Wayne
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WHAT
I'M WATCHING
Night
Gallery Season 2
For many fans season two was far superior to year one - there are more episodes and many classic stories by Rod Serling like 'The Diary' with Patty Duke as a viscous gossip columnist with a date book that predicts her future and Orson Welles as the narrator of Serling's adaptation of 'Silent Snow, Secret Snow.'
From the product description: Prepare for the unexpected as Season Two of Night Gallery comes to DVD! This 5-disc DVD set contains 61 stories, created and hosted by the master of mystery: The Twilight Zone’s Rod Serling. With guest performances by Hollywood legends that reads like a roster of Who’s Who in Hollywood, you’ll be sure to see sights to amaze! Featuring audio commentaries, behind-the-scenes featurettes, and a gallery presentation of the paintings from the series, this collector’s set is the classic anthology of timeless, spine-tingling entertainment you don’t dare to miss!
The picture and sound quality are quite fine and many TV favorites turn up in both chilling and humorous storylines - 'Class of '99' with Vincent Price, H.P. Lovecraft's 'Cool Air' with Barbara Rush, John Carradine in Richard Matheson's 'Big Surprise' are just a few of the best.
In addition to the 22 hour long episodes, there are some very informative podcast commentaries by Night Gallery historians Scott Skelton & Jim Benson and 3 commentaries by director Guillermo Del Toro (Hellboy, Pan's Labyrinth).
Night Gallery can be a frustrating experience because of all the poorly executed episodes and silly vignettes but when it works it's a very effective horror anthology.
Monday, September 26, 2011 - 11:49am
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YOU MAY HAVE SEEN HIS WORK
Providence, Rhode Island and NYC Kid's TV has suffered another loss - former host/performer and rock and roll music TV producer Chet Dowling died early this month in Los Angeles. He had been suffering from a long, undisclosed illness.
Chet began his TV career playing one of the clowns on WJAR TV 10's (the NBC TV Affiliate) Tip Top Circus with Ted Knight and Walter Covell. When Ted Knight left Uncle Ted's Backyard to emcee another local kids TV series Uncle Ted & His Clubhouse Gang for a Utica, New York station.
Chet took over the series, which was retitled Uncle Charlie's Backyard. Here Chet Dowling would perform puppet and comedy skit between the reruns of Looney Tunes movie cartoons (he would even perform skits with a Daffy Duck puppet live on camera). He also served as the puppeteer on Hippity Hop: The Cartoon Cop (which had a rabbit-like police officer and his animal puppet pals perform comedy skits and interview guest performers and personalities between the reruns of cartoons).
In the early 1960s Chet left WJAR and moved to NYC where he would write and produce many of WPIX TV 11's most popular kid's shows, including Let's Have Fun (the Chuck McCann/Paul Ashley version), The Popeye Show with Captain Jack McCarthy, The Three Stooges Firehouse with Fireman Todd Russell, The Dick Tracy Show with Police Chief Joe Bolton and The Chuck McCann Show.
Chet also wrote and produced The Eddie Lawrence Show and, for a time, The Clay Cole Show.
He left WPIX TV and moved to Hollywood CA where he wrote and produced other TV series like Whitney & The Robot, The Lost Saucer (with Jim Nabors, the late Alice Playten and Ruth Buzzi) and Three's Company.
Chet would retire from the entertainment industry and became an appraiser of nostalgic memorabilia for an antique warehouse in Southern California. until the early part of the 20th century when he was forced to retire due to failing health.
Monday, September 26, 2011 - 11:49am
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STUFF
My fave TV show right now is Louie starring Louis C.K. who writes, directs and edits the series. It's just brilliant and if you share my love for the show there's a great interview with the comic where he goes through season 2 in detail. Very interesting how he works.
Who would have ever guessed Chastity (now Chaz) Bono would be starring in a hit show? Fox News has been hammering her and she's refused to give them any interviews. Hey, she grew up as Cher's daughter, she knows how to play the media!
Justin Kaplovitz writes: Reading Pete Delaney's article about the 1990 anti-drug "Epic" Cartoon All-Stars To the Rescue, I'm kind of surprised to see that the whole idea had sort of a "Doomed from the start" kind of feel around it, even though it mostly did what it was supposed to do in--what is essentially--a 30 minute anti-drug commercial. Even more surprising was the fact that our current VP was the mastermind behind it. While visiting one of my (other) favorite sites, I came across this review of the show from 2007. It was done by the same guy who did that review of the "Star Wars Holiday Special" I had sent you a while back, in fact, this was his first ever review on the internet--Back when he was on Youtube only, very primitive compared to his later work.
It pretty much mirrors the same sentiment felt in the article, but with far more of a slant.
Amazon has my book Beyond Our Wildest Dreams on sale now for less than $15.00. What a bargain for 340 pages with 400 pictures!
I'm just now getting the marketing outreach out for my new book. We're concentrating on publications, TV & radio in LA, Las Vegas, Cherry Hill, NJ, and Philly. If you know of a radio station (doesn't have to be in those cities) that might like to have The Rat Pack Golddiggers on their morning or other show please send me the info and I'll get in touch with them!
If you're into Twitter and you want to follow the Rat Pack Golddiggers you can find them here.
