memories of the ’70s – Cannon

In the early 1970s, being a private detective meant you were not the standard – and another character that perfectly fit that description was Cannon.

Portrayed by William Conrad, Cannon, a former police detective, became a private detective after his wife and son died in a car accident.

The series was launched by being introduced by another popular detective series, Barnaby Jones, with its first two episodes.

Conrad was well-known to viewers after playing Marshall Matt Dillon on Gunsmoke and being the voice on The Fugitive as well on Rocky and Bullwinkle.

Conrad’s Cannon was tough, smart-talking and had high-class tastes, including his prize possesssion, a 1971 Lincoln Continental Mark III, which had a car phone, a rarity for this time period. He loved food and was a big guy, figuring out the mysteries of deaths, disappearances and all kinds of stories for clients in southern California.

Not afraid to fight, Cannon often used judo or karate moves against a foe – and when that didn’t work, he even used his large stomach, or his ’38 special revolver.

Cannon had some particularly unique quotes – “OK, sir, I’ll take your case and investigate what happened…But just remember, the truth is like rain — it doesn’t care who gets wet” or another gem “I‘ll have to think about it…You see, I’ve never been retained by a dead man before.”

 The series was produced by Quinn Martin, who had also brought The Streets of San Francisco and Barnaby Jones to the small screen. Airing on CBS, the series debuted in September 1971.

Nominated for an Emmy for best actor in 1973 and 1974, William Conrad’s popularity grew with the second and third seasons, as the ratings increased, pushing the show from #29 in the Nielsen ratings in its first year to top 10 in 1973/1974.

At the same time, tie-in novels were published in the United States and the United Kingdom, the first two written by Richard Gallagher and the rest of the series by Douglas Enefer.

For this young girl, I remember asking my Dad if he was going to watch the Fat Man – which was my nickname for Cannon.

Instead of the slick perfect looking people of television today, Cannon looked like he would be my neighbour, although the one with the car everyone coveted and the occasional dangerous glint in his eye.

By spring 1976 the series had lost its lustre with viewers and was cancelled. But the presence of another odd character as a private detective confirmed the stereotype once again.

memories of the ’80s – The Facts of Life

The 1980s started with the view of teen life according to girls at a private school: The Facts of Life.

A spinoff of sitcom Diff’rent Strokes, the show initially was the move of The Drummond Family housekeeper Mrs. Garrett (Charlotte Rae) to work at a girls’ school attended by Kimberly Drummond, but her character was never shown in the new series.

Initially the series had seven main characters of students – Blair, Natalie, Tootie, Molly, Cindy, Sue Anne and Nancy. Each one had her own flair and focus, as they dealt with school and life at the Eastland School.  The series debuted in 1979 on NBC.

In the second year, the show was reworked, focusing on Mrs. Garrett and four students: Blair, Natalie, Tootie and new girl Jo. Because of a major infraction, the girls are forced to share a room next door to Mrs. Garrett and work in the cafeteria.

Each character had her own back story – Blair was a from a very wealthy family and was vain, while Tootie was African-American and the youngest, Natalie was the chubby and funny girl while Jo was a tough girl from the wrong side of the tracks who made it to the school on scholarship.

There were several reccuring characters in the series, including Blair’s cousin Geri, Miko, Boots, “Shoplifter” Kelly, and Princess Alexandra, all of which were girls who showed the main characters their strengths or weaknesses in addressing all kinds of issues from prejudice to peer pressure. Another notable character was George, played by George Clooney, a handyman at the school.

Despite its slow move with the ratings, this show became one of the top ranked sitcoms on NBC, finding its audience and by 1982, spawned a special with the girls going to Paris. Several spinoffs from the series were attempted, but nothing found its audience. I was a regular watcher of the series, liking Jo for her tough character and plain-talking spirit.

After eight seasons, the show had exhausted its storylines and its characters were now not in school – and the series was ended. But for its time in the 1980s, this show was popular, not just because of its silly humour and crazy antics of teen girls, but because with subtle humour it dealt with the pressures of being a teen girl – from sexuality to getting older to school stress.

memories of the ’70s – The Kids of Degrassi Street

Inspired by the changing culture of teenagers in multicultural Toronto in the late 1970s, producer Linda Schuyler created a series that established a new view of kids and teens on television: The Kids of Degrassi Street.

