Magnum Mania!

Luther's nephew Dobie wrote: ↑Tue Nov 09, 2021 3:17 am
I do have a nightmarish fear that as the years go by, the reboot will displace the decades old Classic Magnum in syndication just because it is newer, despite being inferior to the original.
Like Burt Reynolds "The Longest Yard" being sent to the showers by the Adam Sandler remake. And Classic Hawaii 5-0 banished from the airwaves by Lenkov's newer version, which is a crime!
Does anyone know of the original being played on any TV station?

IvanTheTerrible wrote: ↑Tue Nov 09, 2021 4:46 pm

Luther's nephew Dobie wrote: ↑Tue Nov 09, 2021 3:17 am
I do have a nightmarish fear that as the years go by, the reboot will displace the decades old Classic Magnum in syndication just because it is newer, despite being inferior to the original.
Like Burt Reynolds "The Longest Yard" being sent to the showers by the Adam Sandler remake. And Classic Hawaii 5-0 banished from the airwaves by Lenkov's newer version, which is a crime!
Does anyone know of the original being played on any TV station?

I don't think there's any danger of that. Classic Five-O always was and I'm sure still is playing on some station somewhere. Plus there's the Decades Binge which shows Five-O marathons from time to time. As for the new Five-0 I know they finally started showing it on the iON channel but I haven't come across it in a while so maybe they took it off. The continuing story lines don't play well in syndication. Same thing will be true with the new MPI. Classic MPI is still on a constant rotation on ChargeTV and maybe some other channels too.

Luther's nephew Dobie wrote: ↑Wed Nov 10, 2021 3:36 am

IvanTheTerrible wrote: ↑Tue Nov 09, 2021 4:46 pm

Luther's nephew Dobie wrote: ↑Tue Nov 09, 2021 3:17 am
I do have a nightmarish fear that as the years go by, the reboot will displace the decades old Classic Magnum in syndication just because it is newer, despite being inferior to the original.
Like Burt Reynolds "The Longest Yard" being sent to the showers by the Adam Sandler remake. And Classic Hawaii 5-0 banished from the airwaves by Lenkov's newer version, which is a crime!
Does anyone know of the original being played on any TV station?

I don't think there's any danger of that. Classic Five-O always was and I'm sure still is playing on some station somewhere. Plus there's the Decades Binge which shows Five-O marathons from time to time. As for the new Five-0 I know they finally started showing it on the iON channel but I haven't come across it in a while so maybe they took it off. The continuing story lines don't play well in syndication. Same thing will be true with the new MPI. Classic MPI is still on a constant rotation on ChargeTV and maybe some other channels too.

Ivan,
I hope your judgment prevails here.
I too enjoy the Decades binges. A few months ago they ran a "The Rookies" marathon and I recalled you posting how much you liked that series. So I watched and enjoyed it and shortly after the H & I
network began running it early in the AM Sundays and I was hooked. Unfortunately they only ran it for about 4 months, so I am now finishing watching it on You Tube.
I just watched the 3rd season episode "Cliffy", written by Mark Slade(High Chaparral's "Blue Boy") who guest starred as a "retarded" young man and he was terrific, his script terrific and the episode
terrific overall. There was a lot of truth in it, spot on.
One heart breaking scene had the challenged youth's saintlike sister/guardian (Tyne Daily) breaking and lashing out about having no social life or future because of the baggage her own
brother Cliff represents. That hit home because my childhood pal's brain damage from being run over resulted in him becoming a middle age five year old, his guardian/sister sacrificing her own
happiness or shot at family life because of him. It sounds brutal but if anyone ever asked me I would say she was wrong, she was entitled to having a life and kids and should have found a institution
to care for her brother. And the guy I knew that was her brother would have agreed.
Thanks Ivan for talking up The Rookies, it's chock full of my favorite 1970's actors in guest starring roles and a darn good show. Plus it features a young Kate Jackson.

IvanTheTerrible wrote: ↑Thu Nov 11, 2021 5:20 pm

Luther's nephew Dobie wrote: ↑Wed Nov 10, 2021 3:36 am

IvanTheTerrible wrote: ↑Tue Nov 09, 2021 4:46 pm

Luther's nephew Dobie wrote: ↑Tue Nov 09, 2021 3:17 am
I do have a nightmarish fear that as the years go by, the reboot will displace the decades old Classic Magnum in syndication just because it is newer, despite being inferior to the original.
Like Burt Reynolds "The Longest Yard" being sent to the showers by the Adam Sandler remake. And Classic Hawaii 5-0 banished from the airwaves by Lenkov's newer version, which is a crime!
Does anyone know of the original being played on any TV station?

I don't think there's any danger of that. Classic Five-O always was and I'm sure still is playing on some station somewhere. Plus there's the Decades Binge which shows Five-O marathons from time to time. As for the new Five-0 I know they finally started showing it on the iON channel but I haven't come across it in a while so maybe they took it off. The continuing story lines don't play well in syndication. Same thing will be true with the new MPI. Classic MPI is still on a constant rotation on ChargeTV and maybe some other channels too.

