TV by the Decade :: October 10•16

CBS

Most of the shows that debuted this week over the last 70 years are fairly unremarkable and didn’t last for more than a couple of season. And even on that did run for several seasons is basically forgotten today because it was broadcast live. But three series that made their debuts this week in three different decades more than make up for those forgotten shows. 1951 gave us the birth of a beloved sitcom that is still watched and adored today; 2001 gave us the birth of a superhero series, and 2011 brought a popular sitcom star back to the network of his previous series … and then ended up finishing the show on a different network! Read on to learn a bit about these shows and more!

1951

October 14 – Goodyear Television Playhouse

Notable Guests: Walter Matthau, E.G. Marshall, Betsy Palmer, Martin Balsam, Eileen Heckart, Pat Hingle, Leslie Nielsen, Elaine Stritch, Roddy McDowall, Tony Randall, Jack Warden, Jack Klugman, Werner Klemperer, Julie Harris, Wally Cox, Frank Sutton, Rod Steiger, Darren McGavin, Eddie Albert, Eva Gabor, Eva Marie Saint, Kevin McCarthy, Paul Newman, Brett Somers, Jessica Tandy, Gena Rowlands, Jason Robards, William Shatner, Ernest Borgnine, Pat Carroll, Orson Bean, James Broderick, Jonathan Harris, Grace Kelly, Veronica Lake, Lloyd Bridges, Hedda Hopper, Ross Martin, Maureen Stapleton, Joanne Woodward, Norman Fell, Judy Holliday, Patricia Neal, Natalie Schafer, Sada Thompson, Gwen Verdon, John Cassavetes, Hume Cronyn, Louis Edmonds, Grayson Hall, Margaret Hamilton, Nancy Marchand, Steve McQueen, Sal Mineo, Robert Morse, Tom Poston, Dick York, John Forsythe, Viveca Lindfors, Audra Lindley, June Lockhart, Jack Lord, Carol Lynley, Roger Moore, Anthony Perkins, Robert Preston, Don Ameche, Claire Bloom, Joel Crothers, Larry Hagman, Celeste Holm, George Maharis, Frances Sternhagen, Tuesday Weld

Synopsis: American anthology series

Network: NBC

Broadcast History: Six seasons, 143 episodes, last broadcast on September 29, 1957

Trivia: The series originally aired live, but switched to a taped, 30-minute format from 1957-1960 when it was retitled Goodyear Theater.

October 15 – I Love Lucy

• Cast: Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, William Frawley, Joseph A. Mayer, Michael Mayer, Richard Keith (aka Keith Thibodeaux)
• Notable Guests: Frank Nelson, Doris Singleton, Barbara Pepper, Mary Jane Croft, Charles Lane, Tennessee Ernie Ford, Gale Gordon, John Wayne, Sandra Gould, Madge Blake, Edward Everett Horton, Janet Waldo, William Holden, Jack Albertson, Bob Hope, Bea Benaderet, Hayden Rorke, Mary Wickes, Rock Hudson, Van Johnson, Harpo Marx, Orson Welles, Hedda Hopper, Aaron Spelling, Richard Widmark, Lucie Arnaz, Natalie Schafer, Sheila MacRae, Elsa Lanchester, Barbara Eden, June Foray, George Reeves
• Synopsis: The wife of a band leader constantly tries to become a star — in spite of her having no talent — and gets herself (along with her best friend) into the funniest predicaments.
• Network: CBS
• Broadcast History: Six seasons, 180 episodes, last broadcast on May 6, 1957
• Trivia: Eve Arden made a cameo appearance as herself. Desi Arnaz Jr. can be seen in the series’ final episode. Desi Arnaz is credited with creating the rerun by rebroadcasting Season 1 episodes during Season 2 with new footage added to the beginning to cover the time Lucy was out on maternity leave and unable to film. CBS would not allow the show to use the word ‘pregnant’. This was one of the first TV series to be filmed with the now common three-camera technique, and also one of the first to be shot on film to preserve the quality of the production. Gale Gordon was the first choice to play Fred Mertz but was committed to Our Miss Brooks, also produced by Desilu. Bea Benaderet was the first choice for Ethel Mertz but she was contracted to The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show. When the show ended in 1957, it transitioned to a series of thirteen one-hour specials aired over three years titled The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Comedy Hour and then The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour. A feature film was produced, The I Love Lucy Movie, which consisted of three existing episodes linked together with newly filmed material. The film was never formally released because Lucy and Desi were about to appear in their first color film, The Long, Long Trailer, and MGM did not want both films competing against one another. The I Love Lucy Movie is available in the Complete Series DVD set.

