Saturday, December 25, 2010

TVXOHOF - 12/2010: THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS

Toobworld Central has been running the TV Crossover Hall of Fame since 1999. And in that time I had thought I would have run out of Christmas-themed inductees for the month of December by now - especially with four entries last year to mark the tenth anniversary of the Hall.

Of course, we were able to stretch it out, thanks to some off-beat selections - at least two versions of Santa Claus, for example. And we've got a bit of a stretch this year.

It's because of the nature of the inductee that I held off the announcement until Christmas Day - because Toobworld Central is welcoming the Christmas Spirit into the ranks of the TV Crossover Hall of Fame.

I don't mean that sappy bleep about keeping Christmas in your heart the whole year through. In Toobworld, the Christmas Spirit was personified in human form, in much the same way as Death, Springtime (both in 'Mulberry'), Guilt, and Love (both in 'Amazing Stories') have been in other TV shows. And as with Death at least, the Spirit of Christmas can assume different appearances. About a week before Christmas in 1973 (although it was first seen on TV screens in 1964), the Seaview submarine picked up a man adrift at sea named Old John. The stranger proved to be the only one who could get through to the Crown Prince of a small country who was about to assume the throne after his father's assassination. But Prince Ang was petulant, immature, and irresponsible - unfit to be a true ruler. Old John was able to guide Ang to becoming more of a man, putting aside his childish ways as it were. Once they reached Ang's nation, Old John mysteriously disappeared. And it was Admiral Nelson who picked up on what Old John's true nature was when he remembered that they found him near Christmas Island......


For a time, the Spirit of Christmas took the form of Max the Christmas Angel, as seen in three TV movies:

"A Town Without Christmas"

"Finding John Christmas"

"When Angels Come To Town"
But it was a guise that would probably not pass muster when the Spirit of Christmas filled the town of Eureka in 2010. As it was founded on the principles of science, the Christmas Spirit took the form of a scientist named Doctor Noel Drummer. Noel Drummer helped the townsfolk - especially a scientist named Taggart - to accept that not everything had to have a scientific explanation. Some things were just meant to be accepted on faith.
Perhaps the Spirit of Christmas has been seen elsewhere in Toobworld before those five appearances; we may yet see it again pop up in some seasonal episode of a sitcom. But in the meantime, we have these five appearances. And even if you don't think the theory is valid, there's still the matter of Max the Christmas Angel appearing three times in Toobworld, thereby satisfying the requirements for membership in the TV Crossover Hall Of Fame.

BCnU!


"Christmas Day will always be,
just as long as we have we."
The Narrator
"How The Grinch Stole Christmas!"

SOME COLE FOR YOUR CHRISTMAS STOCKING

When my mother was alive, there was one TV show which she hoped I would be able to track down for her so that she could see it again - an episode of 'The Danny Kaye Show' with Mary Tyler Moore and Nat King Cole as the guest stars.

All I was able to find was this publicity photo. The episode was the Christmas special which aired on Christmas Day, 1963. (That scheduling would probably be unheard of today, at least in the United States. Great Britain's BBC has made a tradition of specials shown on Christmas day.)

Apparently this picture was from the segment in which Danny and Nat sang "Jingle Bells".

But as I wasn't able to track down that episode, I'd like to present this video in her memory.....




To learn more about the episode, click here.

So that's for you, Mom. If there really is a Heaven, they better have shown that TV episode to you already......

HoHoHo.......

THE LITTLE DRUMMER BOY

I'm sending this scene out to my six year old nephew Thomas. When he wanted to watch the special last year, I grumbled against it. The stop motion puppetry was archaic; and I would rather have been watching either "How The Grinch Stole Christmas!" or "Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol".

But I watched this scene and found myself very moved by its emotional kick.




I just hope it didn't bleep off Jesus because they played fast and loose with the actual story........

HoHoHo!

