|
Post by berkley on Jul 10, 2024 23:52:36 GMT -5
Brought home Get Smart Season 1 a couple of days ago and I've been greatly enjoying it. It's a show that I vaguely recall seeing on TV Land back in it's heyday (you know, when it used to actually show OLD tv), but didn't recall much about it I think my favorite episode so far has been Episode 4, "Our Man In Toyland", where agents of KHAOS are funneling secret plans through a department store chain where CONTROL agents are also hiding out in amusing ways (like as Santa Claus, a department store Mannequin, and behind a changing mirror) I'm old enough to remember seeing it during its original run in the 1960s, though I would have been pretty small for the earlier years - only 4 yrs old in the first season. And then I watched most of the episodes many times over in reruns in the 70s. When we were kids me and my friends would endlessly repeat the catchphrases to one another at every opportunity, e.g. "Missed it by that much!", "That's the second biggest (fill in the blank) I ever saw", etc.
I haven't felt the urge to re-watch them yet but I'm sure I will at some point. I still think of it as one of the funniest shows of all time, though it's been so long and of course there's no telling whether I'll feel the same whenever I do get around to seeing it again.
|
|
|
Post by codystarbuck on Jul 11, 2024 13:47:26 GMT -5
I was too little (It started in 1965 and I started in 1966), but only got to see a couple of episodes, while visiting relatives, as our stations didn't carry the syndicated episodes. I got to see more of it later. Funny stuff in there.
Most of my Don Adams material comes from Tennessee Tuxedo.
"Come along Chumley, we're off to see Mr Whoopee."
|
|
|
Post by berkley on Jul 11, 2024 21:41:30 GMT -5
I was too little (It started in 1965 and I started in 1966), but only got to see a couple of episodes, while visiting relatives, as our stations didn't carry the syndicated episodes. I got to see more of it later. Funny stuff in there. Most of my Don Adams material comes from Tennessee Tuxedo. "Come along Chumley, we're off to see Mr Whoopee."
I had to look that up, so we couldn't have got that cartoon in my area. The wiki article says it was from the same studio that made Underdog, which I remember from comic books but not from tv, so I'm guessing our Canadian channels never picked up any shows from them. One day I'll try to watch some of these cartoon shows I missed, especially the ones I remember feeling intrigued by at the time. The Herculoids was one I recall always feeling attracted by when as a small kid I saw it advertised in the comics I was reading.
|
|
|
Post by Rob Allen on Jul 11, 2024 23:47:48 GMT -5
I was eight when Get Smart started, and watched it from the beginning. My father had read something about it and mentioned that he was looking forward to it. To us kids, the title sounded like some kind of educational program, so we were skeptical - until about 10 seconds into the intro.
I was watching something recent in the last week or two, and a character invoked the "Cone of Silence" in a way that it was clear that the other characters and the audience would know what that meant. I wonder how much of the audience knew where that phrase came from?
|
|
|
Post by codystarbuck on Jul 11, 2024 23:49:57 GMT -5
I was too little (It started in 1965 and I started in 1966), but only got to see a couple of episodes, while visiting relatives, as our stations didn't carry the syndicated episodes. I got to see more of it later. Funny stuff in there. Most of my Don Adams material comes from Tennessee Tuxedo. "Come along Chumley, we're off to see Mr Whoopee."
I had to look that up, so we couldn't have got that cartoon in my area. The wiki article says it was from the same studio that made Underdog, which I remember from comic books but not from tv, so I'm guessing our Canadian channels never picked up any shows from them. One day I'll try to watch some of these cartoon shows I missed, especially the ones I remember feeling intrigued by at the time. The Herculoids was one I recall always feeling attracted by when as a small kid I saw it advertised in the comics I was reading.