1961

October 10 – Alcoa Premiere

• Host: Fred Astaire
• Notable Guests: Keir Dullea, Ernest Borgnine, George Kennedy, Dana Andrews, Bradford Dillman, Bill Bixby, Joan Hackett, Butch Patrick, Shelley Winters, Ralph Bellamy, Lee Marvin, John Gavin, Ray Milland, Elizabeth Montgomery, James Stewart, Joyce Bulifant, William Shatner, Cliff Robertson, Jeremy Bulloch, Marion Ross, Arte Johnson, Maureen O’Sullivan, Ken Berry, John Wayne, Lloyd Bridges, Charlton Heston, Russell Johnson, Robert Loggia, James Whitmore, Eddie Albert, Ed Asner, James Caan, Celeste Holm, Cloris Leachman, Carol Lynley, Lee Meriwether, Bill Mumy, Suzanne Pleshette, Robert Redford, Dick Sargent, Telly Savalas, Dean Stockwell, Dabney Coleman, Ruby Dee, John Forsythe, Anne Francis, Salome Jens, Ricardo Montalban, Carroll O’Connor, Mickey Rooney, William Schallert
• Synopsis: Hosted by famous dancer and actor Fred Astaire, this series presented a new drama about painful or controversial subjects with each week’s episode.
• Network: ABC
• Broadcast History: Two seasons, 57 episodes, last broadcast on July 21, 1963
• Trivia: Also known as Premiere, Presented by Fred Astaire. McHale’s Navy was developed from a pilot episode presented on this series. One episode was produced for Alfred Hitchcock Presents, but was broadcast on Alcoa Premiere. The series was nominated for 14 Emmy Awards during its run.

October 10 – The Bob Newhart Show

• Cast: Bob Newhart, Dan Sorkin, Paul Weston and His Orchestra, Jackie Joseph
• Notable Guests: Joe Flynn, Jo Stafford, Jim Backus, Raymond Bailey, Ken Berry, Ann Morgan Guilbert, Jaye P. Morgan, John Astin, Charles Bronson, Gale Gordon, Arte Johnson, Jack Paar, Connie Stevens
• Synopsis: American comedy variety show starring comedian Bob Newhart.
• Network: NBC
• Broadcast History: One season, 27 episodes, last broadcast on June 13, 1962
• Trivia: Newhart disliked doing the show and wanted to quit halfway through the season, but was contractually obligated to continue. The show won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Program Achievement in the Field of Humor (now known as the Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series) in 1962. The show also won a Peabody Award in 1961.

October 11 – David Brinkley’s Journal

• Host: David Brinkley
• Synopsis: Weekly television news magazine and interview show.
• Network: NBC
• Broadcast History: Two seasons, 59 episodes, last broadcast on May 13, 1963

October 12 – Margie

• Cast: Cynthia Pepper, Dick Gering, Penney Parker, Wesley Marie Tackitt, Dave Willock, Tommy Ivo Tommy Ivo, Johnny Bangert
• Notable Guests: Raymond Bailey, Jack Albertson, Edward Andrews, Yvonne Craig, James Brolin, Kathleen Freeman, Sterling Holloway, Howard McNear, J. Pat O’Malley
• Synopsis: Margie is an average teenager but it’s the 1920s and so many things are changing. Living with her parents and brother Cornell, she has a lively flapper friend in Maybelle while Heywood and Johnny both like her. Adapting to the Jazz Age creates lots of situations.
• Network: ABC
• Broadcast History: One season, 26 episodes, last broadcast on April 12, 1962
• Trivia: Adapted from the 1946 film of the same name starring Jeanne Crain, which was adapted from short stories created by Ruth McKenney. Raymond Bailey and Harriet MacGibbon appear in one episode together. They would go on to play the Drysdales on The Beverly Hillbillies.

1971

• No new shows premiered this week in 1971.

1981

• No new shows premiered this week in 1981.