THE TRUE MEANING OF CHRISTMAS




I send this out to Patricia, the boss in my department. (I'm only a front desk infiltrator....)

HoHoHo!

AS SEEN ON TV: WASHINGTON CROSSES THE DELAWARE

Last year for Christmas Day, we celebrated the birth of the baby Jesus with his portrayal in a TV production. This year, we're looking at this day in American history.....
WASHINGTON CROSSES THE DELAWARE

AS SEEN IN:
'You Are There'

AS PLAYED BY:
Russ Conway as General George Washington

From Wikipedia:
Washington's crossing of the Delaware River, occurring on December 25, 1776 during the American Revolutionary War, was the first move in a planned surprise attack organized by George Washington against the Hessian forces in Trenton, New Jersey.
Planned in partial secrecy, Washington led a column of Continental Army troops across the icy Delaware River in a logistically challenging and potentially dangerous operation. Other planned crossings in support of the operation were either called off or ineffective, but this did not prevent Washington from successfully surprising and defeating the troops of Johann Rall quartered in Trenton. The army crossed the river back to Pennsylvania, this time burdened by prisoners and military stores taken as a result of the battle.

It was planned in only partial secrecy because Washington revealed his plans to a CBS news crew who had traveled back in Time to cover the event.

BCnU!

Friday, December 24, 2010

A VERY BLECHMAN CHRISTMAS

My all-time favorite Christmas TV promo.....


HoHoHo!

LUCY'S CHOIR - WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Let's go back and look at that scene from 'The Lucy Show' where Mrs. Carmichael conducts the boys' choir.....




What many people never think about when it comes to televisiology and the alternate universe of Toobworld is that EVERY character seen on the screen has a life outside of the scenes in which they actually appear.

So all of the boys in that choir (portrayed mostly by the St. Charles Boys Choir from St. Charles Borromeo Church) could have turned out to grow up to become known as other TV characters. At least four of them were named in the episode - Barry, Newton, Lenny, and Malcolm. And then there's Jerry Carmichael as well, the son of Lucy Carmichael. So we'd have to be very specific in finding TV continuations for them. (At this point, we'd have to put Jerry Carmichael aside. Unless he changed his name, there has never been any other Jerry Carmichael in Toobworld.)

Most of the boys in that choir - who were supposed to be fellow students with Jerry at his military academy - were probably born between 1954 - 1958, meaning they'd all be TV characters in their fifties by now. Some of them may already be dead - hey, those victims in all of those L.A. based crime dramas had to be somebody as kids.....

Just one of the little bits o' trivia that keeps what's left of my mind occupied.......

BCnU!

CHRISTMAS IN BEVERLY HILLS

Here's the opening for a TV special featuring three ghosts of Christmas Past.....

CHRISTMAS IN DANFIELD

I mentioned yesterday that sometimes the highlights of a TV episode were preferable to watching the show's entire episode. Here's a case in point, with Lucille Carmichael and Vivian Bagley from one of the first Christmas episodes of 'The Lucy Show'........




That was a variation on a classic routine by Laurel and Hardy (and I'm sure somebody must have done it before them. For all I know, it was first written by Aristophanes....)

BCnU!

HERE'S LUCY AND HER CHRISTMAS EPISODE

As part of the Two For Tuesday O'Bservations this week, we ran the Christmas episode of 'I Love Lucy' twice - one of those times colorized.

For Christmas Eve, we're running one of the later Christmas episodes of 'The Lucy Show'......






















BCnU!

AS SEEN ON TV: HEROD THE GREAT

HEROD THE GREAT

AS SEEN IN:
'Jesus Of Nazareth'

AS PLAYED BY:
Peter Ustinov

From Wikipedia:
Herod also known as Herod I or Herod the Great (born 73 or 74 BCE, died 4 BCE in Jericho, according to one writer, 1 BCE), was an Edomite (an Arab from the region between the Dead Sea and the Gulf of Aqaba) client king of the Roman provinces of Judea, Galilee and Samaria (near present-day Bethlehem). He was described as "a madman who murdered his own family and a great many rabbis." He is also known for his colossal building projects in Jerusalem and elsewhere, including the rebuilding of the Second Temple in Jerusalem (sometimes referred to as Herod's Temple). Important details of his biography are gleaned from the works of the 1st century CE Roman-Jewish historian Josephus Flavius.

