The Terrible Catsafterme

Brad's Musings and Meanderings

random acts of quoting

"I don't wanna be President. I wanna be a streetcar conductor" - Breezy Bisbane, "Readin' and Writin'"

Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman

March 24th, 2000

SEASON 1 – Syndicated

mhmh

Created by Gail Parent, Ann Marcus, Jerry Adelman, and Daniel Gregory Browne. Developed by Norman Lear.

Opening theme by Earle Hagen. Theme voice-over by Dody Goodman

  • 001. Episode #1.1 – 1/5/1976
    • In the town of Fernwood, Ohio, housewife Mary Hartman (Louise Lasser) has a discussion with her sister Cathy Shumway (Debralee Scott) and friend Loretta Haggers (Mary Kay Place) about the mass murder of their neighbors, the Buck Lombardi family… and their goats and chicken. Reporter Harold Clemens (Archie Hahn) from The Fernwood Currier, who was in town covering the “Fernwood Flasher”, stops by talk to the ladies about the murder. Mary’s husband Tom (Greg Mullavey) works in construction with Loretta’s husband Charlie (Graham Jarvis) and Mary’s father George (Philip Bruns). They discuss the murder, and Tom and Charlie discuss how many times they make love to their wives each week. Tom buys a gun in light of the recent murder. He also rebukes the advances of his wife, saying that he only likes to make love when he initiates it… even though it has been five weeks. Charlie and Loretta have a healthier relationship even though he 43 and she is 22. He is trying to save money so that Loretta can afford to make a demo record of her country-western music. Charlie loads his shotgun and tells Loretta to keep it handy as well. Mary gets a call from police Sgt. Dennis Foley (Bruce Soloman) letting her know that her grandfather Raymond Larkin (Victor Kilian) has been arrested as the “Fernwood Flasher.” Dody Goodman appears in a preview for the next episode as Mary’s mother Martha Shumway. 3/26/15

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Good Times

March 24th, 2000

SEASON 1 – CBS

goodtimes

Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans

Theme song: “Good Times” written by Dave Grusin, Alan Bergman & Marilyn Bergman. Performed by Jim Gilstrap and Blinky Williams

NOTE: This series is a spin-off of the sitcom “Maude”

  • 001. Too Old Blues – 2/8/1974
    • James (John Amos) and Florida Evans (Esther Rolle) live in an inner-city housing project in a black neighborhood in Chicago. with their three children James Jr. “J.J” (Jimmie Walker), Thelma (BernNadette Stanis) and Michael (Ralph Carter). After a long series of odd jobs, James takes a test and gets a letter indicating he is accepted into a government union apprentice program and foresees a bright future for him and the family. James asks Florida to throw an expensive party to celebrate the new job. However, when he shows up at the interview, he is told by the interviewer (Woodrow Parfrey) that there was a mistake and that he is too old for the job. James returns home in the middle of the party, on which Florida has spent the rent money. Florida comforts him by telling them that they’ve made it so far being broke. James continues with his odd jobs, this time working at a car wash. NOTE: This was actually the third episode filmed but was the first to air in order to add more exposition to the show. Ja’Net Dubois is the family friend Willona Woods. Matthew “Stymie” Beard is James’ friend Monty. 5/2/2015

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The Addams Family

March 24th, 2000

SEASON 1 – ABC

addams

Created by David Levy

This series is based on the cartoon strip of the same name by Charles Addams, published in the “New Yorker” magazine

Theme song: “The Addams Family” theme by Vic Mizzy

  • 001. The Addams Family Goes to School – 9/18/1964
    • Mr. Sam Hilliard (Allyn Joslyn) visits the gloomy home of the Addams family on Cemetery Lane because they have an 8-year-old son Pugsley (Ken Weatherwax) and 6-year-old Wednesday (Lisa Loring) who have not been enrolled in Sherwood Elementary School. Hilliard meets the kids’ parents Gomez (John Astin) and Morticia “Tish” (Carolyn Jones), Uncle Fester (Jackie Coogan), Grandmama Addams (Blossom Rock aka Marie Blake), and the family butler Lurch (Ted Cassidy) as well as witnessing all sorts of eerie strangeness and supernatural happenings that the family seems to think are normal. He flees when he is nearly hit by a flying knife thrown by Uncle Fester. Tish is all for sending the kids to school and so they meet with the vice principal Miss Comstock (Madge Blake) and enroll the kids in school. But when Wednesday comes home crying because of the book Grimm’s Family Tales, which features a dragon getting slayed. Lurch brings Hilliard back to their home where they confront him about the violent books in the school. The school ultimately takes the Addams’ advice. Ted Cassidy‘s arm portrays the family’s pet disembodied hand Thing. Rolfe Sedan is Mr. Briggs the postman. Nydia Westman is Miss Morrison. 3/24/15

