Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

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Eric Paddon
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#61 Post by Eric Paddon »

Been going through a large number of episodes of "The FBI", the longest running series of producer Quinn Martin and it's been fun seeing how every week they managed to combine the procedural aspects of "Dragnet" with the anthology approach of "Naked City". It's impossible to rate each episode individually but I have to call attention to one episode I saw today from the show's fifth season "The Scapegoat" which was made in 1970 because it features among others, an early appearance by Harrison Ford. The episode deals with a disturbed young man who kills a girl after she refuses his advances. Ford plays a guy already in jail for a similar murder, but as events turn out the crazy kid was guilty of that murder as well.

The lead guest star as the killer is Michael Burns, who started out as a teen actor on the series "Wagon Train" in the early 60s and logged many TV guest shots for the rest of the decade (including the first episode of the "Dragnet" revival where with painted face he plays a spaced out LSD user) and then in the late 70s at age 30 quit the business and beacme a college history teacher. This guest shot is the peak when he would be a familiar name to TV viewers but his career was on the way down, while back end of the credits Harrison Ford, the same age is just starting on the way up. Kind of an interesting moment that shows how fame can be fleeting for some and for others the fame will come much later.

John Johnson
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#62 Post by John Johnson »

John Johnson wrote:
AndyDursin wrote:Fox is indeed hot on remaking that for the U.S. I'm watching it also, I'm 2 episodes in so far (it's tough because it's a show you have to pay attention to, and it's not exactly "light" viewing at bedtime).
David Tennant to Reprise 'Broadchurch' Role for Fox Reboot

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-f ... ole-641578
Update.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-24816700
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AndyDursin
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#63 Post by AndyDursin »

It was interesting hearing the head of Me TV talk about the network's programming last night on WBZ's late night radio program. Part of the problem with obtaining the rights to newer (say '80s) shows is that they have residuals involved and stipulations that drive up the price to over-the-air networks (like Me TV) more than if these reruns were airing on cable channels. It was pretty enlightening.

BTW for anyone into classic TV, it's worth hearing Morgan White's radio show, because he'll frequently talk about old TV series and pop culture items (he once devoted a whole hour to cereal box toys!). When he's not filling in, he airs Saturday nights 10pm-Midnight on WBZ (1030 AM Boston) which has a huge reach to the south and west, especially down the mid-atlantic at night. It's also available online or on your cell phone via the Tunein Radio app which is free and should be essential for anyone who listens to the radio.

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Paul MacLean
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#64 Post by Paul MacLean »

Tales of the City (part 1)

Offbeat, sometimes bizarre but often funny series about various denizens of 1976 San Francisco, based on the book by Armistead Maupin, and directed by Alistair Reid.

The story concerns Mary-Ann Singleton (Laura Linney), a sheltered Ohio girl who whimsically decides to settle in San Francisco after a few days vacation there. Mary Ann soon makes the acquaintance of a plethora of eccentric Northern Californians -- new agers, gays, hippies, etc. -- whose lives are all strangely interconnected.

In some ways it reminds me of the 1980 comedy film Serial (which likewise depicted eccentric Bay Area residents) though Tales of the City is less outwardly comedic (and more surreal).

I dare say Laura Linney is the best American actress of her generation, and the viewer takes an immediate liking to her character. Through her eyes we are privy to this brief, hedonistic era, when 60s attitudes about sex and drugs had become mainstream (and before these attitudes were tempered by the AIDS epidemic a few years later).

Linney is surrounded by an equally impressive cast, including Olympia Dukakis (as Mary Ann's eccentric landlady with secret past), Donald Moffit, Chloe Webb and Parker Posey (who is certainly put to better use here than she was in Superman Returns!). The score by John E. Keane is sparse but also highly effective.

Tales of the City is not for everyone; its depiction of 70s California attitudes is unapologetically candid, but it is often funny and clever as well.
Last edited by Paul MacLean on Mon Dec 22, 2014 11:17 am, edited 1 time in total.

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AndyDursin
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#65 Post by AndyDursin »

I absolutely agree about Laura Linney. Right up there with the best.

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Paul MacLean
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#66 Post by Paul MacLean »

The Last Days of Pompeii (1984 miniseries)

I know this series wasn't exactly a ratings juggernaut when originally broadcast (and airing opposite V: The Final Battle certainly didn't help). However, while slightly uneven (and at times perhaps a touch soapy) it is a solid, genuinely compelling production. Directed by Peter Hunt, it features an excellent cast including Brian Blessed, Ned Beatty, Nicholas Clay, Leslie-Anne Down, Franco Nero, Olivia Hussey and Laurence Olivier.

