1973-74 Short-Lived TV Shows

[@patsmith333]

My brother and I liked "The Magician " these brought back fond memories of my teen years. TV shows and culture took a turn in the 80s. We focused and celebrated lifestyles of the rich and powerful in our entertainment and culture.

[@justmeandthethree]

Hey, whatever happened to Bill Bixby? You never see him in anything anymore.

[@jesper856]

Wow...In the 70s I was a fan of the TV guide fall preview and couldnt wait to buy it in septeember to read up all about the new shows but there are some shows that I dont remember at all...I must have blinked. This Channel is great. Thanks for the memories and information.

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

Awesome! Thank you Jesper!

[@steelers6titles]

"Adam's Rib", starring Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn, had been released in 1949; the TV series followed almost twenty-five years later.

[@SMtWalkerS]

My family loved "The Magician". So fun to see these old shows and stars!

[@msr1116]

Bill Bixby declined the role of Don Hollinger on That Girl, which makes me wonder if he ever regretted it. Took him some time to get into a long term series of his own.

[@chaburchak]

I loved the first season, when he had the Jet and the Corvette and could go anywhere. They tried to change it up in the second season by basing him at the Magic Castle and replacing Keene Curtis with the voice of Wendy's, Joe Sirola. Bixby was still good as always, but it just lost that cool Count of Monte Cristo sorta vibe...

[@SMtWalkerS]

@@chaburchak Agree!

[@markstevens9249]

It wasn't cancelled for ratings entirely, Bixby insisted on accuracy in the details and had them hire various real magicians to train him on various tricks, the money going out was not enough to keep a mid-range show.

[@SMtWalkerS]

@@markstevens9249 That's interesting! I didn't know that.

[@bryanpalmer9660]

Remember watching The Magician during the mid 70s and was impressed with the fact thatBill Bixby did the magic tricks himself always felt it should have been more successful 💎 Auckland New Zealand 2024

[@weltonvillegal6258]

Same here. It was a pretty good show.

[@justmeandthethree]

Hey, whatever happened to Bill Bixby?? You never see him in anything anymore.

[@blktauna]

@@justmeandthethree He passed away in 1993

[@justmeandthethree]

@@blktauna I thought he was maybe just lazy.

[@steelers6titles]

The later, more successful "Baretta", with Robert Blake as the fictional Tony Baretta, was modeled on the real-life David Toma.

[@cbalducc]

The series “Toma” was modeled after him.

[@TheBrooklynbodine]

Detective Toma even did guest appearances on his show. He would be undercover; I guess he was a master of disguise.

[@GeminiladyJackson-xq6hc]

Robert Blake got away with killing his wife just like OJ Simpson!

[@anthonybrooks5040]

Thanks sooooo much for posting these! I remember most of these short-lived series and your adding the commercials was the ice cream after dinner! I hadn't thought about the "mother nature" Chiffon ad this century until last week when the jingle entered my mind while sitting in rush hour traffic! Crazy!

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

Glad you like them! Thank you for watching Anthony!

[@Nancy_Schmancy]

Fun video! I remember all the detective shows back then. My parents watched a ton of those. They liked Banacek and bunch of others that were more successful. I liked "The Magician." I have always liked Bill Bixby since "My Favorite Martian." Gosh! I remember "Dirty Sally", too--a spin-off of Gunsmoke. I liked Dack Rambo. It's fun to see lots of familiar faces from so long ago.

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

Thank you for watching Nancy! More to come...

[@Dorthy-wx9fq]

My family watched the magician and we loved it. I wish that it was brought back. Love from Marysville California

[@caroldooley8932]

The series is on DVD I have it. And spent childhood in marysville

[@Dorthy-wx9fq]

@@caroldooley8932 I may look for it at my nearest Walmart. Thank you

[@beverlyledbetter4906]

Was better than the Incredible Hulk. At least Bixby got to keep his dignity!🙄

[@dantyler6907]

Any one of these ild failed shows would blow away ANYTHING on today!!!

[@luisreyes1963]

Even Calucci's Department...? 🤨

[@carlosencarnacion1255]

Diana Rigg was such a classy lady….😍

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

Very! Diana Rigg #1!

[@virginiaconnor8350]

Loved her as Emma Peel and the host of "Masterpiece Theatre", along with her other roles as well.

[@justmeandthethree]

It's hard to believe that all these actors are dead.

[@frankdelorca]

Wow, I really appreciate all of the legwork you do to assemble this information into an intelligible whole! Seems to me that TV Guide (or similar) should look into funding your research. Great job as always!

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

I really appreciate that Frank! Thank you!

