THE ART OF DE-ZONKING

'COLUMBO'

"PRESCRIPTION MURDER"

"SUITABLE FOR FRAMING"

In the first pilot for the murder mystery series starring Peter Falk, we saw a painting owned by Dr. Ray Flemming.  That same painting later showed up in the massive art collection of Rudy Matthews.

This is no Zonk.  In order to pay his huge legal fees, Dr. Flemming sold off most of his prized belongings.  The painting went to Matthews.

BCnU!

THE "COMMUNITY" OF SATURDAY MORNING CARTOONS

'Community' has shown us several different animation styles for its characters during its run. These are the counterparts of the Greendale gang from the Tooniverse, where their lives may follow the same course in general, but in wildly different settings sometimes.

Even though the styles are different, both of these "Tooniversions" of Jeff, Shirley, Abed, and Britta share the same animated dimension.  

BCnU!

HULKING OUT ON "THE BIG BANG THEORY"

'The Big Bang Theory'

"The Convention Conundrum"

When Sheldon, Leonard, Raj, and Wolowitz thought they were going to the 2014 Comic-Con, the plan was for them to all dress up as the Hulk.  Each of them would have been a different incarnation of the comic book hero/monster:

Lou Ferrigno - 'The Incredible Hulk'

Eric Bana - "Hulk"

Edward Norton - "The Incredible Hulk"

Mark Ruffalo - "The Avengers"

With three of those options, there's really no problem.  Ruffalo, Bana, and Norton all belong in separate dimensions of the Cineverse.  But it's also possible that Mark Ruffalo might one day show up in the TV dimension of Comic Book Toobworld in a cameo appearance on 'Marvel's Agents Of SHIELD'.

None of those would have any bearing on the main Toobworld.  The movies with Bana and Norton would be part of UNReel's scheme to cover up the Truth by disguising it as fiction - in books, movies, or TV shows, whether it's about U.N.C.L.E., the Doctor, James Bond, or in this case, the Hulk.  (For whom UNReel* also made sure there were comic books about him.)

As far as Lou Ferrigno is concerned, there we might have a problem.

We have to accept Ferrigno as a possible Zonk because not only was 'The Incredible Hulk' mentioned (and even seen at one point!) in the following shows:

'T.J. Hooker'

'Amazing Stories'

'Sanford'

'Helix'

'Modern Family'

'Hannibal'

'Community'

'That 70's Show'

'Angel'

'Lost'

but Lou Ferrigno has played himself in several TV shows:

'King of Queens'

'Good vs. Evil'

'The Fall Guy'

(Because it has played a key role in several shows like 'How I Met Your Mother' and 'Martial Law', even his appearance on 'The Price Is Right' must be included in that list.)

And of course his involvement in those TV shows had to come up eventually......

For instance: After moving into the same neighborhood as the Heffernans, Lou joined in for the regular poker game.  And the other guys would often rib him about his past role as the Hulk.....

Danny:
"Sorry Ferrigno, don't get mad. 
Oh, I think he's turning a little green."

But again, we turn to UNReel.  Not only did they produce movies and comic books about the Hulk, but they also created a TV series at the height of the Hulk's activities in the timeline of Toobworld.  (It has to be concurrent because it was mentioned in an episode of 'That 70s Show'.)

In order to protect the identity of the Hulk's alter-ego, UNReel gave him the name of Bruce Banner in those comic books and movies.  But in the "reality" of Toobworld, his name was actually David Banner.

Lou Ferrigno was hired to play the Hulk in that TV series because of his close resemblance to the gamma ray-infused creature - once the green make-up and facial prosthetics were applied, of course.

Hopefully that deZonks that particular reference in 'The Big Bang Theory' for all the incarnations of the Hulk.

BCnU!

* UNReel is my own creation to splain away Zonks in which TV characters are mentioned by other TV characters as though they are fictional.  UNReel is an off-shoot of UNIT and U.N.C.L.E. which specializes in making the general public believe that fact is fiction........

THURSDAY IS THOR'S DAY

From Wikipedia:
In Norse mythology, Thor (from Old Norse Þórr) is a hammer-wielding god associated with thunder, lightning, storms, oak trees, strength, the protection of mankind, and also hallowing, healing and fertility.

At one point, Neal Cassady was in Mr. Gold's "Cabinet of Doom" and could be seen standing next to Mjolnir, Thor's hammer.

There are many copies of Thor's hammer in the TV Universe, scattered across several dimensions.  Should Thor - as played by Chris Hemsworth - ever appear on 'Marvel Agents Of SHIELD' (rather than just be mentioned) - the God of Thunder and his hammer Mjolnir would only be in the dimension of Comic Book Toobworld.

