TV Shows – Page 29 – PowerPop… An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture

Avery Schreiber

I saw this man in the seventies on commercials and game shows but never knew his name. He was always funny and caught my attention. Avery was an actor and comedian. He is best remembered as part of the comedy team of Burns and Schreiber, which he formed with Jack Burns. He was a crowd standout with his huge trademark walrus mustache and thick curly black hair.

Jack Burns, Avery’s partner, played Deputy Warren Ferguson on the Andy Griffith Show. Burns was filling a void left by Don Knotts but it didn’t really work.

At their peak, Schreiber and Burns appeared as regulars on the summer replacement musical variety series “Our Place” (1967), then earned the right to front their own summer series with “The Burns and Schreiber Comedy Hour” (1973).

Schreiber is also remembered for his various Doritos corn chip commercial advertisements in various disguises (chef, sultan, pilot), all of them perturbed by people loudly crunching on the popular chip.

Avery appeared in a number of TV series and movies, including “My Mother the Car” and “Days of Our Lives” on television, and the Mel Brooks’ film “Robin Hood: Men in Tights.”He was a regular guest star on the television comedy “Chico and the Man” and was also a frequent guest on the game show “Match Game” and in a first-season episode of “The Muppet Show.” He continued to work in film, television and the Theater until the time of his death in 2002.

Burns and Schreiber

Classic TV Episodes: All In The Family – Edith’s Problem

This particular episode was about women going through menopause which today would not receive a second notice…but then, comedy shows just didn’t feature subjects like this. All In The Family had so many great episodes that it is hard picking out one. In this one, the tables are turned and Edith rounds on Archie with a vengeance because of her mood swings caused by menopause.

All in the Family changed the game in sitcoms and television. In the early seventies, many country type sitcoms were canceled when this show debuted in 1971. As Pat Butram of Green Acres said: “CBS canceled everything with a tree including Lassie.”

The show tackled controversial subjects such as racism, rape, gun control, feminism, and homophobia. It was under fire from the first episode for its controversial subject matter. Critics and viewers were divided on what they were seeing…some saw it as comic genius and some as tasteless bigotry. The backlash did not come only from the public and the reviewers. Several actors including Harrison Ford turned down roles in the show because they were offended by the script’s humor.

Lucille Ball lambasted CBS for running such an “Un-American” show on the same network her own series was airing on. I seriously doubt if the show could be made today on network television. The show was a huge success in the seventies.

Mike Stivic: [Edith is going through menopause] What did the doctor say?
Archie Bunker: He just said that menopause is a pretty tough time to be going through; especially for nervous types.
Mike Stivic: So?
Archie Bunker: So he prescribed these here pills.
[takes bottle of pills out of paper bag]
Mike Stivic: Oh, good.
Archie Bunker: I gotta take three of ’em a day.

Edith Bunker: STIFLE STIFLE STIFLE

“If you’re gonna change, Edith, change! Right now! CHANGE!”

All In The Family: Edith’s Problem

Characters: Edith Bunker, Archie Bunker, Mike Stivic, Gloria Stivic, and The Waitress

The Bunker family is thrown into an uproar when the normally docile Edith undergoes several sudden and unexpected mood swings, yelling at her family and displaying a foul temper that makes Archie look like a pussycat! Though the men in the family don’t quite know what is happening, Gloria does: Edith is going through menopause. Perhaps the best and funniest line of the episode is when an upset Archie, who’s frustrated at his wife’s sudden and constantly unpredictable mood changes, yells at Edith: “If you’re gonna change, Edith, change! Right now! CHANGE!”

The short scene starts at 15 seconds.

The complete episode

“Boy, the way Glen Miller played…”

Those Were The Days

Boy, the way Glen Miller played.
Songs that made the Hit Parade.
Guys like us, we had it made.
Those were the days
Didn’t need no welfare state.
Everybody pulled his weight
Gee, our old LaSalle ran great.
Those were the days
And you knew where you were then
Girls were girls and men were men.
Mister, we could use a man like Herbert Hoover again.
People seemed to be content.
Fifty dollars paid the rent.
Freaks were in a circus tent.
Those were the days
Take a little Sunday spin,
Go to watch the Dodgers win.
Have yourself a dandy day
That cost you under a fin.
Hair was short and skirts were long.
Kate Smith really sold a song.
I don’t know just what went wrong
Those Were the Days

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0509864/

Classic TV Sitcoms: Barney Miller – Hash

Barney Miller was a brilliant, complex, highly literate, superbly written show with depth and high social commentary. The show was never in the top 10 in ratings but the show has held up well over the years. A few of the reasons the show was not in the top 10 was because of the intelligent writing and the humor wasn’t obvious…also the show was on ABC which at the time was the least popular major network.

