Obscurity factor: 7
Bewitched was quite a phenomenon in its time. It was hugely popular and continues to be an iconic American sitcom. That's why in 1976 it must have seemed a good idea to spin it off into a new series featuring daughter Tabitha, all grown up and on her own. Unfortunately, spinoffs of highly popular shows have a heavy burden to carry. The memory of the original show, deep pink with a rosy glow of fondness is frequently too much for the new show to live up to. That's part of the problem with Tabitha. If you loved Bewitched, then you want the show to be as good, if you didn't, then you probably wouldn't watch in the first place.
Lisa Hartman is Tabitha, all grown up and working in a television station in LA. Her brother Adam has gotten her a job as an administrative assistant to Paul Thurston, an egomaniacal television host, played by a young Robert Urich so gorgeous it makes you weak in the knees. She's frequently visited by her aunt Minerva (Karen Morrow) who is always meddling in her affairs with witchcraft. Adam, who takes after his father, doesn't like that. The show has a certain charm of its own, though the character development frequently blows in what ever direction the wind of the plot takes it and the story lines are at times more implausible than they should be. But it succeeds in the most important aspect of any sitcom - the characters are fun to watch and very likable. Lisa Hartman is also a real dish with an exquisite figure and hair that rivals Farrah's.
This section is a bit nit-picky, so if you're not that interested in trivia then skip it and go right to the video. There are some odd conceits carried over from the original series, but not until they're twisted on their ears. Minerva was never in the cast of the original series and it's odd that Samantha never mentioned having a sister. Adam, who acts more like an older brother than a younger one is presented as a mortal, not a warlock. This is vaguely plausible because the series never really developed the character of Adam, he was too young. There was an episode where his powers were tested and it was determined that he did have them, but Maurice (Samantha's father) helped him along a bit. The last oddity is the timing. The original series ended in 1972 and the new series in 1976 had Tabitha about 23 or 24 years old. Erin Murphy, who played Tabitha in the original show would have been 12 in 1976.
This series has recently been released on DVD and if you're a Bewitched fan it's worth a look, as long as you don't keep your expectations too high. Lisa Hartman sings a catchy theme on most of the episodes and look for Bewitched veterans Mr. & Mrs. Kravitz, Dr. Bombay and the drunk man that Darren always saw in that bar in various episodes. Above is the first installment of the pilot episode, uploaded to YouTube by 1970sFeel.
Obscurity factor: 7 (available on DVD, largely forgotten and known mostly to hard core Bewitched fans)
Monday, April 4, 2011
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Helen Hayes & Myrna Loy in Do Not Fold, Spindle or Mutilate (1971)
Obscurity factor: 9
Four bored Pasadena matrons (Hayes, Loy, Sylvia Sidney & Mildred Natwick) decide to amuse themselves by creating a fictitious woman on the rolls of a computer dating service. Their dalliance in the world of computer dating turns up three responses, a dull accountant, a smart-alec and a stalker. Mal Weston (Vince Edwards in a particularly creepy performance with a constant internal running dialog) becomes obsessed with their avatar Rebeca Mead and won't take no for an answer after he stakes out their home and scams their phone number out of an operator. He insists on meeting her at a cocktail lounge and the ladies go along to spy on him. They see him leave with a girl he thinks is Rebeca and the next day see her photo in the paper after she has been murdered. They (led by Hayes) decide to investigate! This made-for-TV movie resulted in a series of mystery movies of the week in rotation with the likes of McMillin & Wife called The Snoop Sisters starring Hayes and Natwick.
While The Snoop Sisters have made it to DVD, this film has yet to. It is, however available in full on YouTube, thanks to an upload by CDeanWatcher.
