It’s Just Another New Year’s Eve

 

Christmas suggests myriad topics for a classic TV post: New Year’s Eve, not so much.

I could offer a tribute to Guy Lombardo and his orchestra, as their New Year’s Eve concerts were an American tradition from the 1920s on radio through the 1970s on television – and the cultural shift that occurred when Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve supplanted them during that decade. 

But I wasn’t a fan of either show. In fact, I am one of those that never found much to celebrate in the flipping of a calendar. Barry Manilow is too, apparently; the title of this piece is taken from a song of his that sums up my sentiments.  

There are New Year’s-themed shows in the Comfort TV canon, but not that many. It’s not surprising – with Christmas episodes a staple of that era, a second consecutive holiday show probably seemed like too much of a good thing, as well as another show that wouldn’t play as well in syndication.

I also don’t find any nostalgic appeal in watching old New Year’s themed shows, as one celebration was much like any other in the 20^th century – champagne, funny hats, “Auld Lang Syne” and a kiss at midnight. All that changes is the year on the “Happy New Year” banner. Seeing “Happy 1960" or "Happy 1972” on screen is a reminder only of how much time has passed, and how old you’re starting to get – especially if you watched that episode when it first aired. 

So I’ve started my own tradition. On January 1, as I begin my journey through 2015, I will watch the first episodes of some favorite series, especially those in which the characters also begin a new chapter in their lives.

While the first show is always where viewers are introduced to new TV friends, many shows launch with everyone already living lives that will remain consistent for the duration of the show: I Love Lucy, The Donna Reed Show, The Wild, Wild West, Charlie’s Angels. In fact, more series follow this template than any other – this is who we are, this is what we do, come back and see us again if you like.

But I think it’s more interesting when the characters are setting out on a different path at the same time viewers first meet them – that way we all set sail on a new voyage of discovery together.

For instance, by getting a glimpse of Jed Clampett’s life before that fateful day he struck oil, viewers could better appreciate the culture shock that accompanied his move to Beverly Hills. By learning of the circumstances that led to Bill Davis taking in Buffy and Jody and Cissy, we understand the challenges and separation anxieties evoked throughout their first days as a new family. 

There are plenty more to choose from – and I am already looking forward to choosing episodes for my mini-marathon on New Year’s Eve, while those in a more celebratory mood stand outside in freezing temperatures waiting for balls to drop or fireworks to start.

Perhaps I will begin 2015 with Victoria Winters as she takes the train into Collinsport, or by watching Mike and Carol Brady get married. I could spend part of the day with Mary Richards as she starts a new job and moves into a new apartment, wondering if she can make it on her own, or watch as tennis pro Jaime Summers is rebuilt with bionic technology.

Maybe I’ll go back to school, and watch Coach Reeves meet his Carver High basketball team, or Gabe Kotter meet the Sweathogs. If it’s cold outside I can head for the tropical beach where Major Anthony Nelson finds a strange bottle in the sand. I can watch Jimmy wash ashore on Living Island – or Laura Palmer wash ashore on the coast of Twin Peaks (though that one may not be as festive).

New beginnings. They almost make the endings worthwhile. 

What is Your Classic TV Constant?

 

Discuss favorite Lost episodes with fans and it won’t be long until someone mentions “The Constant.” 

For those who didn’t follow this fascinating and sometimes frustrating series, the episode was about a man whose reality had become fractured in divergent timelines, and who was able to survive the ordeal by focusing on a “constant,” defined here as something or someone of value that is always present in his life.

It’s a concept I hadn’t pondered before watching Lost, but one that I’ve often thought about since. Who wouldn’t want a constant to anchor us amidst turmoil, something we know with certainty will be in our lives for as long as we desire it?

It’s the type of security some of us get from faith, which may adapt with the times but still adheres to bedrock principles and eternal promises.

But on a much less profound level, I believe it’s one of the reasons why what I call Comfort TV is something so many of us treasure. 

Life is inevitably about change.

We live with our parents when we’re young, and then we’re out on our own, before creating new families, which stay together until another generation leaves the nest. We move from one home to another, and change jobs and companies throughout our careers. Pets come into our lives for a time, but unless you are partial to parrots or tortoises they will leave long before you do.

If you’re lucky you’ll hold on to a few childhood friends into your adult years. The rest you’ll see at school reunions, and acknowledge their birthdays on Facebook.

