As hard as it is to believe, when the networks unveiled their fall shows it was a BIG DEAL. A real big deal. Remember “NBC WEEK”? When they rolled out their new fare they also offered full-color glossy yearbooks you could send away for. I must’ve had six. Now it’s “NBC WEAK.” CBS had a half hour “preview show” in which they would show snippets of their new shows. It got the highest rating of the week. During the summer you would watch daytime game shows just to see the promos. ABC usually got the jump on the other networks by premiering their new lineup first. THE JETSONS was water cooler stuff.
And of course, we had the Jerry Lewis Telethon. Almost 24 hours of the most saccharine, maudlin, cheesy glitz-filled entertainment/sales pitch hosted by the incomparable Jerry Lewis. At a moment's notice he could go from tears to cross-eyed clown. And always on hand was Tony Orlando, Norm Crosby, jugglers, and cabaret singers from the best Travelodge lounges in Henderson. By hour 19 Jerry usually went totally off the rails. All live. That, my friends, was MUST SEE TV.
Jerry's gone. The telethon is either gone or so practically gone that it is gone. There's no "NBC Week." At least BETTER CALL SAUL and the BREAKING BAD sequel are coming soon. Screw the new Chevy! Bring on the Fall!
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Oh yeah- the TV Guide Fall Preview issue would come out, and we would devour it. Read about every new show- made mental notes about which new shows looked to be the coolest, which ones had the cutest actresses, etc.
And Jerry Lewis- there were always those moments in the early afternoon on Monday where he'd go on a stream of consciousness ramble- remember one where he ended up musing about "God, or Yahweh, or whoever the hell it is up there in Heaven", which led my friend to shake her head and say "That man...has problems".
Remember the network summer promotional campaigns, with the multi-minute commercials, leading up to premier week? “Still the One!” “Just Watch Us Now” “Be There!” “We’ve Got the Touch”, etc? ABC’s were always the best, and CBS’ were always the weakest.
All of that is gone now.
There's a new Rambo movie out in a couple of weeks. I trust you'll be reviewing it.
Was that tumbleweed that just rolled by?
Labor Day without Jerry and his "kids" is not Labor Day!
Would you be able to get Vince Gilligan on your podcast? He does give a lot of interviews and now with this sequel coming, I am sure he will accept your invitation to talk about it.
In addition, there was the Saturday morning cartoon preview shows, back when there were Saturday morning cartoons. In retrospect, the shows weren't very good, really, except the old standbys Looney Tunes, the Pink Panther, and Jetsons reruns. But as a kid in the late '60s-early '70s, that was an event as well. (surprisingly, a show or three does hold up, for me at least, like the Hair Bear Bunch. But Scooby Doo? Not for me)
As far as the telethons were concerned, I always looked forward to the great comedians like Don Rickles and (it seemed to me at the time at least) Bob Hope. And, yes, Jerry Lewis without sleep was something to behold.
The new Mustang was announced on Bonanza. The showrooms were open late for the event and we went down to the dealership after watching Ben, Hoss, Adam and Little Joe to see the new pony car. It was mind blowing for an eleven year old.
September also meant the first day of the new school year, the best day of the year, even better than the last day when school was finally, mercifully over.
Because, in those pre-social media days, before you had your driver's license and mobility, it was a chance to see people you really hadn't seen for three months. A chance to scout for the cute girl you had discovered looking in your yearbook but had somehow never noticed or seen in person. It was always the start of the year where you would truly get it together, actually study hard, have your paper done a day before it due. No more doing trying to do your physics homework at lunch. But then the bell would ring and you would head for French class where you weren't allowed to just sit in silence but were called on to show off your ignorance...and the last day of school seemed so far away. Ah, September.
-30-
Summer 1984. Johnny, Ed, and Doc are still riding high on late night NBC. "The Tonight Show" is the only game in town. Somebody has an alternate vision of what late night broadcasting should be, a vision of what viewers want to experience before drifting off to peaceful slumber. "The Jerry Lewis Show" is that vision, a one week, five nightly hours, syndicated "pilot" that did not sell. All these years later, THAT late night effort is still something to behold. And, all these years later, still can not decide if this particular show lasted five hours too many - or too few.
Great memories, all. Labor Day is always a little sad because it signifies the end of Summer.
We would usually get the Sears, Montgomery Ward and Alden's Christmas catalogs during the first week of September. Highly anticipated and easily devoured.
The CEO (or whatever) of Wetson Hamburgers would show up about hour 14, just before Jerry loosened his bow tie, to present him with a golf-tournament-size novelty check. Has anyone ever had a Wetson hamburger? Were they a thing before McDonalds? Were they only in the Midwest? That, and Jerry's closing rendition of "You'll Never Walk Alone" are what I principally remember.
Should have clarified - the 1984 "Jerry Lewis Show" aired in syndication for one week, one nightly hour show, for five nights one particular summer week. Just felt like a five hour show.
All said in good fun.
Come to think of it, a hyper active Charlie Callas. A hyper active Jerry Lewis. Who wouldn't want to experience such visions before drifting off into dreamland?
Rhetorical question.
Of Jerry Lewis' telethons I remember only that a fireman would appear every 30 minutes or so with a considerable check. I guess that money was collected by firemen who ran out in the traffic at intersections all over the country waving a rubber boot.
I think I read once that the new shows premiered in the fall because that's when the new car models rolled out, and the automobile industry was a major adveriser.
