The Golden Age of Television

[Son_of_Niall]

My wife is used to seeing Dennis Weaver playing “Chester” on Gunsmoke. “Chester” limps but Dennis Weaver’s character on “Duel” can run like the wind, and in the last scene, he is leaping round at the top of the cliff for joy that he had “won” the battle with the truck. She was quite shocked to see Dennis Weaver not limping.

Weaver invented the limp for the TV series. Chester on radio was never said to have one.
Last year I bought the first season of his old cop show McCloud on DVD. Most of it holds up pretty well.
I remember watching Duel for the first time on the old ABC Movie of the Week when I was a kid. It was such a hit they added some footage and released it in the theaters. We never see the driver, except to know he is probably a psycho. The licence plates on the grill of the truck were all his “kills”. It was a film worthy of Hitchcock.

 

[mexolic]

I to this day I have great respect and admiration for Bob Hope and all the years he entertained our troops!

I loved watching his tv specials and movies.

 

[LegoGE1947]

Weaver invented the limp for the TV series. Chester on radio was never said to have one.
Last year I bought the first season of his old cop show McCloud on DVD. Most of it holds up pretty well.
I remember watching Duel for the first time on the old ABC Movie of the Week when I was a kid. It was such a hit they added some footage and released it in the theaters. We never see the driver, except to know he is probably a psycho. The licence plates on the grill of the truck were all his “kills”. It was a film worthy of Hitchcock.

When Duel appeared on the ABC Movie of the Week, I remember our local ABC affiliate lost its connection to the network right at the most exciting part of the film! They got so many irate phone calls they pre-emptied the 10 o’clock evening News to show the rest of the movie.

 

[Son_of_Niall]

Remember Route 66 about these two guys that drove all over the country in a Corvette (Chevy sponsored the show) How they could afford a Corvette was a mystery to me since they never had a job:shrug: Also Chevy sponsored Bonanza. Some of the actors, I understand, would sometimes make personal appearances at Chevy dealers to promote the cars

They DID have jobs, they worked thier way across the country. That is part of the neat thing about watching that show, is looking at what America USED to be: an industrial economy. The George Maharis character was a rich kid I believe and the Martin Milner character was working class.
I got the second season on DVD because two of the episodes were filmed in my hometown. It’s done on a much slower pace than today’s TV shows, the stories range from brilliant to poor.

 

[Son_of_Niall]

…it was black and white, and pretty cheesy lol!!!.

Define “cheesy”.

 

[LegoGE1947]

When Duel appeared on the ABC Movie of the Week, I remember our local ABC affiliate lost its connection to the network right at the most exciting part of the film! They got so many irate phone calls they pre-emptied the 10 o’clock evening News to show the rest of the movie.

Remember years ago if one of the regular cast members of a show would leave, sometimes they wouldn’t explain away their character like a show might today. Example Chester on Gunsmoke. How did Chester get replaced by Festus? Or Barney when Don Knotts left Andy Griffith? I do recall that “Adam” on Bonanza it was said “moved to San Francisco” On some of the later episodes of Gunsmoke, Miss Kitty was not there. I know that the actress got sick and finally passed away who played her part.

 

[LegoGE1947]

Define “cheesy”.

The dictionary defines it as “shabby or cheap” I don’t remember Rte 66 as that. It may have had some potholes between Chicago and Saint Louis but most any road would have that these days. There is an Interstate hi way that replaced 66 most of the way to California now. Interstate 55 /44 and changes to Interstate 40 at OK City the rest of the way to LA. Much better road but not as poetic as Get Your Kicks on Rte 66!

 

[randomuser]

On a side note for any movie buffs out there, I would suggest you look up “Hollywood; a celebration of the American silent film” on VHS. Truly wonderful stuff. I have all thirteen tapes. Once they are gone, I doubt they will ever make anymore since there is a continual legal debate over artistic rights.

Not all American silent film is so wonderful - D.W. Griffith? Roscoe ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle? The truly wonderful silent stuff is Harold Lloyd (who estate was didn’t really get his films licensed and out into circulation until the DVD era), Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin, Laurel & Hardy.

 

[tomarin]

Weaver invented the limp for the TV series. Chester on radio was never said to have one.
Last year I bought the first season of his old cop show McCloud on DVD. Most of it holds up pretty well.
I remember watching Duel for the first time on the old ABC Movie of the Week when I was a kid. It was such a hit they added some footage and released it in the theaters. We never see the driver, except to know he is probably a psycho. The licence plates on the grill of the truck were all his “kills”. It was a film worthy of Hitchcock.

I only know Dennis Weaver from “McCloud”. I dug his signature sheepskin jacket.

 

[LegoGE1947]

Not all American silent film is so wonderful - D.W. Griffith? Roscoe ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle? The truly wonderful silent stuff is Harold Lloyd (who estate was didn’t really get his films licensed and out into circulation until the DVD era), Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin, Laurel & Hardy.

I understand “Birth Of A Nation” was a pretty nasty film in its day. Have heard of Fatty Arbuckle but don’t think I’ve ever seen a film of his. Laurel &Hardy endured into sound movies. I think Keaton and Chaplin also did some sound pictures I’m not sure whether I’ve ever seen a Harold Lloyd movie clear through. I have seen a small clip from “Safety Last” where he is hanging on to the hands of a large clock high over a busy street. (Made my hands sweat to watch it!)