[@janetbrown5710]

Keep them coming. With all the short-lived shows in the 90s and 2000s alone, this could turn into a marathon.

[@Randy.E.R]

So that's what happened to Chopper One! I completely forgot about that show until I saw it on here. My sister and I loved that show, then *Poof* it was gone as quick as it started. Looking back, that must have been an expensive program to make. You can't just go whip out a few helicopters and record some stunts whenever you please. I remember a couple of the other shows like the Magician. Bill Bixby made an excellent Magician detective. Like Chopper One, The Magician just vanished (no pun intended) as quick as it started. I also remember Toma, not because I watched it, but my older brother did until it just went away without explanation.

[@brucebezold2714]

One of the cast of chop 33:07 per one went to vietnam was sentance for a crime he didn't comment. Broke out with 3 other soliders and went to help people in trouble.

[@sweepingbeauty1]

I swear, every show in the 70's opening sequence is someone walking through a city, or a car chase.

[@pauladams9287]

Or ice skating mishaps or riding around on a bike. And the cop shows had freeze frames of some over the hill former star running with a gun or sliding across a car hood. And the racial stereotyping was ridiculous

[@anthonythomas6593]

Yeah, black police chiefs are really stereotypical

[@TimothyStclair-v4p]

westerns were has been in the 70s.

[@brucebezold2714]

It's amazing they all didn"t run into each other

[@johnhutchison9782]

Don't forget the brass section playing the theme songs😅

[@shaner743]

Lotsa Luck was repeated on a cable station a number of years back, got a real kick out of it. Just goes to show that just because a series gets cancelled doesn’t mean it wasn’t a good series…

[@johnrunion5357]

i agree. a LOT of these shows had they been given the time to develop an audience probably would have at least become mid-sized hits. i LOVE watching these videos about short lived tv series from my youth, but they also kind of make me sad. i just think about all of the hard work everyone put into them and all their hopes for the shows and then some big wheel tv exec just pulls the plug before the show even has had a chance. you know a lot of the actors were like 'this is it, my big break, now i have a regular gig, i don't have to go back to the unemployment line ever again' etc. and i am sure many of the creatives behind the cameras had the same hopes and dreams.

[@kevinmadden1645]

What it shows is that some programs have a following in some parts of the country but not in other parts. Consequently they should be syndicated and not shown on the networks.

[@dantheman5745]

We loved Lotsa Luck. I must've watched most every episode, because despite having not heard that opening in 50 years, the lyrics all came back to me as it was playing, just locked inside my empty head waiting to be retrieved again.

[@ChrisSmith-lo2kp]

Absolutely love the great Joanna Cassidy in the Smokey the Bear PSA

[@radicalross7700]

An anthropomorphic talking bear able to disguise himself as a human woman? Was Smokey the Bear a shape shifting alien? Or...is Joanna Cassidy?

[@ytjake789]

Right. Joanna was very sexy.

[@JGlaister]

Out of all of these, I only remember watching The Magician and one of my all-time favorite short-lived shows, The Starlost. I remembered the "Smokey" PSA and the Chiffon Margarine ads , too. Great memories.

[@johnfronczek2658]

It’s interesting that of all the 1970’s tv mystery movies series, most people only think about “Columbo”, “Banacek”, “McCloud”, and “McMillan and Wife”. I guess it takes a great character and actor to keep people coming back. Peter Falk, George Peppard, Rock Hudson, and Dennis Weaver really had small screen magnetism.

[@msr1116]

Dennis Weaver was terrific in Spielberg's Duel.

[@PeterBrown-mz4nv]

I think about the Ellery Queen mysteries with Jim Hutton. They were the best.

[@heidivert830]

​

[@steelers6titles]

After The Avengers, Dame Diana Rigg had a U. S. TV sitcom. Other top British stars had brief forays on Yank telly, as well.

[@stirlwm]

That spot ABC had up against The Waltons & Flip Wilson was really the death slot...

[@LittleBlueOwl318]

Sonny and Cher were hard to beat, too

[@sheriheffner2098]

I know why The New Perry Mason didn't last .Nobody would accept anyone but Raymond Burr.

[@waynetompkins3006]

Or anything but the original theme music.

[@tammylewis2408]

They got it right in the 80s and Burr reprised the role until his death.

[@jackv2244]

I totally agree

[@virginiaconnor8350]

Hate recasts anyone anyway.

[@virginiaconnor8350]

Used to have a college biology teacher who'd have us students watch chemistry tapes on these old video recorders. Each one started with "This is your shafted Sanko." RIP, George. You were a riot teacher.

