• Welcome! The TrekBBS is the number one place to chat about Star Trek with like-minded fans.
    If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

The Classic/Retro Pop Culture Thread

"Nothing Can Stop Me," Gene Chandler
I don't think I know this one. Swingin,' though.

"True Love Ways," Peter & Gordon
Pleasant enough.

"Just a Little," The Beau Brummels
Nice and catchy.

"Mrs. Brown You've Got a Lovely Daughter," Herman's Hermits
I like this one. It always reminds me of my Aunt Kathy, the infamous Uncle Mike's wife. Her maiden name was Brown, of course.

"Help Me, Rhonda," The Beach Boys
Absolute classic. Dare I say, sounds like the 50s?

Exactly what I was thinking.
:rommie:

Well, that's how Dr. Hippie Fever described it...didn't catch if it was the official name of the panel.
Oh, okay. :rommie:

Oops. I actually knew that. My fingers took over.

and look, he was on The Rookies, so he definitely could have worked as a co-lead on Adam-12.
That's exactly why I suggested him. I do remember him from The Rookies, even though I wasn't a regular viewer. And his name used to pop up fairly frequently as a director in the later 70s. I think he did Charlie's Angels and stuff.

Realistically, I'm sure that they were creating the show with McCord in mind as the junior lead, as they'd been using him so much as a cop on Dragnet...but he was so stiff and straight-laced in the role, I think that the dynamic would have been much more interesting with a young black actor as the rookie cop.
I think he would have had a great dynamic with Martin Milner.

The time was right for it, and again, Webb should have put his money where Friday's mouth was.
It's interesting to speculate why they didn't, aside from Webb's love for Kent McCord. Did it just not occur to them, despite their liberal views? Was it the network? Or did they make the decision that softening up the audience with proselytizing would be more effective at that juncture? Given the target audience of Dragnet and Adam-12, that may have been wise.

Interesting...so I take it you wouldn't consider the movie to be indicative of the show's qualities. Nor would I, even from my relatively casual exposure to the show. The movie definitely has a different tone. So I don't feel so bad for not having gotten much out of it.
From what I know, I don't feel the movie to be indicative of the show's qualities at all. When I look at the movie, I don't think, "Oh, cool, a M*A*S*H movie," I think, "Those guys look like jerks."

Our next 50th Anniversary Cinematic Special will be one that I own on DVD...an iconic film that won a bunch of Oscars, and was in general release 50 years ago this week. Any guesses?
I'm lucky if I know a movie's year of release, let alone month, but was "general" a clue? :rommie:

But...that's not how this 50th anniversary retro thing works...!
I know. Just a thought. :angel:
 
50 Years Ago This Week

Wiki said:
April 13 – An oxygen tank in the Apollo 13 spacecraft explodes, forcing the crew to abort the mission and return in four days.
April 16
  • Rev. Ian Paisley wins a by-election to gain a seat in the House of Commons of Northern Ireland.
  • The National Westminster Bank begins trading in the United Kingdom.
Mark Lewisohn's The Beatles Day by Day said:
April 17 – First UK release of Paul's LP McCartney.
Wiki said:
April 17 – Apollo program: Apollo 13 splashes down safely in the Pacific.
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.


Selections from Billboard's Hot 100 for the week:
1. "Let It Be," The Beatles
2. "ABC," The Jackson 5
3. "Spirit in the Sky," Norman Greenbaum
4. "Instant Karma (We All Shine On)," John Ono Lennon
5. "Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)," Edison Lighthouse
6. "Bridge over Troubled Water," Simon & Garfunkel
7. "Come and Get It," Badfinger
8. "Love or Let Me Be Lonely," The Friends of Distinction
9. "American Woman" / "No Sugar Tonight", The Guess Who
10. "Up the Ladder to the Roof," The Supremes
11. "Easy Come, Easy Go," Bobby Sherman
12. "The Bells," The Originals
13. "House of the Rising Sun," Frijid Pink
14. "The Rapper," The Jaggerz
15. "Something's Burning," Kenny Rogers & The First Edition
16. "Turn Back the Hands of Time," Tyrone Davis
17. "Woodstock," Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
18. "Reflections of My Life," The Marmalade
19. "Give Me Just a Little More Time," Chairmen of the Board
20. "Long Lonesome Highway," Michael Parks
21. "Evil Ways," Santana
22. "Celebrate," Three Dog Night
23. "You're the One, Part 2," Little Sister

25. "Shilo," Neil Diamond
26. "Call Me" / "Son of a Preacher Man", Aretha Franklin
27. "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother," The Hollies
28. "For the Love of Him," Bobbi Martin
29. "Gotta Hold On to This Feeling," Jr. Walker & The All-Stars
30. "You Need Love Like I Do (Don't You)," Gladys Knight & The Pips
31. "Rainy Night in Georgia" / "Rubberneckin'", Brook Benton
32. "Vehicle," The Ides of March
33. "Get Ready," Rare Earth
34. "Everybody's Out of Town," B. J. Thomas
35. "Little Green Bag," George Baker Selection
36. "All I Have to Do Is Dream," Bobbie Gentry & Glen Campbell
37. "Everything Is Beautiful," Ray Stevens
38. "Cecilia," Simon & Garfunkel
39. "Do the Funky Chicken," Rufus Thomas
40. "Love on a Two-Way Street," The Moments
41. "Make Me Smile," Chicago

43. "Come Running," Van Morrison

46. "What Is Truth," Johnny Cash

48. "Which Way You Goin' Billy?," The Poppy Family (feat. Susan Jacks)

61. "Come Saturday Morning," The Sandpipers

63. "Love Land," Charles Wright & The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band

72. "The Letter," Joe Cocker w/ Leon Russell & The Shelter People

75. "You Make Me Real" / "Roadhouse Blues", The Doors

77. "Hitchin' a Ride," Vanity Fare

86. "Puppet Man," The 5th Dimension

90. "The Seeker," The Who
91. "My Baby Loves Lovin'," White Plains

93. "United We Stand," The Brotherhood of Man


Leaving the chart:
  • "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)," The Delfonics (14 weeks)
  • "Kentucky Rain," Elvis Presley (9 weeks)
  • "Living Loving Maid (She's Just a Woman)," Led Zeppelin (5 weeks)
  • "Ma Belle Amie," The Tee Set (12 weeks)
  • "Mississippi Queen," Mountain (2 weeks, but will be re-entering)

Recent and new on the chart:

"Mississippi Queen," Mountain
(Apr. 4; #21 US)

"The Seeker," The Who
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
(#44 US; #19 UK)

"Puppet Man," The 5th Dimension
(#24 US; #31 AC)

"United We Stand," The Brotherhood of Man
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
(#13 US; #15 AC; #10 UK)

"My Baby Loves Lovin'," White Plains
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
(#13 US; #9 UK)

"The Letter," Joe Cocker w/ Leon Russell & The Shelter People
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
(#7 US; #39 UK)


And new on the boob tube:
  • Adam-12, "Log 44: Attempted Bribe" (April 18, 1970)

_______

Nice little up tempo ride. I love the way he uses horns in this song.
It's grown on me on the weekly singles playlist.

I’ve always liked the exercise of guessing what current artist might wind up being considered “important.” Because you just never know who it might be. No way would I have picked Van Morrison as one of those artists even though loved Gloria. I started to suspect though when I heard Brown Eyed Girl.
That touches upon my main quibble with the Rolling Stone lists...while they're weighted most heavily with '60s and '70s material that's stood the test of time, they felt the need to include items from right up to when the lists were made...which included coming out with "updated" versions of the lists a few years after they made the originals, so they could replace classic material with even more recent stuff. (I always cite from the original versions of the lists for that reason.) I prefer the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame approach...that something has to age a bit before you determine how worthwhile it was. The Rolling Stone lists have lots of older items that were obscure in their day, but came out later as having been influential...you really can't tell that about stuff that's inside of a handful of years old.

I don't think I know this one. Swingin,' though.
We already knew nothing could stop him...cuz he's the Duke, Duke, Duke, Duke of Earl, Duke Duke, Duke of Earl, Duke Duke, Duke of Earl, Duke Duke...

Pleasant enough.
Not as good as the Buddy Holly original, which has some memories with the ex attached to it. One of the last songs he recorded, it reached #25 in the UK as a posthumous single release in 1960.

