THE TWILIGHT ZONE (1959)

 

THE TWILIGHT ZONE
(CBS, October 2, 1959-June 19, 1964)
 
Cayuga Productions Inc., CBS Productions

 

MAIN CAST:
Rod Serling – Narrator

 

The Twilight Zone was an anthology series created, produced and written by Rod Serling that delivered morality lessons and delved into modern day issues with often fantastical and science-fiction elements to make the messages more palatable to the average viewer. Serling had gained prominence in American television during the 1950s, but dealt with the constant aggravation of his stories being altered on the whims of the networks and their sponsors. He figured that robots, aliens and the supernatural might significantly remove things from reality and give him more leeway to present thought-provoking controversial ideas. In 1957, he wrote the pitch pilot “The Time Element”, depicting a man sent back to 1941 Honolulu who tried to warn everyone about the eminent attack on Pearl Harbor unsuccessfully, but it was ultimately rejected and shelved. Bert Granet rediscovered it a year later and produced it as an episode of Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse, and its success allowed Serling an opportunity to do his series.

The Twilight Zone debuted on CBS on October 2, 1959, running for 5 seasons. While reviewers praised the series, it initially struggled in the ratings with audiences until close to the end of the first season. Serling wrote or co-wrote 92 of the show’s 156 episodes and served as the narrator, delivering monologues that set up the moment when the story’s characters “entered the Twilight Zone” and the story’s moral at the end. While he appeared in promos for the series, it wouldn’t be until the second season that he would appear on screen to deliver those monologues. Additional writers included Charles Beaumont (until complications from a developing brain disease reduced his involvement), Richard Matheson, George Clayton Johnson, Montgomery Pittman, Earl Hamner Jr., Reginald Rose, Jerry Sohl, John Tomerlin (both of whom ghostwrote for Beaumont), and Richard De Roy. Bernard Hermann composed the series’ theme for the first season, but was replaced from the second season on by Marius Constant’s more-familiar composition. As it was an anthology series, it had no permanent characters and a rotating roster of actors; some well-known at the time, and others just beginning their careers. Several actors would make return appearances in various episodes as other characters, including William Shatner, Burgess Meredith, William Windom, Jack Klugman and Martin Landau, with Robert McCord having appeared in the most.

Difficulties in finding a sponsor for the 4^th season resulted in the show being replaced by Fair Exchange, although it was ultimately renewed as a mid-season replacement for the replacement. To fill that timeslot, CBS demanded the series be expanded to an hour-long format, which didn’t sit well with Serling and the production crew. Serling’s involvement as an executive producer was reduced this season, and his monologues were filmed against a gray background back-to-back during his infrequent trips to Los Angeles. “The” was also dropped from the title. The 5^th season returned to the half-hour format, but was plagued by a number of unpopular decisions by new producer William Froug; such as shelving a script for “The Doll” which was later made an episode of Amazing Stories (and won a Writer’s Guild Award nomination) and alienating Johnson by having De Roy rewrite and dilute his screenplay for what would become “Ninety Years Without Slumbering”. CBS head Jim Aubrey ultimately decided to cancel the series, having disliked it since his instatement during the 2^nd season as it was an expensive series to produce and using the season’s middling ratings as further justification. Serling, severely burnt out by this time, sold CBS his 40% share of the series and left it behind until returning in 1969 with the similar series Night Gallery on NBC.

The Twilight Zone was nominated for 4 Primetime Emmy Awards, winning 2, and continued to be broadcast in syndicated reruns, initially less the episodes “Sounds and Silences”, “Miniature” and “A Short Drink From a Certain Fountain” due to copyright lawsuits, “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” which was a French short film whose airing as part of the series as a limited-time agreement, and “The Encounter” due to racial overtones. Notably, the series airs on Syfy regularly in late-night slots and as part of marathons for New Year’s and the 4^th of July, although they’re usually altered to allow for more commercials. Three revivals have been attempted—one in 1985 lasting two seasons, one in 2002 lasting one, and one in 2019 which concluded after two—as well as an infamous film version in 1983 that resulted in the deaths of actor Vic Morrow and two children, and a 1994 made-for-television film comprised of two stories found by Serling’s widow, Carol.

