The death of Red Buttons came as a surprise. Not that he was much in the public eye of late, and o'bviously I did know he was quite up there in years, but I thought he might have been hale and hearty enough to still be working. In fact, only two weeks ago I made a casting suggestion in this blog for him:
I don't know anything about vascular disease, whether it results in a long and debilitating deterioration or if it strikes quickly, but last year at this time Mr. Buttons was still a vital and quick-witted soul as evidenced in this very entertaining blog report from Alan Sepinwall of the Star-Ledger:
By the time I was born, Red Buttons was already considered washed up in Television, even when the business was basically still in its toddler stage. But he rebounded from that with his Academy Award win for Best Supporting Actor in "Sayonara", and he went on to make more movies like "The Longest Day" and "The Poseidon Adventure".
During the 1970s, he also perfected a routine for the 'Dean Martin Roasts' about all the famous people who never had a dinner in their honor. It was a great bit that allowed him to touch on previously taboo subjects in a roundabout manner.
There's one particular Toobworld moment of his that I always remember because I could see it for what it was meant to be - filler. It was in an episode of 'Vega$', perhaps the pilot, in which Red was a character who seemed to be invincible with the slot machines. And it's not like he was playing one certain machine that was fixed; he was picking his targets at random and still hitting them for big payoffs.
When his scam was finally uncovered by Dan Tanna, he spent several minutes doing "patter" with his goodbyes before Dan had him tossed out of the casino. It was an old vaudevillian trick to stretch out the time and yet not be so vital to the plot that it couldn't be cut later for additional commercial time.
It's been about thirty years on now...... I wouldn't be surprised if that bit has been entirely edited out to make room for more blipverts.
But Red Buttons will never end up on the cutting room floor of our memories, not so long as there are his movie appearances and his TV work in such shows as 'Roseanne' and 'ER'. His contributions via 'The Double Life Of Henry Phyfe' may have long since faded into obscurity, but those two series at least will have a long shelf life in syndication.
I may not get the chance now to see Red Buttons as Eric Murphy's grandfather on 'Entourage', but at least I know some of his characters have immortality in Toobworld.
And as Toobworld is just a fantasy universe anyway, I can always imagine him as E's gramps... at least until an actual episode of 'Entourage' comes along to say otherwise.
My porkpie hat's off to you, Red. I hope you finally get your dinner.
TV SERIES
"The Red Buttons Show" (1952) TV Series .... Himself (Host) (1952-1955)
"Knots Landing" (1979) TV Series .... Al Baker (1987)
"The Double Life of Henry Phyfe" (1966) TV Series .... Henry Wadsworth Phyfe (1966)
TV PREQUELS & SEQUELS
The New Original Wonder Woman (1975) (TV) .... Ashley Norman/Carl
TV RECURRING CHARACTERS
"ER" - Jules "Ruby" Rubadoux
- Ruby Redux (2005) TV Episode
- The Right Thing (1996) TV Episode
- True Lies (1996) TV Episode
- Dead of Winter (1996) TV Episode
- A Miracle Happens Here (1995) TV Episode
"Street Time" - Sam Kahan
- Reversal of Fortune (2002) TV Episode
- Random Act (2002) TV Episode
- Pilot: Part 1 (2002) TV Episode
- Pilot: Part 2 (2002) TV Episode
"Roseanne" - Jake
- Body by Jake (1994) TV Episode
- Playing with Matches (1993) TV Episode
"Vega$" - Tommy Cirko
- Serve, Volley and Kill (1978) TV Episode
- High Roller (1978) TV Episode
TV MOVIES
Reunion at Fairborough (1985) (TV) .... Jiggs Quealy
Off Your Rocker (1982) (TV) .... Seymour Saltz
Side Show (1981) (TV) .... Harry
Leave 'em Laughing (1981) (TV) .... Roland
The Dream Merchants (1980) (TV) .... Bruce Benson
Power (1980) (TV) .... Solly Weiss
The Users (1978) (TV) .... Warren Ambrose
Telethon (1977) (TV) .... Mart Rand
Alexander, Alexander (1973) (TV) .... Alexander Foster
Breakout (1970) (TV) .... Pipes
TV CLASSICS
Alice in Wonderland (1985) (TV) .... White Rabbit
TV SPECIALS
Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July (1979) (TV) (voice) .... Milton
"Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre"
- Murder at N.B.C. (1966) TV Episode
Hansel and Gretel (1958) (TV) .... Hansel
TELE-HISTORY
Louis Armstrong - Chicago Style (1976) (TV) .... Red Cleveland
George M! (1970) (TV) .... Sam H. Harris
THE LEAGUE OF THEMSELVES
"It's Garry Shandling's Show."
- Force Boxman (1987) TV Episode .... Himself
Joys (1976) (TV) .... Red Buttons
... aka Bob Hope Special: Bob Hope in 'Joys'
TV GUEST APPEARANCES
"Presidio Med"
- Milagros (2002) TV Episode .... Chick
"Philly"
- The Curse of the Klopman Diamonds (2002) TV Episode .... Murray Klopman
"Family Law"
- Second Chance (2000) TV Episode .... Carl Porter
"Early Edition"
- Pinch Hitters (1999) TV Episode .... Walter Stites
"Cosby"
- My Dinner with Methuseleh (1997) TV Episode .... Mr. Tibbles
"The Cosby Show"
- Cliff and Jake (1991) TV Episode .... Jake Bennett
"227"
- The Audit (1987) TV Episode .... Toots
"Fantasy Island"
- King of Burlesque/Death Games (1983) TV Episode
- Cornelius and Alfonse/The Choice (1979) TV Episode .... Cornelius Kelly
- Return/The Toughest Man Alive (1978) TV Episode .... Tony Emerson
"The Love Boat"
- Vicki's Dilemma/Discount Romance/Looser & Still Champ (1983) TV Episode .... Jimmy
- Doc's Ex' Change/Gift, The/Making the Grade (1979) TV Episode .... Bud Redmond
- The Where Is It Written?/Julie's Aunt/Big Deal (1978) TV Episode .... Uncle Cyrus
"Little House on the Prairie"
- Circus Man (1975) TV Episode .... William "Willie" O'Hara
"Love, American Style"
- Love and the Advice Givers/Love and the Geisha/Love and Take Me Along (1969) TV Episode .... Norman (segment "Love and the Geisha")
"The Danny Thomas Hour"
- The Zero Man (1967) TV Episode .... Al Risko
"Ben Casey"
- Journeys End in Lovers Meeting (1965) TV Episode .... Bill Jacoby
"The Greatest Show on Earth"
- The Last of the Strongmen (1964) TV Episode .... Walter Wallace
"The Eleventh Hour"
- Sunday Father (1964) TV Episode .... Cody Evans
"Saints and Sinners"
- All the Hard Young Men (1962) TV Episode .... Joe Roganyan
"Frontier Circus"
- Never Won Fair Lady (1962) TV Episode .... Earl Youngblood
"General Electric Theater"
- Tippy-Top (1961) TV Episode .... Tippy-Top
- The Tallest Marine (1959) TV Episode .... Lieutenant George Poole
"The United States Steel Hour"
- The Case of the Missing Wife (1960) TV Episode
"Death Valley Days"
- The Million Dollar Pants (1960) TV Episode .... Levi Strauss
"Startime"
- Something Special (1959) TV Episode .... Joe Henders
"Playhouse 90"
- A Marriage of Strangers (1959) TV Episode .... Jerry
"Studio One"
- The Tale of St. Emergency (1956) TV Episode .... St. Emergency
"Suspense"
- Merryman's Murder (1951) TV Episode
[Thanks to the IMDb.com]
BCnU.....
Tele-Toby
Saturday, July 15, 2006
Thursday, July 13, 2006
GROSS OUTED
Although everything that is broadcast on TV constitutes another addition to Toobworld in some form, it would be nice to ignore news broadcasts, talk shows, and reality shows. But sometimes they make that impossible when there is plenty of synergy between shows on the same network.
For instance, when 'Family Matters' featured a plot involving 'American Gladiators', or when 'Big Brother' became a plot point on 'Yes, Dear'. Look at how many newscasters appeared as themselves on 'Murphy Brown' (and of course, "Uncle" Walter Cronkite appearing not only on that show, but in a classic episode of 'The Mary Tyler Moore Show' as well.)
Recently, Jimmy Kimmel tried to tie in his late night talk show with the phenomenon of 'Lost' by having a representative from the Hanso Organization appear on the show. But they ended up talking about the show as a show and not as reality, even though the Hanso Group is a fictional component of that show.
It was enough to give me nosebleeds.
And now here's a new one.....
CNBC anchor Joe Kernen was reporting on the box office winners for the weekend this past Monday morning, and as everybody else in the news biz pointed out, the sequel to "Pirate Of The Caribbean" ("Dead Man's Chest") was not only the big winner, but that it raked in more than 132 million quatloos at the box office.
But then he went on to say that "The previous three-day record was 'Aquaman' at $120 plus, which beat out the $115 million which was set by 'Spider-Man' back in May of '02."
But the thing is, that only happened in Toobworld.
It was a major plot point this season in 'Entourage' that they needed "Aquaman", starring Vince Chase, to do a specific number in the box office on opening day, with the idea of even beating "Spiderman 2" and the record it set on opening day just a dream. However, they not only passed that mark, they demolished it with the 120 mil.
But even though "Aquaman" was directed by James Cameron, it's fiction, babe. It never got made; it doesn't exist.
