Sunday, October 6, 2024

The Hardy Boys on Television


𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙃𝘼𝙍𝘿𝙔 𝘽𝙊𝙔𝙎 originally exploded onto the book scene in 1927. Published by the Stratemeyer Syndicate, the Hardy Boys followed the formula that had been established over the prior 22 years with book series such as The Rover Boys, Tom Swift, the Motorcycle Chums, the Speedwell Boys, the Boy Aviators, the Racer Boys, the Motion Picture Chums, the Radio Boys, and the list went on, totaling some 70 different book series.

The strong, athletic, brave, and resourceful Frank Hardy, 16, and Joe Hardy, 15, attended the same grade at Bayport high school and investigated the numerous mysteries that inexplicably presented themselves in their small seaside town. Throughout the depression, the Hardy Boys – with their access to motor cars, motorbikes, boats and airplanes – not only offered young readers an escapist story to lose themselves in, but would also present a fantasy that was a far cry from the ‘brother, can you spare a dime’ reality of breadlines and soup kitchens much of working America found themselves in.

30 years after their debut, the Hardy Boys were adapted into 15-minute serialized episodes that aired on The Mickey Mouse Club. The segments featured 15-year-old Tim Considine as Frank Hardy and 14-year-old Tommy Kirk as Joe Hardy. Keeping in line with the young audience, here the rather rambunctious Hardy Boys were portrayed as being much younger than in the books, likely intended to be as young as 11-13 years old. 

The Mystery of the Applegate Treasure adapted the original book, The Tower Treasure, into 19 episodes. The following year’s The Mystery of Ghost Farm presented the clearly older boys investigating a 'haunted' farm while Joe is greatly irritated at Frank's discovery of girls.

The Mystery of the Chinese Junk 1967 NBC TV pilot starred Rick Gates as Frank Hardy and Tim Matheson as Joe. Based on the 1960 Hardy Boys book of the same title, it was sort of old-school Hardy Boys meets 60s beach movies. The pilot did not sell but was aired as a special.

The Hardy Boys 1969 animated series had the boys be members of a rock band that also includes Chubby Morton, Pete Jones, and Wanda Kay Breckenridge. The band travels around the country in a mod Rolls Royce Silver Ghost. Notable for featuring the first animated black character on US television, Pete Jones was voiced by Filmation regular Dallas McKennon, who unfortunately was not black.

By 1976, the Hardy Boys books were still strong sellers, moving some 2 million copies per year. Producing partners Arlene Sidaris and Joyce Brotman pitched a modernized version first to Paramount, then to Universal, who encouraged them to also obtain the rights to detective counterpart Nancy Drew. Glen Larson hopped on the project, and The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries aired on ABC from 1977-1979.

Look for a podcast on The Hardy Boys coming soon from Forgotten TV.



Saturday, October 5, 2024

Whiz Kids Debuts Oct 5, 1983

 


𝙒𝙃𝙄𝙕 𝙆𝙄𝘿𝙎 debuted on this day 41 years ago! Featuring Matthew Laborteaux, Todd Porter, Jeffrey Jacquet and Andrea Elson as the titular “whiz kids”, 9th graders who became amateur detectives using computer technology to solve mysteries. The show also starred Max Gail as newspaper reporter and A Martinez as the sometimes-friendly police detective. 

The series was notable for its early depiction of home computer technology, including the use of modems, speech synthesizers, laptop computers, etc. The main character Richie had an ad-hoc patchwork computer system he called RALF. Concepts such as wardialing, password brute-forcing, man-in-the-middle and denial of service attacks, and the dangers of talking to strangers online were all presented to viewers many years before any of this became mainstream.

As originally envisioned by co-creator Bob Shayne (who was working on Simon & Simon at the time), he intended it to be a modern take on the Hardy Boys featuring junior high aged kids investigating mysteries. He specifically envisioned it for the early Sunday evening timeslot for either NBC or ABC to compete against 60 Minutes. Meanwhile, Phil DeGuere (creator of Simon & Simon) had long been interested in computer technology and had already presented what likely was the first instance of "computer hacking" on television in a Simon & Simon episode featuring Robbie Rist. 

