What did you watch this week in classic TV on DVD(or Blu)? (8 Viewers)

[Rustifer]

Good stuff, Russ! Interesting "randoms" about Chuck Connors, et al.

While The Rifleman is not at the tippy top of my favorite TV westerns list (mainly due to how drippy and whiny lil' Johnny Crawford can get at times...seriously, is this kid really Lucas McCain's son?), Connors is always great in it. The Rifleman opening, however, IS one of my all-time faves...just love Connors' cocky side-eye to the camera...such a badass.

By the way, Chuck Connors fires off 12 rounds in the opening credits. I know everyone was holding their breath on this.

 

[Montytc]

Mannix Sn.2
Episode 2:Comes Up Rose
Very good episode with Sheree North In a big role. Peggy makes herself a little more known in this one after only a cameo in episode 1. Mannix helps a good ex cop who is under pressure to go bad. He also takes his usual beating in a bar scene. No way he could afford health insurance in todays environment.

Burkes Law Sn.1
Episode 17: Who Killed What's His Name?
Episode 18: Who Killed Madison Cooper?
I enjoy this show and blasted through the first half of the season several years ago, but then left this box untouched. Too many guest stars to mention in both episodes, but I enjoyed the first one more. The second one was a little too campy for my taste.

Flipper Sn.1
Episode 3: SOS Dolphin
Episode 4: The Gulf Between
There was some discussion of this show in a couple of earlier posts and I couldn't resist pulling it off the shelf after a long rest. It is of course light weight stuff, but I admit I enjoyed it in a small dose.

Happy Days Sn.6
Episode 1,2&3: Westward Ho!
Episode 4: Fonzie's Blindness
I'm currently in the middle of season 2 of this show but I skipped ahead to see if the latter years really had fallen off as bad as people were discussing in another thread. Sadly I have to agree that there is a dramatic change in the show and not for the better. I guess back in the day when it was happening slowly it didn't seem like such a big deal, but jumping ahead like this was jarring. The show could just as well be called "The Fonzie Show" t this point and it completely moves away from the fifties setting. Filming in front of a live audience doesn't do this show any favors either. I am going to go through season three and that might be about it.

 

[Montytc]

Petticoat Junction - 1.3 "The President Who Came to Dinner"

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea
2.13 "The Monster from Outer Space"
The boilerplate title says it all. The Seaview crew deal with some kind of weird hairy red balloon monster that hitched a ride on an unmanned spacecraft. The beastie can shrink or grow at will and can take over human minds in a sort of vampiric, hive mind manner.

It took me a while to become engaged in this episode, but eventually things started to click. There is still something...I don't know...a little dull about this show. I've been trying to put my finger on what it is, aside from the generally juvenile and simplistic nature of the plots and dialogue. I think it partly comes down to Richard Baseheart as Nelson. He's kind of a damp squib as a series lead. A good actor, no doubt, but he just doesn't strike me as right for the part, somehow. I think this show really needed someone more charismatic, bombastic, more commanding, to balance out the silliness. Baseheart is, IMO, too interior, too quiet, too contained. This worked fine for the more down-to-earth, serious first season, but these season two episodes need someone with a bit more "oomph." All I can say is this is one series I loved as a kid but struggle with as an adult. Will keep trying...

I/QUOTE]

I loved all the Irwin Allen Shows back in the day but I struggle with all of them now. Deanna Lund Of "Land Of the Giants" was some of the first must see TV for me, but now I struggle to get through an episode of that one. Somehow "The Time Tunnel" works best for me now.[/QUOTE]

 

[Jeff Flugel]

By the way, Chuck Connors fires off 12 rounds in the opening credits. I know everyone was holding their breath on this.

Russ, have you seen this video before, detailing the death toll racked up by our man Connors over five seasons of The Rifleman?



Love when McCain scores a "trifecta."

 

[Jeff Flugel]

Flipper Sn.1
Episode 3: SOS Dolphin
Episode 4: The Gulf Between
There was some discussion of this show in a couple of earlier posts and I couldn't resist pulling it off the shelf after a long rest. It is of course light weight stuff, but I admit I enjoyed it in a small dose.

