“Yabba-Dabba” Meets “Doo”!

One of our favorite contemporary comic books is SCOOBY-DOO TEAM-UP, my discovery of which is chronicled in THIS POST, and another extraordinary issue is discussed HERE.

This wonderful title, in which the Scooby-Doo Mystery Inc. gang can apparently crossover with (presumably) the entirety of the DC Comics, Warner Bros. and Hanna-Barbera “Universes”, consistently showed great imagination and wit, as well as SUPERB character bits and observations (some seen below) in its first four issues. 

 

Issue # 5 with Wonder Woman and Issue # 6 with the Super Friends seemed just a “little less so” in the “superb character bits and observations” department, though still very enjoyable…
 

…But I expect this to seriously rebound in Issue # 7!  

According to “Friend of This Blog” Dan Cunningham – he of the superlative Blog series on Disney Comics that I never miss an opportunity to plug -- Issue # 7 of SCOOBY-DOO TEAM-UP will feature (…Drumroll!)  THE FLINTSTONES! 

HERE’S the link provided by Dan! 

The basic story idea sounds a bit like Vic Lockman and Phil DeLara’s “The Flintstones Meet Frankenstein and Dracula” (THE FLINTSTONES # 33, April, 1966), with the Scooby-gang being brought back in time to the days of Bedrock… to (guess what?) solve a mystery. 

 

Maybe even Perry Gunnite will be on hand (...or, thrown overboard).

 

Or, the Gruesomes?  

 

Or, dare I possibly hope for Alvin Brickrock? 

 

 

With the generally high quality of SCOOBY-DOO TEAM-UP, anything’s possible! 

 

No matter, with all the talk about (and built-up desire for) a FLINTSTONES comic, as seen in THIS RECENT POST and THIS ONE, I expect this issue of SCOOBY-DOO TEAM-UP to be popular with, and well-received by, the readers of this Blog. 

"Like, haven't we met a CAVEMAN, before?"  

Sing it with me: "Scooby, Dooby-Doo!  Where are You?  We've got some work to do now!"
"Scooby, Dooby-Doo!  Where are You?  We need some help from you, now!"  

I can’t wait for the on-sale date of November 05, 2014! 

Yabba-Dabba… er, “Doo”!   

Run (or fly) to your comics retailer to get a copy!   

 

Happy Retirement to Derek Jeter!

On September 25, 2014, New York Yankees shortstop, and future Hall of Famer, Derek Jeter played his last home game at Yankee Stadium. 

In keeping with his amazing career of clutch and memorable performances, the Yankees had blown a three-run lead to the Baltimore Orioles in the top of the ninth inning. 

All Derek Jeter did, in his final at-bat at Yankee Stadium was to hit a walk-off, trademark sharp single to right field, to drive in the winning run and win the game!  

If this were a Hollywood movie, no one would believe it.  But, having had the pleasure of witnessing Derek Jeter’s entire career, not only could I believe it – but I even predicted it when he came up to bat! 

Thank you, Derek Jeter, for more great baseball moments than I could ever have imagined!  

Realizations: Am I Paying for My Own Summer Reruns?

With all the discussion on this Blog of TV circa 1964 of late, one specific favorite show HERE, and a general survey of the landscape HERE, I’m reminded of the long-ago let-down period of “Summer Reruns”.

While shows ARE still repeated these days, the idea of a season of “Summer Reruns” has all but vanished, in our “Give it to me NEW and give it to me NOW!” entertainment intensive age! 

There's so much to watch, we needed a BIGGER SCREEN! 

But, the period of about May, into early September was “Summer Reruns” time for the then-big three TV networks.  And, to be perfectly honest, we didn’t watch very many of them.  I probably played ball, or sumpthin’.  And, of course, read lots of comic books – as THEY only repeated when you WANTED them to! 

Indeed, as inconceivable as it sounds now, even a CANCELLED show, would usually carry on until being replaced in September, for the new fall season.  For instance, the final broadcast of LOST IN SPACE, in its cancelation year of 1968, was actually a repeat from the PREVIOUS SEASON, because each of the episodes for the current season had already been rerun twice!  Imagine that happening today! 

But, now we shift to 2014, where looms in October, the Fifth Season premiere of THE WALKING DEAD, coming on October 12th.  The folks marketing DVD season sets of THE WALKING DEAD very cleverly release those sets in AUGUST of each year.

How I spent my LAST August and September!

Why?  So that you can review each episode of such a continuity-heavy series, BEFORE the fall season premiere!   Episode by episode, I’ve been doing exactly that for the past month or so with the Fourth Season Blu-ray set – in effect, creating MY OWN “Summer Rerun” season for THE WALKING DEAD.

Only difference between now and 1964 is I paid thirty bucks to voluntarily do something I didn’t much care to do in the old days, when it was free!  …Yeah, imagine THAT, too!  

Then again, some things MUST be seen more than once!  

1964: An Amazing Year for Television!

In our last post, we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the premiere of VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA, on September 14, 1964 – HERE.

But, to paraphrase that famous pig… That’s NOT all, folks!

A truly amazing number of great and memorable shows debuted in 1964, and let’s give some Blog-space to them as well: 

MAGILLA GORILLA

PETER POTAMUS

BEWITCHED

Sorry to put you behind those cartoon shows, Endora... but your title sequence WAS designed by Hanna-Barbera, after all!

