The lookback: Kids Programs: NBC Saturday Mornings II

The Flashback  NBC  Children'sTV 

     When you have a one, you must have  two it's like a law of physics or something. So, Once again we look at NBC's Saturday Morning Children's  TV offerings from before , we talked about TNBC. So come with us as we take a journey back in time. ( No peanuts included, budget problems)

    1. The Addams Family (Not that one , or that one , unless you are thinking of this one)
        Our story starts with Scooby-Doo , the series "The New Scooby  Doo Movies" had an episode where they meet the Addams Family.  We get to see the Addams Family in color , and Hanna Barbera  animated style.   Someone obliviously liked it  so in 1973 NBC  had an animated version.  The series was much like the  60's live-action show with  characters  but instead of being in their mansion they were on the road. (In the 70's everyone was on the Road living in RV's  .... this is a lie)     It was kind of like the Addams Family on tour or something , one episode they would be in Nashville  another one they would be in New Orleans.   As fun as the show sounds it lasted more the average one season with 16 episodes.
   
    In Hannah and Barbera's world  bears  beg for food  instead of being bears

2.  Star  Trek : The Animated Series
     Something that always comes up is ... yes they made another animated version of a live-action show  this time  Star Trek.    Start Trek was a very popular series ,even in repeats (it ended in 1969, we are talking 1973 here) this was  a continuation of the live-action series  but in animated form.  (Makes sense) Filmation helped produce the series along with Paramount.  The Original idea was Filmation wanted to make a series as Star Trek but with kids  ( kind of like doing  , Golden Girls but with kids ) but that didn't happen.   It  had most of the original cast do voices ,except   Being animated it could more than  live-action , such has more real looking aliens (whatever that means)   and vivid pictures (when there weren't budget troubles).
 It ran  2 Seasons and 22 half hour episodes from 1973-1974.
 
   hmmm.... no comment....  just   Star Trek :The Animated Series/ CBS

3. Kissyfur
     A Father and Son bear who were in the circus  and one day the leave that life (stay with us please , stay with us ) anyway the end up in a swap (where bears do well)  and protect the inhabitants from two Alligators (messing up the food chain ,eh?) .
    This series was made by Dic , NBC productions , and Saban   and created by  created by Phil Mendez  (yes, the Charlie Brown specials guy) and ran on NBC from  1986 to 1990 , though only had 26 episodes  and two seasons.



 Kissyfur  yep .... NBC/Dic/Saban

4. Gravedale High
       The timing and network makes it sound like  a TNBC show , but this is an animated series from our old friends at Hanna and Barbera.  It was a show for Rick Moranis (you may remember from such films as,  Spaceballs , Brewster's Millions, Ghostbusters, and more) , he voiced a teacher named Max  Schneider, who takes a job at a high school for Monsters (though , isn't that most High Schools... teenagers!!!!)  mostly versions of Universal monsters.  So he's a human teacher who is there to teach monsters that are hard to teach (no other Monsters want to teach them, wait what?). We have characters like  a vampire named  Vinnie Stoker, who apparently can go out in daylight and watched to much "Happy Days" Frankentyke  , a Frankenstein's monster  who apparently ate Shaggy Rogers or 90's Bart Simpson. (Man) .   Apparently someone on this show watched too much "Happy Days" Reggie Moonshroud was  a  red haired geek ( have to have one )  , who is friends with the Fonz like kid.  Cleofatra  (voiced by Ricki Lake!!!! , but really Cleo FAT ra , why?) . who is a mummy.

  Ok then .... you want to me say something snide don't you    // HB and NBC

Any way , it ran one season  in 1990 with 13 episodes.

more after the Jump

It's a Charlie Brown look back : It Was My Best Birthday Ever, Charlie Brown

 The Flashback 

     Last month, we started a feature in a feature of  The Lookback , where we in 65th anniversary year of the "Peanuts" coming out and a new movie coming out this year, we take a lookback at Peanuts TV specials.    The One criteria was that it's a look back of specials   that aren't holiday based ones ( we made this hard on our selves for October-December).  This month we take a look at  "It's Luck of the Irish  , Charlie Brown" not really I was kidding , that's not real special.( Not yet )   It's the "It was My Best Birthday Ever, Charlie Brown"

Warning there are some spoilers.