HBO didn't help things when they blended our reality with TV reality by placing an ad congratulating "Aquaman" for its box office record in Variety.
And Joe Kernan never came out of that report with a "Just kidding, folks" of any kind. And during the report, there was no indication in his vocal timbre nor in his facial expressions that the story wasn't to be taken seriously.
And that's how the story was originally reported, but it wasn't the complete story. Apparently just before that box office report, Kernan was talking about 'Entourage' and the "Aquaman" subplot. More than likely, he probably continued with the reference, thinking everybody who was watching had seen the earlier comments.
But in the end, it doesn't matter, as they got it wrong anyway. The figure for the "Pirates" movie represented the take for the entire weekend. Whereas the figure for "Aquaman" represented the take on opening day. That's a big difference!
And in Toobworld, "Aquaman" left Captain Jack Sparrow in his wake.
Savvy?
BCnU!
Tele-Toby
For instance, when 'Family Matters' featured a plot involving 'American Gladiators', or when 'Big Brother' became a plot point on 'Yes, Dear'. Look at how many newscasters appeared as themselves on 'Murphy Brown' (and of course, "Uncle" Walter Cronkite appearing not only on that show, but in a classic episode of 'The Mary Tyler Moore Show' as well.)
Recently, Jimmy Kimmel tried to tie in his late night talk show with the phenomenon of 'Lost' by having a representative from the Hanso Organization appear on the show. But they ended up talking about the show as a show and not as reality, even though the Hanso Group is a fictional component of that show.
It was enough to give me nosebleeds.
And now here's a new one.....
CNBC anchor Joe Kernen was reporting on the box office winners for the weekend this past Monday morning, and as everybody else in the news biz pointed out, the sequel to "Pirate Of The Caribbean" ("Dead Man's Chest") was not only the big winner, but that it raked in more than 132 million quatloos at the box office.
But then he went on to say that "The previous three-day record was 'Aquaman' at $120 plus, which beat out the $115 million which was set by 'Spider-Man' back in May of '02."
But the thing is, that only happened in Toobworld.
It was a major plot point this season in 'Entourage' that they needed "Aquaman", starring Vince Chase, to do a specific number in the box office on opening day, with the idea of even beating "Spiderman 2" and the record it set on opening day just a dream. However, they not only passed that mark, they demolished it with the 120 mil.
But even though "Aquaman" was directed by James Cameron, it's fiction, babe. It never got made; it doesn't exist.
HBO didn't help things when they blended our reality with TV reality by placing an ad congratulating "Aquaman" for its box office record in Variety.
And Joe Kernan never came out of that report with a "Just kidding, folks" of any kind. And during the report, there was no indication in his vocal timbre nor in his facial expressions that the story wasn't to be taken seriously.
And that's how the story was originally reported, but it wasn't the complete story. Apparently just before that box office report, Kernan was talking about 'Entourage' and the "Aquaman" subplot. More than likely, he probably continued with the reference, thinking everybody who was watching had seen the earlier comments.
But in the end, it doesn't matter, as they got it wrong anyway. The figure for the "Pirates" movie represented the take for the entire weekend. Whereas the figure for "Aquaman" represented the take on opening day. That's a big difference!
And in Toobworld, "Aquaman" left Captain Jack Sparrow in his wake.
Savvy?
BCnU!
Tele-Toby
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
THE HAT SQUAD: BARNARD HUGHES
Barnard Hughes has passed away at the age of 90, and for me personally, as a big fan of character actors, this is a sad day.
One of the high points in my Broadway theatre-going once I moved to NYC was to see Mr. Hughes perform the lead role of "Da" the night after he won the Tony Award for Best Actor. The audience and the actors were charged up by the recognition of his talent.
Born July 16, 1915 to Irish immigrants in Bedford Hills, NY, his full name was Barnard Aloysius Kiernan Hughes. He was acting since the 1930s with a time-out for a stint in the Army. While rehearsing a show to be performed in military hospitals in 1946, he met actress Helen Stenborg and they married in 1950.
He first came to prominent notice for me in 'All In The Family', in his recurring role as Father Majeski. And from there it also led me to one of the TV movies that made quite an impression on me, "Dr. Cook's Garden".
For Toobworld, he's embodied historical characters such as William Casey, the CIA chief during the Reagan years, and the voice of newspaper publisher Horace Greeley in a televised portrait of Abraham Lincoln. He's played classic characters like Shakespeare's Dogberry of "Much Ado About Nothing" and "The King" in Twain's "The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn", as well as the legendary Merlin in modern times. He also appeared in the first of the adaptations of Mary Norton's "The Borrowers", which happens to be the book I brought along to read on vacation.
Although this is a blog dedicated to the TV Universe, two theatrical movie releases stand out for me as well. In 'Cold Turkey', Barnard Hughes played Dr. Proctor, the town physician who had the second worst addiction to tobacco in his small town. (Tom Poston played the guy who had it REALLY bad.)
The image that I always conjure up when thinking about this movie is that of Mr. Hughes, along with Dick Van Dyke and Bob Newhart, writhing on the ground with gunshot wounds to the gut while all about them the town is celebrating their rewards for kicking the cigarette habit for a month.
This movie was a Norman Lear/Bud Yorkin production, and thanks to it Mr. Hughes gained two of his recurring roles in Toobworld. He worked for Lear and Yorkin again as Father Majeski on 'All In The Family', and he played Newhart's dad Herb Hartley in several episodes of 'The Bob Newhart Show'.
The other movie is "The Lost Boys", and it has special resonance for me and Toobworld in that he had the following quote as the grandfather:
"If you've got TV Guide, you don't need TV."
A lot of times, I've found that to be true as I go about my Caretaker duties.
Barnard Hughes won the Emmy award for Best Guest Star in a Dramatic Series for an episode of 'Lou Grant' wherein he played a judge. He played a lot of judges during his long career; so many in fact, that he told the NY Times once that he could have played the roles “without pants.”
“I was always sitting behind something like a desk. I was a judge or a businessman or a lawyer or a doctor. Nobody saw my bottom half.”
“I’m a feeler,” Mr. Hughes said of his acting approach in the interview with The Times. “As a matter of fact, I think if we had more feelers and less thinkers we’d be a hell of a lot better off — not only in the theater, either.”
And we will definitely feel his absence from the TV Universe......
TV SERIES
"Blossom" (1991) TV Series .... Buzz Richman (1991-1995)
"The Cavanaughs" (1986) TV Series .... Francis 'Pop' Cavanaugh
"Mr. Merlin" (1981) TV Series .... Max Merlin
"Doc" (1975) TV Series .... Dr. Joe Bogert
"As the World Turns" (1956) TV Series .... Mr. Barton (1969-1970)
"The Secret Storm" (1954) TV Series .... Wilfred Hollister #1 (1968-1969)
"Dark Shadows" (1966) TV Series .... Stuart Bronson (1966)
"The Guiding Light" (1952) TV Series .... Dr. Bruce Banning #2 (1961-1966)
TV RECURRING ROLES
"The Bob Newhart Show" - Herbert Hartley
- Grizzly Emily (1978) TV Episode
- Making Up Is the Thing to Do (1976) TV Episode
- An American Family (1974) TV Episode
"All in the Family" - Father John Majesk
- Edith's Conversion (1973) TV Episode
- Edith Flips Her Wig (1972) TV Episode
- Edith's Accident (1971) TV Episode
"The Trials of O'Brien" - Judge
- A Horse Called Destiny (1966) TV Episode
- No Justice for the Judge (1965) TV Episode
TV BLIPVERTS
Kix Cereal (1996)
TV PREQUELS & SEQUELS
Blossom (1990) (TV) .... Grandpa
TELE-HISTORY
Lincoln (1992) (TV) (voice) .... Horace Greeley Guts and Glory: The Rise and Fall of Oliver North (1989) (TV) .... CIA Director William Casey
Day One (1989) (TV) .... Secretary Stimpson
Little Gloria... Happy at Last (1982) (TV) .... Justice John Francis Carew
Kill Me If You Can [The Caryl Chessman Story] (1977) (TV) .... Judge Fricke
Guilty or Innocent: The Sam Sheppard Murder Case (1975) (TV) .... Attorney Philip J. Madden
Pueblo (1973) (TV) .... Secretary of the Navy
TELE-CLASSICS
American Playhouse: Under the Biltmore Clock (1986) (TV) .... Ludlow Whitney
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1985) (TV) .... The King
Much Ado About Nothing (1973) (TV) .... Dogberry
TV MOVIES
Past the Bleachers (1995) (TV) .... Ed Godfrey
Trick of the Eye (1994) (TV) .... Harry Pitt
Miracle Child (1993) (TV) .... Judge
The Incident (1990) (TV) .... Doc Hansen
Home Fires Burning (1989) (TV) .... Jake Tibbetts
A Hobo's Christmas (1987) (TV)
Night of Courage (1987) (TV)
The Sky's No Limit (1984) (TV) .... Arthur Bennett
A Caribbean Mystery (1983) (TV) .... Mr. Rafiel
A Conflict of Interest (1982) (TV)
Homeward Bound (1980) (TV) .... Harry Seaton
Sanctuary of Fear (1979) (TV) .... Father Brown
See How She Runs (1978) (TV) .... John Matusak, Betty's Father
The World Beyond (1978) (TV) (as Barney Hughes) .... Andy Borchard
Tell Me My Name (1977) (TV) .... Uncle Tyler
Ransom for Alice! (1977) (TV) .... Jess Halliday
The UFO Incident (1975) (TV) .... Dr. Benjamin Simon
A Memory of Two Mondays (1974) (TV) .... Jim
Another April (1974) (TV) .... Marion Weston
The Borrowers (1973) (TV) .... Mr. Crampfurl
The Holiday Treasure (1973) (TV)
Look Homeward, Angel (1972) (TV) .... Dr. McGuire
All the Way Home (1971) (TV) .... Joel Lynch
Dr. Cook's Garden (1971) (TV) .... Elias Hart
The Borgia Stick (1967) (TV) .... Doctor Helm
The Million Dollar Incident (1961) (TV) .... Wallace
TV GUEST APPEARANCES
"Deadline"
- Daniel in the Lion's Den (2000) TV Episode .... Judge Panicio
"Homicide: Life on the Street"
- In Search of Crimes Past (1995) TV Episode .... Sam O'Donnell
"The Marshal"
- Twoslip (1995) TV Episode .... Judge Tuttman
"The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd"
- Here's Who Ordered the Pizza (1988) TV Episode .... Shimkin
"The Love Boat"
- Ace in the Hole/Uncle Joey's Song/Father in the Cradle (1984) TV Episode
"Hotel"
- Passages (1984) TV Episode .... Joe Freilich
"Tales from the Darkside"
- Trick or Treat (Pilot) (1983) TV Episode .... Gideon Hackles
"Lou Grant"
- Judge (1977) TV Episode .... Judge Felix Ruthman
"Hawaii Five-O"
- A Capitol Crime (1977) TV Episode .... Clinton Palmer
"Wide World of Mystery"
- The Two Deaths of Sean Doolittle (1975) TV Episode .... Warren
"Love Story"
- All My Tomorrows (1973) TV Episode .... Andrew Corby
"Cannon"
- Dead Pigeon (1971) TV Episode .... Jack Riker
"The Nurses"
- Show Just Cause Why You Should Weep (1963) TV Episode .... Harold Myle
"Naked City"
- Prime of Life (1963) TV Episode
"Route 66"
- Two on the House (1962) TV Episode .... Al Forrester
"The Defenders"
- The Boy Between (1961) TV Episode
"'Way Out"
- William and Mary (1961) TV Episode .... Dr. Foster
"The United States Steel Hour"
- Little Charlie Don't Want a Saddle (1957) TV Episode .... Leo
"Armstrong Circle Theatre"
- Four Homes for Danny (1957) TV Episode .... Mr. Dubois
"Kraft Television Theatre"
- Papa Was a Sport (1954) TV Episode
[Thanks to the IMDb.com]
One Toobworld note: It's a shame Barnard Hughes never did an episode of 'The West Wing'. I could see him playing one of those professors emeritus, or a senior senator or congressman, or a justice on the Supreme Court.
