Black Sheep does TV: GLEE Season 3

GLEE SEASON 3

Do you know what I like most about watching an entire season of GLEE from start to finish on Blu-ray? It’s simple really. It is so much easier to enjoy this grand production of a television series in sequence rather than week to week and with giant gaps between episodes. When it airs on television, there is so much pressure for GLEE to deliver to its audience the way it did when it first aired. It’s time for Gleeks everywhere to just accept that this is never going to happen. And while the glory days of GLEE may be behind them, the show has found a comfortable stride by bringing on staff writers this season, which allowed for almost every character to grow in unexpected ways.

Gone are the days of fake pregnancies and scandalous inter-glee club mix and mingling. New Directions is now three years old and many of the crew will graduate at the end of the school year. While graduation calculatedly divides the kids for the future of the series, it does also provide many an opportunity for the seniors to contemplate their lofty and ambiguous futures. Allow me to assure you that these futures are not easily attained for any single one of them, whether that’s because some of them are flunking or whether that’s because some of them genuinely have no idea what to do with their lives. They may break out into song at many random moments but graduation allowed GLEE to get very real this year.

One of the major contributing factors to GLEE’s successful turnaround (after a widely disliked second season) is the elimination of the constant bickering between the kids. Everybody more or less gets along this year and subsequently have their own individual journeys to follow. Without the petty fighting to distract them, they found their focus in a common goal - winning nationals, of course. Even when a chunk of the female glee kids defected and formed a competing glee club, everyone still more or less got along. It’s a maturity I didn’t expect from GLEE and, by the time the season ends, and all the kids are faced with their own personal new directions in life, it is easy to see how much the creators respect their characters and want to see them enter the world.

The third season of GLEE tackles topics as varied as losing your virginity (“The First Time”), parental career pressure (“Asian F”) and the dangers of texting and driving (“On My Way”). These are all topics that apply directly to teenagers and I commend GLEE for dealing with issues that these kids would really face. It may not be as sensational or scandalous as it once was but this new approach bodes much better for GLEE’s own future. Now all they have to do is knock off all those tribute episodes. I mean, “Saturday Night Glee-ver”? C’mon now.

My addiction to buying every single GLEE song released subsided this year and I became much more selective but that doesn’t mean there weren’t plenty of numbers worth celebrating. I ask you to indulge my own inner gleek right now as I present my personal playlist of my favorite songs from GLEE Season 3 ...

GLEE Season 3 is now available on DVD & Blu-ray from 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment.

Can You Guess Why I'm Going To Watch This Season of Celebrity Apprentice?

One question: What's an Aubrey O'Day?

Alf Promos

Because I'm a dork...

Classic Commercial Sunday - #79

This one is airing now and I think it's great...

Baltimore WNUV 54 Community News and BTV Ad

I found this ultra-nerdy clip on YouTube the other day I thought I'd share with ya'll. It's a few minutes from a Baltimore station that I logged many, many hours with in my youth. They don't really do these simple Community News bits anymore on the ol' tube but it looks positively ancient compared to TV nowadays. Second is a quick ad for BTV - Baltimore's Top Videos, a weekly music video show hosted by DJ's from the now defunct B104 FM. The DJ in this ad looks like he's dressed for a shift operating Space Mountain.

The Quotable Alf

"If you love something, let it go. If it comes back to you, it's yours. If it's run over by a car, you don't want it."

"I learned one thing about eating jigsaw puzzles : an hour later, you're hungry again."

"When the going gets tough, the tough gets going. Many are called, but a few are chosen. And you can't get anything done by standing here talking cliches."

"I don't want to be an orphan! I saw "Annie!" Orphans have to eat gruel and tap dance with mops!"

"Did you say I should get hair in the peanut butter, or I shouldn't?"

"I never met a cat I didn't like!"

"Hey, you crawl under people's houses, you hear things."

"Trust me on this one, I've been wrong so many times before."

"Don't look back. Something might be broken." (quoting his Grandpa Satchel)

"Hey I'm still young. If I'm not married by the time I hit the big 4-0-0, then I'll panic."

Proper Smurfing

A few weeks ago I ended up watching the premier of Matthew Perry's new show, Mr. Sunshine. Normally, I wouldn't have had any interest in the program but the previews kept showing a shot of somebody punching somebody in a Smurf theme park costume. Well, if you're going to take the time to work a Smurf into your show than the least I can do is watch it. Well, the first episode didn't have a Smurf and I was felt pretty used after sitting through the show. After the case of "bait and Smurf" I never watched the show again. Thanks to the internets, I found out that the Smurfs finally did make their appearance. On the show, Perry's character runs a giant events arena and Smurfs On Ice was booked. Here's a clip from the show, even though it features Allison Janney smacking Papa Smurf's blue rump - it's alot more respectful to the Smurfs property than a certain live action film we discussed earlier this week.

