debut of TV shows

moviequeen1 said:
Oct 15
10/15/59
'The Untouchables'59-'63 based on actual events set in Chicago,Ill in the bullet ridden days of Prohibition in the 30's.The show starred Robert Stack as' Elliott Ness' he and his group of agents battle major crime lords including Al Capone At the time this was the most violent show on TV,but it scored big ratings for ABC
The movie version'87,Kevin Costner played'Ness',Robert deNiro played 'Capone'
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I loved the theme song. That tune just made the show.
 

moviequeen1 said:
9/12/59 NBC western'Bonanza'
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One of my favorites. I once read that the cast always wore the same clothes so they could recycle a lot of footage.

Met Dan Blocker (Hoss) once, when I was a kid. He performed at Six Gun Territory, a Florida tourist trap. After the show my brothers and I found him in the woods near by on a smoke break. A very nice man as I recall, he took time to talk and joke with us.
 
OneEyedDiva said:
Since I've been binge watching (as much as my ADD will allow) several episodes of The Love Boat:
The show premiered Sept 24, 1977 and ran for nine seasons. There were also a couple of specials.
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I never really liked this how. It's kind of geared to a female audience. But I did have a roommate when this show aired. He was a guy's guy. He wanted to be a professional boxer. He had great moves, way better than me. And he was a "lover", who had lots of 'loves'. When this show came on, he was glued to the screen. You could see by his expression that he was on that ship, sailing with them. It was his favorite TV show. That always amazed me.
 
9/17/63 ABC crime drama'The Fugitive' starring David Janssen as' Dr. Richard Kimble'
He is falsely arrested& convicted for killing his wife. On his way to death row,he's able to escape,starts his cross country search for the real killer. The real killer is known as the 'one armed man'{Bill Raisch} Kimble is hounded by police authorites especially Lt Phillip Gerard{Barry Morse}
The 1st 3 season show is in black&white,season 4 in color
The series finale 78 million viewers tuned in
9/17/72 CBS's long running comedy/drama series M*A*S*H {Mobile Army Surgical Hospital} follows a team of doctors&support staff at the 4077th in South Korea during the Korean War
The ensemble cast:
Alan Alda:Hawkeye
Loretta Swit'Margaret'Hot Lips' Holihan
Wayne Rogers'Trapper John"
Gary Burgoff'Radar'{only cast member to appear as same character in movie&TV version}
Jamie Farr'Klinger'
William Christopher'Father Mulcahy"
Larry Linville'Frank Burns'
McClean Stevenson'Col Henry Blake'
There were cast changes during the show's run,3rd yr McClean,Wayne left to be replaced by Mike Farrell'BJ Hunnicutt' Harry Morgan'Col Potter', 5th yr Larry left replaced by David Ogden Stiers'Col Charles Winchester' Burgoff left in 8th yr,Jamie took his place
The final episode which was 2 1/2 hrs'Goodbye,Farewell,Amen' remains the most watched TV finale with 125 million tuning in
5 cast members are still with us;
Alda,Swit,Burgoff,Farr,Farrell
The series was based on the book by author Richard Hooker,the instrumental show's theme is 'Suicide is Painless' The show won 14 Emmys over its 11 yr run mostly directing/writing Alda won Best Actor in '74
 
9/19/94 NBC's long running medical drama "ER"
The show centered on the fictious County General Hospital in Chicago,Ill.the issues faced by the doctors &staff every day
The orginal cast members :
Anthony Edwards"Dr Mark Greene'
George Clooney'Dr Mark Ross'
Julianna Marguiles' Nurse Carol Hathaway'
Noah Wylie,then medical student' John Carter',later became Dr Carter
Sherry Stringfield'Dr Susan Lewis
Eric LaSalle'Dr Peter Benton'
As with any long running show,cast members would eventually leave,
Stringfield left in 3rd yr,Clooney in the 5th,Margulies in 6th,Edwards&La Salle in the 8th. Wylie in the 11th but he came back for the multi episodes leading to the finale
The 1st yr ratings averaged 19 million,the series finale 16.4 mill viewers
The show was created by author/physican,Michael Critchon
This is one of my favorite medical shows,could relate to it because at the time I was working in a local hosptial.I watched every week until Season 8.When Edwards left the show,I lost interest,his character was my favorite.I felt the scripts/storylines weren't as good
The show won 22 Emmys ended after 15 yrs on 4/2/09
 
9/20/77 CBS drama' Lou Grant' which was a spinoff from sitcom'The Mary Tyler Moore Show'
In this show, Ed Asner once again plays "Grant' he is the city newspaper editor of a daily fictious newspaper,Los Angeles Tribune. His interactions with his co-workers,he's a firm but fair person neatly dressed.
The other cast members:
Nancy Marchand 'Margaret Pynchon' publisher of the paper
Mason Adams' Charlie Hume' managing editor,long time friend of Lou's
Robert Walden'Joe Rossi'
Linda Kelsey'Billie Newman' she&Joe were assignment reporters
Jack Bannon'Art Donavan' ass't city edtior
Daryl Anderson'Dennis Price' photographer
I loved this show tuned in every week during its 5 yr run
The show won 13 Emmys,Asner won best Actor in '78,'80. He became the 1st person to win an Emmy in both Comedy&Drama portraying the same character
The show was co-created by James L.Brooks&Allan Burns who also created MTM show
 
