This year, I'll be recalling some of my favourite programs from television, via A-Z, of course.
How many of these do you remember?
Were these before your time?
This blog post has been written in front of a live studio audience.
1971-1977 / Electric Company featuring: Morgan Freeman, Judy Graubart, Rita Moreno, Jim Boyd & Spiderman
There were only two things that really excited me in school. Recess and seeing the TV wheeled into the classroom. This meant we were going to be watching TV. When I was in first grade, this was a regular event. Of course, we were not watching the teachers favourite soap opera, we were watching the Electric Company. It was informative, but it was fun.
1972-1977 / Emergency! featuring: Randolph Mantooth, Kevin Tighe, Bobby Troup & Julie London
This was probably one of the first drama series that I was seriously interested in watching. Two of the main stars were paramedics and that really held my interest. Well what 6 year old boy isn't impressed with the flashing lights and sirens seen in each episode.
1994-2009 / ER featuring: Anthony Edwards, George Clooney, Noah Wyle, Eriq La Salle, Laura Innes, Alex Kingston, John Stamos, and many others.
I seriously loved this show. In fact, I never missed an episode the 15 years it was on. Yes, there was the year I stopped watching for awhile, but then I caught another episode and tracked down the previous season and watched it. Not something you could do in 1955. I cried when Dr. Green died, and I was elated when I later learned Alex Kingston was going to become a semi-regular in Doctor Who.
This A-Z list has been brought to you today, by....
1958 - Edsel
1970's - Evel Knievel Stunt Toy
1977 - Encore Coffee (Featuring Ted Danson)
Well, I'm a bit embarassed to say I've never watched any of these shows. Ehm...
ReplyDelete@JazzFeathers
The Old Shelter - Jazz Age Jazz
Don't feel ashamed. I'm sure there have been programs you have watched that I have never seen.
DeleteI loved E.R. Such a long running series! Great cast, great writing. So good.
ReplyDeleteThat Edsel commercial is HILARIOUS!!! OMG, it's so campy? Would that be the right word? OMG, I'm still laughing. Now I can't get the song out of my head. Thanks Jeffrey! :)
Loved Evil Knievel on the chopper and seeing Ted Danson in the coffee commercial too. I don't remember Encore coffee...
Another great post!
Michele at Angels Bark
I had an Evel Kneivel lunchbox for school. It had a Thermos and everything. Oddly, I don't recall Encore coffee either. But you really don't hear much about instant coffee any more. At least I don't. It's all fresh ground now. I've had a canister of instant coffee in my cupboard for probably 10+ years already.
DeleteOh, if you liked the Edsel commercial. You will love the hilariously sexist commercial I have coming up towards the end of the challenge. I found some real shocking commercials. LOL
I don't know Electric Company or Emergency, but for a while I did love E.R. - during the Noah Wyle and George Clooney era :). A TV show I loved for E is Earth Final Conflict - the first season was definitely the best, but I still enjoyed lots about it later on too.
ReplyDeleteTasha
Tasha's Thinkings | Wittegen Press | FB3X (AC)
Sounds like a show I somehow missed and would have enjoyed.
DeleteHi, Jeffrey!
ReplyDeleteGreat stuff, good buddy!
ER is the biggie in this post. Mrs. Shady and I watched the series from start to finish and wish it would show up on Hulu or Netflix so that we could run through it again. As you recall, I recently posted Dinah Shore singing "See the U.S.A. in Your Chevrolet." The Edsel spot you posted is another example of how automobiles were marketed to the public in the 50s. Compare that to post-millennial ad campaigns that emphasize the speed and sex appeal of cars and show footage of cars, piloted by stunt drivers, skidding sideways through water and racing at dangerously high speeds across off-road courses. Mrs. Shady doesn't like Ted Danson, but I do, and I enjoyed seeing this early appearance of Ted in a coffee commercial. Thanks for reminding us about Evel Knievel, whose incredible stunts made news for decades.
Wonderful job with your E post, good buddy Jeffrey!
I loved Evel Kneivel back in the day. As I mentioned in a comment above, I had his lunchbox. Well, not "HIT" lunchbox. But you know what I mean. I do recall owning this stunt car too.