What's Good on the Tube

This is a feature I've been meaning to do for years where I sporadically weigh in on the top 5 shows that I'm enjoying on television at the moment. If you have exquisite taste in entertainment, like myself, you should watch these shows too!

Hot In Cleveland (Wednesday 10:00pm, TV Land) Simply put, Hot in Cleveland is the single best traditional sitcom to air on television in at least five years. The comedy all-star cast features Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves and Wendie Malick as three gals who decide to uproot from their hectic L.A. lifestyles in and settle in Cleveland, Ohio where they are all considered hot and glamorous. Golden Girl Betty White plays the owner of the house they all live in. As you should know, I've been a huge Betty White fan since her days on The Golden Girls. I didn't just jump on this new Betty Bandwagon after her Super Bowl commercial and SNL appearance last year. I've been seeking out her appearances for years. Watching her work is watching one of the all-time comedy greats practice their craft. Mrs. White nails every single line with pin point comedy precision - it's amazing to watch. Hot In Cleveland doesn't get by on just Betty White alone, not only is the rest of the cast great but the show doesn't shy away from using tried and true sitcom plots and conventions to have a good time. This show celebrates it's sitcom heritage, not only by shooting in front of a live studio audience but also by casting several familiar faces from TV comedies past in supporting roles. It's just another great reason why I love this program and look forward to it every week. (Season One just came out on DVD!)

Holly's World (Sunday 10:30pm, E!) You know I loved me some Girls Next Door, which appears to have been canceled but this spin-off is the next best thing. All three of the gals from Next Door have had their own shows. Kendra has Kendra, which to me feels like it's grabbing at straws trying to come up with material to justify it's existence. Bridgete had Bridgete's Sexy Beaches which was a really fun travel show but it was cancelled after one season. Holly's World follows Holly Madison as she stakes her claim as the new Miss Las Vegas. Holly stars in Peepshow at Planet Hollywood in Vegas, as well as having her hand in a ton of other charities and events around town. What made Girls Next Door so interesting was it's behind the scenes look into Playboy Magazine and life at the Playboy Mansion. In this show, we get to see the inner workings of a town like Las Vegas, plus Holly and her friends are all good fun. Really fun half hour of tube that I look forward to each week!

Parks and Recreation (Thursday 9:30pm, NBC) Right now NBC is running a three hour block of comedies on Thursday night. That's not attempted much in network television. Of those 6 shows, 3 are on my list here today. At the moment, Parks and Rec is my favorite simply because it's the newest but also because the show has really found it's voice in it's third season. The characters, the actors, the writing and the situations have all gelled nicely. Season three saw the addition of two new cast members including the always terrific Rob Lowe. Amy Polher, Aziz Ansari and Nick Offerman are three more reasons why this show is so terrific.

30 Rock (Thursday 10:00pm, NBC) In my opinion, television writing has never been better than what is on display at 30 Rock. Each episode is packed the the gills with so many clever jokes, references and more jokes that it's sometimes exhausting trying to keep up. 30 Rock has also maintained a good pace of keeping story lines flowing from week to week without turning the show into a soap opera. Each show is a comedy masterpiece. Alec Baldwin continues to be The Man!

The Office (Thursday 9:00pm, NBC) While I've never abandoned The Office, I felt it strayed off course in recent years. The storylines kept getting in the way of the show just being funny. The shows seems to have settled down into just being laugh out loud funny week after week! Steve Carell is heading off the show at the end of this year, but this is one show that seems to be able to keep on chugging without it's star. There are of other characters to keep The Office open for many more season. According to some tweets I've read, Will Ferrell is expected to do a multi-episode arc later the season. That should be comedy gold! (As long as he doesn't play a 70's sports star.)

NFL Best Fans Ever Super Bowl Commercial

Highlight of last night's telecast including brief clips from two of my favorite shows:

SNL Recap 1/15/11 - Gwyneth Paltrow

I though SNL was really on fire this week. There were alot of great celebrity impressions and just about every skit was right on the money. Host Gwyneth Paltrow has a good comic sensibility and even the musical guest Cee-Lo (who ever that is) got in on more than one sketch. Seth Meyers even cut loose with a little bit of stand-up during Update. But I think easily, the highlight of the show was the Digital Short which featured an impressive guest cast.

(This is safe-for-work, but probably not for children. It's not vulgar, but it does have a few PG-13 words in it.)


There's already some buzz of Pee-Wee hosting later this season!

