MetaFilter posts tagged with television

Happy Birthday, Big Bird!

grapefruitmoon — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 05:21:09 -0800

As you may have noticed from Google this morning, today is the 40th Anniversary of Sesame Street! New seasons are in production including the newest muppet, Abby Cadaby, but today is a day for our old friends. Videos a plenty to fuel your nostalgia.

The Mad Men essay you probably should read.

The Devil Tesla — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 21:23:21 -0800

Mad About Mad Men: The flaws in Mad Men's period detail and the show's greater triumphs. Via The Footnotes of Mad Men, ironically. (previously)

Alfred Hitchcock on The Tomorrow Show

dhammond — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 18:34:50 -0800

"Long thought to be lost or destroyed, this complete recording of one of the few hour long interviews of Alfred Hitchcock has been found." From the description on the YouTube page:

Originally broadcast as one of the first Tomorrow Shows with Tom Snyder in the Fall of 1973. This recording appears to be from a second repeat of this show broadcast on Memorial day, 1980. The VHS (SP) tape itself was found to be in excellent condition. While properly stored in a climate controlled environment it apparrently had not been played in decades. Great care has been taken to make the digital transfer.

Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6

Reverse the Polarity

Artw — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 13:00:31 -0800

"Captain, the tech is overteching" - Ron Moore confirms everything you suspected about the Star Trek TNG approach to writing.

Battlestargate?

zarq — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 11:48:51 -0800

Stargate Universe ("SGU") premieres this evening in the US and Canada, on 10/6 in the UK and Ireland and in Australia on 10/9. Billed as "military scifi," the series is reportedly less campy than its predecessors and uses thematic elements which will seem familiar to Battlestar Galactica fans. Preview trailer. For US viewers, Hulu will be streaming the show a day after it airs. Reviews are mixed. Wikipedia.

Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid

Artw — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 19:57:14 -0800

Is mysticism overtaking science in sci-fi? Does Every SF Show Need Jesus Now?

Sing!

not_on_display — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 08:39:17 -0800

