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50th Anniversary Viewing (Part 2)
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Super Friends
"The Mysterious Moles"
Originally aired December 1, 1973
iTunes said:
Important research projects have been closed down and the Super Friends are called in to find and restore missing air conditioning units. The Super Friends' mission leads them to a strange new world.
Wendy and Marvin are bike-riding in Cave County when they stop to examine strange tracks that look like they were made by a giant chicken. Then they find that an oak tree and boulder that they parked their bikes near seem to have moved while their backs are turned (all judged relative to a map that Marvin drew on the ground). When they come back with the Dynamic Duo, the tree and boulder are completely gone. They go to a nearby cabin to question an irrate Mrs. Mole (Alberoni), who insists that the tree and boulder were never there. After they leave, Mr. Mole (Soule) leads the walking tree and boulder back to the cabin with an air-conditioning unit--one of several that have recently been stolen from the roofs of buildings.
The Super Friends get a call from a completely revamped Col. Wilcox--his appearance is significantly different, and he's now voiced by Alden. He assigns them to investigate an air-conditioner theft from a government research lab in Cave County that's been working on a vaccine for an anticipated epidemic. The Caped Crusaders find no tracks from a vehicle that could have moved the unit. Meanwhile, the JSF have returned to the clearing to find a truck garage where the cabin had been--Marvin's map still serving as a point of reference. The JSF are behind the audience in the revelation that the cabin and garage are two fronts of a rotating building. The JSF investigate more of the tracks, which lead them to upturned tree, revealing an entrance to an underground cavern, which they investigate. Comparing notes back at the Hall of Justice, the Super Friends begin to take interest in Maximus and Minimus Mole, a retired professor of speleology who was looking for a legendary Bottomless Cave and his wife, both highly regarded spelunkers.
As the JSF proceed down what Knight clues us in is Bottomless Cavern, they spot Mr. and Mrs. Mole spelunking down. Max is a slight, smaller, more elder man, while Minnie is younger, large, and brusque. The JSF overhear that their destination is a place called Molesville, and that Max burned out the magneto in a drillmobile. We accompany the Moles to find that Molesville is a lush area of underground vegetation that sports a lagoon of "walk water," which can animate trees and rocks; as well as billions of dollars' worth of diamonds, which are too close to a volcanic crater to approach, hence their need for the air-conditioning units. They replace the magneto in the drillmobile, a vehicle with a large drillhead on each end, and use it to ride back up to the surface by drilling through solid rock. Meanwhile, the Super Friends split up...everyone else heading back to investigate the clearing while Superman stakes out an air-conditioning unit on top of a power plant that he thinks will likely be the next target.
The four other Super Friends quickly scope out the situation with the revolving cabin/garage, then follow the giant chicken and bike tracks to the entrance to Bottomless Cave, following chalk markings that Marvin's been making. Meanwhile, the JSF find an underground stream and ride a hollowed-out giant mushroom top down to Molesville, in a sequence that's kinda like Willy Wonka with healthy fruits and vegetables instead of candy. After an animated tree saves them from going over a waterfall, they quickly find that the trees and rocks are alive.
The Super Friends then discover the diamonds. Back at the power plant, Superman, who disregarded the sight of Max watering rocks, is subsequently diverted by a group of rocks rolling down to a populated valley. Aided by the tree and rock, Max steals not the AC unit, but the dynamo inside the plant to power the already-stolen AC units.
The Moles return to Molesville to find themselves faced by the Super Friends. Minnie orders the trees and boulders to march/roll into battle for them, and Aquaman enlists the lake creature to help against the trees. The Moles try to bug out via the drillmobile, but are pushed back by Superman, who's followed their underground path. Faced with the Man of Steel, the Moles give up and are lectured about how what they did was wrong. The Super Friends resolve to keep Molesville a secret from the world above, and Superman makes a pipeline from Antarctica to Molesville to help cool the place down for the sake of the trees, then seals off the Cave County entrance and moves the cabin/garage from the clearing, where the other Super Friends are having a picnic.
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Star Trek
"The Ambergris Element"
Originally aired December 1, 1973
Wiki said:
While exploring the water planet Argo, Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock are transformed into water breathers by the planet's undersea inhabitants, the Aquans. In order to return to their normal selves, they must enlist the help of the Aquans to capture a giant sur-snake, whose venom holds the antidote.
Captain's log, stardate 5499.9: We are orbiting the planet Argo. Argo was once a land planet, but its surface is now almost completely covered by water. The change was caused by violent seismic disturbances. Our mission is to study the effects which the quakes and other phenomena had on its surface. This knowledge may save millions of lives on a Federation planet identical to Argo which will soon be undergoing similar transformation.
A party consisting of the Big Three and a redshirt named Clayton take an aquashuttle down to the watery surface.
That clip wonks out at about 0:54. As they're examining the creature underwater, it regains consciousness and attacks, tossing the shuttle against a rock so that McCoy and Clayton fly out, then drags the wrecked craft underwater with Kirk and Spock still aboard.