We Didn't See Michael Scott

The week before Christmas we found ourselves about 30 minutes outside of Scranton, PA and decided to make the trek into town to visit the home of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company as seen on the hit NBC show The Office. Now, I wouldn't consider myself a huge Office fan, but I do watch the show every week and I had heard that even though the show is filmed in LA, the real town of Scranton has sort of embraced their celebrity status and a had a few sites for Office fans to check out. Since none of the shows I'm ever really into reach that sort of status, I though it would be cool to check out the sights of Scranton. (Until they build an Alf Amusement Park or a Family Ties Museum in Columbus, I'll take Scranton.)

The Scranton Welcomes You sign (pictured above) is the actual prop used in the opening of the show.

We actually didn't tour much of the city of Scranton, but instead made out way to The Mall at Steamtown, which is a pretty average mall on the inside but it's inside what appears to be an old train station. The mall also has a pretty interesting parking garage where you can enter the department stores underground. In the food court (which features not only a Nathan's but also an Arthur Treacher's) there are advertisements for various local businesses including Dunder Mifflin, Inc.

The mall's center court was hosting Santa Claus. Around the giant Christmas tree were cutouts of two characters from the show, Kevin...

...and Angela.

Here we are outside the mall...

Here's the advertised Dunder Mifflin Store, which was actually only a cart...

Well played, Scranton Mall! Ok, so there is a Flintstone's Bedrock City Theme Park that I may have been to before in South Dakota, and I may have also considered taking a trip to Vermont to stay at the Inn used in the exterior shots of Newhart. But, this Office stuff was all pretty cool too!

Hey Vern, It's More Ernest on DVD!

Golly Bob Howdy, I have been waiting for somebody to release Hey Vern, It's Ernest! on DVD. Haven't you!? You know, the Emmy award winning Saturday morning show staring Ernest P. Worrell and all his buddies and alter egos!

Once again I'm sending kudos to the dudes at Mill Creek Entertainment for making this dream a reality. All 13 episodes of the wacky show will come in one handy dandy set for the unbelievable price of Ten Bucks! Can you believe that!? I can't wait to scoop up a copy and finally put to rest my grainy VHS copies that I taped in reruns off the old Family Channel back in the early 90's.


Each episode revolves around a central theme and is filled with quick skits and jokes from Ernest and his off-screen buddy Vern along with the rest of the neighborhood: Auntie Nelda, Dr. Otto, Sgt. Glory, My Father the Clown, Existo the Magician, Earl the Barber, and of course Chuck and Bobby.


My kids have seen a few episodes and they really enjoyed them. Can't wait to sit down and enjoy `em all once again. Hey Vern, It's Ernest! The Complete Series plops on DVD January 18, 2011.

And speaking of our good buddy Ernest, if there is some reason why you don't have all these movies in your personal DVD library by now - here's the perfect chance to pick them up. Mill Creek has licenced from Disney the rights to Ernest films #1, 3 & 4; Ernest Goes to Camp (1987), Ernest Goes to Jail (1990) and Ernest Scared Stupid (1991). They are all coming out, also on January 18, in a triple feature pack. (It looks like Disney has hung onto the rights to 1989's Ernest Saves Christmas.)

In Goes to Camp, Ernest is a handyman at a summer camp who helps the camp fight against some evil land developers. I love evil land developers! In Goes to Jail, our hero is a janitor at the fictional Howard County Bank where a wacky case of mistaken identity ends up with Ernest in jail. Like in real, really, really, really, really real prison. You know, the hoose-gow, the slammer, the joint, Alcatraz, San Quentin, Sing Sing! And Scared Stupid is the Halloween entry in the franchise which I have gone on about before on this blog.

Obviously, all three are really fun films. This new triple feature DVD might be worth the purchase for die-hard fans if the films are presented in widescreen. Only Camp and Christmas got a widescreen release when initially released to DVD in 2002. Next up, I'd like to see them do a triple feature set for the very excellent Ernest Rides Again (1993) along with Ernest Goes to School (1994) and the horribly embarrassing Slam Dunk Ernest (1995).

Vintage Christmas on DVD

I've been enjoying the holy heck out of this 4 disc DVD collection, Holiday TV Classics. The fine folks at Mill Creek Entertainment have gathered up 49 episodes of vintage Christmas television programing from the 1950's & 60's, slapped it on 4 DVDs and put it out for only $9.99 MSRP. If you pick it up at WalMart it's actually only $5.00!

I love old television, especially stuff produced for the holiday season. I wasn't around in the 1950's, but it seems that Christmas meant just a little bit more back then. I guess the country had been through some rough times and the holiday season was a really special time to slow down and appreciate everyone and everything around you. Anywho, this collection of old TV shows is great for someone like me who just loves the history of television. The footage on most of these shows is top notch and the audio is also fantastic for material that hasn't been remastered or probably preserved very well.