BCnU!

Thursday, December 23, 2010

THE BELLS OF ST. MARY... TYLER MOORE

Finally.....

Because the early part of her Toobworld career is so intertwined with Dick Van Dyke, I thought this video would be a nice musical close to today's general theme for the holidays....






Don't you think that cat logo would have made for an excellent Christmas tree ornament? So, who's going to make me one?

BCnU!

"TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS" WITH DICK VAN DYKE

The Vantastix are the a cappella group that has been working with Dick Van Dyke since 2000. They were supposed to be playing the Geffen Playhouse through the holidays in Van Dyke's musical memory revue, "Step In Time", but that was scotched when DVD had problems with his Achilles tendon.

But at least they got some TV exposure in a recent feature about Dick Van Dyke on 'CBS Sunday Morning' in honor of his 85th birthday. And they also sang to Mary Tyler Moore in a 'Larry King Live' show on CNN a few years back.

So that gives me the excuse to use this video.....




BCnU!

ANOTHER DICK-FILLED CHRISTMAS

Oh, I'm going to be in deep bleep for that post heading.

Bringing it back to Dick Van Dyke.....

We do have a full Christmas episode from a Dick Van Dyke show, this time from 'The New Dick Van Dyke Show' which co-starred Hope Lange and Fannie Flagg.......






Quite a time capsule, just looking at their wardrobe.....

BCnU!

A CASH-FILLED CHRISTMAS WITH ANDY KAUFMAN

Andy Kaufman also celebrated Christmas with Johnny Cash and his wife June Carter Cash. And this time, he was Santa Claus.....




BCnU!

ANDY KAUFMAN ON SANTA CLAUS

Veering off Van Dyke via Andy Kaufman, the late comic took his squeaky-voiced immigrant character over to 'The Dating Game', where he was asked a sexually suggestive question about Santa Claus.




BCnU!

CHRISTMAS WITH ANDY, DICK, BUT NOT ANDY DICK

Dick Van Dyke also had a Christmas episode for his short-lived variety show in the mid-1970's, 'Van Dyke And Company'. His company of players included the legendary Chuck McCann, Richard "Jaws" Kiel, and Bob Einstein (of "Super Dave Osborne" fame and now known as Funhouser on 'Curb Your Enthusiasm'). Also in the cast was Andy Kaufman, usually portraying his mousy little immigrant first made famous on 'Saturday Night Live' and then adapted into Latka Gravas on 'Taxi'.

So here's Dick Van Dyke and Andy Kaufman in the 'Van Dyke And Company' Christmas show....




BCnU!

DICK VAN DYKE AND THE CHRISTMAS BLIPVERT

Dick Van Dyke's connection to Christmas in Toobworld didn't end with that episode from his first sitcom. Here he is practicing serlinguism as a member of the League of Themselves, pitching for a product that is probably extinct by now. (So is his marriage, since he and the wife he mentions were divorced in the early 1980's, by which time he was already involved with the late Michelle Triola who was best known for that Lee Marvin palimony case......)




BCnU!

"ALAN BRADY PRESENTS" - THE CHRISTMAS EPISODE

Sometimes it's easier to find the best bits from a TV series' Christmas episode than it is the whole show. And in the end, I have to figure most of my readership might just prefer the highlights.

So here are some of those best bits from "Alan Brady Presents", the Christmas episode of 'The Dick Van Dyke Show'.

And just to be clear - the whole episode is great!















This last one has been edited, most likely by TV Land to squeeze in more blipverts, and sadly it was at the expense of my hero, Buddy Sorrell......
BCnU!