The writers also made sure that for the most part, the show followed it’s own history very well. The show is about the Detectives at the 12th Precinct.

One very interesting part of Barney Miller is they had a bunch of good character actors pass through the show. They had a very good excuse because usually the guests were either witnesses or they committed some sort of small crime so it was a natural parade of people passing through.

The show was not all about humor. They had stories dealing with domestic abuse, social, and racial tensions and interaction close to real life.

Det. Phil Fish: First time in 20 years I felt this good and it has to be illegal!

Capt. Barney Miller: Stay home until you feel better.
Det. Ron Harris: Okay Barn, I’ll stay, but I ain’t never gonna feel no better.

Det. Sgt. Nick Yemana: [feeling the effects of the brownies] Barney, Barney, Barney… was your mother from Killarney?

Det. Sgt. Nick Yemana: [feeling the effects of the brownies] Hey Barney… let’s go down to the beach and shoot some clams!

Barney Miller: Hash

The Characters: Barney Miller, Stan ‘Wojo’ Wojciehowicz, Dietrich, Phil Fish, Ron Harris, Sgt. Nick Yemana, Carl Levitt, Zbigniew Psczola, Janusz Makowski, and Frank Slater.

Wojo innocently brings hashish-laced brownies his new girlfriend made to the 12th Precinct, getting the detective squad stoned, while an actor and a critic square off with dueling swords.

The Complete Episode

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0519043/

Classic TV Episodes: Fawlty Towers – The Germans

One of my favorite shows and episodes. There were only 12 episodes made…two seasons with six episodes each. Instead of milking it dry they stopped at 12 because John Cleese and wife Connie Booth didn’t think they could write anymore up to the standards they set. This is the episode most mentioned when the show comes up.

I have watched this episode countless times and it never gets old.

Listen, don’t mention the war. I mentioned it once, but I think I got away with it all right.

I was just doing it, you stupid woman. I just put it down, to come here and be reminded by you to do what I’m already doin’. I mean, what is the point in reminding me to do what I’m already doing? I mean, what is the bloody point? I’m doing it, aren’t I?

Ah, wonderful! WUNDERBAR! Ahh! Please allow me to introduce myself, I am the owner of Fawlty Towers. And may I welcome your war… your war… you wall… you all… you all, and hope that your stay will be a happy one. Now, would you like to eat first, or would you like a drink before the war… AHH! Er… trespassers will be tied up with piano wire… SORRY, SORRY!

Fawlty Towers: The Germans

The Characters: Basil Fawlty, Sybil Fawlty, Manuel, Polly Sherman, Major Gowen, Mrs. Wilson, Miss Agatha Tibbs, Miss Ursula Gatsby, Doctor, and Mr. and Mrs. Sharp

With Sybil in hospital for a few days to have an operation for an ingrown toenail, Basil is left on his own at the hotel to cope with a group of German tourists and the need for the regular semi-annual fire drill. He’s not having much success with either. The guests confuse the burglar alarm with the fire alarm and when Manuel does start a fire in the kitchen, no one pays attention. Basil suffers a rather severe blow to the head leading him to insult his German guests by making constant references to the war.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0578590/

Classic TV Episodes: Seinfeld – The Soup Nazi

This show had great writing and cast. For my money, it was the sitcom of the 90s. It wasn’t like all the main characters were likable like other sitcoms…far from it…but it worked perfectly.

The Soup Nazi was based on Al Yeganeh, the real-life owner of Soup Kitchen International in Manhattan, New York City. After the episode aired, Jerry Seinfeld and members of the cast and crew went to the restaurant for lunch. Yeganeh yelled at them and stated that the publicity had ruined his reputation. After Seinfeld offered an apology, Yeganeh yelled, “No soup for you!” and ejected them from his restaurant. Any references to “Seinfeld” are forbidden in any Soup Kitchen International.

