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They've found "Turn On" (1969)!

installLSC said:
Yes the infamous one episode from 1969 is finally available online...
...and yeah it's totally clear why this was such a huge flop. The oppressively repetitive electronic score, the edginess of lots of the jokes, the insanely fast pacing, and yeah the fact most of the jokes aren't funny (even factoring in the datedness of a lot of material).
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It’s like someone tried to play ten Monty Python sketches simultaneously at 78 RPM with a UNIVAC melting down in the background. Assuredly the biggest flop in network television history, bar none.

What is rather stunning is there appears to be no copyright notice ( © ) or anything properly displayed on-air. Unless I’m missing something, it’s public domain material.
 
Nathan Obral said:
What is rather stunning is there appears to be no copyright notice ( © ) or anything properly displayed on-air. Unless I’m missing something, it’s public domain material.
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It looks like it might have been scanned so that the bottom of the screen is actually cut off. Turn On's credits were done in still form instead of on a roll as with Laugh-In (same production company), which does have a prominent copyright:

Screenshot 2023-07-30 at 4.34.20 PM.jpg

That said, Turn On probably is in the Public Domain now. Anything copyrighted before 1978 had 28 years of protection, which could be renewed for another 28. It's doubtful Schlatter-Friendly bothered with a renewal of Turn On in 1997.
 
Nice finds involving perhaps the most notorious and bizarre event in television history. Although the story of Turn On is well known, this is the first time I’ve heard of the existence,of a second episode. Makes sense, as it was edited together from a lot of interchangeable bits and pieces, as was Laugh-In. Likely there was even more material that had been shot but was never assembled into a third show.
 
A few thoughts after watching the first episode again, 54 years later. Today, it doesn't seem so shocking. But I remember watching it as a kid and thinking it was so odd. I didn't remember all the details but I do remember it starred Tim Conway.

Now seeing it again, it was similar to Laugh In, while going several steps further. George Schlatter was the executive behind both programs. Theresa Graves and Hamilton Camp were in both this show and Laugh In. Seeing the credits, I noticed Albert Brooks is one of the writers. And yes, I remember from its original airing that one of the oddities was putting various credits (produced by, directed by, written by) in between scenes, not at the end of the show. Even the commercial for Bufferin tablets was sort of integrated into the show.

I'm glad I've seen it again! At the time, I don't remember paying much attention. It had been heavily promoted by ABC so I think that's why I tuned in. Little did we know it would go down in history as a show pulled after one episode!
 
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Nice finds involving perhaps the most notorious and bizarre event in television history. Although the story of Turn On is well known, this is the first time I’ve heard of the existence,of a second episode. Makes sense, as it was edited together from a lot of interchangeable bits and pieces, as was Laugh-In. Likely there was even more material that had been shot but was never assembled into a third show.
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According to a profile of Mark Warren (who directed "Laugh-In" and "Turn On") in 1970, six episodes of "Turn-On" had been filmed when the cancellation notice came.
 
michael hagerty said:
It looks like it might have been scanned so that the bottom of the screen is actually cut off. Turn On's credits were done in still form instead of on a roll as with Laugh-In (same production company), which does have a prominent copyright:

View attachment 5415

That said, Turn On probably is in the Public Domain now. Anything copyrighted before 1978 had 28 years of protection, which could be renewed for another 28. It's doubtful Schlatter-Friendly bothered with a renewal of Turn On in 1997.
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It seems that you need to take steps to protect a copyright and it doesn't appear that was ever done.

I thought the second episode was more cohesive than the first.
 
Dug out my copy of a May 1969 TV Guide that had a "Turn On" article. Some highlights
--The concept for "Turn On" actually predated "Laugh-In", and the executives involved swore "Laugh-In" was not even mentioned as "Turn On" developed.
--Nine shows were scripted, and seven actually shot.
--Main sponsor Bristol Myers got the ball started by asking the "Laugh In" crew to create "something unusual and provocative". They also loved the ABC pilot.
--No mention of the Cleveland affiliate cancelling the show mid-episode, but the station manager did drop it right afterward. So I think we can conclude the mid-show cancellation is an urban legend.
 
installLSC said:
--No mention of the Cleveland affiliate cancelling the show mid-episode, but the station manager did drop it right afterward. So I think we can conclude the mid-show cancellation is an urban legend.
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There's a difference between cancelling and pulling it off the air mid-show. I'm betting the GM decided it was never airing again on his station by the mid-point and that story grew legs from there.
 
michael hagerty said:
There's a difference between cancelling and pulling it off the air mid-show. I'm betting the GM decided it was never airing again on his station by the mid-point and that story grew legs from there.
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To be honest, Tim Conway had reason to overexaggerate the claim; after all, he was from Cleveland. Plus it ironically** tracked with his string of failed pilots and TV shows until joining Carol Burnett’s ensemble.

So let’s go through the existing citations in the Wikipedia article. Here’s the Akron Beacon Journal on Friday, February 4, 1969, with a mention of WAKR-TV, the market’s other ABC affiliate:
1692616810566.jpeg

The Dayton Daily News said WEWS called ABC 10 minutes into the show and said they would be cancelling it, which might have been misinterpreted as them pulling the show off-air midway:
1692617093726.jpeg

The Associated Press confirms that KBTV (today’s KUSA) never carried the program to begin with, a decision they arrived to on their own accord.
62B9A9D6-833C-4304-9096-37AECD4F09ED.jpeg

The Cleveland Plain Dealer also helps to triple-confirm the “angry telegram” sent to ABC actually did happen. But because no off-air video recorders existed, there’s no way to actually verify what they did… but after seeing this first episode, a black screen might have been just as memorable.

** This is the correct usage of the word.
 
michael hagerty said:
There's a difference between cancelling and pulling it off the air mid-show. I'm betting the GM decided it was never airing again on his station by the mid-point and that story grew legs from there.
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Correct. The only reference to 10 minutes and the black screen/organ music replacement mid-show comes from an interview with Tim Conway done a half dozen years later. Conway was obviously embellishing the story and the reporter never thought to question what he was saying -- despite the fact that he was interviewing a talented actor and comedian who, by those credentials alone, would be supremely capable of making such a tale up on the fly.
 
In the newest developments...
The above clip has been yanked, but this week "Turn On" will be released on Schlatter's own Clown Jewels YouTube channel. He is also claiming parts of the third episode will be revealed as well.
 
It sounds like Schlatter has been sitting on these for years and only decided to release them after they turned up on You Tube from another source. It makes you wonder how many episodes there actually are.
 
New uploads have the commercials cut out and TWO logo bugs on the screen. Between this and the royally messed up “Laugh-In” DVDs from Time-Life which had every other field discarded, it seems George Schlatter doesn’t care about quality.
 
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