AS SEEN ON TV: GEORGE VI

A movie about King George VI of the United Kingdom and his battle to overcome his stuttering affliction is currently playing in theatres. And it looks as though "The King's Speech" will be nominated for several major Academy Awards next year.......

KING GEORGE VI

AS SEEN IN:
'Edward And Mrs. Simpson'

AS PLAYED BY:
Andrew Ray

From Wikipedia:
George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death. He was also the last Emperor of India (until 22 June 1948), the last King of Ireland (until 18 April 1949), and the first Head of the Commonwealth.

As the second son of King George V, he was not expected to inherit the throne and spent his early life in the shadow of his elder brother, Edward. He served in the Royal Navy during World War I, and after the war took on the usual round of public engagements. He married Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon in 1923, and they had two daughters, Elizabeth (who succeeded him as Queen Elizabeth II) and Margaret.

George's elder brother ascended the throne as Edward VIII on the death of their father in 1936. However, less than a year later Edward revealed his desire to marry the American socialite Wallis Simpson. British Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin advised Edward that, for political and religious reasons, he would not be able to remain king if he married Simpson, who was twice divorced. So Edward abdicated in order to marry, and George VI ascended the throne as the third monarch of the House of Windsor.

BCnU!

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

SIMPLY THE MESSENGER....

Longtime readers know I'm not a fan of "reality" TV, but in case any of my readership is interested.....

We are looking for REAL PEOPLE who are SUPER FANS of one of these reality shows to be featured in an interview series being shot in Miami Beach on January 7, 2011. DIE HARD FANS ONLY, casual viewers need not apply! We want to hear you tell us WHY you love the show. Those interested may be male or female, of any ethnic background and any age between 22 & 70.

Casting will be held in the North Miami, Florida area on Tuesday, December 28. If you are available for the above dates - the 28th for a casting interview and the 7th for the shoot day - and interested in trying out for this fun job that pays $200.00 for the shoot day, please e-mail a RECENT snapshot of yourself, along with all pertinent contact information to jpinardo@mac.com.

Nurse Jackie:
Are you a Nurse? A hospital employee working the nightshift? Do you think you could teach Nurse Jackie a thing or two? Are you a Nurse Jackie Super Fan?

Jersey Shore:
Do you “GTL”? Do people mistake YOU for Ed Hardy? Are you a Jersey Shore Guido and proud of it? Do you Jersey Shore?

Kendra:
Do you know where Kendra met Hank? Do you have what it takes to keep up with a Pro Football Player? Are you more of a lady than she? Are you a fan of the Kendra Show?

19 Kids and Counting:
Are you the exhausted mother of three or more? Is your family car a school bus? Do people often ask, “Do they all belong to you?” Do you believe 19 Kids and Counting is the best show EVER?

Dexter:
Are you the prodigal son of Harry and Doris? Are you smart enough to understand “The Code”? Can you tell us where Miami “buries the bodies?” Are you a Dexter SUPER FAN?


Remember: contact jpinardo@mac.com, not Toobworld Central. We're not involved.....

CHRISTMAS GARLANDS

Remembering the classic (and infamous) Christmas special of Judy Garland's, here are a few clips from the show... featuring Mel Torme, Jack Jones, and Liza Minnelli.





And here's Judy on 'The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson'....



BCnU!

AS SEEN ON TV: JUDY GARLAND

There should always be a Christmas garland.....


JUDY GARLAND

AS SEEN ON:
'Saturday Night Live'

AS PLAYED BY:
Kristen Wiig
Mike Myers

From TV Party:
Judy Garland didn't pretend to drink on her CBS series (1963-64), it was painfully obvious that she was occasionally drunk when she showed up for tapings.

This may or may not have been true of The Judy Garland Show's Christmas episode, guest-starring daughters Lorna Luft, Liza Minnelli, son Joey Luft, Mel Torme, and Jack Jones, but producers were minutes away from calling off the show because no one knew where the star was.

