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Nagging TV Show Mysteries

S

Stanislav

OK, we know that TV shows (especially sitcoms) are rife with plot holes, continuity goofs, changed premises, etc. And we also know that getting too nitpicky about such things in what is supposed to be escapist fiction is futile. (To quote the old Mystery Science Theater 3000 theme song: "It's only a show -- you should really just relax.")

But that said, what are some nagging major questions you have about your favorite (or least favorite) classic shows? This should not be about an isolated goof, error, or continuity issue, but about some ongoing problem with the overall premise of the show or some individual aspect thereof that really sticks in your craw. Something that permeates the entire series and is never really explained or made plausible.

My example will be from The Beverly Hillbillies. One of the running gags through the entire series is that while now living in Beverly Hills, Granny continues to cook up and serve culinary "delights" from the hills (to the chagrin of those offered to share in the dining experience). You know -- stuff like possum innards, goat tripe, crow's wings, etc.

My nagging question is: just where in the hell does Granny get this stuff in Beverly Hills? It ain't at the meat counter at Albertson's, that's for sure. What, does Jethro take the truck out on regular Road Kill Patrols, scraping possums off the pavement? Are there wild goats running around Griffith Park that Jed somehow manages to shoot and drag home (without getting arrested)? Does Granny take potshots at any crows that happen to overfly the estate? (One would think the neighbors would take issue with the frequent discharge of a shotgun in the city limits.

Or, who knows -- maybe Pearl wraps the stuff up back home and ships it out to California. (Must be good and...er..."ripe" by the time it gets into Granny's hands...)

For that matter, where do Elly's critters come from? OK, the more conventional ones could be strays that she adopted, but I doubt there are many homeless chimps (Bessie) or bears (Fairchild) wandering through Beverly Hills.

Howsaboutit -- what are your most nagging questions about classic shows?
 
On Gilligan's Island, often times The Professor would think of an ingenious way to get off the island, and inevitably Gilligan would MUCK IT UP!

My question: How did the rest of the castaways NOT KILL HIM?!
 
From the Classic TV perspective just name any 40's or 50's western then name the number of times you actually saw the hero reloading his seemingly endless supply of bullets.

Current fans of '24' can note that Our Hero can drive, or be driven from one side of L.A. to the other in 10 minutes or so no matter what the time of day. And, while doing so, his cellphone never runs out of battery, loses its signal or fails to connect instantly with CTU.

But just what were the occupations of Ward Cleaver and Ozzie Nelson?
 
RicoGregg said:
On Gilligan's Island, often times The Professor would think of an ingenious way to get off the island, and inevitably Gilligan would MUCK IT UP!

My question: How did the rest of the castaways NOT KILL HIM?!
Click to expand...

As Russell Johnson (the Professor) would say in interviews over the years (paraphrased), "If you were stuck on an island with Ginger and Mary Anne, would you want to leave?" Gilligan wasn't as dumb as he looked. ;D

Other mysteries:
Speaking of Gilligan's Island, what was Gilligan's first (or last) name? And how did they manage to haul three years worth of clothes in a smallish boat that was only hired for "a three-hour tour."

What was Columbo's first name?

Whatever happened to Chuck Cunningham?
 
landtuna said:
From the Classic TV perspective just name any 40's or 50's western then name the number of times you actually saw the hero reloading his seemingly endless supply of bullets.

Current fans of '24' can note that Our Hero can drive, or be driven from one side of L.A. to the other in 10 minutes or so no matter what the time of day. And, while doing so, his cellphone never runs out of battery, loses its signal or fails to connect instantly with CTU.
Click to expand...

And where/when/how does he ever go to the bathroom? :D Of course, he's so busy saving the country again in every 24-hour stretch that I doubt he has time to eat or drink, so maybe he doesn't need bathroom breaks.
 
RicoGregg said:
On Gilligan's Island, often times The Professor would think of an ingenious way to get off the island, and inevitably Gilligan would MUCK IT UP!

My question: How did the rest of the castaways NOT KILL HIM?!
Click to expand...

EXACTLY! Of course, the obvious answer to that oft-posed question was "because it would make for a very short series." ;) Now, IRL, after the first 3 or 4 screw-ups, the group would have sent Gilligan to gather coconuts, and quickly commiserated. "Look, he's a nice kid and all, BUT.....if we don't take care of him now, WE AIN'T NEVER GETTING OFF OF THIS ISLAND!!"
 
Mama's Family...the character of "Iola"...where did she get her money to live from since she didn't have a job?

Dittos with Bubba? Who paid for him going to college? It wasn't Thelma Harper or Vint & Naomi. Ed & Eunice? They hardly could afford to support themselves. Scholarship? Maybe but I believe Bubba Higgins graduated from high school with a "C" average. Thats a bit too low to get a scholarship for college. Financial Aid? again maybe..but again...Bubba didn't have a job to pay it back.
 
mleach said:
Mama's Family...the character of "Iola"...where did she get her money to live from since she didn't have a job?

Dittos with Bubba? Who paid for him going to college? It wasn't Thelma Harper or Vint & Naomi. Ed & Eunice? They hardly could afford to support themselves. Scholarship? Maybe but I believe Bubba Higgins graduated from high school with a "C" average. Thats a bit too low to get a scholarship for college. Financial Aid? again maybe..but again...Bubba didn't have a job to pay it back.
Click to expand...