Yeganeh ran his soup kitchen as a very tight ship. All of his customers would line up and be forced to obey his strict and formal rules of standing, talking, paying, waiting and requesting the soup the desired. Anyone who deviated in the slightest and offended Yeganeh was immediately told to get out and refunded their money.

Yeganeh’s pat line, to any customer who offended him, was “No soup for you!”

Um… you know what? Has anyone ever told you you look exactly like Al Pacino? You know, “Scent Of A Woman.” Who-ah! Who-ah!

NO SOUP FOR YOU!

COME BACK ONE YEAR! NEXT!

Seinfeld: The Soup Nazi

The characters: Jerry Seinfield, Elaine Benes, Cosmo Kramer, George Costanza, Newman, Susan Ross, Sheila, Soup Nazi, Bania, Cedric, Bob, Super, and Furniture Guy.

Everyone goes to this new soup stand because the soup is so great. Unfortunately, the owner is obsessed about his customer’s ordering procedure. Jerry and his new girlfriend annoy everybody by using baby talk. George tries to do the same thing with Susan to show how annoying they are to everybody. Jerry and his girlfriend get rejected from the Soup Nazi’s kitchen when they’re caught kissing in line. Elaine buys an Armoire and asks Kramer to watch it. While watching it, Kramer is robbed by some gay, trash-talking street toughs who want nothing more than the Armoire. She then gets rejected from the soup kitchen when she offends the “Soup Nazi”. Kramer, who befriends the Soup Nazi, gets a new Armoire exactly like the one that was stolen from him. He then gives it to Elaine, who discovers the Soup Nazi’s recipes inside. Jerry pleads with her not to do anything, but Elaine threatens to put the Soup Nazi out of business.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0697782/quotes/?tab=qt&ref_=tt_trv_qu

Classic TV Episodes: Newhart – The Last Newhart

My favorite final episode of any TV series. I liked the 1980’s Newhart show but I preferred the seventies series “The Bob Newhart Show” where Bob played psychologist Bob Hartley. This was the most creative ending I have ever seen in a sitcom. I remember watching it and was caught completely off guard. Seeing Emily (Suzanne Pleshette) again in that role was great.

The story didn’t matter as much as the end. No one had a clue this was going to happen in the finale. Bob Newhart had planted a story in the press where the ending was going to be Bob talking to God…played by George Burns or George C. Scott…just to throw people off.

Some shows have let me down with their final episode…this one pays off. In 2013 it was ranked number 1 in Entertainment Weekly’s 20 Best TV Series Finales Ever

“You won’t believe the dream I just had.”

You should really wear more sweaters.

What do you mean, beautiful blonde?

Your- your brothers can speak? Why didn’t they say anything up ’till now? I guess they’ve never been this P.O.’ed before.

Newhart: The Last Newhart

The characters: Dick Loudon / Robert Hartley, Joanna Loudon, Michael Harris, Stephanie Vanderkellen, George Utley, Larry, Darryl #1, Darryl #2, Emily Hartley

A Japanese firm buys up all the land in the town where Newhart is set to build a golf course. Everyone sells out and moves away wealthy… except Dick. Dick will not sell and they build the course around his Inn. Years pass and the old town residents return for a reunion at the Inn. They all regret moving and decide they are all moving back and will live at the Inn. Things are getting very bizarre and Dick, furiously yelling at everyone at how nuts they are steps out onto the Inn’s porch where he is knocked out by a stray golf ball.

We cut to a darkened bedroom. Bob Newhart wakes up and turns on a light. Its Bob Hartley’s bedroom from The Bob Newhart Show. Bob reaches over and shakes the person sleeping next to him awake. It’s Emily, Bob’s wife from The Bob Newhart Show. Newhart, now clearly Dr. Bob Hartley, starts to tell Emily about the strange dream he has just had – where he was an Inn Keeper in Vermont. The entire run of Newhart was nothing but Bob Hartley’s dream

Super Friends

This was a must on Saturday morning. I wouldn’t find out till later but…Ted Knight did some of the dialogue such as “Meanwhile, at the Hall of Justice…” I think the first year (16 episodes) was the best. Altogether the show was on and off during its 13-year run and they ended up with 109 episodes.