Even if you don't know Joe Raposo's name, you probably have heard his music. Throughout the 1970's and 1980's, Joe was the main composer of songs and incidental music for the children's television shows Sesame Street and The Electric Company. In this role, he wrote some of today's standards while also imprinting his musical stylings on the consciousness of a generation of children worldwide. In the second half of this post, you will find a curation of youtube-links leading to a good chunk of Joe Raposo's oeuvre -- all gems, mostly under two minutes each. Sing along if you know the words! From Sesame Street ABC-DEF-GHI ♫ African Alphabet Song (With Ladysmith Black Mambazo and Kermit) ♫ African Animals ♫ Air (with Bip Bippadotta) ♫ Alaskan Carver ♫ Animal Babies feeding ♫ Animals have two parts ♫ Animals Fighting ♫ As I Was Going to St. Ives ♫ At the Vet ♫ Baboons ♫ Baby Climbs the Stairs ♫ Backflips ♫ Baker Counting Series (10) ♫ Bald Eagle ♫ The Ballad of Casey McPhee ♫ Basket o' kittehs ♫ The Batty Bat ♫ A Bee! ♫ Bein' a Pig ♫ Bein' Green (1969) ♫ Bein' Green (Ray Charles) ♫ Bein' Green (1975) ♫ Believe in Yourself (Diana Ross) ♫ Birds ♫ Body Parts ♫ Bugs ♫ Butterflies ♫ C is for Cookie ♫ C is for Cookie (Candice Bergen version) ♫ Carving a Wood Horse ♫ Cats have Kittens ♫ Chicken Hatching ♫ The Chicken or the Egg ♫ City Alphabet Song ♫ Clink, Clank ♫ Colleen Lives in Arizona ♫ Comb Your Face ♫ Cornfield ♫ Counting Boxes ♫ Counting Buses ♫ Dancing Groove ♫ Days of the week, with Roosevelt Franklin ♫ Dentist ♫ Desert ♫ Did You Guess What It Is? ♫ Disco Frog ♫ Doctor's Office ♫ Doggy Paddle ♫ Doin' the Pigeon ♫ Dolphins ♫ Down, Down, Down ♫ Dressed Up ♫ Dry & Wet ♫ Eating ♫ Eight Penny Candyman ♫ Elephant Guessing Game ♫ Elephants ♫ Empty, Full, Empty ♫ Everybody Dance! (from the Pilot) ♫ Everybody Eats ♫ Everybody Run ♫ Everybody Sleeps ♫ Everybody Wash ♫ A Family ♫ Fast Faster Fastest ♫ Fat Cat (with Bip Bippadotta) ♫ Fish ♫ Fish II ♫ Fish III (luminescent) ♫ Flying ♫ Follow the Arrows (arrangement only) ♫ Forty Dots ♫ Four Furry Friends ♫ The Frog Prince Part 1 ♫ The Frog Prince Part 2 ♫ The Frog Prince Part 3 ♫ Frogs ♫ Froggy (La de da de o day) ♫ Fruit Song ♫ Gazelle ♫ Gibbon ♫ Giraffes ♫ Go Ahead and Touch ♫ Grow High Grow Low ♫ Has Anybody Seen My Dog? ♫ H ♫ H building exercise ♫ Hamburger Bun Factory ♫ Hee Hee Ha Ha ♫ Hey Cow I See You Now ♫ Hippo! ♫ Hoisting the neon sign 'o' ♫ Horse ♫ Horses ♫ How Do You Do? (Lena Horne & Grover) ♫ I Like Alaska ♫ I Stand Up Straight and Tall ♫ I'm an Aardvark ♫ I'm Pretty ♫ Imagination ♫ It's Alive ♫ It's a Long Hard Climb ♫ I've Got Two ♫ Jackrabbit ♫ Jasper Johnson's J Walk ♫ J Jump ♫ Kangaroo Blues ♫ Kayak ♫ Kids ♫ La, La, La! (Ernie and Bert's L song) ♫ Learning to walk ♫ Lemurs ♫ Let's Make a Dream ♫ A Little Bit at the Beginning ♫ Little Plant ♫ Little Things ♫ Lions ♫ Lions II ♫ Look a little closer ♫ Look Through the Window (Placido Domingo) ♫ Marmoset ♫ Me ♫ (Everything I am is) Me ♫ Me and Yo (Everything I am is Me with Spanish verse) ♫ Me Lost Me Cookie At The Disco ♫ Me Lost Me Cookie In The Mosh Pit ♫ Mother giving baby a bath ♫ Mothers and Babies ♫ The National Association of "W" Lovers ♫ Nearly Missed (warning: Elmo & Rosie O'Donnell) ♫ Neon Sign "R" ♫ New Life ♫ New Life tribute YT vid ♫ News Flash Theme ♫ A New Way to Walk ♫ Numero Comparsa (w/Celia Cruz) ♫ The Off-Key Song (We are a couple of Grouches) ♫ One of These Things ♫ One Little Penguin ♫ The "Op" Family Song ♫ Opposite (Bip Bipadotta) ♫ Oryx ♫ Oscar's B Sandwich ♫ Otter! ♫ Otters!! ♫ Over, Under, Around and Through ♫ P (animation) ♫ Panda ♫ Peanut