31 Day TV Challenge: Day 31

Here it is...the final post of the Challenge. Day 31 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Your "guilty pleasure" show. I may not be a Howard Stern fan, but there is a show that he executive produces that I actually love. Sophmoric humor and double entendre abound in this Baywatch parody. Guaranteed to make me laugh every episode...Son of the Beach.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 30

Day 30 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Brilliant but Cancelled. Bryan Fuller has created some popular shows...Dead Like Me, Heroes, Pushing Daisies, and Hannibal. While I liked Heroes, and loved the short-lived Pushing Daisies, my favorite show of his was cancelled after the first season of 13 episodes. Inanimate objects come to life to speak only to one young woman, giving her cryptic messages/instructions. Cute and quirky, this series had a wonderful cast and great guest stars. Cancelled way too soon...Wonderfalls.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 29

Day 29 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Best Series Ending Episode. Bobby Ewing's death on Dallas and all of Season 9 may have been of dream of Pamela Ewing, but no one suspected that all eight seasons of Newhart were a dream. That's how the final episode of Newhart ended. After Dick Loudon was hit in the head with a golf ball, he woke from a bad dream. He wasn't Dick Loudon, but psychologist Bob Hartley in bed with his wife Emily. The best part is that the scene from the final episode of Newhart ended with The Bob Newhart Show music. Classic ending!

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 28

Day 28 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Best Season Cliffhanger. While Dallas, Falcon Crest, Knots Landing and Dynasty always tried to give us the best cliffhanger for the season...and while "Who Shot J.R.?" was groundbreaking and a world-wide phenomenon...my favorite was the Moldavian Massacre on Dynasty. It's too bad the clip below ends before the bell chiming and the dramatic pull back, but it was a great "Who will live?-Who will die?" cliffhanger. The only fault of this cliffhanger was the resolution--two minor characters killed, Luke and Lady Ashley and then back to Denver.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 27

Day 27 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Favorite TV show from your childhood. For three years I spent Saturday mornings in front of the TV watching this show religiously. I was six when it started and watched it for Grumpy, Dopey, the Sleestak, and of course, Wesley Eure. My favorite show from my childhood is definitely Land of the Lost!

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 26

I've missed two posts. I don't know how I did that. I did remember to post them on my Facebook, but totally forgot to hit the blog. So here is the first of the two I missed! Day 26 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Favorite Talk Show Host. Across the pond on the BBC is my favorite talk show host. It's definitely Graham Norton first from So Graham Norton and now the long running The Graham Norton Show.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 25

Day 25 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Your favorite TV miniseries. I was originally going to choose Mother Love starring Diana Rigg, but as much as I like it, I don't think I could call it my favorite. The one that I guess I consider my favorite was the original V. The way it ended with a cliffhanger and left you wanting more made this feel like an event. I remember everyone talking about. They eventually made a sequel, V-The Final Battle and then followed it up with a weekly series, but it became overkill and the production went down hill. Still loved it and have all three on DVD!

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 24

Day 24 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Best TV Couple. Their love story began in 1975 when they reconnected and reignited their high school love. An accident, a coma, amnesia, and a spin-off later, they began to rebuild their relationship. Then they went to separate networks. Years later, they reunited again and by 1994 they finally tied the knot! The Six Million Dollar Man--Steve Austin and The Bionic Woman--Jaime Sommers are my pick for Best TV Couple!

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 23

Day 23 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Best TV Cast. Without a doubt, the best cast on any TV show was one where each member of the cast won an Emmy for their performance in the show. They made you laugh every time. Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan, and Estelle Getty were the Golden Girls.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 22

Day 22 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: TV show with the best title sequence. While I love good animated openings like Wonder Woman, Batman, and The Nanny...or graphic openings like Charlie's Angels or Dynasty...my favorite opening is my favorite because it went against what was expected. The first and second season had an aerial view of a cul-de-sac with each person's image in the street, but they then went to a scrolling series of images with the scenes and individual shots of each star. It stayed like that for six more seasons. The music was fast and playful. Season nine, they went to Sandy Dvore (famous for the walking partridges for The Partridge Family). He took what looks like a Jackson Pollock painting and, while panning over it, superimposed cameo shots in black and white of each of the main stars. They slowed down the music and it became very ethereal. Season Ten they went to color cameos. Eleven was a sandcastle city with no cast images and later back to scrolling images but updated it with frames. My favorite ends up being Season Nine of Knots Landing!