The Thor of the main Toobworld was seen in episodes of 'Hercules: The Legendary Journeys', and in a TV movie with the Hulk.  That Thor looked differently from one production to the other can be attributed to the fact that the demi-gods from the Age of Legend - actually pan-dimensional aliens from a parallel world - had the ability to alter their appearance.  Because of this, Thor could still appear in future TV shows and still be considered the Thunder God of Earth Prime-Time.  (Unless, as I mentioned, it has anything to do with the Marvel movie franchise.)

Mjolnir, as seen in that aforementioned Cabinet of Doom, belongs to a Thor from yet another TV dimension - The Land Of Fiction, as seen in the 'Doctor Who' story "The Mind Robbers".  It was assumed that the dimension faded away once the Doctor and his Companions were able to free Charles Hamilton from being the Master of the Land and the computer that enslaved hm was destroyed.  

But the Land of Fiction was able to thrive on its own and so many more of Hamilton's imaginings never seen in "The Mind Robbers" flourished - Rumpelstiltskin, Peter Pan, Captain Hook, Pinocchio, Dr. Frankenstein....  To wit, most of the characters to be found in Storybrooke, Maine, for many of them found a way to cross over from the Land of Fiction and into Earth Prime-Time.

So should Thor ever appear in Storybrooke, he is a fictional construct given life from the Land of Fiction.

And then there's the Thor and Mjolnier of the Tooniverse.....

As for the Thor of the main Toobworld, at the moment his fate is unknown because Mjolnir has been spotted on several occasions without the Norse "god" present.  Somehow it ended up in Warehouse 13 (along with Green Arrow's bow and the Penguin's umbrella.)  But how the Warehouse agents were able to procure it for their archives is unknown.  From there it was stolen by minions of Plutus the "god" of wealth so that he might put it on the auction block for other "deities" to bid on it.

 

I'm going to assume, unless proven otherwise, that eventually Thor will return to Earth Prime-Time.  And he will have somehow reclaimed his hammer Mjolnir.......

SHOWS CITED:

'Once Upon A Time' - "Quite A Common Fairy"

'Doctor Who' - "The Mind Robbers"

"The Incredible Hulk Returns"

'Hercules: The Legendary Journeys' - "Norse By Norsevest"

'Warehouse 13' - "Mild Mannered"

'Supernatural' - "What's Up, Tiger Mommy?"

'Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes'

'Marvel's Agents Of SHIELD'

BCnU!

GAME OF THE NAME - FELDON'S FEMME FATALES

The Toobworld Dynamic is always in a state of flux; it's the nature of the beast.  Countless times TV scriptwriters have changed the histories or characteristics of the characters in their shows, leaving plenty of Zonks behind in their wake.  (Which is good for a Caretaker such as myself - gives me lots of splainins to do!)  

And so it is with the TwD.  Brilliant ideas and theories I came up with years ago can be subject to revision if they re-enter my memory banks later on.  

Such is the case with a theory I once held about Agent 99 of 'Get Smart'.  It used to be my contention that this loverly member of the Television Crossover Hall of Fame would once a year cheat on her husband, Maxwell Smart, with a former baseball player turned Boston bartender, Sam Malone.  And because she had become a United States senator, she would use an assumed name - Lauren Hudson.

But no more.  I think Mrs. Hudson and Agent 99 are two different women.  (And luckily, this has no bearing on 99's standing in the TVXOHOF.  She still has enough credentials to qualify.)

Instead, I think this one-shot character played by Barbara Feldon is another TV character seen only once - Cynthia Hampton.

When we saw Cynthia, she was a young*, idealized radical intent on saving the Earth from polluters like her own father.  While at a protest rally at the Hampton Chemicals plant in Los Angeles, Cynthia struck a policeman and then went on the run.  Paul Tyler, a reporter for People Magazine, was able to track her down and gain her confidence, while at the same time saving her from making a big mistake in Life (and getting a story out of it to boot!)

Years later, after Cynthia had mellowed out from her free-wheelin' past, she married a man named Hudson and decided to put her past fully behind her by changing her first name as well as her last.  She chose to be known as "Lauren", which is probably her middle name.  And when she was meeting with Sam for those once-a-year trysts, her wealth was probably due to inheriting her father's corporation.  (At which time, perhaps she was finally able to change the way that Hampton Chemicals did business....)

Unfortunately, this new theory loses that quick link between 'Cheers' and 'Get Smart', but I'm sure there must be another one out there, even if it has to take the scenic route to get there.  At least I'm still clinging to the belief that Agent 99 is really Mandy Stephenson from an episode of 'The Man From U.N.C.L.E'......

SHOWS CITED:

'The Name Of The Game' - "Cynthia Is Alive And Living In Avalon"

'Cheers' - "Sam Time, Next Year"

BCnU!