Some major public universities require only a high school diploma from in-state applicants for admission. This might explain in part how some schools maintain powerful football programs.
 
landtuna said:
But just what were the occupations of Ward Cleaver and Ozzie Nelson?
Click to expand...

At least Ward was sometimes seen working in an office (along with
Fred Rutherford). Whenever there's a shot of him pulling in to the
driveway, I always like to shout "Ward's home!" I don't know why,
I just do. ;D

As for Oz, there were two correct answers:
1) He didn't have one.
2) It was never revealed.
(Maybe..."retired bandleader"?)
 
Stanislav said:
My example will be from The Beverly Hillbillies.
Click to expand...

And how come they all called her Granny when she was really nobody's grandmother?

And, even as dumb as he was, how'd Jethro manage to not chase after Elly May as often as possible---if you know what I mean? Maybe try to go skinnydipping with her in the cee-ment pond. I guess that 6th grade education kept his mind on other things. ;D

My other questions:

-On Happy Days, where did Arnold disappear to early in the series run (season 1?) once Al came in? I know Pat Morita left for his own series but did they explain Arnold's disappearance? Did he leave to manage Chuck's basketball career?

-Was Joanie Loves Chachi REALLY necessary? And if it was necessary, did Erin Moran and Scott Baio REALLY need to sing the opening theme??

-Speaking of Scott Baio, how'd Charles always manage to not slap Buddy upside the head on Charles in Charge? And how'd Charles manage to keep his eyes off Nicole Eggert?

And now that I've mentioned Charles in Charge, how do you get this theme out of your brain: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtgIZD4nQtY :D
 
Ward was an accountant, and Columbo's first name was Philip. That's my recollection, anyway. Here's another mystery: Why did all the North Carolina state cops on "The Andy Griffith Show" sound like they were from Brooklyn?
 
Just thought of a few more.......

Emergency !!!!......just how big was Squad 51's coverage area? One minute Gage & DeSoto was at the beach, next they were up in the mountains and then "downtown" and perhaps later...some amusement park. I can see if another fire company had asked for 51's help but often Gage & DeSoto were seen doing the rescues alone.

Several years ago on another site a similar question was asked about this show and the fact that Squad 51 was in "Los Angeles County". That poster was wondering why a rescue team from "the county" would be seen doing a rescue in Los Angeles CITY proper without being asked for assistance by the city of LA. Nobody ever did answer that question though many did point out that in their regions a "county" fire department just can't venture into a "city" who has their own fire departments to help out without the OK to do so.

Dynasty and Mork & Mindy...

My wife can remember a few episodes of Dynasty where a beach was seen near the Carrington estate however the show was set in Denver. Beaches in Denver, Colorado?

On a similar note wasn't there an episode of Mork & Mindy where Mork was planning to take a bus trip lasting several hours to Denver? However Mork & Mindy was set in Boulder, Colorado and that city is only what... only 30 or so miles from Denver? I guess if traffic was bad enough those 30 miles could seem like 300 ;D
 
In Superman, no one ever seemed to recognize how much Clark Kent looked like Superman when he had his glasses off. There were several episodes when that happened, such as when he would be in bed, getting out of bed, etc. when Jimmy Olson, Lois Lane, etc. were there and he would not have his glasses on.
 
One nagging question I have is that no one had to go to the bathroom on Gilligan's Island and if so, where did they go? Another one is the bathroom in the kids' bedrooms on The Brady Bunch where there was no toilet. Again, where did the kids go to the bathroom when there was no toilet there? I wouldn't think that they used Mike and Carol's bedroom to go.

Another thing is how on I Dream Of Jeannie that Jeannie could fit in that bottle of hers and sometimes Tony joined her in there especially in the last part of the episode where they were married and were watching the film of their wedding where Tony was kissing an invisible Jeannie.

And another question, how could Tony afford a huge house on first a Captain's salary and then on a Major's salary unless an astronaut makes more on a salary than a regular Captain or Major, but then Roger has an apartment.
 
Braves2005 said:
One nagging question I have is that no one had to go to the bathroom on Gilligan's Island and if so, where did they go?
Click to expand...

I'm sure they HAD to go -- we just never saw it. (Would YOU want to watch that?) ::) As far as where or how, just think of being marooned on an island as an extended camping trip. Where do you go? Same place a bear sh*ts -- in the woods. Plenty of foliage on that island -- just duck behind the nearest bush. As far as the lack of T.P. -- well, there are plenty of big leaves on those bushes. (The Howells, though, probably just used their "petty cash" -- you know, 20's and 50's -- the small bills....) ;D
 
WKRP in Cincinnati. No one wore headphones, Dr. Fever was slip cueing records while on the air, the whole gang including Venus would leave the station to go to a bar during Venus's shift, leaving no one to run the station (before teh days of hard drive automation).
 
On The Lucy Show and Here's Lucy, did we ever learn detail one about Lucy's late husband? Who was he? What did he do? How long were he & Lucy married?

On Small Wonder (Yes, I admit that I watched several episodes of that gawdawful show, I must have some masochist in me), how could the "engineering genius" of a father otherwise be such a dunderhead? Seems everything else he did was moronic. And while we're there, didn't that neighbor girl Harriet need a damn good whacking?
 
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