Now, I haven't watched all 49 episodes...yet. But so far what I've watched has been very enjoyable. Most of the original sponsor cards and announcements are still in place, and some of the shows still have their original commercial breaks still intact. The Bell Telephone Company sponsors Telephone Time, which I was expecting to be a game show but was actually a dramatic anthology series which ran on CBS for two seasons. The episode on this disc is called "A Picture of the Magi," a creative reworking of O'Henry's classic tale.

I, of course, also enjoyed a holiday themed episode of Date With The Angels one of Betty White's earliest network roles. The episode take place mostly in a department store and for my money there isn't a thing much more Christmasy than a 1950's department store at Christmas! From the looks of old movies and shows that I've seen, Toy Trains were the ONLY toys available to boys in the 50's.

There are plenty of shows that you have heard of before sprinkled among the set's 4 discs. There's several episodes of The Beverly Hillbilllies, The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet, Dragnet and The Jack Benny Program. Holiday TV Classics is a real treat for the shows that you can't readily find on DVD...or VHS for that matter: Screen Writers Playhouse, The Paul Winchell Show, Dear Phoebe, and Racket Squad - just to name a few.

I watched the Lux Video Theatre episode, which I later discovered was a redramatization of the movie Holiday Affair. I also enjoyed discovering The Bob Cummings Show, which was racy for it's time but is now as tame as a Disney Channel Show (just more entertaining.)

This is a great collection of material that will provide nights of entertainment throughout the season. Look for Holiday TV Classics at WalMart in the $5.00 DVD section. At almost 21 hours of vintage Christmas television, that's around twenty three cents per hour for your entertainment dollar. Beat that!

Crabs For Christmas

I think a neat little project for some company to put together would be a CD of regional Christmas songs from all over the country. I'm sure there's some Christmas song about the Bears in Chicago, and I bet New York has got a least a half dozen obnoxious Christmas carols of their own. There's probably even a song about a Christmas Lobster in Maine. But in good ol' Maryland (pronounced Mary Land) it just wouldn't be the holidays without a couple of rounds of "Crabs For Christmas," an enjoyable little ditty by native David DeBoy which pays homage to the most sacred of all Maryland traditions: steamed crabs! (Good eats!)

Even though I now only live an hour outside of Baltimore (pronounced Bawl-more) I realized a few years ago that we didn't get to hear "Crabs For Christmas" on our PA Christmas radio stations. Anytime drivetime spent in Maryland over the holidays would be dedicated to hearing "Crabs" on good ol' Lite 102. I believe it was last year that my wife surprised me Christmas morning with a copy of the "Crabs For Christmas" CD. Now I can have Crabs for Christmas whenever I wants, hon!

Somebody on Facebook posted this clip the other day. It's David DeBoy performing his hit song on local TV show "Crabs". "Crabs" was a Maryland style Saturday Night Live that ran for quite a few seasons starting in the mid-80's. It gently poked fun at the Maryland way of life through a half hour of skits and songs, all televised live. Pretty ambitious for local television back then, and completely unheard of now. This clip is from the tail-end of the show, it also features the closing credits of the program.

Ebert Scared Stupid

Honestly, I would have payed double the admission price to sit with my back to the screen and just watch Siskel and/or Ebert's face while screening 1991's Ernest Scared Stupid. Just the fact that two esteemed film critics who enjoyed Merchant Ivory productions and French New Wave Impressionist Cinema ever sat through an Ernest film warms the depths of my heart.

Super Fun Superhero CD

I'm not really big into superheroes but I do appreciate their place in pop culture. After all, superheroes are essentially cartoon characters that fight instead of throw pies and run into walls. One thing I am a fan of though are TV theme songs! So I gotta tell ya, I enjoyed the heck out of the new CD The Music of DC Comics: 75th Anniversary Collection.

This is an awesome collection of music from various television shows and motion picture outings for several of DC Comic's top stars. It's not just the amount of superheroes that are represented here that makes this CD impressive. It's the span of time the tracks cover. The first track on the CD is the theme music to the old Max Fleisher Superman cartoon shorts of the 1940's. The music takes us all the way up to the jazzy retro theme song for Batman: The Brave and the Bold, a newer series currently in it's second season on Cartoon Network.

