Television Obscurities » Exhibits

New Exhibit: 1953 “Gallery” Promotional Booklet

RGJ — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 03:04:56 +0000

Most people, even those who visit this website, probably aren’t familiar with the name Worthington Miner, which is too bad. I’ve mentioned him several times over the years, in posts and articles, and now I’m able to present a promotional booklet for an hour-long anthology series he developed for NBC but never got on the air. It’s an interesting look at how NBC attempted to sell the series to sponsors, focusing on the ratings of Studio One, a series Miner was intimately involved with when he worked for CBS, as well as the critical acclaim lavished upon upon. You can read the entire booklet in my latest exhibit: 1953 “Gallery” Promotional Booklet. Here’s the cover:

Gallery Promotional Booklet Cover

Please leave any comments at the exhibit page itself.

New Exhibit: Full Issue of 1949 Television Forecast

RGJ — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 02:58:48 +0000

You can already read an entire 1948 issue of Television Forecast and now you can look through an entire 1949 issue of this early television guide in my latest exhibit: Full Issue of 1949 Television Forecast. I’ve scanned the entire August 20th, 1949 issue. Here’s the cover:

Television Forecast, Volume 2, Number 16 (Whole No. 59) – Published August 20th, 1949

If you have any comments, please add them to the main exhibit page.

New Exhibit: More Famous Faces Do Public Service Announcements

RGJ — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 01:27:38 +0000

Here’s a follow-up to my earlier exhibit, Famous Faces Do Public Service Announcements, featuring another ten public service announcements in which a variety of actors, musicians and others promote a variety of causes. Among the famous faces in this batch are Mary Tyler Moore, Kermit and Fozzie Bear, John Goodman and Barbara Mandrell; the causes include the Red Cross, Country Conservation, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and The Salk Institute. So take a few minutes to look through More Famous Faces Do Public Service Announcements. If you have any comments leave them at the exhibit page.

John Goodman – St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital (Circa 1990)

New Exhibit: More Famous Faces Do Public Service Announcements

New Exhibit: Irwin Allen Promotional Spots

RGJ — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 00:52:41 +0000

The title of this exhibit, Irwin Allen Promotional Spots, is a bit of a misnomer, I admit. The thirteen promotional spots you can watch aren’t publicizing Irwin Allen but instead five of his six television shows. The only show I don’t have any promotional spots for is Code Red, which ran from 1981 to 1982 and starred Lorne Greene. I’ve pulled a few of these spots from other parts of the site but the bulk of them are new. I believe some of them are included as bonus features on various DVD releases (one of the Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea releases has a whole slew of spots, I think) and those versions may be of better quality. But it’s neat to see them all together in their colorful glory (aside from the few that are black and white). So take some time to watch a few promotional spots for your favorite Irwin Allen shows; please leave any comments at the exhibit page.

No Article Today; Updated Exhibit

RGJ — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 00:09:26 +0000

I’m afraid there won’t be a new article today. I do hope to be able to finish two articles next month and in December but after that I may have to cut back to just one article a month. I have added four CBS advertisements to my ABC Promotional Artwork, 1971-1975 as a bonus, because I don’t have enough of these to create an exhibit just for CBS.

New Exhibit: ABC Promotional Artwork, 1971-1975

RGJ — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 23:43:05 +0000

This month’s exhibit is a collection of 18 colorful pieces of promotional artwork for ABC regular programming, sporting events and specials from 1971 to 1975. Included are shows such as The Rookies, Nakia and The New Land. Here’s a small version of one piece of artwork:

1971 Movie of the Week Promotional Artwork

Take a few minutes to browse through ABC Promotional Artwork, 1971-1975. If you have any comments, leave them on the exhibit page. Enjoy!

New Exhibit: Full Issue of 1951 TV Showtime

RGJ — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 11:54:56 +0000

I don’t know much about TV Showtime, aside from the fact that it was published in Omaha, Nebraska and included listings for three stations (KMTV, WOI-TV and WOW-TV). It was first published in 1951, I believe, and may have continued until 1953 when it likely ended due to TV Guide going nationally. I’ve scanned the entire November 5th, 1951 issue, which you can find in my latest exhibit: Full Issue of 1951 TV Showtime. Here’s the cover:

TV Showtime, Volume 2, Number 45 – Published November 5th, 1951

If you have any comments, please add them to the main exhibit page.

Some Exhibits You Might Have Missed

RGJ — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 02:44:34 +0000

I noticed recently that I had forgotten to add the latest exhibits to the list of Exhibits and the Site Map. Which means if you didn’t see my post about these exhibits you’ll have no way of finding them. The exhibits in question are Vintage Sponsor Spots:

I’ve pulled together sixteen sponsor spots (also called billboards) from shows like Route 66, The Patty Duke Show, Where the Action Is and The Twilight Zone. These aren’t commercials per se but announcements listing a show’s participating sponsors. Think of them as advertisements for advertisers. They were generously provided by Maureen, who has donated quite a bit of other footage over the years, and I think they’re quite interesting.

And The Good Life Script Material:

Have you ever wanted to take a look at script pages from an obscure television show? How about revised pages showing how a particular scene changed as it was reworked and rewritten? Or maybe a document laying out potential story ideas for a show before it was picked up? Now you can, with excerpts from two episodes (”Dutton’s Retirement” and “The Burglar Alarm”) and three pages of story lines that come directly from producer Screen Gems.

I’ve been informed that there may be something wrong with the Vintage Sponsor Spots exhibit that keeps the page from loading correctly (or at all). Do these two videos work?

Route 66 A
Marlboro Cigarettes

Some Exhibits You Might Have Missed

Route 66 B
Marlboro Cigarettes

Some Exhibits You Might Have Missed

If not, I’ll know where to start looking. Let me know.

New Exhibit: The Good Life Script Material

New Exhibit: Vintage Sponsor Spots

RGJ — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 12:00:25 +0000

I’ve pulled together sixteen sponsor spots (also called billboards) from shows like Route 66, The Patty Duke Show, Where the Action Is and The Twilight Zone. These aren’t commercials per se but announcements listing a show’s participating sponsors. Think of them as advertisements for advertisers. They were generously provided by Maureen, who has donated quite a bit of other footage over the years, and I think they’re quite interesting.

So if you have a few minutes, take a look at Vintage Sponsor Spots and hear mention of brands and products like Drano, Stri-Dex, 5th Avenue Candy Bars, Pillsbury and Bravo Floor Wax. If you have any comments, please make them on the exhibit page itself. Enjoy!

New Exhibit: The Good Life Script Material

RGJ — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 01:02:30 +0000

Have you ever wanted to take a look at script pages from an obscure television show? How about revised pages showing how a particular scene changed as it was reworked and rewritten? Or maybe a document laying out potential story ideas for a show before it was picked up? You can see all that and more in my latest exhibit: The Good Life Script Material. It features excerpts from two episodes (“Dutton’s Retirement” and “The Burglar Alarm”) and three pages of story lines that come directly from producer Screen Gems. I for one find this sort of thing very interesting. Hopefully others do, too.