The Platinum Age of Television

National Public Radio's Television critic David Bianculli has written an excellent, expansive book that is very detailed when it comes to looking at the history of Television. The Platinum Age of Television: From I Love Lucy to The Walking Dead, How TV Became Terrific examines all genres of TV, starting in the earliest days of the medium, the late-1940s/early 1950s. This is a long book. The audio version of it is 24 hours in length!

One of the most pivotal and influential shows from the early days of television was NBC's weekly sketch comedy show, Your Show of Shows (1950-54). Like Saturday Night Live, this was a weekly 90 minute comedy show that was broadcast live. Unlike SNL, no prompter of cue cards were there to help the stars to recall their lines. Key players in the show were Sid Caesar, Imogene Coca, Carl Reiner, Howard Morris and more. Writers included Neil Simon and Mel Brooks.

The chapters in the book are broken down by TV genres, such as western, soap operas, miniseries, drama, medical, crime, comedy, and more. There are several chapters looking at different types of situation comedies, such as family comedies (The Cosby Show or Family Ties), work comedies (Cheers or Taxi), family/work comedies or "split-coms" as Bianculli called them (The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Andy Griffith Show), and comedies headed up by unmarried females (Murphy Brown, The Mary Tyler Moore Show).

The book has in-depth profiles of important people in TV such as Carl Reiner, Mel Brooks, Bob Newhart, Norman Lear, Carol Burnett, Louis CK, Larry Wilmore, James L. Brooks, Matt Groening and others.

Bianculli feels that the platinum age of television is from about 1998 until now. There are many more avenues for viewing TV, such as countless cable networks, Netflix, Hulu, You Tube, Amazon video, etc. Many times the best shows are not coming from ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox, but from HBO, FX, IFC, AMC and other fringe networks. Look at the abundance of outstanding TV shows that we have seen over the past 20 years or so: Breaking Bad, The Sopranos, Mad Men, Portlandia, Louie, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Wire and many more. I think that at one point, there was a stigma against working in TV. Film stars looked down on TV stars. But that is not the case anymore. Some of the very best writing, acting and technical feats are coming from the small screen.

I liked how the chapters were organized, by TV genre. One can skip chapters with no loss in continuity. I skipped chapters on westerns and crime dramas since I do not like those type of shows. My only criticism is that there is no chapter looking at the rich history of late night TV, from pioneers like Steve Allen and Ernie Kovacs, to current stars like Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel.

TV History Tuesday: Hail Caesar!

One of the biggest hits in the earliest days of TV was Your Show of Shows. It starred Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca and aired on NBC from 1950-1954. This program was a 90 minute live show with no cue cards and no teleprompter. No improvising was allowed, they stuck to the script. The show had an impressive group of writers including Carl Reiner, Mel Brooks and Neil Simon. Reiner established an impressive career in entertainment, working as a writer/creator/director. He created the Dick Van Dyke show, and he directed many films, including The Jerk with Steve Martin and Oh God with George Burns. In his later shows, Sid Caesar hired more writing all-stars such as Woody Allen and Larry Gelbart (creator of MASH). From 1954-1957, Sid Caesar hosted a TV show called Caesar's Hour. In subsequent years he appeared with many TV legends including Jackie Gleason, Carol Burnett, Steve Allen, Lucille Ball and many others. He died in 2014 at the age of 91. He was truly one of the pioneers of television, and he influenced legions of comics for decades to come.

*Information from imdb.com.

Mike Douglas: Daytime Talk Titan

I recently bought a DVD looking back on the career of Mike Douglas called "Moments and Memories". From 1962-1982 his daytime talk show aired in syndication. In his 90 minute show he had 5,000 programs with 50,000 guests. Like Johnny Carson, he was someone who really listened to his guests and based his questions off the responses of the guests. Too many interviewers are glued to their notes rather than engaging in a conversation. He wanted his guests to shine even though the show bared his name. Stars on the retrospective mentioned how he did not have an ego that was out of control like many TV personalities.

A Navy man during the World War II era, Mike had a big break as a singer in 1945 on a radio show hosted by the singer/film actress Ginny Simms. She sang with Dinah Shore and Ella Fitzgerald and also appeared in a film with Abbott and Costello. Mike joined the Kay Kyser Orchestra as a singer. In 1950, Douglas was the singing voice of Prince Charming in the film "Cinderella". In 1966 he had a top 10 hit with the song "The Man in My Little Girl's Life".

From 1961-1965, his daytime talk show was based out of Cleveland, Ohio. From 1965-1978, the show's home was Philadelphia. For the final 4 years of the show, 1978-1982, the show was based out of Los Angeles. In 1967 the show was syndicated to 171 TV markets and was watched by 6 million viewers. Musical icons such as The Rolling Stones, James Brown, Kiss, Tony Bennett, Mel Torme and more appeared on the show. One unique aspect of the show was the fact that Douglas was joined by a celebrity co-host. Over the years they included stars such as John Lennon, Jackie Gleason, Brooke Shields, Jerry Lewis, Don Rickles, Red Buttons, Billy Crystal and more. Bill Cosby stated that he was "discovered" by Mike Douglas.