Obscurity factor: 9 (not on DVD, available on YouTube, largely forgotten)
Four bored Pasadena matrons (Hayes, Loy, Sylvia Sidney & Mildred Natwick) decide to amuse themselves by creating a fictitious woman on the rolls of a computer dating service. Their dalliance in the world of computer dating turns up three responses, a dull accountant, a smart-alec and a stalker. Mal Weston (Vince Edwards in a particularly creepy performance with a constant internal running dialog) becomes obsessed with their avatar Rebeca Mead and won't take no for an answer after he stakes out their home and scams their phone number out of an operator. He insists on meeting her at a cocktail lounge and the ladies go along to spy on him. They see him leave with a girl he thinks is Rebeca and the next day see her photo in the paper after she has been murdered. They (led by Hayes) decide to investigate! This made-for-TV movie resulted in a series of mystery movies of the week in rotation with the likes of McMillin & Wife called The Snoop Sisters starring Hayes and Natwick.
While The Snoop Sisters have made it to DVD, this film has yet to. It is, however available in full on YouTube, thanks to an upload by CDeanWatcher.
Obscurity factor: 9 (not on DVD, available on YouTube, largely forgotten)
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Dr. N!godatu by M.K. Brown
Obscurity factor: 10
We all know that the mega-hit The Simpsons started out on Tracey Ullman's first show in the 1980's, but what many people don't remember is that The Simpsons shorts rotated with another series. Dr. Janice N!godatu was a psychotherapist with a calm, pleasant manner that always seemed to find herself in surreal circumstances. Some of those circumstances were very subtle and that gave the shorts a curious, intellectual quality. They were conceived and drawn by well known cartoonist, M.K. Brown. There were six four act shorts, plus two unreleased episodes. These little gems are hard to find now. Here is the first in the series. Dr. N!godatu wears her slippers to the office by mistake. In the second segment watch the plant on the filing cabinet. Also in these clips are classic sketches from the show.
Below is "Freeway" in which Janice goes shopping with her friend Pat. Pat doesn't drive on freeways, through tunnels or on bridges.
These shorts are very hard to find and as far as I can tell, no stand alone video of them exists. The segments above are uploaded to YouTube by TraceyUllman1111. You can find out more about Dr. N!godatu on this page, which has synopses of the episodes and screen shots.
Obscurity factor: 10 (relatively unknown, hard to find)
We all know that the mega-hit The Simpsons started out on Tracey Ullman's first show in the 1980's, but what many people don't remember is that The Simpsons shorts rotated with another series. Dr. Janice N!godatu was a psychotherapist with a calm, pleasant manner that always seemed to find herself in surreal circumstances. Some of those circumstances were very subtle and that gave the shorts a curious, intellectual quality. They were conceived and drawn by well known cartoonist, M.K. Brown. There were six four act shorts, plus two unreleased episodes. These little gems are hard to find now. Here is the first in the series. Dr. N!godatu wears her slippers to the office by mistake. In the second segment watch the plant on the filing cabinet. Also in these clips are classic sketches from the show.
Below is "Freeway" in which Janice goes shopping with her friend Pat. Pat doesn't drive on freeways, through tunnels or on bridges.
These shorts are very hard to find and as far as I can tell, no stand alone video of them exists. The segments above are uploaded to YouTube by TraceyUllman1111. You can find out more about Dr. N!godatu on this page, which has synopses of the episodes and screen shots.
Obscurity factor: 10 (relatively unknown, hard to find)
Friday, April 1, 2011
James Coburn & Raquel Welch in The Last of Sheila (1973)
Obscurity factor: 1
One night after a party at their home, Sheila Green, wife of film producer Clinton Green is killed in a hit and run accident. A year later, the guests from the party are invited for a week on Clinton's yacht. There's the script writer (Richard Benjamin) and his wife (Joan Hackett), the agent (Dyan Cannon), the starlet (Raquel Welch) and her manager (Ian McShane) and the director (James Mason). But a gathering organized by Clinton is never just a gathering - all the guests are to play a game. They're each given cards with a secret on them and must discover each others secret without letting their own be revealed. Each night there is a trip to shore with a clue given that leads to the answer to one of the secrets. What makes the guests uneasy is that each of the secrets relates to an incident in one of the guests lives. When the game leads to murder all bets are off!