Yes, agreed on this point. Flipper is a cute enough show, but I can't manage more than one every several months or so. It's the main reason why I don't plan on buying the Blu-Ray sets. I think the first season on DVD will suit me just fine.

I loved all the Irwin Allen Shows back in the day but I struggle with all of them now. Deanna Lund Of "Land Of the Giants" was some of the first must see TV for me, but now I struggle to get through an episode of that one. Somehow "The Time Tunnel" works best for me now.

That's as good a reason as any for watching Land of the Giants. I also think The Time Tunnel has aged the best, but even it starts to run out of steam by the end of the first season. There's lots to like in all of these Irwin Allen series, but the scripts let them down more often than not.

 

[John*Wells]

Not sure if Star Trek discovery season 1 is classic yet. But I just found it in wal mart so I got it

 

[BobO'Link]

^Nope. Far too new to be considered "Classic." Maybe in 15-20 years... although the OP never stated what is meant by "classic." I tend to consider that anything from the beginnings of TV up to about 1980 or so. Taking into consideration that it's almost 20 years since the turn of the century it may be time for me to reconsider my stance to include up to 2000. After all, younger folks have a different view on what's "classic" as you tend to think of those shows you saw as a kid/teenager in that respect.

 

[BobO'Link]

A week or so back I purchased a copy of the BBC mini-series Day of the Triffids. It originally aired in 1981 in 6 half hour segments. I'm a fan of the 1963 film and have frequently read that the BBC version is perhaps the best version filmed so far and very faithful to the book, which I've never read.

It's been several years since I've seen that 1963 film so don't really recall enough for direct comparison but I do remember enough to know that it's quite different from this mini series.

I really enjoyed the BBC series. The story is far more fleshed out than the 1963 film and deals more with the societal aspects of dealing with a world shaking event. You see how people are affected, how difficult it is to deal with the new order, how desperate people can become, and how some take advantage of the situation. It gets a bit talkie at times but never for too long and occasionally suffers from what I call "staginess" (sounding/looking like it's a stage production being filmed - a common complaint of mine for earlier BBC TV productions) but not enough to be hurt. I've read it takes a few episodes to get going but I don't agree. It jumps into the story from the outset although it does take our hero a bit to gain his footing. Visual effects are good and the Triffids are quite menacing. The score is haunting and menacing. I like that it's in half hour segments but part of me also would like to see it all edited together as one long piece. I'm really glad I finally picked up a copy.

For fans of post-apocalyptic films this is a must watch series.

 

[Peter M Fitzgerald]

The BBC made a 6-part radio drama out of the book in 1960, a couple of years before the theatrical film was released (which I first saw on TV in the 1980s). I listened to it quite a while before I watched the 1981 mini-series, and was one of the reasons why I ultimately bought the DVD collection several years ago.

 

[Rustifer]

Russ, have you seen this video before, detailing the death toll racked up by our man Connors over five seasons of The Rifleman?



Love when McCain scores a "trifecta."

Serial killer.
Justified, of course.
Legal paperwork must have been staggering.

 

[Doug Wallen]

Gunsmoke - Season 5
Crowbait Bob (5.28) Hank Patterson, Ned Glass, Shirley O'Hara. A sad man, who is acting as the town drunk is very ill. His family has no respect for him and gladly wished him dead until the rumor mill cranks up that he hit a rich vein of gold where he is mining. He leaves all of his worldly possessions to Kitty (she was kind to him). Family tries to play up to the man as he is dying. Matt suggests they square his accounts, they do. When they return hoping to be rewarded, they find he has died. Kitty gets his treasure - not gold, just personal momentos.
Colleen So Green (5.29) Joanna Moore, Harry Swoger, Dabbs Greer. A helpless little thing arrives in Dodge and wraps every man around her little finger, even Chester.
The Ex-Urbanites (5.30) Robert Wilkie, Ken Curtis. Another excellent Chester and Doc outing that takes place outside of Dodge. Ken Curtis in another pre-Festus role as a man without a conscience. The final moments between Chester and Matt surprised me.
I Thee Wed (5.31) Allyn Joslyn, Alice Frost, Hank Patterson. Wife beating in the old west. Matt frowns upon it, the wife accepts it. "He's not gonna do it again, he's learned his lesson." Some wives just never learn and are pushed to do the unthinkable.
The Lady Killer (5.32) Jan Harrison, Harry Lauter, Ross Elliot. A government witness is back in Dodge to testify at an upcoming trial and is murdered by a slick killer who makes it appear to be a case of attempted rape. Matt doesn't believe her story and finds himself in her sights.
Gentleman's Disagreement (5.33) Fintan Meyler, Val Dufour, Adam Kennedy. A love triangle always causes trouble in Dodge. OK story with a great Doc and Chester opening.