9/21/57 CBS legal drama' Perry Mason', was based on character written by detective writer,Erle Stanley Gardner It was the 1st weekly 1 hr series filmed for TV,remains the most successful legal theme show
Raymond Burr stars as 'Mason' a successful criminal defense lawyer in Los Angeles.,most of his clients were wrongly accused of murder He's helped by his loyal&confidential secretary'Della Street{Barbara Hale},private investigator,Paul Drake{William Hopper}.The suspects were prosecuted by district attorney"Hamilton Burger'{ William Talman} The police investigator was done by homicide
Lt'Arthur Tagg{Ray Collins}
Burr won 2 Best Actor Emmy Awards,Hale won for Best Supporting Actress
The theme music was written by Fred Steiner,series ended on 5/20 /66
 
9/22/99 NBC's drama'The West Wing' poltical drama, created by writer,Aaron Sorkin was set in U. S. White House in the daily life of a fictious President,Josiah'Jed' Bartlett{Martin Sheen}with political intrigue/personal stories.The other cast members:
"Leo'{John Spencer} Jed's Chief of Staff
"Josh'{Bradley Whitford} deputy chief of staff
"Toby:{Richard Schiff} communication director
"CJ{Allison Janney} press secretary
"Donna'{Janel Maloney} Josh's senior assistant
"Charlie'{Dule Hill} personal aide to Jed,later became deputy special assistant
'Abby"{Stockyard Channing} Jed's wife who was a doctor
"Delores' {Katherine Joosten} Jed's devoted secretary
'Sam"{Rob Lowe} Toby's deputy
In 2003, when Sorkin left,the show became less poltical more of straight drama
The cast was shaken in '05 when John Spencer'Leo" died of a heart attack leaving a void.The writers decided to replace him with Allison who became chief of staff
I loved this show,watched every wk,wonderful cast,good writing
The show won 9 Emmys in its 1st season inc Best Drama,supp actor/actress Schiff,Janney,others were for directing/writing,show ended its run in '06
 
9/23/79 CBS medical drama'Trapper John,MD"
Pernell Roberts starred as 'Dr Trapper John McInytre' a main character seen in the TV show&movie "M*A*S*H'.Its been 28 yrs since he was discharged from MASH,he's now chief of surgery at San Francsico's Memorial Hosptial.His # 1 concern has always been for his patients,at times he clashes with hosptial adminstrator'Arnold Slocum'{Simon Scott}
He works along side a young,brash, talented surgeon'Gonzo Gates'{Gregory Harrison} who idolizes Trapper.Gates also worked in a MASH unit in Vietnam.He lives in a RV in the hospital parking lot.Others in the cast
" Ernestine Sloop'{Madge Sinclair} Trapper's nurse
"Gloria Brancusi"{Christopher Norris} young female nurse
"Dr Stanley Riverside II"{Charles Seibert} chief of emergency services
"Dr Justin"Jackpot" Jackson{Brian Mitchell} another young surgeon
"Melanie McIntyre'{Jessica Walter} John's ex wife who appeared occassionally always asking for his help with some situation
I loved this show tuned in every week,thought it was well written with good cast. I had a crush on Pernell Roberts at the time. The show ended in '86
 
9/24/07 CBS sitcom'The Big Bang Theory'which centers on 4 friends, brilliant scientists in their special fields who are co-workers at Caltech.They are all social awkward with social skills outside of work. Leonard{Johnny Galecki},Sheldon{Jim Parsons} are room mates living in a apt building in Pasadena,Calif. Penny{Kaley Cucuo} an aspiring actress/ waitress at the Cheesecake Factory lives across the hall The guy friends at work are Howard{ Simon Helberg},an aerospace engineer,Raj{Kunal Nayyar}astrophyscist.
As the show went on other supp cast members became part of the major storylines
"Amy Farrah Fowler{Mayim Bialik} was a neuroscientist{which she is in real life} became Sheldon's girlfriend,then wife'Bernadette{Melissa Rauch} was Howard's girlfriend{ with a squeaky voice until she got really mad} eventually his wife.Stuart{Kevin Sussman}owned the comic book store the guys loved to hang out at In semi occurring roles, veteran comedic actresses,Christine Baranski,Laurie Metcalf played Leonard&Sheldon's moms in funny situations
I loved this show with a wonderful cast,some episodes had me laughing so hard tears falling down my face.It was filmed in front of a live studio audience.Canadian alternative rock band,Barenaked Ladies wrote&performed the theme song.As much as I enjoyed this show,it was on too long-12 yrs,felt it lost its steam by 2015.I can watch repeats on TBS
 
