"Previously On..."
A recurring look at recent TV I've watched, notable industry news, items from my archive & their significance, and the history of TV programming as told through the pages of TV Guide.
Nautilus (AMC): Believe it or not there still are some original series being produced for, and aired on, basic cable. Nautilus is a new take on the classic Jules Verne novel 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea which makes this show based on IP that is 156 years old. Even more interesting is that it was supposed to be on Disney+ but was cut for budget needs. It is rare for a series to move from streaming to linear.
In this version, Captain Nemo is Indian royalty who steals the Nautilus submarine, which he helped design as a prisoner for the British East India Mercantile Company and which was built as a warship with slave labor. Nemo leads a prisoner insurrection and they use the Nautilus to flee from the Company which wants to recapture them.
This is a fun show with lots of adventure, action, good-enough special effects, humor and stunts. The scale feels large as it needs to for this universe and Shazad Latif as Nemo is a decent hero. On the negative side, a few of the characters are cookie-cutter, silly and poorly-acted. There are also some disconcerting jumps from serious to very light comedic moments. But those are small complaints and in a way it is reassuring to see a premium scripted action show on regular old cable.
Patience (PBS): Although this new British mystery employs the heavily-used plot device of an unassuming woman who has deductive superpowers (see Poker Face, High Potential, Matlock, Elsbeth) that does not take away from its entertainment value. The title refers to an autistic young woman who works in the criminal records division of the York, England police department that helps a detective solve her cases. The cast, storytelling and whodunnit reveal of the opening two-part episode involving a serial killer were all pretty good although you’ve seen this all before. Even the attention paid to the challenges and misconceptions of autism is not fresh (The Good Doctor, Atypical, Love On The Spectrum). But if you enjoy solid British procedurals, this is for you.
The Outer Limits (YouTube, licensed not bootleg): Because I recently acquired the document below in The Viewing Vault I have started to rewatch the two seasons that comprise the original 1963-1965 science fiction ABC series. The mid-1990s reboot lasted much longer. The show is not as good as I remember from my original watch in syndication in the 1980s. The best episodes are still quite good but nowhere near as good as the top The Twilight Zones - the success of which led to The Outer Limits. Many of the episodes are slow, dreary, overacted and just odd. The aspects of the show that holds up the best are the make-up and costumes as some of the aliens are genuinely creepy and disturbing. Also, the classic opening titles are still engrossing but unfortunately the episodes do not deliver on the promise of that opening.
IP Watch: One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest TV Series: The latest example of a decades-old intellectual property being developed for modern audiences is an independent project involving a nephew of the original film’s producer and the widow of Ken Kesey who wrote the novel. Like the original book the proposed TV show will be told from the vantage point of “The Chief”, played by Will Sampson in the movie.
Cuckoo’s Nest has already inspired one series, the Ryan Murphy show Ratched based on the iconic nurse character played by Louise Fletcher in the movie and Sarah Paulson on TV. Ratched was a good-not-great performer based on data I analyzed back in 2020.
There is currently no platform or cast or behind the scenes talent attached to the new series - and it might never happen - but it does seem like a risky title to utilize. While the film and the book are considered classics it is not IP that has resonated in other formats over the past 50 years.
The gold standard of how to use very mature IP is Netflix’s #1 show of all time, Wednesday. While Charles Addams’ cartoons and the original TV series have not been very heavily consumed for a long time the three live-action films in the 90s and the two animated films circa 2020 based on The Addams Family kept the property particularly relevant to young, modern SVOD viewers which helped drive Wednesday to the top.
The Series Bible For The Outer Limits: Although my rewatch of the original The Outer Limits was underwhelming as noted above I am still proud to own this series bible and cover letter under its original name Please Stand By. The guide is written with quite flowery prose by series producer/writer Joseph Stefano who has a clear POV of what this series should be and not be. (Note there is one page missing). It is rare to find an original document that spells out the DNA of a series with a significant impact on pop culture especially when dated to before its premiere date.
If you want to know more about The Outer Limits this article does a far better job then I could analyzing its production background and role in television history.
