WHAT I LEARNED FROM TV THIS WEEK

"None of this would have happened

If he only stayed home and watched television.

And he would have learned many things....."

Alfred Hitchcock

'Alfred Hitchcock Presents'

I've always said that TV was a teaching tool, and sometimes it teaches me a little something about the TV dimension......

Here's what I learned about the TV Universe last week:

There are at least 5500 alternate dimensions to the Tooniverse.
('Batman: The Brave And The Bold')
The live-action TV universe isn't the only world to have multiple variations. The animated Batman wound up in Universe #5501 through a dimensional rift.  There he teamed up with Abraham Lincoln to destroy a steam-punk cyborg John Wilkes Booth. By his tone of voice as he departed that world, Batman seemed glad to know that at least one version of President Lincoln survived.



909 Lexington Avenue in New York City used to be a boarding house until 1958.
('Alfred Hitchcock Presents' - "Bull In A China Shop")
But after the final events transpired in that episode, the area was rebuilt. It now looks like this:

All mystery writers go to heaven.
('Alfred Hitchcock Presents' - "Whodunit")
And not even the angels know why......

BCnU!

AFTER THE CREDITS: "ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS" - "WHODUNIT"

One of my co-workers, Kevin "Boomer" Brown, clued me in to Antenna TV and I easily found it on my cable line-up. Since then my DVR is in danger of being stuffed to the cyber-gills.

Of all the goodies from my youth I could be enjoying - 'Hazel', 'Dragnet', 'Rin Tin Tin', 'Burns & Allen', 'Father Knows Best', etc. - the one that I'm wallowing in is 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents'. Back in August, my classic TV fixation was 'The Rifleman'. (Hopefully you were paying attention.) That month just seemed perfect for a dusty trails TV Western. But this time of year is better suited to a darkly humorous murder mystery anthology series.....

I'm finding that I can see beyond what the episode actually offers to find other theoretical slices o' life during prime-time. These don't necessarily have to be crossover suggestions; sometimes it's just an expansion beyond the script of the events depicted in that episode.

A case in point - the first episode I saw upon my re-immersion into 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' was "Whodunit". It starred John Williams (practically a regular in this anthology series!), Alan Napier, Amanda Blake, Jerry Paris, Philip Coolidge (another frequent guest star), and Ruta Lee. The framing scenes were set in Heaven, and best of all they didn't conflict with the basics established in other shows like 'Second Chance', 'The Twilight Zone', and 'Curb Your Enthusiasm', among others.

But it wasn't the possibility of a crossover that intrigued me with this episode; it was the chance to explore what happened after the credits rolled.

John Williams played a mystery writer named Alexander Arlington who wrote under the name of Slade Sanders. (It could be "Slade Saunders" - I heard both pronunciations during the episode.) He appears to have written a series of mysteries that began with "Murder Of A ____", although there may have been other title themes as well. One of his published books was "Murder Of A Moneybags" and his last novel, apparently rejected by his publisher, was "Murder Of A Mannequin". (Moneybags... Mannequin.... It could be his title theme was even more specific: "Murder Of A M_____".)

During the episode, Arlington received word from his publishers that they were not satisfied with his final draft for the latest Slade Sanders novel. And we also learned that his assistant Talbot felt confident enough to be able to continue the Slade Sanders line without Arlington. (Although I'm not saying that made him the murderer.....)

It's not giving anything away to reveal that Arlington would be murdered at midnight that same day. We learned that in the beginning when he arrived in Heaven. But in the Terran-bound Toobworld timeline, the story basically ended on that day.

So what might have happened afterwards?

I'm thinking that with the notoriety of Arlington's murder, the publishing company would have had a change of heart and published "Murder Of A Mannequin" as it was. And even though they originally thought it was far from Arlington's best work, they would have touted it as his final and greatest work to boost the sales.

However, I also think that they would have then hired Talbot to continue the line of Slade Sanders novels in the Arlington tradition - in much the same way that Eric Van Lustbader has continued the Jason Bourne novels after the death of Robert Ludlum.