The TV Guide Fall Preview issue, the preview shows, the promo commercials, the Christmas catalogs...I'd almost give up the internet to have those back.
Almost.
I don't think we're going to get more BETTER CALL SAUL until 2020. So maybe put the BREAKING BAD movie on half-speed so it lasts longer. :)
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I remember seeing Abbe Lane on an early 70s version of the telethon and wow... she was absolutely jaw-dropping. I was about 16-17 years old and had never heard of her. I vaguely remember that Lewis said about a half-dozen inappropriate things to/about her. Maybe not, though. Might have been one of my brothers.
Buttermilk Sky - There was a Wetson's in my neighborhood in Brooklyn when I was a kid. Standard fast food burger joint.
For some unknown reason that I am psychologically not prepared to investigate, CBS's 1972 promo slogan (and accompanying commercials) has stuck in my brain all these centuries: "Have We Got a Show for You!" I recall spots by the cast of the sure-to-be-a-hit show based on "The King and I" (ran for like eight seasons, right?) and one by Alan Alda in Army fatigues promoting the TV version of some movie.
As much as I wish failure on one of the biggest A-holes of 1980's Hollywood, I have to acknowledge that the trailer for the new Rambo looks pretty good.
I'm Outraged
Yes, I have to admit that Rambo is a guilty pleasure of mine. I know Ken probably won't see it. OK, he definitely won't be seeing it, which is a pity, as it would be fun to read his humorous take on Rambo and its OTT violence.
Regarding Stallone, I read somewhere that the reason he didn't win the best supporting actor Oscar a few years ago for Creed was he'd pissed off a lot of people in Hollywood through the years for his arrogant antics, though he does appear to have mellowed out somewhat lately.
Not many specific memories of Jerry's telethon, but one from decades ago, of Jerry being presented with a check from the Pot Growers of America (or maybe just of California) and Jerry accepting it. (Obviously, way before pot got anywhere near decriminalization, let alone legalization)
THE JERRY LEWIS SHOW from 1984 aired in Dallas, TX, at least, as I saw a promo for it during a show that I transferred from tape to DVD. It included David Brenner (I think) and Charlie Callas (I know for sure.) as guests.
There was a Wetson's Hamburger in Schenectady, NY, at least for part of the 1970s, but it was gone by the mid-70s.
Fall was also a time during the 1960s when TV Guide would have a preview of new models of tv sets. The Sept. 18, 1965 TV Guide cover featured a model whose name I don't recall carrying a model of a new small portable set.
Thanks for the heads up on the BB sequel. Looks like it will start on Netflix just as the NLCS starts (featuring the LA Dodgers?)
Gilligan killed off all but one of the male stars and even Fring's "sidekick". And they did well to keep it under wraps - when they announced in February it was already in the can. He's one helluva writer, so I have high hopes.
The TV Guide Fall Preview issue! I devoured every word and poured over the schedule, wondering why they were so cruel as to have two shows I *had* on watch on at the same time. Before streaming, On Demand, or even VCRs, you had to make a Choice.
Minor clarification: The Ford Mustang wasn't introduced in the fall; it was a "1964 1/2" model, introduced in April at the New York World's Fair (production had begun in March). More than 125,000 "1964 1/2" cars were sold. The fastback version, however, didn't appear until the 1965 models arrived in fall 1964.
I do still remember some of the little jingles that each broadcast network used in their annual campaigns. Usually it was a very brief but original jingle - for example, "This year, like last year / the best is right here / on CBS!" I think the decline began around the time ABC simply bought a preexisting tune (Randy Newman's "I Love L.A.") and gave it new lyrics - which the local affiliate then made specific to its own channel number.
One more nostalgic vote for the TV Guide Preview Issue. I remember looking forward to it like a Christmas catalog.
Here's John & Yoko lending Jerry a hand with 3 tunes in 1972. (You should brace yourself for Lennon's INSISTING that everyone in the audience should be singing along to finale, "Give Peace A Chance"; which is when Jerry kicks in with some not-too-bad piccolo trumpet, but morphs into a singing anti-war radical ;>):
https://bestclassicbands.com/john-lennon-yoko-ono-jerry-lewis-9-2-177/
My birthday alnost always falls on Labor Day weekend..so that's my memory. I will say that I LOVED Entertainment Weekly's TV preview issue. I used to seek that out as often as possible. Now, the Fall line up is really nothing.
I do want your take on the new "comedies" this year.
It was a HUGE deal for me as a kid to await TV Guide's massive new Fall season edition. I still have some, going back to the early '70s. Bittersweet reading, since so many programs had upcoming performers, promising shows, and then what the hell? They and the shows vanished. And now it's almost fifty years later. I hope it worked out for a lot of them in the long run, even if fame wasn't a part of it.
Wetsons was s New York-area knockoff of Mickey D’s. They flourished into the mid 1970s before the national fast food chains wrecked them with massive ad budgets.
TV GUIDE Fall Preview issue -- for a geeky, TV-obsessed kid, it was better than sneaking a peek at a PLAYBOY.
Also loved it when, on a Friday night in September, the networks would air specials previewing all of the new Saturday morning shows. That was every bit as exciting as the unveiling of the prime time lineups, and perhaps even more so, because these were shows made especially for kids.
I know that kids today have so many viewing options, but it makes me sad to think that they'll never know the fun of getting up early on Saturday morning, pouring a big bowl of cereal, and then plopping down in front of the TV for several hours of programming from Hanna-Barbera, Filmation, and the Kroffts, among others.
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