Nice and catchy.
This is how you make music in the wake of the British Invasion, America.

I like this one. It always reminds me of my Aunt Kathy, the infamous Uncle Mike's wife. Her maiden name was Brown, of course.
My first exposure to this song...was an early '80s issue of The Avengers that had the Beast and Wonder Man singing it arm in arm while drunk after a night on the town. As for the song itself, it has a nice vibe...young Peter Noone (17 at this point) pulls off an innocent-sounding coyness that sells it.

Absolute classic. Dare I say, sounds like the 50s?
You dare not...not in front of me! Geez, man, it's the Beach Boys, 1965...! Interesting thing about this classic SIXTIES hit is that it was a remake of the version that had already appeared on the contemporaneous album The Beach Boys Today!...which will be coming up as an album spotlight.

I'm lucky if I know a movie's year of release, let alone month, but was "general" a clue? :rommie:
Wasn't meant to be, but sounds like you're on the right track...

I want you to remember...that no poster ever won the thread by saying that his music sounded like the '50s. He won it by saying that the other poor, dumb poster's music sounded like the '50s!
 
Classic rocker.

"The Seeker," The Who
Classic Who, with some cute name dropping.

"Puppet Man," The 5th Dimension
Not so familiar with this. Not bad, but not 5D's best.

"United We Stand," The Brotherhood of Man
A beloved favorite from childhood.

"My Baby Loves Lovin'," White Plains
Good one.

"The Letter," Joe Cocker w/ Leon Russell & The Shelter People
Another classic.

We already knew nothing could stop him...cuz he's the Duke, Duke, Duke, Duke of Earl, Duke Duke, Duke of Earl, Duke Duke, Duke of Earl, Duke Duke...
Ah, the "Duke of Earl" guy. I didn't realize that.

Not as good as the Buddy Holly original, which has some memories with the ex attached to it. One of the last songs he recorded, it reached #25 in the UK as a posthumous single release in 1960.
Ah, interesting. I didn't recognize it.

My first exposure to this song...was an early '80s issue of The Avengers that had the Beast and Wonder Man singing it arm in arm while drunk after a night on the town.
I remember that.

You dare not...not in front of me! Geez, man, it's the Beach Boys, 1965...!
Sorry. :rommie: To me, it's from the before-times when my uncles grew up-- which meant T-Birds, Drive-Ins, girls on roller skates bringing you a burger and a shake, and generally the 50s. Those early impressions stick with you.

Wasn't meant to be, but sounds like you're on the right track...
Hah. :D

I want you to remember...that no poster ever won the thread by saying that his music sounded like the '50s. He won it by saying that the other poor, dumb poster's music sounded like the '50s!
I'm not sure I entirely understand this, except that I'm doomed to never win the thread. :rommie:
 
Re-entering the chart:
  • "Come Saturday Morning," The Sandpipers
Slightly modified version of the one recorded for the Liza Minnelli film, The Sterile Cuckoo.


Unimpressive entries.


"Cecilia," Simon & Garfunkel
(#4 US; #31 AC; #51 UK)

:bolian:

"Love on a Two-Way Street," The Moments

(#3 US; #1 R&B)

Seventies soul pillar. Always listenable classic.


I was actually a loyal viewer of the show for most of its run, but I have yet to see the movie.

What is wrong with you? ;)

If you restrict yourself to the first three seasons, you'll miss the best stuff.

No, you will get the best stuff before Reynolds, Alda, et al., took their "LOOK! We're using Korea to comment on American policy in Vietnam!!" schtick too far. Losing Wayne Rogers was a blow for the show, as he had a sharp, big personality of his own as Trapper, and that was what was needed as a counter to Hawkeye, instead of the moralizing footstool that Hunnicutt was. YMMV.
 
Classic rocker.
I'm not sure if I'd heard this before or not...it has a vague familiarity about it.

Classic Who, with some cute name dropping.
Decent but not stone-cold.

Not so familiar with this. Not bad, but not 5D's best.
Definitely one of their in-betweeners.

A beloved favorite from childhood.
I remember this one from childhood as well...it was still around when I was old enough to remember...pretty sure it was being used in a commercial for something in the early '70s. I'd really like to get it for that nostalgia factor, but couldn't find the original recording available for purchase.

Good one.
An oldies radio classic, but another one I couldn't find the original of.

Another classic.
Wasn't overly familiar with this one. A good cover.

Sorry. :rommie: To me, it's from the before-times when my uncles grew up-- which meant T-Birds, Drive-Ins, girls on roller skates bringing you a burger and a shake, and generally the 50s. Those early impressions stick with you.
You would have been at least as old then as I was when I was hearing "United We Stand".

I'm not sure I entirely understand this, except that I'm doomed to never win the thread. :rommie:
Just watch the first clip when I post the movie review. :D

Slightly modified version of the one recorded for the Liza Minnelli film, The Sterile Cuckoo.
Ah, didn't know it was a film song.

No, you will get the best stuff before Reynolds, Alda, et al., took their "LOOK! We're using Korea to comment on American policy in Vietnam!!" schtick too far. Losing Wayne Rogers was a blow for the show, as he had a sharp, big personality of his own as Trapper, and that was what was needed as a counter to Hawkeye, instead of the moralizing footstool that Hunnicutt was. YMMV.
Interesting contrast of opinion. Looks like Me is currently getting into Season 10, so I might record Season 1 when it comes up. That's getting a bit farther ahead than I usually record, so we'll see where my DVR space is at in a month. I could always dump Season 2 of The Invaders if I need to.
 
Whoops, meant to post this with the replies above...
_______

55th Anniversary Viewing

_______

Branded
"The First Kill"
Originally aired April 4, 1965
Xfinity said:
Jason meets the family of the first man he ever killed and sees how deeply the living were wounded.

The show is back in black and white, but still using the shortened opening theme without the first chorus.

The episode opens with Jason as a cavalry officer during the war, finding himself full-saber-to-bayonet against a Confederate soldier. The dying solder gives Jason a pocket watch and asks him to return it to his family, but doesn't manage to get his name out. Cut to series-present-day Jason waking up from his dream while sleeping outdoors, and checking on the watch, which he still carries with him.

At the Reading Hotel, Jason befriends a drunk poker player who can't pay up, who's the spitting image of the soldier that Jason killed. He learns that this is Adam Manning, the brother of the soldier he killed, Tad Manning (both Chad Everett). Adam brings Jason to his home, where Jason meets Adam and Tad's father, Sam (James Dunn), and learns that Adam lives in Tad's shadow...caught in a vicious circle of drinking, gambling, and getting into fights while trying to escape being seen as a disappointment by his father, behavior that only feeds into Sam's feelings about Adam. Jason tries to comfort Adam with some sympathetic words...
Jason said:
Doesn't matter much what someone else thinks...long as a man knows what he is, inside.

The gambler to whom Adam owes money, Rand (John Pickard), comes by the Manning home and a fight ensues between the two of them. Once Rand is on top and about to press his advantage, Jason intervenes. Rand pulls a knife only to find that he brought it to a broken-saber fight, so he backs off and vacates the premises.

As Jason's having his last meal with the Mannings before leaving, he tells Sam about how he killed Tad. Sam, who'd just been telling Jason that he's always be welcome at his table, now tells him to get out before he kills him. Seeing an opportunity to finally live up to Tad, Adam follows Jason out with a rifle. Jason surprises Adam, disarms him, and pulls his saber. Then, as Sam watches, he hands the saber to Adam and tells him that it was the one with which he killed Tad.
Jason said:
Now use it. You live with the memory of it. You let the nightmare of it tear you apart for the rest of your life. You see if it sets things right for you. But all you're doing is letting your father make a murderer out of you.
Adam gives the saber back, and tells his father that he's done trying to live up to Tad.
Adam said:
Nobody could live up to the giant you made of him.
Sam admits that he was wrong for how he reacted to Jason (in an unconvincingly quick manner), thanks Jason for giving him back his son, and goes over to reconcile with Adam.

Other than being hinted at in the first line that I quoted above, Jason's fugitive status didn't come up at all in this one.