This was on TCM last night. Its obscurity is dubious in that it's notorious for being written by Anthony Perkins and Stephen Sondheim. The plot is full of extremely clever twists and turns and you must watch closely to keep up with them all, but the film is, in some ways, a bit too clever for its own good.
It's available on DVD and can be watched instantly on Amazon. The trailer for it is above, uploaded to YouTube by Nederama. The poster above is available from MoviePosterShop.com.
Obscurity factor: 1 (somewhat notorious, available on DVD)
One night after a party at their home, Sheila Green, wife of film producer Clinton Green is killed in a hit and run accident. A year later, the guests from the party are invited for a week on Clinton's yacht. There's the script writer (Richard Benjamin) and his wife (Joan Hackett), the agent (Dyan Cannon), the starlet (Raquel Welch) and her manager (Ian McShane) and the director (James Mason). But a gathering organized by Clinton is never just a gathering - all the guests are to play a game. They're each given cards with a secret on them and must discover each others secret without letting their own be revealed. Each night there is a trip to shore with a clue given that leads to the answer to one of the secrets. What makes the guests uneasy is that each of the secrets relates to an incident in one of the guests lives. When the game leads to murder all bets are off!
This was on TCM last night. Its obscurity is dubious in that it's notorious for being written by Anthony Perkins and Stephen Sondheim. The plot is full of extremely clever twists and turns and you must watch closely to keep up with them all, but the film is, in some ways, a bit too clever for its own good.
It's available on DVD and can be watched instantly on Amazon. The trailer for it is above, uploaded to YouTube by Nederama. The poster above is available from MoviePosterShop.com.
Obscurity factor: 1 (somewhat notorious, available on DVD)
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Paula Prentiss & Richard Benjamin in He & She (1967)
Obscurity factor: 5
Paula (Prentiss) and Dick (Benjamin) are a young married couple living in a cozy apartment in New York. Paula is a social worker and Dick is a cartoonist. His comic book has been turned into a television series and his superhero is played by very vain, hammy actor, Oscar North (Jack Cassidy). They also have a crazy building super and a crazy firefighter neighbor (Kenneth Mars) who visits them by walking across a plank suspended between their two windows. As with all situation comedies, this troupe of characters came together to make a little magic each week. This situation comedy is said to be the forerunner of the style of comedy featured on iconic 70's sitcoms like Mary Tyler Moore, though it was a bit before its time. It was canceled after only one season. That's a shame, really, because it's a very cute show. Below is the first installment of the episode titled The Phantom of 84th Street.
He & She isn't on DVD, though several full episodes have been uploaded to YouTube. You can however find a DVD set on iOffer.com.
Obscurity factor: 5 (somewhat iconic and remembered by hard core TV fans, mostly unknown otherwise, available on YouTube)
Paula (Prentiss) and Dick (Benjamin) are a young married couple living in a cozy apartment in New York. Paula is a social worker and Dick is a cartoonist. His comic book has been turned into a television series and his superhero is played by very vain, hammy actor, Oscar North (Jack Cassidy). They also have a crazy building super and a crazy firefighter neighbor (Kenneth Mars) who visits them by walking across a plank suspended between their two windows. As with all situation comedies, this troupe of characters came together to make a little magic each week. This situation comedy is said to be the forerunner of the style of comedy featured on iconic 70's sitcoms like Mary Tyler Moore, though it was a bit before its time. It was canceled after only one season. That's a shame, really, because it's a very cute show. Below is the first installment of the episode titled The Phantom of 84th Street.
He & She isn't on DVD, though several full episodes have been uploaded to YouTube. You can however find a DVD set on iOffer.com.
