Classic TV / TVparty!

New in the TVparty Classic TV Blog!
Recent articles about the possibility of foreign terrorists taking out the internet with worms and viruses reminded me of a time on November 22nd 1987 when a couple of guys, one wearing a Max Headroom Mask, took over the television airwaves in Chicago, disabling two different stations in order to broadcast their own twisted idea of entertainment.

Dick Kallman as Hank
"Dick was stabbed to death in 1980 during a 'drug induced' robbery - while most of the articles mention he was murdered in his apartment, it is my belief that he was abducted by someone on drugs looking for money and forced him back to the apartment... clearly it was a robbery and a very violent one. I never sat foot in our apartment again. I left everything I owned in it to be sold. I could not bare to see it ripped and stained with Dick's blood."
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Las Vegas Legends: Greatest Stars of the Vegas Strip!

Liberace!
Who can explain the phenomenon that was Liberace? He sold millions of albums, was loved here and abroad... and he became a glittering Las Vegas icon. He had a way with the piano that few before or since have mastered, whether it was playing the classics or contemporary works. The music he created was stunningly gorgeous. Liberace was a frequent guest on TV variety shows and had his own TV series and yearly specials.
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The Star Wars Holiday Special?!?
The London Sunday Times called this article a "must read." George Lucas would like to forget about the first time he brought Star Wars to television. The occasion was something called The Star Wars Holiday Special, which aired on CBS only once, on Nov. 17, 1978. Although CBS hailed it as a two-hour "visual and audio delight," the made-for-TV mess was anything but.
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Short History of the Thanksgiving Day Parades Tradition
Thursday, November 28, 2017 marks the 58th anniversary of the CBS All-American Thanksgiving Day Parade Jubilees. On that date more than half a century ago the network and producer Mike Gargugilo broadcast four different parades from four different locales: The Gimbel's Thanksgiving Day Parade from Philadelphia; The J. L. Hudson Parade from Detroit; The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade from NYC; and The Eaton's Santa Claus Parade from Toronto, Canada. (Eaton's Parade was always pre-taped in advance for later broadcast).
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The Supremes - Without Diana
In 1966 and 1967 The Supremes were on the top of the bill at the Flamingo in Las Vegas. In January of 1970 they gave their final performance at the Frontier Hotel, after that Diana Ross embarked on a solo career and was quickly signed to play Las Vegas with her name on the marquee.
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Judy Garland's Rollercoaster Ride
She was bred to be an entertainer; like Tarzan raised by the Great Apes, hers was an almost impossibly insular existence. Frances Gumm, rechristened Judy Garland, was a wholly manufactured product of a stage mother that pushed her relentlessly and a movie studio that programmed her, sheltered her from reality, then coldly spat her out into a world she knew little about.
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Bizarre Life & Death of Joe E. Ross
Car 54 was dropped after two terms and a few years later Joe E. Ross landed the show I first saw him on, It's About Time, which I loved as a 9 year old. The kooky combo of Joe E. Ross and Imogene Coca was hard to resist. Again his co-workers complained about his loutish behavior and that one season wonder was the comedian's last primetime series.
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Gene Roddenberry After Star Trek
Entitled to half the profits from Star Trek, this amounted to very little in the early-'70s before the show had yet to fully catch on in syndication. Roddenberry confessed to an interviewer, "For a couple of years our only income was lecture fees I got from colleges where kids still loved Star Trek, even though it was not a commercial success." But soon there were new concepts and attempts to get another sci-fi series off the ground.
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What Happened to What's Happening!!?
"Haywood was a really good kid and Ernest was an excellent actor. Fred Berry was the one to look out for. He could be trouble. He received many of the show's big laughs. Unfortunately, he later had some personal problems that carried over onto the set. After I had left the show, there was a big contract dispute and I was told that Fred was the instigator behind the trouble that followed. He convinced Ernest and Haywood to join him in a strike for more money. Eventually, the producers simply had enough of the boys' antics and they closed the series down."
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Joe Kubert's late-1960s Comic Book Covers
In the 1940s Joe Kubert was known for illustrating the costumed superhero adventures of Hawkman, Johnny Quick, The Justice Society, The Flash and more.
By the mid-sixties Kubert became primarily known as a war comic artist. Here are Kubert's DC superhero covers from 1966-1970. Now that's obscure!
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Great TV Commercials of the Early-1970s
Some of the most memorable commercial jingles and catch phrases of all time! "Does she or doesn't she (only her hairdresser knows for sure)," "You're not getting older, you're getting better," "No cat ever walked away from Friskies Buffet," "Kawasaki lets the good times roll," "I don't use soap anymore," "Who's behind those Foster Grants?" ...and so many more!
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Classic TV Shows on DVD?
An extensive catalogue of every classic program available on DVD! See what's available today - with big discounts for you!

1980's TV Wrestling - Greats and Near Greats!
NOW WITH ADDED RARE VIDEO!
John Hitchcock's look back at the heart of Mid-Atlantic Wrestling - with grapplers known and unknown. Wahoo McDaniel! Ric Flair! Dusty Rhodes! Jim Cornette! Magnum TA! Buddy "Killer" Austin! Johnny Weaver! Johnny Valentine! Harley Race! Dick Murdock! Jimmy Garvin! Nikita Koloff! Have you ever heard of these guys?!?
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1980's PUNK ROCK
In the early-eighties, young people in Los Angeles were flocking to makeshift clubs in droves to see new, up and coming bands. Live new music, not DJs, was what they craved. These writings provide a sketchy look at the underground club scene in Los Angeles during the time that groups like X, Missing Persons, The Go-Go's, The Minutemen and Wall of Voodoo entered the public consciousness.
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