_______

12 O'Clock High
"The Cry of Fallen Birds"
Originally aired April 9, 1965
Xfinity said:
A terrified woman (Dana Wynter) must face leaving her manor home when Savage wants it demolished to clear a vital runway.


https://www.trekbbs.com/threads/the-classic-retro-pop-culture-thread.278375/page-70#post-12249206
In defense of Savage's position, they need the extra landing space because of the length of missions that they're doing, and he's afraid that sooner or later a bomber is going to crash through the manor home in question. And Savage actually does wind up crash-landing the Lilly on Lady Catherine's property at the end of Act II, though the house is spared.

If they'd wanted to, this could have been part two of the previous episode, as it opens with a situation very similar to the one they were dealing with in Act IV of that one...the Picadilly Lilly having to make an emergency landing that involves throwing everything they can out of the plane to maintain altitude.

The episode has a lighthearted tone, with Savage being attacked as an intruder the first time he visits the manor. There's lots of friction between Savage and his female guest star before they start to fall for one another, which is something we've seen before. In fact, it turns out that Wynter had previously played the female guest character in a memorable earlier episode, "Interlude," which involved Savage on leave regularly running into and eventually falling for her character, who was secretly dying.

There's a great humor beat in Act II when Lady Catherine, back at her manor, puts a sewing needle in an object representing Savage, voodoo style, and we cut to Savage in his cockpit experiencing a sudden pain in the back of his neck.

Following his crash, the injured Savage has to stay at the manor. As one might expect, he and Lady Catherine are smooching by the end of Act III.

This is one of several episodes with a recurring officer played by Lew Gallo, who was an associate producer on That Girl. Here he serves an expository purpose, giving the bedridden Savage a clumsy infodump about Lady Catherine in Act III.

She hasn't been out of the manor in about two years (assuming the episode takes place ca. '43). This being the '60s playing the '40s, the solution to getting her out of her protective shell and on with her life is indisputably presented as finding the right man...which by the end of the episode is implied to be a British captain whom she's known all her life. Savage gets his order to demolish the manor and maintains his lonely series lead existence, for as long as that lasts...which won't be very long at this point.

There's a sub-thread playing in the episode about how Savage regrets his current target being war manufacturing in an old German college town where a former professor of his lives...which is a wee bit contrived, but they don't dwell on it long enough for it to bring down the story.

As one might tell by my having so much more to say about it, this is an example of the series playing to its strengths a bit more. I haven't been regularly posting episode reviews for most of the season, so I should note that the series has a sort of quasi-anthology format...the stories focus as often as not on guest characters as the series regulars, and take place as often as not in England around the base or the local community of Archbury as during bombing missions. The stories are generally meaty and solidly structured, which seems to be characteristic of the QM productions.

This episode has the same guest general as "Mutiny at Ten Thousand Feet"...I'd assumed when watching that one that they cast a different general as a way of giving Savage's behavior less benefit of the doubt, but I see that John Larkin, who'd played the original recurring superior general, died in January 1965. His last appearance was in an episode that aired in March.

_______

Gilligan's Island
"They're Off and Running"
Originally aired April 10, 1965
Wiki said:
The Skipper and Mr.Howell wager items on the outcome of their turtle races.

And yet another potential food source crawling around on the island...

The Skipper is emboldened in his race wagering when he learns that his turtle, Rex, will move faster for carrots. Howell sends Ginger to get info from Gilligan about the Skipper's new angle, then buys Mary Ann's vegetable garden, including the carrots. The Skipper and Gilligan have trouble scrounging up a substitute when they find a moss that Rex likes, but Gilligan overfeeds the turtle in practice, causing him to lose the next race...which means that, under the terms of the wager, Gilligan now has to become the Howells' houseboy.

Gilligan gives the Skipper his prized pocket knife to wager with in the next race, and a horoscope read to him by Ginger indicates a lucky day for the Skipper. The night before, Mrs. H secretly switches the turtles so that Thurston will lose and have to return Gilligan...but Mr. H has the same idea and inadvertently switches them back...but Gilligan sees him do it, so he and the Skipper switch them again...and then Gilligan tells Mr. H what they did, and he has Gilligan switch them yet again...so if I kept everything straight, each party ended up with their original turtle. Howell wins yet again, but this time neither he nor the Skipper is happy about it.

In the coda, Howell contrives a different bet to give Gilligan back.

Cute touch: Mr. Howell kept a paper that he brought with him on the Minnow so that he can read the financial page every day.

_______
 
Last edited:
What is wrong with you? ;)
Possibly I'd enjoy it, but it just has an unappealing ambiance to me.

No, you will get the best stuff before Reynolds, Alda, et al., took their "LOOK! We're using Korea to comment on American policy in Vietnam!!" schtick too far. Losing Wayne Rogers was a blow for the show, as he had a sharp, big personality of his own as Trapper, and that was what was needed as a counter to Hawkeye, instead of the moralizing footstool that Hunnicutt was. YMMV.
I didn't care for Wayne Rogers or McLean Stevenson. The Trapper character was too much of a twin of Hawkeye, and Blake was too much of a clown to take seriously as the boss. Every time they replaced a character, they added to the diversity of the cast and the complexities of the character interactions. Potter was infinitely better as a grizzled WWI cavalry veteran than Blake was as a ditz in a fishing hat who never would have made colonel in real life. Hunnicut was a match for Hawkeye, yet also a great contrast to him with his family waiting for him back home. Also, Winchester was a much more nuanced character than Burns could have been even if they had decided to develop him-- and it was hilarious seeing a Boston Blue Blood in that environment.

As for the schtick, it may have been a bit obsolete after the war ended, but the quality of the writing and the level of creativity was amazing. Especially in innovative episodes like the ticking clock and the dream sequences.

I'm not sure if I'd heard this before or not...it has a vague familiarity about it.
Interesting. It's a staple of Classic Rock radio here.

I remember this one from childhood as well...it was still around when I was old enough to remember...pretty sure it was being used in a commercial for something in the early '70s. I'd really like to get it for that nostalgia factor, but couldn't find the original recording available for purchase.
iTunes doesn't do Greatest Hits of the [Decade] albums?

You would have been at least as old then as I was when I was hearing "United We Stand".
I actually don't remember either from their original release. I would have guessed 1972 for "United We Stand," which is about the same time that I remember "Help Me, Rhonda" from. Must have been different contexts, though. I probably heard "United We Stand" on the radio, while I think Uncle Joe had a Beach Boys Greatest Hits 8-Track or something.

Just watch the first clip when I post the movie review. :D
Ah, okay. :rommie:

Interesting contrast of opinion. Looks like Me is currently getting into Season 10, so I might record Season 1 when it comes up. That's getting a bit farther ahead than I usually record, so we'll see where my DVR space is at in a month. I could always dump Season 2 of The Invaders if I need to.
Now I think it would be interesting for you to see the whole series.

The episode opens with Jason as a cavalry officer during the war, finding himself full-saber-to-bayonet against a Confederate soldier.
Opening with a flashback. Rare in 1970, practically de rigueur in 2020.

Jason tries to comfort Adam with some sympathetic words...
Back to the theme of the series, where Jason is more reliant on self image than most guys.

Sam admits that he was wrong for how he reacted to Jason (in an unconvincingly quick manner), thanks Jason for giving him back his son, and goes over to reconcile with Adam.
What happened to the watch?

Other than being hinted at in the first line that I quoted above, Jason's fugitive status didn't come up at all in this one.
Is he actually a fugitive, or just a drifter?

And yet another potential food source crawling around on the island...
I'm envisioning Gilligan overlooking a vast herd of turtles. Cut 'em out, ride 'em in, Shellhide....

then buys Mary Ann's vegetable garden
Mary Ann sold out? :( And how was that supposed to work? Was Howell going to take over running the garden? Was Mary Ann contractually restricted from starting a new garden? :lol:

In the coda, Howell contrives a different bet to give Gilligan back.
There we go. That's my show. :D
 
"The Seeker," The Who
(#44 US; #19 UK)

Yet another classic from The Who with this tale of personal yearning for meaning in life. The group rolled into the 70s, not missing a beat after the explosion that was Tommy, and as one can hear, their sound was always evolving.

"United We Stand," The Brotherhood of Man
(#13 US; #15 AC; #10 UK)

So much airtime for this song in the early 70s. There was a point it was adapted for political meetings, high school graduation ceremonies, you name it.

