NTN TV Schedule – October 2020

September 30, 2020September 29, 2020 / jstater

The Nod Television Network proudly presents seven shows to make you quake with fear this Halloween season.

“Dracula”. I associate Sunday afternoons in the late 70s with two shows in particular – Ripley’s Believe It or Not, hosted by Jack Palance, and In Search Of … hosted by Leonard Nimoy. In Search Of … is like a who’s who of 70’s pseudo-science, covering everything from bigfoot to E.S.P. to the Loch Ness Monster to U.F.O.s. Originally telecast 6/8/77

Monday | SPECIAL PRESENTATION

“Witch’s Night Out”. October was always time for specials, and I suppose the Halloween special people know best is It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. Now, that’s a great cartoon – I love it to this day – but I also remember a show called Witch’s Night Out, which freaked me out as a kid. It was the art style – so weird and creepy. Gilda Radner provided the witch’s voice – what a lovely woman! Originally telecast 10/27/78

Tuesday | ADDAMS FAMILY

“Halloween with the Addams Family”. The Addams Family and Munsters both premiered the same year, and I love them both. You can’t beat John Astin and Carolyn Jones as the most romantic couple to ever grace television, and Ted Cassidy as Lurch is brilliant. I apologize in advance that the linked show cuts off the theme song. Originally telecast 10/30/64

Wednesday | FRIDAY THE 13TH: THE SERIES

“The Poison Pen”. This is the second episode of the series – I linked to the first episode in the August schedule. In this episode, the gang has to disguise themselves as monks to get into a monastery in search of a cursed pen. Originally telecast 10/10/87

Thursday | MOVIE – Horror

“The Monster Club”, 1981, starring Vincent Price and John Carradine. While this may not be the greatest film either of these men worked on … or anyone worked on … it is hosted by Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, and features an early appearance of UB40. I think Cassandra Peterson is a national treasure, along with Price and Carradine. Original telecast 2/6/83

Friday | SHE-WOLF OF LONDON

“She-Wolf of London”, series premiere. In the aptly named first episode of the series, Randi travels to England to study archaeology, and instead winds up a lycanthrope. I mentioned this one a few posts ago in my salute to 90’s TV – what better time than October to post the first episode. Originally telecast 10/9/90

Saturday | MONSTER SQUAD

“Ultra Witch”. Can Dracula, Bruce the Werewolf, and Frankenstein’s Monster, along with the Loveboat’s Fred Grandy, stop Julie Newmar as the Ultra Witch? Well, probably, since they’re the heroes. Watch it anyways – for Newmar if nothing else. Ultra Witch is the coolest name for a villain (or a band) I’ve ever heard. Originally telecast 10/30/76

BONUS!

PAUL LYNDE HALLOWEEN SPECIAL (1976)

I think I’ve established a relationship of trust with my readers, so when I tell you this Halloween special was pretty terrible, I know you’ll believe me. Of course, with my taste in entertainment, I consider this show terrible-great, rather than terrible-terrible. Like all such shows in the 70s (and boy, were there a bunch of them), you get a star-studded cast – Tim Conway, Margaret Hamilton, Witchie-Poo, Pinky Tuscadero, Donny & Marie, Florence Henderson and, the only reason this show managed to survive the 70s, the first TV appearance of KISS. Buckle up boys and girls – it’s going to be a bumpy ride! Originally telecast 10/29/76.

Saying Goodbye to a Good Girl

September 28, 2020March 7, 2021 / jstater / 3 Comments

I’ve had quite a few dogs in my life, and I’ve loved every one of them with all my heart and soul. Josie still stands out. She was unbelievably sweet. Meek and mild, but ridiculously vivacious. Josie was a rescue. We actually went down to the place interested in a different dog that we’d seen online, and as we walked through the door saw that dog being adopted.

“We’re not leaving without a dog,” my wife informed me … and I agreed.

It had been about 6 months since our last dog had passed away. Kopper was 8 years old when he passed, after having gone through more trouble than any dog should ever have – he had a twisted leg, went blind at age 2, had to have his tail amputated due to a large growth … Kopper was a mess, but we loved him. After having to put him down, I didn’t know if I could go through it again. Six months later, I knew I needed the pitter-patter of dog feet around the house, and so off we went.

With our chosen dog out of the running, we started looking through their online guide. While doing that, my wife noticed Josie sitting in the rescue office. She had obviously just been passed by by somebody else, and was on her way back to the kennels.

“That’s Josie,” my wife said, “I remember her. I want Josie.”

So we met Josie, who ignored us while she was excitedly looking at the other animals up for adoption, and decided somehow that she was the one. Well – look at those pictures – how could we pass this sweet girl by.

Josie was only 2 when we adopted her. At 4-1/2, she contracted a rare and untreatable cancer. Three days ago, we had to put her down. She’d had 6 more weeks of walks and love (and for Josie, walks were almost the same thing as love) after her diagnosis, but was finally stuggling to breath, and was unable to eat. I sat on the floor of the examining room of our family vet and comforted her while she breathed her last. It was as hard as anything I’ve ever done.

So now I’m writing this, because Josie deserves a eulogy. She was a precious little gift from God, and we’ll miss her terribly.

Hug your pets, your kids, your spouses, your parents and siblings an everyone you love every time you see them. Hug them, and love them, and value them, folks. That’s what makes life worth living.

Everybody Loves a Spaceman in Uniform

September 6, 2020March 13, 2021 / jstater

After drawing those Jason of Star Command uniforms (in Excel, of course) for the post last weekend, I decided to try my hand at drawing some more sci-fi uniforms.

Below is the result of my mania. I chose a bunch of science-fiction TV and movie uniforms – not just costumes, you understand, but uniforms – and with MS Excel in hand cobbled them together as best I could. They are presented in the chronological order in which they appeared in reality – I thought about doing it in order of when the show/movie was set, and may do that one later.

It was a fun exercise, and although it took longer to do than I had planned, it sure helped me mellow out while I worked on it.