[@Steve_Green]

Excellent compilation. Sometimes, these shows would get cancelled mid-season in the US, but then get a run here in the UK (including the unaired episodes).

[@brucebezold2714]

So the UK getting Americas hand me down

[@steelers6titles]

Lorne Greene had just left the Ponderosa after many years as Ben Cartwright. Obviously, the ratings indicated that viewers didn't take to his new character.

[@mis4nthr0p3]

Never could understand the choice of him as Commander Adama on BG.

[@denisceballos9745]

I just checked and Gary Crosby, on Tuesday nite’s “Chase”, was, you guessed it, Bing Crosby’s son.

[@pauladams9287]

He's Ed Wells in Adam 12. I guess he could only get roles as cops names Ed

[@JohnnySmithWhite-wd4ey]

I've read that Star Lost was supposed to have great special effects but the producers rented a studio too small to use the effects properly. Harlan Ellison who wrote the show was so embarrassed by it he took his name off the show.

[@waynetompkins3006]

It was quite a come down for Keir Dullea after "2001."

[@Foxonian]

Ellison wrote a very funny book about his time with this show called, "Star-crossed". A must read if you want to know everything that went wrong with this show.

[@fromthesidelines]

He didn't insist on being credited as "Cordwainer Bird" as creator because he was shy! 😉

[@beverlyledbetter4906]

Sally Field was so cute!☺️

[@cbalducc]

It’s interesting how many actors or actresses who appeared in one failed series would appear the next year in another onel

[@CoCotheTurtle]

So true! Did you see the supporting cast of "The Snoop Sisters?" Charlie Callas, Bill Dana, Ed Platt, Fritz Weaver et al. Makes me wonder what they were going for!

[@blockcl]

1. Tenafly drives an AMC Hornet. Not a good sign for an action hero. 2. That Snoop Sisters episode had one helluva cast.

[@steelers6titles]

"Shaft" is an example of a hit film unsuccessfully transferred to the small screen, even with its original star, and music. Maybe TV's censorship requirements regarding sex, violence, and language had something to do with this.

[@Kw1161]

Just not the same hearing Shaft say gee whiz…compared to what he said in the movie..😂!

[@rfjohns4452]

Sex and violence controlled then. Baby boomers didn't want to see elderly movie stars.

[@candydale8380]

I still love the theme song!

[@steelers6titles]

@@candydale8380 Who's a complicated man? No one understands him but his woman. John Shaft.

[@thunderdeed1]

That’s the story I heard it was to violent for television at the time.

[@atreb56]

I really liked The Magician, Dirty Sally and The Cowboys(currently on Outlaw over the air channel.) Jeanette Nolan was a treasure. I used to call my mom and aunt the Snoop Sisters when they were gossiping. Thanks for these.

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

I appreciate that, and thank you for watching!

[@KevinMiller-xn5vu]

Other than Bill Bixby's short lived TV show The Magican, and The New Perry Mason, I've never heard of any of these shows. Of course Bix is best remembered as Dr. David Banner on The Incredible Hulk.

[@momster64]

So I was about 10 in ‘74, I have two observations: that within each genre of show, each opening was literally the same kind of shots, the same kind of music, the same kind of premises. Also, through these montages you see how many actors were in DOZENS of shows over the years. Love the great memories! ❤

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

Thank you for watching!

[@luisreyes1963]

Lotsa Luck was a very funny sitcom based upon a British sitcom (On The Buses) that sadly never got to last an entire season. The Magician was a great adventure show in which the protagonist used illusions to fight crime.

[@hondalily]

I was a teen in the 70's and I don't remember the majority of these shows!!

[@alexf6886]

Starlost and Girl with Something Extra were the first TV series I remember actively watching and paying attention to as a child, followed closely by Six Million Dollar Man that debuted as a weekly series in early 74.

[@sheriheffner2098]

And Dusty's Trail was a Western Gilligan's Island. Bit with the first Billie Jo Jeanine Riley and the second Bobbie Jo from Petticoat Junction as faux Ginger and Mary Ann. Once more I never seen any of these shows. I was probably watching something else at 8:00 and I was in bed by nine.

[@GeminiladyJackson-xq6hc]

Dusty's Trail failed because viewers were sick of watching Bob Denver.

[@fromthesidelines]

I think it was because viewers must have thought, "Haven't I seen this before? They look like seven castaways in the Old West......." 🤨

[@JamesSmith-yu2fu]

I was born in 1968. I am fascinated by the 1970s and the television shows back then. I was especially interested in the forgotten shows that starred well know actors or actors that seemed to have never had that career that would have made them a household name. Your videos are masterpieces and historically important. They make me see how time moves on and how so many things have change. Please keep doing this.

