February 20: This Day in TV History (Big Day!)

[Stanislav]

Just a few random TV related events that happened on February 20. (One of those days when all the stars and planets seem to align to produce a TON of notable TV births and deaths!) Discuss or comment as you please……

1906: Actor Gale Gordon (The Lucy Show, Here’s Lucy, Life with Lucy) is born (as Charles T. Aldrich Jr.) in New York City.

1914: Journalist and game show host John Daly (What’s My Line?) is born (as John Charles Patrick Croghan Daly) in Johannesburg, South Africa.

1919: Announcer Dick Wesson (Hawaiian Eye, The Fugitive, The Invaders, The Wonderful World of Disney) is born in Boise, Idaho.

1924: Producer/director Greg Garrison (The Kate Smith Show, Your Show of Shows, The Dean Martin Show, many specials) is born (as Harvin Ginsburg) in Brooklyn, New York. Mark Evanier’s blog has some good stories about Garrison’s work with Dino here and here.

1925: Director Robert Altman is born in Kansas City, Missouri. Yes, we know him best for his wonderful work in movies, but earlier in his career he directed many episodes of TV shows such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Combat!, Bonanza, Whirlybirds, and Route 66.

1926: Author/screenwriter Richard Matheson (The Twilight Zone) is born in Allendale, New Jersey.

1926: Actress Whitney Blake (Hazel) is born (as Nancy Whitney) in Eagle Rock, California.

1929: Actress Amanda Blake (Gunsmoke) is born (as Beverly Louise Neill) in Buffalo, New York.

1936: Actress Marj Dusay (Capitol, Santa Barbara, Guiding Light, All My Children) is born (as Marjorie Ellen Pivonka Mahoney) in Hays, Kansas. She also occupies an esteemed (?) place in Star Trek fandom, having played the alien bimbo Kara in the putrid episode “Spock’s Brain,” in which she utters that immortal line: “Brain and brain! What is ‘brain?’” :

1936: Actor Larry Hovis (Hogan’s Heroes, Liar’s Club) is born in Wapato, Washington.

1937: Singer Nancy Wilson is born in Chillicothe, Ohio.

1946: Actress Sandy Duncan (Funny Face, The Sandy Duncan Show, The Hogan Family) is born in Henderson, Texas.

1956: WOSU-TV (channel 34) signs on from Ohio State University in Columbus.

1960: Comedian/actor Joel Hodgson (Mystery Science Theater 3000) is born in Stevens Point, Wisconsin.

1964: Actor French Stewart (3rd Rock From the Sun) is born (as Milton French Stewart) in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

1967: Actor Andrew Shue (Melrose Place) is born in Wilmington, Delaware.

1968: That raincoat. That cigar. That battered old Peugeot. Columbo, starring Peter Falk, premieres on NBC. DYK: the character of Lt. Columbo had previously been portrayed by 2 other actors: Bert Freed, in a 1960 episode of The Chevy Mystery Show, and Thomas Mitchell, in a stage play adapted from that one-shot TV drama. As for the TV series, writers suggested Lee J. Cobb (who was unavailable) or Bing Crosby (who turned the role down) but, thanks to the TV Gods, Falk got the nod.

1971: At 9:33 am EST, a scheduled routine test of the Emergency Broadcast System (EBS) goes awry when the wrong teletype is sent, containing a code word meant to instruct most stations to cease operating while designated stations broadcast information about a national emergency. The goof exposes serious flaws in the system: many stations do not receive the alert, and the vast majority of those that do either ignore it, or have no clue as to what to do during an actual emergency. Only one TV station in the entire country (WSNS-TV, channel 44 in Chicago) properly follows procedures and signs off.

1976: Faith-healing evangelist Kathryn Kuhlman dies in Tulsa, Oklahoma of complications from open-heart surgery.

1981: During a live ABC broadcast of Fridays, comedian Andy Kaufman sabotages a sketch, breaking character and refusing to read his lines. This leads to a brawl involving Kaufman, cast member Michael Richards (his partner in the sketch) and other cast and crew. The incident would later be revealed as having been a planned “performance” by Kaufman.

1982: WRLH-TV (channel 35) begins broadcasting in Richmond, Virginia.

1987: David Hartman hosts his last show for ABC’s Good Morning, America.

1992: Actor Dick York (Bewitched) dies in Grand Rapids, Michigan of complications from emphysema, aged 63.

1999: Film critic Gene Siskel (Siskel & Ebert at the Movies) dies in Evanston, Illinois of complications from brain surgery, aged 53.