THE MUNSTERS

THE ADDAMS FAMILY

THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.

GILLIGAN’S ISLAND

And Hanna-Barbera’s literal INVENTION of the half-hour animated adventure series: JONNY QUEST.

Also, because our friend and contributor “Top Cat James” was good enough to add-on to my list in the comment thread of THIS POST from YOWP:

THE UNDERDOG SHOW

LINUS THE LIONHEARTED

HOPPITY HOOPER

THE FAMOUS ADVENTURES OF MISTER MAGOO

GOMER PYLE U.S.M.C.

Feel free to mention any other beloved series 1964 debut not cited by TCJ or myself.    

What a year!  And 1965 and 1966 only get better, folks!   You can bet, when the time comes, I’ll be posting on those years as well.  

Fifty Year Voyage! Happy 50th Anniversary to Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.

In 1964, whether “little me” knew it or not, I officially became a “FAN”.  A status that I would, to one degree or another, carry with me to the present day.    

Earlier in the year, it started with THIS COMIC BOOK, and, on September 14, 1964, it occurred once again with VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA! 

You all know the feeling.  You find something that you like – A LOT!  And decide that you are going absorb everything about it, and never miss it ever again, no matter the lengths you may go to ensure that. 

If you’re lucky, you’ll have friends to share those fannish interests.  In 1964, and throughout my youth, I did not.   At least not until discovering Fanzines in the ‘80s, and the friends that would come from that – and, of course, Blogging. 

If you asked me, I would have to say that VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA is still my favorite TV series of all time – even though it’s had some worthy competition over five ensuing decades. 

I hope to have more, but for now – and in order to make the official anniversary of the first episode – here’s something I wrote in 2003, which will serve as a 50^th Anniversary tribute:

VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA was the brainchild of motion picture and television producer Irwin Allen, who was clearly influenced by Jules Verne’s “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea”.  

Originally released as a feature film, starring Walter Pidgeon, in 1961, the story of the futuristic Submarine Seaview and its crew saving the Earth from a great “fire in the sky”, was one of the more successful films of that year.  That success spurred Allen to enter the arena of television. 

Voyage feature film, with Walter Pidgeon (second from right).

 

Assembling a crew headed by Richard Basehart as Admiral Nelson and David Hedison as Captain Crane, Allen’s TV version of VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA premiered on ABC, September 14, 1964. 

Rounding out the regular crew were Bob Dowdell as Executive Officer Chip Morton, Henry Kulky as CPO “Curly” Jones (1964-1965), Terry Becker as CPO Francis Sharkey (1965-on), Arch Whiting as radioman “Sparks”, Del Monroe and Paul Trinka as regular crewmen Kowalski and Patterson, and Richard Bull as “Doc”. 

Allen’s fantastic Submarine Seaview sailed across the seas – and through the airwaves of ABC TV – for 110 episodes, until its final broadcast on September 15, 1968.   

An underappreciated – yet landmark – series in every respect, VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA was television’s first science-fiction based prime-time series to feature a cast of continuing characters, as opposed to the “anthology format” of the previously popular TWILIGHT ZONE and THE OUTER LIMITS. 

Its accessibility, and the confident manner of its stars, Basehart and Hedison, were instrumental in gaining an “acceptance” for the science-fiction genre among mainstream TV viewers of 1960’s America.    

VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA had a longer run than both LOST IN SPACE and the “original” STAR TREK, though it has since been eclipsed in popularity and public consciousness by both series. 

Indeed, many of the “genre staples” that fans tend to attribute to STAR TREK, originated with VOYAGE:  The ongoing adventures of a “quasi-military” vessel, command structure, regular bridge/ control room crew, omnipresent faceless and nameless “background crew”, “Flying Sub” vs. “Shuttlecraft” – and especially the concept of “expendable crewmembers”!  
 

The word “Redshirt” has actually entered the language as a synonym for “cannon fodder”, or an expendable or inevitably doomed individual – whose demise you can almost sense from the moment he walks into the frame!   

Though it is commonly associated with STAR TREK, VOYAGE did it first (…and probably MORE OFTEN, too boot!), only they wore BLUE as well as RED! 

[ End of 2003 Material ] 

Now that we're back in 2014, I will add that VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA had four very distinctive seasons: 
 

Season 1 (1964-1965):  Black and white stories of political intrigue and espionage, in keeping with the Bond / spy craze that swept America, and a handful of science fiction based episodes.  
 

Season 2 (1965-1966): Full color with lots of new special effects footage, including the introduction of the Flying Sub, as well as a major redesign for the Seaview.  Week in and week out, the best special effects television had to offer.  The season starts out spy-based and shifts entirely over to science fiction.  This is the best season overall.  

Season 3 (1966-1967):  A full season of science fiction ,with an eventual movement toward "Monster of the Week" episodes. 

Season 4 (1967-1968):  A pullback, of sorts, from the "Monster of the Week" episodes, and toward what I can best describe as "Weird Fantasy".  

Certain episodes, past the mid-point of the season actually take on a darker tone, while still retaining the outlandishness and "Monster of the Week" qualities of the previous season.   

Ends with a satisfying series finale.  

Mr. Pem finds there is "No Way Back". 

All in all, it made for fascinating viewing -- and still does, FIFTY years later!