DC's two biggest stars have always been Supes and the Bat, and they are represented here the most. The Superman tracks include the John Williams theme to the 70's/80's film franchise, themes to the Filmation cartoons of Superman and Superboy, and the music to the prime time entries Lois & Clark and Smallville. The Caped Crusader tunes include the opening to the 1943 serial The Batman, various cartoon shows along the years and the themes to both Tim Burton and Chris Nolan's incarnations of Batman. One of the inclusions that sold me on picking up this CD is the groovy theme to the 1960's Adam West Batman show - which is really where I got my first taste of superheroes.

Another great show from my childhood was The SuperFriends. There have been several reboots of the concept over the years. Six different series are represented on this disc but none greater than Hoyt Curtan's theme to The All-New Super Friends Hour from 1977. That show was the bomb!

There's still 10 more tracks after that! How great is a CD with the theme to The Plastic Man Comedy Adventure Show and Swamp Thing!? And where's Wonder Woman you ask...this compilation ends with not only the theme to the recent Wonder Woman animated film but also the classic Linda Carter television series from the 70's. Well played, DC...well played!

An eclectic mix of all sorts of shows and films that the DC Universe has populated over the last 75 years. A great and unique listen!

Let The Halloween Cartoons Begin

Halloween is just a few weeks away and the kids and I have been in the mood to kick off the holiday special viewing season. So, this past weekend we decided to relax after a day of pumpkin picking and hay rides with the annual ritual of "Pulling Out The Halloween Videos."

We started things off with a screening of Bugs Bunny's Howl-oween Special, a good ol' fashioned CBS primetime offering from 1978. As with the majority of the Looney Tunes specials, this show mixes a handful of classic animated shorts with some newer low-grade animation to form one continuous half hour cartoon. Even as a young kid, the newer bits of the cartoon stuck out like a sore thumb in the middle of the original masterpieces. Sometimes the new animation was just used to link together three or four complete cartoons, other times (such as the case with Howl-oween) the newer bits are sprinkled in and out the old cartoons to try and make it seem like one whole story. When the latter approach was used, the shows feel disconnected and choppy. Animation style, character design and voices change every couple of minutes and it makes viewing a bit difficult. It's a wonder why they didn't just collect a handful of Halloween themed shorts and air them in their entirty.

I was never really a huge fan of these chop shop Warner Bros. specials, but I watched them every time they were on because that's how we rolled back in the old days before VCRs and 24 hour cartoon channels. In more recent years, I kinda had a nostalgic yearning for some of these specials and have sought some out on video and DVD. Bugs Bunny's Howl-oween Special makes it's debut on DVD this year, having not been released since a 1994 VHS cassette. The special itself features clips and scenes from nine vintage shorts including Broom-Stick Bunny (1956), Hyde and Hare (1955) and Transylvania6-5000 (1954). One of my all-time favorite Looney Tunes shorts, Scaredy Cat from 1948, is also used luckily without too much interruption.

All in all, even though the show alters the original state of the cartoons the special is entertaining and promotes enough Halloween spirit to get everyone in the mood. The new DVD also features the complete short Hair-Raising Hare from 1946. This is the one where Bugs Bunny meets the giant orange-haired monster and does his nails. Good stuff and actually worth the price of admission alone!

In the mood for more classic animated shorts, we then popped in Tom & Jerry: Hijinks and Shrieks. I picked up this DVD at a yard sale a couple of years ago (they had it priced at $3 but I talked `em down to $2...suckers!) but we had never gotten around to watching it. This isn't an old TV special, but rather a collection of 7 top-shelf Tom & Jerry shorts from 1952 to 1965. The bad news is that only two of these shorts have anything at all to do with Halloween, the good news is that they are all pretty good cartoons. The amazing thing is that after 60+ years, these cartoons are still laugh out-loud funny to kids and grown ups alike! And quite frankly, there is no greater sound than hearing your kids crackup to pieces laughing at silly things like animals running into walls and cats getting their tail chopped off!

The two Halloween themed shorts, 1956's The Flying Sorceress & The Haunted Mouse from 1965 are both filled with sufficient levels of spooky fun to carry the other 5 titles into making this a fun collection for the Halloween season. A couple of the shorts were produced in CinemaScope and of course are presented here in pan and scan. I think a DVD of just a handful of cartoons presented in their widescreen glory for new television sets would not only be an awesome addition to the WWoB DVD library, I think it would be a big seller as well!

Both Bugs Bunny's Howl-oween Special and Tom & Jerry: Hiijinks & Shrieks are available at Wal-Mart, Amazon and for rental from Netflix. Good stuff for your pre-Trick or Treat viewing!

Happy 50th Fred & Wilma!

'The Flintstones' broke ground as the first animated prime-time show. Fifty years on, it's a cultural touchstone.