Butter ♫ Pelicans ♫ Penguins ♫ Penguins 2 ♫ Pottery ♫ Practice makes perfect ♫ Prairie Dog ♫ Pretty Baby (Rhinos' Love Song) ♫ Primates ♫ Put a Circle 'Round my Nose ♫ Put on your Kammikluuk ♫ Quiet Time Song ♫ Rain Falls (Oscar) ♫ Readers of the Open Range ♫ Rhinos ♫ Rhyming in School ♫ Riding a Tortoise ♫ Road Runner ♫ Round Ditty (Hippopotamus) ♫ Scuba Diver (on, into, under, through, around) ♫ Seeds Sprouting ♫ Sesame Street Fever ♫ Sesame Street Theme (conclusion to Parents special) ♫ Share ♫ Sing ♫ Sing (in Japanese, Korean) ♫ Sing (from the Sesame Street 25th Anniversary Special) ♫ Sing Your Synonyms ♫ The Skin I'm In ♫ Sleepy Sloth ♫ Slide ♫ Smocks ♫ Snake ♫ Somebody Come and Play ♫ Starfish ♫ Starfish (cover by Universe Society) ♫ Swimming Animals and Children ♫ Swing Up High ♫ Tails ♫ Take a Breath ♫ Take My Hand ♫ There's a Bird on Me ♫ Things you can carry ♫ Three Turtles ♫ Toothbrushin' an Orca ♫ Touch, Hold, Feel ♫ Travelling Musician ♫ Trees ♫ Trying Song ♫ Two is You and Me ♫ Warthog ♫ Water Baby ♫ Waterfowl ♫ Weaver Bird ♫ What Do You Do With a Pet? ♫ Wheelchair races with Sally Struthers ♫ Who is this Boy? ♫ Who You Lookin' At Tiger? ♫ Wood Carvings (Alaska) ♫ Would You Like to Buy an O? ♫ X Marks the Spot! ♫ You Need a Bridge ♫ You're My Baby ♫ The Zizzy Zoomers From The Electric Company A Hamburger? �� An E on the End 1 �� An E on the End 2 �� Argue �� Barley Farmer's Bar �� Be Kind to the Letter S �� Bicycle �� Billy Lick a Lolly �� Bleached Blonde Blanche �� Blizzard, Blow, Bloom �� BOOM! �� Candy Candles �� clunk! �� Coral �� Credits �� Deep, Deeper, Deepest �� Don't Bring Those Things �� Dr. Delight (Easy Reader) �� Easy (That's How I Move) �� Electric Company �� Face, Fingers, Feet �� Fight Song (Written by Tom Lehrer, arranged by Joe) �� Finch and Dench �� Fish �� Found Hound �� Free Sleep! �� Fruit! �� Go Wild! �� Good ol' Apostrophe S �� Grin �� Grumble, Growl & Grunt �� Hamburger �� Hat Song �� He Ho Hi �� Here Comes the Blob �� Heros! Hot Dogs! �� Hey, You Guys! �� Hill �� How is Howard? �� I am going to get that caterpillar. �� I don't have a cent �� I Like You �� I Love The Wind �� I was young once too �� I'm Small �� Ice Cream!! �� If it swims, we have it? �� If, you're so terrific! �� interstitials �� interstitials �� It Happens in May �� It's �� Jennifer of the Jungle �� Kissy Kiss Toothpaste �� Let's Get On With the Show �� Let's Rap (starring Violet Beuregarde from the first Wonka film) �� MC Battle: Easy Reader v. Dwayne �� Mumble Song �� My Name is Kathy �� N apostrophe T (Written by Tom Lehrer, arranged by Joe) �� Of �� Old Double E �� Oodles of Noodles �� ow and oa �� Pedro & Maurice the plant �� Platter of Plums �� Poison �� Shoo Shoo Sunshine �� Silent E (Written by Tom Lehrer, arranged by Joe) �� Silhouettes & Sundae Song �� Sing Out �� Slip Him Some Skin �� Slop the Hogs �� Spidey Fixes the Hum �� Sun/Stun Ballet �� T-I-O-N �� Thanks to th �� The Corner �� The End? �� The Hound Song (Written by Tom Lehrer, arranged by Joe) �� the Menu Song (Written by Tom Lehrer, arranged by Joe) �� The Platter of Plums �� The Sweet Sweet Sway �� Vampire! �� Walk & Talk �� What did she say? �� Whimper and Whine �� Yards and Yards of Yellow Yarn �� Yield �� You �� You Need an L Joe also did the music for The Great Santa Claus Switch, Halloween is Grinch Night, and Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure. He was also the subject/host of a documentary, America Is... [ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 ] apologies for any errors, oversights, or neurological tunnels leading to ancient unrecoverable memories