The Fall 1980 TV Guide was full of plenty of new shows that bombed — only the deepest of TV buffs will know the names Secrets of Midland Heights, Freebie & The Bean, or Ladies’ Man (all CBS), Flamingo Road (NBC), or I’m A Big Girl Now (ABC). While flops are sometimes enlightening they are the norm - most new TV shows are not successful - and don’t necessarily teach us a lot. But there is still plenty to learn about TV history from this issue.
The Middle East / Fred Silverman: The first entry in the “TV Update” provides proof of how long the Middle East has generated emotional responses in television and media. 45 years ago CBS scheduled a TV-movie about a Holocaust survivor played by Vanessa Redgrave, a high profile supporter of Palestine, which caused a lot of protest. One could easily see this happening today.
On a less charged topic, the second entry covers an extension of Fred Silverman’s contract from June ‘81 to the end of ‘82. Silverman was the programming genius who brought both CBS and ABC to #1 and was hired by NBC to do the same. This is a notable entry because he never made it to 1982 as he was ousted from NBC on 7/1/81 to be replaced by Grant Tinker after Silverman could not turn things around due to some unfortunate misfires such as Supertrain, Pink Lady & Jeff, and Mr. Smith.
Two Shows That Defined The Decade Had Their Official Debut: Both Magnum PI and Hill Street began in the 1980-81 season, helped defined TV of the 1980s, and lasted almost through the end of the decade. They also played other notable roles for their respective networks.
Magnum: At the end of the prior season ABC and CBS had essentially tied for #1 with NBC well behind in third place. As the decade progressed, CBS would eventually fall well behind NBC with only a handful of shows in the top 20 but Magnum would become one of its most reliable workhorses. It also played an important financial role because it allowed the network to continue to amortize its production capabilities in Hawaii that had been in place for 12 years for Hawaii 5-0 which had its final season in 79-80.
Hill Street Blues: The first show to eventually occupy the 10pm slot of NBC’s remarkable Thursday night line-up is listed in TV Guide as a Saturday show, because that was the original plan as proven by the official NBC schedule that is featured below. Because of the 1980 actor’s strike the show was delayed and it ended up airing on many nights in its first season including Saturdays.
We all know Hill Street revolutionized dramatic storytelling on the small screen but that potential is not detectable here in its biggest, initial exposure to the public. The final line reads “MTM Enterprises is the alleged perpetrator of this series, which tires to walk the fine line between the comedy of Barney Miller and the drama of Kojak.”
It’s A Living: This ABC sitcom is not important for its Broadcast run, which only lasted two seasons. Instead, it is what happened after which marks a notable chapter in syndication. After ABC cancelled it the 27 episodes were sold as reruns and were quite successful which led to a revival in first-run syndication that lasted four seasons, 1985-1989. This was part of a trend in the mid-1980s that saw other cancelled shows revived for first-run such as Fame, What’s Happening, Mama’s Family, Charles In Charge, Silver Spoons, and Punky Brewster. One could argue this was the origin of the reboot / revival craze that is still prevalent today.
Bosom Buddies: The two-season ABC show was clever in its own right but clearly it is significant for launching Tom Hanks’ career while Peter Scolari went on to a great run on Newhart.
Shogun: One of NBC’s biggest successes of the decade and one of the top mini-series of all time - which led to last year’s FX reboot - aired this week. It cost $20 Million dollars - $78M today.
Dukes Of Hazzard Craze on CBS: The success of Dukes’ first season in 79/80, in which it ranked 9th, led to CBS producing a large volume of Western/Southern/Country content. Just this week alone featured these five originals: a new episode of Dukes featuring Loretta Lynn, a special two hour Dukes movie, a Bugs Bunny Western-themed special, a TV-movie called Rodeo Girl and a Grand Ole Opry special starring Dolly Parton and Carol Burnett.
Two Random Oddities:
Does anyone remember that Toni Tennille had a talk show? I did not - it lasted four months.
Take a look at the weight-loss “device” on the right - it seems like an SNL parody.
