Classic TV’s Coolest Character Team-ups

Back in my Marvel Comics collecting days one of my favorite titles was Marvel Team-Up, which ran stories featuring Spider-Man working with (or fighting against) another prominent character in the Marvel Universe. It was always fun to see how two characters I liked would interact, and whether they would fight or join forces against a common enemy.

Television gave us some memorable team-up moments as well. Here are some of my favorites.

Lucy Ricardo and Superman

I don’t know if the 1957 I Love Lucy episode “Lucy and Superman” is the first classic TV crossover. But I can’t think of another example from the 1950s that was this memorable.

George Reeves’ version of Superman was best suited to lighter moments, and here he seems to be having a ball hanging out on a high-rise window ledge with Lucy. One thing I always appreciated about his story was how Lucy and Ricky only refer to Reeves as Superman, to maintain that illusion for younger viewers. 

Batman and The Green Hornet

The most oft-told story about the Batman episodes “A Piece of the Action/Batman’s Satisfaction” (1967) concerned the big fight scene pitting Batman and Robin (Adam West and Burt Ward) against The Green Hornet (Van Williams) and Kato (Bruce Lee).

It might be apocryphal, especially since the doubles for West and Ward did most of the dangerous stuff in those scenes anyway. But legend has it that the script called for Robin to beat Kato, until Bruce Lee refused to lose the fight, and threatened to land a few real shots on his opponent to prove the point. The script was changed so neither hero lost, but Ward supposedly approached that scene like the rest of us approach a root canal. He did have some martial arts training, but if Bruce Lee went rogue the fight would have been over in three seconds.

Doctor Who and Doctor Who (and Doctor Who)

Before anyone in America even knew what it was, Doctor Who was already a sci-fi favorite in England. “The Three Doctors” (1972) was a milestone in the series, created to celebrate its tenth anniversary. The story brought together then-current Doctor Jon Pertwee with his two predecessors, Patrick Troughton and William Hartnell. Illness limited Hartnell’s screen time but he made the most of it: “Oh, so you’re my replacements – a dandy and a clown.” Since then ten more actors have played the role, and the series has become a lot slicker (not to mention more woke, sadly) with its fast-paced stories and special effects. But those early serials are still entertaining, and this was one of the best. 

Scooby-Doo and Josie and the Pussycats

As I wrote in my review of The New Scooby-Doo Movies on Blu-ray, these stories were hit-and-miss at best. “The Haunted Showboat” (1973) features the usual phony ghosts, but the interactions between the Scooby gang and Josie and her friends were fun to watch, especially when Casey Kasem had to carry on conversations with himself while played both Shaggy and Alexander. Docked several points, however, for not featuring a song by the Pussycats.  

Captain Marvel and Isis

This alliance was inevitable, as the two Filmation series featuring these characters aired back-to-back on Saturday mornings as The Shazam-Isis Hour. I just wish they hadn’t waited so long, as I’d have enjoyed watching Isis meet the first Captain Marvel, played by Jackson Bostwick. He had the boyish face and earnest demeanor more suited to such a straight arrow, kid-friendly hero. John Davey replaced Bostwick in the series’ second season. 

The characters met several times during their final seasons – the best of them is “Out of Focus” (1976) where they come to the rescue of a pair of amateur filmmakers played by Andrew Stevens and Nancy Morgan. Morgan married John Ritter just one year after this episode was shot.

The Bionic Woman and Evel Knievel

Jaime Sommers fails to stop East German spies from acquiring a codebook, so she hops on the back of a motorbike and orders the driver to follow the spies behind the Iron Curtain. The best running joke in “Motorcycle Boogie” (1977) is how Jaime refuses to believe the guy she roped into her mission is Evel Knievel: “You’re good, but you’re not that good!”

I just wish this iconic 1970s pairing happened in a more entertaining episode. And I’m surprised that Knievel didn’t object to being portrayed as grouchy and self-centered. But it’s all we’ve got, and it still has its moments. 

Wonder Woman and Roy Rogers

Roy Rogers didn’t play himself in the 1977 Wonder Woman episode “The Bushwhackers,” but that really didn’t matter. In all of his movies and TV shows he was the same genial, good-natured cowboy that he plays here. The plot was unimportant – what made the episode memorable to me occurred before shooting began: Roy was hesitant about appearing with Lynda Carter in her revealing superhero costume, so a new western-style uniform was created for this episode – and of course she looked beautiful in it as well. 