 

[jimmy]

The difference being uptight people have never been subject to violence, slavery, denial of essential rights such as the right to own property or vote or whatnot based purely on their being uptight.

Nor has humour been used by non-uptight people as a means of justifying their perpetration of these horrors and their denial of these basic rights by degrading the uptight.

Maybe that is just what uptight people need. They need to have the tightness beat out of them; like a good, rough massage.

 

[LegoGE1947]

Maybe that is just what uptight people need. They need to have the tightness beat out of them; like a good, rough massage.

I have seen some massage therapists actually get on top of their clients backs and WALK on them!! (Ouch!)

 

[jimmy]

I have seen some massage therapists actually get on top of their clients backs and WALK on them!! (Ouch!)

I used to do that. It is a good way to crack your back. It should be someone light though.

In this case though, I’m thinking more of a closed fist, windup massage to the cheeks to loosen up those facial muscles. It might help them smile a little.

 

[LegoGE1947]

I used to do that. It is a good way to crack your back. It should be someone light though.

In this case though, I’m thinking more of a closed fist, windup massage to the cheeks to loosen up those facial muscles. It might help them smile a little.

Something like this guy?:clapping:

 

[jimmy]

Something like this guy?:clapping:

Yes that’s a nice smile.

 

[LegoGE1947]

Yes that’s a nice smile.

Or perhaps this guy:takeoff:

 

[meteoric]

Oddly enough, that still great film was based on a radio play Arch Obler did back in the 1930s, long since lost, for which he recieved residials.
I watched Duel recently on Encore,and it holds up very well. would LOVE to see a remake.

Strange, all I remember of the movie was that it was two hours (TV time, back when you were only allowed 11 minutes of comercials an hour) of car chases without any character interaction at all.

Oh, well. McCloud was my least favorite of the 70’s dectectives I watched.

THAT was an interesting idea, btw. A series of movies based on a character or characters that shared the same time slot as a bunch of other characters, all to the theme of “mystery”. Columbo, McCloud, and McMillan and Wife, and (I think) Murder She Wrote (which eventually got its own time slot) were the most famous, But I recently saw an episode of Ellery Queen on Youtube, and it had the Sunday Mystery Movie theme in it’s opening. It reminded me how much I loved that show (and it still stands up. The boxed DVD set is available at B&N but for $60, so that’s not happening until I get a job).

On Saturdays was the Delphi Bureau and several other shows that I didn’t watch, and on Wednesdays was Banacek, Cool Million, Madigan (sp?).

Even one weekly series, Search, used the format and had 3 different characters rotating as the main character. Of course, that show was just science fiction – cameras small enough to fit on a ring? Give me a break!

Tom A.

 

[sierradepadre]

Maybe I used the wrong verb in describing the VHS series, “Hollywood: a celebration of the American Silent Film.”
Let’s say it is a fantastic visual documentary on the era of Silent Film which includes a whole lot of the ugly side of that era also. It examines many aspects of the film era both positive and negative. I have never seen that depth into one set of videos.

Did anyone include the “Twilight Zone?”

PS: “Duel was - is a great movie” but do not get me started on movies!

Sierradepadre

 

[LegoGE1947]

Strange, all I remember of the movie was that it was two hours (TV time, back when you were only allowed 11 minutes of comercials an hour) of car chases without any character interaction at all.

Oh, well. McCloud was my least favorite of the 70’s dectectives I watched.

THAT was an interesting idea, btw. A series of movies based on a character or characters that shared the same time slot as a bunch of other characters, all to the theme of “mystery”. Columbo, McCloud, and McMillan and Wife, and (I think) Murder She Wrote (which eventually got its own time slot) were the most famous, But I recently saw an episode of Ellery Queen on Youtube, and it had the Sunday Mystery Movie theme in it’s opening. It reminded me how much I loved that show (and it still stands up. The boxed DVD set is available at B&N but for $60, so that’s not happening until I get a job).

On Saturdays was the Delphi Bureau and several other shows that I didn’t watch, and on Wednesdays was Banacek, Cool Million, Madigan (sp?).

Even one weekly series, Search, used the format and had 3 different characters rotating as the main character. Of course, that show was just science fiction – cameras small enough to fit on a ring? Give me a break!

Tom A.

Didn’t Fantasy Island and Love Boat have that kind of format where there were 3 or 4 different stories together in each episode?

 

[Son_of_Niall]

The dictionary defines it as “shabby or cheap”

Using that definition, today’s “reality” shows would fit that perfectly.
Being more of a reader, I tend to look at how good or bad the writing is. No matter how old a film or TV show is, if it is well-written, it stands the test of time. That’s one of the reasons I migrated to British comedy years ago because they are “writer-driven”, not “one-liner driven” like American comedy has become.
Getting back to the OP, the early days of TV involved writers and producers who had spent years in vaudeville and radio to hone their craft and sharpen thier skills. Lucille Ball spent years as contract player in “B” movies by the time I Love Lucy came along. Red Skelton, Milton Buele, George Burns, Jackie Gleason, had years of experience behind them before TV made them stars.
We will never see their like again.