The neighborhood restaurant you grew up with is replaced by an Outback Steakhouse. The park where you played baseball is now condos. The daily newspaper is on your computer instead of your doorstep.

When you really stop to think about it, how many things come into your life and are always there – or are at least always accessible when you wish to see them again?  Favorite books, favorite songs, movies and TV shows are indeed a constant for so many of us, and that’s why they bring us such joy.

I was five years old the first time I saw The Dick Van Dyke Show. I was in the living room of a duplex in Skokie, Illinois, eating dinner on a TV tray and watching the series in syndication on Chicago’s WGN-TV, channel 9. It made me laugh, and it made my mom laugh. We watched every weeknight, until my father came home from work. 

At the time I had no idea the episodes I was enjoying so much had originally aired several years earlier. But gradually as the five seasons continued to play in succession, I became aware of the concept of the rerun, and began to look forward to watching my favorite shows again.

After a few years of constant exposure I lost touch with the Petries for a while, only to rediscover them in the 1980s when my home was wired for cable and I discovered the delights of Nick at Nite. Once again, The Dick Van Dyke Show was a nightly tradition, and it had lost none of its appeal.

When the DVDs came out I bought them all. Now I could watch the series on my schedule, skip over the (very) few sub-par episodes and enjoy classics like “The Curious Thing About Women” and “October Eve” as often as I wished. 

When the series was released on Blu-Ray, I had a welcome pretext to watch every show again in order, now with a stunning clarity that I could never have imagined more than 40 years earlier. For the first time I could clearly distinguish the pile of the carpet in the Petrie living room, beads of sweat forming on Dick Van Dyke’s forehead in several of the office scenes, and the fine detail in the threading on Mary Tyler Moore’s costumes.

There are other shows that have been with me nearly as long as The Dick Van Dyke Show – I retain a very hazy memory of watching a first-run Brady Bunch episode at the age of four – but if I had to name an origin point for my classic television passion, it would have to be 148 Bonnie Meadow Road in New Rochelle, New York. And it feels good to know that 10, 20, 30 years from now it will be there. And Buddy’s putdowns of Mel Cooley will still make me laugh, even though I’ve heard them a thousand times before. 

Do you have a classic TV constant?

 

My Christmas TV List

 

The end of Thanksgiving heralds the beginning of my Christmas television season.

The lineup and viewing order vary from year to year. Between my DVD library and programs accessed by other means, I probably have anywhere from 60 to 75 holiday episodes to choose from. Some are annual viewing; others are pulled out occasionally, and many are skipped altogether. The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis is a wonderful series I’m glad to own, but in four seasons they didn’t manage one memorable Christmas show.

This list contains the episodes that are essential to my Christmas celebration. Please share your favorites in the comments if you’re so inclined.

And if you’d like to know more about Christmas TV the universally-recognized authority is Joanna Wilson, who has a blog devoted to this particular topic, and whose books on Christmas television I cannot recommend highly enough.

The Avengers (“Too Many Christmas Trees”)

Steed has Santa-themed nightmares, which come to life at a Charles Dickens-inspired Christmas party. The dialogue sparkles as it usually does with this show (Steed on Emma’s friendship with a rare book dealer – “Is he still after your first edition?”), and there’s a clever reference to Steed’s previous partner, Cathy Gale.

The Lucy Show (“Together for Christmas”)

Lucy and Viv look forward to their first Christmas together, until they discover that their respective holiday traditions couldn’t be further apart. Anyone with in-laws can relate.

Dragnet (“The Christmas Story”)

Friday and Gannon try to track down a missing statue of the baby Jesus, stolen from a church’s Nativity scene. Turns out the culprit is a little boy who prayed for a red wagon for Christmas, and promised Jesus the first ride. “Paquita’s family, they’re poor,” explains the priest in the last scene. Friday looks around the church and responds, “Are they, Father?” Good luck finding that kind of message on TV anymore.

The Monkees (“The Christmas Show”)

The Monkees baby-sit a spoiled rich kid (played by The Munsters’ Butch Patrick) over the holidays. The episode is just fair, but it closes with the band performing a superb a cappella version of “Riu Chiu,” a Spanish carol that dates back to the 1500s. 

The Donna Reed Show (“A Very Merry Christmas”)

Donna worries that Christmas is not what it used to be (in 1958!) but finds the true spirit of the season in a hospital janitor who arranges a Christmas party in the children’s ward. Silent screen legend Buster Keaton plays the janitor. A beautiful and heartwarming episode typical of both the series and its era. 