By the way, it's the Toobworld Central position that any publishing house that goes unnamed in a TV series must be either Coventry House (from 'Murder, She Wrote') if it's a high-end publication, or Whitestone Publishing (from 'Dream On') for books of lesser quality. So I'm thinking that even though Whitestone could count Dame Margot Woodhouse, who wrote "Death Rinses Out A Few Things", among their authors, Alexander Arlington's "Slade Sanders" series made their home at Coventry House.

BCnU!

BOYS 'N' THE FALSEHOOD

I've always wanted to start an Internet rumor and this one seemed as good a one as any.....

You know, it really would be an interesting way to end the framing device.  Most people seem fixated on how the series is going to end in the flashback - cut it off with the first appearance of the Mother, for example......

BCnU!

AS SEEN ON TV: RUPERT OF THE RHINE

RUPERT OF THE RHINE

AS SEEN IN:
'The Devil's Whore'

AS PLAYED BY:
Harry Lloyd

From Wikipedia:
Rupert, Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke of Bavaria, 1st Duke of Cumberland, 1st Earl of Holderness (German: Ruprecht Pfalzgraf bei Rhein, Herzog von Bayern), commonly called Prince Rupert of the Rhine, KG, FRS (17 December 1619 – 29 November 1682) was a noted soldier, admiral, scientist, sportsman, colonial governor and amateur artist during the 17th century. Rupert was a younger son of the German prince Frederick V, Elector Palatine and his wife Elizabeth, the eldest daughter of James I of England. Thus Rupert was the nephew of King Charles I of England, who created him Duke of Cumberland and Earl of Holderness, and the first cousin of King Charles II of England. His sister Electress Sophia was the mother of George I of Great Britain.

Prince Rupert had a varied career. He was a soldier from a young age, fighting against Spain in the Netherlands during the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648), and against the Holy Roman Emperor in Germany during the Thirty Years' War (1618–48). Aged 23, he was appointed commander of the Royalist cavalry during the English Civil War, becoming the archetypal Cavalier of the war and ultimately the senior Royalist general. He surrendered after the fall of Bristol and was banished from England. He served under Louis XIV of France against Spain, and then as a Royalist privateer in the Caribbean. Following the Restoration, Rupert returned to England, becoming a senior British naval commander during the Second and Third Anglo-Dutch wars, engaging in scientific invention, art, and serving as the first Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company. Prince Rupert died in England in 1682, aged 62.

Rupert is considered to have been a quick-thinking and energetic cavalry general, but ultimately undermined by his youthful impatience in dealing with his peers during the Civil War. In the Interregnum, Rupert continued the conflict against Parliament by sea from the Mediterranean to the Caribbean, showing considerable persistence in the face of adversity. As the head of the Royal Navy in his later years, he showed greater maturity and made impressive and long-lasting contributions to the Royal Navy's doctrine and development. As a colonial governor, Rupert shaped the political geography of modern Canada (Rupert's Land was named in his honour) and played a role in the early African slave trade. Rupert's varied and numerous scientific and administrative interests combined with his considerable artistic skills made him one of the more colourful individuals of the Restoration period.

For More:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Rupert_of_the_Rhine

BCnU!

SKED ALERT! "BORED TO DEATH" COMING THIS MONDAY

Every time I see an episode of 'Bored To Death', it makes me want to explore the borough of Brooklyn. It just feels like such a magical place.

The third season of the show is currently on Monday nights at 9 PM EST on HBO.

Here are a couple of clips from this coming episode with the ominous title of "The Black Clock Of Time".

I'm pretty sure it's "Clock".....

BCnU!

REMEMBERING CLIFF ROBERTSON....

With the death of Oscar-winner Cliff Robertson a month or so ago, I've been thinking about this TV movie he made and how much I would love to see the whole thing again. I think a trip to the Paley Center might be in order. (I also want to see if they have any full episodes of 'Norman Corwin Presents' in their archives.)

