Joan Rivers in That Show (1968)

My friend Michael turned me on to this show, which has just been added to Hulu. It's Joan River's 1968 syndicated talk show. Each half hour episode featured a different subject ranging from men's shirts to boating safety and included a monologue on the subject, an expert and a celebrity guest. Guests included June Havoc, Shecky Green, Joel Gray, Donald Pleasence and in the episode below, Lily Tomlin.

This episode covers the subject of stand-up comedy and how new talent is nurtured in the business. Lily Tomlin was then playing in night clubs in the village and had yet to break out on Laugh In. There are lots of episodes to choose from over at Hulu, I recommend the show for it's curious, sixties TV quality and the opportunity to see Joan Rivers and her celebrity guests back then.

Obscurity factor: 9 (largely forgotten, not on DVD, available on Hulu)

Richard Crenna & Lee J. Cobb in Double Indemnity (1973)

This television remake of the iconic film noir might, on the surface seem like a mistake. It is, of course, not the original, however it holds its own, and there's a lot to like about it. The story is the familiar one told so beautifully back in 1944 by Billy Wilder, but it's updated to then present day LA. Walter Neff (Crenna) is an insurance agent who gets caught in a complicated web of intrigue by Phyllis Dietrickson (Samantha Eggar) when she enlists him to help her do away with her husband. Barton Keyes (Cobb) is the pensive investigator who just misses putting it all together until the last reel. This production was adapted for television by a young Steven Bochco from the original film and novel by James M. Cain. Much like in the neo noir film The Long Goodbye by Altman, also released in 1973, it's fun and incongruous to see the hard boiled dialog and world weary noir characters among the trappings of early 70's Los Angeles.

You can find this version of the story among the extras of the DVD release of the original 1944 film. It can also be seen on StageVu, uploaded by Horror Vision. It's otherwise difficult to find.

Obscurity factor: 8 (available as an extra on the original film's DVD, also on StageVu, largely forgotten)

Joan Crawford in Because I Love Him (1953)

The last in our series of Joan Crawford anthology series appearances finds Joan playing a wife who learns her husband has only a year to live. The episode, which appeared on Revlon Mirror Theater is a very melodramatic melodrama full of noble sacrifice and beautiful suffering. The plot is a bit far out with very strange medical ethics and outrageous circumstances, but Joan pulls it off.
The series this episode was a part of is somewhat obscure itself. It ran for only two seasons and gets lost amid other more prominent anthology series like GE Theater and The Loretta Young Show. It's never been available on DVD, though individual episodes can be found on YouTube. The episode is above, uploaded to YouTube by Vi H.

Obscurity factor: 9 (Not on DVD, largely forgotten, available on YouTube)

Joan Crawford in The Road to Edinburgh (1954)

The third in our series of Joan Crawford anthology series appearances finds her in Great Britain. Mary Andrews is a successful reporter on her way to cover the Edinburgh festival. While driving she gets a flat tire and is aided by a mysterious man to whom she gives a ride. She's later sorry that she brought him along when he admits to being just released from prison and a report is heard on the radio about a prisoner who has just escaped. Will she make it to Edinburgh in one piece?

This was an earlier appearance of Joan's on GE Theater (And One was Loyal, posted on Friday, was filmed 5 years later). Part one is above, uploaded to YouTube by shanecincy.

Obscurity factor: 9 (not on DVD, little known, available on YouTube)

The New Shmoo by Hanna-Barbera

In 1948 Al Capp introduced the Shmoo to readers of his comic strip L'il Abner. An amiable, white pear shaped creature with no arms, the Shmoo represented the bounty of the Earth and it's availability to all of humanity. Shmoon (plural for Shmoo) became a national craze and touched off political debates, angering people on both sides of the political spectrum. By 1979, the Shmoo craze had abated to the point where it was a dim memory, but not so dim that it didn't rate one last revival. This series by Hanna-Barbera was similar to the studio's mega-hit Scooby Doo - a group of crime fighting kids get into curious adventures with their non-human mascot. In this case, that mascot was the Shmoo. It differed from Capp's original creature in that it could transmogrify into the shape of anything it wanted at will. The series wasn't particularly successful. It only ran for 16 episodes, but it left an indelible impression on my young mind because the Shmoo was always kind and loving, even to the crooks.

The episode above is the first of the series - The Amazing Captain Mentor. It's remarkably complex for a cartoon, with some good lessons about not taking everyone at face value and the dangers of letting people take the law into their own hands. It was uploaded to Filby by IceCold.

Obscurity factor: 9 (largely forgotten, available on Filby, not on DVD)

Joan Crawford in And One Was Loyal (1959)

Continuing the series of Joan Crawford anthology show appearances, this one is from General Electric Theater. Joan plays Ann Howard, a painter and the abused wife of a plantation boss in Singapore. Her life drastically changes when George Manson (Tom Helmore) visits the plantation unexpectedly.

This series has never had a commercial DVD release, though copies can be found on certain sites. This particular episode has some great melodramatic moments and a nice surprise ending. It was uploaded to YouTube by shanecincy.

Obscurity factor: 9 (little known, not on DVD, available on YouTube)

Joan Crawford in One Must Die (1961)

Like many film stars of the time, Joan Crawford did quite a bit of television in the 50's and 60's. Many people are familiar with her appearances on The Virginian and Here's Lucy, as well as her failed pilot, Royal Bay, which became the feature Della but before that she starred in one-off episodes of quite a few anthology series. In this one - Zane Gray Theater - she plays twins in a twisted story of family relationships gona awry.

This series has yet to be available on DVD, though you can get unofficial collections on various sites. This episode has been uploaded to YouTube by shanecincy. Part one is above.

Obscurity factor: 10 (hard to find, almost completely forgotten.