DeGuere took Shayne to pitch the idea to Universal Television, who was producing Simon & Simon. In the pitch meeting, once Shayne had related the concept, DeGuere added "and they'll do it all with computers!" and came up with the title on the spot. The two concepts were combined, and Whiz Kids was born. However, the series was unexpectedly sold to CBS who slotted Whiz Kids on Wednesdays as a lead-in show against Real People and The Fall Guy. The show was never able to do well in the ratings, and a January move to Saturday night did not help matters. The series was canceled early, and episodes were burned off in random airings over the next few months. 

The fact that the series debuted in the fall after WarGames had been released that June, as well as Newsweek using the term 'hacking' for the first time exactly one month previously, bringing kids and computer 'hacking' to nationwide attention, was entirely coincidental. DeGuere had envisioned a 'computer kids' series by the summer of 1981, and what became Whiz Kids was pitched to Universal in late 1982, some 8 months before WarGames was released.

A series of documentary podcasts is available from Forgotten TV here on this website which thoroughly covers the series and features interviews with several actors from the show as well as co-creator Bob Shayne.



Thursday, October 3, 2024

Voyagers! Debuts Oct 3, 1982

 


𝑽𝑶𝒀𝑨𝑮𝑬𝑹𝑺! debuted on this day in 1982!

"We travel through time to help history along...give it a push where it's needed. When the Omni's red, it means history's wrong. Our jobs to get everything back on track."

With a protagonist name sounding suspiciously like a character from a Jules Verne novel, voyager Phineas Bogg teams up with perhaps the unlikeliest of partners – 11-year-old orphan Jeffrey Jones – to use his knowledge of world history as Bogg’s time travel device, the Omni, facilitates travel through both time and space, depositing them in one situation after another where some historical detail has not played out correctly.

Created by James D. Parriott specifically for NBC's early Sunday evening timeslot, Voyagers offered an enjoyable romp through history with an eye to young viewers. Unfortunately, the series faced challenges in the form of the hand-wringing National Coalition on Television Violence that named it the most violent show on television; and CBS stalwart 60 Minutes which simply could not be budged in the ratings. Ultimately, NBC chose to cancel Voyagers and try to challenge CBS at their own game with news program Monitor but failed miserably.

A documentary podcast is streaming from Forgotten TV (just scroll down) that covers the full story of the creation, production, public and critical reactions, casting, locations, and the legacy of 𝑽𝑶𝒀𝑨𝑮𝑬𝑹𝑺! Available wherever you listen to podcasts.



Thursday, September 26, 2024

It's Your Move Debuts in 1984

 


#OnThisDay in 1984, 𝙄𝙏'𝙎 𝙔𝙊𝙐𝙍 𝙈𝙊𝙑𝙀 debuted on NBC. Starring a 15-year-old Jason Bateman, fresh off of 𝙎𝙞𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙤𝙣𝙨, the show offered a unique brand of humor that resonated with many teenage viewers and has become something of a cult classic sitcom in the last 40 years. The show followed the antics of Matthew Burton, a silver-tonged teenager who was an accomplished con man, a fact known to just about everyone but his mother Eileen (Caren Kaye). The character of Matthew was quite similar to Derek, the character he had played on 𝙎𝙞𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙤𝙣𝙨. This is because the show was originally intended as a spin-off of Spoons, but either as a result of show development or inability to use the character, Derek became Matthew.

What set 𝙄𝙩'𝙨 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙈𝙤𝙫𝙚 apart from your typical family sitcom was its willingness to eschew sappy wholesomeness and embrace Matthew's unapologetically manipulative personality. When the series started, Matthew, assisted by goofy friend Eli (Adam Sadowsky) was an established operator, usually dodging sister Julie's (Tricia Cast) attempts to throw a wrench into the works of his schemes. Matthew wasn't all bad, his good-hearted side was also shown when he would secretly help his single mother by sneaking cash into her purse and later finagles free rent for his family. But when magazine writer Norman (David Garrison) moves in across the hall and becomes a potential boyfriend to his mom, Matthew finds Norman to be a sharp-witted adversary, introducing the shows catchphrase: "You're gonna laugh..."