And although he wouldn't have been the right type to play the father of Jed Bartlet as written, I think he would have made a great elder of the Bartlet clan, or even as the father of Stockard Channing's Abby (especially since Martin Sheen worked with Mr. Hughes in the film version of "Da" back in 1988.....)
BCnU.....
Tele-Toby
One of the high points in my Broadway theatre-going once I moved to NYC was to see Mr. Hughes perform the lead role of "Da" the night after he won the Tony Award for Best Actor. The audience and the actors were charged up by the recognition of his talent.
Born July 16, 1915 to Irish immigrants in Bedford Hills, NY, his full name was Barnard Aloysius Kiernan Hughes. He was acting since the 1930s with a time-out for a stint in the Army. While rehearsing a show to be performed in military hospitals in 1946, he met actress Helen Stenborg and they married in 1950.
He first came to prominent notice for me in 'All In The Family', in his recurring role as Father Majeski. And from there it also led me to one of the TV movies that made quite an impression on me, "Dr. Cook's Garden".
For Toobworld, he's embodied historical characters such as William Casey, the CIA chief during the Reagan years, and the voice of newspaper publisher Horace Greeley in a televised portrait of Abraham Lincoln. He's played classic characters like Shakespeare's Dogberry of "Much Ado About Nothing" and "The King" in Twain's "The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn", as well as the legendary Merlin in modern times. He also appeared in the first of the adaptations of Mary Norton's "The Borrowers", which happens to be the book I brought along to read on vacation.
Although this is a blog dedicated to the TV Universe, two theatrical movie releases stand out for me as well. In 'Cold Turkey', Barnard Hughes played Dr. Proctor, the town physician who had the second worst addiction to tobacco in his small town. (Tom Poston played the guy who had it REALLY bad.)
The image that I always conjure up when thinking about this movie is that of Mr. Hughes, along with Dick Van Dyke and Bob Newhart, writhing on the ground with gunshot wounds to the gut while all about them the town is celebrating their rewards for kicking the cigarette habit for a month.
This movie was a Norman Lear/Bud Yorkin production, and thanks to it Mr. Hughes gained two of his recurring roles in Toobworld. He worked for Lear and Yorkin again as Father Majeski on 'All In The Family', and he played Newhart's dad Herb Hartley in several episodes of 'The Bob Newhart Show'.
The other movie is "The Lost Boys", and it has special resonance for me and Toobworld in that he had the following quote as the grandfather:
"If you've got TV Guide, you don't need TV."
A lot of times, I've found that to be true as I go about my Caretaker duties.
Barnard Hughes won the Emmy award for Best Guest Star in a Dramatic Series for an episode of 'Lou Grant' wherein he played a judge. He played a lot of judges during his long career; so many in fact, that he told the NY Times once that he could have played the roles “without pants.”
“I was always sitting behind something like a desk. I was a judge or a businessman or a lawyer or a doctor. Nobody saw my bottom half.”
“I’m a feeler,” Mr. Hughes said of his acting approach in the interview with The Times. “As a matter of fact, I think if we had more feelers and less thinkers we’d be a hell of a lot better off — not only in the theater, either.”
And we will definitely feel his absence from the TV Universe......
TV SERIES
"Blossom" (1991) TV Series .... Buzz Richman (1991-1995)
"The Cavanaughs" (1986) TV Series .... Francis 'Pop' Cavanaugh
"Mr. Merlin" (1981) TV Series .... Max Merlin
"Doc" (1975) TV Series .... Dr. Joe Bogert
"As the World Turns" (1956) TV Series .... Mr. Barton (1969-1970)
"The Secret Storm" (1954) TV Series .... Wilfred Hollister #1 (1968-1969)
"Dark Shadows" (1966) TV Series .... Stuart Bronson (1966)
"The Guiding Light" (1952) TV Series .... Dr. Bruce Banning #2 (1961-1966)
TV RECURRING ROLES
"The Bob Newhart Show" - Herbert Hartley
- Grizzly Emily (1978) TV Episode
- Making Up Is the Thing to Do (1976) TV Episode
- An American Family (1974) TV Episode
"All in the Family" - Father John Majesk
- Edith's Conversion (1973) TV Episode
- Edith Flips Her Wig (1972) TV Episode
- Edith's Accident (1971) TV Episode
"The Trials of O'Brien" - Judge
- A Horse Called Destiny (1966) TV Episode
- No Justice for the Judge (1965) TV Episode
TV BLIPVERTS
Kix Cereal (1996)
TV PREQUELS & SEQUELS
Blossom (1990) (TV) .... Grandpa
TELE-HISTORY
Lincoln (1992) (TV) (voice) .... Horace Greeley Guts and Glory: The Rise and Fall of Oliver North (1989) (TV) .... CIA Director William Casey
Day One (1989) (TV) .... Secretary Stimpson
Little Gloria... Happy at Last (1982) (TV) .... Justice John Francis Carew
Kill Me If You Can [The Caryl Chessman Story] (1977) (TV) .... Judge Fricke
Guilty or Innocent: The Sam Sheppard Murder Case (1975) (TV) .... Attorney Philip J. Madden
Pueblo (1973) (TV) .... Secretary of the Navy
TELE-CLASSICS
American Playhouse: Under the Biltmore Clock (1986) (TV) .... Ludlow Whitney
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1985) (TV) .... The King
Much Ado About Nothing (1973) (TV) .... Dogberry
TV MOVIES
Past the Bleachers (1995) (TV) .... Ed Godfrey
Trick of the Eye (1994) (TV) .... Harry Pitt
Miracle Child (1993) (TV) .... Judge
The Incident (1990) (TV) .... Doc Hansen
Home Fires Burning (1989) (TV) .... Jake Tibbetts
A Hobo's Christmas (1987) (TV)
Night of Courage (1987) (TV)
The Sky's No Limit (1984) (TV) .... Arthur Bennett
A Caribbean Mystery (1983) (TV) .... Mr. Rafiel
A Conflict of Interest (1982) (TV)
Homeward Bound (1980) (TV) .... Harry Seaton
Sanctuary of Fear (1979) (TV) .... Father Brown
See How She Runs (1978) (TV) .... John Matusak, Betty's Father
The World Beyond (1978) (TV) (as Barney Hughes) .... Andy Borchard
Tell Me My Name (1977) (TV) .... Uncle Tyler
Ransom for Alice! (1977) (TV) .... Jess Halliday
The UFO Incident (1975) (TV) .... Dr. Benjamin Simon
A Memory of Two Mondays (1974) (TV) .... Jim
Another April (1974) (TV) .... Marion Weston
The Borrowers (1973) (TV) .... Mr. Crampfurl
The Holiday Treasure (1973) (TV)
Look Homeward, Angel (1972) (TV) .... Dr. McGuire
All the Way Home (1971) (TV) .... Joel Lynch
Dr. Cook's Garden (1971) (TV) .... Elias Hart
The Borgia Stick (1967) (TV) .... Doctor Helm
The Million Dollar Incident (1961) (TV) .... Wallace
TV GUEST APPEARANCES
"Deadline"
- Daniel in the Lion's Den (2000) TV Episode .... Judge Panicio
"Homicide: Life on the Street"
- In Search of Crimes Past (1995) TV Episode .... Sam O'Donnell
"The Marshal"
- Twoslip (1995) TV Episode .... Judge Tuttman
"The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd"
- Here's Who Ordered the Pizza (1988) TV Episode .... Shimkin
"The Love Boat"
- Ace in the Hole/Uncle Joey's Song/Father in the Cradle (1984) TV Episode
"Hotel"
- Passages (1984) TV Episode .... Joe Freilich
"Tales from the Darkside"
- Trick or Treat (Pilot) (1983) TV Episode .... Gideon Hackles
"Lou Grant"
- Judge (1977) TV Episode .... Judge Felix Ruthman
"Hawaii Five-O"
- A Capitol Crime (1977) TV Episode .... Clinton Palmer
"Wide World of Mystery"
- The Two Deaths of Sean Doolittle (1975) TV Episode .... Warren
"Love Story"
- All My Tomorrows (1973) TV Episode .... Andrew Corby
"Cannon"
- Dead Pigeon (1971) TV Episode .... Jack Riker
"The Nurses"
- Show Just Cause Why You Should Weep (1963) TV Episode .... Harold Myle
"Naked City"
- Prime of Life (1963) TV Episode
"Route 66"
- Two on the House (1962) TV Episode .... Al Forrester
"The Defenders"
- The Boy Between (1961) TV Episode
"'Way Out"
- William and Mary (1961) TV Episode .... Dr. Foster
"The United States Steel Hour"
- Little Charlie Don't Want a Saddle (1957) TV Episode .... Leo
"Armstrong Circle Theatre"
- Four Homes for Danny (1957) TV Episode .... Mr. Dubois
"Kraft Television Theatre"
- Papa Was a Sport (1954) TV Episode
[Thanks to the IMDb.com]
One Toobworld note: It's a shame Barnard Hughes never did an episode of 'The West Wing'. I could see him playing one of those professors emeritus, or a senior senator or congressman, or a justice on the Supreme Court.