THE LOST SAUCER

THE LOST SAUCER

(ABC, September 6-December 20, 1975)

Sid & Marty Krofft Television Productions

MAIN CAST:

Ruth Buzzi – Fi, Professor Pringle

Jim Nabors – Fum, Doctor Locker

Jarrod Johnson – Jerry

Alice Playten – Alice

Larry Larsen - Dorse

            The Lost Saucer was one of two space-themed programs being developed by Krofft Television Productions in 1975; the other being Far Out Space Nuts. Those two shows marked a departure from the typical Krofft formula with the toned-down use of puppet characters and the reliance on guest-stars.

Jerry, Alice, Fi and Fum gathering fruit.

            Developed by Dick Morgan, the series followed the adventures of two bumbling time-traveling androids from the year 2369: Fi (Ruth Buzzi) and Fum (Jim Nabors). They landed their flying saucer on present-day Earth where they invited a young boy named Jerry (Jarrod Johnson) and his babysitter Alice (Alice Playten) to check out their craft. However, when their ship drew crowds the androids became nervous and took off with Jerry and Alice. The Yearometer—the device that allowed them to travel to a specific destination in time—ended up damaged, leaving them unable to return Jerry and Alice to their proper time. The quartet proceeded to travel back and forth through time, visiting Earth or one of its colonies at different periods and interacting with the eccentric individuals that lived there. Along for the ride was the only mascot costumed character, the Dorse (Larry Larsen): a half-dog, half-horse hybrid who could talk. Nabors and Buzzi also played a dual role as the creators of the androids, Dr. Locker and Professor Pringle (with Buzzi’s being reminiscent of her character from Laugh-In).

A newly-hatched Chickophant inside the ship.

            The Lost Saucer debuted on ABC on September 6, 1975. The series was written by Si Rose, Barry E. Blitzer, John Fenton Murray, William J. Keenan, Larry Markes, John L. Greene, Arthur Phillips, Fred Fox and Seaman Jacobs, with music by Michael Lloyd. Each episode dealt with a specific theme and delivered a pro-social message related to it often through the use of satire. They dealt with topics such as obesity, blind conformity, wasting resources, narcissism, and prejudice, among others. Nabors was a huge get for the show, as he had greatly reduced his television presence following the cancellation of The Jim Nabors Hour. Although he wasn’t sought after for his singing ability, a few song numbers managed to be worked in for him. In a twist, Playten was hired because of her singing ability; specifically, the Kroffts discovered her while she was recording the theme song for ABC’s Funshine Saturday. To save on the budget, sets were frequently redressed and reused in various episodes, and costumes and props were borrowed from other programs. A lot of the futuristic space technology was shared between Saucer and Space Nuts during both shows’ productions.

The Lost Saucer VHS.

            The Lost Saucer ran a single season of 16 episodes, during which time Nabors and Buzzi hosted ABC’s Thanksgiving Funshine Festival in character. It remained on ABC’s schedule until it was merged into The Kroft Supershow for the following season. The first six episodes were rerun in slightly shortened versions until Supershow was decreased to 60 minutes and Saucer was dropped. Saucer’s first episode was included on Rhino Home Video’s The World of Sid & Marty Krofft VHS collection in 1999, which was subsequently re-released to DVD in 2002. Rhino also released a single 2-episode VHS of Saucer. In 2005, Rhino released a stripped-down version of The World of Sid & Marty Krofft as Saturday Morning with Sid & Marty Krofft.

EPISODE GUIDE:

“894X2RY713, I Love You” (9/6/75) – In the far future, Jerry and Alice are arrested for not having numbers and their faces exposed in public.

“The Tiny Years” (9/13/75) – The saucer lands in a time when everyone is shrunken and has a mistrust of anyone large.

“My Fair Robot” (9/20/75) – Helping a bumbling robot leads Fi and Jerry to be arrested as robot rustlers.

“Transylvania 2300” (9/27/75) – A mad scientist turns Fi and Fum into his slaves.

“Beautiful Downtown Atlantis” (10/4/75) – The saucer crashes into Atlantis and its ruler turns it into a TV station and Fi and Fum into the unwilling stars.

“Where Did Everybody Go?” (10/11/75) – The saucer lands in a place where the ruler’s paranoia caused him to turn all his people invisible.