The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew

Both Nancy and the Hardys had been around since the 1930s, first in books and later in various movie and television adaptations. But they never joined forces until ABC launched The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries in 1977. In the season two opener “The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew Meet Dracula,” Frank and Joe trace their missing father to Dracula’s castle, which has been rented out for a superstar rock concert (said superstar played by Paul Williams). Nancy, who had been working for the brothers’ dad on a case, joins the search, and sparks fly between her and Frank.

Colt Seavers, Nick Barkley, Yancy Derringer and Dan Troup

In “King of the Cowboys,” a 1984 episode of The Fall Guy, Lee Majors is reunited with his Big Valley costar Peter Breck, and joins forces with Roy Rogers, Jock Mahoney as Yancy Derringer, and John Russell as Marshal Dan Troup (from the underrated western series Lawman). Watching all these heroes saddle up for one more adventure had to be a remarkable nostalgic rush for old school western fans.

Thomas Magnum and Jessica Fletcher

Detectives come in all ages, sexes, shapes and sizes on TV, but it would be hard to imagine two as opposite as Tom Selleck’s Thomas Magnum and Angela Lansbury’s Jessica Fletcher. And yet, the team-up works because both actors come across as two of the nicest people you’d ever want to meet. The two-part story had a few too many twists and red herrings for its own good, but if that’s what was necessary to give this unlikely crime-fighting duo more time for sleuthing, it’s forgivable. 

Still More Two-Part Episode Hits and Misses

I haven’t done one of these for a while, so let’s take another look at a grab bag of Comfort TV-era two-part episodes and separate the hits from the misses.

As I previously wrote, two-parters should be utilized only for major series milestones or when a writer comes up with an idea that is so good, it deserves a little extra breathing room to be fully explored.

But that doesn’t always happen.

Since we all have more time at home these days, it seems like an ideal opportunity to find some great shows that will help kill an evening – as well as some to avoid.

Good: That Girl: “It’s a Mod, Mod, Mod, Mod World”

Ann meets the famed British fashion photographer Noel Prince, who brings her to Los Angeles as part of a pictorial on the mod, modern woman. Of course he falls for her, much to Donald’s jealous dismay:

Noel: “I once knew a soccer player named Hollinger.”

Donald: “I once knew a dog named Prince.”

The photo shoot scenes are just the sort Mike Myers sent up as Austin Powers, but

Gary Marshal is really good in this as Noel Prince.

It's a shame he had such a short career – his last IMDB credit was in 1971. And while the ‘60s vibe is fun, I was surprised the first time I saw the opening scene, which took place in an automat. I hadn’t seen one of those on TV outside of Agent Carter, which was set in the 1940s. I didn’t know they still had them in New York 20 years later.

Bad: Bewitched: “George Washington Zapped Here”

This was a lightly rewritten version of an earlier (and much better) Bewitched two-parter, in which Aunt Clara zaps up Benjamin Franklin. Here we get George Washington (convincingly played by Will Geer) instead of Franklin, and the drippy Esmerelda instead of Aunt Clara. It’s still sad to me that such a great series ended with a such a dreadful final season.

Good: Dynasty: “Royal Wedding”/ “The Aftermath”

Better known among fans as the Moldavian Massacre, the first half of this two-parter ended with a scene that apparently wiped out the show’s entire cast. 

Measured by ratings and water-cooler buzz, this was a cliffhanger to rival J.R. getting shot and Picard becoming Locutus. Of course, when the next season began we found that the terrorists who sprayed that hail of bullets were about as good at hitting their targets as the bad guys on The A-Team.

Bad: Dallas: “Return to Camelot”

Dallas opened its tenth season by explaining how Bobby Ewing could appear in Pam’s shower after being killed at the end of season eight. Say it with me: Bobby’s not dead – it was all a dream! 

“I thought they had written themselves into a corner,” Charlene Tilton told me when I interviewed her on the occasion of the series’ 25^th anniversary. “Everyone criticized the shower scene, but I never heard anyone come up with a better idea.” She’s got a point.

“Return to Camelot” felt entitled to the special status of a two-parter, but that was hard to maintain with its undercurrent of “nothing to see here, move along,” so no one would linger over such an audacious reboot.

Good: Harry O: “Forty Reasons to Kill”

In addition to featuring two actresses I’m always happy to watch in anything, Joanna Pettet and Hillary Thompson, this is one of those stories that definitely merits the added time.

You’ve seen variations on this plot before: Harry’s case takes him to a small rural town run by corrupt power brokers that have the local law enforcement under their thumb. Of course, hard-luck Harry is going to run afoul of those folks and will take a few beatings and spend some time in jail before he finds what he needs to bring them down.