Debuting on the CBC in September 1979, The Kids of Degrassi Street were loosely connected to a series of afterschool specials and focused on teens’ life – friendships, relationships, divorce, drugs, school politics and anything and everything.

Filmed in downtown Toronto, the realistic view of their world was layered into everything – from the depiction on the small screen, everyone looked like they could live next door, a decided move away from depicting the characters as perfect and pretty.

Each half hour focused on an issue – whether it was coping with school stresses or trying to figure out a new relationship. This series depicted life as it was, without sugar coating or making it always finish neatly by the end of the half hour.

All the characters lived on Degrassi Street and attended the same school – there were the older ones: Noel, Catherine, Chuck and Tina or the younger ones: Lisa, Griff, Connie, Pete, Rachel and Casey. The show began airing on PBS in the United States, finding an equally interested audience of kids and teens south of the border.

I remember seeing a few episodes and it made me curious about the city of Toronto – wondering how big the city was and all the different people who lived there.

In the next decade this series expanded – not only in scope, but in popularity beyond the borders of Canada with Degrassi Junior High. The kids may have changed and grown a bit older, but the series’ intent to show the changing life of an urban kid and teen stayed the same.

memories of the ’80s – Beauty and the Beast

In the late 1980s, this classic French fairytale was shown in a new way with the television series Beauty and the Beast.

Starring Ron Perlman and Linda Hamilton, the series was set in New York City.

Hamilton played Catherine Chandler, a NY district attorney who finds out she has a guardian angel in the form of Ron Perlman, who plays Vincent, a man/creature of the underground in this hour long drama.

Chandler’s character is beaten and left for dead in Central Park and found by Vincent, a man who resembles a lion.

Through their relationship, Chandler learns of about a whole other level of her city, where a underground group of people live in tunnels and survive on the streets. She promises to keep the secrets of Vincent and his friends in Tunnel World, and find out why she was attacked.

The first season focused on unveiling why Catherine had been a victim of this crime and the relationship between her and Vincent, who lives in the shadows. Unlike the traditional storyline, Vincent as the beast, doesn’t transform into a human ideal of male beauty, but continues to be the beast, showing his inner strength and qualities.

In season two, the side character of Tunnel World are shown more – to see how they ended up in this community and by season three,  because Linda Hamilton was pregnant and wanted to leave the series, the show creators developed a major change in the storyline. Catherine is kidnapped by the head of an evil crime syndicate, gives birth to Vincent’s son, dies and Vincent is left to search for his missing child.

The drama of this series led it to become a cult favourite – and when the relationship of Catherine and Vincent was ended on screen, it soon lost ratings and was cancelled by CBS.

But as a series, its fairytale romance became a favourite of viewers, and in 2012, is being resurrected for the small screen once more.

memories of the ’70s – Fantasy Island

In the late 1970s, a concept for a new television series was born out of two television movies, depicting a place where your questions and concerns could be answered: Fantasy Island.

Starring Ricardo Montalban and Herve Villechaize, the first television movie aired in 1977, with Montalban as Mr. Roarke, the owner of a private Pacific Ocean island, where people came to live out their fantasies for a high price.

Villechaize played Tattoo, the sidekick of Mr. Roarke who would announce the arrival of guests with the call “De plane, de plane” in his unique French accent.

Produced by the successful Aaron Spelling, the two movies were a hit – gaining good review and large viewing audiences.

Each guest paid US$50,000 to have their fantasy revealed, but Mr. Roarke would also guide them in life lessons, in order to become better people and learn about themselves. In the follow up television film, Return to Fantasy Island, more is revealed about the enigmatic Mr. Roarke, who may be immortal or at least could time travel.

The success of the two television movies led to the launch of the series on ABC TV in 1979, with each episode showing three guest stars what path they would take – and when chosen, the fantasy had to be completed, no matter the fear or dislike of the the guest for how their fantasy was unfolding.

The series ended in 1984, as viewers didn’t like the changes to the series, especially the removal of Villechaize and the replacement with a butler named Lawrence.

I watched this series (which was a solid Saturday night hit for ABC) in tandem with Love Boat, both shows revealing the hidden lives of the guests who would arrive. It was silly and odd, but an hour of discovery for the characters and viewers.

memories of the ’80s – Max Headroom

In the mid 1980s, technology created a new tv fixation – Max Headroom.