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9/26/10' British period drama'Downton Abbey' which debut on this date in England,5 months later in U.S. on PBS. The show series set in early 20th century in fictious Yorkshire estate owned by the arisotratic Crawley family, the daily lives of the family and their domestic help. Each season had 6-7 episodes with historic events starting with the sinking of the Titantic,ending with the rise of working class,decline of British monarchy
The wonderful ensemble cast:
Hugh Bonneville,Elizabeth McGovern' Robert&Cora Crawley',their 3 daughters:
Michelle Dockery'Mary',Laura Carmichael'Edith',Jessica Brown Findley'Sybill'{she left after season 3} Allan Leach'Branson' the chauffeur who married Sybill.Dan Stevens'Matthew' Mary's husband{he left after season 3} Maggie Smith'Violet' played Robert's mother,Penelope Wilton'Isobel' played Matthew's mother
Jim Carter'Mr Carson' butler,Phyliss Logan'Mrs. Hughes,housekeeper,they eventually married
Sioban Finneran'Mrs. O'Brien, Cora's nasty maid{she left in Season 3},Joanne Froggatt'Anna' ,Mary's maid,Brendan Coyle'John Bates",Robert's valet,Anna&John eventually married, Robert James-Collier'Thomas' footman, then became under butler
Leslie Nichol'Mrs Patmore' the cook,Sophie Mc Shera' Daisy' the scullery maid
The show was a worldwide hit ,was most watched series in UK &U.S. won numerous TV awards Emmys, Golden Globes,Screen Actors Guild
The film version ,a continuation of the series came out in 2019,another one is to be released next yr
I watched this show from the start,thought it was well written.The only actors I recognized were Maggie Smith,Elizabeth McGovern,who in real life is married to a British director.
When something awful happened to my favorite character' Anna' I think in Season 4,I started to lose interest.There were too many storylines/characters to keep track of,felt like it was becoming a 'soap opera'. I didn't watch any longer,had no interest in seeing the movie
 
9/28/61 NBC medical drama'Dr Kildare"
an unknown actor at the time,Richard Chamberlain, stars as 'Dr James Kildare' who worked at fictious 'Blair General Hosptial' In the show he learns about his profession,taking care of his patients,trying to get the respect of his older college,'Dr Leonard Gillespie{Raymond Massey} In the 3rd season Kildare is a resident,the episodes featured more about the patients and their families
supporting cast:
Ken Berry'Dr Kapish'
Jean Inness'Nurse Fain'
Richard became a overnight star,'heart throb',had a hit single with the show's theme'Three Stars Will Fall' The theme song was written by film composer Jerry Goldsmith
He was not the 1st choice for the role actors William Shatner,late,James Franscicus turned it down. I can't imagine Shatner in this role The show lasted 5 yrs
I do remember watching this show
 
I want to thanked everybody who posted here, wasn't sure if anyone would be interested in this TV themed thread,was pleasantly surprised with the responses. I've done this for a year,time to move on.My last entry:
9/30/01 ABC's espionage/spy show'Alias'
Sydney Bristow{Jennifer Garner} as a college freshman is approached one day to join a top secret division of the CIA,SD-6. She's now a grad student goes on hair raising secret assignments which take her all over the world, learns SD-6 is not with CIA instead its rogue org ,enemy of the U.S. Her finance is killed,her life in danger she seeks out the real CIA,becomes a double agent,determined to bring down SD-6 .She has to lie to her best friends'Will{Bradley Cooper} a local news reporter,'Francie'{Merrin Dungey} her room mate, what she is really doing.Sydney has been estranged from her distant dad'Jack'{Victor Garber} for quite awhile,their relationship changes when she learns he is a trusted double agent as well.He tells her the truth about SD-6
The major storyline is finding clues/artifacts,a powerful weapon designed from a fictious 15th century seer, Rambaldi which her boss Sloane{Ron Rifkin} Syd's boss at SD-6 is obsessed with
The other cast members:
Michael Vartan'Vaughn' Sydney's CIA handler
Carl Lumby'Dixon' Sydney's partner on cases/friend who has no idea SD-6 is rogue
Kevin Wiesman'Marshall' tech guy who comes up with cool gadgets for the assignments
This is my favorite spy show,watched from the beginning,totally hooked until it became hard to follow some of the storylines.There were too many characters esp in the 4th and 5th seasons
My main focus was the relationship between Sydney and her dad,Jack.At 1st she didn't trust him they had some really gut punching, emotional scenes,.As the show continued over 5 yr run was great to see them become really close.In real life ,Jennifer&Victor are close friends, he is godfather of her eldest daughter,Violet
 
Investigation Discovery on Direct TV a weekly series of Cops with body cam footage.
Gives you the flip side of cops dealing with madmen, murderers, sex-criminals, high speed chases...
You as a cop, may only be involved in a life or death situation once in your time as a cop=that's still too many.
 

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