And although he wouldn't have been the right type to play the father of Jed Bartlet as written, I think he would have made a great elder of the Bartlet clan, or even as the father of Stockard Channing's Abby (especially since Martin Sheen worked with Mr. Hughes in the film version of "Da" back in 1988.....)
BCnU.....
Tele-Toby
THEORIES OF RELATEEVEETY: "THE CLOSER"
A couple of off-beat theories of relateeveety connected to 'The Closer':
William Pope of the Los Angeles Police Department ('The Closer') is descended from Adam Cartwright of 'Bonanza'. Aside from the fact that both Pernell Roberts and JK Simmons share a cranial feature, I came up with this idea while watching Roberts in an episode of 'Alias Smith & Jones' on the Western Channel ("Exit To Wickenburg"). Every so often there was something about the timbre of his voice that put me in mind of Simmons.
In this week's episode of 'The Closer', we found out how much Lt. Provenza loves the Los Angeles Dodgers, and to what lengths he'll go to get to a game.
I think that love for the team began back when they were still the Brooklyn Dodgers, and that Provenza grew up back in New York City. That's where he also found his interest in becoming a police detective, due to the influence of a family member who was a member of the NYPD.
There is a slight resemblance between Lt. Provenza and Detective Frank Arcaro from the TV series 'Naked City' and portrayed by Harry Bellaver. So until otherwise contradicted, I'm going to go the Wold-Newton route and say that Arcaro must have had a sister who married a man named Provenza......
BCnU!
Tele-Toby
William Pope of the Los Angeles Police Department ('The Closer') is descended from Adam Cartwright of 'Bonanza'. Aside from the fact that both Pernell Roberts and JK Simmons share a cranial feature, I came up with this idea while watching Roberts in an episode of 'Alias Smith & Jones' on the Western Channel ("Exit To Wickenburg"). Every so often there was something about the timbre of his voice that put me in mind of Simmons.
In this week's episode of 'The Closer', we found out how much Lt. Provenza loves the Los Angeles Dodgers, and to what lengths he'll go to get to a game.
I think that love for the team began back when they were still the Brooklyn Dodgers, and that Provenza grew up back in New York City. That's where he also found his interest in becoming a police detective, due to the influence of a family member who was a member of the NYPD.
There is a slight resemblance between Lt. Provenza and Detective Frank Arcaro from the TV series 'Naked City' and portrayed by Harry Bellaver. So until otherwise contradicted, I'm going to go the Wold-Newton route and say that Arcaro must have had a sister who married a man named Provenza......
BCnU!
Tele-Toby
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
THE HAT SQUAD: JUNE ALLYSON
June Allyson will be most remembered, and rightfully so, for her movie work. I would think "The Glen Miller Story" has to be up there at the top of the list. But that's just my perspective.
She also made her mark in Toobworld, however, both as her televersion and for the various characters she contributed to TV shows, movies, and anthologies.
As Red Skelton would have said, "May God Bless....."
BCnU....
Tele-Toby
TV SERIES
"The DuPont Show with June Allyson" (1959) TV Series .... Herself/Various Characters (1959-1961)
... aka The June Allyson Show
TV MOVIES
These Old Broads (2001) (TV) (uncredited) .... Lady in Hotel
The Kid with the Broken Halo (1982) (TV) .... Dorothea Powell
Three on a Date (1978) (TV) .... Marge Emery
Curse of the Black Widow (1977) (TV) .... Olga
Letters from Three Lovers (1973) (TV) .... Monica
See the Man Run (1971) (TV) .... Helene Spencer
BLIPVERTS
TV commercials and print advertisements for Depend Absorbent Undergarments (1985-1990s)
TV commercials for Wilson's Stores (1980s)
TV GUEST APPEARANCES
"Burke's Law"
- Who Killed the Toy Maker? (1995) TV Episode .... Shelly Knox
"Airwolf"
- Little Wolf (1986) TV Episode .... Martha Stewart
"Crazy Like a Fox" - Hearing Is Believing (1986) TV Episode
"Misfits of Science"
- Steer Crazy (1985) TV Episode .... Bessie
"Murder, She Wrote"
- Hit, Run and Homicide (1984) TV Episode .... Katie Simmons
"Hart to Hart"
- Always, Elizabeth (1984) TV Episode .... Elizabeth Tisdale
"The Love Boat"
- Vicki's Dilemma/Discount Romance/Looser & Still Champ (1983) TV Episode .... Shirley
- Tony's Family/Minister and the Stripper, The/Her Own Two Feet (1978) TV Episode .... Audrey
"Simon & Simon"
- The Last Time I Saw Michael (1982) TV Episode .... Margaret Wells
"House Calls"
- I'll Be Suing You (1980) TV Episode
"The Incredible Hulk"
- Brain Child (1979) TV Episode .... Dr. Kate Lowell
"Vega$"
- High Roller (1978) TV Episode (uncredited) .... Loretta Ochs
"The Sixth Sense"
- Witness Within (1972) TV Episode .... Mrs. Desmond
"The Name of the Game"
- High on a Rainbow (1968) TV Episode .... Joanne Robins
"Burke's Law"
- Who Killed Beau Sparrow? (1963) TV Episode .... Jean Samson
"The Dick Powell Show"
- The Time to Die (9 January 1961) - Julie Stevens
- Special Assignment (25 September 1962) - Jeri Brenr
- The Doomsday Boys (16 October 1962) - Guest Hostess
- Days of Glory (13 November 1962) - Guest Hostess
- The Third Side of the Coin (26 March 1963) - Rosalind Cramer
- The Old Man and the City (23 April 1963) - Guest Hostess
"The DuPont Show with June Allyson"
- Ruth and Naomi (21 September 1959) - Ruth
- A Summer's Ending (12 October 1959) - Sharon Foster
- Child Lost (16 November 1959) - Vivian Wadron
- Edge of Fury (4 January 1960) - Janet
- So Dim the Light (1 February 1960) - Nancy Evans
- Sister Slugger (14 March 1960) - Sister Mary Anne
- Intermission (2 May 1960) - Amy Lawrence
- The Lie (29 September 1960) - Janet Ramsey
- The Test (20 October 1960) - Ruth Taylor
- The Women Who (3 November 1960) - Louise Robertson
- The Desperate Challenge (15 December 1960) - Carol Evans
- The Defense Is Restless (9 January 1961) - Joanna Burnham
- An Affair in Athens (23 January 1961) - Betty Allen
- Without Fear (6 February 1961) - Eleanor Baldwin
- The Old-Fashioned Way (20 February 1961) - Elsa Wilson
- The Moth (27 February 1961) - Stephanie Cate
- The Man Who Wanted Everything Perfect (13 March 1961) - Ann Larson
"Zane Grey Theater"
- Cry Hope! Cry Hate! (1960) TV Episode .... Stella
[Thanks to the IMDb.com]
She also made her mark in Toobworld, however, both as her televersion and for the various characters she contributed to TV shows, movies, and anthologies.
As Red Skelton would have said, "May God Bless....."