Behind the scenes production turmoil and mediocre ratings made Garland's Television City studio a tense place, or so it seems from what's been written - but the MGM vet still delivered more bang than any three stars could, even if she was a little edgy on the series' Christmas episode.

That's part of what makes this special a must see - Garland and her guests delivered electrifying performances.

This was the ultimate sixties Christmas special - the art direction was superb and you've got Mort Lindsey conducting his first rate, brassy orchestra. The tension on the set seemed to bring out the best in everyone as they maneuvered around the spacious multilevel living room set - singing and dancing like their lives depended on it.

You can read the rest of Billy Ingram's article on the "Judy Garland Christmas Show" at the TV Party website.....

BCnU!

"I LOVE LUCY" - THE CHRISTMAS EPISODE, TWICE

Since today is "Two For Tuesday" in the "As Seen On TV" department of Inner Toob, and since I'm hoping to run a full Christmas episode from a TV series each day, today I'm presenting two versions of the classic 'I Love Lucy' Christmas episode - one in the original black & white, and the other is the colorized version.

In this case, I prefer the colorized version. Although I respect the work done by cinematographers when they had to compensate for the black & white film and tape, there's just something about Christmas on TV that needs to be in color - even if it does look unnatural at times.

Also, the "Turnerized"* version is more complete. The only thing original in that first version is the fact that it's in black & white. Watch just those first few minutes in the Ricardo apartment as they get ready for the arrival of Santa and then compare it to the color version. You'll see that the black & white copy has been surgically edited. "Surgically" as in 'M*A*S*H' - meatball surgery, performed by meat-heads.

So either watch them both or pick the one that best suits your viewing needs and enjoy!

'I LOVE LUCY' - BLACK & WHITE
PART ONE



PART TWO



'I LOVE LUCY' - COLORIZED
PART ONE



PART TWO



BCnU!

* "Turnerized" is a term that came from the sitcom 'Hi Honey, I'm Home'. The sitcom characters now living in the "real" world had a device that put them in living color among the "real people".

MACY'S CHRISTMAS BLIPVERT (2009)

In keeping with the spirit of the season and today's Two for Tuesday "As Seen On TV" spotlight......
BCnU!

AS SEEN ON TV: VIRGINIA'S LETTER TO THE SUN

VIRGINIA O'HANLON'S LETTER
AS SEEN IN:
"Yes, Virginia" (2009)
AS SEEN IN:
"Yes, Virginia, There Is A Santa Claus" (1991)

Two for Tuesday!


BCnU!

Monday, December 20, 2010

PRIME TIME CRIME PRIMER

Here's a great list from the Huffington Post which has very Toobworldian sensibilities (if anything in Toobworld ever makes sense!)

What We Learned From Crime Dramas

I passed the link along to Bill Crider of the blog "Bill Crider's Pop Culture Magazine". (Link to the left, my friends!) I figured it would be just his type of article.....

BCnU!

THE HAT SQUAD: TCM REMEMBERS

Here's the annual remembrance by TCM for those in the movie business who departed this world during 2010. According to what I've read online, TCM will be able to keep editing this right up until the end of the year so that they can keep adding those who passed away since it was finished. (It's too bad that they have to be.)




Case in point: Blake Edwards has since been added.

As Mark Evanier pointed out in his "News According To ME" blog (link to the left, Team Toobworld!), the TCM memorial video is far superior to the one produced each year for the Academy Awards......

A VERY MISERLY CHRISTMAS (WITH JACK BENNY)

I'm not doing much prep work on this, basically taking it one day at a time, but I hope to be able to put one full Christmas episode of a TV series here at Inner Toob every day this week, with a variety of Christmas short videos on Christmas Eve and Christmas. So far, we've had episodes from 'Hazel', 'Petticoat Junction', and a story from the 1985 version of 'The Twilight Zone'.