"The Letter," Joe Cocker w/ Leon Russell & The Shelter People
(#7 US; #39 UK)

Unique take on The Box Tops' original, but not as moody.
 
_______

50th Anniversary Viewing

_______

The Ed Sullivan Show
Season 22, episode 27
Originally aired April 5, 1970
As represented in The Best of the Ed Sullivan Show

Ed said:
The Temptations, as we all know, is a group that keeps coming up with one hit after another. Here they are singing their latest, "Psychedelic Shack"...gentlemen?
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Ed said:
And now, from Europe--from Italy--the amazing Canestrellis.
We saw this group of trampolinists come up before two years ago, but this time the boy isn't with them and the woman does her own set, which includes jumping through a hoop that she holds up. One of them men jumps onto the other's shoulders repeatedly, culminating in Ed announcing before they do their "unique triple full twisting somersault".

Ed said:
...Buddy Rich magnificent orchestra which has toured all over the world <garbled> Marilyn Maye...
Accompanied by the swing band, Maye gives us a very bland, granny-friendly version of "Cabaret," followed by a cringey cover of the Blood, Sweat & Tears song "Spinning Wheel," which kind of mercifully transitions back into "Cabaret".
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Ed said:
Comedy star John Byner!
Byner does an impersonation of a lizard, then depicts Ed taking Chet Huntley's place on the Huntley-Brinkley Report, which includes doing David Brinkley, a commercial, and other characters.

Ed said:
The Temptations now sing "You Make Me So Very Happy," let's have a fine welcome for them...
The Temptations spice up their much cooler rendition of another song done by Blood, Sweat & Tears, "You've Made Me So Very Happy," by singing it to a group of lady dancers who accompany them onstage. Alas, I couldn't find a clip of this one.

Also in the original episode according to tv.com:
Music:
--Roy Rogers & Dale Evans - medley of patriotic songs: "This Is My Country" & "God Bless America"
--George Hamilton - medley of Hank Williams Sr. songs: "Hey Good Lookin'," "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still in Love with You")," "Cold Cold Heart," "Jambalaya (On the Bayou)," "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry," "I Saw the Light" & "Your Cheatin' Heart."
--Buddy Rich & Orchestra - "Oh Ruth"
Comedy:
--Gene Baylos (stand-up comedian)

_______

Ironside
"Tom Dayton Is Loose Among Us"
Originally aired April 9, 1970 (season finale)
Wiki said:
Ed goes after the psychopath who murdered his fiancee.

I wasn't too excited about the premise for this until I saw who was playing the titular character:

Guest Star
BILL BIXBY

Soon after Ed learns that Dayton is out on parole, Tom is brought to the Cave by his lawyer, Ross Farley (other Guest Star, William Smithers). Dayton attempts to apologize in what appears to be a contrite manner, and when he leaves the room, Farley gives Ed a browbeating for not being gracious in his acceptance. Through angry flashbacks, we see how Ed was a patrol car cop seven years prior when his fiancee, a nurse, was killed at the hospital where she worked. Back in series present, Ed talks to the prison psychiatrist, Dr. Morton (Ross Elliott), and Dayton's parole officer, Ken Hansen (William Bramley), but doesn't find agreement with his concerns about how dangerous Dayton is. Morton describes Dayton as "a sociopath, a psychopathically aggressive dependent," who functions well in an orderly, well-structured environment where he knows what's expected of him, but is prone to losing control under stress. In other words, you wouldn't like him when...you know.

Ed tails Dayton to his job at a library, and has a flashback to what he read in a report about how, back in 57th Anniversaryland, Dayton was working at a hospital when he learned he'd been fired and attacked the head nurse. When Ed's fiancee, who was a nurse there, tried to help, Dayton shoved her aside and she hit her head against the edge of a desk. In another flashback, an ambulatory Chief Ironside enjoys pacing back and forth while giving Flashback Ed a dressing down for figuratively stepping on his toes during his investigation to find Dayton. Ed convinces the Chief to let him in on the case as he's made himself an expert on Dayton.

Back in series present, we see things start to go south for Dayton at the library when he gets surly over a female librarian from another department, Miss Kirk (Lorraine Gary), being asked to sub at the desk instead of him, following which she reprimands him for having misfiled some books. As she's leaving for the night, she's grabbed from the bushes. Farley is at the Cave issuing a complaint about Ed's stalking when Ed gets a call from Hansen about the librarian having been assaulted. Randall doesn't want Ironside and Ed on the case, but the Chief insists. We get another flashback to the night that the Chief and Ed nabbed Dayton in front of his doting sister.

Farley brings Dayton to the Cave for questioning, which the Chief repeatedly disrupts by yelling at Eve about various sundry things, evoking amused reactions from Dayton and causing him to take Ed and the Chief into his confidence as people he can relate to. Gradually, against Farley's protests, Ed plays on Dayton's known issues with women bosses (fueled by his smothering sister) to lure Dayton into admitting that he'd similarly shut Miss Kirk up. In the final scene we learn that he's getting psychiatric help rather than another prison sentence...and the Chief offers to take the team to a French restaurant that serves chili francaise.

Bixby was doing a good job of acting pretty damn creepy in this role. And while I didn't catch the character's name, apparently Ed's fiancee was played by Don Galloway's wife, Linda.

_______

Adam-12
"Log 144: Bank Robbery"
Originally aired April 11, 1970
Wiki said:
Officers Malloy and Reed must deal with a domestic dispute involving a former professional wrestler.

The episode opens with Reed and Malloy responding to a call from a familiar household involving Mrs. Terry having hit Mr. Terry over the head with a beer bottle. Mr. Terry (Mike Mazurki) tries to dismiss the charge; when they insist because it's a felony, he pulls Reed into the house and attacks him. Mr. Terry is a former professional wrestler, and the officers have trouble taking him on together until the smallish Mrs. Terry (Dorothy Keller) comes home and lays into him for what a mess he made while tossing them around like rag dolls. The officers arrest both, and after taking them in pay a visit to Central Receiving to have their injuries tended to.

Next they respond to a 459 involving a drunk salesman, Charlie Jensen (Jed Allan), reporting several things missing from his apartment, including his 45s, which are strewn around in the hallway outside (which he didn't see because he came in another entrance). The trail leads the officers to another apartment, where they find one high man, Kenny Tucker (Alan Vint), and a buddy, Jerry, who's dead in the closet, to his friend's surprise. Ken says that they bought their pills from Jensen, so the officers go back to Jensen's, he reluctantly agrees to a search, and they find his stash of pills and arrest him.

Back on patrol, the officers pull over for a man, Mr. Lewis (Thomas Geas), who says that he recognizes parts from his car on a patchwork Beetle parked nearby. They stake out the car with Lewis in the back, waiting for the car's owner to show up, but get a call for a 211 at a bank and have to let him out. At the bank, they intercept and shoot it out with a pair of ski-masked bandits trying to leave in their car, winging one. When the other surrenders, they unmask the bandit to find that she's an attractive woman.

On patrol again for the coda, Reed relates how another pair of officers showed up to nab the car parts thief for Lewis, and Malloy agrees to come over to meet another friend of Jean's who's supposed to be a Miss Hollywood runner-up.

_______

Blake was too much of a clown to take seriously as the boss. [...] Potter was infinitely better as a grizzled WWI cavalry veteran than Blake was as a ditz in a fishing hat who never would have made colonel in real life.
My impression from the film was that Blake was milking a relatively cushy, non-front-line assignment. He didn't want to be bothered with things and generally acceded to his surgeons' demands because they were the MVPs of the unit.

iTunes doesn't do Greatest Hits of the [Decade] albums?
Those are more often than not full of re-recordings.

I would have guessed 1972 for "United We Stand"
So much airtime for this song in the early 70s.
Both of these jibe with my memory.

RJDiogenes said:
Now I think it would be interesting for you to see the whole series.
If I end up watching the full series in real time, that'll be some major delayed gratification--you'll be waiting 13 years for my informed opinion!

Opening with a flashback. Rare in 1970
1965. Or does Branded "feel like the '70s"?

What happened to the watch?
He gave it to the father when he was telling him how he killed his son.