Super Friends was produced by Hanna-Barbera in 1973. The show brought all the DC superheroes together and it told their stories. The first season was comprised of only 16 episodes, which were re-run through August 1974. The show was then canceled. Presumably from less than anticipated ratings.

The success of the Wonder Woman TV show in 1975, and probably the early development interest in the Superman movie led ABC to reconsider Super Friends. The original 16 episodes were re-run beginning in early 1976, while production began on a new series. To help promote the new series, DC also began publishing a Super Friends comic. While the stories there were independent of the show, they followed much the same style of the original series.

Beginning in mid-1977, E. Nelson Bridwell, writer of the Super Friends comic, learned of some of the cast changes (notably, the replacement of Wendy and Marvin with Zan and Jayna) after working on the book for several months and wrote the change into his stories, so by the time the new season of the show began in September 1977, the comic had already made the transition to the new characters.

The comic only survived until mid-1981, while the show continued into 1982. However, the show was only re-runs for the 1982-83 season and was canceled outright in the fall of ’83. The show was brought back again in 1984 and ran until September 1986.

The below link will give much more history to the show.

http://www.kleefeldoncomics.com/2016/12/on-history-super-friends.html

Classic TV Episodes: Taxi – Reverend Jim: A Space Odyssey

One of the funniest scenes in any sitcom is when Reverend Jim is taking his driver’s test. Taxi is smartly written and they use the ensemble much like The Mary Tyler Moore Show did. Reverend Jim played by Christopher Lloyd is my favorite character and one of my favorite characters of all time.

“Have you ever experienced loss of consciousness, hallucinations, dizzy spells, convulsive disorders, fainting, or periods of loss of memory?” “Hasn’t Everyone?”

“Psst. What does a yellow light mean?”

“Slow Down”

“OK. Wwwwhhhaaaat dooeesss aaaa yyyeeeellllowwww lllliiiight mmmmeeeannn?” “SLOW DOWN”

TAXI – Reverend Jim: A Space Odyssey

This is my favorite Taxi episode of all time. Jim is a child of the drug culture of the sixties and still feeling the effects. Taking something as simple as a drivers test and turning it into this, Characters: Alex Reiger, Elaine DeNardo, Latka Gravas, Louie De Palmer, Bobby Wheeler, Tony Banta, Reverend Jim Ignatowski, Tommy Jeffries, Jeff Bennett,

The cab drivers are hanging out at Mario’s when Christopher Lloyd as Reverend Jim Ignatowski wanders in. They recognize him but he doesn’t recognize them, even though they remind him he performed a wedding for Latka 8 months earlier. But when Latka started talking to him in his gibberish language, Jim remembered.

The cabbies want to get Jim to have a job, make something of himself, but what can he do with no skills and no education? Drive a cab. At first Louie will not hear of it, until Rev Jim slips a tranquilizer into Louie’s coffee. Louie becomes mellow, starts singing show tunes in the garage, and gladly accepts Jim.

The big hurdle, of course, was to have Jim pass the driver’s test. They go down to the DPS office with him, help him fill out forms, his name, his weight, height, and color of eyes. Finally Bobby says, “OK, Jim, now you are ready to take the test.” “What?”, says Jim, “I thought that was the test.”

He then takes the test and the below is what transpires…You can see Tony Danza and Marilu Henner trying unsuccessfully not to laugh.

The complete driving test scene

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0718525/

Classic TV Episodes: Green Acres – Square Is Not Round

One of the most surreal shows ever on television. This one was different from most shows at the time or now. This episode is the one I think of the most. Chickens laying square eggs and toasters operating when you say… “Five” and the newer models operating when you say… “eight”

Probably the most outrageous episode of Green Acres. And that is saying something.

“Well, you know the old saying: you can lead a horse over the water, but you can’t make him think.”

Well, it should’t be too hard to find out, all we gotta do is look for a square chicken

GREEN ACRES – Square Is Not Round

This episode is the one I think of the most. Chickens laying square eggs and toasters operating when you say… “Five” and the newer models operating when you say… “eight” The Characters: Oliver and Lisa Douglas, Mr. Haney, Mr. Kimball, Eb Dawson, Fred Ziffel, Sam Drucker, Newt Kiley, Mr. Moody, and Arnold.