Today, we go back to 'The Jack Benny Show', for the full episode featuring that black humor segment which we showcased last week.....




BCnU!

AS SEEN ON TV: YOKO ONO

YOKO ONO

AS SEEN IN:
"Lennon Naked"

AS PLAYED BY:
Naoko Mori

From Wikipedia:
Yoko Ono (born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon. Ono brought feminism to the forefront through her music which prefigured New Wave music (whether she was a direct influence is still debated). She is a supporter of gay rights and is known for her philanthropic contributions to the arts, peace and AIDS outreach programs. [Her daughter] Kyoko [by second husband Anthony Cox] is also referenced on the first line of "Happy Christmas (War Is Over)" when Yoko whispers "Happy Christmas Kyoko" followed by Lennon whispering "Happy Christmas Julian".

BCnU!

Sunday, December 19, 2010

CHRISTMAS WITH THE 11th DOCTOR (2010)

Here's the 11th incarnation of the Doctor, his companion Amy, and her husband Rory - all taking part in the Christmas spirit. I consider this canon, and that they're all appearing in character. This must be some room of the TARDIS which we'll probably never see again. It also shows that at least the Doctor retained his serlinguistic abilities, but it doesn't mean that Amy and Rory are able to do the same thing.




BCnU!

EXTERMINATE FOR XMAS!

Today's general theme for the Christmas videos is 'Doctor Who'. And I'm sending these out to my nephew Thomas, who just turned six two weeks ago. While I was home for Toby-Christmas, I let him open two gifts out of the six I got for him. One was a toy Dalek, which opens up to reveal the squidly mutant inside the "tank". The other was a keychain which had six 'Doctor Who' recordings. Now he has a villain to battle his Doctor action figures (the before and after Number 11 incarnation) and can give it voice.

So here are a few Christmas messages from the Daleks:

One



Two




Three




Four




(Thanks to Who-Exeter Toys (for all your 'Doctor Who' toy needs in the UK) for bringing these to my attention.)

BCnU!

A CHRISTMAS FLASHBACK WITH THE 10th DOCTOR (2009)

I'm going to be pretty quick with the Christmas videos for this Sunday. On Saturday I went to an adoption fair and picked up two new interns for Toobworld Central. I haven't decided on names yet for them - they're brother and sister, but thankfully don't look alike. (I don't need any more confusion in my life.)

So I want to spend time bonding with them.....

First up, here's the BBC Christmas message from last year, starring the tenth incarnation of the Doctor. He's showing off his serlinguistic skills, which we all knew he had since he wished everybody in the Trueniverse a very happy St. Stephen's Day....




BCnU!

AS SEEN ON TV: THOMAS PAINE

On this date in 1776 – Thomas Paine publishes one of a series of pamphlets in the "Pennsylvania Journal" titled "The American Crisis".

THOMAS PAINE

AS SEEN IN:
'Liberty! The American Revolution'


AS PLAYED BY:
Roger Rees


From Wikipedia:
"The American Crisis" was a series of pamphlets published from 1776 to 1783 during the American Revolution by eighteenth century Enlightenment philosopher and author Thomas Paine. The first volume begins with the famous words "These are the times that try men's souls".

There were sixteen pamphlets in total together often known as "The American Crisis" or simply "The Crisis". Thirteen numbered pamphlets were published between 1776-1777 with three additional pamphlets released between 1777-1783. The writings were contemporaneous with the early parts of the American Revolution, during the times that colonists needed inspiring.

They were written in a language the common man could manage and are indicative of Paine's liberal philosophies. Paine signed them with one of his many pseudonyms "Common Sense". The writings bolstered the morale of the American colonists, appealed to the English people's consideration of the war with America, clarified the issues at stake in the war and denounced the advocates of a negotiated peace.

Thomas Paine has been featured last year in the Inner Toob "As Seen On TV" showcase, but that was the Tooniverse version......

BCnU!