Stoney Burke - Complete Series
Point Of Entry - (1.21) Antoinette Bower, Stefan Geirasch, Cesare Danova, William Smith, Henry Darrow. International intrigue involving defectors and assassins. Not typical fare for this series and a misfire with me.
To Catch The Kaiser (1.22) Diana Hyland, John Anderson, Bing Russell. A return to stories set in the world of rodeo and horses. Stoney is hired to catch an escaped horse by the woman who rode him. She has been crippled by this animal and wants him returned to be broken since he has returned to his wild roots. Stoney uncovers her true motive.
Joby (1.23) Robert Duvall, James Patterson, Frank Overton, Joyce Van Patten, John Karlen. Stoney has befriended a good natured but slow stable hand. An unscrupulous reporter discovers his "past" and incites fear by publicizing lies (no valid facts) about Joby. Robert Duvall is in "Boo Radley" mode in this episode and I was captivated from the outset.
Forget No More (1.24) Laura Devon, Kenneth Tobey, Noah Keen. Another atypical episode that has Stoney acting as a therapist. Interesting episode that touches upon the fragility of what our minds are able to handle when witnessing tragedy. A young woman witnessed her father's death in a rodeo show and she is still searching for her father.
Color Him Lucky (1.25) Lin McCarthy, Robert Cornthwaite, Judson Pratt. A rider who was wrongly convicted is pardoned. His pardon is not as well receivied as his conviction was. Townspeople do not want him to participate in the rodeo, Stoney feels otherwise. Average stand up for the innocently convicted story.
The Weapons Man (1.26) J. D. Cannon, Henry Silva, Pilar Seurat, Philip Ahn, Frank DeKova. Stoney gets to help a weapons expert uncover who assassinated a prominent diplomat in a trick that was "just an accident".

Mission: Impossible - Season 3
The Mind of Stefan Miklos (3.13) Steve Inhat, Jason Evers, Edward Asner, Vic Perrin. The IMF team lead an egotistical investigator through some amazing hoops to convince him that a known double agent is bringing them good intel (even though it is not!).
The Test Case (3.14) David Hurst, Noah Keen, Paul Carr, Richard Bull. Rollin must place himself in an experiment where he must "die" in order to destroy a bacteria that causes meningitis.
The System(3.15) James Patterson, Val Avery. gambling is the backdrop for this con in getting a criminal to turn on his boss.
The Glass Cage (3.16) Lloyd Bochner, Larry Linville, Richard Garland. An elaborate jailbreak totally faked to undermine the jailer. Nice use of a James West tactic by crossing an electric floor without touching it.

 

[JohnHopper]

