The Silver Screen Oasis

In the initial run of M*A*S*H I didn't love the Colonel or Trapper all that much, but as I've seen the reruns I've begun to like them a lot more. I was also really annoyed with the Frank Burns character at first, but with the passage of time I've started to appreciate Larry Linville's skill at the seemingly impossible task in bringing that character to life and to our sympathies. I think it was very wise of him to leave the show when he did, feeling that he had brought the character as far as it could go.

You're a better man than I am, Gunga Din if you could muster up any sympathies for Frank. I couldn't warm up to him if he was a pot bellied stove in the middle of an igloo.

However, I do love Harry Morgan in anything he does, no matter if it's TV or movies.

Anne

I had to think about this one. I watched a lot of sitcoms when I was a kid, but looking back, I realized that I never really cared that much about them or missed them when they went off the air. I guess I was more emotionally involved with the "serious" shows. When I liked comedy TV, it tended to be sketch shows such as Carol Burnett or "Monty Python's Flying Circus" rather than sitcoms.

Still, I find myself thinking of "Mary Tyler Moore Show" and "Bob Newhart Show" (when he played a shrink in Chicago) when I have to name my favorite. Lou Grant, Ted Baxter and Murray Slaughter have burned their way into my consciousness. (And I don't especially like the "Chuckles the Clown" episode.)

MikeBSG wrote:Lou Grant, Ted Baxter and Murray Slaughter have burned their way into my consciousness. (And I don't especially like the "Chuckles the Clown" episode.)

Hi Mike! I'm not crazy about that episode either and I'm puzzled that it gets so many huge laughs. I find the earlier episodes much funnier.

Are there any closet Flintsone's fans out there? I know I loved that show, and while it was animation, it was defintiely a sitcom. You can see a lot of Honeymooners in Fred and the stone clan. It was always fun to see the "stone age" solutions to modern life. They also used just about every pun possible to incorporate "stone, "gravel" "rock" etc...

Flintstones

Weren't they the first prime time animated series? I used to like them a lot when I was young but I don't really have a yearning for it now.

Stoney Curtis and Cary Granite were my two favorite names. Were you a Kazoo fan or not? There are usually two camps. Kind of like which Darrin on "Bewitched" did you like better.

I forgot Burns and Allen, whom I watched recently on the computer. The dialogue was great. The timing also, even when they had to wait for the laugh track.

Hey Chris,
Yes, I believe the Flintstones was the first animated prime-time show. You could put me in the pre-Kazoo camp. Though I am afraid to admit that I enjoyed the show enough to know that the little green alien's name was actually the Great Gazoo.

Mel,
Burns and Allen was terrific with George coming out on the "porch" and talking directly to the audience. Very unique format that worked perfectly for the cigar twirling Mr. Burns.

[quote="cinemalover"]Hey Chris,
Yes, I believe the Flintstones was the first animated prime-time show. You could put me in the pre-Kazoo camp. Though I am afraid to admit that I enjoyed the show enough to know that the little green alien's name was actually the Great Gazoo."


That's what I get for thinking. Don't mind me. I'll be over in the corner.

Chris
You can see Burns and Allen and other sitcoms on LIKETELEVISION on the computer ... mel

I think most people were upset when Col. Blake was killed off, but not half as much as they were when Hello, Larry appeared.

Overall favorite has to M*A*S*H*. You just can'teat it. It was funny from beginning to end and you could really care about the characters.
I was in highschool when it ended and I remember spending my 1st period English class discussing the last episode. Most fun I've ever had in English class.

More modern sitcom I love is "Home Improvement," at least for the first few seasons. Very funny stuff.

I remember watching shows like "Mary Tyler Moore" as a kid. The great thing about those shows is that they were funny on so many levels. There was the straight forward level that a kid of 9 or 10 could appreciate aand then there was other stuff, going on over the kids heads. Very subtle, but the adults got it. I know the first time I watched "MTM" on TVland as an adult, I was shocked to my marrow to realize that Mary had sex! Shows today aren't sublte about the sex stuff.

I too liked "The Flintstones," although I think I burned out on them because they were a staple of UHF TV back when I was a kid.

Okay, what do you think of the "big" controversy about "The Flintstones." Were they simply a rip-off of "The Honeymooners" or not?

That idea never crossed my mind in all the years that I watched "The Flintstones," but apparently this is quite a bitter point of contention with many people.

Hi Mike,
I think I prefer to look at The Flintstones as a homage to The Honeymooners rather than a rip. There are certainly a ton of similarities between Fred and Wilma, Barney and Betty and their Honeymooner counterparts, but I think The Flintstones obviously took those relationships in unique directions. Add Dino and Pebbles to the mix and they created a completely different dynamic to structure the stories around.

jondaris wrote:I think most people were upset when Col. Blake was killed off, but not half as much as they were when Hello, Larry appeared.

LOL....... yeah, what was Maclean Stevenson thinking with a trade-off of shows like that? I think he was in a few more after Hello, Larry, though I'd be hard-pressed to remember what they were.

Count me among the Flintstones fans back when I was a youngster. Fred was always hilarious. Though I haven't seen it in ages, I believe it would still hold up for me after all this passage of time.