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

Wow! Thank you James! My next video is coming (slowly but surely).

[@msr1116]

Just as I saw the Hawkins clip ending, Jimmy Stewart appears on my TV in a movie with Raquel Welch and Dean Martin. Weird coincidences like this have happened before. I recognize a number of actors and actresses who became prominent in later programs or by their connection to a family member or a marital partner.

[@mikematusek4233]

Loved Chase, the Cowboys, Dirty Sally, and the Magician. I thought Banachek ran longer, as it was a rotation with two or three different groups of show. Dusty's Trail was fun, but a redo of Gilligan's Island. For me in Phoenix, Starlost was shown on Saturday mornings, I think.

[@tarcisiomoura9629]

Nice video! Even here in Brazil some of those shows were screened when I was 12 and 13, like Girl With Somenting Extra and Starlost.

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

Awesome! I think that's very cool! I always think of 'El Chavo' being very popular in Brazil (and 'Muttley' the cartoon), but I love seeing that 'The Girl with Someone Extra' also did well outside of the U.S. I actually like the show, especially Zohra Lampert. Thank you for sharing!

[@MAGAcatmom]

I loved the Magician because of Bill Bixby. I grew up with him through the Courtship of Eddie's Father and he was the only reason I watched the Incredible Hulk...best Bruce Banner ever!

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

He has a great presence. There's a clip of him being interviewed by Mr. Rogers - on the set of The Hulk - and he's just excellent; completely understands the medium (very young audience). He's very gentle and well paced throughout the interview, I forgot that it was Fred Rogers conducting the interview! He was so good at it, you'd think he could slide into the role of having his own children's show on PBS.

[@BigBadWorf]

David Banner. And agreed.

[@jeannehall6546]

I loved watching “Lotsa Luck” and “The Magician” as a kid. Wasn’t Gary Crosby of “Chase” one of Bing’s sons? I remember “Dirty Sally”, “Bob And Carol And Ted And Alice (which was based on the movie of the same name- pretty controversial as it dealt with wife-swapping)”, Banacek”, “The Snoop Sisters”, “Faraday and Company”, “Doc Elliot”, “Chopper One (kind of like “Adam-12” in a helicopter), “Shaft (which was on late night)” and “Adam’s Rib” as well. “Toma” was based on the life and career of Dave Toma, who became a big-time anti-drug advocate in the ‘70’s and ‘80’s. All of us kids either knew him or knew of him as he spoke at many schools about the danger of drugs at the time and was very direct in his approach! Toma commanded respect, and nobody dared mess with him! Some kids even sought him out with their problems and he was very good at listening and offering them guidance! I don’t know why I don’t remember “Roll Out” at all- despite the fact it featured Stu Gilliam (“Rowan And Martin’s Laugh-In”) and Ed Begley, Jr. (“St. Elsewhere”)!

[@JohnnySmithWhite-wd4ey]

Gary Crosby was in Adam 12.

[@BlueSky-eb7ru]

Fun to watch old TV shows .. No cell phones or Laptops is quite noticeable ..

[@MichaelElias-q2z]

This youtube series has allowed me to relive my childhood, thankyou.

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

You're welcome. And thank you for watching!

[@rmcrae62]

It's neat to think that homes only had one or two tv sets so it really was a battle for eyeballs.

[@janetland9022]

I remember my little kid heart being broken by the cancellation of We'll Get By. I can still watching remember the closing credits (very different from the pilot) the very last time it was on.

[@luisreyes1963]

You're in the minority who actually remember such an obscure show.

[@tallactordude]

I remember We’ll Get By, too, and being surprised that it had such a short life. It was created by Alan Alda, as I recall.

[@Foxonian]

I remember that Smokey the Bear ad being pulled because it was scaring children.

[@QueenOfTheNorth65]

I’d read so much about Bill Bixby in “The Magician,” I had wrongly assumed it was a hit.

[@ricks.1779]

"The Girl With Something Extra" sponsored by, Bud Light.

[@luisreyes1963]

Funny. 😑

[@beverlyledbetter4906]

Hard to watch a lot of these shows now because I know too much about the people and their lives!🫤

[@chaburchak]

Oh my, nice to see the opening to Chase again. Wayne Maunder was a pretty reliable character actor back in the day, always good on Lancer with the unfortunate James Stacy. In fact, I seem to recall he was in the pilot episode of Kung-Fu...

