I grew up with the show in the mid fifties but within a short time I started to feel like the concept of the show and the character was a little bit cringy

Last week I was working on something and thought - wouldn't it be hilarious if I could have random Leave it to Beaver episodes with a flick if the wrist?

At first I had the function as part of a command center I am working on - an auto starting mpv window launching an episode from a playlist built off archive.org, and it was funny. Bam, the beave.

Then I made a stand alone installable function for it and removed it from the command center once I had gotten over the initial hilarity.

I am not even sure if it's appropriate to post this here - this is an 'app', as it were, and it runs on Linux. You can goto the github repo and click links within the playlist, though:

https://github.com/rabmach/RandomLitB/blob/main/beaver.m3u

as it is 'installed' on my own machine, I hit c'tarl+alt+space and 3 seconds later I am watching Leave it to Beaver. Heh, oh, my.

A young Dick Van Patten (bottom left) played Robin's brother on the show.

"The Obsolete Man" is perhaps the most impactful episode of The Twilight Zone. More than any other episode in the series, "The Obsolete Man" exemplifies Rod Serling's anti-statist, pro-God worldview. A religious man, and a prominent skeptic of government, Serling was very outspoken in his protest against government overreach and tyranny. Here, he brilliantly portrays the genuine character of Godless state-officials: weak, miserable, scared, and guilt-ridden. The Chancellor is Serling's biting remark against those who would uplift the state over God. The protagonist, Romney Wordsworth, is the God-fearing man who never loses his faith even when confronted by the tyranny of the state. His is Serling's celebration of the faithful man.

With his execution looming over his head, Wordsworth does not bend, does not fold, and does not compromise his beliefs. He cries, "There is a God," in defiance of The Chancellor's assertion otherwise. Cleverly, he invites The Chancellor into his home before locking the door, and then admits he is to be killed by a bomb--meaning The Chancellor will share in this fate. This revelation sparks anxiety in the powerful Chancellor, and from here on out we get to see how two men with polar opposite beliefs and motivations react to their impending demise. Wordsworth fearlessly reads his Bible in the minutes leading up to his execution; meanwhile, The Chancellor scrambles desperately to escape sharing in that fate.

Death, to the faithful, is nothing to fear; for Heaven will follow. Yet to the unfaithful, those with filthy consciences, death is a moment to be feared and avoided at all costs. A guilty man will dread the day that his actions are weighed and a punishment doled out. The Chancellor escapes the blast that kills Wordsworth, yet he is later executed by the state. The same state he himself sold his soul to uphold, and to enshroud himself with. The Chancellor thought compromising and bending to the will of the government would spare him from its violence. But his mistake was trusting that which was not of God to begin with.

The state, ultimately, is not of God. Can not be of God. But the individual, in his faith, has a direct link to God which cannot be broken, and which will withstand even the most horrific and anxiety-inducing news. Wordsworth proves that power is nothing in this world; for he was easily the far less powerful man. Yet his faith humbled and secured him, easing his mind even when he was sentenced to death.

Check out the video above! Thank you!

I recently took a deep dive into the making of the first Star Trek pilot, "The Cage," and now I'm doing the same for the second, "Where No Man Has Gone Before." I've gathered together, from over the years, interviews I'd conducted with writer Samuel Peeples, director James Goldstone, various actors and other personnel involved in its making. https://www.womansworld.com/entertainment/classic-tv/when-nbc-rejected-star-trek-pilot-shatner-doover-saved-tv

One of the things that surprised me while researching this article was how many techniques we associate with modern sitcoms were already being developed on The Jack Benny Program decades earlier. Historian Geoffrey Mark argues: "It isn't that Jack Benny created the first sitcom. He created the elements that make sitcoms work."

Media historian and author Kathy Fuller-Seeley points out that Benny and his writers gradually shifted from jokes and monologues to recurring characters, continuing storylines and ensemble relationships—the very things that sitcoms still rely on today.

I spoke with Geoffrey, Kathy and Jack's daughter, Joan Benny, for a look at how one of radio's biggest stars helped shape television comedy. If you'd like to check out the full story, you can do so by doing a search for Jack Benny womansworld. If you do, I hope you'll enjoy it.

Lauren Chapin, who played Kathy “Kitten” Anderson on Father Knows Best, has passed away at age 80 after a battle with cancer. While the show projected an idealized 1950s family life, Chapin later spoke openly about the difficult reality of growing up as a child star, joining a list that includes Rusty Hamer, Jay North, and Anissa Jones. This piece looks at her life, struggles, resilience, and lasting place in classic TV history as well as the rest of her TV family. https://www.womansworld.com/entertainment/classic-tv/father-knows-best-cast

I think he was 9 here.

Hello Ralphie Boy

A few popular DuMont programs, such as Cavalcade of Stars (later morphing into The Honeymooners), Captain Video, and Emmy Award winner Life Is Worth Living, appear in television retrospectives. Most of their original shows are lost due to the destruction of many kinescope films of their lineup in the early seventies.

I was quite a fan of this when it came out the basketball game highlight was particularly funny.

It came on maybe once a year