Oliver discovers that one of his chickens is laying square eggs, but he can’t find out which one it is. In addition, he finds out that he has a toaster that only works when you say the word “five”. When he mentions this to the boys at Drucker’s, they sympathize with him for having an old model–they have new models that only work when you say “eight”.

Mr. Kimball tells him about a man that would buy the chickens because square eggs would revolutionize shipping them. Mr. Haney comes by and wants to buy his “defective” chickens back but Oliver won’t budge. Mr. Moody comes and buys the chickens but they don’t lay any square eggs for him so he gives them back after stopping payment on the check he gave Oliver.

There is something else in the end but you need to watch it.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0592667/

Classic TV Episodes: The Andy Griffith Show – The Pickle Story

Some shows are easy to pick a classic episode…this one not so much. There are so many to pick from but personally, I really like this one. It was reported that The Pickle Story was Don Knott’s favorite of the series. Aunt Bee was a fantastic cook but don’t ask her to make pickles or marmalade. Andy, Barney, and Opie pays when she does…

“You mean you actually WANT her to make another batch of them kerosene cucumbers?”
” I gotta tell ya, my heart ain’t in this… Well, it’s not so much your heart we need, it’s your stomach”
“I don’t know how I can face the future when I know there’s eight quarts of these pickles in it.“

The ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW – The Pickle Story

This show’s writing was top notch. There are a lot of shows that are memorable with The Andy Griffith Show. The Characters are Aunt Bee, Barney Fife, Opie Taylor, Andy Taylor, Clara Johnson, Motorist from Oregon, County Fair Judge

Clara drops by the Taylor house so Bee can sample some of the pickles she’s been working on for the county fair, which are delicious – they’ve won the blue ribbon 11 years in a row. Bee lets her sample some of the pickles that she’s been putting up for the family, which are terrible – the bane of her family’s meals for years. Aghast at the horrible concoction, Clara launches into a long list of polite suggestions that might help to make them better, but Bee waves them off. No less flabbergasted by her “kerosene cucumbers” are Andy and Barney who, unlike Clara, don’t know how to tell her that they’re awful. As a survival tactic, Andy and Barney plot to make her pickles edible by placing store-bought pickles in Aunt Bee’s jars while placing her pickles in store jars with Barney handing them out as gifts to passing motorists heading far away.

The plot works, but then Bee announces her decision to enter her pickles at the fair. Andy and Barney consider letting the matter slide, but when Clara drops by the courthouse to let Andy sample her pickles and pours her heart out about how much winning the contest at the fair means to her, Andy feels bad and suggests to Barney that they reverse their plan by eating all the store pickles so that Aunt Bee will have to make more. They do, she does, and once again they’re terrible – only this time it’ll be according to the judges at the fair. The winner is Clara for the 12th year in a row. Unfazed, Aunt Bee announces to Andy and Barney that, due to their recent appetite for her pickles, she’s made 16 jars for them to enjoy. Along with that terrible news, they also discover she’s started making heinous marmalade.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0512602/

Classic TV Episodes: WKRP In Cincinnati – Turkeys Away

Some tv episodes are classic and will live on. When you tell someone you like a certain show, there is always that certain episode that many people will bring up that represents that show. I’ll go through a few random shows in the next few weeks and pick the one that I remember the most. They will be in no particular order.

” Those can’t be skydivers. I can’t tell just yet what they are but… Oh my God! They’re turkeys! Oh no! Johnny can you get this?”

” The Pinedale Shopping Mall has just been bombed with live turkeys. Film at eleven”

“I really don’t know how to describe it. It was like the turkeys mounted a counter-attack. It was almost as if they were… organized!”

“As God as my witness, I thought turkeys could fly”

WKRP IN CINCINNATI – Turkeys Away

When I talk to people about this show. This episode always comes to mind. The Characters are Bailey Quarters, Les Nessman, Mr. Carlson, Venus Flytrap, Dr. Johnny Fever, Herb Tarlek, Jennifer Marlowe and Andy Travis

Les’s play by play of the promotion is great. The complete episode is great but when Mr. Carlson says the closing line it turns into a classic episode.

It starts off with the big guy Mr. Carlson trying to act busy driving everyone crazy trying to be useful and probing the office to see what everyone was up to. He decided he would plan a promotion. He told the salesman Herb to get 20 turkeys ready for a Thanksgiving radio promotion.