Beginning as the host of a Brit music tv show, Max Headroom was the creation of George Stone, Annabel Jankel and Rocky Morton.

Portrayed by actor Matt Frewer, Max was supposed to be the world’s first computer-generated tv host – although it technically wasn’t true.

Thanks to hours of makeup, a fibreglass mould as his suit and Ray Ban sunglasses, Max Headroom was only shown from the shoulders up, usually with a simple graphic image behind him.

His voice would go up and down, creating an odd speech pattern. And he became a star.

His odd humour and strange presence seemed to strike a chord with tv viewers on Britain’s Channel 4 as he made fun of the typical tv hosts and was sarcastic in his commentary. His music show became a cult hit, with viewers increasing by twofold thanks to Max Headroom.

Exported to the North American market in Max Headroom: 20 Minutes into the Future, a television movie in 1985, the character’s odd style caught the eye of viewers on the other side of the Atlantic.

In 1986, the tv series debuted, which lasted two seasons on ABC. The hour long show was set in a world dominated by tv networks, but couldn’t make it through a second season thanks to the strength of CBS series Dallas and NBC series Miami Vice.

I remember seeing this character and wondering why anyone would watch this series. I saw the promos, but never was lured to actually watch any of the tv series, although I saw plenty of Max Headroom thanks to tv commercials and the use of the character in a music video by the band Art of Noise.

After the cancellation of the series, there were rumours of a film, but the character quietly disappeared into the ether of 1980s pop culture, an character that tried to be ahead of the current technology, yet ended up being a brief flash in the timeline.

memories of the ’70s – Six Million Dollar Man

A popular science fiction novel became the inspiration for one of the 1970s favourite tv series – The Six Million Dollar Man.

Based on the book Cyborg by Martin Caidin, the ABC TV series came out of the adaptation of the novel into a series of three movies that aired in 1973, two produced by Glen A. Larson.

The Six Million Dollar Man: The Moon and the Desert aired in March, and with its positive viewer response, led to October’s The Six Million Dollar Man: Wine, Women and War and November’s The Six Million Dollar Man: The Solid Gold Kidnapping.

Lee Majors played the title role, which led to choosing him to portray Col. Steve Austin in the television series, but his costars were different in the television movies than the series.

Austin, a pilot and astronaut, is injured during a crash and the military rebuilds him with bionic parts for his right arm, left eye and both legs.

Co-starring Richard Anderson as Oscar Goldman, Austin’s boss at the OSI – known as the Office of Scientific Investigation, the two investigate foreign spies in the US, aliens, mad scientists and bombers – all those who dare try to invade the country. Dr. Rudy Wells (played by Martin E. Brooks) was the other regular cast member.

The series debuted in January 1974 with plenty of viewers ready to see the continuing experiences of Col. Austin – and the tagline from the opening sequence – We can rebuild him…we have the technology – has become a popular quote of pop culture. Each episode would showcase his bionic abilities, with a unique sound to accompany the action of his arm, his running or his ability to see far in the distance.

As a result Lee Majors became a major star of the 1970s – featuring on the cover of major magazines and on every late night talk show. In the second season, a two part episode introduced Austin’s love interest in 1975 – Jaime Sommers aka The Bionic Woman, which would become a spin off series in 1976.

Many stars had guest appearances on The Six Million Dollar Man including Majors’ then wife Farrah Fawcett Majors, Sonny Bono, Lou Gossett Jr., Kim Basinger, Earl Holliman, Dick Butkus, William Shatner, Carl Weathers and Erik Estrada. The series ended in 1978 after five seasons due to low ratings.

I adored watching this series as a child – a simple show of good versus evil and someone using their superpowers, but not like a superhero. It had the perfect combination of espionage, military, bad guys and action.

In the next decade, three television movies starring Majors and Sommers were made and the rumours of a big screen treatment are still floating around in Hollywood. But for fans, its all about Lee Majors as Col. Steve Austin and his bionic moves.

memories of the ’70s – Super Friends

Saturday mornings in the 1970s weren’t just focused on one superhero – kids wanted to see all of them and did in the animated series Super Friends.

Produced by Hanna Barbera, Super Friends debuted on ABC in 1973, based on the Justice League series by DC Comics.

The first series featured Superman, Batman, Robin, Wonder Woman and Aquaman.

The series added sidekick characters for the superheroes, none of whom had been included in the original comics: Wendy, Marvin and SuperDog.

