Four years after the end of the Original Star Trek Series (1966-69), Paramount commissioned “Star Trek: The Animated Series (1973-74) to run Saturday mornings on NBC, with the first episode debuting September 8, 1973.
On August 17, Yvonne Joyce Craig, better known as TV’s Batgirl from the 1960’s campy “Batman” show, passed away at the age of 78 at her home in Pacific Palisades, CA.
“Mad Men” premiered on July 19, 2007 and is one of those shows that you either love or bored to death by. It’s not an action show or a comedy. It’s a slow moving drama. A period piece. Basically a soap opera. But not the kind of soap opera that spawns evil twins or visits that amnesia well. It’s based in reality and portrays real people with real problems. And since it’s based in the 60’s, it presents us with a bit of a history lesson on what those times looked liked and the struggles people had to endure when things were a bit more repressed (and smoked a whole lot more).
“The Simpsons? Who are they? Never heard of them!” These would be the words of someone who has lived under a rock for the better part of a quarter century. “The Simpsons” have been around for twenty-five years now, having just started their twenty-sixth season.
“The Dukes of Hazzard” ran on CBS from January 26, 1979 to February 8, 1985. It was inspired from a 1975 movie called “Moonrunners.” Both were created by Gy Waldron.
The show took place in fictional Hazzard County, Georgia and focused on the adventures of cousins Bo and Luke Duke (John Schneider and Tom Wopat) and their never-ending run-ins with corrupted county commissioner Boss Hogg (Sorrell Booke) and his crooked sidekick, Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane (James Best). Along for the ride were their Uncle Jesse (Denver Pyle) and the girl with the shortest of shorts, Daisy Duke (Catherine Bach). Oh, and let’s not forget about the General Lee, their 1969 Dodge Charger stock car.
“Land of the Giants” premiered on ABC from September 22, 1968 to March 22, 1970. It was created and produced by Irwin Allen, who also created such classics as “The Time Tunnel”, “Lost in Space”, and “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.” A total of 51 episodes were produced in color at a record budget (at the time) of $250,000 per episode.
“M*A*S*H” ran on the CBS Network from September 17, 1972 until February 28, 1983. It was one of the highest rated shows of its time and its 2 ½ hour series finale was the highest rated episode in TV history (125 million viewers) up until that point. It was beat only in total viewership by Super Bowl XLIV in February of 2010.
Lorenzo Semple Jr. was a screenwriter and playwright who is probably best known for his contributions to the 1960’s campy television show “Batman” starring Adam West as the caped crusader and Burt Ward as his trusty sidekick. Semple helped to develop and write for the series, including penning the feature film version based on it.
Batman: The Animated Series was first broadcast on Fox from September 1992 to September 1995. It was the first entry in what would turn into a new DC shared continuity universe. And it also surprisingly took on a much more adult tone. It was a show where both kids and adults could enjoy alike.