Is he actually a fugitive, or just a drifter?
This was discussed back when, possibly in the Other Thread, but it was felt that Branded qualified loosely as a "fugitive premise" show, as Jason was on the run from his reputation rather than a specific human nemesis.

I'm envisioning Gilligan overlooking a vast herd of turtles. Cut 'em out, ride 'em in, Shellhide....
:lol:

Mary Ann sold out? :( And how was that supposed to work? Was Howell going to take over running the garden? Was Mary Ann contractually restricted from starting a new garden? :lol:
She was still tending it, but the produce grown there was the property of Mr. H.
 
Last edited:
So much airtime for this song in the early 70s. There was a point it was adapted for political meetings, high school graduation ceremonies, you name it.
I liked it because it felt like an anti-political song.

Ominous. :rommie:

Accompanied by the swing band, Maye gives us a very bland, granny-friendly version of "Cabaret," followed by a cringey cover of the Blood, Sweat & Tears song "Spinning Wheel," which kind of mercifully transitions back into "Cabaret".
Whoa, talk about Las Vegas Lounge Lizard territory.

In the final scene we learn that he's getting psychiatric help rather than another prison sentence...
Before the Reagan Era changed everything, this compassionate approach to mentally ill criminals was pretty common.

Bixby was doing a good job of acting pretty damn creepy in this role.
He had a similar role in one of the Fantasy Island movies that preceded the series and I was surprised at how creepy he could be.

Mr. Terry is a former professional wrestler, and the officers have trouble taking him on together until the smallish Mrs. Terry (Dorothy Keller) comes home and lays into him for what a mess he made while tossing them around like rag dolls.
I would have taken the rest of the day off. :rommie:

The trail leads the officers to another apartment, where they find one high man, Kenny Tucker (Alan Vint), and a buddy, Jerry, who's dead in the closet, to his friend's surprise.
That sounds like one of those gut-punch moments that pop up in Jack Webb shows.

When the other surrenders, they unmask the bandit to find that she's an attractive woman.
Not under duress this time. :rommie:

Malloy agrees to come over to meet another friend of Jean's who's supposed to be a Miss Hollywood runner-up.
Okay, this is where the episode should have begun. :rommie:

My impression from the film was that Blake was milking a relatively cushy, non-front-line assignment. He didn't want to be bothered with things and generally acceded to his surgeons' demands because they were the MVPs of the unit.
I don't remember the early show as well as the later show (in my mind, there's a dividing line when Potter shows up), but he was more of a spineless airhead. The doctors manipulated him and Radar did his thinking for him.

Those are more often than not full of re-recordings.
Bleah!

If I end up watching the full series in real time, that'll be some major delayed gratification--you'll be waiting 13 years for my informed opinion!
I plan to be hale and hearty at 72, but feel free to binge. :rommie:

1965. Or does Branded "feel like the '70s"?
No, that was just a typo, but what little memory I have of Branded (basically just part of the title sequence) feels like the Summer of 1968.

This was discussed back when, possibly in the Other Thread, but it was felt that Branded qualified loosely as a "fugitive premise" show, as Jason was on the run from his reputation rather than a specific human nemesis.
Oh, yeah, I remember that.

She was still tending it, but the produce grown there was the property of Mr. H.
Why, Mary Ann? Why? :(
 
55th Anniversary Album Spotlight

The Rolling Stones, Now!
The Rolling Stones
Released February 13, 1965
Chart debut: March 20, 1965
Chart peak: #5, April 24, 1965
#181 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
Wiki said:
The Rolling Stones, Now! is the third American studio album by the English rock band the Rolling Stones, released in February 1965 by their initial American distributor, London Records. Although it contains two previously unissued songs and an alternative version, the album mostly consists of songs released earlier in the United Kingdom, plus the group's recent single in the United States, "Heart of Stone" backed with "What a Shame". Mick Jagger and Keith Richards wrote four of the songs on the album (including the US single), with the balance composed by American rhythm and blues and rock and roll artists.


The album opens energetically with a cover of Solomon Burke's 1964 single "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love," complete with a sermon-style spoken opening by Mick.

Next up is "Down Home Girl," written by Jerry Leiber and Artie Butler, and apparently originally recorded in '64 by an artist named Alvin Robinson. It has a good groove and features amusingly colorful lyrics.

Following that is the obligatory Chuck Berry cover, of his 1956 single "You Can't Catch Me"--the song which John Lennon was successfully sued for emulating with "Come Together".

Things slow down a bit for recent American single "Heart of Stone" (charted Jan. 9, 1965; #19 US), a Jagger/Richards original:
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

After that is the single's B-side, "What a Shame" (#124 US)--also written by Jagger/Richards:
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

The first side closes with "Mona (I Need You Baby)," originally a Bo Diddley B-side in 1957.

Side two opens with "Down the Road Apiece," a cover of an old boogie-woogie number from 1940.

Jagger/Richards original "Off the Hook" was the B-side of "Little Red Rooster" in the UK:
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Next are a couple of R&B covers: "Pain in My Heart," written by Allen Toussaint, and "Oh Baby (We Got a Good Thing Goin')," written by Barbara Lynn.

"Little Red Rooster," written by Willie Dixon and originally recorded by Howlin' Wolf, was a recent #1 for the Stones in the UK at the time of this album's release:
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

The album closes with its last Jagger/Richards original, "Surprise, Surprise":
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Wiki said:
In a retrospective review, music critic Richie Unterberger gave the album AllMusic's highest rating (5 out of 5 stars). He commented "Now! is almost uniformly strong start-to-finish, the emphasis on some of their blackest material. The covers of "Down Home Girl," Bo Diddley's vibrating "Mona," Otis Redding's "Pain in My Heart," and Barbara Lynn's "Oh Baby" are all among the group's best R&B interpretations."

The Rolling Stone magazine album guide also gave the album 5 out of 5 stars, the highest rating for a pre-Aftermath album by the group. It noted "The Rolling Stones, Now! is their first consistently great LP, with the mean 'Heart of Stone,' the funky 'Off the Hook,' and the Leiber-Stoller oldie 'Down Home Girl'". The magazine also ranked it at number 180 on the list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Overall an enjoyable album in its own right, but lacking in stone-cold classics. The Stones still aren't bringing their A-game.

_______

He had a similar role in one of the Fantasy Island movies that preceded the series and I was surprised at how creepy he could be.
Between Timmy, this, and David Banner, the guy certainly had some range. His performance in Dayton's more out-of-control moments reminded me of the evil Banner in the episode where he tried that cure formula.

Not under duress this time. :rommie:
Beg pardon?

Okay, this is where the episode should have begun. :rommie:
It was a running gag that had a couple of earlier beats in the episode. Malloy was resisting the latest hook-up, then Reed sweetened the deal and Pete started showing an interest.

Why, Mary Ann? Why? :(
She didn't know why Howell bought the garden...Gilligan and the Skipper were trying to keep the carrot thing secret.
 
Last edited:
Overall an enjoyable album in its own right, but lacking in stone-cold classics. The Stones still aren't bringing their A-game.
I'd agree with that. The number of covers surprises me, too.

Between Timmy, this, and David Banner, the guy certainly had some range. His performance in Dayton's more out-of-control moments reminded me of the evil Banner in the episode where he tried that cure formula.
He was good. Not many people can say they starred in three TV series.

Beg pardon?
A reference to the genius who was kidnapping women to participate in his robberies.

It was a running gag that had a couple of earlier beats in the episode. Malloy was resisting the latest hook-up, then Reed sweetened the deal and Pete started showing an interest.
That's the way to do it. :rommie:

She didn't know why Howell bought the garden...Gilligan and the Skipper were trying to keep the carrot thing secret.
Oh, okay. The boys should have brought Mary Ann in on it.
 