The studio was Total Television Productions. They produced: Underdog Tennesee Tuxedo and his Tales King Leonardo and His Short Subjects The Beagles King Leonardo was the oldest show, starting in 1960, featuring King Leonardo, ruler of Bongo Congo, aided by skunk Odie Cologne, usually trying to defeat the criminal schemes of Biggie Rat. The show also featured the cartoons The Hunter (about an inept detective, always chasing The Fox), and Tooter Turtle (a hapless turtle, sent to various times and places by a wizard). The show apepared on NBCon some of the earliest Saturday morning programming. Tennessee Tuxedo and his Tales started in 1963, on CBS, featuring the penguin Tennessee Tuxedo and his walrus pal, Chumley, residents at the Megapolis Zoo (run by Stanley Livingston). They have various adventures that usually hit a snag and they have to escape from the zoo to see Prof Phineas J Whoopee, a brilliant man who helps explain concepts and inventions to them, using his 3-Dimensional Blackboard (the 3-D BB). They still usually screw it up because they don't listen to Mr Whoopie's caution about some element of risk. Don Adams voice Tennessee, while Bradley Bolke voiced Chumley and Larry Storch voiced Mr Whoopie. Also featured on the show were the cartoons The World of Commander McBragg (featuring the improbable adventures of the titular hero, based visually on British actor C Aubrey Smith, of The Prisoner of Zenda and The Four Feathers, with McBragg mimicking his handlebar mustache and heavy eyebrows, as well as his voice) and Klondike Kat, a hapless mountie (Klondike Kat always gets his mouse!), who is always after the criminal rat, Savoir Faire (Savoir-Faire is everywhere!). Underdog was the most popular, appearing in 1964, on CBS, about the superhero and his girlfriend, reporter Sweet Polly Purebread. He is secretly humble, loveable Shoeshine Boy, who opens a secret compartment in his ring and takes a vitamin pill, transforming him into Underdog, fighting the forces of evil, like mad scientist Simon Bar Sinister and Riff Raff. Also featured on the show was the cartoon The Go-Go Gophers, about Native American gophers, who put one over on the Colonel Kit Coyote and Sergeant Okey Homa. The Colonel was inspired, visually, by Teddy Roosevelt and the Sergeant was based on John Wayne. I saw these shows in syndication, weekday mornings, as a young child, in the very early 70s. Underdog and Tennessee Tuxedo were usually combined as a one hour block, mixing in the other cartoons. Later, we got King Leonardo in afternoon syndication. The cartoons were also sold as part of a package with Bullwinkle and Dudley Doo-Right. In the 90s, Nickelodeon picked up Underdog, but edited out scenes of Shoeshine Boy taking his vitamin pill, which was stupid, because they make it clear it is a vitamin pill. Underdog was great adventure; but I kind of preferred Tennessee Tuxedo (for one thing, his adventures weren't serialized across episodes, like Underdog), as they were funny and you learned stuff, via the 3D BB and Mr Whoopie. Then, you watched Tennessee and Chumley try to apply the lesson. With a science teacher father, that kind of thing was right up my alley, as he used to show my siblings and eye how to build stuff lie that. We also used to get the Cambria Studios adventure show, Space Angel, one of their Synchro-Vox cartoons, which were largely still images with human mouths superimposed on the faces, to deliver dialogue (with Clutch Cargo and Captain Fathom also featuring that), with Commander Scott McCloud, agent of the Earth Bureau of Investigations and the Interplanetary Space Force. His crewmates on the Star Duster were Taurus (the engineer) and Crystal Mace, daughter of a scientist who aided them. Alex Toth did design work and direction on the series, before working for Hana-Barbera. The other show of theirs that we had, in syndication packages, was The New 3 Stooges, with animated cartoon adventures featuring Moe, Larry and Curly Joe, with the Stooges in live action bookend segments, and the cartoon adventures in between. The Stooges ended up suing the production company over undelivered financial statements about the earnings, which were supposed to be shared with the actors. They lost an initial judgement, thanks to a judge unfamiliar with Hollywood accounting. They won on appeal, in 1975, but Moe and Larry had already passed away. So, that was my childhood, in the 70s, with those shows on local tv, weekday mornings, and the usual Hana-Barbera, Filmation and Rankin-Bass cartoons and Krofft Brothers shows on Saturday mornings (and Looney Tunes and Tom & Jerry). The cartoons were interrupted by the Watergate Hearings and the station never brought them back, afterward, which ticked my off and I blame for making me cynical about politics. Shouldn't have interrupted Space Angel and Underdog!