Mike Douglas died at age 86 in 2006 in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.

* Some information from en.wikipedia.org.

Like Father Like Son: The Reiners

Last night on PBS, Tavis Smiley's guests were Carl Reiner and Rob Reiner. Both of these men have been immensely successful in show business and it was nice to see their mutual admiration for one another. They pointed out how the Reiner family didn't even own a TV in the early days of Carl Reiner's groundbreaking program, "Your Show of Shows" (1950-1954). The show featured Sid Caesar and it had a star-studded lineup of writers including Neil Simon, Mel Brooks, Woody Allen, Larry Gelbart ("MASH") and more. The show acted as the blueprint for all comedy TV shows that would follow.

Later, Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks teamed up to do their comedy skit "The 2000 Year Old Man" and are close friends still to this day. Carl Reiner would eventually create the iconic show "The Dick Van Dyke Show" (1961-1966). By the way, Johnny Carson was considered for the title role before it was given to Van Dyke. Carl also worked as a film director on such classics as "Oh God" with George Burns and several Steve Martin projects including "The Jerk", "Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid" and "The Man with Two Brains".

Rob Reiner was destined to follow in his dad's footsteps and he had success as an actor and a director. He will always be known for his role as "Meathead" in the classic CBS sitcom "All in the Family" led by the legendary producer Norman Lear. Before that role he had appeared in TV shows such as "That Girl", "Gomer Pyle USMC" and "The Beverly Hillbillies". On the Tavis Smiley interview program, the elder Reiner spoke of his admiration for his son's work, from his TV roles to his film directing jobs on such works as "The Princess Bride" and "This is Spinal Tap". Rob also directed "When Harry Met Sally", "The Bucket List" and "A Few Good Men". The younger Reiner was asked about if it was hard to make it in show biz being the son of a legend. He said it made it easier to get a foot-in-the-door, but once you are in, you better do a good job, or else you will be fired.

*Some information from www.imdb.com.

CBS Television City in 1953

1953 CBS Television City shows, and the studios from which they originated;

ART LINKLETTER'S HOUSE PARTY 41
LIFE WITH FATHER 43
LUX VIDEO THEATER 43
MEET MILLIE 31
MEL ALLEN 31
MY FAVORITE HUSBAND 33
MY FRIEND IRMA 31
PLACE THE FACE 41
RADIO & RECORDS EVENT 31
THAT'S MY BOY 33
THE BOB CROSBY SHOW 33
THE RED SKELTON SHOW 31 (Johnny Carson's big break came on the Red Skelton show. Carson was a writer on the show. Red was injured, and Johnny filled in for him. Red predicted a bright future for the young Carson).

Information from Eyes Of A Generation Facebook page.

History of Late Night TV

With all of the recent changes in late night TV, I decided to find out a bit about the predecessors to today's late night hosts. Different networks have tried to establish late night franchises, and some have had more success than others. I will look at the different personalities which have contributed to the genre. The above pictures show some of the greats in late night TV. From top: the original host of The Tonight Show, Steve Allen. The next picture shows Tom Snyder who hosted The Tomorrow Show and The Late Late Show. The third picture shows Johnny Carson doing his "Carnac" bit. The bottom picture shows from left to right; Jay Leno, Jimmy Kimmel, David Letterman and Conan O'Brien.

The network that has been the most successful in establishing a late night audience has been NBC. Saturday Night Live has aired from 11:30 pm to 1:00 am on NBC since 1975. The Tonight Show is the third longest running TV show in history, only eclipsed by Guiding Light and the Hallmark Hall of Fame. When the show started in 1954 it was 90 minutes in length, airing from 11:30 pm until 1:00 am. Its first host was Steve Allen, and he did the show from 1954 to 1957. His original announcer was Gene Rayburn, who later spent many years hosting The Match Game. Allen was known for his man on the street bits and David Letterman has cited him as an influence. The next host of the show was Jack Paar, from 1957 to 1962. His announcer was Hugh Downs, who later worked for ABC for many years as host of 20/20 with Barbara Walters. In 1960, Paar's show became one of the first programs to air in color. He left the show after becoming frustrated with the network for censoring his material. The next host would change late night TV forever and become one of the most beloved icons in entertainment history. Johnny Carson hosted the show from 1962 to 1992 and he got his start entertaining people as a magician in his home state of Nebraska. In 1970, The Tonight Show moved its operations from New York City to Burbank, California. Johnny's show had announcer/sidekick Ed McMahon as a significant aspect of the show as well as fantastic big band jazz music from trumpeter Doc Severinsen and the Tonight Show Orchestra. When Johnny retired in 1992, Jay Leno took over and hosted until 2009. It has been reported that Carson wanted Letterman to take over but NBC wanted Leno, who was seen as more of a safe bet and he was not known as an edgy, trouble maker like Letterman. Carson wrote some jokes for Letterman, and this was acknowledged by Dave after Carson's death. Letterman sometimes does a "Stump the Band" bit on his show, preceded by music leader Paul Shaffer doing an homage to Carson's Carnac character. To have the right to do these, Letterman must have received clearance from Carson, which is more proof that Carson favored Letterman over Leno. When Jay Leno took over the show he fired Carson's entire staff and did not acknowledge Johnny on his first episode. The animosity between Letterman and Leno exists to this day. In June, 2009, Conan O'Brien took over for Leno as the 5th host of The Tonight Show.