      Take a look back at last month's piece  : It's A Charlie Brown lookback : It's Magic Charlie Brown 
 
    This special was direct to VHS (it was 1997, VHS was cool)  , and one of the last ones to run during Schultz's lifetime.
   This special is about Linus , he does a lot of roller skating  which leads him to girl ( of course )  named Mimi.

                                                         

                                         Hey  Linus you have something on your face , Linus! Linus! / copyright  Peanuts 

         It happens  that Mimi is visiting for a birthday party, she loves Birthday parties.  so conveniently his birthday is  in a couple days  (Hmmm Linus)   so he invites her. The special continues where  Linus hears her amazing singing in his head  for awhile. (He's high on love , or the inspiration for the Kylie Minogue song)

                                                             

                                                   see high on love  / copyright Peanuts
 On the day of the party  Linus waits for his new love to come to his party. (It's the great Mimi, Charlie Brown)  Everyone sings happy Birthday to  Linus (royalty free?)  and guess what ?  Mimi comes she was in the back of a car.  (apparently her family likes old cars ,or the peanuts takes place in 1932)  He's happy  and has a great party.

   That's  the special , you know it's  very simple in plot  line  not  alot going on  but yet a special that will give you a little laugh and  a happy feeling after watching it. (We got high on love too?)  It's not a bad one you should take a look at .  You may notice it looks different , that's because it was the first digital ink special,  Tune in next month ( how do you tune into a blog?) for more.

Fox Announces Summer TV premiere dates

FOX Summer TV 

     Fox has announced their summer TV premiere dates including the return of "Are You smarter than a Fifth grader?".