Obscurity factor: 5 (somewhat iconic and remembered by hard core TV fans, mostly unknown otherwise, available on YouTube)
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Teresa Graves in Get Christie Love! (1974)
Obscurity factor: 2
Teresa Graves, known for her irreverent comedy stylings on the huge hit Laugh In, is the star of this made-for-TV movie about police detective Christie Love. Inspired by the blaxploitation films of the early 70's Christie attempts to get her hands on a crime boss's secret ledger and break up a drug ring. In the process she gets to display her athleticism with karate chops and chase scenes and display her enviable physique in a variety of sexy outfits. When she nabs a bad guy she exclaims "you're under arrest, sugah!"This is not, of course, a great film, but it is a fun example of 70's television and is notable as being the first opportunity for a black woman to star in what would become a 1 hour cop drama.
This film is somewhat notorious. It was a popular series at the time, but has since been forgotten by most. Those who remember it, however, do so fondly. It was released on DVD a few years back. The print is rather dark and it's obvious that it was released cheaply - the extras are all about DVD technology, not the film or series. The entire film is uploaded to YouTube by crazydigitalmovies3 and can be watched above.
Obscurity factor: 2 (on DVD and YouTube, somewhat iconic to a hard core group of fans)
Teresa Graves, known for her irreverent comedy stylings on the huge hit Laugh In, is the star of this made-for-TV movie about police detective Christie Love. Inspired by the blaxploitation films of the early 70's Christie attempts to get her hands on a crime boss's secret ledger and break up a drug ring. In the process she gets to display her athleticism with karate chops and chase scenes and display her enviable physique in a variety of sexy outfits. When she nabs a bad guy she exclaims "you're under arrest, sugah!"This is not, of course, a great film, but it is a fun example of 70's television and is notable as being the first opportunity for a black woman to star in what would become a 1 hour cop drama.
This film is somewhat notorious. It was a popular series at the time, but has since been forgotten by most. Those who remember it, however, do so fondly. It was released on DVD a few years back. The print is rather dark and it's obvious that it was released cheaply - the extras are all about DVD technology, not the film or series. The entire film is uploaded to YouTube by crazydigitalmovies3 and can be watched above.
Obscurity factor: 2 (on DVD and YouTube, somewhat iconic to a hard core group of fans)
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Rosalind Russell & Alec Guinness in A Majority of One (1961)
Obscurity factor: 7
My friend Ranse reminded me of this film last night. Rosalind Russell plays Bertha Jacoby, a Jewish widow living in Brooklyn. When her son-in-law receives a post as a diplomat in Japan she joins them to live with her daughter in Tokyo. On the ship she meets business man Koichi Asano (Guinness). Both of them lost loved ones in the Japanese/American conflict in WWII and there is friction between them because of it. However they eventually strike up an unlikely romance, but the cultural differences between them must be surmounted and that seems like a tall order.
This charming film has a warm message of understanding and forgiveness. Russell makes a quirky, delightful Jewish mother and what could have been an uncomfortable performance by a lesser actor a is low key and respectful one with Guinness as the Japanese business man.
This is recently available on DVD. The trailer is above, posted to YouTube by skipjacktuner. The poster is available from MoviePosterShop.com.
Obscurity factor: 7 (available on DVD, not well remembered, though it does have a small, devoted following)
My friend Ranse reminded me of this film last night. Rosalind Russell plays Bertha Jacoby, a Jewish widow living in Brooklyn. When her son-in-law receives a post as a diplomat in Japan she joins them to live with her daughter in Tokyo. On the ship she meets business man Koichi Asano (Guinness). Both of them lost loved ones in the Japanese/American conflict in WWII and there is friction between them because of it. However they eventually strike up an unlikely romance, but the cultural differences between them must be surmounted and that seems like a tall order.
This charming film has a warm message of understanding and forgiveness. Russell makes a quirky, delightful Jewish mother and what could have been an uncomfortable performance by a lesser actor a is low key and respectful one with Guinness as the Japanese business man.
This is recently available on DVD. The trailer is above, posted to YouTube by skipjacktuner. The poster is available from MoviePosterShop.com.
Obscurity factor: 7 (available on DVD, not well remembered, though it does have a small, devoted following)
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