BCnU....
Tele-Toby
TV SERIES
"The DuPont Show with June Allyson" (1959) TV Series .... Herself/Various Characters (1959-1961)
... aka The June Allyson Show
TV MOVIES
These Old Broads (2001) (TV) (uncredited) .... Lady in Hotel
The Kid with the Broken Halo (1982) (TV) .... Dorothea Powell
Three on a Date (1978) (TV) .... Marge Emery
Curse of the Black Widow (1977) (TV) .... Olga
Letters from Three Lovers (1973) (TV) .... Monica
See the Man Run (1971) (TV) .... Helene Spencer
BLIPVERTS
TV commercials and print advertisements for Depend Absorbent Undergarments (1985-1990s)
TV commercials for Wilson's Stores (1980s)
TV GUEST APPEARANCES
"Burke's Law"
- Who Killed the Toy Maker? (1995) TV Episode .... Shelly Knox
"Airwolf"
- Little Wolf (1986) TV Episode .... Martha Stewart
"Crazy Like a Fox" - Hearing Is Believing (1986) TV Episode
"Misfits of Science"
- Steer Crazy (1985) TV Episode .... Bessie
"Murder, She Wrote"
- Hit, Run and Homicide (1984) TV Episode .... Katie Simmons
"Hart to Hart"
- Always, Elizabeth (1984) TV Episode .... Elizabeth Tisdale
"The Love Boat"
- Vicki's Dilemma/Discount Romance/Looser & Still Champ (1983) TV Episode .... Shirley
- Tony's Family/Minister and the Stripper, The/Her Own Two Feet (1978) TV Episode .... Audrey
"Simon & Simon"
- The Last Time I Saw Michael (1982) TV Episode .... Margaret Wells
"House Calls"
- I'll Be Suing You (1980) TV Episode
"The Incredible Hulk"
- Brain Child (1979) TV Episode .... Dr. Kate Lowell
"Vega$"
- High Roller (1978) TV Episode (uncredited) .... Loretta Ochs
"The Sixth Sense"
- Witness Within (1972) TV Episode .... Mrs. Desmond
"The Name of the Game"
- High on a Rainbow (1968) TV Episode .... Joanne Robins
"Burke's Law"
- Who Killed Beau Sparrow? (1963) TV Episode .... Jean Samson
"The Dick Powell Show"
- The Time to Die (9 January 1961) - Julie Stevens
- Special Assignment (25 September 1962) - Jeri Brenr
- The Doomsday Boys (16 October 1962) - Guest Hostess
- Days of Glory (13 November 1962) - Guest Hostess
- The Third Side of the Coin (26 March 1963) - Rosalind Cramer
- The Old Man and the City (23 April 1963) - Guest Hostess
"The DuPont Show with June Allyson"
- Ruth and Naomi (21 September 1959) - Ruth
- A Summer's Ending (12 October 1959) - Sharon Foster
- Child Lost (16 November 1959) - Vivian Wadron
- Edge of Fury (4 January 1960) - Janet
- So Dim the Light (1 February 1960) - Nancy Evans
- Sister Slugger (14 March 1960) - Sister Mary Anne
- Intermission (2 May 1960) - Amy Lawrence
- The Lie (29 September 1960) - Janet Ramsey
- The Test (20 October 1960) - Ruth Taylor
- The Women Who (3 November 1960) - Louise Robertson
- The Desperate Challenge (15 December 1960) - Carol Evans
- The Defense Is Restless (9 January 1961) - Joanna Burnham
- An Affair in Athens (23 January 1961) - Betty Allen
- Without Fear (6 February 1961) - Eleanor Baldwin
- The Old-Fashioned Way (20 February 1961) - Elsa Wilson
- The Moth (27 February 1961) - Stephanie Cate
- The Man Who Wanted Everything Perfect (13 March 1961) - Ann Larson
"Zane Grey Theater"
- Cry Hope! Cry Hate! (1960) TV Episode .... Stella
[Thanks to the IMDb.com]
THE HAT SQUAD: JACK SMITH
Jack Smith, a singer and recording artist who was host of the popular 'You Asked for It' television show, died of leukemia on July 3 at his California home at the age of 92.
Mr. Smith began a singing career in the early 1930’s and worked many years in radio, but is best remembered as host of the ABC series for its final season in 1958 of ,You Asked for It,. The show invited viewers to send in suggestions for unusual things that they wanted to see on the air, like people with uncommon talent or seeing the inside vault at Fort Knox.
Mr. Smith returned as host of a syndicated version of 'You Asked for It' in 1971-72 season, and the show was produced sporadically until 1977.
Jack Smith appeared as his own televersion in an episode of 'Happy Days', which featured the Toobworld variation on his TV show: 'You Wanted To See It'.
BCnU.....
Tele-Toby
[Most of this report compiled from the AP story.]
Mr. Smith began a singing career in the early 1930’s and worked many years in radio, but is best remembered as host of the ABC series for its final season in 1958 of ,You Asked for It,. The show invited viewers to send in suggestions for unusual things that they wanted to see on the air, like people with uncommon talent or seeing the inside vault at Fort Knox.
Mr. Smith returned as host of a syndicated version of 'You Asked for It' in 1971-72 season, and the show was produced sporadically until 1977.
Jack Smith appeared as his own televersion in an episode of 'Happy Days', which featured the Toobworld variation on his TV show: 'You Wanted To See It'.
BCnU.....
Tele-Toby
[Most of this report compiled from the AP story.]
CROSSOVER OF THE WEEK! (7/11)
I had to come up to Connecticut to find the Crossover of the Week, and in the few days I've been here so far, I've seen several variations of it already.
There are several commercials running for Silk Soy Milk which feature humanoid bovines in domestic settings. In the first I saw, the cow-wife (Barbara) tries to get her bull-headed husband (Paul) to try the taste of Silk Soy Milk in his breakfast cereal instead of whatever she might have produced.
Of course he resists but finally acquiesces, and makes it sound as if it had been his idea all along to use the stuff.
In another, the two cows (I'm not sure if it's Barbara again and her teenage daughter or just two roommates) are arguing over the fact that the Silk Soy Milk has been all used up. One of them might has well have had blonde hair she was so ditzy.
Like the TV show 'Dinosaurs' before it, these cows belong in the main Toobworld. And what gives them that privilege and provides the Crossover of the Week to boot?
A 1997 failed sitcom attempt by Eddie Izzard called 'Cows'. (Even Izzard admits it was cow-flop. As he describes it on his official website, 'Cows' was "critically received like a long-lost relative who turns up at the wrong house with an overdue Christmas card."
All that exists is the one-hour pilot which was screened on C4. The main characters were the Johnsons, "a typically wacky sitcom family who just happen to be cows".
As with 'Dinosaurs', the cast wore elaborate, full-body cow suits and were still able to give the bovines personality and individuality. Just as in the Silk Soy Milk blipverts, the cows walked on their hind legs and tried to be more like their human neighbors, but their basic instincts still reflected their cattle origins.
The plotline for the introductory episode had the son Rex bringing home his girlfriend Pinky to meet the family. The trouble was, Pinky was human.
It's a relationship like that which probably gave birth to the Minotaur.
I'm not sure how the cows gained their humanoid status, but apparently it was all revealed in the opening sequence. They revealed themselves to be sentient and able to walk about on their hind, and insisting on equality with humans. But apparently Rex's attempt at "mooscegenation" was rebuffed on both sides.
If it had been due to radiation exposure, then these 'Cows' could have shared a common origin with 'The Cowboys Of Moo Mesa' over in the Tooniverse.
At any rate, even though the pilot failed to secure a berth on the regular TV schedule, the life of these 'Cows' continued in Toobworld even though we couldn't see them. And since the cow family of the Silk Soy Milk ads speak with American accents, apparently the evolution of cattle to sentient beings continued and flourished, spreading across the world.
However, they are probably being kept quarantined on "reservations" away from human society at large, who probably don't even know of their existence. This protects the Cowfolk from human prejudices, and keeps the human way of life safe from the threat of being replaced by cud-chewers.
Gary Larson ought to give the concept a shot for TV. He'd be the one to make it fly.
No, wait. That would be pigs who fly....
BCnU!
Tele-Toby
"SILK SOY MILK"
&
"COWS"
&
"COWS"
There are several commercials running for Silk Soy Milk which feature humanoid bovines in domestic settings. In the first I saw, the cow-wife (Barbara) tries to get her bull-headed husband (Paul) to try the taste of Silk Soy Milk in his breakfast cereal instead of whatever she might have produced.
Of course he resists but finally acquiesces, and makes it sound as if it had been his idea all along to use the stuff.
In another, the two cows (I'm not sure if it's Barbara again and her teenage daughter or just two roommates) are arguing over the fact that the Silk Soy Milk has been all used up. One of them might has well have had blonde hair she was so ditzy.
Like the TV show 'Dinosaurs' before it, these cows belong in the main Toobworld. And what gives them that privilege and provides the Crossover of the Week to boot?
A 1997 failed sitcom attempt by Eddie Izzard called 'Cows'. (Even Izzard admits it was cow-flop. As he describes it on his official website, 'Cows' was "critically received like a long-lost relative who turns up at the wrong house with an overdue Christmas card."
All that exists is the one-hour pilot which was screened on C4. The main characters were the Johnsons, "a typically wacky sitcom family who just happen to be cows".