Created by Ron Leavitt and Michael G. Moye, series episodes depicted Matthew's elaborate scams, now often targeting Norman - who presents a threat to the status quo - especially with his new position as substitute teacher at Matthew's school. The show's most memorable episode was "Dregs of Humanity", a fan-favorite that highlighted Matthew's outlandish schemes. When Eli loses money set aside to hire a band for the school dance, Matthew fabricates an entire rock band using skeletons borrowed from the school's biology lab puppeteered by Eli. Things quickly get out of hand when Norman 'interviews' the Dregs for a music magazine with Eli ad-libbing the answers!


"𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗹𝘂𝘀𝘁. 𝗪𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗼 𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗰𝗸 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗹...𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗗𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗢𝗬! 𝗪𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗥𝗘𝗚𝗦." Incredibly, the second part was pre-empted by President Reagan, and to make matters worse NBC briefly took the show off the air the week after that. Although the show was later rerun on USA Network, some fans never saw the conclusion until decades later when it was finally posted to YouTube. Columnist Mark Dawidziak noted getting "lots and lots of letters" about the missing show at the time.

The show was well-received by critics and loved by fans, but it wasn't competitor Dynasty that did the show in. Unfortunately, the show ultimately was a victim of the infamous NETWORK RETOOLING. In response to letters from parents complaining about the antics of Matthew that supposedly had inspired their own kids to imitate his shenanigans, NBC forced a change in storyline and tentatively ordered 5 episodes at mid-season.

In episode 14, Matthew's mother catches him red-handed breaking into her place of work as part of his latest scheme. With Eileen now aware of things, the core premise and appeal of the show was lost. The remaining four episodes neutered the Matthew character into a 'nice boy.' As Caren Kaye noted to writer Bob Leszczak, “What I think happened was that NBC presented a mandate that if we wanted to have any chance at renewal for another season, Jason Bateman’s character had to be softened somewhat. In the end, it ruined the original chess match premise, and the show suffered as a result. This really should have been a five-season or more show.”

A couple of seasons later, Moye and Leavitt got another chance to bring an edgy comedy to the air, bringing David Garrison along with them: 𝙈𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙙... 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝘾𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙣. Sadly, Adam Sadowsky quietly passed away three years ago at age 50; something that only became known in SAG-AFTRA's yearly In Memoriam bulletin.

Extended article on 𝙄𝙏'𝙎 𝙔𝙊𝙐𝙍 𝙈𝙊𝙑𝙀 found at ForgottenTV's Patreon page.




Tuesday, September 24, 2024

Voyagers! (1982)


An episode-by-episode consideration of NBC's 1982 series Voyagers! starring Jon-Erik Hexum and Meeno Peluce. Series created by James D. Parriott. Followed by a full behind the scenes documentary exploring the origin and production of the series, public and critical reactions, casting, locations, the tragic fate of Jon-Erik Hexum, and the legacy of Voyagers.

0-1:15:32 intro/episode rundown

1:16:45 Behind the Scenes: show creation, critical reception, casting, the Omni

2:15:36 Jerrold Immel composer, Universal backlot

2:33:00 After Voyagers/Meeno Peluce's later roles/Jon-Erik Hexum's fate

2:51:25 Voyagers reruns, VHS movie, DVD. Additional series by James Parriott

3:00:40 Next time/credits

Buy Voyagers! on DVD

Voyagers! links:

Home | Voyagers Guidebook

Voyagers Guidebook : They traveled through time to help history along …

Jeff Pearlman Meeno Peluce Interview

Jeff Pearlman Books

Dark Tube - TV’s Wicked History | Hotmush Media, Inc. (podbean.com)

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Amazon links are affiliate, and Forgotten TV earns royalties from qualifying purchases made at no additional cost to you. Please support Forgotten TV while doing your regular Amazon shopping.

Original audio clips included are for the purposes of historical context, review, commentary, and criticism only and are not intended to infringe.