1991

October 17 – Palace Guard

• Cast: D.W. Moffett, Marcy Walker, Tony Lo Bianco
• Notable Guests: Allen Garfield, Dennis Boutsikaris, Scott Hylands, Robin Leach, Daniel Roebuck, David Cubitt
• Synopsis: Palace Guard is the story of a reformed jewel thief and cat burglar, Tommy Logan, who, after serving three years in prison, is released on parole and accepts an offer to become the head of security for the posh Palace Hotel chain.
• Network: CBS
• Broadcast History: One season, 8 episodes (plus feature length pilot, 5 episodes unaired), last broadcast on November 1, 1991
• Trivia: While only the pilot and three episodes were broadcast, all eight episodes have been released on a DVD collection, ‘Prime Time Crime: The Stephen J. Cannell Collection’.

2001

October 14 – Men, Women & Dogs

• Cast: Bill Bellamy, Danny Pino, Heather Stephens, Leigh Evans, Niklaus Lange, Mike Damus
• Notable Guests: Michael Peña, Julia Duffy, Kenya Moore
• Synopsis: Four best friends troll for girlfriends for themselves while walking their dogs every day.
• Network: The WB
• Broadcast History: One season, 13 episodes (4 unaired), last broadcast on December 30, 2001
• Trivia: Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly described the series as the ‘most insultingly moronic, sniggering sitcom of the year’.

October 14 – Off Centre

• Cast: Sean Maguire, Lauren Stamile, John Cho, Eddie Kaye Thomas, Jason George
• Notable Guests: Eugene Levy, Kenan Thompson, Josh Radnor, Jason Biggs, Shannon Elizabeth, Jenna Fischer, Tanya Roberts, Zachary Quinto, Dustin Diamond, Mary Gross, Carmen Electra
• Synopsis: A British stud and an American doofus share an apartment in Manhattan.
• Network: The WB
• Broadcast History: Two seasons, 28 episodes, last broadcast on October 31, 2002
• Trivia: Josh Radnor played Mike in the pilot, but the network replaced him with Eddie Kaye Thomas. Radnor went on to star in How I Met Your Mother.

October 15 – Tracker

• Cast: Adrian Paul, Amy Price-Francis, Geraint Wyn Davies, Leanne Wilson
• Notable Guests: Chyna
• Synopsis: An extraterrestrial lawman hunts escaped alien convicts that have taken over human bodies in present-day Chicago.
• Network: Syndication
• Broadcast History: One season, 22 episodes, last broadcast on June 3, 2002
• Trivia: Based on a short story by Gil Grant and Jeannine Renshaw. The pilot and two other episodes were edited into the film Alien Tracker.

Warner Bros. Television

October 16 – Smallville

• Cast: Tom Welling, Kristin Kreuk, Michael Rosenbaum, Eric Johnson, Sam Jones III, Allison Mack, Annette O’Toole, John Schneider, John Glover, Jensen Ackles, Erica Durance, Aaron Ashmore, Laura Vandervoort, Cassidy Freeman, Samuel Witwer, Justin Hartley, Callum Blue, Terence Stamp
• Notable Guests: Alessandro Juliani, James Marsters, Phil Morris, Ian Somerhalder, Jane Seymour, Patrick Cassidy, Alan Ritchson, Joe Morton, Michael Shanks, Brian Austin Green, Pam Grier, Helen Slater, Michael Ironside, Jason Connery, Tahmoh Penikett, Kim Coates, Martin Cummins, Michael McKean, Julian Sands, Lexa Doig, Peyton List, Tori Spelling, Gil Bellows, Michael Hogan, Neil Flynn, Christopher Reeve, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Rutger Hauer, Robert Picardo, Lizzy Caplan, Jesse Metcalfe, Margot Kidder, Shawn Ashmore, Lochlyn Munro, Lynda Carter, Sebastian Spence, Amy Adams, Eric Christian Olsen, Krista Allen, Patrick Bergin, Zachery Ty Bryan, Anson Mount, Paul Wesley, Kevin Zegers, Carrie Fisher, Tom Wopat, Tyler Posey, Callum Keith Rennie, Greyston Holt, Adam Brody, Blair Brown, Adrianne Palicki, Chris Carmack, John Pyper-Ferguson, Dave Bautista, Marc McClure, Teri Hatcher, Tony Todd, Richard Moll, Ryan Robbins, Cobie Smulders, Calum Worthy, Kandyse McClure, Dan Lauria, Bruce Harwood, Cory Monteith
• Synopsis: A young Clark Kent struggles to find his place in the world as he learns to harness his alien powers for good and deals with the typical troubles of teenage life in Smallville, Kansas.
• Network: The WB / The CW
• Broadcast History: Ten seasons, 217 episodes, last broadcast on May 13, 2011
• Trivia: Evangeline Lilly, Lifehouse, The All-American Rejects, Drew Scott, OneRepublic, Geoff Johns, and Cheryl Burke make uncredited appearances. A series featuring a young Bruce Wayne was originally pitched and rejected, but the idea inspired the creation of Smallville. If Tom Welling had not accepted the role of Clark Kent, it would have gone to second choice Jensen Ackles (which means Supernatural would not exist as we know it). Welling and Allison Mack are the only actors to appear in all ten seasons, while Welling is the only actor to appear in all 217 episodes. Welling, Mack, Michael Rosenbaum, John Schneider, and Justin Hartley directed episodes of the series.

