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wish_list
Are you sick of your favorite "classic TV"
channel offering you the same crap over and over. Why don't they get some guts
and put something different on?
Now, before I give you my wish list of TV shows, let
me explain: Some shows have been on before, it's just time to bring
them back (if only for a short run). Some shows in my wish list I haven't
seen since I was a child, they may not be as good as I remember
them. I feel even a bad show, if significant, deserves a sort run.
When TV Land debuted, they ran "My Mother the Car."
This was a highly requested bad TV show, but they did it justice and ran
it a couple of times. I thought they'd continue to answer our requests,
and give some questionable shows a shot and they didn't.
|
I Heard You |
| So my list is
about three years old now. Over the years I've received a lot of
mail asking how I could have overlooked shows and "Don't ya think
you should add..." I've been writing back, saying that some
day I'll add your suggestions, that day is here. CLICK
HERE to read other suggestions, and make your own. |
|
Wishes Can
Come True... |
|
My wish list was written
in 2000, and since then, TV Land has added some of the shows I've wished
for. So they picked a couple shows of the shows on my list,
coincidence? Yeah, probably. |
Here's my
list of shows I'd like to see on TV Land.
|
Addams
Family |
 "The
Addams Family" isn't a rarity, but it's been overlooked in favor of
"The Munsters." I got tired of waiting for it to air
again, so I bought the box set of tapes (you can find them on the "Addams
Family" page at Morty's Mall). The tapes are great, but I
want more! "The Addams Family" was hip and sexy. The
dialog was cleaver and literate. Both "The Addams Family"
and "The Munsters" only aired two seasons, but the Addams were
short-changed with only 64 episodes, compared to Munster's 70.
By-the-way, "The
Munsters" have a page on the Mall too. See Also "The
Addams Family Resource Page" |
|
Amos
and Andy
|
 OK,
don't start yelling that you can't run "Amos and Andy" because
it's racist. The show was very similar to "The
Honeymooners", only with a black cast. "Amos and
Andy" were silly people, like Lucy is silly, no one thinks we were
making a ethnic statement about the Scotts when we watched Lucy. Now on
the other hand "Good Times" was racist, and yet that keeps
coming back-- Let's bring back "Amos and Andy"
instead. There are only 78 episodes, but that's twice as many than
the classic episodes of "The Honeymooners". The series
starred: Alvin Childress, Spencer Williams, and Tim Moore and
debuted in 1951 on CBS. See
Also "The Amos &
Andy Resource Page" |
|
Bachelor
Father
|
 "Bachelor
Father" ran from 1957 to 1962. It's not a laugh out loud type
of sit-com, it's just one of those peaceful '50's comedies that's easy to
watch over and over. "Bachelor Father" stars John
Forsythe, Noreen Corcoran, Sammee Tong and Jimmy Boyd. One of the
odd things about this wish, is that TV Land bought "Bachelor
Father" and said they would run it. They showed one episode in
"boxed set", and then it never aired again. Come on
weasels, put it on late night instead on those hour long dramas. See
Also "The Bachelor
Father Resource Page" |
|
Captain
Nice
|
 This
was the 1967 series sequel by Buck Henry to "Get Smart",
but don't get your hopes up, word is it sucks. William Daniels plays
Carter Nash, a chemist in a police department who discovered a
liquid which could turn him into Captain Nice. A superhero: very shy
and dominated by his mother. Captain Nice flew (he feared heights) in his
tattered leotards, fighting badguys because his mother told him to do
so. There are only 15 episodes of this turkey, and I want to see
them |
|
Car 54
Where are You?
|
 It
was on Nick at Nite for a few years and I'm ready to watch it again, maybe
only for short time. If you've never seen this 1961 sit-com,
you're missing something great. It stars Joe E. Ross, Fred Gwynne as
Officer Francis Muldoon, Al Lewis as Officer Leo Schnauser with
Charlotte Rae as his wife Silvia. It's the misadventures of two of
New York's finest (Gwynne and Ross) in the mythical 53rd precinct in the
Bronx. It was the first teeming of Gwynne and Lewis that led to
"The Munsters" See
Also "The Car 54 Resource
Page" |
|
The
Charmings
|
This TV Sit-com was funny and campy. It stars
Christopher Rich (Miller from Murphy Brown) as Prince
Charming. The idea was that Snow White, her husband Prince
Charming, and their children, plus evil step-mother and her talking
mirror, were thrown into modern society, thanks to a spell from the
step-mother which went awry.....it was similar to
"Bewitched". Paul Winfield was a riot, as the talking
mirror who threw caustic insults at the vain step-mother. It was a
big flop when it debuted in 1987, but it was never promoted
properly. It still enjoys a cult following despite that there's only
21 episodes (including one that was never aired). See
Also "The Charmings Resource
Page" |
|
The
Courtship of Eddie's Father
|
 OK,
we got them to run "My Favorite Martian", now lets see
Bill Bixby in "The Courtship of Eddies Father". The series
ran from 1969-1972 (in color) and drew both high ratings and the praise of
critics. It starred Brandon Cruz as Eddie Corbett who was looking
for a wife for his widowed father (Bixby). Miyoshi Umeki was
nominated for a Golden Globe for her portrayal of the housekeeper, Mrs.