By Stephen Cox, Special to the Los Angeles Times

It was 50 years ago [today] on the evening of Sept. 30, 1960, that America met the Flintstones, television's modern Stone Age family. That Friday night, kids couldn't wait. Parents were curious. And the ABC network executives pondered their gamble patiently. TV's first animated prime-time sitcom made history; well, they were history.

"I remember sitting and watching the premiere episode," says actor Paul Reubens, who later starred in his own popular children's show, "Pee-wee's Playhouse." "I think I was in fourth or fifth grade at the time. Just the whole idea of a cartoon in prime time was exciting and there was a lot of hype about it. I loved how they patterned some characters after real stars like Ann Margrock and Stoney Curtis."

Set in the animated suburbia of Bedrock, Fred and Wilma Flintstone (voiced by radio veterans Alan Reed and Jean Vander Pyl) along with their genial neighbors Betty and Barney Rubble (Bea Benaderet and Mel Blanc), were meant as an amalgam of adult satire and children's amusement.

"The Flintstones" was drawn to be a slice-of-life sitcom with a prehistoric twist. The show boasted several milestones: Quite possibly, Fred and Wilma Flintstone were the first sitcom couple to be shown sleeping on the same king-size, er, slab. And definitely a cartoon first. And until 1997 when "The Simpsons" surpassed their prehistoric predecessor, "The Flintstones" held the record as the longest-running prime time animated series.

John Stephenson, 87, who carries an undeniably familiar Hanna Barbera intonation in his speaking voice, is one of the last surviving cast members of the iconic show. Most notably, Stephenson portrayed Fred's bombastic boss at the rock quarry, Mr. Slate, among multitudes of Bedrock citizenry throughout the program's original six-year run.

"I think the show was successful because it was an adult cartoon and viewers associated it with 'The Honeymooners,' " he says. "And with the Stone Age setting and some very good writing, audiences loved it. They still do."

Created by animation legends William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, "The Flintstones" (titled "The Flagstones" in early development) became the flagship property for the cartoon factory the duo created for television production. After producing an Academy Award-winning slew of Tom and Jerry cartoons at MGM, Hanna and Barbera formed their own company and created such animated characters as Emmy winner Huckleberry Hound, Quick Draw McGraw and Ruff and Reddy. This time, however, they audaciously decided to redirect their efforts, wipe the slate clean, and twist their usual format: Their new TV series would extend the animation to a half hour and gamble on prime-time audiences. That was unheard of in 1960.

In the process, Hanna-Barbera reinvented the animation business, introducing a more efficient and economically feasible "limited animation" procedure that proved popular both with the network and with audiences. While many animation studios were closing in Hollywood, Hanna and Barbera were just opening their doors and enticing a pool of veterans to join them in their plunge. Some of animation's greatest talents helped polish these precious 'stones.' With caveman characters designed by artist Ed Benedict and a talented team of animators, the unique cartoon took off, and fast. "The Flintstones" ignited a following with loyal audiences young and old, setting off a groundbreaking cascade that eventually paved the way for more prime-time favorites such as "The Jetsons," "Top Cat," and such current mega-hits as "The Simpsons" and "Family Guy."

Stephenson credits Barbera's talent for directing the cast as a key to the show's charm, at least vocally. During those smoke-filled studio recording sessions (the show was sponsored by Winston cigarettes for a while), it was not uncommon to hear Barbera barking over the speaker, "I paid a lot of money for this script, so I want to hear the lines!"

The verbal gymnastics were always bold and lively. "Very seldom did he want anyone to talk in a moderate tone or conversational tone," Stephenson explains. "He wanted it up there, right in your face, punctuated, laid out and hit!"

Over decades, "The Flintstones" spawned many reincarnations, including several new series attempts (even a proposed series titled "The Blackstones") and in the 1990s Fred and Wilma became movie stars with a pair of live-action feature films for Universal Studios.

One spinoff in 1979 was a short-lived segment of "The New Fred and Barney Show" on NBC called "The Frankenstones," which mixed "The Flintstones" talent with a touch of "The Munsters." Paul Reubens, just getting started in his television career, provided a voice on the show.

"I'm a big fan of 'The Flintstones,' so when I worked on 'The Frankenstones,' it was really exciting," he recalls. "The whole idea of going to a recording studio with Fred and Wilma Flintstone was unbelievable and a little intimidating. I worked with Mel Blanc and that was unforgettable. The first time I went in there, it was so amazing to hear those famous voices come out of real people's mouths; and these grown people were taking their work so seriously. It amazed me and I couldn't' wait to go to work."

The classic series, for now, is at home on Cartoon Network's Boomerang channel and it continues to be a viable worldwide franchise for Warner Bros. Animation, the characters' current owner. Just look on any grocer's store shelves and you'll see "yabba-dabba-delicious" Fruity Pebbles cereal and other sugary flavors plus colorful Flintstones vitamins within reach for all the kiddies.