This is a series that also improves as it progresses, the final episode being the more effective (and moving). The staging of Vesuvius' eruption and the destruction of Pompeii is perhaps a bit overlong, but is decidedly effective (and horrific), and the effects work holds-up fairly well even today.

I do think Jack Cardiff's photography is unfortunately rather bland, with a distinctly high-key "made-for-TV" look to it, which was behind-the-times even in 1984 (coming five years after David Watkin's far-more "cinematic" work on Jesus of Nazareth).

Trevor Jones score however is phenomenal, and one of his best -- highly melodic and theme-driven, and rife with boldness and passion. (Why can't someone release this soundtrack, instead of the same old Jerry Goldsmith scores over and over again?)

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John Johnson
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#67 Post by John Johnson »

Paul MacLean wrote:The Last Days of Pompeii (1984 miniseries)


Trevor Jones score however is phenomenal, and one of his best -- highly melodic and theme-driven, and rife with boldness and passion. (Why can't someone release this soundtrack, instead of the same old Jerry Goldsmith scores over and over again?)

Image
I agree. lol :D
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John Johnson
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#68 Post by John Johnson »

AndyDursin wrote:It was interesting hearing the head of Me TV talk about the network's programming last night on WBZ's late night radio program. Part of the problem with obtaining the rights to newer (say '80s) shows is that they have residuals involved and stipulations that drive up the price to over-the-air networks (like Me TV) more than if these reruns were airing on cable channels. It was pretty enlightening.

BTW for anyone into classic TV, it's worth hearing Morgan White's radio show, because he'll frequently talk about old TV series and pop culture items (he once devoted a whole hour to cereal box toys!). When he's not filling in, he airs Saturday nights 10pm-Midnight on WBZ (1030 AM Boston) which has a huge reach to the south and west, especially down the mid-atlantic at night. It's also available online or on your cell phone via the Tunein Radio app which is free and should be essential for anyone who listens to the radio.
Andy,
Does he mention what type of prints they buy for the channel? I've tried watching the late night reruns of The Saint, and quite frankly, the quality doesn't look that good.
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Eric Paddon
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#69 Post by Eric Paddon »

For the last few weeks I've watched a generous share of Christmas episodes of classic TV shows. The number was lower than in past years due to my schedule, but the favorite ones that always get a viewing are:

Dragnet, Season 2-"The Christmas Story." The greatest Christmas episode of any TV series IMO, period.

Dr. Kildare, Season 1-"Season To Be Jolly." A beautifully made story centered on a drunken, derelict Santa with a
secret about his past that leads to a poignant ending that Hollywood wouldn't dare make today.

Have Gun Will Travel, Season 1-"The Hanging Cross." This was a perfect example of how good a writer Gene Roddenberry could be when he was thinking about the audience instead of his own agendas.

Twilight Zone, Season 2-"Night Of The Meek". Always a perennial favorite.

Night Gallery, Season 2-"The Messiah Of Mott Street." The greatest interfaith story I've ever seen that can be appreciated by Jews and Christians alike for what it says to their own traditions.

And there are the fun perennials like the four different "Bob Newhart Show" Christmas episodes and "The Odd Couple" take off of "A Christmas Carol."

Of course, vintage TV specials like my own 1985 recording of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" (I never got a commercial release because to me it isn't complete without the old "A CBS Special Presentation" intro, culled from the Hawaii FIve-O soundtrack of all things!) always get another view too.

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AndyDursin
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#70 Post by AndyDursin »

John Johnson wrote:
AndyDursin wrote:It was interesting hearing the head of Me TV talk about the network's programming last night on WBZ's late night radio program. Part of the problem with obtaining the rights to newer (say '80s) shows is that they have residuals involved and stipulations that drive up the price to over-the-air networks (like Me TV) more than if these reruns were airing on cable channels. It was pretty enlightening.

BTW for anyone into classic TV, it's worth hearing Morgan White's radio show, because he'll frequently talk about old TV series and pop culture items (he once devoted a whole hour to cereal box toys!). When he's not filling in, he airs Saturday nights 10pm-Midnight on WBZ (1030 AM Boston) which has a huge reach to the south and west, especially down the mid-atlantic at night. It's also available online or on your cell phone via the Tunein Radio app which is free and should be essential for anyone who listens to the radio.
Andy,
Does he mention what type of prints they buy for the channel? I've tried watching the late night reruns of The Saint, and quite frankly, the quality doesn't look that good.
No, he didn't talk about that. It's hard to tell if the prints are the trouble, or -- more likely -- the fact that there's heavy compression on MeTV because it's a digital subchannel and takes a backseat in technical priority to the HDTV channel carrying it. They maximize the bitrate for the network channel on their spectrum and compress the MeTV signal accordingly.