[@brendad3570]

Wayne Maunder which was his real name was from my home town in Maine. He was in my mother's Sunday School class and she said of all the boys in her class she would have thought he would be the last one to become an actor. She said he was very quiet. I used to watch Lancer every week -- loved James Stacy. When the show came I used to say to my mother " Wayne's on". I think she was quite proud of him

[@algeborusas2775]

A lot were cancelled too soon.

[@GeminiladyJackson-xq6hc]

A lot of TV shows were unfairly cancelled because they were given the wrong time slots.

[@imajhawk11]

Chase had 3 other main characters- 1 with motorcycle, 1 was great driver, and another flew a chopper, I think.

[@steveprestegard5151]

The helicopter pilot and the guy on the motorcycle got fired, as did the car driver.

[@steveprestegard5151]

3:32 I am one of the few people who watched Chase. A hot car, a helicopter, a dog and (in the first half of the season) a motorcycle. Ideal viewing for an 8-year-old.

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

I'm right there with you. I think the intro is awesome! Especially Wayne Maunder on the helicopter; I thought it was Shelly Novack at first. I was thinking about '90s/'00s products which stole ideas from the '70s crime dramas, and that they were looking at "Starsky & Hutch", "Baretta", "Barnaby Jones" and "The Street of San Francisco", but what they were REALLY looking at was "Chase".

[@steveprestegard5151]

@@robertsretrorewind5853 the first open: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jHeuoayCl66pgMU

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

Hey Steve, just a heads up. A lot of this is new to me (I'm learning the features of having a channel), and the link was placed in a "Held for Review" folder (not done by me). I "approved" it, and I saw you were showing the original "Chase" intro; no problem. Not knowing exactly what I was doing, I deleted it; it's the first time I tried to approve/delete anything in that section. My apologies. Still under construction on my end...

[@steveprestegard5151]

@@robertsretrorewind5853 that opening has the three fired cast members and the motorcycle. Truth be told the second open has more action. I think the closing credits showed the helo, the car and the bike on a freeway. Maybe Fuzz was in the car.

[@johnrunion5357]

several of these shows i fondly recall watching such as the magician, shaft, banacek, the snoop sisters, dirty sally, the girl with something extra, the brian keith show, dusty's trail, ozzie's girls. i only saw toma once and that was after it was cancelled and made a part of the abc late night movie. i remember thinking this is a LOT like baretta. then years later i read the star of toma Tony Musante did not want to become a star so he quit and the series was re-tooled as baretta. i remember the joanna cassady PSA/commercial. i had no idea who she was back then. i used to love calucci's department. it came on friday nights right before the cbs friday night movie which seemed like was always a planet of the apes movie. i watched ozzie's girls and dusty's trail also. i have never even heard of the starlost. thanks. this was great ... as are all of your videos that i have watched.

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

I appreciate reading that! Great read John!

[@johnrunion5357]

@@robertsretrorewind5853 you are very welcome. i greatly appreciate the extra research you do and share with your audience such as night the show aired/time slot, what it's competition on the other networks was + it's final end of the season ranking for the series. i clearly recall watching shaft when i was about 12 and knew it only aired every other week. i was falsely recalling that the other week barnaby jones aired as opposed to the jimmy stewart series which actually aired so i thank you for straightening out my memory on that. we didn't get abc when i was growing up. we only had a 35 foot antenna. you had to have at least a 50 foot antenna to get any abc station in this area back then. when i was in second grade (69 -70) i would run home from school, turn the tv dial to the closest abc affiliate, run to turn the antenna outside the house by hand, make multipule trips back into the house to see if dark shadows was coming in clearly enough to actually watch or if it was going to turn out to be snow on the screen with only audio. then run back outside and try to turn the antenna back to it's original position before my dad came home from work to watch the news on the cbs affiliate ! by the time of the night stalker i had a small 13" b/w tv with 'rabbit ears' in my room which some times would allow me to watch that series. kids today do not know the struggle!

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

@@johnrunion5357 I love what you're saying! Especially having to adjust the rabbit ears and such. Great detail! I bought a small black & white from K-Mart (really late in the game when color TVs had already been around for +20 years) when I was in Jr. High, and if it was rainy I could pick up Fox KNBR if I set the rabbit ears in such a way. Which was a big deal because we didn't get Fox from where I'm from (at the time). I can appreciate that struggle that you're talking about, some fond memories. To think years ago, I'd dream of having access to a 1,000 channels, and here we are, and I prefer having just a few channels to watch.