“Get a Dorse” (10/18/75) – In a time of depleted power, three scientists try to get Dorse to operate a treadmill generator.

“Androids Come Home” (10/25/75) – When the saucer returns home with Jerry and Alice, Fi and Fum’s creators decide the androids must be recycled.

“Valley of the Chickaphants” (11/1/75) – The saucer ends up in a time when people have reverted to the Stone Age and half-chicken, half-elephant creatures roam.

“Return to the Valley of the Chickaphants” (11/8/75) – The crew discovers that the Dorse brought a chickaphant egg on board.

“The Laughing Years” (11/15/75) – The androids are in trouble when they end up in a place where not smiling is illegal.

“Fat Is Beautiful” (11/22/75) – The saucer winds up in a land where physical activity and being thin are outlawed.

“Planet of Lookalikes” (11/29/75) – Fi and Fum are arrested for a traffic violation and discover the civilization is comprised of clones of a narcissistic ruler.

“Fi Am Woman” (12/6/75) – Fum gets amnesia and falls in love with a beautiful android.

“Polka Dot Years” (12/13/75) – The saucer malfunctions in a land where people without dotted faces are discriminated against.

“Land of the Talking Plants” (12/20/75) – Looking for food takes the saucer to a land where plants have learned to speak.

LIDSVILLE

LIDSVILLE

(ABC, September 11, 1971-January 1, 1972)

Sid & Marty Krofft Television Productions

MAIN CAST:

Butch Patrick – Mark

Billie Hayes – Weenie the Genie, Witchiepoo

Charles Nelson Reilly – Horatio J. HooDoo, Merlo the Magician

Walker Edmiston – Raunchy Rabbit, Jack of Clubs, Bela, Boris, Imperial Wizard, Hiram, Admiral Scuttlebutt, Big Chief Sitting Duck

Lennie Weinrib – Mr. Big, Captain Hooknose, Rah-Rah, Colonel Poom, Mr. Chow, Pierre LeSewer, Scorchy, Tex, Tonsilini

Joan Gerber – Madame Ring-a-Ding, Mother Wheels, Nursie, Twirly, Little Ben

Sharon Baird – Raunchy Rabbit (performer), various

Angelo Rossitto – Mr. Big (performer), various

Joy Campbell – Nursie (performer), various

Felix Silla – Colonel Poom (performer), various

Van Snowden – Tonsilini (performer), various

            Lidsville is the fourth television show featuring the work of Sid and Marty Krofft, and the third made through their production company. It utilized their style of actors in makeup filmed alongside performers in full mascot costumes and puppets with voice actors supplying the voices. Lidsville followed the adventures of young Mark (Butch Patrick) after he falls into a magician’s hat and winds up in a land of living hats. The land was frequently terrorized by magician Horatio J. HooDoo (Charles Nelson Reilly, who also played the magician in Mark’s world) in order to extort money from them. HooDooo kept an eye on the populace via a TV-like eyeball called The Evil Eye, and travelled around in his top hat-like Hatamaran. HooDoo was alerted to Mark’s arrival and took an interest, believing Mark a spy. HooDoo would also actively prevent his attempts to return home when Mark stole the magic ring that contained HooDoo’s bumbling genie slave, Weenie (Billie Hayes, replacing an initially cast Billy Barty who fell ill before production).

Mark and Weenie the Genie.

            Lidsville was inspired by Sid Krofft’s large hat collection. One day he pondered what would happen if they came to life and exhibited their own unique personalities. It was the Kroffts’ most ambitious project at the time, boasting a tremendous assortment of both costumed characters and puppets. While a number of previous Krofft players were retained from the prior shows to play the characters when they were the focus of a scene, the sheer volume of these characters meant they had to hire additional support in the form of The Hermine Midgets or even children for any background characters. When the focus would shift characters between shots, the players had to trade costumes and, over the course of the show, often ended up playing multiple characters.

Citizens of Lidsville (from front left): Mr. Chow, Tex, Hiram and Little Ben, Weenie, Madame Ring-a-Ding, Scorchy, Nursie, Colonel Poom, Rah-Rah, Admiral Scuttlebutt, and Big Chief Sitting Duck.