Forgotten TV is not affiliated with or authorized by any production company or TV network involved in the making of any TV show or film mentioned.

Copyright 2024 Forgotten TV Media

Saturday, September 14, 2024

The New Land - ABC 1974


NEW SHOW TONIGHT! They face frontier of the 1850s - 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙉𝙀𝙒 𝙇𝘼𝙉𝘿

Debuting 50 years ago right before the season premiere movie of 𝙆𝙪𝙣𝙜 𝙁𝙪 was 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝙇𝙖𝙣𝙙 on ABC, that brought the incredible story of Swedish immigrants settling in Minnesota to life. Based on the classic 1972 film 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙀𝙢𝙞𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨 and its sequel 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝙇𝙖𝙣𝙙, this short-lived series captivated audiences with its beautiful portrayal of the American dream, family, and perseverance.

The series starred Bonnie Bedelia, Scott Thomas, Kurt Russell, Debbie Lytton, and Todd Lookinland as the Larsen family. The show was filmed on location in California and central Oregon, and theme song vocals provided by John Denver. Though critically acclaimed, the series was the third period drama featuring "warm, virtuous people" on the air that year, in addition to The Waltons on CBS and the just debuted 𝙇𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚 𝙃𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙋𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙧𝙞𝙚 on NBC. It was also in a tough Saturday lead-in timeslot against NBC hit 𝙀𝙢𝙚𝙧𝙜𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙮! and 𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙁𝙖𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙮 on CBS. 

The show failed to gain the ratings necessary to keep it on the air, and it was booted after only six airings, leaving the remaining seven filmed episodes unseen. I find no evidence it was ever rerun, and given that this was the pre-VCR days of 1974, any home recordings would have to be on pre-VCR formats like U-Matic or Cartrivision, none of which have ever seem to have surfaced, making the series truly...ForgottenTV.




Monday, August 26, 2024

Focus: The Tragic Death of Jon-Erik Hexum

 

An overview of the post-Voyagers roles of Jon-Erik Hexum and an extended look at his tragic death on the set of Cover Up. Part of an upcoming full podcast on NBC's Voyagers, coming to this podcast feed.

Sources of quotes and background information:

The Show Must Go on: How the Deaths of Lead Actors Have Affected Television Series by Douglas Snauffer 

Bob Shayne's Cover-Up Memories at the Jon-Erik Hexum Rememberance Page.

The 4-part series on Jon-Erik Hexum by Brian Hartigan on his podcast Dark Tube: TV’s Wicked History.

Brian's copious references for Dark Tube: Dark Tube

Buy Voyagers! on DVD

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More at Forgotten TV

Amazon links are affiliate, and Forgotten TV earns royalties from qualifying purchases made at no additional cost to you. Please support Forgotten TV while doing your regular Amazon shopping.

Original audio clips included are for the purposes of historical context, review, commentary, and criticism only and are not intended to infringe. This podcast is intended for entertainment purposes only. Information presented is based on a combination of firsthand personal accounts, period news media, books and magazine articles, and high-quality online sources. While reasonable effort has been made to include only factual information, Forgotten TV Media cannot guarantee the accuracy of every detail included and makes no representations or warranties for the content in this podcast and cannot be held liable for errors or omissions. 

Forgotten TV is not affiliated with or authorized by any production company or TV network involved in the making of any TV show or film mentioned.

Copyright 2024 Forgotten TV Media

Tuesday, August 13, 2024

Focus: Composer Jerrold Immel



This is the first of a new podcast format that will focus on a segment broken out of the regular show. It is my hope these will expose Forgotten TV to a wider audience in a much more digestible format.

This focus on the life and work of composer Jerrold Immel is part of a consideration of the 1982 NBC TV series Voyagers! coming soon to this podcast feed.

Sources of quotes and background information came from the books:

Tuning In by Ronald Wayne Rodman

The Cue Sheet, the Quarterly Journal of the Film Music Society Vol 21 Nos ¾ 

Buy Voyagers! on DVD

SUPPORT FORGOTTEN TV ON PATREON!

Support Forgotten TV with Paypal

Buy Me a Coffee!