Here's a look via press release

FOX is announcing summer premiere dates for the returns of MASTERCHEF, ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A 5^TH GRADER? and the Season 12 premiere of SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE; as well as the series premiere date for new series BOOM!. Host and award-winning chef Gordon Ramsay and acclaimed chef Graham Elliot welcome judge Christina Tosi, renowned pastry chef, owner and founder of New York City’s Milk Bar, to Season Six of MASTERCHEF, when it premieres with a special two-hour event Wednesday, May 20 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT). The culinary smash hit moves into its regular time period the following week on Wednesday, May 27 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT). The three celebrated food experts will put the latest group of contestants through a series of challenging elimination rounds, in order to turn one home cook into a culinary master. Popular quiz show ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A 5^th GRADER? returns for a brand-new season, beginning Tuesday, May 26 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. Unlike the typical game show that measures intelligence, this show tests adults’ lack of knowledge – as revealed by how much they’ve forgotten since their grammar school days, proving that older doesn’t always mean wiser. Executive-produced by Mark Burnett, and featuring returning host Jeff Foxworthy, as well as a top-notch group of grade schoolers to assist the adult contestants, ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A 5^th GRADER? will include new twists and fun elements for a new generation of viewers. SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE enters its 12^th season on a new night and with a new twist: the series will showcase America’s most talented dancers from the stage and the street, beginning with the audition rounds on Monday, June 1 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT). Hosted by Cat Deeley, and featuring returning judge Nigel Lythgoe and new judges Paula Abdul and Jason Derulo, the new season of the Emmy Award-nominated hit dance competition series once again will include awe-inspiring performances, as well as nail-biting eliminations, as the contestants compete to be named America’s Favorite Dancer.   -more- FOX SUMMER 2015 PREMIERES – Page 2 Combining high drama and high stakes with high comedy in a fun-filled, trivia-charged, slime-soaked, entertainment explosion, new quiz show BOOM!, hosted by comedian Tom Papa (“The Marriage Ref”), premieres Thursday, June 25 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT). From Keshet DCP, BOOM! is a general knowledge quiz show that challenges teams of three players to defuse a series of ticking slime-bombs, by dramatically cutting the wires relating to the correct answers and leaving the wrong answers untouched. Get it right – and the players win big money. Get it wrong or run out of time – and, after a tense countdown, the players – and portions of the audience – are showered with anything from “guacamole” to “mashed potatoes,” forcing the players out of the game.   As previously announced, Thursday, May 14 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) marks Fox Broadcasting Company (FOX) and Fox International Channels’ global premiere of the 10-episode, intense psychological thriller WAYWARD PINES. The highly anticipated event series, based on Blake Crouch's international best-selling series of books and adapted for television by Chad Hodge (“Runaway,” “The Playboy Club”), is brought to life by suspenseful storyteller M. Night Shyamalan (“The Sixth Sense,” “Signs”), and executive-produced by Shyamalan, Donald De Line, Hodge and Ashwin Rajan. The event series stars Academy Award nominee Matt Dillon (“Crash”) as a Secret Service agent on a mission to find two missing federal agents, whose investigation only turns up more questions. Debuting simultaneously in more than 125 countries, it will be the world's largest day-and-date launch for a scripted series ever. FOX finales include: BACKSTROM (Thursday, April 30; 9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT),  GOTHAM (Monday, May 4; 8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT), NEW GIRL (Tuesday, May 5; 9:00-9:30 PM ET/PT), WEIRD LONERS (Tuesday, May 5; 9:30-10:00 PM ET/PT), AMERICAN IDOL XIV (Tuesday, May 12; 9:00-10:00 ET live/PT tape-delayed, and Wednesday, May 13; 8:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed), THE SIMPSONS (Sunday, May 17; 8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT), BROOKLYN NINE-NINE (Sunday, May 17; 8:30-9:00 PM ET/PT), FAMILY GUY (Sunday, May 17; 9:00-9:30 PM ET/PT), THE FOLLOWING (Monday, May 18; 8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT), BONES (Thursday, June 4; 8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT) and HELL’S KITCHEN (Tuesday, June 9; 9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT). Additional finale dates, summer premiere dates and schedule information to be announced.  RECAP – FOX 2015 SUMMER PREMIERE DATES(All times ET/PT, except as noted) Thursday, May 14:                 9:00-10:00 PM                        WAYWARD PINES (Global Premiere) Wednesday, May 20:             8:00-10:00 PM                        MASTERCHEF (Two-Hour Season Premiere) Tuesday, May 26:8:00-9:00 PM                          ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A 5^TH GRADER? (Series Return)   9:00-10:00 PM                        HELL’S KITCHEN (Time Period Premiere)   -more-    FOX SUMMER 2015 PREMIERES – Page 3 Monday, June 1:8:00-10:00 PM                        SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE (Season Premiere) Thursday, June 25:                

8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT               BOOM! (Series Premiere)

NBC announces summer TV dates

NBC   Summer TV 
                           

                 It's March and people are thinking spring ,but NBC announced it's Summer premiere dates.  Summer includes  the return of  "America's Got Talent"  and "Hannibal".
  From Press release

NBC ANNOUNCES SUMMER TENTPOLE PREMIERE DATES, LED BY THE MOST-WATCHED SUMMER SHOW OF THE LAST NINE YEARS, ‘AMERICA’S GOT TALENT’