The citizens of Lidsville, the Good Hats, included Colonel Poom (Felix Silla & Lennie Weinrib using a British accent), a pith helmet who was the de factor leader of the town; Rah-Rah (Jerry Maren & Weinrib), a football helmet who acted like a stereotypical “dumb jock”; Mother Wheels (Joan Gerber), an elderly motorcycle helmet always on her bike; Madame Ring-a-Ding (Gerber), a party hat who was the town social director; Mr. Chow (Weinrib using a Chinese accent), a chef’s toque with a Manchurian mustache that served as the town’s top chef; Tonsilini (Van Snowden & Weinrib), an opera hat that signs everything he says; Hiram (Walker Edmiston), a farmer’s straw hat often seen carrying around piglet Little Ben (Gerber); Admiral Scuttlebutt (Edmiston), an admiral’s bicorne that speaks in naval clichés; Big Chief Sitting Duck (Edmiston), a feathered Indian chief’s hat that wears an Indian blanket; Twirly (Gerber), a beanie that can use his propeller to fly; Nursie (Joy Campbell  & Gerber), a nurse’s hat that serves as the town’s doctor; Tex (Weinrib impersonating John Wayne), a cowboy hat; Pierre LeSewer (Weinrib), a French beret that frequently popped out of the town sewers; and Scorchy (Weinrib), a fire hydrant that wore a firefighter’s helmet and serves as the town’s early warning system. Each of the Good Hats lived in a house that emphasized their personality.

HooDoo with the Bad Hats and Raunchy Rabbit.

            HooDoo had his own group of hats, called The Bad Hats. They consisted of Mr. Big (Angelo Rossitto & Lennie Weinrib), a gangster fedora that leads the group; Captain Hooknose (Weinrib), a pirate hat with a hook for a nose; Bela (Walker Edmiston, impersonating Bela Lugosi for which the character was named), a vampire-like tophat; and Boris (Edmiston, impersonating Peter Lorre), an axe-wielding executioner’s hood. HooDoo’s non-hat henchmen included Raunchy Rabbit (Sharon Baird & Edmiston), a dimwitted fez-wearing rabbit, and Jack of Clubs (Edmiston), a walking deck of playing cards that could speak from both Jack-of-Clubs faces. However, HooDoo wasn’t actually in charge as he answered to the Imperial Wizard (Edmiston).

HooDoo zapping.

            Lidsville debuted on ABC on September 11, 1971 after recording the entire show in a brisk 11 weeks. Many would come to note that the series was an almost superficial repackaging of H.R. Pufnstuff as it utilized a similar concept (it also bore a resemblance to the animated British program, Hattytown Tales). There was even an unsubstantiated report from 1974’s Film Fan Monthly saying that Mark Lester, who co-starred with Pufnstuff’s Jack Wild in Olvier!, was actually the original choice to play Mark in Lidsville. Also, Hayes reprised her role of Witchiepoo, the villain of that series, in an episode of Lidsville (playing a double role). However, one key difference is that while the lost boy lead of Pufnstuff seemed almost happy to be with his new friends, Mark, despite putting on a happy face, always had that underlying sense of just wanting to get home (which could have stemmed from that fact that Patrick had reservations about taking the role from the outset, and wanting to be done with the grueling shooting schedule). Also, HooDoo’s wickedness was on full display, making him seem like as genuine a threat as possible as network censors would allow.

The citizens of Lidsville tattle on HooDoo to his mother (Muriel Landers).

The series was written by John Fenton Murray, Warren S. Murray, Rita Sedran Rose, Jack Raymond, Larry Alexander, Marc B. Ray, Si Rose, Elroy Schwartz and Paul Wayne. Like other Krofft productions, Lidsville often featured a musical number in its episodes, with music provided by Les Szarvas; however, unlike those other shows, the music wasn’t always as well integrated into the narrative of the episode. The intro was filmed at Six Flags Over Texas, with the rest of the show being shot Paramount Pictures’ film studio in Los Angeles. Like previous Krofft shows, many had come to regard it as an acid trip—thanks to the abundance of colors used and weird characters—and suspected its name derived from the drug slang version of “lid”, rather than the slang for hat.

HooDoo taking Witchiepoo terrorizing in his Hatamaran.