Bad: Family: “Taking Chances”

I don’t know if there really are any bad episodes of Family. At least until Quinn Cummings shows up. But this show is on such a high pedestal with me that I’m disappointed when it indulges in a drama trope that’s right out of a soap opera. In “Taking Chances,” family patriarch Doug (James Broderick, excellent as always) is hit by a car and loses his sight. It might be restored with surgery, but the operation is risky and could also kill him.

The performances are always perfect, so I can’t not like this show. But the whole conceit of a tragic life-changing event that is conveniently erased in the last scene feels beneath the standards of this Emmy-winning series.

Good: The Bionic Woman: “Jaime’s Shield”

You know how a good whodunit is set up so that the last person you’d suspect is the guilty party? “Jaime’s Shield” got me with its reveal. And all the other business along the way is fun as well, with Jaime going to the police academy and hiding her special abilities from an obnoxious instructor – until that moment she decides to put him in his place. 

Bad: The Wild Wild West: “The Night of the Winged Terror”

This was a barely serviceable single show that got stretched into a mess. Hypnotism stories rarely work for me, except for that Dick Van Dyke Show episode in which Rob acts drunk every time a bell rings.

This one further suffers from the absence of Ross Martin as Artemus Gordon, who was sidelined with health issues for several shows in the series’ final season. Only the genuninely hypnotic close-ups of the divine Michele Carey made this tolerable. 

Good: The Secrets of Isis: “Now You See It…And Now You Don’t”

Every so often I have to throw a bouquet at my favorite Saturday morning series, so I hope you’ll indulge me.

These were the show’s final two episodes, and they were used in an attempt to launch a spinoff series called “The Super-Sleuths.” After teacher Rick Mason is arrested for stealing government secrets, four of his friends and students set out to prove his innocence: series regular Rennie Carol (Ronalda Douglas), Asian kung-fu expert C.J. (Evan Kim), street-smart Feather (Craig Wasson!) and an magician of Indian descent named (and billed as) Ranji. 

Throw in a guest spot from Captain Marvel (John Davey) and some wonderful scenes set in the dearly-missed Busch Gardens theme park, and you’ve got a great way to send off a beloved series.

Bad: The Facts of Life: “Out of Peekskill”

It’s hard to find anything to celebrate about a story that removes a beloved character from a series canvas, and replaces that character with one that never really clicked. Sure, this show had already passed its sell-by date at the start of its eighth season. But it was still sad to lose Charlotte Rae and the familial connection she had to the kids in her care. 

Cloris Leachman’s ditzy den mother didn’t get a great introduction, and it was the beginning of the end for Facts of Life.

Bigfoot: Big in the 1970s

Monsters and strange creatures are intrinsic to Halloween, so this seems a fitting time to blog about Bigfoot.

The legends date back centuries though few believers remain in our skeptical times. But the name still resonates – Animal Planet is currently airing a series called Finding Bigfoot, and we’ve all seen those “Messin’ with Sasquatch” beef jerky commercials.

Bigfoot was biggest in the 1970s, a time when hairy dudes were everywhere, from Burt Reynolds and Barry Gibb to Billy Preston and Grizzly Adams. The phenomenon was likely launched by what is known as the Patterson/Gimlin film, shot in 1967 in Bluff Creek, California. It purported to be the first footage ever captured of the “real” Bigfoot, and it made frequent rounds on various news shows, talk shows and documentaries for years. 

Having thus captured the public’s imagination, it was inevitable that versions of Bigfoot would start turning up in several TV series, perhaps most memorably in The Six Million Dollar Man. “The Secret of Bigfoot” was a two-part episode from the show’s third season that is probably the most famous story they ever tried. 

The high point was a mano a mano throwdown between Col. Steve Austin, then one of the coolest dudes on the planet, and Bigfoot, played here by wrestler Andre the Giant. It was difficult to find believable opponents for someone with Austin’s bionic upgrades, so this was a rare opportunity for the show to cut loose with a full-out, slow motion slugfest, that ends shockingly when Austin rips the creature’s arm off.

Before the PETA folks could start writing angry letters, it’s revealed that the secret alluded to in the episode’s title is that Bigfoot was a robot, created by an alien race who were living inside a mountain, observing humanity. Fortunately they’re friendly visitors, especially the hottie scientist played by Stefanie Powers who asks Steve, “What makes a woman attractive in your world?”

The episodes were so popular that Bigfoot even got his own action figure.

I'd rather have had one of Stefanie Powers.

