I have a question for you, M. Why do you think that some very good actors who tried a tv series never caught on? I’m thinking particularly of Henry Fonda and James Stewart, whose relaxed yet intense temperaments never really found a niche on the tube, though I’m sure that others could be named. Perhaps it was the writing, or the narrowness of the capacity of network television in the ’50s-70s to give movie actors a larger canvas?

One of the few actors whose film legacy seemed buried by his success in a long running program appeared to be Richard Basehart. If it weren’t for TCM’s range of movies, encompassing everything from Anthony Mann to Fellini, and the ongoing revival of interest in film noir, I’d probably never know that Basehart was more than just Admiral Nelson in the schlocky Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.

In any case, thanks for this two parter. It was great fun to read. I hope that TV Guide realizes their archives may be more marketable than they know soon.

That doesn’t mean that you were wrong in leaving it out. But I want to include it in case anyone wants to know about it.

Hazel was a cartoon that regularly appeared in the Saturday Evening Post, if I am not mistaken.

And, of course, The Adam Family was a cartoon that regularly appeared in The New Yorker. The creator, Charles Adams, was one of the many celebrities who attended the premiere of Cleopatra, which had received tons of publicity at the time due to the Burton-Taylor romance. “I came to see the Asp,” he said.

Shirley Booth did a lot of radio in the 40s and was a regular as Miss Duffy on Duffy’s Tavern.

Andy Griffith had a popular comedy record about a hillbilly describing the first football game he ever saw.

I guess Patty Duke played identical cousins because the producers did not want to be accused of ripping off Hayley Mills’ double act as twins in the popular movie The Parent Trap. I have never met or heard of identical cousins during my lifetime. Has anybody?

One of my favorite Alfred Hitchcock episodes features Steve McQueen, his current wife Neile Adams and Peter Lorre. It was called “The Man from the South.” McQueen picks up single gal Adams in a bar at 8 a.m. and then they both encounter Lorre who says he is very wealthy. He makes a bet with McQueen. He’ll give him his new Convertible if McQueen’s cigarette lighter lights up ten times in a row. If McQueen loses he forfeits the little finger on his left hand.
The ending of this one is unforgettable.