Here are a couple of scenes from the movie, showcasing one of the supporting players:

BCnU......

THE PASSWORD IS: "LINK" ("THE ODD COUPLE" & "MAMA'S FAMILY")

I suppose game shows are considered an automatic part of Toobworld's mosaic, but they don't carry any heft unless they tie in with another series. 'Jeopardy' and 'Cheers', 'Wheel Of Fortune' and 'L.A. Law', 'American Gladiators' and 'Family Matters', for example.

'Password' serves as the link between 'The Odd Couple' and 'Mama's Family':

This connection doesn't include 'Carol Burnett And Friends' because that version of Eunice, Ed, and Mama belongs in Skitlandia, not Earth Prime-Time.

BCnU!

MUSEUM PIECE: "DECOY" WITH BEVERLY GARLAND

Currently, the American version of 'Prime Suspect' is struggling in the ratings.  I figure it's a combination of too much deviation from the style of the British original, and also the TV audience can't see what's so special about a female cop in an all-male environment.  And I agree on that last point - what's the big deal after the headway made by the women in 'Cagney & Lacey' and in 'Decoy'?

Here's an episode of that old chestnut starring Beverly Garland:

I'm all for anything with Bert Freed, one of the unsung supporting players in Toobworld and the original Lt. Columbo on TV....

BCnU!

SKED ALERT! "LOST GIRL"

On Sundays, I usually serve up some trailers or sneak peeks at scenes from upcoming shows during the Video Weekend and today is no different.

I know nothing about the new Syfy presentation of "Lost Girl" than what I've seen in this video. I don't even know if it's a series or TV movie.

But it's definitely something I'll give a look-see when it premieres....

Now, there was a sneak peek video out there of a scene from the series and I had the link for it, but I have a feeling it's not going to work now.

I also have the full panel discussion of the series from Comic-Con:

And if this Canadian import is also the same show that's already been airing Down Under, here are a couple of blipverts about it:

But that could be either the original or a remake or something totally different......

Now... While looking for other videos, I've learned a little bit more about "Lost Girl".  It's going to be a series, about a girl on her own her whole life who's actually a succubus feeding off of sexual energy.  Okay, I'm there! 

We've had succubi in Toobworld before, most notably as a recurring girl-friend for Sock in 'Reaper'.  So there's a theoretical link right there.

This sounds like the kind of show in which Carl Kolchak would have felt right at home.....

BCnU!

AS SEEN ON TV: VIDEO MUSIC "ARTISTES" FROM DAVE-TV

For my Sunday edition of the Video Weekend's "ASOTV" showcase, I'm offering up one of David Lee Roth's classic music videos from the 1980's. It was his birthday back on the Tenth of October, so consider this a belated birthday "gift".......

Unfortunately, for the "official" records, I don't know who the actors are impersonating the various big musical acts of that time in this video. But be prepared to see the following:

CYNDI LAUPER

CYNDI LAUPER'S MOM

MICHAEL JACKSON

WILLIE NELSON

BILLY IDOL

BOY GEORGE

RICHARD SIMMONS

There may be others who are either too generic to be anybody in particular, or I just didn't recognize who they were supposed to be.  (Specifically, the heavy metal band whose guitarist catches on fire.....)

As for its placement in the TV Universe, I'm leaning towards the TV dimension of Skitlandia, just for the framing device of the Dave-TV studios.  This is not a blanket placement for all music videos with storylines, however.  There is a musical TV dimension from which the demon Mr. Sweet hails.  (The TV Crossover Hall of Fame member was seen in an episode of 'Buffy The Vampire Slayer'.)  As an example, I'm thinking of the video for the song "Smuggler's Blues".

So without further ado, it's time to present David Lee Roth and his version of:

"JUST A GIGOLO"/"I AIN'T GOT NOBODY"

A big Toobworld thanks to J.r. Klink, a Facebook friend, for featuring this video back on Roth's birthday, but from a different video resource. (I just find YouTube less complicated to use.....)

BCnU!