As with 'Dinosaurs', the cast wore elaborate, full-body cow suits and were still able to give the bovines personality and individuality. Just as in the Silk Soy Milk blipverts, the cows walked on their hind legs and tried to be more like their human neighbors, but their basic instincts still reflected their cattle origins.
The plotline for the introductory episode had the son Rex bringing home his girlfriend Pinky to meet the family. The trouble was, Pinky was human.
It's a relationship like that which probably gave birth to the Minotaur.
I'm not sure how the cows gained their humanoid status, but apparently it was all revealed in the opening sequence. They revealed themselves to be sentient and able to walk about on their hind, and insisting on equality with humans. But apparently Rex's attempt at "mooscegenation" was rebuffed on both sides.
If it had been due to radiation exposure, then these 'Cows' could have shared a common origin with 'The Cowboys Of Moo Mesa' over in the Tooniverse.
At any rate, even though the pilot failed to secure a berth on the regular TV schedule, the life of these 'Cows' continued in Toobworld even though we couldn't see them. And since the cow family of the Silk Soy Milk ads speak with American accents, apparently the evolution of cattle to sentient beings continued and flourished, spreading across the world.
However, they are probably being kept quarantined on "reservations" away from human society at large, who probably don't even know of their existence. This protects the Cowfolk from human prejudices, and keeps the human way of life safe from the threat of being replaced by cud-chewers.
Gary Larson ought to give the concept a shot for TV. He'd be the one to make it fly.
No, wait. That would be pigs who fly....
BCnU!
Tele-Toby
Monday, July 10, 2006
BORGASMORD COLLECTIVE
Summertime and the living is easy. But here are a few little thoughts to ease back into the blogmill:
Does anybody else hear the music used in the BP Chase Visa card and automatically think of the music used in 'Hustle'?
~~~~~~
The most blatant product placement around today can be found in connection to 'Kyle XY'. The mysterious title character is addicted to Sour Patch Kids.
And guess who sponsors the show.....?
~~~~
Ex-Golden Girls Rue McClanahan will star in a half-hour original series for gay network here! The show, which it targeted for a 2007 launch, will feature McClanahan as the "crazy and wise" grandmother of a gay teenager "coming of age and coming out."
~~~~~
Fellow Iddiot Bobt muses:
The guy on the Suzuki commercial where he's leaving his house, kisses wifeygoodbye, she hands him his briefcase - just like every good wifey does ;>) -and then at the end of the front yard walk is a cliff, he sky dives andlands near his SUV parked at the bottom of the mountain. The mystery: howdoes he get back up there when he comes home?
Well, o'bviously, he uses a catapult! Sheesh!
~~~~~
At www.hbo.com, you can have the chance to interact with uber-agent Ari Gold by enduring a job interview with him.
His personal assistant and flunky Lloyd even helps you get your head into the game:"Just picture him in a red thong, like I do."
These are the types of questions Ari clobbers you with:
"What do you want to say to the master?"
"What makes you so special?"
And then after you respond, he demolishes whatever self-esteem you might have had.
~~~~~~
Well, I wasn't successful in making the claim that the Josiah Bartlet of 'The West Wing' was the parallel universe counterpart of the one from 'St. Elsewhere'. But I can still stand by the claim that Leo McGarry's counterpart in the main Toobworld became a police detective in an episode of 'Touched By An Angel'.
Now I have another dimensional doppelganger from 'The West Wing'. Lee Garlington played Toby Ziegler's lawyer Alana Waterman in three episodes:
"Welcome To Wherever You Are"
"Here Today"
"Red Haven's On Fire"
In the main Toobworld, Ms. Garlington played Joel Carlington's lawyer in "Passing Go", an episode of 'The Practice'.
Since she wasn't named in that episode, why couldn't she be Alana Waterman.
~~~~~~
I guess I can forget the dream that Denis Leary would bring a few of the characters from NBC's 'Third Watch' onto 'Rescue Me' for cameos to show it's a united Toobworld.
In the latest issue of "Entertainment Weekly", Leary used an "S" word to describe it. It either sucks or it's shit.
For the next two weeks, I get to watch 'Alias Smith & Jones' and 'Big Valley'. Life is good.
BCnU!
Tele-Toby
Does anybody else hear the music used in the BP Chase Visa card and automatically think of the music used in 'Hustle'?
~~~~~~
The most blatant product placement around today can be found in connection to 'Kyle XY'. The mysterious title character is addicted to Sour Patch Kids.
And guess who sponsors the show.....?
~~~~
Ex-Golden Girls Rue McClanahan will star in a half-hour original series for gay network here! The show, which it targeted for a 2007 launch, will feature McClanahan as the "crazy and wise" grandmother of a gay teenager "coming of age and coming out."
~~~~~
Fellow Iddiot Bobt muses:
The guy on the Suzuki commercial where he's leaving his house, kisses wifeygoodbye, she hands him his briefcase - just like every good wifey does ;>) -and then at the end of the front yard walk is a cliff, he sky dives andlands near his SUV parked at the bottom of the mountain. The mystery: howdoes he get back up there when he comes home?
Well, o'bviously, he uses a catapult! Sheesh!
~~~~~
At www.hbo.com, you can have the chance to interact with uber-agent Ari Gold by enduring a job interview with him.
His personal assistant and flunky Lloyd even helps you get your head into the game:"Just picture him in a red thong, like I do."
These are the types of questions Ari clobbers you with:
"What do you want to say to the master?"
"What makes you so special?"
And then after you respond, he demolishes whatever self-esteem you might have had.
~~~~~~
Well, I wasn't successful in making the claim that the Josiah Bartlet of 'The West Wing' was the parallel universe counterpart of the one from 'St. Elsewhere'. But I can still stand by the claim that Leo McGarry's counterpart in the main Toobworld became a police detective in an episode of 'Touched By An Angel'.
Now I have another dimensional doppelganger from 'The West Wing'. Lee Garlington played Toby Ziegler's lawyer Alana Waterman in three episodes:
"Welcome To Wherever You Are"
"Here Today"
"Red Haven's On Fire"
In the main Toobworld, Ms. Garlington played Joel Carlington's lawyer in "Passing Go", an episode of 'The Practice'.
Since she wasn't named in that episode, why couldn't she be Alana Waterman.
~~~~~~
I guess I can forget the dream that Denis Leary would bring a few of the characters from NBC's 'Third Watch' onto 'Rescue Me' for cameos to show it's a united Toobworld.
In the latest issue of "Entertainment Weekly", Leary used an "S" word to describe it. It either sucks or it's shit.
For the next two weeks, I get to watch 'Alias Smith & Jones' and 'Big Valley'. Life is good.
BCnU!
Tele-Toby
Friday, July 7, 2006
ROSE BY ANY OTHER NAME?
A few nights after the broadcast of the episode "Army Of Ghosts", the BBC announced who would replace Billie Piper as a companion on 'Doctor Who'.
Her name is Freema Agyeman, and she will be the second "companion of color", following Noel Clarke as Mickey Smith. Mickey joined his ex-girlfriend and the Doctor for a few trips through Time and Space, before choosing to remain behind in an alternate dimension to battle the Cybermen.
There have been a few tut-tuts uttered online in the fan base about her casting.......
From the blog "Behind The Sofa":
I think it’s ludicrous to cast someone we’ve seen so recently as another character; I hope that there’s an explanation, but alas, I doubt that there will be…
Posted by: Will
Thankfully, so far as I can tell, nobody is complaining about her skin color. (Things would be different if they choose a new hue for 'Who' with the next regeneration. Then you would see the jerks come out of the woodwork. They have in the past....)
No, the problem some of these fans have is that Freema Agyeman was just seen in the episode "Army Of Ghosts", and now she's coming back as a new character within the space of about three episodes. (Granted, there's almost a year's wait before Season Three starts up, and she won't be in the next Christmas special, but still. None of that matters once it all goes to DVD.)
And apparently, she has to return as a new character. I have yet to see "Army Of Ghosts", but I understand her character Adeola Oshodi doesn't fare at all well. (I'll wait to see it as a "double feature" with the season finale "Doomsday".)
So by at least the first episode of Season Three, Freema Agyeman will be joining the Doctor as Martha Jones.
I don't know why those fans should be so upset by her return as a new character to become a regular; this sort of thing happens in Toobworld all the time.
Usually if the Powers That Be liked an actor's performance in a one-shot performance in a role, they will be asked to bring that character back to join the cast. Such was the case with Georgia Engel as Georgette Franklin on 'The Mary Tyler Moore Show', and Christopher Lloyd as Reverend Jim Ignatowski on 'Taxi'.
But there are plenty of examples of an actor playing a guest role on a TV series and then coming back as a completely new character on a regular basis.
HARRY MORGAN - This great, enduring character actor was seen as certifiable Major General Bartford Hamilton Steele in "The General Flippped At Dawn". When Henry Blake perished in the Sea of Japan, Morgan returned as the new commanding officer for the 'M*A*S*H' unit 4077, Colonel Sherman T. Potter.
JERRY ORBACH - The song-and-dance man with the hangdog expression left an indelible mark on the long-running 'Law & Order' with twelve years of service as Detective Lennie Briscoe. He even helped to launch a sequel, 'Law & Order: Trial By Jury' by joining that cast for a few episodes before his death.
But a lot of people probably don't even remember far enough back to when Orbach showed up as defense lawyer Frank Lehman in "The Wages Of Love".