DeleteI agree with you about the car commercials, and I had a feeling you were going to enjoy the Edsel commercial.
You watched Electric Company in school, too?!!! I wondered if anyone else did that. I think it was kindergarten...or maybe first grade. I can't remember for sure, but I remember them wheeling the TV in.
ReplyDeleteI remember the same thing. You mentioned in another post that we must be about the same age. I'm fairly certain of that now, or within a few years. Remember how big that VCR was?And it probably cost about $2500.
DeleteI was born in 1970, which is why so many of these 70s commercials I remember as vintage. Anything earlier than that and I just find it interesting to watch.
Hi, Off topic, but am responding to your ISWG post rather than your A-Z, chiefly because I am not qualified to comment on the shows haven't seen any of them, but can comment on FB. :)
ReplyDeleteI have an FB page for the blog, and a few likers on it. Mostly friends and family don't react to anything on that page, not even sure how many feeds it shows up on since I don't promote it as FB badgers me to. So maybe your FB circles are not getting to see your posts at all.
Bloggers who come to the page, or to the blog are more supportive. the non-blogging community might read, but rarely interact, some may not know how, some may not be interested. Just my experience and take.
Best wishes for the A-Z and the story,
Nilanjana.
Fellow Ninja Minion, A-Z 2016
Madly-in-Verse
I do have a bloggers page and my own personal page. I post to both. The blogger page is automatic, the personal one I have to manually post to. Neither gets much attention and I have decided to stop posting links on my personal one now.
DeleteAt least the Evel Knievel stunt toy didn't shatter into a million pieces every time like the real Evel Knievel.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, I remember Morgan Freeman on the Electric Company.
Hard to believe that's one of the places he got his start. I wonder what they had to do to get Spider Man on the show.
DeleteI never watched the Electric Co. but I did watch the other 2 especially Emergency. ER was so huge when my brother had his daughter and my best friend had 3 kids. Every time they watched the show they got upset because it always seemed to show a small kid dying or something. Love the Edsel Commercial-too funny!
ReplyDeleteThat was the thing about ER, it was not a happy alls-well-that-ends-well kind of show. But there were some good moment too.
DeleteER was a good show for the first few seasons, as most dramas are. After awhile they turn into soap operas, and I hate soap operas. My life's a soap opera, don't need anyone else's problems. LOL
ReplyDeleteER seems to be everyone's pick today.:)
DeleteI hate to admit it, but I stuck with ER till the very end. I think bringing in new characters is what helped the series.
We all loved it when a TV was rolled into the classroom! It was usually a Mutual of Omaha segment;-) Once, we were allowed to watch 'Billy Jack', I guess it kind of fit the territory around here...
ReplyDeleteMorgan Freeman on Electric Co? Holy cow - where was I? I enjoyed Emergency, though it seems a bit corny now;-) I really liked ER for awhile and I bet Ted Danson would rather not remember that commercial - ha! Great post, Jeffrey :-)
I think I need chicory on my website to take away all the bitterness. LOL
DeleteHi Jeffrey I'm enjoying your posts although the advertisements weren't aired in Australia. Sue @Sizzling60 from
ReplyDeleteSizzling Towards Sixty
I never thought to look for some Australian adverts, though I do have some British ones in the works.
DeleteI loved these shows! all of them!
ReplyDeleteHere's an interesting bit of trivia - I grew up not too far from where Evil Knievel tried to jump the Snake River Canyon - you know, the one where he ended up smack dab into the wall of rocks and broke nearly every bone in his body. As of a few years ago, if you looked closely, you could still see the ramp that he built to aid in his jump.
Mary
#AtoZChallenge F is for Fitzgerald
That must have been really interesting as a youth see still see the ramp set up. That guy must have broke every bone in his body two or three times.
DeleteLoved watching the Electric Company as a kid and I still watch Emergency! on MeTV. Watched ER for a while but it eventually became a parody/caricature of itself. I ultimately watched it not for the story lines, but for the actors who crossed over to other shows (mostly cable).
ReplyDeleteI need to write down the schedule for MeTV. There are some good shows there. I have to admit, I followed ER to the very last episode.
Delete