TWO FOR TUESDAY TVXOHOF TRIBUTE - KRIS KRISTOFFERSON

This has been a hard week and not just for the Television Crossover Hall of Fame....

From CNN:
Los Angeles AP —
Kris Kristofferson, a Rhodes scholar with a deft writing style and rough charisma who became a country music superstar and A-list Hollywood actor, has died.

Kristofferson died at his home in Maui, Hawaii, on Saturday, family spokesperson Ebie McFarland said in an email. He was 88.

McFarland said Kristofferson died peacefully, surrounded by his family. No cause was given.

KRIS KRISTOFFERSON

From Wikipedia:
Kristoffer Kristofferson (June 22, 1936 – September 28, 2024) was an American country singer, songwriter, and actor.

Kristofferson was a pioneering figure in the outlaw country movement of the 1970s, moving away from the polished Nashville sound and toward a more raw, introspective style.

He released his debut album "Kristofferson" in 1970. Among his songwriting credits are "Me and Bobby McGee", "For the Good Times", "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and "Help Me Make It Through the Night", all of which became hits for other artists. Kristofferson was also a member of the country music supergroup the Highwaymen between 1985 and 1995. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2004 and received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014.

During the 1970s, Kristofferson also embarked on a successful career as a Hollywood actor. He became known for his roles in "Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid" (1973), "Blume in Love" (1973), "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore" (1974), and "A Star Is Born" (1976); for the latter, he earned a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor. His acting career waned somewhat following his role in the box office bomb "Heaven's Gate" (1980), but he continued to act in films such as "Stagecoach" (1986), "Lone Star" (1996), and the "Blade" film trilogy (1998–2004).

Kristofferson will be remembered for so many great songs, especially “Me And Bobby McGee”, no matter which gender you prefer for Bobby.  But there were so many movies which would have made somebody unfamiliar with his career think that he had studied acting and trod the boards to hone his craft.

But when it came to his work in television, I’ve looked through his credits and I was surprised I had never even heard of most of them.  He played Sam Houston and Abe Lincoln?  Why didn’t I know this?

But when it comes to his televersion in the League of Themselves, there may not be many in the collection, but they are cherce.

THE MERV GRIFFIN SHOW (1971-1973)
S8 E187 (SINGERS & SONGWRITERS)
S9 E17  (SINGERS & SONGWRITERS)
S10 E215 (CANNES)

O’Bservation:
More than most other talk shows, ‘The Merv Griffin Show’ has a televersion, thanks to an episode of ‘Seinfeld’.  I hope to find some pictures from any of his appearances with Merv.

SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE (1976)
He hosted and was one of the musical guests (along with his wife at the time, Rita Coolidge)

THE MUPPET SHOW (1978)
Once again he was teamed up with Rita Coolidge.

JOAN RIVERS AND FRIENDS SALUTE HEIDI ABROMOWITZ (1988)

O'Bservation:
Like many of the guests in this salute to Joan Rivers' "friend" Heidi, Kristofferson appeared as a talking head with his reminiscences of her.

THE LARRY SANDERS SHOW
ARTHUR'S CRISES (1994)
Although Arthur is having an affair, Larry worries that he is being courted for another job.

BIG DREAMS & BROKEN HEARTS:
THE DOTTIE WEST STORY (1995)

From Wikipedia:
"Big Dreams and Broken Hearts: The Dottie West Story" is a 1995 American television biopic about the life of country music singer Dottie West portrayed by Michele Lee. Bill D'Elia directed the film which was shot in Nashville, TN, between July 11 and August 4, 1994. The film first aired on January 22, 1995, on CBS.

The movie chronicles the life and rise to fame of country music singer Dottie West (Lee).

In addition to Kenny Rogers, country singers Larry Gatlin and Loretta Lynn (close friends of West's) portrayed themselves, [O’Bservation: also Chet Atkins & Kristofferson] and Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson also provide narration. West's family, including her children (Mo, Kerry, Shelly, Dale) helped with the making of the movie.

O’Bservation:
Kristofferson was again a talking head with this production.  Kristofferson not only played himself, but Tony Higgins portrayed his younger televersion.