[@johnrunion5357]

@@robertsretrorewind5853 you are very welcome and thank you. it used to be we only got 2 channels in the 60's and much of the 70's and something good was always on. now as you stated we can get 1000's and there is basiclaly nothing to watch. there MUST be a happy medium in there some where. oh, the plight of mankind and the futility of life. lol

[@msr1116]

Do you recognize the creators of Calucci's Department ? It was Renee Taylor---whom we know as Sylvia Fine on The Nanny---and her husband Joseph Bologna, who appeared in two different guest roles.

[@PeterBrown-mz4nv]

Monte Markham was in the pilot episode for the Ellery Queen mysteries that featured Jim Hutton.

[@GeminiladyJackson-xq6hc]

Monte Markham played Blanche's gay brother on 2 episodes of The Golden Girls.

[@ellenthorne818]

I remember some of these, my favourite was the Magician

[@pulsarstargrave256]

What's interesting about the failed shows was looking at what they were up against! Quinn-Martin shows were very popular in our house, but so were the ABC and NBC movies of the week! If not for Gunsmoke, Barnaby Jones and Cannon, CBS never would have had a chance!

[@kbob1163]

I was 10 years old during this TV season. I can remember watching "The Magician" and probably an episode or two of "The Girl With Something Extra." I'm pretty sure we caught a few episodes of "The Brian Keith Show," but I think we watched it more the previous season when it was called "The Little People." And I definitely remember the Chiffon Margarine commercials with their iconic catchphrase.

[@WilliamBone-e7v]

"Lotsa Luck", which was briefly on Antenna TV, needed lots of luck to survive on TV, but it was funny.

[@stephenspilker9334]

i found it funny on dusty's trail had janine riley and lori saunders in it. they both played bobby jo on petticoat junction lol.

[@zefallafez]

Riley was the original Billy Joe. Saunders was the second Bobbie Joe.

[@DexterHaven]

TV was huge back then. Very competitive. Hard to last more than one season. People forget The Dick Van Dyke Show was cancelled after one season; then after protests, brought back for another season and did well for years. We waited for Paul Lynde to get his own show, then were surprised it was cancelled so fast.

[@Henram48]

What was up with ‘Shaft’? They put no production value in the opening. Usually cop shows give you a lot of action shots in its opening montage, but I saw more action in the opening sequence of the ‘Mary Tyler Moore Show’ than I did in ‘Shaft’. They did not want this series to succeed.

[@thomascefalo938]

Really liked The Snoop Sisters. recently watched the whole series on cable

[@thomascefalo938]

Yes I really liked it!

[@Cbcw76]

There are so many of these I'd love to watch just those pilots because of their guest stars. I keep thinking if these networks had far-sighted archivists, they'd post these shows on KZbin and fill those with their logos. Oh my - Kier Dullea's punishment for tricking HAL? Sent off in STARLOST?!! The irony of so many actors appearing in these shows or, preceding breakout roles later in their careers.

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

I feel the same way.

[@Cbcw76]

Thanks also for those 'title card' summations. I am very interested to see the 'competitors' and realizing top shows had little or inefffective competition which, to me, means Other Viewers just didn't watch TV at that time-slot, or evening.

[@skyblue375]

Shaft as a t.v. show was not worth the time, there are things you can do in a movie that you cannot do when you are on regular television...all thanks to the FCC.

[@mlbrooks4066]

The only thing I remember at all was about Keir Dullea's show - somebody once said "Keir Dullea, gone tomorrow."

[@VandelayIndustries61]

I'm surprised Faraday and Company ran for only 4 episodes, because, while my memory of some of these shows is sketchy, I remember Faraday and Company quite well. Dan Dailey played a man unjustly imprisoned in 1946 for a murder he didn't commit, who finally gets out in the early 1970s after newly uncovered evidence proves his innocence. He then teams up with his detective son to solve crimes. It was basically a "fish out of water" show with Dailey's character trying to adjust to life in the 1970s (I remember one scene where he needs to make a getaway in a car and he's wondering, "Where's the clutch?")

[@suzannelawson9215]

Hi, Do you by chance have any footage for any years during the 1960's of short-lived T.V. programs?

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

Hi Suzanne! Yes, I plan on going back to cover the sixties in the next few weeks. Same with the '80s.

[@suzannelawson9215]

@@robertsretrorewind5853 Thanks....I grew up in the 60's...well in the 70's too.

[@kzk871]

Tenafly opening made it seem absolutely thrilling. 30 seconds of a guy backing out of his own driveway 😂

[@heidisierra9833]

"Lotsa Luck" was and still is one of the best shows ever! 😊❤

[@maxinenall9950]

I love "The Snoop Sisters" I have the DVDs and still watch the ladies 🥰

[@gailreese4102]

"Toma" was another of my favorites. Its lead, Tony Musante, only agreed to appear in one season which, in turn, paved the way for its successor, "Baretta," which lasted much longer.