Amazon links are affiliate, and Forgotten TV earns royalties from qualifying purchases made at no additional cost to you. Please support Forgotten TV while doing your regular Amazon shopping.

Original audio clips included are for the purposes of historical context, review, commentary, and criticism only and are not intended to infringe. This podcast is intended for entertainment purposes only. Information presented is based on a combination of firsthand personal accounts, period news media, books and magazine articles, and high-quality online sources. While reasonable effort has been made to include only factual information, Forgotten TV Media cannot guarantee the accuracy of every detail included and makes no representations or warranties for the content in this podcast and cannot be held liable for errors or omissions. 

Forgotten TV is not affiliated with or authorized by any production company or TV network involved in the making of any TV show or film mentioned.

Copyright 2024 Forgotten TV Media

Friday, May 17, 2024

McLean Stevenson's Forgotten TV Shows


Podcast episode 57. An examination of the post-MASH work of McLean Stevenson, who chose to leave the series in 1975. Series considered include The McLean Stevenson Show, In the Beginning, Hello, Larry, Condo, and Dirty Dancing.

A look at the extreme popularity of MASH as well as the national mania revolving around the series finale "Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen" is included. 

0:00 Intro/Stevenson's early work, MASH
16:50 The McLean Stevenson Show
29:15 In the Beginning
50:05 Hello, Larry
1:48:15 Condo
2:05:43 Dirty Dancing
2:20:50 The end of MASH, retirement and death
2:33:00 Next time on Forgotten TV/credits

Donald P. Borchers interview segment on Cliff Gorman re: Hello, Larry and Angel

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Support Forgotten TV with Paypal

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More at Forgotten TV

Amazon links are affiliate, and Forgotten TV earns royalties from qualifying purchases made at no additional cost to you. Please support Forgotten TV while doing your regular Amazon shopping.

Original audio clips included are for the purposes of historical context, review, commentary, and criticism only and are not intended to infringe.

Sound effects/some music used under license from Epidemic Sound. If you need music for your podcast or YouTube channel, please visit Epidemic Sound

Forgotten TV is not affiliated with or authorized by any production company or TV network involved in the making of any TV show or film mentioned. MASH is the copyright and property of 20th Century Fox Television and possibly additional rights holders.

Copyright 2024 Forgotten TV Media

Saturday, March 23, 2024

Mazes and Monsters, The Satanic Panic, and Procter & Gamble


Podcast episode 56. An examination of the circumstances of the 1979 disappearance of James Dallas Egbert III and its significant impact on pop culture and society, inspiring a moral panic over the game Dungeons & Dragons and arguably kicking off the 1980s Satanic Panic.
Includes a review of the 1982 CBS TV movie Mazes and Monsters as well as the Satanic Panic and Procter & Gamble scare.
See if you can decode the secret message at the end.

CONTENT WARNING: This episode deals with themes related to mental health and suicide, as these are integral to the story. The subject of child abuse is explored in the Satanic Panic segment. Listener discretion is advised.

0:00 Intro/The story of Dallas Egbert
25:45 Panic over a tabletop game
55:10 Mazes and Monsters/behind the scenes
1:19:15 The Satanic Panic Begins
2:20:55 Procter & Satan
2:52:15 Next time on Forgotten TV/credits

References/read more about it


SUPPORT FORGOTTEN TV ON PATREON!

Support Forgotten TV with Paypal

Buy Me a Coffee!

Amazon links are affiliate, and Forgotten TV earns royalties from qualifying purchases made at no additional cost to you. Please support Forgotten TV while doing your regular Amazon shopping.

Original audio clips included are for the purposes of historical context, review, commentary, and criticism only and are not intended to infringe.

Sound effects/some music used under license from Epidemic Sound. If you need music for your podcast or YouTube channel, please visit Epidemic Sound

Forgotten TV is not affiliated with or authorized by any production company or TV network involved in the making of any TV show or film mentioned.  Mazes and Monsters is the copyright and property of McDermott Productions, Procter & Gamble Productions, and possibly additional rights holders.

Copyright 2024 Forgotten TV Media