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 21

Day 21 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: a TV Theme song you know all the words to. Let's face it. I know a lot of TV Theme songs by heart. My favorites are the ones that tell a story, origin, or premise. Shows like The Beverly Hillbillies, Gilligan's Island, H.R. Pufnstuf and The Nanny are some of the great ones that are examples of that. Since I know so many, I decided to spotlight one that I just love to sing along with. The two stars sing the theme themselves and make it even more special. Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor in Green Acres! Sing along...GREEN ACRES is the place to be....

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 20

Day 20 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: a TV family you would like to be a part of. They're creepy and they're cooky, mysterious and spooky, they're all together ooky...The Addams Family! Plus their house is a museum...

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 19

Day 19 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Saddest character death. The one that makes me cry every time I see it is actually from a sitcom. A mafia princess who was disowned by her father and forced to live with the man they had arranged her marriage to. She was spoiled and rude, but over time came to think of her husband's family as her own and considered their home as her home. She had been kidnapped, but in her escape, she was shot. Her only thought was to make it "home". The saddest character death to me was Elaine on Soap. If you can make it through the musical montage in this clip someone posted on YouTube, you will see her final scene. No sad music during her death scene, just the sounds of approaching ambulance sirens...

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 18

Day 18 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: A TV villain so bad they're great. Most people would assume that I'd head to my nighttime soaps for this one. They would think that I'd put Alexis Carrington Colby, J.R. Ewing, Abby Cunningham Ewing, Angela Channing, etc... Nope! Probably the most evil person that I've ever seen on TV is someone that I had hard time finding a clip for that wasn't too violent. One of the funniest things is that no one can pronounce his name. He would be one of those people that I would totally hate and also be totally scared of in real life. One of the most hated men in OZ, but played to the hilt by J.K. Simmons...Vern Schillinger.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 17

Day 17 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Favorite TV Superhero. Fighting evil in every guise: as a Yeoman First Class Diana Prince during World War II; as Agent Diana Prince for the IADC; and as Princess Diana of Paradise Island, better known to the world as Wonder Woman.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 16

Day 16 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Favorite TV Spy. While my favorite TV show is an espionage show, Emma Peel was not a spy...just a talented amateur, so my number one spy would be the agent that works with another talented amateur. This agent is Lee Stetson, better know as Scarecrow in Scarecrow and Mrs. King. Here is a video that someone did spolighting Bruce Boxleitner as Scarecrow.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 15

Day 15 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Favorite TV Detective. It's six for me...Once upon a time there were three little girls who went to the Police Academy, followed by one from San Francisco, another from Boston, and one from a top school for models. They left their exciting careers and went to work for Charles Townsend. My favorite detective(s) are Kelly Garrett, Sabrina Duncan, Jill Munroe, Kris Munroe, Tiffany Welles and Julie Rogers. Not to forget their man Friday--John Bosley. So for this one, I had to create a tribute video for Charlie's Angels.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 14

Day 14 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Favorite TV Cop. She was an undercover cop for the Los Angeles Police Department working in the Criminal Conspiracy Unit. She's posed as a nurse, a flight attendant, a prostitute, a prisoner, a dancer, and more to get information that will bring down the bad guys. My favorite TV cop is Angie Dickinson's Sgt. Pepper Anderson of Police Woman.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 13

Day 13 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Favorite TV Lawyer. She was the first full-time Assistant Distict Attorney for the Special Victims Unit and has been the best in the series. Played by Stephanie March, Alex Cabot in Law & Order: SVU

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 12

Day 12 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Favorite TV Doctor. I had to go to the future...After the 1st season, she was let go from the show, but thanks to fan outcries and a plea from Patrick Stewart, she was brought back for the 3rd season and stayed for the remaining five seasons. Usually, when two characters have great chemistry, they make them a couple and/or fall into bed, and once the sexual tension is gone, it becomes flat...but thankfully, they teased a romance from the beginning of the show through to the end with hints for what may be in store beyond the series finale. Once the show went to feature films, it was all but forgotten...oh well. Here is nice tribute to the love that could be or almost was...from Star Trek: The Next Generation is Captain Jean-Luc Picard and my favorite TV doctor Beverly Crusher.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 11

Day 11 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: The funniest TV show you've watched. From the creators of Airplane! which I listed as my funniest movie during the 31 Day Film Challenge, the funniest TV show for me also led to three feature films based on this short-lived TV series. Even though it lasted only 6 episodes, it had jokes and laughs every couple of minutes. My choice is POLICE SQUAD!