Bigfoot was quickly brought back for a crossover story between The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman. In “The Return of Bigfoot” the aliens have split into two camps: an evil ring led by John Saxon and the original “we come in peace” group, featuring Powers and Sandy Duncan ("We need someone to play a strange visitor from another world. Quick - get me Sandy Duncan!"). 

Unfortunately the nasty ones control Bigfoot (now played by Ted Cassidy), and it’s up to Steve and Jaime to set things right.

Episodes like these exemplify ‘70s adventure TV: slightly silly but good-natured fun, with unambiguous heroes, action, suspense and a positive message that doesn’t pound you into submission.

It’s probably not surprising that Bigfoot was especially popular among children, hence his appearances in several Saturday morning shows.

Of course, you’d expect the meddling kids at Mystery Inc. to run into him eventually, and it happened in 1972 on The New Scooby Doo Movies. In “The Ghost of Bigfoot,” the Scooby gang find their vacation at the MacKinac Lodge interrupted by the spirit of Bigfoot. They solve the case with help from bellhops Laurel & Hardy. It was one of the better shows of the run. 

Over on The Krofft Supershow, “Bigfoot and Wildboy” featured a Bigfoot (Ray Young) whose existence was known at the local ranger station. As with many Krofft series the opening theme/narration tells you everything you need to know:

Out of the Great Northwest comes the legendary Bigfoot

who, eight years ago, saved a young child lost in the vast wilderness

and raised that child until he grew up to be Wildboy

Bigfoot – hero and single parent – took on aliens, poachers, vampires, mummies and mad scientists. The series lasted 20 episodes, which is about the average run for a Krofft show. It wasn’t one of my favorites, mainly because I always hated the escalating, cacophonous electronic sound effect that accompanied Bigfoot’s running and leaping. Seemed totally out of place. 

I’ll mention one more ‘70s Bigfoot story here, though I’m sure I’ve missed a few others. Isis was and remains my favorite Comfort TV kids show, and the episode “Bigfoot” is an example of this kindhearted, uplifting series at its best.  

A high school field trip ends after two students spot a huge, shadowy figure in the mountains. One of them, Lee, wonders if it might be Bigfoot, and the next day suggests getting a group together to hunt it down. 

"Why?" asks Dr. Barnes, the principal.

Lee: "Why? Because that thing is dangerous!"

Dr. Barnes: "Why?"

Lee: "Well…it’s big, and we don’t know what it is."

Dr. Barnes: "So it must be dangerous…too many people think that anything they don’t understand is dangerous. That’s wrong. If you don’t know what something is you should be cautious but not afraid, not set out to hunt it down."

There’s a show that laid down some knowledge and lessons in tolerance to go with our Frosted Flakes and Fruity Pebbles. But some of the kids do head back to the mountains, where Lee meets not Bigfoot but a long-bearded hermit named Richard, who turns out to be the gentlest of giants. 

Isis invites him to come back with them, but Richard has been told he’s big and ugly all his life and is still too afraid to return to civilization. 

“Sometimes people are very cruel to those who seem different,” Isis says. “But it’s worth giving them a chance.”

Seems like a graceful note on which to end. Let's all keep that in mind as we head toward an election year. Happy Halloween.

Part Two: A Phone Call From Isis

 Sometime around the year 2000, I began to think about writing scripts for television. It is one of my great regrets that I let myself be discouraged by the odds against success, and instead devoted whatever writing talent I had to other pursuits. But at that time I was feeling particularly inspired, and decided to write a spec script just to see if I could do it.

What I chose to write was an updated pilot of the Isis series. I kept the characters of Andrea Thomas and Rick Mason, moved the location to Cameron High School in Miami, and established a new origin for Isis, who receives her powers during a class trip to Egypt.

I was very proud of it at the time, though years later I now see the flaws as clearly as the moments that I think still work. But my initial confidence inspired me to send a copy to JoAnna Cameron.

A couple of weeks later, on a Sunday morning, I staggered half asleep from my bed to my office desk, where the light was flashing on the answering machine. I hit the ‘Play’ button and heard, “Hi, David, this is JoAnna Cameron. I read your script and I wanted to talk to you about it.” And she left her number.

I went downstairs for a cup of tea, then returned to the office and hit the replay button to make sure I had heard what I thought I’d heard. The message was still there.

This is one of those calls that you can’t wait to make, but are very hesitant to make at the same time. Courage and curiosity finally won out and I dialed the number. I found out she lived near Monterrey, California, and she invited me up for a round of golf. I never took her up on that, and it’s too late now because she has since relocated to Hawaii.