50th Anniversary Cinematic Special

Patton
Directed by Franklin J. Schaffner
Starring George C. Scott and Karl Malden
Premiered February 4, 1970
Generally released April 2, 1970
Winner of 1971 Academy Awards for Best Picture; Best Actor in a Leading Role (George C. Scott); Best Director; Best Writing, Story and Screenplay Based on Factual Material or Material Not Previously Published or Produced; Best Art Direction-Set Decoration; Best Sound; Best Film Editing. Nominated for Best Cinematography; Best Effects, Special Visual Effects; Best Music, Original Score.
Wiki said:
Patton is a 1970 American epic biographical war film about U.S. General George S. Patton during World War II. It stars George C. Scott, Karl Malden, Michael Bates and Karl Michael Vogler. It was directed by Franklin J. Schaffner from a script by Francis Ford Coppola and Edmund H. North, who based their screenplay on the biography Patton: Ordeal and Triumph by Ladislas Farago and Omar Bradley's memoir A Soldier's Story. The film was shot in 65 mm Dimension 150 by cinematographer Fred J. Koenekamp and has a music score by Jerry Goldsmith.

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
Totally iconic opening...and an interesting sign o' the times, with the emphasis on how American would never lose a war, while we were mired in Vietnam.

The movie opens in 1943, with Patton coming on the scene as locals are looting the bodies of dead soldiers at the Kasserine Pass. He assumes his third star before it's been made official. He finds that he's inheriting a slack, undisciplined lot of soldiers, and plans to change that. "They'll lose their fear of the Germans," he says of the men now under his command. "I only hope to God they'll never lose their fear of me."

Patton goes out of his way to visit an ancient battlefield where Carthage fought Rome, demonstrating his belief in reincarnation when he declares "I was here." He later remarks "God, how I hate the twentieth century." Captain Steiger (Siegfried Rauch), the Germans' expert on Patton, describes him as a sixteenth-century man and a "romantic warrior lost in contemporary times," and anticipates Patton's move to take Sicily based on that. British officer Sir Harold Alexander says that he'd have made a great marshal for Napoleon if he'd lived in the eighteenth century. Patton's reply: "But I did, Sir Harold. I did."

One of the general's first orders of business is to have a talk with the British about the need for air supremacy...
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
The best part is what he says immediately after that clip: "If I could find the Nazi sons of bitches that are flying those things, I'd give 'em each a medal!"

The general has his opportunity to meet the Germans in battle when Rommel's forces attack...and he's done his homework.
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
But he loses his loyal aide, Captain Jenson (Morgan Paull), in the exchange. He also later learns that Rommel wasn't there. His new aide, Lt. Col. Codman (Paul Stevens), gains the general's favor when he asserts that if he's defeated Rommel's plan, he's defeated Rommel.

Patton is engaged in a rivalry with British General Montgomery, whose plan of invasion is favored, and accuses General Eisenhower of playing politics. "This is what happens when your commander stops being an American and starts being an Ally." Patton's forces are relegated to playing a supporting role in Sicily so that Montgomery can claim the victory, but when Monty gets bogged down, Patton disregards orders and pushes to the objective, Messina. Along the way, he takes Polermo, "the most conquered city in history". When Alexander sends a message after the fact reaffirming his order not to take it, Patton's response is, "Ask him if he wants me to give it back!" But Patton pushes his subordinates very hard to make his victories happen. At one point, he personally shoots a local's mules for holding up his column.

Another sign o' the times...as Patton observes his column advancing along the twisting mountain road behind him, he remarks, "Compared to war, all other forms of human endeavor shrink to insignificance"...in a film released in the wake of the Moon landing.

Patton's zeal strongly contrasts with the the attitude of the practical, less ambitious, unpretentious General Bradley (Karl Malden): "I do this job because I've been trained to do it. You do it because you love it." A major whom Patton promotes in the field remarks to his former superior, whom Patton fired for having a can't-do attitude, "Colonel, there are 50,000 men on this island who'd like to shoot that son of a bitch." The common soldiers under Patton's command are also skeptical of his methods:

"There he goes, old Blood and Guts."
"Yeah, our blood...his guts."​

Things go south for the general when he's visiting wounded troops at a hospital and comes across a soldier who's suffering from trauma:
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
Patton is reprimanded by Ike and forced to apologize. He uses the speech to spin the incident in a way that endears him to the troops. Nevertheless, he finds himself relieved from command of the 7th Army. When he learns that Bradley is being given command of the invasion of Europe, the job for which he feels he was born, he says of the soldier he slapped, "I wish I'd kissed the son of a bitch."

Patton is relegated to giving speeches, having been sidelined from impending European invasion. Yet the Germans watch his movements with great interest, assuming that the slapping incident must be a cover story. The general then gets called to London to be assigned a role in the invasion, but one not to his liking--serving as the decoy leader of a mocked-up false invasion plan. He subsequently gets in further hot water after making a speech in England in which he attempted to compliment America's English allies, only to be accused of insulting Russia by omission.

When the actual invasion gets bogged down, Bradley, now his superior, recruits Patton to get things moving. Patton is surprised to learn that Eisenhower has had this assignment in mind for the previous three months. Meanwhile, the Germans are still under the illusion that the actual invasion is the diversion and Patton's decoy landing will be the real thing. Once Patton is in Europe, his 3rd Army makes great advances, and its soldiers are in good morale serving under him. But Bradley orders Patton to slow down to prioritize supplies. Patton finds himself sobered somewhat when he sees the results of a tank unit having fought it out after running out of fuel, which includes meeting the unit's traumatized commander. The 3rd Army eventually gets resupplied and continues advancing toward Germany, but is then diverted to help with the Battle of the Bulge in Ardennes. Patton volunteers to relieve the 101st Airborne in Bastogne, and his well-trained forces come through against grueling winter conditions, stoking his pride. Still, he finds himself needing some help:
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

As the Germans face defeat, Captain Steiger muses that the absence of war will kill Patton. At a victory celebration with the Russians--whom he feels that America should be going after now--Patton insults a Russian general face-to-face via translator, but the two of them still drink together in mutual animosity. Then Patton suffers another PR incident when a reporter pretty much puts words in his mouth that compare American political parties to the Nazis. He's relieved of command of the 3rd Army, and the film ends on a note of Patton musing that all glory is fleeting.

Wiki said:
Patton won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. Scott won Best Actor for his portrayal of General Patton, but declined to accept the award. The opening monologue, delivered by George C. Scott as General Patton with an enormous American flag behind him, remains an iconic and often quoted image in film. The film was successful, and in 2003, Patton was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant". The Academy Film Archive preserved Patton in 2003.

This film makes for pretty compelling viewing, with its high production values and Scott's tour de force performance.

_______

A reference to the genius who was kidnapping women to participate in his robberies.
Ah yes, that.
 
Last edited:
A mainstream film that I've actually seen. I saw it on TV, of course, in the early 70s. As I recall, my Uncle Joe was watching it and I sat down and watched the whole thing with him. It was rather mesmerizing.

Totally iconic opening...and an interesting sign o' the times, with the emphasis on how American would never lose a war, while we were mired in Vietnam.
America was the good guy in WWII and won the war. America was the bad guy in Vietnam, and the people successfully pressured the government into pulling out-- so you could say we won that, too, in a way.

He finds that he's inheriting a slack, undisciplined lot of soldiers, and plans to change that.
One of my favorite moments (let's see how accurately I remember this) is Patton strolling through the camp, or whatever, and is appalled at all the soldiers goofing off. He sees one guy fast asleep on the ground and wakes him up with a kick. The guy jumps up, totally flustered, and says, "What the hell do you think you're doing?" The soldier replies, "Taking a nap, sir." And Patton says, "Good, go back to sleep-- you're the only one around here who knows what the hell he's doing." :rommie:

The best part is what he says immediately after that clip: "If I could find the Nazi sons of bitches that are flying those things, I'd give 'em each a medal!"
He was certainly a man who admired excellence.

The general has his opportunity to meet the Germans in battle when Rommel's forces attack...and he's done his homework.
My very favorite scene. :rommie:

Patton is engaged in a rivalry with British General Montgomery, whose plan of invasion is favored, and accuses General Eisenhower of playing politics.
A future president, playing politics? :rommie:

Another sign o' the times...as Patton observes his column advancing along the twisting mountain road behind him, he remarks, "Compared to war, all other forms of human endeavor shrink to insignificance"...in a film released in the wake of the Moon landing.
He was a lunatic, but the kind of lunatic you want on your side when the world hangs in the balance.

When he learns that Bradley is being given command of the invasion of Europe, the job for which he feels he was born, he says of the soldier he slapped, "I wish I'd kissed the son of a bitch."
:rommie:

He's relieved of command of the 3rd Army, and the film ends on a note of Patton musing that all glory is fleeting.
One of history's larger-than-life characters, no doubt about it.
 