* Barbara Feldon was playing Cynthia as though she was at least seven years younger than her actual age in the real world.....

DATELINE TOOBWORLD: 103 YEARS AGO TODAY

By Robert Reich:

"103 years ago today, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City caught fire, causing the deaths of 146 garment workers -- mostly young Jewish and Italian immigrant women, who jumped from the 9th and 10th floors because the fire department's ladders weren’t long enough to reach them and the factory owners had locked doors to stairwells and exits to keep out union organizers and prevent workers from taking breaks and stealing fabric.

It was an era of great wealth and urban squalor, underpaid and overworked employees, overcrowded and unsafe working conditions, and legislators whose votes were bought by industrial magnates. Even after the tragedy, the president of New York’s Real Estate Board warned against improved safety standards. "The experience of the past proves conclusively that the best government is the least possible government,” he argued. The Board predicted safety laws would drive "manufacturers out of the City and State of New York."

But safety standards were established nonetheless, and the International Ladies Garment Worker's Union became powerful enough to protect workers against the worst forms of exploitation."

"The Triangle Factory Fire Scandal"
[30 January 1979]

From the IMDb:
The story of a fire in the Triangle Shirt Mfg. Co. building in New York City in 1911 that resulted in the deaths of 146 employees, mostly young women. The ensuing investigation revealed the company's almost total disregard for its workers' safety in pursuit of increased production and profits, and resulted, among other things, in the passage of new worker safety laws and the formation of the International Ladies Garment Workers Union.

Here is the TV movie in full..........

Good night and may God bless.....

TUESDAY NEWS DAY: A NEW ODD COUPLE?

Lately, NBC seems to have been traveling the remake route, with the latest being the quickly cancelled 'Ironside' and with a reboot of 'Murder, She Wrote' that was in the works until the pre-publicity turned against it.  (I thought it could have worked so long as they just retained the title and made it a whole new character.)  And in the last few years there was also the retread of 'Bionic Woman'.

CBS is getting into that game as well, with Matthew Perry bringing 'The Odd Couple' back as a sitcom.  

O'Bviously this will be found in some alternate TV dimension as Neil Simon's classic mismatched roomies are already firmly ensconced in the dimension of Earth Prime-Time, with Tony Randall as Felix Unger and Jack Klugman as Oscar Madison.  (Both of them were inducted together into the Television Crossover Hall Of Fame back in the year of duos, 2002.)

One can't say that there can be only one "Odd Couple", as Felix and Oscar reside in several fictional universes - in the theater world, they were first played by Walter Matthau and Art Carney; and in the Cineverse, Matthau reprised the role of Oscar while Jack Lemmon became Felix.  (And both of them returned to the roles many years later in another movie.)

The TV Universe has another incarnation of the pair in an alternate dimension - Ron Glass and Demond Wilson played Felix and Oscar in Black Toobworld (where Blair Underwood's Ironside is still fighting crime, despite being cancelled.)

But I think the public has Randall & Klugman too firmly entrenched in their minds as the Odd Couple and that may prove too difficult to overcome.

Matthew Perry is one of the show's producers and he'll be taking on the role of Oscar.  Thomas Lennon, of 'Reno 911!' and 'Sean Saves The World', has been cast as the new Felix.  (Thinking back to his role on 'Friends', I would have thought Felix would have been a better fit for Perry, but he probably wants to expand his range.  And the character he played in his last sitcom, 'Go On', was more lke Oscar than Felix.)

I wrote this post up for future use when the news story first broke.  That was before NBC canceled 'Sean Saves The World' after giving it a longer shelf life than it deserved.

At the time, this is how I originally ended this post:

I wish the production well and I will be curious to see who they finally cast as Felix.  (If 'Sean Saves The World' wasn't proving so inexplicably popular, either Sean Hayes or Thomas Lennon might have worked as the fussbudget photographer. (Portraits a specialty.)

So I called that one!

BCnU!

THEORY OF RELATEEVEETY - THE JUDGE AND THE DESK SERGEANT

Desk Sgt. Flint of the Dock Green police station was a second cousin to Judge Lawrence Gascoigne of Hastings.  During World War II, Judge Gascoigne was murdered by his own wife when she found out that he was responsible for the death of a small boy in their care.  

SHOWS CITED:

'Dixon Of Dock Green'

'Foyle's War' - "A Lesson In Murder"

(This is not a case of "identical cousins".  Arthur Rigby played Sgt. Flint and decades later Oliver Ford Davies played Judge Gascoigne.  But there's just enough of a resemblance, at least to me, to make the suggestion that they are related.)

BCnU!

VIDEO SUNDAY - JAPANESE ROBOCOP

VIDEO SUNDAY - DOMINIC COOPER'S SPERM