Stoney Burke - Complete Series
Point Of Entry - (1.21) Antoinette Bower, Stefan Geirasch, Cesare Danova, William Smith, Henry Darrow. International intrigue involving defectors and assassins. Not typical fare for this series and a misfire with me.
To Catch The Kaiser (1.22) Diana Hyland, John Anderson, Bing Russell. A return to stories set in the world of rodeo and horses. Stoney is hired to catch an escaped horse by the woman who rode him. She has been crippled by this animal and wants him returned to be broken since he has returned to his wild roots. Stoney uncovers her true motive.
Joby (1.23) Robert Duvall, James Patterson, Frank Overton, Joyce Van Patten, John Karlen. Stoney has befriended a good natured but slow stable hand. An unscrupulous reporter discovers his "past" and incites fear by publicizing lies (no valid facts) about Joby. Robert Duvall is in "Boo Radley" mode in this episode and I was captivated from the outset.
Forget No More (1.24) Laura Devon, Kenneth Tobey, Noah Keen. Another atypical episode that has Stoney acting as a therapist. Interesting episode that touches upon the fragility of what our minds are able to handle when witnessing tragedy. A young woman witnessed her father's death in a rodeo show and she is still searching for her father.
Color Him Lucky (1.25) Lin McCarthy, Robert Cornthwaite, Judson Pratt. A rider who was wrongly convicted is pardoned. His pardon is not as well receivied as his conviction was. Townspeople do not want him to participate in the rodeo, Stoney feels otherwise. Average stand up for the innocently convicted story.
The Weapons Man (1.26) J. D. Cannon, Henry Silva, Pilar Seurat, Philip Ahn, Frank DeKova. Stoney gets to help a weapons expert uncover who assassinated a prominent diplomat in a trick that was "just an accident".

The best of the bunch remain:
"Point of Entry" (unsold pilot): some cues will be tracked on The Outer Limits.
"To Catch the Kaiser": some cues will be tracked on The Outer Limits as in "The Guests".
"The Weapons Man" (unsold pilot): good score that will be reworked as "The Hundred Days of the Dragon" on The Outer Limits.

Mission: Impossible - Season 3
The Mind of Stefan Miklos (3.13) Steve Inhat, Jason Evers, Edward Asner, Vic Perrin. The IMF team lead an egotistical investigator through some amazing hoops to convince him that a known double agent is bringing them good intel (even though it is not!).
The Test Case (3.14) David Hurst, Noah Keen, Paul Carr, Richard Bull. Rollin must place himself in an experiment where he must "die" in order to destroy a bacteria that causes meningitis.
The System(3.15) James Patterson, Val Avery. gambling is the backdrop for this con in getting a criminal to turn on his boss.
The Glass Cage (3.16) Lloyd Bochner, Larry Linville, Richard Garland. An elaborate jailbreak totally faked to undermine the jailer. Nice use of a James West tactic by crossing an electric floor without touching it.

The season 3 masterpiece remains "The Mind of Stefan Miklos" thanks to the script by Paul Playdon and the acting of Steve Ihnat.
Anyway, I also enjoy the duo of prison episodes: "The Test Case" (actor Martin Landau shines) and "The Glass Cage".

 

[JohnHopper]

RAWHIDE SEASON 8

Episode #8
“Clash at Broken Bluff”
written by Lou Vittes
story by Lou Vittes and Ed Adamson
directed by Charles Haas
edited by Robert Sparr
music composed by Billy May
guests: Ron Randell, Nancy Gates, Warren Stevens, L.Q. Jones, Elisabeth Fraser, Lyn Edgington

Yates is refused the right to cross the land of the late Mr. Webster with his herd. The current mayor Mal Thorner (actor Ron Randell) of Broken Bluff and his hatchet man Talbot (actor Warren Stevens) offer free supplies and free drinks if the outfit of Yates vote for him. Entering into town, the outfit of Yates discovers a bunch of suffragettes led by Cassie Webster (actress Nancy Gates) marching and demonstrating and sabotaging. The current mayor try to do his best to beat the suffragettes but things take a nasty turn when Talbot tries to get rid of the opponent. Who is going to win the election at Broken Bluff?

It’s a corny political episode about suffragettes on campaign. It’s the second entry after “The Vasquez Woman” centered around the fate of a woman and the interesting side is that the leading suffragette Cassie Webster is chased by two men: Rowdy Yates and Mal Thorner. It’s also a Ian Cabot entry with the recurring drover Pee Jay (actor L.Q. Jones) with his long hat from “Six Weeks to Bent Fork” that is wasted and un-necessary.

Actor Ron Randell appears on a season 1 Wild Wild West episode: “The Night of the Fatal Trap”.