THE LIFE AND HARD TIMES OF GUY TERRIFICO (2005)

"The Life and Hard Times of Guy Terrifico" is a Canadian mockumentary film released in 2005. Written and directed by Michael Mabbott, the film stars Matt Murphy, a musician previously associated with the bands The Super Friendz and The Flashing Lights, as Guy Terrifico, a country singer long rumored to have died three decades earlier, but now re-emerging from his disappearance and releasing a new album.

O'Bservation:
Once again, Kristofferson was a talking head.  He revealed that after thirty years, he had not forgotten that Terrifico owed him fifty bucks.

Welcome to the Hall.  I’m sorry it took so long….

“Good night and may God bless.” 

TVXOHOF'S TUESDAY TRIBUTE - PETE ROSE, THE HITS KING

Stringellow Hawke:

You and Pete Rose, you're gonna live forever.

Dominic Santini:

Ah, come on, nobody lives forever.

“Airwolf”

From WLWT:
CINCINNATI —
Cincinnati Reds legend and Major League Baseball's all-time hit leader Pete Rose has died at the age of 83, according to multiple reports and the team.

Rose, a Cincinnati native, played 19 seasons with the Reds and collected an MLB-record 4,256 hits in his career.

The Associated Press confirmed with a spokesperson in Clark County, Nevada that Rose died on Monday. Rose's cause of death was not released on Monday.

One of the most recognizable Cincinnati sports figures of all time, Rose's legendary career took a complicated turn after he was permanently banned from baseball amid allegations that he gambled on games while playing and managing for the Reds.

Rose's career is certainly Hall-of-Fame worthy.

A member of Cincinnati's Big Red Machine, Rose is the all-time MLB leader in hits (4,256), games played (3,562), at-bats (14,053) and singles (3,215). Noted for his all-around ability and enthusiasm, he was referred to as Charlie Hustle — taking home three World Series titles, one MVP award, two Gold Gloves and a Rookie of the Year award (1963), among dozens of other accolades.

It took me a while, but I’ve learned that I should always check the TV credits for sports figures when they die; they just might be eligible for inclusion in the Television Crossover Hall of Fame, thanks to their League of Themselves televersions.  And that’s how, after his passing, I found that Rose did qualify for membership….

PETE ROSE

From Wikipedia:
Peter Edward Rose Sr. (April 14, 1941 – September 30, 2024), nicknamed "Charlie Hustle", was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a member of the Cincinnati Reds lineup known as the Big Red Machine for their dominance of the National League in the 1970s. He was successful playing for the Philadelphia Phillies, where he won his third World Series championship, and had a brief stint with the Montreal Expos. He managed the Reds from 1984 to 1989.

Rose was a switch hitter, and is MLB's all-time leader in hits (4,256), games played (3,562), at-bats (14,053), singles (3,215) and outs (10,328).  He won three World Series championships, three batting titles, one Most Valuable Player Award, two Gold Glove Awards, and the Rookie of the Year Award. He made 17 All-Star appearances in an unequaled five positions (second baseman, left fielder, right fielder, third baseman, and first baseman). He won two Gold Glove awards when he was an outfielder, in 1969 and 1970.

In August 1989 (his last year as a manager and three years after retiring as a player), Rose was penalized with permanent ineligibility from baseball amidst accusations that he gambled on baseball games while he played for and managed the Reds; the charges of wrongdoing included claims that he bet on his own team.

In 1991, the Baseball Hall of Fame formally voted to ban those on the "permanently ineligible" list from induction, after previously excluding such players by informal agreement among voters. After years of public denial, he admitted in 2004 that he bet on baseball and on the Reds. The issue of his election to the Hall of Fame remains contentious throughout baseball.

Following his death in 2024, Rose became the first player to die while still ineligible since William D. Cox's death in 1989.

At least this is one Hall of Fame in which the Hit King is allowed to join.

Unfortunately, I haven’t found any pictures from these episodes in which he appeared, and with some of them, I couldn’t find descriptions of what his televersion did while with those fictional characters.  But if I do find any, they will go into his eventual photo gallery in the TVXOHOF FB page.

Here are the credits which qualified the televersion of Pete Rose to join.  