|
|
|
Post by codystarbuck on Jul 11, 2024 23:58:39 GMT -5
Here is a typical Tennessee Tuxedo cartoon....
and Commander McBragg.....
and Klondike Kat.....
The opening to Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales....
Underdog had a cooler theme song, though...
|
|
|
Post by codystarbuck on Jul 12, 2024 0:03:21 GMT -5
and Space Angel....
|
|
|
Post by DubipR on Jul 12, 2024 9:06:32 GMT -5
I've been rewatching all 5 seasons of The Naked City. I loved the Barry Fitzgerald movie, so me watching this has been entertaining. The first season is by far the strongest of the series. Stirling Silliphant, the show creator, wrote a major of the first season. Super tight and well done for a police procedural, from the late 50s/early 60s. Despite the low ratings, it was a critical fame and the sponsors revived the second season, until the end to be an hour long drama. Personally I think that sunk the series, even though it went 4 season of 60 minute dramas. Silliphant lost a little control of his show, but much like Twilight Zone Season 4, going hour long to decompress the story, worked against the show. Its still good because its shot on location. It's really well cast, despite James Franciscus and John McIntyre leaving during and after Season 1, Paul Burke came in and really knocked it out.
|
|
|
Post by Slam_Bradley on Jul 12, 2024 9:53:16 GMT -5
Get Smart played pretty regularly in syndication where I grew up. So I watched it quite a bit as a kid. That first season with a ton of input from Mel Brooks and Buck Henry is absolute comedy gold.
|
|
|
Post by Doghouse Reilly on Jul 12, 2024 11:13:05 GMT -5
I was eight when Get Smart started, and watched it from the beginning. My father had read something about it and mentioned that he was looking forward to it. To us kids, the title sounded like some kind of educational program, so we were skeptical - until about 10 seconds into the intro. I was watching something recent in the last week or two, and a character invoked the "Cone of Silence" in a way that it was clear that the other characters and the audience would know what that meant. I wonder how much of the audience knew where that phrase came from? When I was in the Marines, we had this training gear that never worked. It was not trivial to set up - we had to secure this large laser-detecting target on top of a HUMM-V, and then attach the laser-generating apparatus to the regular missile tripod (the laser was to emulate a TOW missile). Then the HUMM-V would go down-range and drive back and forth, and we were supposed to practice firing and tracking a TOW missile with this setup. The target was never able to detect the laser (and no, it's not because we all have horrible aim). I always referred to it as the cone of silence, but nobody got it. I also served under a captain who was a near-double of Captain Parmenter from F-Troop, in both appearance and personality. Again, nobody else knew the reference. It frustrated me to see such perfect references go to waste.
|
|
|
Post by berkley on Jul 12, 2024 21:27:13 GMT -5
I was eight when Get Smart started, and watched it from the beginning. My father had read something about it and mentioned that he was looking forward to it. To us kids, the title sounded like some kind of educational program, so we were skeptical - until about 10 seconds into the intro. I was watching something recent in the last week or two, and a character invoked the "Cone of Silence" in a way that it was clear that the other characters and the audience would know what that meant. I wonder how much of the audience knew where that phrase came from? When I was in the Marines, we had this training gear that never worked. It was not trivial to set up - we had to secure this large laser-detecting target on top of a HUMM-V, and then attach the laser-generating apparatus to the regular missile tripod (the laser was to emulate a TOW missile). Then the HUMM-V would go down-range and drive back and forth, and we were supposed to practice firing and tracking a TOW missile with this setup. The target was never able to detect the laser (and no, it's not because we all have horrible aim). I always referred to it as the cone of silence, but nobody got it. I also served under a captain who was a near-double of Captain Parmenter from F-Troop, in both appearance and personality. Again, nobody else knew the reference. It frustrated me to see such perfect references go to waste. Ha - great Get Smart reference, and very apropos!