Marking the show's golden anniversary, Boomerang will air the first episode of "The Flintstones" on Sept. 30 at 8:30 p.m., 50 years exactly to the date and hour of its premiere. A 24-hour marathon of classic episodes will air on Boomerang beginning Oct. 2 at 6 a.m.

Arguably, "The Flintstones" was the best thing created by cartoon moguls Hanna and Barbera. The show may be five decades older, but fans of classic TV will attest: It's still a gem.


Copyright © 2010, Los Angeles Times

Favorite Reality Shows of All-Time*

*Using the time frame of "All-Time" to classify reality shows is stretching it a little bit. After all, for the most part reality television has only been with us for about a decade. There were a few trailblazers like "Cops" and "The Real World", but it all really started with Survivor. Remember the first time you heard about Survivor and you were like, "They're really going to drop people on a deserted island for a game show?" We all went crazy for it and television has really never been the same since.

Overall, I'm not really a reality show junkie. As we all know, most of them are horrible and even I...the master of crap...feel like I'm wasting my time watching the majority of them. The competition shows just get to be exhausting and the "following people around" sub-genre usually feels like they're just grabbing at straws. But every show has it's fans. Here's 10 Reality Shows that I've loved or at least fondly remember:

Animal Precinct (2001-2008; Animal Planet) I loves me some Animal Precinct! It was like Cops but with dogs and cats instead of guns and drugs...but there were still alot of dirtbags in white tank top t-shirts. Cameras followed the ASPCA of New York City and followed up on calls of animal neglect or abuse and other illegal animal activities. There was always just some really bizarre things going on. Actor Michael Madsen was the series narrator and managed to work the word "emaciated" into every single episode. It was really a highlight of the whole show. Animal Precinct was the first show I ever set a Season Pass for on TiVo. Ah, the memories!


Girls Next Door (2005-present; E!) Oddly enough, I discovered this favorite show of mine while wrapping Christmas presents in the middle of the night one year. I've mentioned my love for this show before. The original run of the show followed Holly, Bridget and Kendra and their lives as Hugh Hefner's girlfriends and residences of the Playboy Mansion. While this show does obviously have it's sexy and risque moments, it's all actually quite tame and the reason I love it is for the look inside the incredibly fascinating Playboy Mansion and how it's run, and the whole show is just so plain goofy. Cartoon sound effects, silly story-lines and very clever editing make this one of my favorite shows on TV right now. Unfortunately last year, the girls all split from Hef and the show was revamped with three new girls who only lasted one season. The new girls were ok, but just didn't have the personalities of the original three. It appears they are tinkering with the show again and adding new girls. I've seen the pilot and didn't care for it, but I'll wait to see more before I pass final judgement. The girls are all still alive and kicking in reality world. All three of them have had their own spin-off series. Kendra, Holly's World, and Bridget's Sexy Beaches.

Mall Cops: Mall of America (debuted this year; TLC) I love COPS, I love malls, and I'm totally fascinated with the idea of an amusement park inside a mall, so I was all on board for Mall Cops, which basically transplants the popular COPS format into a big ol' mall. Much like Girls Next Door, it's also interesting to see the behind the scenes inner-workings of a huge operation like Minnesota's Mall of America. I don't think I'll make it out to MoA anytime soon, but watching two security officers escort a drunk guy out of a mall makes for a pretty entertaining evening of television.

My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiance (2004; Fox) This isn't necessarily a show I fondly remember and would love to see again, it just stands out as one of the most insane, yet entertaining ideas of a reality show yet. If I recall correctly, this high-class girl from a snobby family had to convince her family that she had fallen in love with some big goofy oaf and that they were getting married in a short period of time. All she had to do, was get all of her family members to show up at the wedding and she would collect some crazy prize like a half a million dollars. Here's the old FOX-style catch - the Fiance, was actually an actor on the shows payroll and it was his job to constantly mess things up without the chick knowing he wasn't also in this for the money. I think they even had actors playing his family. It was a pretty elaborate set-up that of course ended with lots of screaming and crying and a big oversized check for half a million dollars payable only at the Bank of Self-Degrading.

My Fair Brady (2005-2008; VH1) Here's the thing, I'm not a huge fan of the original Brady Bunch show but I absolutely adore all the spin-offs. This latest cash-grab on the good Brady family name, has Christopher Knight (Peter Brady) and Adrianne Curry (who won the first season of America's Next Top Model) who met on another reality show The Surreal Life. The two of them hit it off so well, that they decide to start a relationship, move in together and invite the VH1 camera crew to film their every move. Of course with Knight being a Brady, this led to plenty of opportunities for other Brady's to show up from time to time. Seriously folks, when you got Greg Brady dropping by, a good time is bound to be had by all!