[@gailreese4102]

The real Det. Dave Toma also guest-appeared in several of the series' episodes.

[@ferociousgumby]

I would give my soul to see one episode of Calucci's Department.

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

I've been looking for some (or just one) myself over the past few years. As you with "Calucci's Department", I've been dying to see an episode of "Another Day" (1978), "Flatbush" (1979), "Goodtime Girls" (1980), "Husbands, Wives & Lovers" (1978), "Paul Sand in Friends and Lover" (1974-75), "The Corner Bar" (1972-73), "The Kallikaks" (1977), "The San Pedro Beach Bums" (1977), "The Waverly Wonders", etc. Whether they're good, okay, or terrible, I still would like to see them. I'm actually a bit surprised that "Goodtime Girls" and "Dirty Sally" episodes are hard/impossible to find.

[@ferociousgumby]

@@robertsretrorewind5853 I would love to see The Dumplings, too. The theme song has some of the worst lyrics I ever heard. But these shows are not streamed anywhere, likely because there were only a few episodes. The Paul Sand one - all I remember is him playing his bass in a string quartet, and one actor (Steve Landesberg?) was miming the violin like he was sawing it in half.

[@ferociousgumby]

@@robertsretrorewind5853 By the way, I hope you do many more of these! I binge-watched all of them.

[@JulianneRemley-l2q]

I vaguely remember some of those

[@dantyler6907]

"Dians" looked to be a carbon copy of "Mary Tyler Moore"!

[@markstevens9249]

It was, I've seen the pilot, Rigg whether she ever admitted it did her best work with Patrick Macnee!

[@jehobden]

THE BRIAN KEITH SHOW was a S2 continuation of THE LITTLE PEOPLE, which also lasted a full season.

[@sheldonhchambliss1385]

This posting is golden

[@richardharepax123]

Dusty trail had a good theme song what was it up against? Most of these have some things in common either I never heard of it or the actors and actresses or both

[@kenhutchings4790]

It was a syndicated show so whatever other local channels were showing.

[@mbclev]

There was a localized version of the “NBC ‘73” promo jingle (that appeared at 22:47) that I remember for WKYC-TV in Cleveland that had the lyrics “Come and see NBC…Get it on 3!”

[@aleks1939]

Wow, I was only 3 or 4, but I remember the show Chase.

[@radicalross7700]

I had heard Diana Rigg had a short-lived sitcom in the early 1970s, but I never saw it or even heard about it until many years later.

[@MichaelElias-q2z]

James Franciscus was never able to carry a television series on his own, yet he was ubiquitous on 60s and 70s t.v.

[@johnerwin9024]

The camera 📷 loved Jas. Franciscus-

[@tallactordude]

I remember watching and liking Adam’s Rib, and I also remember watching probably all four of the Snoop Sisters episodes and being very surprised and disappointed when it got canceled. And there is some of these shows I remember existing, though I didn’t watch them.

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

I appreciate that you liked "Adam's Rib". It's one of those shows I can't get an episode of, and would love to see it.

[@nickgov66]

Just a thought: Would any of these programmes have fared better if home recording technology had existed at the time?

[@sheriheffner2098]

I love the music from some of these shows. But I don't remember any of these shows up to The Snoop Sister which I am assuming they were Private Detectives?

[@AndrewMoriarty-b6k]

Snoop sisters were mystery writers who investigated crimes. Sound familiar? Nobody recycles like Hollywood. Wait ten years. A little adjustment and you have Murder, She Wrote

[@gailreese4102]

I remember watching "Ozzie's Girls." Susan Sennett also guest-appeared in an episode of "The Rookies" ("Rabbits On The Runway").

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

Awesome! I just watched that episode recently.

[@gailreese4102]

@@robertsretrorewind5853 It's a good "Willie Gillis" episode.

[@kirkrjb]

I was a teenager at this time and the only show I remember watching and enjoyed was the star lost

[@natestevenson3886]

When you dig into the actual facts of why SHAFT was cancelled -- Shaft was not initially cancelled by the Network -- but was being reconsidered for renewal for a TV Movie Series the same as the COLUMBO TV Movies Series -- Jimmy Stewart in the cancelled HAWKINS TV Show (matter of public record about him) -- was jealous and envious of Shaft's TV Movie Series popularity due to Richard Roundtree being a Black-Man -- and because Stewart's own TV Series was cancelled -- Stewart insisted (using his Hollywood power) -- got Shaft cancelled pressuring Network executives and producers and to avoid being humiliated over having his show cancelled and Richard Roundtree being successful .........