Lidsville only ran for a single season, however it remained on the network through 1973, and then went over to NBC for another year of reruns. Horatio J. HooDoo would continue to make appearances in future Krofft productions, as well as ABC’s 1972 preview special, The Brady Bunch Meets ABC’s Saturday Superstars. However, Paul Gale would play the role in all further appearances as Reilly hated the costume and all the make-up required; a fact that was withheld from him when he took the role. The hat people also made an appearance in the 1973 Ice Capades, as well as the live stage show, The World of Sid & Marty Krofft Live at the Hollywood Bowl. The stage show was recorded and later shown as a television special; however, the Lidsville characters were removed from a 1990s Nick at Nite broadcast.

The Good Hats as depicted in the Lidsville comic.

Gold Key Comics published a 5-issue Lidsville comic that was a mix of original stories and episode adaptations. While the stories themselves were faithful to the show, very little else was. For instance, Weenie’s bumbling was toned down and his magic could only work when Mark rubbed the magic ring. Boris made no appearances outside of the covers. Jack of Clubs was depicted as being a singular card rather than a deck. The established residents of Lidsville had some noticeable differences in their appearance, and new characters unique to the comic made appearances. Other merchandise released for the show included two versions of a HooDoo and a Weenie Halloween costume by Collegeville, a tin lunch box from Aladdin, a magic slate and a an activity book, both by Whitman.

The complete series DVD.

In 1985, Embassy Home Entertainment released two volumes of episodes under their Children’s Treasures banner as part of The World of Sid & Marty Krofft video collection. The first episode was included on Rhino Home Video’s The World of Sid & Marty Krofft VHS collection in 1999, which was subsequently re-released to DVD in 2002. Rhino also released a single 2-episode VHS of Lidsville. In 2004, Rhino released The Complete Lidsville VHS collection under their Rhino Handmade banner, which was limited to 3,000 copies and retailed for an amazing $83.98. The following year, Rhino released Lidsville: The Complete Series to DVD. Later in 2005, Rhino released a stripped-down version of The World of Sid & Marty Krofft as Saturday Morning with Sid & Marty Krofft. In 2010, “Mark and the Beanstalk” was included on the DVD Sid & Marty Krofft’s Saturday Morning Hits by SMK Pictures.

MAIN CAST:

“World in a Hat” (9/11/71) – Mark falls into a magician’s hat and ends up in a magical world where the evil HooDoo believes he is a spy.

“Show Me the Way to Go Home” (9/18/71) – HooDoo attempts to stop Mark, Weenie and Poom from reaching The Golden Ladder.

“Fly Now, Vacuum Later” (9/25/71) – HooDoo uses a giant vacuum cleaner in order to swallow Mark and his magic carpet.

“Weenie, Weenie, Where’s Our Genie?” (10/2/71) – Weenie runs away and HooDoo captures Nursie and Scorchy as ransom for his return.

“Let’s Hear it for Whizzo” (10/9/71) – HooDoo evicts all the residents of Lidsville so Mark challenges him to a wizard duel.

“Is There a Mayor in the House?” (10/16/71) – Mark suggests the citizens should elect a mayor, so HooDoo attempts to rig the election.  

“Take Me to Your Rabbit” (10/23/71) – A lightning strike gives Raunchy Rabbit HooDoo’s magical powers.

“Have I Got a Girl for HooDoo” (10/30/71) – Mark tries to free Wilhelmina W. Witchiepoo from the spell that makes her infatuated with HooDoo.

“Mark and the Beanstalk” (11/6/71) – HooDoo disguises himself as Mark and attempts to use a beanstalk to escape to Mark’s world.

“Turn in Your Turban, You’re Through” (11/13/71) – HooDoo turns Mark into his personal servant by giving him Weenie’s powers.

“Alias, the Imperial Wizard” (11/20/71) – HooDoo kidnaps several of the hat people in order to plan a party for the Imperial Wizard.

“A Little HooDoo Goes a Long Way” (11/27/71) – Weenie gets sick just as the Bad Hats plan to overthrow HooDoo.

“Oh, Brother” (12/4/71) – HooDoo’s good twin brother visits and confusion abounds.

“HooDoo Who?” (12/11/71) – HooDoo ends up with amnesia.

“The Old Hat Home” (12/18/71) – HooDoo crashes a charity event and advances the ages of all in attendance.