The friends gathered at the beginning of each episode at their headquarters, the Hall of Justice, where the TroubAlert computer would have detected an emergency.

The Super Friends worked in conjunction with the US military and had their own liasion, Colonel Wilcox, as well as brought in other pals to help out – Green Arrow, The Flash and Plastic Man. Nine actors were hired to do the voices, including Casey Kasem and Ted Knight.

After one season of 16 one hour episodes, ABC cancelled the series in 1974. But, the public was fixated on Six Million Dollar Man and Wonder Woman, so the network decided to revive the Super Friends in 1976, editing the original episodes into 30 minutes episodes and rebroadcasting the series again.

In 1977 The All New Super Friends Hour debuted, with the hour divided into four segments. The first segment would feature two superheroes, the second segment featured the Wonder Twins, the third segment used all the Super Friends to save the day and the final segment featured one superhero and a guest star, showing off their unique super ability.

Guest stars included Hawk Girl, Hawkman, Rima the Jungle Girl, Apache Chief, Black Vulcan and Super Boy.

Between segments, different Super Friends would have 30 second spots, showing first aid, safety tips, magic tricks and the weekly riddle. For kids, it was a jam-packed hour of all kinds of superhero fun. I used to watch this every week, liking the mash up of rescue efforts, super skills and magic.

As the Super Friends continued, each year the production company slightly changed the format to make the series seem new every year, but it was a smart use of animation so not to completely reinvent the wheel.

The series continued into the 1980s, but with the advent of new styles of animation, the Super Friends faded from Saturday mornings to go after prime time and the big screen.

memories of the ’80s – Kate & Allie

In the 1980s, two women made it their mission to have fun and survive together after divorce in the sitcom Kate & Allie.

Starring Susan Saint James as Kate and Jane Curtin as Allie, the CBS show was a mid-season replacement in 1984 that garnered high ratings and got the green light for a full flight of episodes. Created by Sherry Coben, the series was focused on the changing roles of women.

Kate is the fun-loving spontaneous travel agent, while Allie was the more conservative at-home Mom who takes care of the household as well as helps parent Kate’s daughter Emma as well her own two kids Chip and Jennie. As the new family gets used to the new rules of living together, it mirrored the reality of the new definition of family.

For a series that had a simple premise, it stayed in the top 20 for its six seasons, and garnered Jane Curtin two Emmy Awards for Best Actress in a Comedy Series, while Susan Saint James was nominated three times in the same category.

During this decade, this show depicted real life for many women – divorced, considering remarrying, taking care of children and pursuing a career. I watched this show off and on, liking the comedic turn of real life as well as seeing the reality among many of my friends who were dealing with their parents divorce and remarriages.

A show that showed life, as it was now mirroring 1980s society.

memories of the ’80s – Square Pegs

Highschool was a challenge, life was all about getting in good with the cool kids, and two girls tried to establish their cred in Square Pegs.

Set in a fictional small town, highschool life was all about living on the fringe of the core cool society for Lauren Hutchinson and Patty Greene (played by Amy Linker and Sarah Jessica Parker) who do everything they can to keep their reputations as cool as possible.

Their buddies in surviving daily school life are Marshall Blechtman (John Femia) and Johnny ‘Slash’ Ulasewicz (Merritt Butrick), two geeks who also wish to be cool, but are at least glad to form a clique of their own with Lauren and Patty.

Created by former Saturday Night Live writer Anne Beatts, Square Pegs was all about snappy dialogue, which bordered on being a bit too adult or risque. Through their words ( and the half hour sitcom boundaries) the characters showed the reality of teen life in the early 1980s, and is often compared to films made by John Hughes.

Patty and Lauren’s world consisted of not getting embarrassed, trying to be friends with cool Valley kids Jennifer (Tracy Nelson), Ladonna (Claudette Wells) and Vinnie (John Caliri) and figuring out whether it was worth it to participate in any school programs and events as championed by the ever-uber-positive Muffy B. Tepperman, played by Jami Gertz.

As someone who was becoming a teen, this show was a snapshot into what I thought highschool would be like – cliques, issues and trying to survive the day without looking like an idiot, which Patty and Lauren try to do every day.

Unfortunately this series only lasted one season, but its impact on the way highschool should be depicted made a difference on television and film thanks to Ann Beatts.