Skip to the end

fearfulsymmetry — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 10:43:15 -0800

Spaced is 10. Fried gold!

Get your Saturday morning on

Rhaomi — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 09:27:21 -0800

Saturday morning cartoons were once a staple of American television, but by the year 2000 they had all but disappeared. Of course, the Internet never forgets. Case in point: Cartoon Network Video -- a free, searchable, ad-supported service that provides hundreds of full-length episodes of classic shows like Dexter's Laboratory, Cow and Chicken, Courage the Cowardly Dog, Johnny Bravo, Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, and The Powerpuff Girls, as well as current offerings and scads of shorter material. Too recent for you? Then give Kids WB Video a whirl -- it does the same thing with the same interface, but for older programs like Looney Tunes, Tom and Jerry, The Flintstones, The Jetsons, The Smurfs, Scooby-Doo, Thundercats, and the original Space Ghost. If you're in the mood to learn (and don't mind some live-action), PBS Kids Video has educational fare such as Arthur, Wishbone, and Zoom. And don't forget about Sesame Street, The Electric Company, Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood, The Magic Schoolbus and Schoolhouse Rock! Now if only we had some Chocolate Frosted Sugar Bombs...

"So you go home at night, like me, smarter than you were when you woke up in the morning."

Rhaomi — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 22:20:51 -0800

Andy Richter destroys Wolf Blitzer in Celebrity Jeopardy (twice, if you count the rehearsal show). Of course, Richter is no stranger to the game.

Guiding Light Extinguished

Joe Beese — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 14:51:07 -0800

This Friday, the longest-running scripted program in broadcasting history comes to an end.

Sesame Street - 35 years + DIY = Sunshine Again

not_on_display — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 12:02:19 -0800

Sunshine Again is a lo-fi/DIY public Access re-imagination of oldschool 1970's children's television, produced by Heather Ferreira, an independent producer whose mission is to "ignore what network television is doing and start a New York-based cable net of my own, specializing in shows that look and feel a lot like shows on Nick@Nite and TV Land used to – except these will be all brand-new shows." [ more info | appreciation and funky video | Youtube Search for more Sunshine Again ]

More Madness

mattdidthat — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 15:03:36 -0800

The Footnotes of Mad Men explores and discusses the historic events, themes, and cultural mores of the show.

Advertising in the public interest

Rhaomi — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 09:54:54 -0800

"What if America wasn't America?" That was the question posed by a series of ads broadcast in the wake of the September 11th attacks, ads which depicted a dystopian America bereft of liberty: Library - Diner - Church. Together with more positive ads like Remember Freedom and I Am an American, they encouraged frightened viewers to cherish their freedoms and defend against division and prejudice in the face of terrorism (seven years previously). The campaign was the work of the Ad Council, a non-profit agency that employs the creative muscle of volunteer advertisers to raise awareness for social issues of national importance. Founded during WWII as the War Advertising Council, the organization has been behind some of the most memorable public service campaigns in American history, including Rosie the Riveter, Smokey the Bear, McGruff the Crime Dog, and the Crash Test Dummies. And the Council is still at it today, producing striking, funny, and above all effective PSAs on everything from student invention to global warming to arts education to community service.

Additional resources: A-to-Z index of Ad Council campaigns - Campaigns organized by category - Award-winning campaigns - PSA Central: A free download directory of TV, radio, and print PSAs (registration req'd) - An exhaustive history of the Ad Council [46-page PDF] - YouTube channel - Vimeo channel - Twitter feed

Soul Train

phrontist — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 10:01:31 -0800

Soul Train (wiki) has a youtube channel. Lots of great performances here, but in particular I recommend The O'Jays, Sly and The Family Stone, Stevie Wonder, The Stairsteps, and the Jackson 5. What really makes it worth watching though are the clips of the Soul Train Line dancing to hits of the day, artists like The O'Jay, Curtis Mayfield, War, and The JB's.