2001: Writer Bob Weiskopf (I Love Lucy, All in the Family, Maude, The Flip Wilson Show, others) dies in Los Angeles, aged 86.

2001: Actress Rosemary DeCamp (The Life of Riley, The Bob Cummings Show, That Girl) dies in Los Angeles of pneumonia, aged 90.

2005: Robot Chicken premieres in Cartoon Network’s “Adult Swim” block.

2006: Sportscaster Curt Gowdy dies in Palm Beach, Florida of leukemia, aged 86.

2009: Tonight, Conan O’Brien is scheduled to host Late Night with Conan O’Brien for the last time.

WOW! And that’s not all....in more non-TV related items, Walter Winchell died on February 20, while Patty Hearst, Cindy Crawford, Buffy Sainte-Marie, and Sidney Poitier were born this day. Must be something special in the air this time of year for so many notables to have entered or left the world on the same calendar date!

(Just a little featurette I hope to do as time permits. It’s an entirely random selection based on a quick Net search, and is not meant to be comprehensive. So, don’t post nasty messages about “you forgot THIS” or “how could you not mention THAT?” Do so, and I’ll just take my keyboard and go home…..)

 

[LKellerIII]

That Columbo premiere (41 years ago today) would be Prescription: Murder - the TV movie and pilot that begat the series.

Can you imagine either Lee J. Cobb (the hostile Columbo?), or Bing Crosby (the stiff and moral Columbo?) in the role? Of coursse, Peter Falk made the role his own. Sounds like the worst case of potential miscasting since Ronald Reagan as Rick Blaine (Casablanca). I

saw the original TV movie a few years ago after probably 3 plus decades - and was struck by how different Falk played the character in that pilot. Less lovable, and quite hostile toward the perp leading up to the end.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061496/

 

[Stanislav]

Can you imagine.....Bing Crosby (the stiff and moral Columbo?) in the role?

Instead of a cigar and raincoat, Columbo would have smoked a pipe and worn golfing togs.....

 

[mleach]

Just a few random TV related events that happened on February 20. (One of those days when all the stars and planets seem to align to produce a TON of notable TV births and deaths!) Discuss or comment as you please……

1906: Actor Gale Gordon (The Lucy Show, Here’s Lucy, Life with Lucy) is born (as Charles T. Aldrich Jr.) in New York City.

Gale Gordon in his later years ( 70s and 80s ) actually became an out spoken critic of television. I can remember reading in TV Guide back then where a number of then-popular shows like The Love Boat, Three's Company, Gimmie A Break, even the infamous Hello, Larry all at one time or another wanted Gale as a guest star on their shows only to have Gale say "NO" mainly due to his opinion of the poor quality of the then-state of current TV ( mainly over sex ). I also seem to recall reading back then where Jane Fonda wanted Gale to appear in her then-new movie 9 to 5. Gale vetoed that idea as well.

The Three's Company angle is a bit interesting considering that was his dear friend's Lucille Ball's FAVORITE show ( she LOVED the late John Ritter ) yet Gordon felt the show was pure trash.

 

[Stanislav]

I also seem to recall reading back then where Jane Fonda wanted Gale to appear in her then-new movie 9 to 5. Gale vetoed that idea as well.

Would he have played the role that eventually went to Dabney Coleman, I wonder?

The Three's Company angle is a bit interesting considering that was his dear friend's Lucille Ball's FAVORITE show (she LOVED the late John Ritter).....

Quite the mutual admiration society there...Ritter worshipped Lucy and always cited her as a big influence...Lucy felt that Ritter was one of the few then-contemporary comic actors that could pull off physical slapstick schtick and do it well. She hosted the Three's Company anniversary retrospective (making what was at that point in her life a rare TV appearance), and Ritter was one of the first potential guest stars Lucy approached when the ill-fated Life with Lucy was in planning. Ritter said many times that getting to work with Lucy, in spite of her being long past her prime and in a very poorly advised series, was the highlight of his career.

 

[mleach]

I also seem to recall reading back then where Jane Fonda wanted Gale to appear in her then-new movie 9 to 5. Gale vetoed that idea as well.

Would he have played the role that eventually went to Dabney Coleman, I wonder?

I thinking more of the "Russell Tinsworthy-Chairman of the Board" character that would go to long time film actor the late Sterling Hayden.

Even though I have to admit it would had been interesting watching Gale Gordon play the role of the "sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot" boss though I can't picture Gale Gordon using words like "god damnit" or "sh**" or "...fire the bitc*" !!!