During our 15-20 minute conversation, she spoke about how the show has played all over the world, and been translated into a dozen languages. I asked her why she never attended any of the sci-fi conventions, or Hollywood autograph shows. “That’s not for me,” she said. “I’m not Adam West.” Apparently she had a change of heart, however, as a few years later she appeared at a handful of shows.

As for the script, she said, “You should talk to Lou, and you guys could produce it.” “Lou” was Lou Scheimer, one of the creators and producers of the Isis series. When I told her I was calling from Las Vegas, she suggested we set part of the story at the Egyptian-themed Luxor Hotel (which actually had a steakhouse named Isis for awhile).

And just before we hung up, and as I basked in the gratification of an endorsement from the original Isis, she left me with one parting thought: “I can still fit into the costume.” I didn’t know if this was just a statement of pride or an audition.

Later that week I called Lou Scheimer’s office and he invited me to take a meeting. Was this actually happening? Was breaking into the television writing business really this ridiculously easy? I sent him the script, and two weeks later I was in his San Fernando Valley office, surrounded by memorabilia from the many shows created by Filmation. There was nothing from Isis but plenty from Masters of the Universe, which suggests that of all the films and shows he produced, this was the one that allowed him to sock a little away for retirement.

For the next hour, Scheimer regaled me with stories of his career and about how the Isis show came together, but when the subject of the script finally came up, he confessed that he couldn’t bring himself to read it. “I might love it,” he said, “And if I do I’ll be really upset because I don’t own the rights to the character anymore.”

That was a disappointing but understandable answer at the time. With the benefit of hindsight, I now think he probably read it and thought it was lousy, and this was a gracious way of avoiding that conversation.

Either way, that was essentially the end of my screenwriting career. He gave me a contact at Hallmark, which then owned Isis, but when a few phone calls and letters went unanswered I let the matter drop. The script went back in a drawer, where it remains to this day. I’ll never see it filmed, but by doing it I proved something to myself, I got to speak to Isis, and I got to take a meeting with a Hollywood producer about my first script. I’d still call that time well spent. 
 

For any fellow Filmation fans out there, there’s a book that will be out soon about Lou’s life and career that I know I can’t wait to pick up. Here’s what the cover looks like. 

A Phone Call From Isis

 In the 1970s, Saturday morning meant cartoons. And that’s what made the occasional live-action kids series stand out from their animated competition. One of my favorites was The Shazam/Isis Hour – particularly the second half.

Isis, as played by JoAnna Cameron, was one of those characters that help little boys realize there’s more to girls than they may have first appreciated. After two hours of Scooby Doo and Super Friends, there was something delightfully exotic about the appearance of a stunning brunette in a white miniskirt and spiked heels flying across the screen.

But there was more to Isis than Cameron’s beauty (and amazing legs). For the uninitiated, the character was based on the goddess of Egyptian mythology with powers over time and space. Science teacher Andrea Thomas visits the pyramids, and digs up Isis’s amulet, allowing her to transform into the goddess in times of crisis.

I always thought it would have made more sense for Andrea to be a history teacher or an archaeologist. Perhaps they made her a science teacher to tweak scientists, those “I won’t believe anything I can’t see or prove the existence of scientifically” types. One day you’re a secular humanist, the next you’ve got a mythical deity living inside you. That’s the heavens saying, “Not so smart now, huh?”

The stories, all basic morality plays, were set around the high school where Andrea taught. Which means that this superhero who could stop time, control nature and manipulate matter at the molecular level, who could have been out stopping wars and ending famine and turning tidal waves back into the ocean, instead devoted her powers to helping dopey high school kids who locked their keys in their car.

There were only 22 episodes, but this is a desert island show for me. I watched it in perpetual reruns in the 1970s, bought a bootleg set of VHS tapes in the ‘80s, own a carded Mego Isis action figure, and of course purchased the Secrets of Isis DVD set, and have watched every episode at least a dozen times. They take me back to simpler days, and there is a warmth and kindness that exudes from each episode that I find sadly missing in much of current pop culture.

It doesn’t matter how many times I watch these shows, I still love seeing favorite 70s-TV guest star Laurette Spang as a snotty cheerleader, the surprisingly moving “Bigfoot” episode, and lovely Christopher Norris, pre-Trapper John, M.D., as a science fair winner who gets stuck in a western ghost town. And of course, I always looked forward to the crossover episodes with Captain Marvel, the only superhero who traveled by Winnebago.

So why is this entry titled “A Phone Call from Isis”? Because one Sunday morning, many years ago, I received a very interesting call from JoAnna Cameron. Details in the next entry. As a classic TV fan, don’t you just love a good two-part episode?