NBC decided they wanted to add another late night show to air after Johnny Carson, so in 1973, Tom Snyder started hosting The Tomorrow Show and this lasted until 1982. From 1982 to 1993, David Letterman took over the 12:35 am time slot with his show Late Night. His band was led by Paul Shaffer, who had previously worked on Saturday Night Live. After being denied the job hosting The Tonight Show, Letterman was fed up with NBC and his show was taken over by Conan O'Brien. Conan was known as a writer, not a performer and he got off to a shaky start. He had been a writer for The Simpsons and Saturday Night Live, and he is a Harvard graduate. Conan hosted the Late Night show from 1993 to 2009, before leaving to host The Tonight Show. Conan's announcer on the 12:35 am show was Joel Goddard. His band on the 12:35 am show and on the 11:35 pm show is led by Bruce Springsteen drummer, Max Weinberg. His sidekick on the 12:35 am show for many years was Andy Richter, who left to pursue TV and film opportunities. He will be back with Conan as sidekick/announcer on the 11:35 pm show. Former Saturday Night Live cast member Jimmy Fallon took over for Conan in 2009.

NBC decided to add another show after the 12:35 am show, when the interview show Later started in 1988. This aired from 1:35 am to 2:05 am and was hosted by Bob Costas until 1994. This was a change of pace for late night TV since this was a show with one guest, no house band, and no studio audience. From 1994 to 1996 it was hosted by Greg Kinnear, who had hosted Talk Soup on the E! network. Kinnear left to focus on his film career and from 1996 to 1998 the show rotated various hosts. Cynthia Garrett hosted from 1998 to 2000. For the next 2 years this time slot was filled with SCTV reruns, a sketch comedy show which featured Martin Short and John Candy. From 2002 to the present, the show in this time slot has been Last Call with Carson Daly, who previously hosted TRL on MTV.

CBS got into the late night talk show game in 1993 when David Letterman left NBC, and his show was called The Late Show with David Letterman. Letterman wanted an 11:35 pm show, and since he did not get The Tonight Show, he figured that at least at CBS he could go head to head with Leno. Many staff memebers have worked with Letterman since the days at NBC, including musicians Paul Shaffer, Sid McGinnis, Will Lee, Anton Fig, stage manager Biff Henderson and producers Maria Pope, Jude Brennan and Barbara Gaines. Letterman's announcer for many years was Bill Wendell and the current announcer is Alan Kalter.

From 1995 to 1999, the 12:35 am slot on CBS was filled by Tom Snyder who hosted The Late Late Show. Former host of Comedy Central's The Daily Show, Craig Kilborn took over for Snyder, and he did the show until 2004. From 2004 to the present the show has been hosted by former cast member from The Drew Carey show, Scottish comedian Craig Ferguson. The show has been produced by Letterman's company, Worldwide Pants, since the beginning. This company also produced the sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond.

ABC has dabbled on an off in late night and from 1967 to 1969 a late night show was hosted by rat pack member Joey Bishop. His sidekick was a then little known Regis Philbin. Nightline has been on ABC for many years at 11:35 pm, but this is a news show, not a typical late night talk show. In 2003 Jimmy Kimmel started hosting his own talk show after Nightline, at 12:05 am and his show has become the longest running ABC late night talk show since Dick Cavett hosted from 1969 to 1975.

In the early days of the Fox network, Joan Rivers had a late night show, but it only lated a year, starting in 1986. The sketch comedy show Mad TV aired on Fox from 1995 to 2009 from 11 pm to 12 am Saturday nights. Former Seinfeld writer Spike Feresten had a show on Fox called Talk Show with Spike Feresten. This aired from 2006 to 2009 on Saturdays. Fox has cancelled Talk Show and Mad TV.

Many other have tried to helm late night talk shows, some more successfully than others. Arsenio Hall had a late night syndicated show from 1989 to 1994. Chevy Chase did not fare as well since his late night outing only lasted 6 weeks in 1993. Wheel of Fortune host Pat Sajak had a show from 1989 to 1990. NBA legend Magic Johnson did not have much luck with his late night show, lasting only 3 months in 1998.

In the fall of 2009, NBC will try a new experiment when they move Jay Leno to have a show from 10 pm to 11 pm weeknights. The struggling network saw it as a way to hang on to Leno, as well as a way to cut costs since the one hour dramas that typically air in the 10 pm hour are expensive to produce. We will have to see how this affects the ratings for NBC affiliates' 11 pm newscasts as well as how many viewers stick around to watch Conan at 11:35 pm.

* Some information from en.wikipedia.org