 

[Montytc]

Russ, have you seen this video before, detailing the death toll racked up by our man Connors over five seasons of The Rifleman?



Love when McCain scores a "trifecta."

Well, someone has to keep the peace.

 

[JohnHopper]

RAWHIDE SEASON 8

Episode #9
“The Pursuit”
written by John Dunkel
directed by Justus Addiss
edited by Robert Sparr
music composed and conducted by Bernard Herrmann
guests: Ralph Bellamy, Jim Davis

Drover Jed Colby (actor John Ireland) stops his horse to fill up his canteen when a mysterious sniper takes a potshot at him and forces him to leave right away and reports his predicament to the outfit. At night, Yates finally catches the sniper which happens to be retired US Marshal Hanson Dickson (actor Ralph Bellamy) on his way to catch a wanted murderer: Jed Colby known as James Crothers. Later on, Yates warns Colby about his criminal status and let him flee. The fanatical Marshal arrests Yates to have helped a criminal. Yates ends up behind bars.

It’s a good and futile fugitive on the run intrigue combined with a diehard revenge subplot. The strength of the episode is the atmospheric night scenes. The gravitas of Jed Colby is highlit in this entry and, moreover, we learn a little bit about him and his runaway status reminds the season 5 “Incident of the Portrait”. The prologue shows a subjective point of the view of the marshal’s rifle. The score by Herrmann is beautiful and haunting but also contains stock music—I suspect the score to be partial. Moreover, it features a good guest cast of lawmen: Ralph Bellamy, Jim Davis.

 

[John*Wells]

Star Trek TOS Season 1 .. The Man Trap, Where No man has Gone before, Charlie X

 

[morasp]

Not sure if Star Trek discovery season 1 is classic yet. But I just found it in wal mart so I got it

Not sure it matters too much, I enjoy reading peoples thoughts on newer shows too. My loose definition of classic is at least ten years old and/or no longer in production. If you think about it to a 20 year old that is classic.

 

[Jeff Flugel]

Not sure it matters too much, I enjoy reading peoples thoughts on newer shows too. My loose definition of classic is at least ten years old and/or no longer in production. If you think about it to a 20 year old that is classic.

I guess the term "classic" varies from person to person. I have a feeling that the original thread starter meant classic more in terms of age of show rather than quality. In my case, I define "classic" as pre-2000 (though rarely post about anything beyond the 1980s). I think both you and Howie touch on this, that the parameters of "vintage" have moved at least a bit as the years pass by. Many of us middle-aged or older members might think of something like The X-Files or Star Trek: The Next Generation as "newer" shows, but of course, both of these shows (excluding the final two recent seasons of The X-Files) are 20 - 25 years old now, and so probably fit the basic definition of "classic."

So while, in my opinion, Star Trek: Discovery is far too new to be deemed classic, I'm not going to give John a hard time about it if he wants to post it here.

 

[ClassicTVMan1981X]

I guess the term "classic" varies from person to person. I have a feeling that the original thread starter meant classic more in terms of age of show rather than quality. In my case, I define "classic" as pre-2000 (though rarely post about anything beyond the 1980s). I think both you and Howie touch on this, that the parameters of "vintage" have moved at least a bit as the years pass by. Many of us middle-aged or older members might think of something like The X-Files or Star Trek: The Next Generation as "newer" shows, but of course, both of these shows (excluding the final two recent seasons of The X-Files) are 20 - 25 years old now, and so probably fit the basic definition of "classic."

So while, in my opinion, Star Trek: Discovery is far too new to be deemed classic, I'm not going to give John a hard time about it if he wants to post it here.

My preferred definition of "classic TV" runs the gamut from the early days of TV (circa 1948) up to about 1990, when there were new cable networks re-running most of the older programs.

~Ben

 

[Doug Wallen]

When I first found this thread, I made the assumption that "Classic" was the 50's, 60's and maybe 70's. That was "Classic" to me. We are nearly 20 years into this century and I have fond memories of shows from the 80's and 90's. I guess "Classic" has to be determined by each person participating.

I do know a car has to be at least 20 years old before it is considered a "Classic". Guess that will be my standard also .