Lucy YES...Gale Gordon?..ah no LOL

 

[Stanislav]

I thinking more of the "Russell Tinsworthy-Chairman of the Board" character that would go to long time film actor the late Sterling Hayden.

Even though I have to admit it would had been interesting watching Gale Gordon play the role of the "sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot" boss though I can't picture Gale Gordon using words like "god damnit" or "sh**" or "...fire the bitc*" !!!

Lucy YES...Gale Gordon?..ah no LOL

On screen, Lucy would have never uttered those words. OFF screen, however...probably made up a big chunk of her vocabulary, especially when dealing with studio execs or directors (or Desi and Gary).

 

[ixnay]

TDinTVH suggestion for the future: When listing who was born that day, indicate somehow (some symbol maybe?) whether the birthday person is no longer with us, for the benefit of those who may not know. I don't necessarily need to know the death date (Wiki can help us there), but we'd like to know at glance whether these people have died. For those TV figures still living, no symbol needed, at least from my pov.

My mother had a Nancy Wilson album The Best of Nancy Wilson, her gh collection. On it were her 1964 hit "(You Don't Know) How Glad I Am", her 1968 hit "Face It Girl, It's Over", and a credible version of Stevie Wonder's "Uptight, Everything's Alright" (re Wonder's version... now *there's* a recording that *says* "Motown", but that's another thread).

ixnay

 

[Corky Marlowe]

1971: At 9:33 am EST, a scheduled routine test of the Emergency Broadcast System (EBS) goes awry when the wrong teletype is sent, containing a code word meant to instruct most stations to cease operating while designated stations broadcast information about a national emergency. The goof exposes serious flaws in the system: many stations do not receive the alert, and the vast majority of those that do either ignore it, or have no clue as to what to do during an actual emergency. Only one TV station in the entire country (WSNS-TV, channel 44 in Chicago) properly follows procedures and signs off.

Reelradio.com has an aircheck from that day. It's taken from Bob Sievers' Saturday morning show on WOWO in Fort Wayne, Indiana. IIRC, WOWO got the alert, but didn't get the authenticator password right away, and at one point Bob says, "Please, PLEASE do not call us to see what is the matter!" But he handles the whole situation in the most professional manner imaginable.

 

[mleach]

On screen, Lucy would have never uttered those words. OFF screen, however...probably made up a big chunk of her vocabulary, especially when dealing with studio execs or directors (or Desi and Gary).

Hmmmmm.. Lucille Ball was indeed known for her spicy language off camera. Then again so was Desi, Vivian Vance and of course Bill Frawley as well.

I agree I very much doubt she would never use those words on camera however if Lucy was just 10 years younger...well..maybe. Just like the wonderful Betty White and some of the un-Betty White "words" she used in the movie Lake Placid. LOL ;D

 

[Stanislav]

On screen, Lucy would have never uttered those words. OFF screen, however...probably made up a big chunk of her vocabulary, especially when dealing with studio execs or directors (or Desi and Gary).

Hmmmmm.. Lucille Ball was indeed known for her spicy language off camera. Then again so was Desi, Vivian Vance and of course Bill Frawley as well.

I love the story of how while Lucy was preggers, they gave her a dressing room right off-stage while Viv's was about a mile away. Once, Viv was late for her cue, and Lucy cussed her out. Vivian glanced at the redhead's belly and snapped, "I'd tell you to go f--k yourself, but I see Desi has already taken care of that..."

In one early rehearsal, after Lucy had verbally berated Vivian and stomped off-set, a bit player asked Viv how she could stand there and take such abuse. "Listen," she said, "if this show turns out to be a hit, I'll learn to love that bitch!" It did, and she did.

 

[mleach]

I love the story of how while Lucy was preggers, they gave her a dressing room right off-stage while Viv's was about a mile away. Once, Viv was late for her cue, and Lucy cussed her out. Vivian glanced at the redhead's belly and snapped, "I'd tell you to go f--k yourself, but I see Desi has already taken care of that..."

In one early rehearsal, after Lucy had verbally berated Vivian and stomped off-set, a bit player asked Viv how she could stand there and take such abuse. "Listen," she said, "if this show turns out to be a hit, I'll learn to love that bitch!" It did, and she did.

Thats classic but Oh I got one better LOL

In one of my many of Lucy books that I used to have I remember reading about this "exchange of words "between actress Joan Blondell and Lucy on the set of The Lucy Show...

After a scene that was supposed to be funny but as it turned out ...not so funny....