Ship's log, stardate 5504.2; Lieutenant Commander Scott in command: Captain Kirk and First Officer Spock have been missing for almost five days. Search parties can find no trace of them, or the aquashuttle. Dr. McCoy and I are continuing the search at a greater distance from the attack point.
Riding in a shuttle-style boat, they soon find the aquashuttle wreck, with Kirk and Spock lying in the water nearby. It's quickly discovered that the two of them can no longer breathe air, and have webbed fingers.
Medical log, stardate 5506.2: Captain Kirk and First Officer Spock were rescued 48 hours ago. They have no recollection of what happened to them after they were attacked, but medical examinations show an unidentified substance in the bloodstream has affected their entire metabolism and changed them into water-breathers. Their internal structure is completely transformed, and even their eyes are covered with a transparent film, like the second eyelid of a fish. So far all efforts to return them to normal have failed.
Kirk and Spock, still wearing their uniforms, are kept in a water tank in Sickbay. Kirk is motivated to have him and Spock use their new abilities to try to find the intelligent beings who must be responsible for their transformation.
Kirk: I can't command a ship from inside an aquarium!
Under the planet's surface, Kirk and Spock run into a group of Aquans harvesting seaweed, and are dismissively told that it was their young ones who saved them. K&S continue snooping around to find the Aquan city, and are netted and brought before a council. The Aquans are skeptical about the humans' claims to be from another world entirely, and when an Enterprise search party is spotted, Kirk and Spock are left netted on the shore, suffocating. A young female Aquan named Rila (Barrett) leads the Enterprise party to their location, then tells Kirk and Spock of records in the ancient ruins that may help to reverse their mutation. K&S make like Aquaman again, finding what they identify as medical scrolls by the symbols they're marked with. Outside, the creature comes after them again, but a ruin collapses on top of it.
McCoy examines the scrolls to determine that the substance causing their mutation is similar to the titular one from Earth whales, and that an anti-toxin can be created from the sur-snake--the creature that's been attacking them. K&S go back down and enlist the younger Aquans' help in obtaining some.
Rila and the Aquan leader Domar are brought aboard the
Enterprise as the ship's phasers bombard unpopulated pressure centers to divert quakes from the Aquan city. They return to the planet to find the ruined city back on the surface, which the younger Aquans decide to reinhabit and return to their species' original air-breathing ways.
A couple of male Aquan voices are provided by show producer Lou Scheimer.
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Emergency!
"The Promise"
Originally aired December 1, 1973
Wiki said:
The paramedics find a mechanic in a catatonic state injured in a vehicle fire at a garage, and the Rampart doctors are unable to determine the cause of his condition....Paula Slayton returns to give Gage a Yorkie pup, keeping a promise made to him for caring for her dog while she was hospitalized.
The episode opens with the station rushing to an auto shop where a car up on an outdoor hoist is on fire. Johnny finds the mechanic who'd been working on the car, Richard Allen (uncredited Fred Brookfield), in the shop in a catatonic state for reasons unknown. His medical history unavailable, Allen is rushed to Rampart.
At Rampart, when Roy has a brief exchange with a nurse named Anne (possibly Jean E. London, billed as "1st Nurse"), Johnny assumes that she's got something going for his married partner, but Roy insists that they're just friends, noting that the DeSotos have had her over for dinner. The squad is called to the familiar address of a repeat customer, Edna Self (Reva Rose), who's reported difficulty breathing. After they've verified that she's okay, they have a little talk with her about how she can't call them to keep her company since her mother died. She promises to take up a hobby, but Johnny's skeptical afterward that they've gotten through to her.
At the station, Chet relays a message to Johnny from a woman named Paula Slayton, who plans to visit Johnny because of something nice he did for her a couple of years prior. Though he doesn't remember her, it gets him excited. The squad is then called to a woman named Lois who's really having trouble breathing from inhaling what they determine is a combination of ammonia and bleach while cleaning.
At Rampart, after the paramedics ask Dix about Allen--whose home number from his job application has been unresponsive--Johnny remembers that he took care of Slayton's dog when she had an auto accident...which we actually saw back in the first regular episode after the pilot, "Mascot". They return to the station to find Paula waiting for them (Patricia Hindy reprising her role from the earlier episode). Paula tells Johnny that she's keeping a promise she made to him then, and he assumes it's about something romantic...but she brings in a terrier, who ends up being chased by Boot, the firefighters farcically trying to catch the two of them on the polished floor of the bay as they run under the vehicles. After the dogs are rounded up in the kitchen, Johnny learns that Paula's giving the terrier to him. (It's only clarified in a subsequent scene that this is a pup from the litter of Paula's dog, Bonnie.)
At Rampart, the doctors are still stumped about Allen after a series of tests. Then a friend of Allen's, Bo Jensen (Kip Niven), comes asking about him. Bo is unable to shed any light on Richard's condition, but is allowed to go up and see him unattended. Bo talks to Rich, indicating that Rich was trying to "kick it" on his own; and ominously promises to bring something to make him feel real good.