AIRWOLF
MIND OF THE MACHINE (1984)

MARELLA:

Some of the major-league baseball teams are using similar techniques to profile the perfect swing.

DOMINIC:

I read about that. Pete Rose will live forever.

O'Bservation:
References are just as much proof that somebody exists in Earth Prime-Time as do actual appearances.

KOOL-AID COMMERCIAL (1986)

O'Bservation:
Yeah.  TV commercials count as part of the TV Universe.  In fact, I think the Kool-Aid Guy might even show up in the TV Crossover Hall of Fame....

THE FRESH PRINCE OF BEL-AIR
COURTING DISASTER   (1990)

GOOD SPORTS
THE CINCINNATI KIDS (1991)

ARLI$$
TRUTH AND RESPONSIBILITY (1997)

In the Season Two finale, Arliss has vengeance on his brain after he is slandered by a sports talk-show host.

VERONICA'S CLOSET
VERONICA'S SLIDING DOORS (1999)

Inspired by the movie Sliding Doors, this episode shows what happens to everyone when they have to go somewhere by plane. But because of an incident, they have to take a different flight which turns out to be a nightmare for them while we see what would have happened if they caught the earlier flight.

BETWEEN BROTHERS
FANTASY CAMP/HOME BOYZ OF SUMMER (1999)

ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT (2003-2019)
(Recurring Joke)

A still of Rose running to second base is used as a metaphor for George Michael Bluth's relationship with his cousin.

PSYCH
WHO YA GONNA CALL? (2006)

Shawn Spencer claims that the "spirit of Pete Rose" contacted him.

O’Bservation:
Another reference.  Pete Rose exists for Shawn to at least have heard of him.  (If not for knowing that "the Hit King" was still alive at the time.)

Rose proved to be multidimensional….

SKITLANDIA

SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE

O'Bservation:

Besides being mentioned on ‘Weekend New Update’ by Chico Escuela, Pete Rose (as played by Phil Hartman) visited “Rain Man” (as played by Dana Carvey) at the care facility where he was living to get him to use his savant abilities for some gambling assistance.

Finally, there's at least one other member of the League of Themselves in the Hall who was on hand to welcome Charlie Hustle.....

Goodnight and may God bless…. 

MEMORIAL MONDAY TVXOHOF TRIBUTE - BLACK. JOHN BLACK

From ABC:
"Days of Our Lives" actor Drake Hogestyn, who played John Black on the long-running soap opera, has died at 70, his family announced in a statement posted to the show's official Instagram account on Saturday.

"It's with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Drake Hogestyn," the family's statement began.

"He was thrown the curve ball of his life when he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, but he faced the challenge with incredible strength and determination," the statement continued. "After putting up an unbelievable fight, he passed peacefully surrounded by loved ones."

Hogestyn's family also mentioned his appreciation for his role on "Days of Our Lives."

"He loved performing for the Days audience and sharing the stage with the greatest cast, crew, and production team in the business," the statement read.

"We love him and we will miss him all the Days of our Lives," his family concluded.

Hogestyn portrayed John Black in the hugely popular sitcom* starting in 1986. Prior to his time as an actor, Hogestyn spent time playing professional baseball in the Minor Leagues.

* That is from the ABC News web page, not my opinion.

JOHN BLACK

From Wikipedia:
John Black is a fictional character from Days of Our Lives, an American soap opera streaming on Peacock. The role has been played by Drake Hogestyn since January 1986. He exited the role in January 2009, and returned in September 2011.

John was created by scriptwriters Sheri Anderson, Thom Racina and Leah Laiman as the Pawn in 1985, and introduced by executive producers Betty Corday and Al Rabin. He became one of the series' most popular characters when he was revealed to be the presumed-dead Roman Brady (Wayne Northrop), after plastic surgery and amnesia.

Northrop's 1991 return led to Hogestyn's portrayal of Roman being retconned into the separate character of John Black, which establishes the super couple pairing of John and Marlena due to John's affair with Roman's wife Marlena Evans (Deidre Hall).

John Black was modeled after Robert Ludlum's spy, Jason Bourne, with elements of Ian Fleming's James Bond and martial-arts exponent Bruce Lee (John Black is a practitioner of the art of Jeet Kune Do).

