TODAY'S TWD: THE LEAGUE OF THEMSELVES

A few years back I thought I'd dedicate the month of March to the League of Themselves when it came to the inductions into the Television Crossover Hall of Fame. And that idea fell by the wayside with theme years and other nominees of note.

The League of Themselves consists of real world people, not always celebrities or famous, who play fictionalized characters based on themselves. Same names, same reputations, but meeting characters and becoming involved in situations that never could happen in the real world.

A lot of crossover fans don't include those who play themselves when it comes to establishing connections between shows. But not at Toobworld Central. We don't see any difference between Archie Bunker and Sammy Davis, Jr. (Well, Archie would see three major differences, anyway!) Both of them are fictional characters within the framework of 'All In The Family' and 'Archie Bunker's Place'. That version of Sammy Davis, Jr. is distinct from the real world celebrity.

Sometimes a celebrity playing himself even gets his own show:

Jerry Seinfeld
Bette Midler
Charlie Ruggles
Charles Farrell
Drew Carey (although he's a clone of the comedian. Long story)

Why should these shows get excluded from the Great Link?

Over the years we've celebrated several celebrities who are sometimes better known from portraying themselves in Toobworld than they are for any other TV characters in their resume:

Jack Benny
George Burns
Milton Berle
Sammy Davis, Jr.
Rudy Giuliani
Dick Clark
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Dr. Joyce Brothers
Walter Cronkite
Bob Costas
Roy Rogers & Dale Evans
Shari Lewis
the original cast of 'Star Trek'
Adam West (in the Tooniverse)

So all of that is just a warm-up for tomorrow's induction into the TV Crossover Hall of Fame.......

BCnU!
Toby OB