Les is at the shopping center and Mr Carlson and Herb are up in a helicopter. He then notices a dark object being dropped from the helicopter, then a second one. Believing them to be skydivers, his tone becomes increasingly cautious when he sees no parachutes are opening. After a few more moments he realizes in horror that the objects are live turkeys. Continuing his broadcast (which bears a strong resemblance to the Hindenberg disaster) he says that the turkeys are hitting the ground and that the crowd has begun running away in panic. One turkey hits a parked car. Les continues, saying the turkeys are hitting the ground like “sacks of wet cement”. He tries to retreat to the store behind him but realizes he can’t after annoying the owner.

At the studio, the gang are listening, horrified themselves, when the broadcast is suddenly cut off. Johnny calmly tries to re-establish contact with Les, but hears only silence. Johnny thanks Les, telling his listeners that the shopping mall was just “bombed by live turkeys” and ends the broadcast.

At the end, Mr. Carlson says the phrase that elevates the episode to a classic. “As God as my witness, I thought turkeys could fly”

The play by play by Les.

As God As My Witness, I Thought Turkeys Could Fly

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0742671/plotsummary?ref_=tt_stry_pl

Classic TV Episodes: Mary Tyler Moore Show – Chuckles Bites the Dust

Some sitcom episodes are classic and will live on. When you tell someone you like a certain show, there is always that certain episode that many people will bring up that represents that show. I’ll go through a few random shows in the next few weeks and pick the one that I remember the most. These will be in no particular order. I want to thank nostalgicitalian
for giving me the idea for this.

“A little song, a little dance, a little seltzer down your pants”
“We all fall down and hurt our foo foo.”
“Chuckles the Clown is dead. It was a freak accident. He went to the parade dressed as Peter Peanut, and a rogue elephant tried to shell him.”

MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW – Chuckles Bites the Dust

This show’s writing was top notch. There are a lot of shows that are memorable with The Mary Tyler Moore Show. The Characters are Mary Richards, Ted Baxter, Lou Grant, Murray Slaughter, Georgette Baxter, Sue Ann Nivens, and Reverend Burns

Ted Baxter is mad at Lou Grant because he won’t let Ted be the Grand Marshall at a circus parade in town. Ted gets more upset when he finds out that Chuckles the Clown, who works at the station gets to be the grand marshall. However, a freak accident at the parade – a rogue elephant believing that Chuckles, who was dressed as a peanut, was the real thing – killed Chuckles. Mary is appalled that everyone in the newsroom seems to be treating the nature of Chuckles’ death as a bizarre yet funny joke instead of respecting the sad fact that someone died, period. By the time the funeral arrives, everyone seems to take Mary’s words and thoughts to heart… with one exception, Mary cannot stop laughing at the funeral and everyone else just stares at Mary who tries so hard to hold the laughter in.

At the end when the Reverend notices Mary trying to hold in the laughter…tells her that Chuckles would love laughter at his funeral and to just laugh at loud. At that time Mary then starts crying.

Full Episode

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0642807/

Lidsville

The show is just plain bizarre…for me, it is the strangest show Sid and Marty Krofft produced….and besides Land of the Lost, it’s my favorite Sid and Marty Krofft show. The show premiered on September 11, 1971.

It has been rumored that the Sid and Marty Krofft were inspired by hallucination drugs such as LSD. The brothers have always denied this claim. The title “Lid” is an old slang term for a hat, but by the 1970s the word “Lid” had taken on an entirely new meaning, namely as slang for an eighth of an ounce of pot. Whether they were or not…the shows they produced were NOT boring…they were very colorful and entertaining.

The show was conceived by Sid Krofft, who had a huge hat collection. He thought one day…what if all of the hats had different personalities? Sid was also influenced by Lewis Carroll and it is obvious.

The plot is: A boy (Mark), the original Eddie Munster, Butch Patrick falls down a large top hat at an amusement park and ends up in a land of Hats…there was also a genie named Weenie (Billy Hayes)…who played Witchiepoo in HR Pufnstuf. The bad guy was Charles Nelson Reilly the magician and he would go around zapping people. The seventeen episodes they made revolved around Mark’s attempts to return to the real world as Hoo Doo made life miserable for him and the good hat people.