The Rolling Stones, Now!
The Rolling Stones
Released February 13, 1965
Chart debut: March 20, 1965
Chart peak: #5, April 24, 1965

The more honest days of the group, where they were still on the blues cursade that lunched them, yet more rock-aligned songs were weaving their way in.


Following that is the obligatory Chuck Berry cover, of his 1956 single "You Can't Catch Me"--the song which John Lennon was successfully sued for emulating with "Come Together"

Yes and yes about that legal matter..Of course, within The Rolling Stones, Berry was and arguably always remained Richards' chief musical influence, as he "Berry-ed" himself on many a track in the decades to follow.

Things slow down a bit for recent American single "Heart of Stone" (charted Jan. 9, 1965; #19 US), a Jagger/Richards original:

The guitar "weaving" created by Jones and Richards since their earliest days gets a good, memorable airing here. Probably one the best examples of it on a 60s TRS album.

"Little Red Rooster," written by Willie Dixon and originally recorded by Howlin' Wolf, was a recent #1 for the Stones in the UK at the time of this album's release:
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

About this standout:

"After initial objections, Oldham bought into the idea of releasing Little Red Rooster, the beautifully minimal Howlin' Wolf song written by Willie Dixon, which was a showcase for Brian's still-pioneering electric slide guitar."
--Paul Trynka, from Brian Jones: The Making of The Rolling Stones

So Oldham almost cost the band one of its early, defining songs, with an incredibly authentic blues sound that separated them from their contemporaries. Thankfully, that did not happen, and they were better off for it.
 
50th Anniversary Cinematic Special

Patton
Directed by Franklin J. Schaffner
Starring George C. Scott and Karl Malden
Premiered February 4, 1970
Generally released April 2, 1970

Absolute classic. I've bought this film in every home video format because its that great and never loses anything as the decades pass.

Curious--Schaffner might be the only director with three great films with titles beginning with the letter P: Planet of the Apes, Patton and Papillon.
 
He was good. Not many people can say they starred in three TV series.

Yes he was good. Better than that, as there was not a type of role he was ever miscast in. To this day, I will always say he's the head-and-shoulders best actor ever to play Banner. He hit every right emotional beat because he had such a great range--exactly what a live-action Banner needed.

Oh, and he starred in five series: My Favorite Martian, The Courtship of Eddie's Father, The Magician, The Incredible Hulk and Goodnight, Beantown (the latter re-teaming him with his Hulk bride, Mariette Hartley).
 
_______

50th Anniversary Catch-Up Viewing

_______

Hawaii Five-O
"Full Fathom Five"
Originally aired September 26, 1968
Wiki said:
The governor of Hawaii assigns McGarrett to break a ring of con artists swindling/killing visiting rich widows.

NOTE: First appearance of series regulars James MacArthur and Richard Denning. Kevin McCarthy guest stars.

In the teaser, we see a couple named Victor and Nora (Kevin McCarthy and Louise Troy) callously poison a woman (Jane Thorpe) on a boat and throw her body overboard in a drum. And this is clearly not their first rodeo, as they have their operation down to a science, including changing the identity of the boat and tossing away a valuable diamond ring that might connect them with the victim.

At 5-O HQ, lawyer Tyler Skaggs (Phillip Pine) goes to McGarrett looking for missing heiress, Martha Finch (Arlene McQuade). McGarrett consults the Governor (Richard Denning) about his team having uncovered a series of similar disappearances of women, about one a month, involving transfers of money. Finch isn't one of them, as the team finds her living in a Hawaiian hippie subculture, uninterested in growing her inheritance.

The team turns to the most recent victim in the series, Anne Hayes--the victim in the teaser. They identify a repeat passenger on the ships that have been bringing the victims to Hawaii, Victor Rawlins, and McGarrett recruits bunco officer Joyce Weber (Patricia Smith) to serve as bait. On the ship, Victor takes an interest in her, learning all about her from another passenger. Dano observes as Rawlins searches her cabin, then approaches her in a recreation area to return her key, which he "found". While he's making his play, Dano returns the favor by searching his cabin, finding shirts with Chinese laundry marks on them, a bottle of poison pills, and a gun. Between Chin consulting his Uncle Chan about the marks and the gun's registration, 5-O is able identify Rawlins as one Victor Reese, and his "sister" Nora as his wife. The poison tells them that Joyce is in serious danger if the Reeses suspect anything, so McGarrett covertly visits Joyce from the adjoining room at her hotel to offer her a chance to pull out. She stays in because they don't have enough on the Reeses yet.

Victor swindles Joyce into buying a property he has his eye on...the same thing he did with Anne Hayes. Once he thinks he has Joyce hooked, he invites her to celebrate with him and Nora on the boat...but this time the team is tailing them. They also track down the boat and McGarrett uses a helicopter to get there first and "fix" things. When the Reeses and Joyce get to the boat, it won't start, so they decide to have the celebration right there in the harbor. When Joyce drops her champagne glass they drop pretenses and admit to their plan to kill her...as McGarrett, Dano, and a tape recorder listen via bug from a nearby motorboat. Once they have what they need, the team moves in. A shootout ensues as Victor tries to flee onto the dock, and McGarrett sends him into the drink. As Nora is taken away, she comments, "He always was the lucky one."

I think I'm gonna like this show...it's longer but not as info-heavy as the Mark VII shows, allowing its situations to breathe...and it has a higher action/suspense quotient than Ironside.

_______

Dragnet 1969
"Juvenile (DR-05)"
Originally aired September 26, 1968
Xfinity said:
Friday and Gannon show how the juvenile division deals with an abandoned baby, a runaway boy and a drugged-up youth.

Sgt. Joe Friday said:
This is the city: Los Angeles, California. It's a dry place, located in the middle of a Southern California desert. Yet its face is pockmarked with 120,000 swimming pools. There are over ninety fountains in the city. Its people consumed 169 billion gallons of water last year. But three times in its short life it's had to reach out for the precious liquid. The city first got thirsty at the turn of the century, and its throat stayed parched. The closest water was 250 miles away, and the farmers in the Owens River Valley weren't giving. The result was one of the most savage range wars in history. Today, we're still reaching out. $11 billion have been earmarked to keep plenty of water flowing. We've solved our water problem, yet violence still remains. That's part of my job. I carry a badge.
That one seemed more random and unrelated than usual. And it goes straight into the opening credits, with the day/weather/department intro after that.

Tuesday, March 12 (1968!): Friday and Gannon are working the night watch out of Juvenile Division when Dorothy Miller gives Friday info about a runaway coming to L.A., and an Officer Henderson (Cliff Sales) brings in a baby found abandoned at a restaurant, which gives Gannon an opportunity to show off his old diaper-changing skills.

A pair of detectives brings in a relatively clean-cut hippie type (wearing Nehru and beads) who calls himself Prince George, a.k.a. George Fuller (Gary Tigerman), who seems to be high, though he says he's just engaging in Buddhist prayer. They put him in a holding tank to wait for his parents.

A young woman named Sharon Malden (Joy Ellison) is brought in, having been accused of stealing money from a woman's purse in a department store changing room. Dorothy takes her to be searched and doesn't find the money, but does find items that she shoplifted.

Another pair of detectives brings in the runaway, Danny Meriton (Stefan Arngrim). Friday and Gannon put him on the phone with his mother, whom he thinks doesn't care, but he sheds a tear when talking to her.

George's parents arrive, the father (Robert Clarke) acting all indignant, but Friday richly gives him a little lecture about the responsibilities of fatherhood.

Finally, young Mrs. Patrick Brenner (Jenny Sullivan) comes in, acting out of sorts because her husband seems to have left her, which caused her to have wandered the city in a daze...accidentally leaving behind the baby, Christopher. She's shocked to learn that the child may be taken away from her. Friday points out that while she was out looking for somebody to lean on, Christopher needed her.

The Announcer said:
On March 20, a hearing was held in Juvenile Court, State of California, Los Angeles County Judicial District....The court ordered Mrs. Patrick Brenner to undergo a series of psychiatric tests. As a result of the examination, her son was made a ward of the court and placed in a foster home.
The atypically cute if slightly slobbery mugshot said:
CHRISTOPHER BRENNER
Now placed in a foster home.