He has spent a good portion of his tenure on the series as an undercover agent for the International Security Alliance (ISA), the show's fictional secret-intelligence service (similar to that of Bruce Lee’s character from his final completed film "Enter The Dragon").

'Days' introduced audiences to the character in November 1985 as a heavily-bandaged amnesiac who was recovering from extensive reconstructive facial surgery.

He was initially known only as "the Pawn", a name given to him by Stefano DiMera because of his love of chess. Stefano originally possessed and controlled him via brainwashing before Stefano's former bodyguard, Petrov, assumed control of him. Victor Kiriakis took control of John after Victor had Petrov executed.

After escaping Victor's control, he called himself "John Black" after a name he saw on a war memorial. John meets Dr. Marlena Evans after he saves her from a criminal who attempted to rob Shenanigan's.

He and Marlena develop a rapport almost immediately and he obtains a job as a security guard at Salem's University Hospital, where Marlena is a psychiatrist. Marlena begins to wonder about John's true identity. They come to believe that John was really Marlena's husband Roman Brady, who had been presumed dead two years earlier, and resume their lives as a happily-married couple and parents. John Black, now "Roman", rejoins the Salem police department and is promoted to commander. Their happiness is fleeting as Marlena is kidnapped by Roman's old enemy, Orpheus, and supposedly dies.

For a more complete look at his “life during prime-time”, click here.

With all of the off-shoot projects from ‘Days of Our Lives’ which are treated as separate entries, Drake Hogestyn’s character of John Black easily qualifies for membership in the Television Crossover Hall of Fame.

Here are those DOOL projects, plus the mothership, which get John Black into the TVXOHOF:

DAYS OF OUR LIVES
4289 Episodes
1986-2024

ONE STORMY NIGHT (TV Movie)
1992

NIGHT SINS (TV Movie)
1993

DAYS OF OUR LIVES 35TH ANNIVERSARY
2000

DAYS OF OUR LIVES: A VERY SALEM CHRISTMAS (TV Movie)
2021

DAYS OF OUR LIVES: BEYOND SALEM
6 Episodes
2021-2022

My cousin Denise is an ardent fan of this series, and she was quite upset by the death of Hogestyn:

“I am so saddened by the loss of Drake Hogystyn (Days of our Lives) He was truly one of a kind. I had the privilege of meeting him 4 times and he always treated me as if we were best friends as I am sure he did with all of his fans. He would take the time to talk and talk for long periods of time with me. He will be deeply missed by his fans and cast members. My deepest condolences to his wife Victoria and his 4 children. He was 70 years old and turning 71 tomorrow. May he rest in peace.”

Denise would always share news about DOOL with me, and because of that, I’m especially grateful that I got to see Dick Van Dyke’s participation in the show as John’s long-lost father (for which he won an Emmy.)  

Whenever I shared news with her about the soap as it broke, she, of course, already knew about it.  Like any true fan of any fandom, she has her inside track, I’m sure.

John Black may be getting inducted into the Hall, but I’m sending this out to her.  I hope it brings a little comfort.

"One of the things I'm concerned about now is

that it's going to be sad to put John Black to bed.

I've had a lot of fun
and it's been a stretch for me as an actor...

I had a chance to be very creative and take chances."

Drake Hogestyn

Welcome to the Television Crossover Hall of Fame, John Black.

And as Red Skelton used to say, “Good night and may God bless” Drake Hogestyn.

 

TVXOHOF SEPTEMBER 2024 - JIM HENSON

Boy!  Am I late with this one!  But not totally late....

Every September, the Television Crossover Hall of Fame celebrates somebody (a few times, something) – usually behind the scenes – who made significant contributions to the expansion of the Television Universe.  And this year, our inductee had been born in September.

JIM HENSON

From Wikipedia:
James Maury Henson (September 24, 1936 – May 16, 1990) was an American puppeteer, animator, actor, and filmmaker who achieved worldwide notability as the creator of the Muppets. Henson was also well known for creating 'Fraggle Rock' (1983–1987) and as the director of "The Dark Crystal" (1982) and "Labyrinth" (1986).