“The Great Brain Robbery” (12/25/71) – HooDoo lures the good hat people into his Brain Wash machine so they’ll be his army against the Imperial Wizard.

“Mommy Hoo Doo” (1/1/72) – HooDoo’s mother comes to visit and the citizens of Lidsville try to convince her that her son is a baddie.

HOT DOG

HOT DOG

(NBC, September 12-December 5, 1970)

Lee Mendelson-Frank Buxton Joint Film Productions

MAIN CAST:

Tom Smothers – Host (pilot)

Jonathan Winters – Host, various

Woody Allen – Host

Jo Anne Worley – Host

            In 1969, NBC commissioned several one-hour specials to serve as pilots for their next potential educational series. The winner was Hot Dog, whose pilot aired on March 28, 1970. Hot Dog was an edutainment documentary series created by Frank Buxton, inspired by his travels as a comedian and as a host of ABC’s Discovery. Hot Dog was described as a “program about stuff” and took a comedic look at explaining everyday things and/or how they were made (plywood, bicycles, baseballs, spaghetti, etc.), as well as answered kids’ questions about them.

            Hot Dog debuted on NBC on September 12, 1970. It was hosted by Jo Anne Worley, Woody Allen (before he became notable in film), and Jonathan Winters, who replaced Tom Smothers from the pilot. The three hosts each had their own particular style: Winters often humorously portrayed characters that were related to the topic being discussed; Allen gave bizarre responses; and Worley strove to give correct answers. But it was through a combination of their antics and creative editing, music and imaginative cinematography that the real answers would reveal themselves. Some of the footage included visits to various factories and kids being quizzed on the items in question.

            The series was co-produced by Lee Mendelson and featured a large number of editors including Bill Westwick, Chuck Barbee (also the director of photography), Gerald K. Wolf, Don Wiley, Pat Johnson, Bill Bishop, Sandy Nichols, Ben Maiden and Charlie Peterson. Ed Bogas and The Fillmore Coporation handled the music direction, and some music was provided by The Youngbloods. 70 topics were covered over the course of 13 episodes, with upwards of 5 being covered per episode.

Promo for Hot Dog.

The series was positively reviewed and lauded, winning a Peabody Award for “Best Children’s Series”. Unfortunately, it failed to draw in a suitable viewing audience. Mendelson blamed it on the time slot NBC put it in, which resulted in its being constantly preempted on the West Coast for baseball. Hot Dog continued to air in reruns until the fall of 1971, and was later syndicated during the 1977-78 season to coincide with Allen’s rising movie career. Individual topic segments were sold to schools on 16mm film and were used on the local Los Angeles children’s program, That’s Cat. A book based on the show was published in 1971 by Grosset & Dunlap and written by Jean Lewis. Before Buxton’s death in 2018, plans for a DVD release of the series was in the works, according to his website.

EPISODE GUIDE:

Unavailable.

SHENANIGANS

SHENANIGANS

(ABC, September 26, 1964-March 20, September 25-December 18, 1965)

Heatter-Quigley Productions, Four Star Television

MAIN CAST:

Stubby Kaye – The Mayor

Kenny Williams – Kenny the Cop/Announcer

            Shenanigans was a Saturday morning game show developed by the Milton Bradley Company for Heatter-Quigley Productions.

High shot of the contestant moving up the game board.

            The show was similar to Heatter-Quigley’s earlier Video Village Junior in that it was like a living board game. Two children contestants moved around a giant game board by a number of spaces (1-4) determined by a set of flashing lights stopped when two other children, known as “The Pressers”, pressed a button. The children then had to either answer a question correctly or successfully perform a stunt to earn “Shenaniganzas”; in-game money used to exchange for prizes in the Top Value Stamps Catalog. “Shenaniganzas” would also be awarded whenever a contestant landed on specific spots on the board. Other spots included “Lose a Turn”, “Free Turn”, or “Go to the Dog House”, which acted like a time-out jail for a contestant until they pressed an unmarked button that played a specifically requested sound. 

Kenny the Cop puts a contestant in the dog house.