Ivan,
I hope your judgment prevails here.
I too enjoy the Decades binges. A few months ago they ran a "The Rookies" marathon and I recalled you posting how much you liked that series. So I watched and enjoyed it and shortly after the H & I
network began running it early in the AM Sundays and I was hooked. Unfortunately they only ran it for about 4 months, so I am now finishing watching it on You Tube.
I just watched the 3rd season episode "Cliffy", written by Mark Slade(High Chaparral's "Blue Boy") who guest starred as a "retarded" young man and he was terrific, his script terrific and the episode
terrific overall. There was a lot of truth in it, spot on.
One heart breaking scene had the challenged youth's saintlike sister/guardian (Tyne Daily) breaking and lashing out about having no social life or future because of the baggage her own
brother Cliff represents. That hit home because my childhood pal's brain damage from being run over resulted in him becoming a middle age five year old, his guardian/sister sacrificing her own
happiness or shot at family life because of him. It sounds brutal but if anyone ever asked me I would say she was wrong, she was entitled to having a life and kids and should have found a institution
to care for her brother. And the guy I knew that was her brother would have agreed.
Thanks Ivan for talking up The Rookies, it's chock full of my favorite 1970's actors in guest starring roles and a darn good show. Plus it features a young Kate Jackson.

Sorry Dobie, but you must have me confused with someone else. I never discussed THE ROOKIES or talked about liking it. I know about the show and that it's from the Spelling-Goldberg factory (interestingly enough Leonard Goldberg is now the main man behind BLUE BLOODS, and was behind T.J. HOOKER in the 80s which was a show I liked) but I've never actually seen a full episode of THE ROOKIES. Just some clips here and there on YouTube. It has a pretty cool theme by Elmer Bernstein if I recall correctly, but then what cop show back in the day didn't have a cool theme? Even if the show wasn't good you could at least count on a cool theme! Nowadays opening themes don't even exist. They'll tell us it's because we're more "intelligent" now and therefore no longer need "cheap gimmicks" to rope us into watching a show. But if you ask me it's just a lack of creativity and lack of enthusiasm for the project they're working on. It's all about the almighty dollar! As long as they include enough boom-booms and shocking twists in the story to keep the viewers viewing then it's good enough for them. It's like giving someone a present without taking the necessary care to gift wrap it nicely on the outside - so that it's both pleasing on the outside as well as on the inside. The complete package! Instead of just half-assing it - "hey, there's a gift card inside so just be happy with that and stop complaining". In other words there isn't that tender love and care that goes into these modern shows as there used to be back in the day. When Leonard Freeman conceived FIVE-O he made sure all the ingredients were in place - a great opening theme, arresting (no pun intended) lead actor, local actors to provide local color, hard-hitting stories set against the backdrop of gorgeous Hawaii, creative cinematography and excellent episodic music scoring, superb guest stars, shocking freeze-frame endings, etc. The complete package! You knew it was a labor of love for him. Wasn't just about making a quick buck. And the show quickly became Jack Lord's passion as well, which he carried forward after Lenny's passing. The same was true of Don Bellisario and his vision for MPI (which he talks about in various YouTube videos). He could have just went the "James Bond" route with it (as the suits and execs wanted) and it would have been a safe bet and turned a quick buck, but he knew that he wanted something unique and something that he was personally passionate about. Maybe it wasn't a safe bet at the time but in the long run it proved to have real staying power.
I even enjoy coming across old commercials because they all have these great and memorable jingles. Makes you want to run out and get their product, if only for their creativity in coming up with those jingles. Nowadays when a commercial comes on I just want to skip it. Boooooring. I don't think we appreciated those commercials back in the day. I know I didn't. I just wanted to get on with the show. But now, looking back, those were some excellent commercials. I'd rather watch them than modern shows.

Luther's nephew Dobie wrote: ↑Fri Nov 12, 2021 12:57 am
Ivan,
Mea culpa in regards to thinking it was you posting about The Rookies, who knows perhaps it was Braddah Kimmo.
In regards to the above, I think it has to be among the 5 best posts you have written on the MM boards. Outstanding.
You citing Jack Lord's passion for keeping up Hawaii 5-0's high standards reminded me of Robert Culp's passion for I SPY. After the pilot fell flat, Culp still recognized the potential series had many
things going for it so he rushed home and wrote(he wasn't getting paid to do so) a new pilot over the weekend. It was filmed quick smart and was a big hit with the execs at NBC who green lighted the series.
All because Culp cared about the "job".
Like Desi Arnaz with I Love Lucy, he was the true creative genius behind I SPY(which drove Sheldon Leonard crazy) and like Desi with Lucy he was overshadowed by his co-star.