Born in Greenville, Mississippi, and raised in both Leland, Mississippi, and University Park, Maryland, Henson began developing puppets in high school. He created 'Sam and Friends' (1955–1961), a short-form comedy television program on WRC-TV, while he was a freshman at the University of Maryland, College Park, in collaboration with classmate Jane Nebel. Henson and Nebel co-founded Muppets, Inc. – now The Jim Henson Company – in 1958, and married less than a year later in 1959. Henson graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in home economics.

In 1969, Henson joined the children's educational television program 'Sesame Street' (1969–present) where he helped to develop Muppet characters for the series. He and his creative team also appeared on the first season of the sketch comedy show 'Saturday Night Live' (1975–present). He produced the sketch comedy television series 'The Muppet Show' (1976–1981) during this period. Henson revolutionized the way puppetry is captured and presented in video media, and he won fame for his characters – particularly Kermit the Frog, Rowlf the Dog, and the characters on 'Sesame Street'. During the later years of his life, he founded the Jim Henson Foundation and Jim Henson's Creature Shop. He won the Emmy Award twice for his involvement in 'The StoryTeller (1987–1988) and 'The Jim Henson Hour' (1989).

Henson died in New York City at age 53 from toxic shock syndrome caused by Streptococcus pyogenes. He was posthumously awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1991, and was named a Disney Legend in 2011.

I might have felt embarrassed about having taken so long in honoring his impact on the TV Universe, had I not seen that mention of the posthumous star on the Walk of Fame.  How could his genius be unrecognized for so long?  And I was guilty of the same.

So hopefully, at least for my part, this makes up for it.

It’s not just that Henson created puppets who appeared on a lot of television shows.  There were his contemporaries, Bil Baird and Burr Tillstrom (and Shari Lewis, who preceded Henson into the TVXOHOF.)  And it wasn’t because his puppets interacted with real human beings; there must have been at least one hundred children’s TV shows which did the same thing. (‘Captain Kangaroo’ and ‘The Hap Richards Show’ were the cornerstones of my childhood fascination with puppets.)

It was because Henson and his team made Earth Prime-Time a world in which those puppets were not only alive like the humans, but they had lives off-screen.  They had families; they had romantic relationships; and sometimes… they would kill.  As young as I was, and as enraptured as I was by seeing them, I never lost the understanding that other TV puppets were still just puppets.  Not so with the Muppets.

With ‘Sam and Friends’, Henson began in a puppet world, but that expanded with the commercials for Wilkins’ Coffee (that’s where the killing started, which is what some of you sick bastids were waiting for.)  But the concept of Muppets being alive exploded with my favorite, Rowlf, who made weekly appearances on ‘The Jimmy Dean Show’.  Earlier, we saw other puppets interacting with the show’s hosts as equals and while I would never dispute the legitimacy of any of those early kid show hosts as celebrities, Rowlf with Jimmy Dean gave it mega-star wattage.  Eventually Rowlf was getting more fan mail than Dean!

So cute as it is seeing Muppets interacting with little children, it’s their relationship to the celebrities which helped spread the concept of living Muppets further when those League of Themselves celebrity televersions went on other shows.  With each appearance, it created another degree of separation for various Muppets.  Plus all of those Muppets, acknowledged as living beings in Toobworld, appeared on other shows – talk shows, game shows, in commercials….

And Henson made that possible.

Here are some key points in Henson’s domination of Toobworld:

• SAM AND FRIENDS
• WILKINS’ COFFEE COMMERCIALS
• LA CHOY COMMERCIALS
• THE JIMMY DEAN SHOW
• THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW
• TODAY
• TONIGHT
• SESAME STREET
• SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE
• HOLLYWOOD SQUARES
• THE MUPPET SHOW
• FRAGGLE ROCK
• MUPPETS TONIGHT
• MUPPETS 2NITE
• THE KENNEDY CENTER HONORS
• LAST WEEK TONIGHT

Welcome to the Television Crossover Hall of Fame, Mr. Henson.  So many of your felt family & friends are already here….

I’m dedicating this Jim Henson tribute to the memories of my friends, Brad Williams and Jan Rosenthal Stefura.