2011

October 10 – American Guns

• Cast: Rich Wyatt, Renee Wyatt, Kurt, Paige
• Synopsis: A reality television series that centers on the blended family where patriarch Rich Wyatt, his wife Renee, and his step-children run Gunsmoke Guns, located in Wheat Ridge, Colorado.
• Network: Discovery Channel
• Broadcast History: Two seasons, 26 episodes, last broadcast on December 17, 2012
• Trivia: Rich and Renee have two younger children who were not involved with the show due to their ages.

October 11 – Last Man Standing

• Cast: Tim Allen, Nancy Travis, Alexandra Krosney (season 1) and Amanda Fuller (seasons 2–9), Molly Ephraim (seasons 1–6) and Molly McCook (seasons 7–9), Kaitlyn Dever (regular, seasons 1–6; recurring, seasons 7–9), Christoph Sanders, Héctor Elizondo, Flynn Morrison (regular, seasons 2–6), Jet Jurgensmeyer (regular, season 7; recurring, season 8), Evan and Luke Kruntchev (recurring, season 1), Jordan Masterson (regular, seasons 4–9; recurring, seasons 2–3), Nick Jonas (guest star, season 1), Jonathan Adams (regular, seasons 4–9; recurring, seasons 2–3), Krista Marie Yu, Kenton Duty, Robert Forster as Bud Baxter (seasons 1, 3–4, 7), Erika Alexander (seasons 2–6) and Tisha Campbell (season 7–9), Carla Jimenez as Blanca Alvarez (seasons 2–4), Sarah Gilman as Cammy Harris (seasons 2–6), Jonathan Taylor Thomas as John Baker (seasons 2–3), Tye Sheridan as Justin (seasons 3–4), Zachary Gordon (season 3), Joely Fisher (seasons 3–5), Bill Engvall (seasons 5–9), Jay Leno (seasons 5–9), Travis Tope (season 6), Susan Sullivan
• Notable Guests: Patricia Richardson, Richard Karn, Melissa Peterman, David Anthony Higgins, Paul F. Tompkins, Don Lake, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Frankie Muniz, Robin Riker, Matt Shively, Jere Burns, Cassandra Peterson, Tony Hawk, Reba McEntire, Robin Roberts, Michael Gross, Terry Bradshaw, Lauren Tom
• Synopsis: A married father of three tries to maintain his manliness in a world increasingly dominated by women.
• Network: ABC / FOX
• Broadcast History: Nine seasons, 194 episodes, last broadcast on May 20, 2021
• Trivia: The show’s original title was Man Up, which was changed to The Last Days of a Man before settling on Last Man Standing. Although they played father and son, there was only a 12 year age difference between Robert Forster and Tim Allen. When the show was cancelled in 2017, fans and even Allen himself accused ABC of killing the 20th Century Fox-produced show because of his right-leaning political views (the show was ABC’s second highest rated sitcom at the time). ABC denied the accusations, saying it was a business decision (they did not own the show at that point), and Allen comparing Hollywood to Nazi Germany in an interview probably didn’t help. FOX revived the show in 2018 (due to the popularity of the Roseanne revival on ABC) and in an ironic twist of fate, ABC’s parent Disney bought 20th Century Fox meaning it was now produced by the company that had been accused of playing politics with the show in the first place.