Shipmates (2001-2003; syndicated) My wife and I used to love us some Shipmates! Chris Hardwick hosted this dating show where a couple was set up on a blind date on a cruise ship for three days. It's one thing to be set up on a blind date, but then to be stuck with the person for three days with no escape - good times! Locally, this came on at 2:00am, which shows you how good the show was. I wish I was kidding when I tell you that back in those pre-TiVo and pre-kid times, the Mrs. and I would set the alarm and get up and watch the show in the middle of the night. Those were the good ol' days. Nowadays I'm not likely to get out of bed at 2 in the morning unless there's a fire...and it would have to be a really, really big fire!

The Simple Life (2003-2007; Fox then E!) Paris Hilton (then a nobody) and her BFF Nicole Ritchie (still a nobody) were two spoiled daughters of rich people who were dropped in the middle of Arkansas and expected to go get jobs and live without all the luxuries they are accustomed to. The great thing about this show was how incredibly not "realistic" it was. It was obvious that the situations were planned and that producers told Paris and Nicole to do certain things and act a certain way. Still, it made for great television and was actually a hit the first season. After two more equally entertaining, but less popular seasons the show was cancelled by Fox and then picked up by E! who produced two more seasons which were pretty bad. For my money,the first three seasons of The Simple Life is some of my favorite television of that last decade.

Sunset Tan (2007-2008; E!) One 4th of July back in 2007, both my kids took a monster nap all day long and I laid on the sofa and watched a marathon of this reality show about a tanning salon chain in Los Angeles and found it to be one of the most engrossing things I had watched in a long time. There was alot of drama in this well produced reality show as well as alot of good characters. I followed the show weekly though it's second season and then it just kind of faded off into the sunset, forgotten by E! Oh, the memories of spray tan and tanning beds.

My Super Sweet 16 (2005-present; MTV) When you've got a theme song performed by Hillary Duff you're doing something right, eh!? This rockin' little MTV program shows spoiled teenagers throwing giant parties in honor of themselves. These parties are so way over the top idiotic but it's kind of interesting to see just how rich people (in this case, WAY-too rich people) live their lives and throw around their money. It's a totally stupid show that is completely engrossing and will suck 30 minutes out of your life before you even know it!

Wife Swap (2004-2009; ABC) Seriously folks, I could watch Wife Swap all day long and not get tired of it! And thanks to Lifetime Television, I'll have the chance to do that for the next 4 or 5 years! On Wife Swap, two moms trade places for a week to see what it's like to live in someone else's shoes. Shortly after the show got off the ground, the producers started matching families up with extreme views on one subject or another. So, it wasn't just enough that the animal activist mom went and lived with another family, it had to be with a family of hunters. Competitive sports-minded moms switched places with moms who didn't let their kids play sports. It got to the point where they would even find circus families and swap moms with a family who had a fear of clowns. (I'm not even making that up!) Even though the casting got a little silly, it's some good TV. For the first few days, the moms have to live by the new families rules and then later the moms make new rules that the family has to obey. This always makes for some tension between the new mom and either the husband or the kids. Sometimes they all hate the new mom and then she usually ends up crying and whispering to the camera in the final act of the show. Great show, it way-outlasted FOX's copycat version Trading Spouses. (Which was also good!)

OK...you've read this far...now, tell us your favorite Reality Shows of All Time....

Good Ol' Fashioned Peanuts Special on TV Tonight

With all this talk of Snoopy and the Peanuts gang here this week, we thought we would be remiss if we didn't mention the airing of an actual animated prime-time special tonight! Remember how exciting it used to be when there was a cartoon on at night? Tonight at 8:00 EST, ABC is airing Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown - a 2003 outing for the Peanuts gang. Produced after Charles Schultz' death, the storyline for this special is actually taken from a series of comic strips from 1967 and 1988.

Here's another dorky fact straight from Wikipedia: "Of note is the fact that Peppermint Patty refers to Snoopy as "the little kid with the big nose," which is in line with the content of Peanuts in 1967 when the original strips were drawn. In the actual strip, Peppermint Patty did not learn Snoopy was a dog until 1974 and never referred to him as a "kid with the big nose" afterwards."

The excellent DVD release of this show also features 1966's Charlie Brown's All Stars, which is one of my very favorite specials and I'll be happy to recite most of it word for word...if you like. And it also has It's Spring Training, Charlie Brown from 1992 which never aired on television. The DVD is out of print, but not hard to find...or you can just watch Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown tonight on ABC!