (Taylor) has designs on owning land and becoming a legitimate robber/baron. He maintains control by keeping a former officer (Mahoney) in line through his daughter (Browne).

The cream of the crop remains:

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.

¶ 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.

¶ Episode #21
“Incident of his Brother’s Keeper”
written by Buckley Angell
directed by Ted Hang’Em High Post
guests: Jack Lord, Susan Oliver, Jeff Richards, Norman Leavitt, Viola Harris

It’s a ruthless marital drama between two ranchers brothers (Jubal and Paul Evans) and a dubious woman in between. It’s also a scout Pete Nolan episode that starts with the support of Wishbone suffering from his back and stops into town to go to a spa. It’s interesting to notice a character situation because actor Jack Lord plays a cripple stuck on a wheelchair which will happen in another cowboy series: Stoney Burke, in the episode entitled “The Test”. After actor Robert Culp in “Incident at the Top of the World”, find another sick character. The voice-over opening narration returns here but with season 1 footages.

 

[Rustifer]

Episode Commentary
The Invaders
"Nightmare" (S1E6)

The tiny farm community of Grady, Kansas--most likely once ground zero for Auntie Em, Dorothy and Toto--seemingly has an insect problem. School teacher Ellen Woods (Kathleen Widdoes) visits one of her students at a farm to drop off some homework, but is suddenly swarmed by a cloud of locusts who seem to be controlled by a device that appears to be constructed from a Radio Shack yard sale. Sadly, Grady has no Orkin field office in the area.

Alien hunter and locust enthusiast David Vincent (Roy Thinnes) makes a beeline for Kansas after learning of the incident in the Grady Presbyterian Crier, his favorite curl-up-at-night reading material. As a close knit community, David finds himself about as welcome in Grady as Harvey Weinstein would be in Mayberry. It's gonna be tough to pry out any information from these huckleberrys. David is particularly interested in connecting with Ellen Woods, but is assured by her school principal Oliver Ames (Robert Emhardt) that she's a bit off her nut, having claimed she is the offspring of a unicorn. Stopping by the town diner for a bowl of grits 'n gravy, a group of locals beat the bacon out of David for asking too many questions about the locusts. The townsfolk are obviously still sore that the Orkin Company never set up an office in their town. Nor will anyone admit to knowledge of the mysterious device that controls the insects.

Does this &$%# thing come with instructions? Some days it's best to stay in bed; I swear, there WAS a bug on your boob...

Ellen is sure she saw the device and confesses it to her boyfriend Ed (James Callahan) who was one of David's diner assailants. Ed knows more than he's letting on, mostly because in a small town like Grady, it's the top end of the prowess scale to be the one nailing the school marm--and he surely doesn't want to jeopardize that. David has also incurred the wrath of the local sheriff, who is famous for having once arresting an entire corn field for stalking. Coincidently, David and Ellen are being chased by a horde of locusts through a corn field, eerily along the lines of the crop duster hunting down Cary Grant in North By Northwest. Good visuals are always worth copying. They duck into a silo where David takes particular care in brushing off rogue locusts clinging to Ellen's prominent hooters. They quickly discover the silo is actually an experimental lab filled with genetically altered insects and horrifyingly witness butterflies taking to a hunk of hamburger much like Perry Mason to a Chinese buffet.

Of course the whole affair is the doing of aliens that David will never be able to prove. Even the secret device is worthless as proof. Turns out it has some bugs that need to be worked out.

I count at least two groan-inducing puns in this commentary...

 

[benbess]

I've enjoyed the 1960s Western The Virginian since 2010, which is when I got the first season on DVD. After that I picked up all the seasons as they were released. When I got the DVDs the picture quality seemed good for a show from that era, but as our TVs got bigger the limitations of the DVD format became more apparent. Starz has been streaming The Virginian in high definition for a while, although I only watched about a dozen episodes that way, and so with some regret earlier this year I traded-in all my DVD sets of The Virginian to Half Price books. I hadn't watched the DVDs for years, and I needed to free up some shelf space. But then I got busy watching other things, and so I decided to let go of Starz for a while.

But yesterday, wanting that specific kind of Western fix that only The Virginian seems to give me, I resubscribed and skipped right away to episode 20 from the first season, for an episode called "If You Have Tears." First broadcast February 13, 1963, it guest stars Dana Wynter. Like some others, I've been a fan of hers since I was a kid and watched the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers. This episode has additional guest stars Robert Vaughn, Phyllis Avery, and a few others as well. The show's 75-minute episodes are like good little B Westerns, often more focused on drama than action, with somewhat fancy production values for that era. There's a murder mystery in this one, as well as a bit of a love story that, of course, goes wrong, because we know the Virginian needs to be single again by the next episode. Somewhat poignant ending, which I liked. From a book I read on The Virginian, I learned that both those in front of and behind the camera felt they were reaching for something above the average TV show of the time, and with this episode, and many others, I feel like they made it.

My rating for "If You Have Tears": A-

 

[Rustifer]

Episode Commentary
The Andy Griffith Show
"A Deal Is A Deal" (S4E26)

My dad was a district sales manager for a large company and seemingly worked 24/7. Whether he was on the road, in his office or at home--before, during and after dinner--he was always on the phone talking to his sales guys, his boss and his customers. As a kid hearing these conversations, it was all gobbledygook to me as the strategies of marketing widgets being a process beyond my ten year-old comprehension. Now and then, I'd hear my old man mysteriously lower his voice and say, "Between you, me and the lamppost..." before continuing the conversation with what I could only imagine was some sort of conspiratorial plan of secret sales ploys. For years afterwards I wondered who was this "Lamppost" guy that seemed to be in on all these plots?

Opie (Ron Howard) and his squad of peeps are in a dead heat to see which one of them could sell the most Miracle Salve jars in order to win a pony. The concoction is supposed to offer relief from poison ivy, crows' feet, athlete's foot and skin rashes among the numerous ailments suffered by society at large. Having no coherent sales pitch, none of the boys are showing any sort of Horatio Alger success. One of the boys--Trey--is so disappointed, he remits his supply of salve back to the company hoping to get a refund on his investment. The Miracle Salve Company promptly sends Trey a letter "blackballing" him instead. This instills fear in Opie and the gang--who believe "blackballing" might mean some sort of horrible testicular affliction.

The salve doesn't sell itself; Barney and Gomer pose as vets; The afflicted line up for some stiffening...

Incensed with this sort of big corporate intimidation, Barney Fife (Don Knotts) enlists the aid of Gomer Pyle (Jim Nabors) to descend upon the Miracle Salve Company in order to "outfox the foxes". This is akin to sending the Bowery Boys to the US Treasury Department to argue inflationary price indexing formulas. Posing as animal vets, Barney and Gomer concoct a story of how the salve cures mange in dogs. As a result, could they acquire the entire stock--requesting that Miracle Company also buy back Opie and his friends' supply as well? The company happily agrees and much to Opie and friends relief, they avoid "blackballing" while getting back their money, too.

Of course, Miracle Salve's entire stock unfortunately ends up piled in Andy and Barney's courthouse office. Only by accident--which is never disclosed by Barney--it's discovered that the salve is a sure-fire cure for erectile dysfunction. The line of citizens forming outside the courthouse hasn't been duplicated since the last election.