Everyone needs a hug.

Liver — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 11:30:47 -0800

In which a chimpanzee is shown reacting to sleight-of-hand on a Japanese television show. [SLYT. Overuse of sound effects.]

Persuasion: Why men in ads are dumb, goofy or completely inept

five fresh fish — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 09:47:44 -0800

Persuasion: Why men in ads are dumb, goofy or completely inept. Several YT commercials and a thoughtful essay.

Splat No More

Servo5678 — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 11:23:07 -0800

Childrens' cable television mainstay and media brand Nickelodeon is rebranding as "The Nick" with a new splat-less logo. "The decision to streamline the network identities came after [Nickelodeon execs] started putting all of the channels' logos on the same business card--and decided that it looked like a mess." Just kidding about "The Nick", but the rest is true.

trippy kids' show from the 50s :P

kliuless — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 05:55:42 -0800

Andy's Gang - 1 2 3: "The green puppet, Froggy the Gremlin, appeared in a puff of smoke, and was always interrupting the story." Yes, sir, we're pals and pals stick together. And now gang, don't forget church or Sunday school! bonus -Soupy & Pookie -Howdy Doody and Buffalo Bob make Ice Cream Sodas! (Ernie makes Bert an ice cream soda :) -Clarabell Speaks -ANDY KAUFMAN INTERVIEWING HOWDY DOODY

Beeb Mac

fearfulsymmetry — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 04:43:06 -0800

"Working in art film or commercial cinema is like dancing through a mine field, and every broadcaster is now racing down market in a desperate attempt to survive. But what is happening at the BBC is the real scandal: it is bigger than all the rest combined, it is free from direct commercial pressure and its public service obligations carry cultural responsibilities. There are no excuses." Veteran producer Tony Garnett, has launched a blistering attack on the current process of drama commissioning at the BBC

One hundred and one Muppets

kimdog — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 18:53:20 -0800

How well do you know your friends from Sesame Street? Scroll over this illustration of 101 Muppets to find out their names, a brief bio, and the season in which they appeared. Slimey is still my favorite.

Crowd Hoot

Artw — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 15:32:42 -0800

In the wake of Torchwood: Children of the Earth (screening on BBC America on the 20th for those in the US not inclined to muck about with the internets) critic Patrick West declares the British incapable of making decent television science fiction. (via)

What Not To Sing

booksherpa — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 18:33:30 -0800

I understand that MeFites don't really do American Idol, but if you're the rare one who does, then you will probably appreciate the combination of fandom and geekery that produced What Not To Sing. They look at reviews of AI performances from all over the web, and distill them to provide numerical and star ratings for each AI performance. Every one. EVER. They have a listing of the top and bottom 40 performances across all 8 seasons, which makes for interesting YouTube searching. If you're curious about all performances of Michael Jackson songs on the show or just wish to confirm that Sanjaya sucked, they can help with that as well. The feature currently amusing me is this season's Camp Should-A-Been, where they judge contestants solely on performance rating, with the lowest rated performer leaving.

Zeta Reticuli is watching the Brady Bunch

Artw — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 09:19:22 -0800

If extraterrestrial civilizations are monitoring our TV broadcasts, then this is what they are currently watching.

Upside down! Upside down!

Effigy2000 — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 20:28:41 -0800

Mr Squiggle, the Man from 93 Crater Crescent, the Moon, turns 50 today. Created by cartoonist and puppeteer Norman Hetherington, who would take children's scribbles and then craft it into a drawing, Mr Squiggle, along with friends Gus the Snail, Bill the Steam Shovel and the ever grumpy Blackboard (whom Mr Squiggle would use as an easel, being told to "Hu-rry u-p, hu-rry u-p" as he did) has been something of an institution for generations of Australian kids. Relive some of the magic...