Many of the stunts were inspired by Milton Bradley’s games, such as having to play Operation on a life-sized dummy. To determine which kid started the game, the two of them played a game of Time Bomb (essentially “Hot Potato” with a toy bomb). There was also an assortment of carnival games, such as a test of strength, balloon popping, and a haunted house where a mystery prize could be retrieved from the “Shenanighoul” that lived inside. The first one across the finish line or farthest ahead when time ran out won the game. The runner-up got whatever “Shenaniganzas” they accumulated and an assortment of consolation prizes like fishing rods or bikes, as well as a copy of the Shenanigans board game. The winner also won the board game and a slightly better assortment of prizes, such as a record player. The Pressers were also given an assortment of Milton Bradley games for their participation.

Confronting the Shenanighoul for a prize.

            Shenanigans originally aired locally on New York City’s WPIX in 1952 with Bob Quigley serving as the host. It only lasted 6 months. For the retooled ABC version, Stubby Kaye was enlisted as “The Mayor of Shenanigans” and also sang the theme song written by Barry DeVorzon (as DeVorshon) and Kelly Gordon. Kenny Williams served as the announcer and Kenny the Cop, similar to the roles he performed on Video Village. Along with standard commercial breaks, a loud Morse code-like signal would tell Williams to head over to a wall of Milton Bradley games and do an in-show commercial for one of them. Kaye and Williams would also perform various goofy comedy routines to open and close out each episode. The show’s music was composed by Arlo and costumes were done by Deryk Brian.

The Shenanigans board game.

            Shenanigans debuted on September 26, 1964, and was well-received. It took a hiatus for the summer and returned the following September. Unfortunately, the ratings declined substantially and the show as cancelled in December of 1965.

EPISODE GUIDE:

N/A

THE MAGIC LAND OF ALLAKAZAM

THE MAGIC LAND OF ALLAKAZAM

(CBS, ABC, October 1, 1960-December 26, 1964)

Mark Wilson Productions

MAIN CAST:

Mark Wilson – Himself

Nani Darnell – Herself

Mike Wilson – Himself

Bev Bergeron – Rebo the Clown

Jackie Joseph – Assistant

Lynn Barton – Assistant

            The family that magics together stays together. At least in the case of the Wilson family.

Magician Mark Wilson pulling a rabbit out of a hat.

            Mark Wilson had become interested in magic when he was eight years old and saw magician Tommy Martin perform at an Indianapolis hotel his family was staying at. After his family moved to Texas, Wilson took a job at the Douglas Magicland shop as a teenager to further his knowledge and work on his own magical skills. As he gradually improved, he would perform shows at small functions around the area.

Wilson performing the levitation trick on his assistant and wife, Nani.

            With the rise of television, Wilson saw an opportunity to bring his magic act to a larger audience and was able to secure a show on local ABC affiliate WFAA in 1954 called Time for Magic. Using the marketing training he gained in college, he managed to secure sponsorship from Dr. Pepper. As one of the first magic shows on television, it quickly grew in popularity and spread in further markets throughout Texas. In 1957, Wilson attempted to go to a network by creating the syndicated series Magic Circus with sponsor 3M. NBC was interested in the series, but instead chose to go with an hour-long golf program hosted by Bob Crosby. Wilson tried again by securing a larger sponsor: Kellogg’s. Kellogg’s request was that the show’s name be presented as AllaKazam so that the “K” would be in the middle and stylized after the Kellogg’s logo. Wilson agreed and they secured him a spot on a network--a mere 10 weeks before the first episode was scheduled to air.

The Wilsons with Rebo the Clown.

            The Magic Land of AllaKazam debuted on CBS on October 1, 1960. The series was the first magic show on network television, and the first to be videotaped and nationally syndicated. It used a fantasy storyline set in the titled magic land to lead into the various magic tricks performed. Wilson was assisted by his wife, Nani Darnell, and their son, Mike, along with the mute Rebo the Clown (Bev Bergeron). They would often operate and interact with puppet characters, as well as various evil foes and residents of the world of AllaKazam. While the series’ theme was provided by the Leo Burnett Agency, the advertising firm that represented Kellogg’s, the rest of the show’s music was provided by organist Jack Anderson, whom Wilson brought over from Time for Magic. Wilson also recruited Time for Magic director Andrew Sidaris to direct AllaKazam.

Mike tickles his mother's feet after she's been cut in half.