Eric Paddon
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#71 Post by Eric Paddon »

The Hound Of The Baskervilles (1968)
-BBC production with Peter Cushing as Holmes, part of their series of Sherlock Holmes episodes for which only a handful still exist and were released on DVD a few years ago. This was the first production to use some authentic Dartmoor location photography but I still confess the British TV penchant for mixing film and videotape can be distracting. It's a solid, faithful adaptation and its fascinating to see the contrast of Cushing's approach to Holmes here with that in the 1959 Hammer production. Nigel Stock (whose last film role I believe was in "Young Sherlock Holmes" as the crazy inventor/mentor figure) is an effective Watson, closer to the sensible later interpretations that reflect the book, but with still one or two occasional lapses into Nigel Bruce territory.

Eric Paddon
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#72 Post by Eric Paddon »

I just watched the one Trek episode I have gone more years without seeing than any other, and that's "Metamorphosis" which I last saw over 30 years ago I think, but I always remembered every detail from the old Fotonovel I used to own. And this episode I think is fatally undermined from the outset because of an inexcusable piece of writing at the beginning that established that Elinor Donahue is supposed to be this experienced diplomat needed to help stop a war going on. This matter then gets forgotten until a throwaway line at the end, "Oh, I'm sure the Federation will find SOME woman who can stop that war." This rather cavalier attitude about this plot point that is not a trivial kind of one alas makes the whole episode uncomfortable for me in the same way I can't stand "Requiem For Methuselah" and Kirk's obsession with Rayena because it seems like there's a case of priorities out of whack here. They should have just made Donahue's character someone handling a more bureaucratic function so that the ramifications didn't matter. I mean whatever happened to Kirk's horror of war from "A Taste Of Armageddon?" He should have been saying to the Companion, "If you don't release this woman, who needs medical treatment, not only will she die, but many more lives who are DEPENDING on her skills to stop a war might die as well. You are selfish in the extreme."

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AndyDursin
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#73 Post by AndyDursin »

GSN has been airing "Skip"'s Sale of the Century run.

As I said before I loved this show -- but it is SO BAD. Terribly enthusiastic contestants, easy questions, laughable "models" (other than the lovely Summer), and no end-game round (I realize they changed it later on but for a long time it's as it is in this episode).

My favorite moment was an earlier episode with Skip where he had a "Instant Bargain" or whatever they called it where they rolled out a pinball machine. Despite Jim Terry's pleading with Skip to buy it, it ended with NO SALE. Only when they went to a commercial could you see Skip break his on-camera persona and say "what would I do with THAT?" And then you could hear someone (Jim?) utter, "and where would you put it?" LOL, I wish there was more of that than the programmed phony responses you see on this show (like when contestants smile when they win a cutlery set instead of a $25 money card).


Eric Paddon
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#74 Post by Eric Paddon »

Actually that original bonus round of building up your bank account was the original classic format of SOTC going back to its original early 70s run on NBC (when Jack Kelly and then Joe Garagiola hosted). I can remember many episodes of suspense of champs with accumulated banks passing on $20,000 cars for a chance at $80 to $90K cash jackpots which meant in the main game you were really rooting hard for these champs to keep going and buying an Instant Bargain could mess up their ability to win one of those bonus prizes. The one thing I would have changed was to give the champ an option to buy a lower prize once and start anew (but limit him only to one time that way).

The first year of the show on NBC the main game was dull because they had a fixed number of questions which made a runaway game meaningless. Then they fixed that with the speed round. The questions are admittedly not tough but when its a jump-in thing that makes a difference (in contrast to "Tic Tac Dough" and "Joker's Wild" which had very ridiculously easy questions that weren't jump-in ones).

I think the other models were purposefully told to play for laughs when doing the Instant Bargains. I know I've mentioned before the time a guy dressed as an Admiral for an Admiral refrigerator tricked Jim into sampling whipped cream that was shaving cream!

Wait until you see a champ named Alice who NEVER bought an Instant Bargain and how Jim would plead with her to go for one but she never did (and wound up winning everything on stage, a real rarity).

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AndyDursin
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Re: Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

#75 Post by AndyDursin »

LOL! I do love the speed round..."may I have 60 seconds on the clock please!!"

It's just funny how every once in a while they have some insane contestant on who looks like they got out of rehab and/or inhaled laughing gas. It's not exactly like JEOPARDY!

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