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Hooperman

March 24th, 2000

SEASON 1 – ABC

hoop

Created by Steven Bochco and Terry Louise Fisher

Theme song: “Hooperman Theme” by Mike Post

  • 001. Hooperman (Pilot) – 9/23/1987
    • Inspector Harry Hooperman (John Ritter) is a plainclothes officer for the San Francisco Police Department, living alone in a dilapidated apartment. He has a close relationship with his elderly landlady Estelle Metzler (Maxine Stuart). Among his co-workers are his steely Captain Celeste “C.Z.” Stern (Barbara Basson), his partner Inspector Clarence McNeil (Felton Perry), dispatcher Betty Bushkin (Alix Elias), conservative Inspector Boris “Bobo” Pritzger (Clarence Felder), gay officer Rick Silardi (Joseph Gian), and officer Maureen “Mo” DeMott (Sydney Walsh), who is intent on dating Silardi. After having his car broken into, Hooperman helps get suicidal 16-year old Roger Bayshore (Philip Tanzini) off a ledge by dropping a watermelon onto the street. Once he gets to the station, he hears of the homicide of his landlady Mrs. Metezler during a robbery. Hooperman inherits the apartment building and her disagreeable Jack Russell Terrier Bijoux, which he has no place to take except for the station. When Silardi and DeMott arrest a man named Cripps (Ned Bellamy) for burglary, Bijoux tries to attack him, leading Hooperman to believe that he is the killer of Mrs. Metzler. Hooperman is able to get a warrant to search Cripps’ apartment from Judge Shinley (David Byrd) under the guise that the informant’s name is a man “B. Joux”, and finds the gun and a piece of Estelle’s jewelry. Despite the efforts of District Attorney Kimmel (Michael Holden), the Defense Attorney (Amy Aquino) and Judge Janice Neiman (Eric Yohn) get the case thrown out because the chief witness was a dog. However Hooperman is able to rouse the Cripps to anger and force him to admit that he “should have killed the dog too.” A woman named Susan Smith (Debrah Farentino) answers Hooperman’s ad for a building managers and shows up to meet him, amid a sea of complaining tenants, including T.J. (Paul Linke) and Rudy (Rod Gist). 3/23/15

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Public Defender

March 22nd, 2000

SEASON 1

Created by Mort Lewis and Sam Shayon

  • 001. The Case of the Parolee – 3/11/1954
    • Public Defender Bart Matthews (Reed Hadley) introduces himself and his job, to defend those accused of a crime who cannot afford their own attorney. He then relates the story of a girl named Alice Parker (Mary Ellen Kay) who comes to see him and beg his services for her boyfriend Mark Collins (Christian Drake), who has been accused of stealing funds from his employer Buy-Rite Appliance Co. Because Collins is a parolee, who had previously been arrested on a robbery charge after falling into the wrong crowd, he has lost hope and feels that the cards are stacked against him, so therefore does not even want a lawyer. Matthews agrees to go talk with him, and tells him that he promises to do everything he can to get him off if he is indeed innocent. Collins agree to use his services, and relates the story of how his parole officer set him up with the job. While there, his new boss Mr. Marshall (Fay Roope) acts as if he is doing Matthews a favor by allowing him to work there with his record, but declines when Collins says he’ll be glad to ask for another assignment. He also meets a persuasive and effective bill collector named Fred Davis (Douglas Fowley) who frequently returns to the office with large sums of cash. Davis also seems to be getting hounded by a man named Mike Clark (Snub Pollard), who Davis claims is a down-on-his-luck brother-in-law who wants money, and who he keeps putting off. Collins also begins dating the office secretary Alice, and the two fall in love. One night a $2000 deposit that is locked in Alice’s desk is stolen, and the nigh watchman is knocked unconscious. Collins is arrested because he had access to the key through Alice, and because of his previous record. Matthew finds out about the name Mike Clark from Alice, and traces him through his phone number to the seedy Crescent Bar. The bartender (George Lloyd) claims to not know Mike Clark, and then recognizes Matthews as the Public Defender. This spooks Clark who escapes out the window through the office. Matthews and Officer Hanlon (John Close) look through the papers in the office, and determine that Clark is a bookie, to whom Fred Davis owed money and recently made a payoff. They interview Davis in the presence of Mr. Marshall, and try to force Davis to admit that he stole the money. He only offers the alibi that he was home, but Marshall claims that he tries to call Davis the evening of the robbery after watching the fights on TV, and Davis never answered. Matthews calls the TV station to verify the time the fights end, and finds out that they never aired that night. This means that Marshall is lying, and when he tries to escape, they know he is the guilty party who stole the money. Matthews later states that he lied about the fights not having aired in order to trap Marshall. 3/22/21

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