Lucy: CUT..damn it !!! Let's do it again !!!!!
Joan: What in the hell do you mean..lets do it again? It was funny !!
Lucy: No its not..it stunk...your acting is sh** and you look like a damn whor*!!
Joan: What in the hell ... you know NOTHING about comedy you bitch !!!!!
Lucy: Look BITCH ..who in the hell runs this god damn studio? I don't think its YOU !!!
Joan...F--K YOU !! F--K YOU...LUCILLE BALL !!!!!

Lucy according to the book I had, gives Joan the finger then Joan storms off the set and no she never came back.

and keep in mind this whole incident took place in front of the cast, crew and studio audience.

Talk about cat fight LOL Meow !!!!

 

[Tim from Springfield IL]

1947: Actor Peter Strauss (Rich Man, Poor Man [I & II]) is born in Croton-on-Hudson, NY.

 

[easttxtv]

My mother had a Nancy Wilson album The Best of Nancy Wilson, her gh collection. On it were her 1964 hit "(You Don't Know) How Glad I Am", her 1968 hit "Face It Girl, It's Over", and a credible version of Stevie Wonder's "Uptight, Everything's Alright" (re Wonder's version... now *there's* a recording that *says* "Motown", but that's another thread).

I've seen Nancy once in concert back in 1998 (?) at a popular/dearly-departed jazz spot in Fort Worth. Wow, amazing and flawless.

 

[cdsull502]

Probably the most important thing that happened on February 20th both from a standpoint of national history and broadcast history was the space flight of John Glenn in Friendship 7, which took place on February 20th of 1962. The flight had been postponed several times through January and February due to bad weahter and equipment malfunctions.

All three networks covered the flight exhaustively, from early in the morning until after spashdown in the late afternoon. Walter Cronkite anchored from (then) Cape Canaveral for CBS. For NBC, Roy Neal anchored from the Cape, along with Frank McGee from New York.
Jules Bergman was the host for ABC. Millions of peple were glued to their TV screens for the duration of the flight. The launch took place during school vacation week so many kids (including myself) were able to catch the coverage from start to finish. Interestingly, the only part the proceedings that readily lent itself to TV coverage was the launch itself, which was brought to us in living black and white. At the time, NASA did not allow the astronaut voice communications to be broadcast live; Glenn's reports from space were presented on a tape delay basis. Of course, there were no live pictures of the recovery. The technology for live transmission from the recovery aircraft carrier was not available until December of 1965.

Although the coverage was quite primitive by today's standards, the TV nets performed well and helped establish television as the place to go for breaking news. Contrary to what is popularly believed today, the majority of viewers got their coverage from NBC, not Walter Cronkite on CBS, which placed second in the ratings. Huntley and Brinkley did not do the early space flights due to a sponsor conflict. Gulf was the sponsor of all breaking news programs on NBC; Texaco was the main sponsor of the Huntley-Brinkley report. Although Jules Bergman was regarded as a knowledgable and capable space reporter, viewership for ABC was miniscule. ABC news in the early 60's was regarded as a joke when compared to the other two networks.

 

[bpatrick]

Plus ABC was handicapped by the relative lack of affiliates.
Let me put this in perspective: on February 20, 1962, there
was only one full-time ABC affiliate in the state of North
Carolina, and that was WLOS Asheville, a siginificant portion
of whose coverage area is in South Carolina. WRAL Raleigh
would not switch from NBC to ABC until August 1; WGHP High
Point and WNBE (now WCTI) New Bern would not sign on until
1963; WWAY Wilmington and WCCB Charlotte, not until 1964,
and WCCB would carry CBS and NBC programs as well until 1967.

In Georgia, WAII (now WXIA) Atlanta was ABC's one full-time
station, although WJBF Augusta and WTVM Columbus carried a
significant number of ABC programs. WMAZ Macon was a CBS
primary, carrying a handful of ABC shows (Macon wouldn't get
its own ABC affiliate until the early '80s), and Savannah's WSAV
and WTOC (NBC and CBS, respectively) cherry-picked ABC until
WJCL signed on in 1970.

Any wonder that a lot of people couldn't watch Jules Bergman?

 

[mjlarochelle]

Plus ABC was handicapped by the relative lack of affiliates.

At that time, ABC was relying heavily on secondary affiliations with existing stations, especially in the smaller markets - Toledo, Erie, Watertown, Rhode Island, Traverse City-Cadillac, Rochester, Utica, Binghamton, and Syracuse all lacked a full-time ABC affiliate at the time. Some markets, including Rochester and Binghamton, would have their own ABC affiliate before the end of 1962.