You Are Now Free to Board Wings

 (photo courtesy of amazon.com)
Random TV: Wings
This is the sixth show in our series on Random TV throughout history

Wings was an NBC sitcom from 1990 to 1997. The show featured brothers Joe and Brian Hackett. The two owned and operated Sandpiper airlines. The easiest way to describe it is, Cheers in an airport. The show was set at the fictional Tom Nevers Field, a small airport in Massachussets. Just as in Cheers the show featured airport regulars such as Helen, Fay, Roy, Antonio, and Lowell. The show actually featured guest appearences by Cheers characters.

In 2006 seasons 1-3 became available on DVD.

Going back under the Big Top

 (photo courtesy of content.answers.com)
Random TV: Dumbo’s Circus
This is the fifth show in our series on Random TV throughout history

This was show that as far as I know, followed Under the Umbrella Tree. The show was basically Dumbo brought to life. Dumbo had friends and the plot centered around of the offstage antics of the cast of Dumbo’s big top circus show. Dumbo’s cast included Q.T. the Orangutan, Lilli the Cat, Lionel the Lion,  Barnaby the Goofy Dog,  Fair Dinkum the Koala Bear, Rinkum Dinkum, Sebastian the Alley Cat,and of course, Dumbo the Flying Elephant. He and a cast of characters fly from town to town in a wagon pulled through the air by Dumbo performing their “greatest little show on earth”.Each character would perform their special act. This ranged from dancing and singing to telling knock knock jokes.

The show was brought to life by none other than the Jim Henson group, made famous by creating such shows as The Muppet Show and Fraggle Rock. 120 episodes ran on the Disney channel from 1985 to 1995. The live action show ran the most episodes of any show on the Mickey network. The wagon used in the show is now displayed on the back lot of the MGM Studios in Orlando, Florida.

To visit the offical Dumbo’s Circus Site and watch the opening credits and listen to the theme song, click here

Caroline Back in the City

(photo courtesy of www.altotelevision.com/) 

Random TV: Caroline in the City

This is the fourth show in our series on Random TV throughout history

Caroline Duffy is a cartoonist living in a Manhattan loft. She spends many episodes searching for a husband and meddling in the lives of those around her. She has a colorist named Richard with whom she shares a secret crush. She has a former boyfriend named Del that becomes a friend. Annie is Caroline’s across the hall best friend who was played by Amy Pietz , who looked a lot like Marisa Tomei, but wasnt. The show was very funny but everything about seemed like it had been done before. The show’s final season ended in a cliffhanger but was never renewed and thus the story was never resolved.

Caroline ran on NBC from 1995 to 1999. The shows title character Lea Thompson was made popular by her role as the mother of Michael J. Fox in the Back the Future series. Interestingly enough Thompsons show was up against Foxs’ Spin City on Tuesday nights.   The show was parodied on the show Family Guy in one of its many off-topic scenes, in which Peter watches the show to “fool people into thinking he’s gay”.

The shows only Emmy came in 1996 for graphic design of the shows title sequence.

Goin’ Back Under the Tree

(photo courtesy of http://www.noreenyoungproductions.com/umbrella.htm)

Random TV: Under the Umbrella Tree

This is the third show in our series on Random TV throughout history

I think i was most excited to talk about this show. This was one of my favs. growing up. It was produced by a canadian company, but it ran on the Disney channel in the early 90’s. Under the Umbrella Tree is a childrens program that, through humor and morals, teaches children lessons about life and the right things to do in the process of life.

The characters began with Holly, the only human. She ran the playtime with the puppets. The puppets were Iggy, Gloria, and of course, JACOB the Bluejay. Now, when you are like 5 and a tv show puppet bluejay shares the same as you, its pretty darn cool. Louis Bird was another puppet but he was only seen when activities took place outside the apartment.

The program consists of 280 episodes, 270 of which are 15 minutes in length, and there are ten 30-minute specials. There are episodes about baseball, Christmas, singing, dancing, exercise, and various other activities.

And here is todays trivia. The part of Jacob the Bluejay was played by Stephen Brathwaite

The Nest is Empty Again

 (photo courtesy of http://www.geocities.com/TelevisionCity/Stage/4318/index3.html)

Random TV: Empty Nest

This is the second show in my series on random tv throughout time

Empty Nest was a late 80’s sitcom starring Richard Mulligan as a pediatrician whose two grown daughters move back in after their personal marriage problems. For all of the trivia nuts out there, the family dog was named Dreyfuss. David Leisure, famous for his role of Mr. Isuzu in the Isuzu motorvehicles commericals, joined the cast as annoying neighbor Charlie Dietz. The show, interestingly enough, was a small spinoff of a 1987 episode of the popular show Golden Girls. The family in Empty Nest was said to live right down the road from the Golden Girls.

 The show lasted seven seasons on the NBC network from ‘88 to ‘95. Richard Mulligan won the Emmy award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy in 1989.

Denver wakes from his 65 Million Year Nap

(picture courtesy of www.classickidstv.co.uk/denver/logo.jpg)
Random TV: DENVER THE LAST DINOSAUR

this is the first show in my look at random TV shows throughout time

This show was about a group of children who, while playing awakened a dinosaur that had been trapped in a hole for millions for years. He was called Denver and he could talk (sort of) and together they hadlots of adventures.

Characters: DENVER and his loyal friends Jeremy, Wally, Shades, Mario, Heather, and Casey. The unscrupulous concert promoter Morton Fizzback.
The show had what I think is the best, most rockin’ theme tune ever!

Visit the following website if you would like to purchase the cindication rights to Denver the Last Dinosaur!

http://www.wep.com/denver.html

(check back soon for such Random TV classics as Dumbo’s Circus, Under the Umbrella Tree, Blossom, Night Court, and many more!)