retro television Archives - Retro Reminiscing Video and Pictures

Peabody and Sherman

Peabody and Sherman were one of those great little pieces of Rocky and Bullwinkle that managed to sneak some history in between all the jokes. Officially called Peabody’s Improbable History, the series followed the unbelievably intelligent Mr. Peabody and his adopted boy Sherman as they traveled through time using the WABAC Machine.

What surprised me is just how many of these they made — 91 separate adventures, most only about four-and-a-half minutes long. Bill Scott supplied Peabody’s voice, and he was also the voice of Bullwinkle and Dudley Do-Right. Sherman was voiced by Walter Tetley, who was already 44 years old when the series debuted in 1959, despite sounding completely believable as a young boy.

The supporting voices were just as impressive. Paul Frees, better known around the Bullwinkle universe as Boris Badenov, handled many of the historical characters, while June Foray turned up in numerous female roles.

And then there was that wonderful WABAC Machine. The name became so closely associated with traveling into the past that decades later the Internet Archive borrowed the idea for its own Wayback Machine.

The history was usually twisted, the situations were ridiculous, and Peabody somehow always managed to finish everything off with a terrible pun. That’s probably exactly why we remember them so well.

Liberace Feelin’ Groovy

This may be one of the strangest—and most wonderfully 1968—things I’ve come across in a while. That’s Liberace getting “groovy” with The Youngfolk on The Red Skelton Hour on March 5, 1968.

And The Youngfolk weren’t just a bunch of dancers thrown together for the show. They were an actual seven-member Los Angeles folk group who recorded for United Artists and had already made several appearances with Red Skelton.

The song, of course, was Paul Simon’s “The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy).” Simon & Garfunkel recorded it on August 16, 1966—which, amazingly, was 60 years ago this week. Their version wasn’t originally the big single, though. Harpers Bizarre turned it into a #13 hit in 1967 with an arrangement by Leon Russell.

What I love about this clip is watching television try to interpret the whole flower-power generation for a mainstream audience. Giant flowers, bright colors, “groovy” slang—and right in the middle of it all is Liberace, completely committing to the bit.

Even better, Paul Simon eventually admitted he really didn’t care for this song and once jokingly used it as his own punishment after making a mistake onstage!

Do you remember seeing variety shows trying to get “hip” like this back in the late ’60s?

I Can’t Believe I Ate That Whole Thing!

“I can’t believe I ate that whole thing!” became one of those commercial lines everyone seemed to repeat, even if they had forgotten it came from Alka-Seltzer. Milt Moss played the painfully overstuffed Ralph, while Lynn Whinic delivered the perfectly dry response that made the 1972 spot so memorable.

The idea reportedly came after advertising writer Howie Cohen overate at a celebration dinner and complained about eating the whole thing. The commercial later entered the Clio Awards Hall of Fame and was even recreated decades later with Peter Boyle and Doris Roberts. Do you remember quoting this commercial around the house?

Alfred Hitchcock Presents

“Good evening.” With those two words, Alfred Hitchcock welcomed viewers into a weekly world of murder, mystery, suspense and wonderfully dark humor.

Alfred Hitchcock Presents premiered on CBS in 1955 and ran for seven seasons as a half-hour anthology. In 1962, it expanded into The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, continuing for three more seasons until 1965. Each episode told a separate story, usually ending with an unexpected twist or a criminal discovering that the perfect crime was not quite perfect.

The opening became almost as famous as the stories. Hitchcock stepped into a simple outline of his unmistakable profile while Charles Gounod’s “Funeral March of a Marionette” played. Hitchcock had drawn the nine-stroke caricature himself.

Although he introduced every program, Hitchcock directed only 17 episodes of the original half-hour series. Producers Joan Harrison and Norman Lloyd helped select stories, writers, directors and actors who could deliver a complete suspense film in less than 30 minutes.

The television series also influenced Hitchcock’s movies. He later used members of the show’s experienced television crew to make Psycho, helping him film quickly and economically while creating one of the most famous thrillers ever made.

Did the theme music make you uneasy before Hitchcock even said, “Good evening”?