Thursday, September 22, 2011 - 8:12am
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MEN
Susan Walker writes: Thanks for the post about Timm Perry. I'm so sorry to hear of his death, but happy that he's with his mother and father at last.
As for Two and a Half Men - I couldn't agree with you more. It was simply tasteless and unfunny and it'll be off the air possibly before January. I was listening to Bob and Sheri (they're a radio team here in Charlotte and syndicated throughout the US) on the way in to work this morning and they were saying the same thing - and made the same comment as you about the laugh track.
On the sunny side though, the premiere of How I Met Your Mother was fabulous, as was Raising Hope.
One more note, and I'll go away. In a conversation with my father a week or so ago, I asked him how I got my name - Susan Camille. His response? "Susan, I hate to tell you this, but it was from a TV show." I was not displeased at all to find out that I definitely had been named for Ann Sothern's character in Private Secretary. Ms. Sothern was one of the all-time great actresses - a dame in the best sense of the word - and I'm thrilled and proud to have been named for Susie. I still adore her as Rosie Harrigan, aka "Countess Framboise" on The Lucy Show. Who can forget Gale Gordon clicking his heels and saying "COUN-tess!"
Maybe that's where I got my fixation with TV history - it began at birth!
Thanks Susan. Ratings were actually up for the reboot of Two and a Half Men but that was to be expected. And the critics in general lauded the show. I don't see how - the first scene alone, the funeral, was just crass with no redeeming value that I could discern other than bashing Charlie Sheen. I've seen very funny funeral scenes, as have you (Mary Tyler Moore Show anyone?) but that wasn't even close. And are we really supposed to believe Berta killed Charlie - on purpose apparently - and NO ONE cares a bit? I mean, I get that it's a sitcom and I get that this is LA, but really? That said, I thought Ashton Kutcher was really great in his role but it's a good thing he got a Play or Pay deal so even if the show is cancelled he still will be the highest paid actor on TV. Winning!
Susan mentioned Bob & Sheri - I think they have the best morning show in America, I would actually tune in if they were in my city and I despise commercial radio. So I'm relegated to listening when I travel.
Thursday, September 22, 2011 - 8:12am
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DREADFUL!
Did you see Two and a Half Men with Ashton Kutcher? I couldn't resist - wow, what a massive, massive train wreck that was! They had the laugh track turned up to 11 right from the start. I get that the show is tasteless, that's what I like about it, but tasteless and unfunny is just wrong. I wonder what the cast's reaction to the script was? I give the show 'til January then goodbye and the kid gets his own show.
Monday, September 19, 2011 - 8:09am
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CUCHI CUCHI
One of my fave talk and variety shows guests of the 1970s was Charo. (I say that in past tense because, while Charo is very much still around, those shows aren't!) Here's Charo with Tonight show with guest host Don Rickles:
Monday, September 19, 2011 - 8:09am
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FOR THE BEST REALLY
There was a person I've mentioned on this blog by the name of Timm Perry, he was the son of George Perry who played The Old Rebel for 27 years on the CBS affiliate WFMY in Greensboro, NC.
Timm passed away recently and yesterday I went to his funeral. I only found out about his death an hour before the service. Timm had a very tough life and suffered from ill health for years. I hadn't had contact with him this year due to my mom's own health issues and trying to get projects moving forward. This has been the toughest year of my life but it would have been Timm's best year ever, I suspect, if he were in my shoes. Beginning with his dad's sudden death from a heart attack (a broken heart, really) at age 55 in 1977, Timm never regained his footing in life. He had big dreams but not the where-with-all to make them come true. Of course, a lot of that has to do with luck and Timm had very little of that going for him.
Timm did do one thing extremely well - he played the definitive Santa every year at the Sedgefield Country Club, The Four Seasons Mall and other places. He was the city's 'real' Santa for a time. A Christmas tradition for me was taking Timm and his mother Martha out for a nice meal and they wwere always so appreciative.
Here's some video I shot with my phone of The Old Rebel Show auction that was held last October to raise money for Timm - I wish I had spent more time shooting more video, Timm looked and sounded exactly like his Father.
Timm recently had a leg removed due to Diabeties and was utterly and completely alone at the time of his death, ever since his mother's passing last year. They had lived together their entire lives. He was dependent on the kindness of others to survive and I feel really badly that I wasn't there for him at the end. My excuses aren't good enough.
But he was fortunate to have been taken under the wing of and cared for by the Rankin Baptist Church who gave him a send-off yesterday worthy of a dignitary, the music and the service was so beautiful. Every time I got together with Timm and his mother they spoke fondly of the people there, marvelling at how much help they had been to two people who, by that time, were so crippled they could barely get to where they were going.
But go they did, every day for years and years taking a bus to the Harris-Teeter or Barnes & Noble at Friendly Center - where they just went and hung out and talked to people. On Thursday evening at 7:00 the Friendly Barnes & Noble will be holding a get together in honor of Timm's passing and I'm going to reprint some Old Rebel Show booklets to give out I made for the reunion we put on at the Greensboro Public Library back in 1999. That may have been one of the happiest days of Timm and Martha's life.
Timm loved both his mother and father dearly, more than anything, and they are now together. That's why I say it's for the best.
Monday, September 19, 2011 - 7:03am
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Your host - Billy Ingram is one of the nation's top Pop Culture Gurus and expert on classic TV. Seen on VH1, |
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