IvanTheTerrible wrote: ↑Fri Nov 12, 2021 4:48 pm

Luther's nephew Dobie wrote: ↑Fri Nov 12, 2021 12:57 am
Ivan,
Mea culpa in regards to thinking it was you posting about The Rookies, who knows perhaps it was Braddah Kimmo.
In regards to the above, I think it has to be among the 5 best posts you have written on the MM boards. Outstanding.
You citing Jack Lord's passion for keeping up Hawaii 5-0's high standards reminded me of Robert Culp's passion for I SPY. After the pilot fell flat, Culp still recognized the potential series had many
things going for it so he rushed home and wrote(he wasn't getting paid to do so) a new pilot over the weekend. It was filmed quick smart and was a big hit with the execs at NBC who green lighted the series.
All because Culp cared about the "job".
Like Desi Arnaz with I Love Lucy, he was the true creative genius behind I SPY(which drove Sheldon Leonard crazy) and like Desi with Lucy he was overshadowed by his co-star.

Thanks Dobie! So what was the beef between Culp and Sheldon Leonard? Leonard's name was everywhere at the time, including on my favorite TV comedy THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW.

Luther's nephew Dobie wrote: ↑Sat Nov 13, 2021 2:28 am

IvanTheTerrible wrote: ↑Fri Nov 12, 2021 4:48 pm

Luther's nephew Dobie wrote: ↑Fri Nov 12, 2021 12:57 am
Ivan,
Mea culpa in regards to thinking it was you posting about The Rookies, who knows perhaps it was Braddah Kimmo.
In regards to the above, I think it has to be among the 5 best posts you have written on the MM boards. Outstanding.
You citing Jack Lord's passion for keeping up Hawaii 5-0's high standards reminded me of Robert Culp's passion for I SPY. After the pilot fell flat, Culp still recognized the potential series had many
things going for it so he rushed home and wrote(he wasn't getting paid to do so) a new pilot over the weekend. It was filmed quick smart and was a big hit with the execs at NBC who green lighted the series.
All because Culp cared about the "job".
Like Desi Arnaz with I Love Lucy, he was the true creative genius behind I SPY(which drove Sheldon Leonard crazy) and like Desi with Lucy he was overshadowed by his co-star.

Thanks Dobie! So what was the beef between Culp and Sheldon Leonard? Leonard's name was everywhere at the time, including on my favorite TV comedy THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW.

Ivan,
Sheldon Leonard was one of the best producers ever - check his track record. Plus I always enjoyed his acting as one of the all time great "hood" characters, he turned up everywhere from
the Bowery Boys and Abbott & Costello to Dick Van Dyke and Cheers and of course It's A Wonderful Life. But if I SPY had stayed true to his vision it would have been another attempt to
cash in on the James Bond craze, though well produced and filmed from Asia to Europe. Culp changed the characterization with his pilot. It originally was Culp as THE star, titled after all
"I" Spy with side kick Scotty very much a secondary character and not his equal.
He made the two equal partners, embraced then co-opted for the show the comic "cool" patter from Cosby's act, took the time to generously teach Cosby the ropes of acting
- Culp was the established TV star - and as a result a grateful Cosby always would present a united front with Culp on any other disagreement with management.
Leonard, who loved Cosby, would thus almost always lose any dispute over this cash cow if it went to the network, and blamed Culp for "brainwashing" Cosby.
During filming they would alter poorly written scenes with better ad libs, only they weren't off hand, Culp and Cosby crafted them after hours before the next days shoot.
The repartee they created was the most endearing and loved part of the show, though the public assumed it all flowed from Cosby.
Leonard resented these changes because the network honchos watching the dailies could see that Culp/Cosby were indeed right and Leonard's people weren't. Then Culp, who could have had
a big career just as a screen writer, wrote seven episodes that just happened to be the 7 best of the series. Culp was not trying to undermine Leonard but Sheldon saw it that way, but what
could he do, Culp was repeatedly proven right. He should have embraced Culp's efforts, it put money in his pocket and created a gem of a series that can never be repeated, no series today
could be filmed all around the world.
Culp, though a nice guy and not arrogant, could also walk in any given 100 rooms filled with people and be the smartest guy in 80 of them. Maybe Leonard could't deal with a underling
who was that much smarter.
Not to take anything from Leonard, he created the series in the first place.
All this confirms what you posted above about the talent back then caring about their series and jobs and taking pride.
I still haven't watched this series in a long time, given Cosby later becoming utterly corrupted by his stardom. Smarter people than me say that shouldn't matter, the Art transcends
whatever darkness resides in the people who help create a given piece of work. That "Scotty" on screen had nothing to do with the bastard Cosby of later years.
Along those lines, sort of -
William Faulkner said tongue in cheek:
"The writer's only responsibility is to his art... if a writer has to rob his mother, he will not hesitate; the 'Ode on a Grecian Urn' is worth any number of old ladies."