“American Ninja Warrior” (May 25), “AGT” (May 26), David Duchovny’s 1960s Drama “Aquarius” (May 28) and Critically Beloved “Hannibal” (June 4) All Receive Their Launch Dates
UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. — March 6, 2015 — NBC has announced premiere dates for its summer tentpole programming, including the #1 most-watched summer show of the past nine years, “America’s Got Talent.”“AMERICAN NINJA WARRIOR” – Monday, May 25, 8-10 p.m.The action-packed series follows competitors as they tackle a series of challenging obstacle courses in both qualifying and finals rounds across the country. Those that successfully complete a course in their designated region move on to the national finals round in Las Vegas, where they face a stunning four-stage course modeled after the famed Mt. Midoriyama in Japan. Matt Iseman serves as host, along with former NFL player Akbar Gbaja Biamila (NFL Network).“American Ninja Warrior” delivered a 2.0 rating, 6 share in adults 18-49 and 5.9 million viewers overall last summer and was up versus the prior summer by +11% in 18-49 rating (2.0 vs. 1.8) and up +7% in total viewers (5.9 million vs. 5.6 million). The Sept. 9, 2014 season finale improved versus the year-earlier finale by +20% in adults 18-49 (1.8 vs. 1.5) and +31% in total viewers (5.3 million vs. 4.0 million).“AMERICA’S GOT TALENT” — Tuesday, May 26, 8-10 p.m.NBC’s top-rated summer series “America’s Got Talent” celebrates its landmark 10th season with the hottest performers from across the country competing for America’s vote. Howard Stern, Heidi Klum, Mel B and Howie Mandel return as judges and Nick Cannon returns as host.With the talent search open to acts of all ages, “America’s Got Talent” has brought the variety format back to the forefront of American culture by showcasing unique performers from across the country. The series is a true celebration of the American spirit, featuring a colorful array of singers, dancers, comedians, contortionists, impressionists, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists and hopeful stars, all vying for their chance to win America’s hearts and the $1 million prize.Last year, for the first time in the show’s history, America chose a magician as their winner: Rhode Island native Mat Franco, who went on to headline the “America’s Got Talent Live” stage show in Las Vegas.“America’s Got Talent” last summer averaged a 2.7 rating, 9 share in adults 18-49 with its Tuesday and Wednesday editions and 11.6 million viewers overall, according to “live plus seven day” results from Nielsen Media Research. The Wednesday and Tuesday telecasts finished #1 and 2 among summer shows in total viewers, marking the ninth time in nine years “Talent” has ranked #1 among summer series in total viewers.“AQUARIUS” — Thursday, May 28, 9-11 p.m.; beginning Thursday, June 4 at 9-10 p.m.It’s 1967 and the era of free love, drug experimentation and Vietnam is in full effect. When Emma (Emma Dumont, “Salvation”), the teenage daughter of a respected lawyer, goes missing, LAPD Sgt. Sam Hodiak (David Duchovny, “Californication,” “The X-Files”) starts asking around. He soon discovers that the hippie kids he’s questioning don’t take kindly to cops, especially a cop with hair as short as his.Needing the help of someone to trust, he partners with young undercover cop Brian Shafe (Grey Damon, “Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters,” “Friday Night Lights”), a law-abiding officer who struggles with his own demons. He also begins to rely on Charmain Tully (Claire Holt, “Vampire Diaries,”  “Pretty Little Liars”), an ambitious rookie cop who’s anxious to prove herself in a male-dominated profession.It’s not long before they stumble upon a small-time cult leader seeking out vulnerable women to join his cause. From there, they follow this man’s trail down a rabbit hole of drugs, sex, murder and a cultural revolution. Little could they know, however, the guy they’re hunting will eventually become the killer we now recognize as Charles Manson (Gethin Anthony, “Game of Thrones”) — a lost soul who desperately wanted to get into the music scene of the ’60s until something snapped.“Aquarius” will explore the cat-and-mouse game between Manson and the police in those turbulent years leading up to the infamous Tate-LaBianca murders.“HANNIBAL” — Thursday, June 4, 10-11 p.m.The dark and haunting series “Hannibal” returns for a third season, revealing the fates of characters hanging in the balance, and their continuing psychological cat-and-mouse games. After the shocking events of the season finale, Hannibal (Mads Mikkelsen, “Casino Royale”) is on the run in Europe — accompanied by his psychiatrist Bedelia Du Maurier (Gillian Anderson, “The X-Files”) — sporting a new identity, but servicing the same insatiable appetite. As the lives of Will (Hugh Dancy), Jack (Laurence Fishburne, “The Matrix,” “CSI”) and Alana (Caroline Dhavernas, “Wonderfalls,” “The Pacific”) converge toward Hannibal again, their deadly dance turns in startling and unexpected ways, and nothing will ever be the same again.