F-Troop is a show that I remember liking when I was small but as it was never shown in repeats I don't remember any details at all, just a few visual cues, like the hat one guy wore. I see it aired from 1965 to 67 so I suppose I shouldn't be surprised, given the age I would have been then, around 4-5 yrs. Get Smart went a couple of years longer, which made a difference, but mostly it's probably seeing the re-runs as an older kid in the 70s.
It's About Time, It's About Space is another one from roughly the F-Troop era that I recall really liking a lot but not much else - once again, it ended when I was still just 5 yrs old and never played in re-runs later, that I saw.
|
|
|
Post by berkley on Jul 15, 2024 5:01:35 GMT -5
I've been rewatching all 5 seasons of The Naked City. I loved the Barry Fitzgerald movie, so me watching this has been entertaining. The first season is by far the strongest of the series. Stirling Silliphant, the show creator, wrote a major of the first season. Super tight and well done for a police procedural, from the late 50s/early 60s. Despite the low ratings, it was a critical fame and the sponsors revived the second season, until the end to be an hour long drama. Personally I think that sunk the series, even though it went 4 season of 60 minute dramas. Silliphant lost a little control of his show, but much like Twilight Zone Season 4, going hour long to decompress the story, worked against the show. Its still good because its shot on location. It's really well cast, despite James Franciscus and John McIntyre leaving during and after Season 1, Paul Burke came in and really knocked it out. I remember this being on in repeats at some point in the 70s, I think, but never watched it much. I was too young to have seen it when it originally aired. I'm not a huge police procedural fan but I'll probably try a few episodes some time if I can find the ones that look interesting to me because of the cast or story or whatever.
edit: just skimmed the wiki article and I think maybe the spin-off, Route 66, sounds like it could be a little more up my alley. But I'm sure I'll try both.
|
|
|
Post by Batflunkie on Jul 16, 2024 9:46:06 GMT -5
Watched about four or five episodes of Rocky & Bullwinkle last night off of my Complete Series dvd, polished off the Upsidaisium arc (Bullwinkle's Uncle passes away and leave him a mine full of this material that constantly floats upwards. Of course Boris and Natasha are interested in it, because, why not?)
There were also very funny and very cute segments from Fractured Fairy Tales and Aesop & Son, Snow White INC. and The Cat & Fifteen Mice (which I actually had on an old R&B VHS tape from back in the day)
|
|
|
Post by Slam_Bradley on Jul 16, 2024 10:59:58 GMT -5
Watched about four or five episodes of Rocky & Bullwinkle last night off of my Complete Series dvd, polished off the Upsidaisium arc (Bullwinkle's Uncle passes away and leave him a mine full of this material that constantly floats upwards. Of course Boris and Natasha are interested in it, because, why not?) There were also very funny and very cute segments from Fractured Fairy Tales and Aesop & Son, Snow White INC. and The Cat & Fifteen Mice (which I actually had on an old R&B VHS tape from back in the day) I love Rocky & Bullwinkle, but it does surprise me as an adult how much filler there was in those episodes, with the long introductions to the various segments and the interludes. Even "Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat" was complete filler. Still a fabulous show.
|
|
|
Post by Batflunkie on Jul 16, 2024 11:05:48 GMT -5
I love Rocky & Bullwinkle, but it does surprise me as an adult how much filler there was in those episodes, with the long introductions to the various segments and the interludes. Even "Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat" was complete filler. Still a fabulous show. Hell those have better animation sometimes than half of the show itself
|
|