VINCENT GARDENIA - He first showed up on 'All In The Family' as wife-swappin' swinger Curtis Rempley in "The Bunkers And The Swingers"; and then as the Bunkers' former neighbor Jim Bowman, who sold his house to the Jeffersons in "Lionel Moves Into The Neighborhood".
Surprisingly, Archie didn't mention the resemblance when he moved back into the neighborhood as Frank Lorenzo!
JOHN MAHONEY - This one is a little different. Mahoney showed up in the bar 'Cheers' as a piano tuner named Sy Flembeck in the episode "Do Not Forsake Me, O' My Postman". I would think bar patron Dr. 'Frasier' Crane might have remarked upon Sy's resemblance to his own father, as Mahoney was later cast as Martin Crane beginning with the first episode of the sequel.
MAJEL BARRETT - In the pilot episode of 'Star Trek' ("The Cage"), Ms. Barrett was given the plum assignment of the second-in-command, known only as "Number One". But at some point between that originally unaired pilot and the actual series, most of those original members of the crew were gone; replaced by the Enterprise officers we know today.
This time around, Majel Barrett was seen on a regular basis as Nurse Christine Chapel who had an urequited crush on Mr. Spock. Even though we never knew Number One's name, she definitely was not Christine Chapel; and the job of nurse was definitely a step down from being the First Officer.
But at least she still had a job. So there are some benefits to being involved with the show's Creator.....
And it's not even like this sort of thing hasn't happened before within the 'Doctor Who' series itself, as some of those fans have pointed out.....
Come on, it's not like they've cast Peter Davidson as the new companion without explanation. Freema was in AoG for all of five minutes, and her character was strictly redshirt material. Anyway, B5 got away with worse than this - anyone remember when Ed Wasser went from dome tech to Mr. Morden in the space of a few episodes?
Posted by:Matthew
PETER PURVES - Within the same story of 'Doctor Who' ("Flight Through Eternity"), Purves went from playing a hillbilly on the observation deck of the Empire State Building to joining the Doctor as companion Steven Taylor!
As for me? I'm thrilled. What makes any drama interesting is the growth and change of its characters and Rose's arc had pretty much ground to a standstill. I wonder how they're going to explain either (a) the character's return or (b) the character looking like someone we've already seen? (*kof* Romana *kof*)
Posted by: ?
LALLA WARD - As the mysterious poster pointed out, the show provided a splainin as to Ms. Ward's resemblance between her two characters. After appearing as Princess Astra in "The Armegeddon Factor", she then took over the role of Gallifreyan Time Lady Romana from Mary Tamm. For her regeneration, Romana chose the form of Princess Astra as the template.
How has everyone forgotten a certain Baker being called on to play the Doctor after already having been in the series? And he was the Bloomin' Lead!
Posted by Coleberg
COLIN BAKER - Finally, there's the case of the Doctor himself, Sixth Incarnation. In the episode "Arc Of Infiinity", Baker guest-starred as Commander Maxil who was in charge of the Chancellory Guard on Gallifrey.
In later interviews, Colin Baker has chuckled over the fact that before he assumed the role of the Doctor, he got to shoot his predecessor in the back. (He stunned the Fifth Doctor before delivering him to the Gallifreyan High Council.)
As an ambassador without portfolio to Toobworld, I'd congratulate Freema Agyeman for landing the role of the Doctor's new traveling companion. And the fact that another one of her characters has already appeared in the Doctor's corner of the vast TV Universe is nothing more than a time-honored tradition in Toobworld.
So welcome aboard the TARDIS, Martha Jones!
It's just a shame about that name. Martha Jones? BOOOOOORING! Couldn't RTD spring for something more interesting?
At least her previous incarnation was blessed with the musical "Adeola Oshodi". Couldn't she at least have been an identical cousin of Adeola's? How about Uhura Oshodi?
Oh well. It could have been worse. It has been worse in the past.
Remember the lumpen moniker of "Mel Bush"?
BCnU!
Tele-Toby
Her name is Freema Agyeman, and she will be the second "companion of color", following Noel Clarke as Mickey Smith. Mickey joined his ex-girlfriend and the Doctor for a few trips through Time and Space, before choosing to remain behind in an alternate dimension to battle the Cybermen.
There have been a few tut-tuts uttered online in the fan base about her casting.......
From the blog "Behind The Sofa":
I think it’s ludicrous to cast someone we’ve seen so recently as another character; I hope that there’s an explanation, but alas, I doubt that there will be…
Posted by: Will
Thankfully, so far as I can tell, nobody is complaining about her skin color. (Things would be different if they choose a new hue for 'Who' with the next regeneration. Then you would see the jerks come out of the woodwork. They have in the past....)
No, the problem some of these fans have is that Freema Agyeman was just seen in the episode "Army Of Ghosts", and now she's coming back as a new character within the space of about three episodes. (Granted, there's almost a year's wait before Season Three starts up, and she won't be in the next Christmas special, but still. None of that matters once it all goes to DVD.)
And apparently, she has to return as a new character. I have yet to see "Army Of Ghosts", but I understand her character Adeola Oshodi doesn't fare at all well. (I'll wait to see it as a "double feature" with the season finale "Doomsday".)
So by at least the first episode of Season Three, Freema Agyeman will be joining the Doctor as Martha Jones.
I don't know why those fans should be so upset by her return as a new character to become a regular; this sort of thing happens in Toobworld all the time.
Usually if the Powers That Be liked an actor's performance in a one-shot performance in a role, they will be asked to bring that character back to join the cast. Such was the case with Georgia Engel as Georgette Franklin on 'The Mary Tyler Moore Show', and Christopher Lloyd as Reverend Jim Ignatowski on 'Taxi'.
But there are plenty of examples of an actor playing a guest role on a TV series and then coming back as a completely new character on a regular basis.
HARRY MORGAN - This great, enduring character actor was seen as certifiable Major General Bartford Hamilton Steele in "The General Flippped At Dawn". When Henry Blake perished in the Sea of Japan, Morgan returned as the new commanding officer for the 'M*A*S*H' unit 4077, Colonel Sherman T. Potter.
JERRY ORBACH - The song-and-dance man with the hangdog expression left an indelible mark on the long-running 'Law & Order' with twelve years of service as Detective Lennie Briscoe. He even helped to launch a sequel, 'Law & Order: Trial By Jury' by joining that cast for a few episodes before his death.
But a lot of people probably don't even remember far enough back to when Orbach showed up as defense lawyer Frank Lehman in "The Wages Of Love".
VINCENT GARDENIA - He first showed up on 'All In The Family' as wife-swappin' swinger Curtis Rempley in "The Bunkers And The Swingers"; and then as the Bunkers' former neighbor Jim Bowman, who sold his house to the Jeffersons in "Lionel Moves Into The Neighborhood".
Surprisingly, Archie didn't mention the resemblance when he moved back into the neighborhood as Frank Lorenzo!
JOHN MAHONEY - This one is a little different. Mahoney showed up in the bar 'Cheers' as a piano tuner named Sy Flembeck in the episode "Do Not Forsake Me, O' My Postman". I would think bar patron Dr. 'Frasier' Crane might have remarked upon Sy's resemblance to his own father, as Mahoney was later cast as Martin Crane beginning with the first episode of the sequel.
MAJEL BARRETT - In the pilot episode of 'Star Trek' ("The Cage"), Ms. Barrett was given the plum assignment of the second-in-command, known only as "Number One". But at some point between that originally unaired pilot and the actual series, most of those original members of the crew were gone; replaced by the Enterprise officers we know today.
This time around, Majel Barrett was seen on a regular basis as Nurse Christine Chapel who had an urequited crush on Mr. Spock. Even though we never knew Number One's name, she definitely was not Christine Chapel; and the job of nurse was definitely a step down from being the First Officer.
But at least she still had a job. So there are some benefits to being involved with the show's Creator.....
And it's not even like this sort of thing hasn't happened before within the 'Doctor Who' series itself, as some of those fans have pointed out.....
Come on, it's not like they've cast Peter Davidson as the new companion without explanation. Freema was in AoG for all of five minutes, and her character was strictly redshirt material. Anyway, B5 got away with worse than this - anyone remember when Ed Wasser went from dome tech to Mr. Morden in the space of a few episodes?
Posted by:Matthew
PETER PURVES - Within the same story of 'Doctor Who' ("Flight Through Eternity"), Purves went from playing a hillbilly on the observation deck of the Empire State Building to joining the Doctor as companion Steven Taylor!
As for me? I'm thrilled. What makes any drama interesting is the growth and change of its characters and Rose's arc had pretty much ground to a standstill. I wonder how they're going to explain either (a) the character's return or (b) the character looking like someone we've already seen? (*kof* Romana *kof*)
Posted by: ?
LALLA WARD - As the mysterious poster pointed out, the show provided a splainin as to Ms. Ward's resemblance between her two characters. After appearing as Princess Astra in "The Armegeddon Factor", she then took over the role of Gallifreyan Time Lady Romana from Mary Tamm. For her regeneration, Romana chose the form of Princess Astra as the template.
How has everyone forgotten a certain Baker being called on to play the Doctor after already having been in the series? And he was the Bloomin' Lead!
Posted by Coleberg
COLIN BAKER - Finally, there's the case of the Doctor himself, Sixth Incarnation. In the episode "Arc Of Infiinity", Baker guest-starred as Commander Maxil who was in charge of the Chancellory Guard on Gallifrey.
In later interviews, Colin Baker has chuckled over the fact that before he assumed the role of the Doctor, he got to shoot his predecessor in the back. (He stunned the Fifth Doctor before delivering him to the Gallifreyan High Council.)
