Funny the things a grown man will do for a living.
Continue reading ‘Magnum, P.I.’ (Season 1): Beaches, beauties, & the private eye of the ’80sTag Archives: drama
‘Dead by Sunset’ (1995): Juicy melodrama is exactly what true-crime lovers want
I don’t even know what’s up anymore with Lifetime or Lifetime Movie Network; I haven’t watched since we ditched cable years and years ago (I think they just make Christmas movies now where everyone’s best friend is some screaming Billy Eichner queen). But back in the day, those channels, particularly LMN, were a treasure trove of lurid, pulpy, old-school true-crime mellers, and Dead by Sunset―featuring one of the genre’s “Psycho Hall of Fame” performances from Ken Olin―was one of the best.
Continue reading ‘Dead by Sunset’ (1995): Juicy melodrama is exactly what true-crime lovers want
‘The U.F.O. Incident’ (1975): Fact, fiction, or Hollywood entertainment?
Can’t some bug-eyed outer space piece of sh*t abduct me the hell out of what passes for America today? Oh, well…one can dream.
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‘Breaking Up is Hard to Do’ (1979): Forgotten TV movie is a true gem
Worthwhile, even remarkable-at-times, made-for-TV drama; perfect viewing for post-football withdrawal…if you’re a real man.
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‘Christmas on the Coast’ (2018): Love, romance and going home
They say you can never go back home. But sometimes, it’s just what the doctor ordered to find yourself again.
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‘Christmas in the Smokies’ (2015): Saving the family farm has never been so romantic
It’s a story as old as the hills where it’s set, and that’s A-OK when you want some down home, feel-good holiday viewing.
Continue reading ‘Christmas in the Smokies’ (2015): Saving the family farm has never been so romantic
‘Rich Man, Poor Man: Book II’ (1976): Rushed sequel series still entertains
A true television “event,” back when a show could catch fire with the huge, largely unified network TV audience and actually depress attendance at restaurants and movie theaters on broadcast nights (while stressing city sewer systems during commercial breaks), Rich Man, Poor Man, starring Peter Strauss, Nick Nolte, Susan Blakely, and a host of familiar TV and movie star names, broke Nielsen records for the newly-minted “miniseries” genre.
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‘Someone I Touched’ (1975): What’s going on down there? TV movie answers
…a.k.a.: First, You Drip.
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‘Rich Man, Poor Man’ (1976): Racy event television from a lost era
Well…now that the seven angels have blasted their horns, rumbling them into a wild, dark winter, inventing entirely new, terrible beasts while we line up with our seven bowls to meekly beseech, “Please, sir, I’d like some more,” (Lionel Bart’s smash West End musical Oliver!, with book by John the Elder and Heinrich Heine), there doesn’t seem to be much more to do while we await our re-education camp assignments than to watch some vintage television, right?
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‘Highway to Heaven’ (Season 1): A powerful, spiritual drama for the 80s
“Who’s your boss?”
“God.”
‘Falcon Crest’ (Season 2): Melodrama & glamour ramp up in 2nd season
“Falcon Crest is a cancer; it contaminates everybody it touches! Get away, if you can!”
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‘Mayflower: The Pilgrims’ Adventure’ (1979): Celebrating the 400th anniversary of Mayflower’s landing
Attention! Attention fellow American lockdown inmates!
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‘The Boy in the Plastic Bubble’ (1976): Impossibly hopeful teen romance scores big
Uh…they couldn’t just adopt?
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‘Hey Dude’ (Season 1): Pleasant nostalgia from Nickelodeon’s transition period
Nice memories of a fun tween show that would never get on Nickelodeon’s schedule today.
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‘Shogun’ (1980): NBC’s blockbuster miniseries premiered 40 years ago
Now, what’s a Drunk TV virtual Fall TV season..without some special event television (“We interrupt our regularly scheduled programming tonight because of the f*cking actor’s strike to bring you an NBC Movie Event!”)?
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‘Beauty and the Beast’ (Season 1): Laughably straight-faced ’80s fantasy
Did you know there used to be a cult following for this show? Yes, seriously. That surely can’t be the case now, can it?
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‘Christy’: Fan base for 90s period drama remains strong today
I was aware of Christy when it originally aired on CBS back in 1994, but I never tuned in.
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‘Knots Landing’ (Season 2): Long-running series premiered 40 years ago
Do you remember on Dallas when J.R. would sneer about “losers” whose yearly salary wasn’t enough to buy one of his trademark Stetsons? Continue reading ‘Knots Landing’ (Season 2): Long-running series premiered 40 years ago
‘Seasons of the Heart’ (1994): Good performances lift film about awful people
Sometimes you just need some soap-opera suds to kick off the holidays. Continue reading ‘Seasons of the Heart’ (1994): Good performances lift film about awful people
‘Sudden Fury: A Family Torn Apart’ (1993): Solid performances in true crime dramatization
Mill Creek Entertainment has released a DVD and digital download combo pack of Sudden Fury: A Family Torn Apart, Continue reading ‘Sudden Fury: A Family Torn Apart’ (1993): Solid performances in true crime dramatization
Drunk TV 