PhillyTalk: Ask the Writers and Experts

My Mommy and Grandma and I would watch Alfred Hitchcock Presents religiously. Actually, that's where I learned there even was such a thing as a TV critic, as Grandma would say this and that and Mommy would respond, and then *I* got to say things, too. They would both needlepoint, and I would lie on the floor.

The two Alfred Hitchocks I remember were the one where the woman kills her husband with a frozen leg of lamb and then serves it to the investigating detective and the one where the couple get picked up in some Southern speed trap and harrassed, and it turns out they were tape recording the whole thing and were state or federal investigators.

BTW: I don't buy your assertion about TV writing. A.H. was pretty special, but most of the old stuff was relatively hackneyed.

I remember another show called The Man and The Challenge. It was on 1959-60, when I was 12. George Nader was this scientist/athlete who used "modern" and "psyhcological" techniques to foil the bad guys or solve difficult challenges. My favorite episode was "The Dropper," in which a guy who looked like a schizo Buddy Holly would race pass motorcycle cops, then release a log from his trunk as they got close chasing him. The results weren't pretty.

We used to love Highway Patrol. Broderick Crawford: Move! Move! Move!

Lee Marvin in M-Squad.

The Twilight Zone is definitely worth getting. Have Gun, Will Travel with Richard Boone. Wanted: Dead or Alive with Steve McQueen. Maverick was a great Western, too. The Man From U.N.C.L.E. with Robert Vaughan. Rawhide with Clint Eastwood. We're watching Barbara Stanwyck's Big Valley right now at our house.

I don't know how "good" all these shows were, but I remember them as being lots of fun.

"Coming soon."

With the writers' strike, unless this thing is just flat-out horrible (which it isn't, from what I saw of a preview, but it is pretty bad), it'll be around one of these days.

I think they made 7 episodes.  Fox is in better shape than the other nets, with fewer hours to fill every week, and, of course, American Idol.

One of the joys of "Flight of the Conchords" was how cheesy it was. Very low-cost, even less than "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia." And popular enough with enough of the people who are to find watching other shows that it's pretty likely HBO will be sticking with Conchords for at least a few years to come.

But, it being HBO, I wouldn't look for any new eps until at least this summer.

I gave "Life" a cursory review because it came at the end of everything and so many new shows were debuting that day, including "Pushing Daisies," which I loved. But I like "Life" a lot, and last night it actually got higher ratings than Bionic Woman, which means people are specifically tuning to it. So that's a good sign. The writers' strike makes everything tentative. New shows are particularly vulnerable. Ordinarily, considering its (admittedly modest) ratings growth, I'd say there was a decent chance it would be picked up for a full season.

Well, I wrote a review of it when it came out. I don't like it, just a lot of talking and then "sexy" scenes. Doesn't seem like anybody goes anywhere, and it's depressing, too. I like a little more motion, other than the, you know, in my television shows.

You can chat while you're working. The boss will never know.

 NBC was thinking that My Name Is Earl could hold its own starting the night better than 30 Rock or Scrubs, and it wanted The Office at 9 p.m. because (think "Seinfeld"), that's where you put your strongest show, as it will magnetize viewers, a little bit, from as far away as 8 and 10 p.m. "Earl" is not getting killed by Ugly Betty. It has the exact same demographic rating (18-49, which is what the networks sell) as Ugly Betty, even if it has 2 million fewer viewers, and is actually a bright spot for NBC.

BTW: Survivor knocks the stuffing out of both of them. But NBC hasn't got a lot to crow about. If you want to feel worried about a show, worry about "Betty." She's off 25% in overall viewers this year.

No. The Sopranos' theme, "Woke Up This Morning," is by a British group called Alabama 3, but they couldn't call themselves that in the U.S. because of the group Alabama.

However, there is a preview ("trailer" in show biz jargon) that ran on HBO before the series began, and it is backed by "Green Onions."

The winner of your bet should send my 20% cut to me at The Inquirer.

I'm glad you enjoyed it, since you were only getting two-thirds of the show.

Three Moons Over Milford was a summer show, and as far as I know, it has come to the end of its run. I have no info about whether it will be back again next summer.

Excellent question. It might take me a day or two to answer, but I will get an answer.

Tape might not happen. VHS is going the way of those big eight-track tapes I had in my '79 Impala. But DVDs, maybe!