It Was More Fun the Colorforms Way

As requested by a number of viewers, here is the Raggedy Ann Colorforms commercial I remember from childhood. I have since discovered just how many different Colorforms kits were made, and I will share more of them over time.

Colorforms used colorful pieces of reusable vinyl that clung to smooth surfaces without glue. Children could dress the characters, rearrange the scenes, peel everything off and begin again. The Raggedy Ann kit shown in this 1967 commercial allowed kids to change her dresses and accessories as often as their imaginations allowed.

Colorforms began in 1951 after Harry and Patricia Kislevitz experimented with colorful vinyl originally used to make handbags. They discovered that the pieces clung to the glossy walls of their bathroom and began cutting them into different shapes. What started as a creative experiment soon became a successful toy.

FAO Schwarz placed an early order for 1,000 sets, helping turn the small project into a real company. The first kits featured basic geometric shapes, but licensed characters soon followed. Popeye became the first in 1957, opening the door for hundreds of television, comic book and movie characters.

Even the familiar Colorforms logo has an interesting history. Legendary graphic designer Paul Rand, who also designed logos for IBM, ABC and UPS, created it in 1959.

I also remember watching the local weather forecast as a child. The station used happy, smiling suns, large red H’s for high pressure and other colorful symbols that looked like oversized Colorforms.

Before computer-generated weather graphics, forecasters physically moved reusable symbols around a large map. Depending on the station, those symbols could be made from magnetic rubber, felt or another cling-on material. Whatever they were made from, they looked remarkably similar to the Colorforms we played with at home.

Maybe that is why those old weather maps remain so memorable. The smiling suns, rain clouds and giant H’s and L’s made the forecast feel like a giant Colorforms set coming to life on television.

Do you remember your local weather forecaster moving those colorful symbols around the map?

Two All-Beef Patties…

This 1975 commercial begins with customers confidently attempting to describe a Big Mac. Most of them quickly stumble over the ingredients until the familiar jingle takes over: “Two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame-seed bun.”

The Big Mac was created by Pennsylvania McDonald’s franchisee Jim Delligatti and first sold in 1967 for 45 cents. McDonald’s initially considered calling it the Aristocrat or Blue Ribbon Burger, but 21-year-old advertising secretary Esther Glickstein Rose suggested the much simpler name “Big Mac.” It became available nationwide in 1968.

The ingredient chant arrived in 1974 through a campaign developed by Keith Reinhard’s creative group at Needham Harper & Steers. The ingredient list had first appeared in college newspaper advertising before Mark Vieha turned the words into music and performed the original jingle.

The campaign became so popular that some McDonald’s restaurants offered a free Big Mac to customers who could recite the complete list correctly within just a few seconds. A longer version of the commercial also appeared during Super Bowl IX in 1975.

The commercial lasted only seconds, but it taught generations exactly what was inside a Big Mac. In 1986, The Economist even began using Big Mac prices around the world to compare the purchasing power of different currencies.

Can you still say the entire Big Mac chant without stumbling?

Winston Tastes Good Like A …….

This animated commercial proves you did not need actors, scenery or even much animation to create something memorable. Musical notes dance across the screen, letters form the Winston name, and the package appears while the singers deliver one of advertising’s most familiar jingles.

The clip matches a 1963 Winston television spot, although the campaign began with the brand’s introduction in 1954. R.J. Reynolds named Winston after Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and promoted it as a filtered cigarette that still delivered flavor. The brand became the country’s best-selling cigarette by 1966.

The William Esty advertising agency built the campaign around “Winston tastes good like a cigarette should.” The use of “like” instead of “as” was intentional, creating a national grammar argument that helped make the slogan even more memorable. Walter Cronkite refused to say it incorrectly, Merriam-Webster cited it during a language debate, and Winston eventually answered its critics by asking whether they wanted good grammar or good taste.

Margaret Johnson ghostwrote the jingle and recorded it with her husband, Travis Johnson, and their group, the Song Spinners. The melody’s two quick handclaps became almost as recognizable as the words themselves. Winston later carried the campaign into popular television programs, including The Flintstones, where Fred, Barney and other Bedrock characters promoted the cigarettes.