As an ambassador without portfolio to Toobworld, I'd congratulate Freema Agyeman for landing the role of the Doctor's new traveling companion. And the fact that another one of her characters has already appeared in the Doctor's corner of the vast TV Universe is nothing more than a time-honored tradition in Toobworld.
So welcome aboard the TARDIS, Martha Jones!
It's just a shame about that name. Martha Jones? BOOOOOORING! Couldn't RTD spring for something more interesting?
At least her previous incarnation was blessed with the musical "Adeola Oshodi". Couldn't she at least have been an identical cousin of Adeola's? How about Uhura Oshodi?
Oh well. It could have been worse. It has been worse in the past.
Remember the lumpen moniker of "Mel Bush"?
BCnU!
Tele-Toby
Thursday, July 6, 2006
TRAIL MIX: "THE 4400" & "THE TWILIGHT ZONE"
From Wikipedia:
ABOUT THE OREGON TRAIL
The Oregon Trail was one of the key overland migration routes on which pioneers traveled across the North American continent in wagons in order to settle new parts of the United States of America during the 19th century.
The Oregon Trail spanned over half the continent as the wagon trail proceeded 2,170 miles (3,500 kilometers) west through territories and land later to become six U.S. states (Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, Idaho, and Oregon).
Between 1841 and 1869, the Oregon Trail was used by settlers to the Northwest and West Coast areas of what is now the United States.
Once the first transcontinental railroad was completed in 1869, this trail was no longer used by long-distance travelers.
The trail is marked by numerous cutoffs and shortcuts and is a hodge podge from Missouri to Oregon. The basic route follows river valleys. Starting initially in Independence/Kansas City, the trail followed the Santa Fe Trail just south of the Kansas River. At about Topeka, Kansas it crossed the Kansas River and angled to Nebraska paralleling the Little Blue River until reaching the south side of the Platte River. It followed the Platte and North Platte to the South Pass hole in the Rocky Mountains in Wyoming.
From South Pass the trail parallels the Snake River to the Columbia River before arriving at Oregon City or taking the Barlow Road to the Willamette Valley and other destinations in what are now the states of Washington and Oregon.
The Oregon Trail's designated termination point was Oregon City, at the time the proposed capital of the Oregon Territory. However, many settlers branched off or grew exhausted short of this goal and settled at convenient or promising locations along the trail.
A number of other trails followed the Oregon Trail for part of its length. These include the Mormon Trail from Illinois to Utah, and the California Trail to the gold fields of California.
ABOUT THE CALIFORNIA TRAIL
The California Trail was a major overland emigrant route across the American West from Missouri to California in the middle 19th century. It was used by 250,000 farmers and gold-seekers to reach the California gold fields and farm homesteads in California from the late 1840s until the introduction of the railroads in the late 1860s.
The original route had many branches and encompassed over 5,000 miles (8000 km) of trails. Over 1,000 miles (1600 km) of the rutted traces of the trail remain througout the Great Basin as historical evidence of the great mass migration westward.
The exact route of the trail depended on the starting point of the voyage, the final destination in California, as well as the condition of livestock and vehicles. The main branch of the trail across the Great Plains was identical to the Oregon and Mormon trails, going up the Missouri River then crossing Nebraska along the Platte and North Platte to present-day Wyoming.
~~~~~
So why should all of this matter to Toobworld? Because the future faction, which absconded with 'The 4400' and then returned them all to Mt. Rainier two years ago, took Maia Rutledge Skouris a second time and then placed her in 1832. Fifteen years later, Maia died of smallpox while going cross-country on the Oregon Trail.
Also in 1847, Christian Horn was leading a wagon train through New Mexico. When his son was stricken with illness, Horn went in search of medical help just "A Hundred Yards Over The Rim" ('The Twilight Zone'). There he found himself transported forward in Time to September, 1961, where he got hold of some penicillin to cure his son. And a good thing too, because his son had a destiny to fulfill in which he would become a world-renowned physician.
It's tempting to think that those future manipulators were involved in Horn's trip through Time to insure his son's survival, but too much was left to chance. So I'll stick with my original theory as posited in the old Tubeworld Dynamic website - that Christian Horn had stumbled upon a rogue temporal wormhole which brought him forward to the year 1961 and then back again to 1847.
And where did this temporal wormhole come from? Horn was in the New Mexico territory. About one hundred and fifty years later, Dr. Sam Beckett would build his 'Quantum Leap' accelerator in the New Mexico mountains.
There was plenty of things wrong with that project, just as there had been with the Time Tunnel project underneath the Arizone desert thirty years earlier. Obviously the Quantum Leap accelerator wasn't properly shielded and temporal energy was leaking whenever Sam went leaping. It's possible that the 1961 wormhole was left over from when Sam leapt into the life of Galveston Mustangs pitcher Lester "Doc" Fuller on August 6th, 1961. ("Play Ball")
Unbeknownst to Chris Horn, that might not have been his first encounter with time travel. It will be my contention that until his wagon train veered south onto one of the cut-off shortcuts on the trail, he had been traveling with the same wagon train that was carrying Maia Rutledge.
In Toobworld, not much is ever left to coincidence.
BCnU!
Tele-Toby
ABOUT THE OREGON TRAIL
The Oregon Trail was one of the key overland migration routes on which pioneers traveled across the North American continent in wagons in order to settle new parts of the United States of America during the 19th century.
The Oregon Trail spanned over half the continent as the wagon trail proceeded 2,170 miles (3,500 kilometers) west through territories and land later to become six U.S. states (Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, Idaho, and Oregon).
Between 1841 and 1869, the Oregon Trail was used by settlers to the Northwest and West Coast areas of what is now the United States.
Once the first transcontinental railroad was completed in 1869, this trail was no longer used by long-distance travelers.
The trail is marked by numerous cutoffs and shortcuts and is a hodge podge from Missouri to Oregon. The basic route follows river valleys. Starting initially in Independence/Kansas City, the trail followed the Santa Fe Trail just south of the Kansas River. At about Topeka, Kansas it crossed the Kansas River and angled to Nebraska paralleling the Little Blue River until reaching the south side of the Platte River. It followed the Platte and North Platte to the South Pass hole in the Rocky Mountains in Wyoming.
From South Pass the trail parallels the Snake River to the Columbia River before arriving at Oregon City or taking the Barlow Road to the Willamette Valley and other destinations in what are now the states of Washington and Oregon.
The Oregon Trail's designated termination point was Oregon City, at the time the proposed capital of the Oregon Territory. However, many settlers branched off or grew exhausted short of this goal and settled at convenient or promising locations along the trail.
A number of other trails followed the Oregon Trail for part of its length. These include the Mormon Trail from Illinois to Utah, and the California Trail to the gold fields of California.
ABOUT THE CALIFORNIA TRAIL
The California Trail was a major overland emigrant route across the American West from Missouri to California in the middle 19th century. It was used by 250,000 farmers and gold-seekers to reach the California gold fields and farm homesteads in California from the late 1840s until the introduction of the railroads in the late 1860s.
The original route had many branches and encompassed over 5,000 miles (8000 km) of trails. Over 1,000 miles (1600 km) of the rutted traces of the trail remain througout the Great Basin as historical evidence of the great mass migration westward.
The exact route of the trail depended on the starting point of the voyage, the final destination in California, as well as the condition of livestock and vehicles. The main branch of the trail across the Great Plains was identical to the Oregon and Mormon trails, going up the Missouri River then crossing Nebraska along the Platte and North Platte to present-day Wyoming.
~~~~~
So why should all of this matter to Toobworld? Because the future faction, which absconded with 'The 4400' and then returned them all to Mt. Rainier two years ago, took Maia Rutledge Skouris a second time and then placed her in 1832. Fifteen years later, Maia died of smallpox while going cross-country on the Oregon Trail.
Also in 1847, Christian Horn was leading a wagon train through New Mexico. When his son was stricken with illness, Horn went in search of medical help just "A Hundred Yards Over The Rim" ('The Twilight Zone'). There he found himself transported forward in Time to September, 1961, where he got hold of some penicillin to cure his son. And a good thing too, because his son had a destiny to fulfill in which he would become a world-renowned physician.
It's tempting to think that those future manipulators were involved in Horn's trip through Time to insure his son's survival, but too much was left to chance. So I'll stick with my original theory as posited in the old Tubeworld Dynamic website - that Christian Horn had stumbled upon a rogue temporal wormhole which brought him forward to the year 1961 and then back again to 1847.
And where did this temporal wormhole come from? Horn was in the New Mexico territory. About one hundred and fifty years later, Dr. Sam Beckett would build his 'Quantum Leap' accelerator in the New Mexico mountains.
There was plenty of things wrong with that project, just as there had been with the Time Tunnel project underneath the Arizone desert thirty years earlier. Obviously the Quantum Leap accelerator wasn't properly shielded and temporal energy was leaking whenever Sam went leaping. It's possible that the 1961 wormhole was left over from when Sam leapt into the life of Galveston Mustangs pitcher Lester "Doc" Fuller on August 6th, 1961. ("Play Ball")
Unbeknownst to Chris Horn, that might not have been his first encounter with time travel. It will be my contention that until his wagon train veered south onto one of the cut-off shortcuts on the trail, he had been traveling with the same wagon train that was carrying Maia Rutledge.
In Toobworld, not much is ever left to coincidence.
BCnU!
Tele-Toby
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