[@steelers6titles]

Diana Rigg played Cordelia to Paul Scofield's King Lear. She also appeared nude onstage in "Oh, Calcutta!", if I'm correct. I believe her last role was Mrs. Pumphrey in the current "All Creatures Great and Small". She was good in the movie of Rumer Godden's "In This House Of Brede"", as a successful businesswoman who becomes a nun.

[@jackv2244]

We loved The Magician and Dirty Sally, we got upset when she got cancelled it's not nice to fool Mother Nature! I remember that commercial

[@martincaidin4166]

Why did they keep giving James Coco tv shows?

[@PecanSandees23]

I read that Toma was canceled because Tony Musante only agreed to do one season. Not sure how true that is. Also, Baretta with Robert Blake was supposed to be based on the same character.

[@johnrunion5357]

i don't know if this is correct or not, but once i read Tony Musante did not want to become a star and just wnated to remain a character atcor so he quit. thanks for the additional information. robert blake was miserable while making baretta. he gave a series another chance in the 80's with hell town and just couldn't take it and pulled the plug.

[@cbalducc]

@@johnrunion5357 Somewhere on the Internet, I read the story about Tony Musante and “Toma”. He said in an interview that he preferred playing a variety of roles as an actor, so he may have been concerned about typecasting if he stayed with the series a long time.

[@johnrunion5357]

@@cbalducc thank you. i appreciate it.

[@cbalducc]

@@johnrunion5357 I think Robert Blake was a miserable person, period.

[@johnrunion5357]

@@cbalducc yes. evidentally.

[@raywood8187]

I was 14 then, I remember some of the shows. None of these really impressed me though, except The Magician. Back then, with no way to record, you had to pick one show to watch. So that's probably why I never saw some of these shows. The networks would always put one popular show against another in the same time slot. So unless I could catch it on reruns, I would miss a show on another channel. I never understood that tactic, why not put a good show against a show that isn't doing well instead of taking a chance that both shows would be cancelled for low viewer numbers. 17:20 Joanna Cassidy and her flaming red hair could start a fire in me!

[@loneshewolf74]

I was born in 1974, and it's probably for the best I don't remember these shows at all. The "Lostsa Luck" sitcom seemed mildly depressing. Because the world now is a lot worse and it's more like "Outta Luck". I mean, I looked the show up and learned it was about a guy who works at a lost and found in a bus station. He lives with his mother, his sister, and her unemployed slob husband and he was to work to provide for all of them. Imagine trying to do that now, ha ha.

[@MightyMezzo]

“The New Perry Mason” needed Raymond Burr. Or Matthew Rhys. Or Warren William.

[@ArthurIdis-c7k]

Burr was still doing "Ironside" at this time. The show would still go on thru '75.

[@MightyMezzo]

@@ArthurIdis-c7k True. And Matthew Rhys was a baby. And Warren William died in 1948.

[@waynetompkins3006]

Without "Park Avenue Beat" as the opening theme, it simply isn't Perry Mason.

[@1rjbrjb]

Diana Rigg could have been MTM in a leather catsuit (with little cutouts at the hips) and Shakespearean training which is what every 15 year old American boy wanted at the time. I so wanted that show to make it. It was as if an Avengers villain had trapped Mrs. Peel in a Neil Simon play that hadn't made it out of New Haven.

[@robertsretrorewind5853]

LOL! I guess Z.Z. von Schnerk is directing that Neil Simon play. I'm still wanting "Diana" to make it as a show! I'm still hopeful.

[@OsbornTramain]

Tenafly was a great show in that Wednesday mystery theater....I had liked both Madigan and Cool Million, but was okay with Tenafly, the Snoop sisters was more women related, felt like a girls show. Faraday & Company was also good, it's a shame that nothing of that show seems to exist anymore.

[@davidbaise5137]

ThanksRobertsRetroRewind! If “The Girl with Something Extra” was made today, she’d really have something extra.

[@robmclean4352]

1:53 Just for fun, I thought I'd take these 1973 prices, adjust them for inflation, then compare them to today's prices. And, wow! These items cost *less than half* of what they did 50 years ago, after you adjust for inflation, which has increased almost seven-fold since 1973! (Spencer steak: $3.19/lb in 1973, $22.26 in today's money, 2024 price of $8.99. Veal scaloppini: 6.79, 47.38, 17.99. Cooked shrimp: 4.30, 28.25, 9.99. NY cut steak: 3.98, 26.15, 14.99.)

[@allenkranawetter9482]

I don't remember the new Perry Mason