            To help develop the stories, tricks and props used each week, the Wilsons recruited some of the best talent they could. The main source of the props and builders came from the Owen Brothers Magic Company (now Owen Magic Supreme), run by brothers Carl Owen and H. Emmett Owen. Bobby “Torchy” Towner was a skilled craftsman and creative genius from Owen that served as both a magic coordinator and portrayed various characters on the show, such as the King of AllaKazam. The other credited magic coordinator was Robert Fenton, who had the unique ability to locate strange materials to use in building the props. John Gaughan was the Wilsons’ first assistant starting from when he was 14 and learned illusion building from Carl Owen, which led him to become the head of the Wilsons’ prop shop. Leo Behnke joined the show from Owen and performed weekly tricks with audience members, sleight of hand and table top magic, created magic tricks for Kellogg’s cereal premiums, handled the Wilsons’ fan mail and produced an AllaKazam comic that was given out to children in the audience. Lin Searles was an expert card mechanic and student of gambling routines that wrote instructions for small card tricks for Owen before becoming the writer and script supervisor of AllaKazam. Chuck Burnes served as a clown for Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Baily Circus before joining the show in the recurring role of kindly toymaker Christopher Periwinkle. Francis Martineau was a nightclub performer and gifted artist recruited to be the first foreman of the Wilsons’ shop in the second season, creating conceptual drawings for Wilson’s various projects. Dick Zimmerman was an inventive magician who served as a consultant on the show, providing ideas for various tricks for the first season. Two lovely assistants were hired personally by Darnell, with the requirements including having a background in dance, certain physical requirements, the ability to learn quickly, and weren’t blonde (as she was). Those assistants ended up being Jackie Joseph, who had a long and varied career in television and movies after AllaKazam, and Lynn Barton, whose career was brief before she retired from show business.

While the magic tricks were common stage show fare (cutting a person in half, making an animal appear, making a person disappear, sleight of hand, etc.), the creative team behind the series made it so that they looked visually interesting. It was often the first introduction to magic for many people, including children who would one day pursue an interest or career in magic. Wilson insisted that in order to keep the authenticity of the tricks intact, they had to performed each show in front of a live studio audience and each trick with as few edits as possible; that way, the home audience was assured they were seeing the exact same thing that the studio audience was without added camera trickery.

Mark and Nani with the various Kellogg's cereals that would feature their magic tricks.

For the first season, reruns of Hanna-Barbera’s Huckleberry Hound, Yogi Bear and Pixie and Dixie were aired during the show. As it became popular in the ratings, these cartoons were dropped as of the second season. After two years, Kellogg’s decided to discontinue the main brand of cereal Wilson was promoting, Sugar All Stars, causing him to find a new sponsor and network. AllaKazam moved over to ABC for another two years before it was ultimately cancelled after 99 episodes (the final episode was pre-empted by a Presidential speech). It continued to run in international syndication.

Promo image shot outside the CBS studios.

As the pioneers in early television magic, the Wilson family would go on to star in several more magic-centered shows such as The Funny Face Magic Show and The Magic of Mark Wilson, as well as appear on a variety of shows including The Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Show and the original Saturday Night Live. They would also serve as technical advisors for many programs featuring magic or with episodes involving magic, such as The Magician, Circus of the Stars, Hollywood Palace, The Six Million Dollar Man, The Incredible Hulk (1978) and others. As the years went on, they continued to define how magic could be presented on television through lighting, stage design and costuming conventions. Wilson was even the first westerner invited to perform in China after their cultural revolution. The Wilsons’ second son, Greg, ended up following his family into the profession, becoming a magician in his own right.

The original unaired pitch pilot DVD.

Greg currently runs a website called The AllaKazam Archives and a fan club to fund the digitization of his family’s relics from their decades of entertainment; including full episodes of the series. In 1962, Whitman Publishing printed the AllaKazam Magic Paintless Paint Book, which allowed kids to create colored pictures by using only water. Along with various instructional videos, Wilson released 24 episodes of the series across 6 DVDs. The DVDs were available on Mark and Nani’s website, but have been deactivated once Greg’s came online. Both sites offer various items from or about AllaKazam in their respective stores. Peter Pan Records also released two albums from the show in 1962, with one being a single of the show’s theme.

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