Seen today, the commercial is also a reminder of how common cigarette advertising once was on television. Growing evidence about smoking’s health risks eventually led to the removal of cigarette commercials from American radio and television beginning in 1971.

Do you remember the words first, or those two perfectly timed handclaps?

Every Girl Can Be Popular… According to Marcia Brady!

At the height of The Brady Bunch, Maureen McCormick was not just playing one of television’s most popular teenagers. She was also offering advice on how other girls could become popular too.

This early 1970s advertisement promoted Every Girl Can Be Popular!, a mail-order booklet credited to McCormick. It promised 60 tips on meeting boys, dating, grooming, clothing and gaining confidence in relationships.

Of course, the advice reflects its time. Much of the booklet focused on dressing properly, attracting boys and avoiding mistakes that might “turn boys off.” The advertisement even promised that Maureen’s self-improvement plan could surprise everyone, including the reader herself.

Teen magazines frequently used young television stars to sell beauty tips, dating advice, posters and fan merchandise. With Marcia Brady considered the ideal American teenager, Maureen was the perfect celebrity to convince readers that popularity could be learned.

Would you have ordered this booklet, or did you already think Marcia Brady was a little too perfect?

And Away We Went With Jackie Gleason

I remember sitting in the living room with the family to watch The Jackie Gleason Show. The dramatic introduction always confused me because I expected some action, not the June Taylor Dancers!

When the “Glea Girls” were shown waiting for their cue to say their lines, we all yelled, “Go!” or “You’re on!” We did not realize the show was being broadcast live.

The Glea Girls introduced segments and helped give the program its glamorous Miami Beach look. They were different from the June Taylor Dancers, the professional dance troupe that performed the show’s large, carefully choreographed production numbers.

Jackie Gleason moved his show from New York to Miami Beach in 1964, turning Saturday nights into a weekly television trip to Florida. The program featured Gleason’s comedy characters, Sammy Spear and his orchestra, the June Taylor Dancers, celebrity guests and Johnny Olson’s enthusiastic introductions.

Beginning in 1966, The Honeymooners returned in color with Art Carney once again playing Ed Norton. Sheila MacRae played Alice Kramden, while Jane Kean played Trixie Norton. Many of their Miami adventures became full musical productions with elaborate sets and original songs.

Gleason regularly promoted Miami Beach as the “sun and fun capital of the world.” He ended each show by declaring, “The Miami Beach audience is the greatest audience in the world!”

The Miami version continued until February 28, 1970. But what I remember most is sitting in the living room with my family, waiting for the show to begin and yelling cues at the Glea Girls, even though we knew the program had already been recorded.

Did your family ever talk back to the television just for the fun of it?

Wacky Races

Saturday mornings became much more dangerous when Wacky Races premiered on CBS on September 14, 1968. Eleven bizarre vehicles raced across the country while Dick Dastardly and his snickering dog, Muttley, stopped every few miles to set another trap.

Every car matched the personality of its driver. Penelope Pitstop had the beauty-salon-equipped Compact Pussycat, Professor Pat Pending drove the transforming Convert-a-Car, and the Gruesome Twosome traveled inside the monster-filled Creepy Coupe. The Ant Hill Mob raced in the Bulletproof Bomb, while lumberjack Rufus Ruffcut drove a wooden vehicle with circular saw blades for wheels.

The funniest part was that Dick Dastardly probably could have won by simply continuing to drive. Instead, he repeatedly stopped his speedy Mean Machine to build complicated traps that usually backfired, leaving him and Muttley behind everyone else. Across all 34 races, they never recorded a first, second or third-place finish.

The cartoon produced only 17 episodes, each containing two separate races, but its characters proved too entertaining to disappear. Penelope and the Ant Hill Mob returned in The Perils of Penelope Pitstop, while Dick Dastardly and Muttley moved into airplanes for Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines.

Which racer did you root for, and did anyone actually want Dick Dastardly to win?