It has a similar plotline as the more famous HR Pufnstuf…I remember the reruns through the seventies and I always hoped Mark would get out of Lidsville and back home…of course not knowing they made only 17 episodes…kinda like wanting Gilligan to get off that island.

Yogi Bear

Yogi Bear – “I’m smarter than the average bear”,

I always liked Yogi Bear and would watch it when I got a chance…if only for the way he said pic-a-nic baskets.

Yogi first started out as a sidekick in a Hanna-Barbera show called The Huckleberry Hound Show in 1958. He was the first Hanna-Barbera character to break out.

In 1961 he was given his own show called The Yogi Bear Show. His show included other segments like Yakky Doodle and Snagglepuss. The show also featured episodes with Yogi Bear breaking away from the unadventurous life of other bears in Yellowstone Park.

The plot was basically Yogi raiding picnic baskets, dodging hibernation, being chased by Ranger Smith, and making money together with his more honest sidekick Boo-Boo Bear. The show also featured episodes of Ranger Smith trying to tame Yogi and Boo-Boo Bear.

Around this time the great baseball player Yogi Berra sued Hanna-Barbera for defamation. But Hanna-Barbera claimed that the similarity of the names was just purely coincidental. Eventually, Yogi Berra withdrew his suit. When Yogi Berra died the AP’s wire service mistakenly announced the death of Yogi Bear instead…that is sad.

Yogi starred in a feature film, Hey There, It’s Yogi Bear, in 1964.

Yogi’s personality was based on Art Carney’s character from The Honeymooners.

The Yogi Bear Show lasted only 2 season but other shows featuring Yogi continued on. Yogi Bear and Friends, Yogi’s Gang, Yogi’s Space Race, Galaxy Goof-Ups, Yogi’s Treasure Hunt, The New Yogi Bear Show, and Yo Yogi! Yogi was on the air from 1958 to the 1990s.

Daws Butler originated the voice of Yogi and did it from 1958 to 1988 when he passed away. He was replaced by Greg Burson who was personally taught by Butler on how to do Yogi’s voice and other characters.

Petticoat Junction

I would watch Petticoat Junction at my grandmother’s and loved seeing Kate Bradley’s three daughters Billie Jo, Bobbie Jo, and Betty Jo…

The show was created by Paul Henning who also created The Beverly Hillbillies and Green Acres. All three shows were in the same universe so to speak. They all crossed over into each other’s shows. Petticoat Junction took place in Hooterville, the same location as Green Acres. The show ran 7 seasons from 1963 to 1970.

The series takes place at the Shady Rest Hotel, which is run by Kate Bradley (Bea Benaderet) and the three daughters. The Hotel is usually empty and barely staying open. The only way to the Hotel is the train called the Cannonball ran by engineer Charley Pratt (Smiley Burnette) and fireman/railway conductor Floyd Smoot (Rufe Davis). Uncle Joe played by the great character actor Edgar Buchanan was more a hindrance than a help. Joe would come up with get rich quick schemes that would cost the Kate money and time.

They did have a dog…name “The Dog” played by Higgins…better known as the original Benji. Sam Drucker played by Frank Cady was a cast member in this show and in Green Acres. Out of the three shows, this one was probably the weakest but I still enjoyed it…and I still watch it.

The show lasted 7 seasons. Bea Benaderet died of lung cancer on October 13, 1968, during the 6th season. Her position in the show…but, not her character was replaced by June Lockhart as the matriarch of the Hotel. She played Dr. Janet Craig, a medical professional who rents a room at the Shady Rest Hotel…and gives the three sisters advice.

The ever-changing sisters…

The first two seasons the sisters were played by – Billy Jo – Jeannine Riley, Bobbie Jo – Pat Woodell, and Betty Jo – Linda Kaye Henning

In the third season, Jeannine Riley and Pat Woodell left the show. They were replaced with Gunilla Hutton and Lori Saunders (my favorite)… and of course, Higgins played “The Dog”

In the 4th season, Gunilla Hutton left the show and was replaced with Meredith MacRae. This would remain the lineup until the end.

Petticoat Junction was a good family show with laughs. Who wouldn’t want to stay at the Shady Rest Hotel and travel to Hooterville and Pixley on the Cannonball? Seeing Betty Jo, Billy Jo, and Bobbie Jo would not be a chore either.