The Dick Van Dyke Show (“The Alan Brady Show Presents”)

All singing, all dancing, all wonderful – except for Richie’s off-key warbling of “The Little Drummer Boy.” What did we do before fast-forward buttons on remotes?

Petticoat Junction (“Cannonball Christmas”)

Railroad executive Homer Bedloe (Charles Lane, TV’s go-to curmudgeon) tries to shut down the Cannonball but is outsmarted by Kate Bradley and her daughters. The show ends with the train, decorated for the holidays, riding through Hooterville to the strains of holiday music. 

The Patty Duke Show (“The Christmas Present”)
Cathy is convinced that her father, a foreign correspondent, will be home to spend Christmas with her, even though newspapers report he’s been jailed after a revolution on the other side of the world. Will he make it in time? Of course he will – what classic TV show would dare to run a depressing Christmas episode? Yeah, I’m looking at you, Family Affair.

The Brady Bunch (“The Voice of Christmas”)

No surprise to see this one on the essential list: Cindy asks Santa to restore her mother’s laryngitis-stricken voice in time for her church solo. Remember when TV characters actually went to church?

That Girl (“’Twas the Night Before Christmas, You’re Under Arrest”)

After one of those misunderstandings that only happen on sitcoms, Ann and Donald spend Christmas Eve in jail.

Wings (‘The Customer’s Usually Right”)

There were six Wings holiday episodes and I usually watch all of them.

My favorite is this one from season four, in which Joe’s refusal to pay a 50-cent rewind fee on a rented videocassette gets a sweet little old lady fired on Christmas Eve. His attempts to make amends lead to unexpectedly hilarious complications.

Father Knows Best (“The Christmas Story”)

Determined to celebrate the holiday right, Jim drags his family up to the mountains so they can cut down their own Christmas tree.  His plan goes awry when the car gets stuck in a snowdrift, and they are forced to seek shelter in an abandoned fishing lodge. The ending, when Kathy thinks she sees Santa Claus out her window, is magical. 

The Bob Newhart Show (“Bob Has to Have His Tonsils Out, So He Spends Christmas Eve in the Hospital”)

The title says it all. Bob is subjected to the indignities of peekaboo hospital gowns, Howard’s hospital horror stories, and an ancient nurse played by the veteran character actress Merie Earle, who gets a laugh with every line she utters. But then you can’t go wrong with any of the Newhart holiday shows.

The Partridge Family (“Don’t Bring Your Guns to Town, Santa”)

This was a favorite episode among most of the cast, and while I like it I don’t love it. I wish there would have been a full performance of “Winter Wonderland,” or better yet “A Christmas Card to You.” But the costumes are beautiful, and with every passing year I am moved more by the poignancy of Dean Jagger’s lonely prospector. 

The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet (“The Girl in the Emporium”)

Ricky and his friend Wally get jobs at a department store to make some extra holiday money – and to hit on a cute sales clerk. I think I watch this one every year just for Ricky Nelson’s Kingfish (from Amos & Andy) imitation near the end. It never fails to make me laugh.

The Mary Tyler Moore Show (“Christmas and the Hard Luck Kid”)

If you’re a classic TV fan you are already picturing Mary’s desk, decorated for the holidays (with Nativity scene in the desk drawer). This is another personal favorite – one year I am definitely going to gift-wrap my front door like she does in this episode. 

Eight is Enough (“Yes, Nicholas, There is a Santa Claus”)

Will Geer plays a down and out man who convinces Nicholas he is Santa Claus, and then steals all the Bradford Christmas presents. Really, Nicholas? Even Nancy wouldn't have fallen for that. Still, it’s a fun two-part show with an unexpectedly powerful ending.

The Flintstones (“Christmas Flintstone”)

I love the look of this episode. The deep blues, reds and whites in the color palette are a striking change from the earth tones that permeate most Flintstones shows. The songs are silly but still memorable, and the Pebbles dolls are an amusing example of not-too-subtle product placement.

Bewitched (“A Vision of Sugar Plums”)

This is my favorite Christmas episode of any series. Every moment of it is perfect.

Glee (“A Very Glee Christmas”)

This is the only contemporary show on my list, but it feels retro because of the wonderful covers of “The Most Wonderful Day of the Year” from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and two songs from The Grinch that Stole Christmas.