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 10

Day 10 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Most annoying character on TV. He appeared halfway through the first season of this sitcom as a recurring character and then took over. It pushed the main characters to the background and it became his show even though the show was created for the family. He was just supposed to be the nerdy kid next door and while cute in the very first episode he appeared in, it was already grating my nerves by the second. I eventually just stopped watching. Even with his character only appearing in about half of the first season and the fact that he wasn't even a main character, look at this release of the first season DVD. How much more annoying can you get? So my choice for most annoying character is Steve Urkel from Family Matters.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 9

Day 9 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Favorite Female Character on TV. This was hard, because my favorite characters have been spotlighted in my Day 1 favorite TV show ever (Emma Peel of The Avengers) and Day 2 favorite actress (Carrie Nye as Susan Piper on Guiding Light) features. So in keeping with the rule of not doubling up, I have to choose a female character that I love that hasn't already been spotlighted. She appeared on the show very seldomly, but she made such an impact that I fell in love with her. I wanted them to change the show to feature her more. In fact, the clip I'm attaching is a tribute video I made about her character spin-off. My favorite female TV character is Angie McDaniel from Gimme a Break! Here is my spin-off dream show starring Alvernette Jimenez as Angie in "Angie, baby..." The title comes from the way Nell always addressed her.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 8

Day 8 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Favorite Male Character on TV. While I love Mr. Granger from Are You Being Served? and Bosley from Charlie's Angels, I decided to go with the Doctor. Specifically, David Tennant's characterization of the ...10th Doctor. With 11 filmed Doctors and a 12th on the way, I felt David Tennant had the right amount of fanboy in him to really enjoy the role. He could be funny during the comedy bits and bring real pathos to the tragic. While Tom Baker's #4 was the Doctor I grew up with, I have to vote Tennant's #10 as my favorite male character from TV's Doctor Who.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 7

Day 7 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: A hit show you could never get into. There have been quite a few shows that I always seemed to be out of the loop on. People would come in and say "Last night on The Bachelor..." or "I can't believe Bobby... died on NYPD Blue..." I'm like, "Who?" "What?" "Where?". But that's okay, I enjoy the shows I like. I tried this show twice. Once with the first episode and once again in the middle of the 1st season. I didn't get the appeal. So my choice for a hit show I couldn't get into is: The Sopranos.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 6

Day 6 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: Groundbreaking Television. While most sitcoms aired live or were filmed like a movie with one camera and adding canned laughter, this show pioneered the studio audience with a 3 camera filming technique which became a staple for all sitcoms to follow that had live studio audiences. Beyond that (and why I'm saying it was groundbreaking) when Lucille Ball became pregnant and the show wouldn't be able to keep it's episode count commitment to the network, Desi Arnaz decided to show the filmed episodes from season one to give Lucy a break. This is widely considered the birth of the "rerun". Now considering the way I watch TV, if it weren't for reruns, I wouldn't have a thing to watch without the contribution of I LOVE LUCY! Also, Happy Birthday Lucy!

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 5

Day 5 of the 31 Day TV Challenge: The Greatest Moment in TV History. The one that started it all. It took a popular nighttime drama to the heights of world-wide acclaim. It led to months of speculation, gamblers betting on the outcome, TV and media coverage looking at every angle of the story. It has been parodied, copied, and built upon. The nighttime soaps would never be the same as each tried to outdo the others for years to come. It grew beyond the nighttime soaps, because even other dramas, sitcoms, and animated shows have left us with summer cliffhangers that wouldn't be answered until the following fall. They all owe a debt to the shot heard 'round the world. DALLAS gave us "Who Shot J.R.?"

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 4

Day 4 of the 31 Day TV Challenge--A show you used to like, but now hate. There is only one show that I remember watching that I couldn't watch anything more than just this clip of a promo for the final episode of M*A*S*H

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 3

Day 3 of the 31 Day TV Challenge--Your least favorite show ever. To be honest, any of the multitude of reality shows that make celebrities out of the worst people on the planet fits here for me. This includes anything with Paris Hilton, any of the The Real Housewives shows, anything with any of the Kardashians, anything featuring Honey Boo Boo, or that thing called Jersey Shore. I couldn't even bring myself to post a clip...so here is just a photo...YUCK!

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 2

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 2--Your favorite actor/actress featured in a TV Show. My favorite actress didn't appear in a lot TV shows or TV movies. She did appear in a couple. In one show, she appeared as the evil real estate agent, Susan Piper! Here is Carrie Nye in a short clip from Guiding Light.

31 Day TV Challenge: Day 1

Your Favorite Show ever

Whether John Steed was teamed with Dr. David Keel, Mrs. Cathy Gale, Tara King, or my personal favorite Emma Peel, the show stands as my favorite show ever. Watch out for diabolical masterminds!

The Avengers