Category Archives: The Little Screen (Television)

Lynda Carter on Nichelle Nichols

Happy Birthday Martin and Lewis

On July 25, 1946, Martin and Lewis took the stage at Atlantic City’s Club 500 to create one of the most celebrated unions in comedy history.

*Note – The video (part 1) says they were “born July 26, 1946”, but several other references say July 25, 1946. “The world may never know.”

Wikipedia Article

Anniversary of Caddyshack

https://youtu.be/HsFBrqemwTg

Said the Joker to the Thief…

Happy Birthday to the Man of 1000 voices

Mel Blanc (May 30, 1908 – July 10, 1989).

Mel Blanc (born Melvin Jerome Blank, May 30, 1908 – July 10, 1989) was an American voice actor and radio personality. After beginning his over-60-year career performing in radio, he became known for his work in animation as the voices of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, and most of the other characters from the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies theatrical cartoons during the golden age of American animation.

He later voiced characters for Hanna-Barbera’s television cartoons, including Barney Rubble on The Flintstones and Mr. Spacely on The Jetsons. During the golden age of radio, Blanc also frequently performed on the programs of comedians, including Jack Benny, Abbott and Costello, Burns and Allen, The Great Gildersleeve, and Judy Canova.

Blanc was nicknamed “The Man of a Thousand Voices”,[6] and is regarded as one of the most influential people in the voice acting industry.

Wikipedia Link

Happy Birthday, George Lucas

George Lucas

George Walton Lucas, Jr. (May 14, 1944 – )

George Lucas is an Academy Award-nominated American film producer, screenwriter, director and chairman of Lucasfilm Ltd. He is best known for being the creator of the epic Sci-Fi franchise Star Wars and the archaeologist-adventurer character Indiana Jones.

Wikipedia Link

Happy Birthday, Max Headroom

Max Headroom - Wikipedia
April 4th, 1985 –

Wikipedia Article

He’s Dead, Jim!

Anniversary of Sound of Music

On this day in 1965, The Sound of Music was released in the United States.

March 2, 1965
March 2, 1965

Anniversary of the final episode of M*A*S*H

M*A*S*H

The series premiered on September 17, 1972, and ended on February 28, 1983, with the finale becoming the most-watched television episode in U.S. television history at the time.

“Goodbye, Farewell and Amen” was the final episode of M*A*S*H. Special television sets were placed in PX parking lots, auditoriums, and dayrooms of the US Army in Korea so that military personnel could watch that episode; this in spite of 14 hours’ time zone difference with the east coast of the US. The episode aired on February 28, 1983, and was 2½ hours long.

Wikipedia Link

RIP Howard Hesseman

Howard Hesseman (February 27, 1940 – January 29, 2022)

He played DJ Dr. Johnny Fever on WKRP in Cincinnati, Captain Pete Lassard in Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment, Sam Royer on One Day at a Time, and schoolteacher Charlie Moore on Head of the Class. Hesseman made his television debut with two small guest roles on the final season of The Andy Griffith Show in 1968. That same year he appeared in five episodes of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. Over the course of his career, Hesseman had small guest appearances in several beloved shows, including That 70s Show, ER and Boston Legal, among several others. His last credited TV role came in 2017, where he appeared in two episodes of the ABC comedy Fresh Off The Boat. Hesseman received Emmy nominations in 1980 and ’81 for his work on CBS’ WKRP in Cincinnati, which ran for four seasons (1978-82). With his shades, moustache and slouch, he became a countercultural icon. Hesseman also reprised his role as “Dr. Johnny Fever” in 10 episodes of the two-season reboot The New WKRP in Cincinnati (from 1991 to 1993). Hessman died from complications of colon surgery in Los Angeles, California, on January 29, 2022, at the age of 81.

I know nothing! Thank you, John Banner!

John Banner (January 28, 1910 – January 28, 1973)

John Banner, born Johann Banner, was born on this date 112 years ago and died 49 years ago at the age of 63. He is best known for his role as Master Sergeant Schultz in the situation comedy Hogan’s Heroes (1965–1971). Schultz, constantly encountering evidence that the inmates of his stalag were planning mayhem, frequently feigned ignorance with the catchphrase, “I know nothing! I see nothing! I hear nothing!” (or, more commonly as the series went on, “I see nothing, nothing!”).

Thank you for years of entertainment!

Betty White has died

Betty White Then and Now

Betty Marion White Ludden (January 17, 1922 – December 31, 2021) was a beloved American actress and comedian. With over 8 decades in “the business” she has done it all.

Wikipedia Link

White on The Betty White Show in 1954
A scene from the final episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show (from left): White, Gavin MacLeod, Ed Asner, Georgia Engel, Ted Knight, and Mary Tyler Moore
Cast photo from The Betty White Show of 1977. From left-John Hillerman, Betty White, Georgia Engel.
Wendie Malick, left, Betty White, Jane Leeves and Valerie Bertinelli on the set of the TV Land series "Hot in Cleveland" during taping of the sixth season of the series.
Wendie Malick, Betty White, Jane Leeves and Valerie Bertinelli on the set of “Hot in Cleveland” in 2015

No man is a failure…

Dear George:—
Remember no man is a failure who has friends.
Thanks for the wings!
Love
Clarence.

As God is my witness…

As God is my witnessI thought turkeys could fly.”

I survived…

The Book of Boba Fett

35th Anniversary of An American Tail

November 21, 1986

Wikipedia Article

Lightyear – Teaser

Stranger Things 4