_______

A mainstream film that I've actually seen. I saw it on TV, of course, in the early 70s. As I recall, my Uncle Joe was watching it and I sat down and watched the whole thing with him. It was rather mesmerizing.
A pleasant surprise!

America was the good guy in WWII and won the war. America was the bad guy in Vietnam, and the people successfully pressured the government into pulling out-- so you could say we won that, too, in a way.
That's one helluva spin...and not how the Pattons of America would have seen it.

One of my favorite moments (let's see how accurately I remember this) is Patton strolling through the camp, or whatever, and is appalled at all the soldiers goofing off. He sees one guy fast asleep on the ground and wakes him up with a kick. The guy jumps up, totally flustered, and says, "What the hell do you think you're doing?" The soldier replies, "Taking a nap, sir." And Patton says, "Good, go back to sleep-- you're the only one around here who knows what the hell he's doing." :rommie:
You remember correctly!

He was certainly a man who admired excellence.
More to the point of the scene, they showed up as if on cue to underscore Patton's beef with the RAF.

Point of interest: I wasn't particularly familiar with the real-life Patton, but read that Scott's delivery was nothing like him, as he had a high-pitched, nasal voice. I checked it out on YouTube, and sure enough...!

Of course, within The Rolling Stones, Berry was and arguably always remained Richards' chief musical influence, as he "Berry-ed" himself on many a track in the decades to follow.
Berry was a huge influence on pretty much all of the British groups of the day. They all spoke Chuck.

Planet of the Apes, Patton and Papillon.
Say it, don't spray it!
 
Oh, and he starred in five series: My Favorite Martian, The Courtship of Eddie's Father, The Magician, The Incredible Hulk and Goodnight, Beantown (the latter re-teaming him with his Hulk bride, Mariette Hartley).
Right! I forgot about Magician and Goodnight, Beantown.

Finch isn't one of them, as the team finds her living in a Hawaiian hippie subculture, uninterested in growing her inheritance.
I kind of expected that to go somewhere by the end.

As Nora is taken away, she comments, "He always was the lucky one."
An interesting touch.

I think I'm gonna like this show...it's longer but not as info-heavy as the Mark VII shows, allowing its situations to breathe...and it has a higher action/suspense quotient than Ironside.
I suppose I should give it a chance at some point.

That one seemed more random and unrelated than usual.
Yeah, I was expecting Kazon water thieves or something.

which gives Gannon an opportunity to show off his old diaper-changing skills.
His Pamper Fu is strong!

Another pair of detectives brings in the runaway, Danny Meriton (Stefan Arngrim).
The kid from Land of the Giants.

Finally, young Mrs. Patrick Brenner (Jenny Sullivan) comes in, acting out of sorts because her husband seems to have left her, which caused her to have wandered the city in a daze...accidentally leaving behind the baby, Christopher.
Meanwhile, her husband is standing on a street corner somewhere, waiting for her to pick him up.

She's shocked to learn that the child may be taken away from her.
Good thing she didn't leave him in her car.

A pleasant surprise!
Indeed.

That's one helluva spin...and not how the Pattons of America would have seen it.
The successful anti-war protests were a victory for the people (though not without negative consequences), so I look at it as the good guys winning in both cases.

Say it, don't spray it!
Patton Meets Papillon on the Planet of the Papes! Er, Apes.
 
55 Years Ago This Week

Wiki said:
April 18 – Consecration of Saint Clement of Ohrid Macedonian Orthodox Cathedral in Toronto, Canada.
Mark Lewisohn's The Beatles Day by Day said:
April 20 – Resumption of filming at Twickenham Film Studios after the Easter break.
Wiki said:
April 21 – The New York World's Fair in Flushing Meadows, New York, reopens.
April 23 – The Pennine Way officially opens.
April 24
  • The 1965 Yerevan demonstrations start in Yerevan, demanding recognition of the Armenian Genocide.
  • The bodies of Portuguese opposition politician Humberto Delgado and his secretary Arajaryr Moreira de Campos are found in a forest near Villanueva del Fresno, Spain (they were killed February 12).
  • In the Dominican Republic, officers and civilians loyal to deposed President Juan Bosch mutiny against the right-wing junta running the country, setting up a provisional government. Forces loyal to the deposed military-imposed government stage a countercoup the next day, and civil war breaks out, although the new government retains its hold on power.



Selections from Billboard's Hot 100 for the week:
1. "Game of Love," Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders
2. "Mrs. Brown You've Got a Lovely Daughter," Herman's Hermits
3. "I'm Telling You Now," Freddie & The Dreamers
4. "I Know a Place," Petula Clark
5. "Stop! In the Name of Love," The Supremes
6. "Tired of Waiting for You," The Kinks
7. "I'll Never Find Another You," The Seekers
8. "The Clapping Song (Clap Pat Clap Slap)," Shirley Ellis
9. "Shotgun," Jr. Walker & The All Stars
10. "Silhouettes," Herman's Hermits
11. "Count Me In," Gary Lewis & The Playboys
12. "The Last Time," The Rolling Stones
13. "Go Now!," The Moody Blues
14. "Nowhere to Run," Martha & The Vandellas

16. "Can't You Hear My Heartbeat," Herman's Hermits

18. "I'll Be Doggone," Marvin Gaye

20. "Just Once in My Life," The Righteous Brothers
21. "Bumble Bee," The Searchers
22. "It's Growing," The Temptations

24. "Got to Get You off My Mind," Solomon Burke
25. "When I'm Gone," Brenda Holloway
26. "The Birds and the Bees," Jewel Akens

28. "Baby the Rain Must Fall," Glenn Yarbrough
29. "Ooo Baby Baby," Smokey Robinson & The Miracles
30. "Land of 1000 Dances," Cannibal & The Headhunters
31. "Come and Stay with Me," Marianne Faithfull
32. "It's Gonna Be Alright," Gerry & The Pacemakers

34. "Woman's Got Soul," The Impressions
35. "She's About a Mover," Sir Douglas Quintet

37. "We're Gonna Make It," Little Milton
38. "Eight Days a Week," The Beatles

41. "I Do Love You," Billy Stewart

45. "Wooly Bully," Sam the Sham & The Pharoahs

47. "Goldfinger," Shirley Bassey
48. "It's Not Unusual," Tom Jones

50. "Iko Iko," The Dixie Cups

55. "Subterranean Homesick Blues," Bob Dylan

59. "Ticket to Ride," The Beatles

61. "Just a Little," The Beau Brummels

63. "True Love Ways," Peter & Gordon

65. "Help Me, Rhonda," The Beach Boys

67. "Reelin' and Rockin'," The Dave Clark Five

78. "Do the Freddie," Freddie & The Dreamers
79. "Crying in the Chapel," Elvis Presley


81. "Nothing Can Stop Me," Gene Chandler

85. "Queen of the House," Jody Miller


Leaving the chart:
  • "Do the Clam," Elvis Presley (8 weeks)
  • "Do You Wanna Dance?," The Beach Boys (8 weeks)
  • "Ferry Cross the Mersey," Gerry & The Pacemakers (11 weeks)
  • "If I Loved You," Chad & Jeremy (9 weeks)

Recent and new on the chart:

"Woman's Got Soul," The Impressions
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
(Apr. 3; #29 US; #9 R&B)

"Do the Freddie," Freddie & The Dreamers
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
(#18 US)

"Queen of the House," Jody Miller
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
(#12 US; #4 AC; #5 Country)

"Crying in the Chapel," Elvis Presley
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
(#3 US; #1 AC; #1 UK)

"Ticket to Ride," The Beatles
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
(#1 US the week of May 22, 1965; #1 UK; #384 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time)


And new on the boob tube:
  • Branded, "One Way Out"
  • 12 O'Clock High, "P.O.W. – Part 1"
  • Gilligan's Island, "Forget Me Not"

_______

I suppose I should give it a chance at some point.
Stiff as he is, it's pretty cool to see Jack Lord cruising to the rescue.

The kid from Land of the Giants.
Ah, didn't realize that.

Meanwhile, her husband is standing on a street corner somewhere, waiting for her to pick him up.
:lol:
 
If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

Sign up / Register


Back
Top