Johnny's landlord won't let him keep the dog, whom he's named Sam; and Captain Stanley puts his foot down that the station can only have one mascot. As Roy and Johnny are discussing the situation, the station is called to aid people who've been trapped in a house by a pile of tumbleweeds. They clear enough from the door to see to the occupants, George and Martha Burke (Russell Thorson and Gail Bonney). Captain Stanley has to explain to Mr. Burke that the firefighters won't be able to remove the tumbleweeds for him.
Bo makes his ominous return to Rampart, again unattended and bearing a hype kit. The doctors subsequently see Richard walking in the hallway. Allen tosses his IV bottle through a sixth-floor window and jumps out, fortunately landing on a ledge; while Early stops Bo from bugging out. While Brackett accompanies Roy in the bucket ladder outside, Johnny, attached to a line, goes out the window from inside. A struggle ensues that has Johnny dangling off the ledge with Allen kicking his line, but the ladder arrives in time and Roy helps Johnny subdue Allen while administering a tranq given to him by Brackett. Allen is lowered via the bucket in a Stokes; inside, Bo says that he was just trying to help his friend.
As the paramedics are leaving Rampart with Sam in the cab, they're assigned to another call from Edna Self. In the coda, we learn that Johnny's given Sam to Edna...and just when they think they've killed two birds with one stone, the squad gets another call from Edna's address--"Woman bitten by a dog."
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The Mary Tyler Moore Show
"We Want Baxter"
Originally aired December 1, 1973
Wiki said:
Ted quits his job at WJM to pursue a political career after Phyllis convinces him that he would make an ideal city councilman.
Mary and Rhoda are helping Phyllis with mailings for the League of Women Voters when she asks Mary in a roundabout way about having Ted run for City Council on behalf of the Concerned Democrats of Minneapolis. When Mary points out the obvious flaw, Phyllis indicates that she'd be the brains behind the ticket. Mary takes Phyllis to Ted's dressing room after a show, and he accepts, despite being a Republican.
Murray: I can just picture him out on the campaign trail...kissing hands and shaking babies.
Ted: D'you think I've got what it takes to make it in politics these days?
Gordy: I'm afraid so.
Lou lays down in no uncertain terms that he has to fire Ted if he runs for office; but it means so much to Ted that he offers to resign, and Lou is moved enough by his sincerity that he offers Ted his job back if he loses; then immediately promotes Gordy to anchorman.
Ted's bumbling answers at press conferences are taken to be wit, and he gains in the polls enough that he has a chance to win the primary.
Lou: The city's loss will be our gain.
Ted tries dropping by the newsroom because he misses it, but everyone's too busy covering the election to spend time with him.
Ted's election night party starts with a heady atmosphere, in which Phyllis expresses her ambition to take Ted national. But as the numbers come in, Ted goes from behind to crushed. While Ted is disappointed, Phyllis takes it harder in her melodramatic way. Ted is forced to adapt his prepared victory speech into a sour concession.
In the coda, Ted waltzes into the newsroom to resume business as usual, despite Gordy's resentment at having to give up the job.
Lou: I really wanted you to win, Ted. Nobody wanted you to win more than I...nobody. Believe me...nobody!
When Ted reads what the city councilman's salary is, he's glad that he lost.
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The Bob Newhart Show
"Blues for Mr. Borden"
Originally aired December 1, 1973
Wiki said:
Howard's ex-wife is getting married again—and this time, she's marrying a pilot.
The Hartleys are helping Howard build a model plane for Howie (Moosie Drier reprising his role from last season), who's staying with him for a whole week. Howard and Emily think that this is a sign of reconciliation with Lois, but when Howie has a dental appointment with Jerry, he brings up an Uncle Mickey. When Howard makes a call to Lois from the Hartleys' place, Mickey answers. Howard subsequently asks Howie about him, finds out that Uncle Mickey is moving in, and sits on the plane.
Howard comes to talk to Emily, upset after having seen Mickey's things at Lois's place and learning that he's a pilot. When he subsequently calls Bob at the office, Bob advises him to let the Mickey situation play out, only for Howard to inform Bob that Lois has invited him to the wedding. The Hartleys are concerned when Howard goes missing for three days. As Bob's about to go out and file a missing person's report, Jerry and Carol separately show up swacked, having been looking for Howard at singles bars. As Emily's putting on coffee, Howard arrives in a similar condition, to reveal that he's been flying for three days, while enjoying the complimentary champagne cocktails and receiving consolation from a stewardess named Melinda, which helped him to accept the situation. As he heads off for bed...
Howard: Uh, Emily...did I just down that entire cup of coffee?
Emily: Yes, you did, Howard.
Howard: Was it steaming hot?
Emily: Yes, it was, Howard.
[Howard walks out the door, followed by offscreen scream.]
In the coda, Howard brings Howie in for another appointment with Jerry, both sporting tuxes after the wedding. Howard reveals that he's taking Howie to the zoo with his Aunt Melinda.
This week's guest patient:
"Well, if you enjoy selling insurance, you may just have to change your image a little."
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"Now you know what it feels like!"