Livingston. Also featured are James Komack as Norman Tinker and the
lovely Kristina Holland as Tina Rickles. See
Also "The
Courtship of Eddie's Father Resource Page" |
|
Daktari
|
 Here's
a show I enjoyed as a kid. I'm surprised "Animal Planet"
didn't pick it up. It ran, in color, from
1966-1969. Dr. Marsh Tracy (Marshall Thompson) was a veterinarian
running an animal study center in Africa. Helping him were his daughter
Paula (Cheryl Miller), American Jack Dane (Yale Summers) and Mike (Hari
Rhodes) , a local. Also living with the Tracys--and equally a part of the
show's starring cast--were a crossed-eyed lion named Clarence and a chimp
named Judy. The series' storylines were largely centered around protecting
the wildlife of the local game preserve from poachers and other
threats, but they were good. See
Also "The Daktari Resource
Page" |
|
The Danny Thomas
Show
|
|
 Not
the "Make Room for Daddy" episodes that ran on Nick at Nite for
years, with Marjorie Lord, I'm talking about the one from 1953 to 1956 where
Danny Williams was married to Margaret Williams (Jean
Hagen). They still had the son Rusty (Rusty Hamer) and Sherry Jackson
as Terry Williams, but no Angela Cartwright (she came with Danny's second
wife). Nick at Nite ran one episode from this series, and that was
it.
|
|
The Dean Martin
Show
|
 "The
Dean Martin Show," ran on NBC for nine seasons starting in September
1965. It sometimes seemed less like a variety show than a
parody of the format. Martin was legendary for his casual, spontaneous
persona, and everything about his variety show seemed casual and
spontaneous, no doubt due to the star's refusal to rehearse. It was obvious
that Martin was reading most of his lines from cue cards since he even made
jokes about doing so. The sloppy, slightly unprofessional atmosphere that
permeated many of his movies at this time, worked on television, making
"The Dean Martin Show" one of the more interesting variety shows
of the era. The show was a big hit, and over the Summer, instead of
re-runs, we'd be treated to "Dean Martin Presents:...". One
Summer Dom Delouise starred in his own variety show, just as good as the
show he filled in for. |
|
December Bride |
 From
1954-1959 charming and wise Lily Ruskin (Spring Byington) lives with her
daughter and son-in- law who, along with her close friend Hilda Crocker
(Verna Felton), are always trying to find suitable older marriageable
companionship for her. Running comedy bits included neighbor Pete Porter's
(Harry Morgan) complaints about his wife Gladys. In "December
Bride" we never saw Pete's wife, Gladys, but in 1960 she was
fleshed out in the form of Cara Williams when the series "Pete &
Gladys" debuted. See Also "The
December Bride Resource Page" |
|
Dennis the Menace
|
 I
miss Dennis. He was on Nick at Nite for a while, but then he was
push back into the daytime schedule. As Jay North (Dennis) got older,
the series was less entertaining. It's quite obvious the series was
never the same after Joseph Kearns (the first Mr. Wilson) died. It's
one of those series, that just when it get so bad you can't watch it, it
ends and goes back to the great early episodes. Tell those pin-heads
at TV Land you want Dennis, and "Hellllo Mr Wilson!" See
Also "The Dennis the
Menace Resource Page" Added
to the TV Land line-up in June of 2002. |
|
Donna Reed |
 "The
Donna Reed Show" was a staple of Nick at Nite for ten years. You
might think that since it was on for such a long time, we don't need to see
it again. I disagree. "Donna" more than meets TV
Land's definition of "re-watchability". The series ran on
ABC from September 24, 1958 thru September 3, 1966 and includes
275 episodes. Yes, the episodes with "Trisha" (Patty
Petersen) were lousy, but the series ended shortly after, and then we're
back to the good ones again. Stars: Donna Reed, Carl Betz, Paul Peterson,
and Shelley Fabares. See Also
"The Donna Reed Resource
Page" Added
to the TV Land line-up in June of 2002. |
|
Doris Day Show
|
 "The
Doris Day Show" premiered September 24, 1968 on CBS and ran to
September 3, 1973. The series never really clicked, and the
premise/format was re-worked each season. In the first season,
Doris and her two kids move from the big city, to return to her father's
ranch in Mill Valley, California. Stories depict her attempts to raise her
children, Billy and Toby. It didn't work. Season two: Doris
acquires a job in San Francisco at Today's World magazine. Episodes relate
to her home and working life. Season three, no kids. I don't know if
this is a good series or not, but I'd like to see it again. It's worth
it just for all her great co-stars: Denver Pyle, Fran
Ryan, McLean Stevenson, Rose Marie, Billy De Wolfe, Kaye
Ballard, Edward Andrews, Larry Storch, Jackie Joseph,
Bernie Kopell and Peter Lawford. See
Also "The Doris Day Show
Resource Page" |
|
Dragnet
|
 No,
not the "Dragnet" they've been pushing on us for about ten
years now, the first "Dragnet" that ran from 1953 thru 1959 in
black and white. They feature Sgt. Joe Friday (Badge 714), Jack
Webb but his side-kick is Officer Frank Smith played by Ben
Alexander. There are about 200 episodes of this version of the
series, and the only one they've shown is the Christmas episode that
was re-made with Frank Morgan. Come on, dust off the
originals. See Also "The
Dragnet Resource Page" |
There's Plenty More on Morty's Wish List
CLICK HERE For Shows F thru L
CLICK HERE For Shows M to T
CLICK HERE For Your Suggestions
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