TV's Most Wanted : The Top 10 Book of Crazy Casting, Off-Camera Clashes, and Other Oddities

by Tonks, Douglas

• ISBN13: 9781574885156
• ISBN10: 1574885154
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-12-01
• Publisher: Potomac Books Inc

Summary

Often derided as the "boob tube" or the "idiot box," television has nevertheless brought entertainment and information to living rooms everywhere, expanding viewers' horizons and bringing the world closer together. Arranged in top-ten lists, TV's Most Wanted'„¢runs the gamut from the sublime to the ridiculous. After examining the best and worst shows, actors, and moments in the history of television, it will make couch potatoes everywhere reach for their remotes. When it comes to longevity, the television newsmagazine 60 Minutesholds the record for the most network broadcasts in prime time, while South of Sunset, starring rock legend Glenn Frey as a down-on-his-luck detective, was canceled after just one episode in 1993. Not quite an overnight sensation, George Clooney had already costarred in seven different series, including Roseanneand The Facts of Life, before he hit the big time with ERin the 1990s. The backgrounds of TV actors can be surprising. Bob Denver, the bumbling Gilligan of the 1960s series Gilligan's Island, has a degree in political science and was a teacher before breaking into show business. Meanwhile, in the late 60's, the colorful villains in episodes of the kitschy hit show Batmanoften had impressive acting pedigrees. Many, such as Shelly Winters and Cliff Robertson, were Oscar winners or Oscar nominees. Casting choices often create unbelievable might-have-beens or disastrous personality clashes. Gene Hackman as the father of the Brady Bunch? It might've happened. The show's creator said Hackman was his first choice for the role. And William Frawley and Vivian Vance, so cute together as Fred and Ethel Mertz on I Love Lucyin the 1950s, absolutely detested each other when off camera. Whether it's revisiting famous moments or revealing esoteric facts, TV's Most Wanted'„¢has something for everyone.

Author Biography

Douglas Tonks is a former editor for the Hollywood Reporter and is currently a writer and book editor. He lives in Chicago

Table of Contents

List of Photographs	ix
Acknowledgments	xi
Introduction	xiii
Connected by Television	1	(8)
History unfolds on the TV screen
War Is Funny	9	(12)
Situation comedies about the military
The Name in the Title	21	(16)
Performers with the most series named for them
Animal Magnetism	37	(6)
Animals starring in their own shows
Games People Play	43	(13)
When sports and television mix
Top of the Pops	56	(9)
TV themes as hit records
Holy Oscar, Batman!	65	(9)
Special Guest Villains with Academy Awards or nominations
Where Was That, Again?	74	(8)
TV shows named for cities
Small Screen to Big	82	(13)
TV shows that became movies
A Good Slogan Is Forever	95	(7)
Commercials we remember
They Came from the Skies!	102	(11)
Aliens who had TV shows
It's Like Grand Central Station	113	(11)
Visitors to Gilligan's Island
The More the Merrier	124	(25)
Actors who have starred in the most TV series
Spin-Offs That Spun Out	149	(6)
Popular characters who couldn't make it on their own
Before They Were Stars	155	(6)
TV performers and their day jobs
Behind-the-Scenes Relationships	161	(10)
What happened when the cameras stopped?
Prime-Time Cartoons	171	(11)
Animated shows that escaped the Saturday morning ghetto
Here Today, Gone Tomorrow	182	(9)
One-episode wonders
They're All Wet	191	(11)
Undersea shows
Try and Try Again	202	(15)
Performers' false starts on the way to a hit series
It's Who You Know	217	(9)
Seinfeld girlfriends who got their own shows
Where Have I Seen You Before?	226	(8)
Movie stars who started in TV
Near Misses	234	(8)
Casting choices that almost happened
Success Breeds Success	242	(13)
Emmy Award-winning streaks
Just Say Good Night	255	(8)
News sign-offs we remember
Bibliography	263	(6)
Index	269	(14)
About the Author	283