Source :http://www.nbcumv.com/news/nbc-announces-summer-tentpole-premiere-dates-led-most-watched-summer-show-last-nine-years-?division=1&network=33129

 

The Lookback : Soaps: All to do with Another World

The Flashback  Soaps NBC 

      We now return to our lookback  at Soap Operas from the past , this time :  NBC's   hit soap "Another World".   The idea  for "Another World" was  a spin off for "As the World Turns" (get it? , Another World  from As the World Turns)  but CBS didn't  have room  for the series  and they didn't like an idea of  a spin off being on another Network.   Irna Phillips decided to pitch the soap to NBC  but not as a spin off.
       The soap did things that were considered controversial  a plotline with a teenager having an (at the time) illegal abortion. It also  ,after year  lessened the focus on one family   later on Agnes Nixon became the head writer of the series  and it found a footing and audience. By the 1970's   Nixon left to create   One life to Live .  In 1970 it also gained a  spinoff , Somerset, we will talk about that soon.   The series was doing well so they decided why not expand the show to 90 minutes  ( way longer  considering many soaps at the time were 30 Minutes and some were expanding to an hour ) in 1979. The 90 minute period started with the death of the Character  , John. Randolph.  The 90 minutes idea didn't catch on too much with the viewers so after  a few months it was cut back down to 60.


   Brought you by Dawn , because  it's soapy get it?

  In the 1980's  a new family became prominent in the series , the Love Family, this made the writing out of the Matthews family happen.   The series still focused on romance.    It was the first Soap to have an AIDS storyline in 1987.   By the 1990's ,as the many of our story of series from the past , the kind of end up at a point where ratings go down.     Jill Farren Phelps became head writer for the soap in 1995 , she decided to put the show in a youthful direction. Some plot lines during this time included Rachel Cory Hutchins  had a evil look alike named   Justine , who apparently was invincible  to being hit by a train.  Ratings going down also caused budget cuts and  a serial killer plot (because serial killers make things cheaper) . Also some of the believe ability  for people started going down ( I hope it was with the woman and the train)  and so did ratings. In 1999 Another World was canceled due to low ratings and also because NBC wanted to make a new soap and had no room so Passions was in and Another World was out.   The Final episode  aired June 25, 1999.
   Another thing.... some characters after the show ended , went to As the World Turns . Fitting, considering the original intent of the show.

Now let's talk about ... the spin offs. {Inset soap opera music here]
     As stated above "Another World" was originally going to be a spin off  "As the World Turns" but that didn't happen. "Another World" itself did have  spin offs.  
   The first one was "Somerset" it premiered on March 30, 1970 on NBC  it focused on Palmer Matthews, Lahoma Vane Lucas , and Sam Lucas  as they moved to Somerset , a fictional suburb of Detroit.  When the  series changed head writers it decided to have crime stories as a focus, which was a way to make it NBC's version of "The Edge of Night", but that didn't help it and Somerset ended December 31,1976 after it didn't gain big traction.

Another Spin off that was launched , this time in 1980 was called "Texas"  the series focused on daily lives of Wheelers , Bellmans ,and the Marshalls.   It was not originally going to be a spin off but due to the Primetime show "Dallas" doing great for CBS, NBC wanted some of that  fun. ( Calling the show Houston would be too obvious)   So they had a character from Another World ,   Iris Cory Bancroft  (played by  Beverlee McKinsey)  "move" to Houston.  They also to get more viewers they had more characters from the parent soap  come to "Texas".  McKinsey left the series in 1981 and they changed focus to the background characters.  The series  did very well in Canada but on this side it was never was that Big  and it ended on New Years Eve 1982.


   Texas  ..... was  a soap

  That's our look as the Another World   now watch this post get hit by a train and live.