You weren't the only one forced by your sister to watch "Little House on the Prairie"

The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences hosted "An Evening with Modern Family" on March 3rd. Short interviews with the show's ensemble on the press line are now posted on the Archive's new page for Modern Family. Hear Ed O'Neill comment on how he wasn't looking to do a sitcom, but the writing was too good to pass up; Sofia Vergara talk about the camraderie on the set; Julie Bowen say how Modern Family reflects her own family.

Plus, don't miss: show co-creator Steve Levitan and cast members Ed O'Neill, Sofia Vergara, Julie Bowen, Ty Burrell, Eric Stonestreet, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Sarah Hyland, Ariel Winter, Nolan Gould, and Rico Rodriguez talk about the shows they grew up watching. Who was forced by their sister to watch Little House on the Prairie? Who said she cried the day Married with Children... went off the air, even though she wasn't born yet-- must have been the re-runs! Who said they watch Modern Family every week, sometimes multiple times?

"The Untouchables" Aired a Potent Series Episode Fifty Years Ago Today

As so aptly noted by The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows: "With the chatter of machine-gun fire and the squeal of tires on Chicago streets, The Untouchables brought furious controversy— and big ratings— to ABC in the early 1960s." This was no more evident than in the March 10, 1960 episode "The White Slavers." Although one wouldn't think an episode about the abduction of young Mexican women for the purposes of prostitution to be a subject for 1960 prime time television, it was par for the course on The Untouchables. The show's Dragnet-esque good guys versus bad guys approach and "based on fact" defense (which was debatable, to the point that the show was even sued at one point by the estate of Al Capone) kept the series on the air from 1959-63.

"The White Slavers" is cited by Larry James Gianakos in Television Drama Series Programming: A Comprehensive Chronicle 1959-75 as the series "finest episode," furthering: "Betty Field was extraordinary as a former procuress for the mob.... [years later] the denouement [with a mafioso trapped in a cellar] still disturbs." The authoritative The Untouchables by Tise Vahimagi calls "The White Slavers" "chilling" and "perhaps, the first season's most uncomfortable and ugliest episode" and notes that "it also marked a peak in terms of the body-count."

Featuring future Bewitched co-star Dick York, others in the cast include: Betty Field, Mike Kellin, Theona Bryant, Mona Knox, and Jim Anderson; the episode was written by Leonard Kantor and directed by Walter Grauman.

Director Walter Grauman talks about one of the most brutally memorable scenes in "The White Slavers" in his Archive of American Television interview featured on the Archive's page for The Untouchables: "The White Slavers."

Stephen J. Cannell on "Wiseguy"

Wiseguy: The Collector's Edition gets released on DVD tomorrow. Although short-lived (it ran from 1987-90), Wiseguy garnered Emmy nominations for Best Drama series and acting nominations for star Ken Wahl and supporting player Jonathan Banks; Wahl was awarded the Golden Globe. Harry and Wally's Favorite TV Shows (by Harry Castleman & Walter J. Podrazik), said of the then-contemporary series: "When producer Stephen J. Cannell gets it right, he somehow manages to combine action, adventure, drama, character, whimsy, and poignancy into a form that a mass audience can relate to and critics can applaud....Ken Wahl may have the looks of a pretty-boy hunk, but he adds some spice to the beef in his portrayal of Vinnie.... The writing is top-notch and the acting (especially by the guests) is far above average." Variety said of the series premiere: "Ken Wahl comes smashing through.... production moves like an express train [in] what's essentially as actioner but has all indications that, despite the plethora of violence, there are human beings with feelings at work there."

Creator Stephen J. Cannell talks about Wiseguy in his Archive of American Television interview, discussing where the seed of the series' idea came from and his fidelity to the series' story arcs concept.

The Monsters Were Due on Maple Street Fifty Years Ago Today

One of The Twilight Zone's best remembered episodes— and a staple of Twilight Zone marathons— is the first season's "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street." Scripted by Rod Serling, it's one of the series' social commentaries-- on how easily ones neighbors can turn against each other. It stars Claude Akins and Jack Weston, and among the supporting cast is young actor Burt Metcalfe. Metcalfe would become an Emmy-nominated producer (M*A*S*H) in later years. Watch what he had to say about this early acting foray along with Twilight Zone producer Del Reisman (who talks about how Rod Serling created The Twilight Zone specifically to tell these kinds of stories) on the Archive's new page for "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street."

"Moonlighting" Silver Anniversary Today

25 years and the Anselmo case is still unsolved. On March 3, 1985 Moonlighting debuted and a beloved television classic was born. Moonlighting fans have remained in such full force that an online petition prompted the release of all five seasons of the show on DVD. And could Bruce & Cybill and Allyce & Curtis reunite for a feature film? That's a dream sequence all Moonlighting fans hope for.

1980s shows such as Hill Street Blues, The Cosby Show, and Roseanne are often cited as groundbreaking. Moonlighting never quite gets that moniker, but at least stylistically, Moonlighting was just as influential. Breaking the fourth wall was hardly the norm in prime time, musical numbers were not a staple in series TV, and the dramedy was practically defined as a result of Moonlighting's nominations for both best direction in comedy and drama series by the Directors Guild of America in 1985.

What is the legacy of Moonlighting? Even creator Glenn Gordon Caron hesitates at the question (but delivers a great answer) when asked in his Archive of American Television interview...

"I have no idea, the legacy of “Moonlighting”? I don’t know, I think it’s a really entertaining show. I would hope, as with any show that’s a little different and takes chances-- and there are a lot of them-- certainly “Moonlighting” isn’t the only one that people will see them and think, oh, you know, television isn’t always about doing the same thing. It perhaps can be about doing a different thing. And working at the top of your game instead of, you know, at the bottom of your game, or the middle of your game. I think when we think of the shows we like the best, the ones that stay with us that’s what’s going on: people who love what they do, who feel an obligation to do their best, you know. So what’s “Moonlighting’s” legacy? That for awhile there that’s what we were doing, you know, I think, and hopefully the shows are still entertaining. I used to say to Bruce, and you have to keep in mind this was a different time, I’d say to him if our kids are in college, and they’re getting high and watching this we’ll have done a good job. What a stupid thing to say. But I really -- because my -- again, I was in college, and you know, you would go see the Marx Brothers at midnight. I was always stunned. It was 1975, you were watching this movie from 1937, and it’s making you laugh, and I don’t care how hip, and how cool, and how in the moment you are, those guys are more in the moment. They’re cooler, they’re hipper, they’re smarter, they’re funnier. It’s humbling. And that’s what I wanted to do, I wanted somebody to be able to look at it a couple of decades after it was done and go pretty funny, pretty special, you know."

Click here for the Archive's newly created Moonlighting show page with recollections of the series by creator Glenn Gordon Caron, pilot director Robert Butler, and cinematographer Gerald Perry Finnerman.

As Leno Returns, a Look Back to Where NBC Late Night Began

Starting tonight, Jay Leno returns to his Tonight Show berth, continuing the hosting duties he initially began in 1992. The Tonight Show's long history started with Steve Allen (photo, left), who hosted the local WNBT-TV Tonight from June of 1953, going national on September 27, 1954. When Allen launched a prime time series in the summer of 1956, he cut back his Tonight hosting to Wednesday through Friday, and a series of guest hosts did the Monday-Tuesday hosting (eventually Ernie Kovacs took this on permanently) until January 1957. When Allen left, a "new" format emerged, a news magazine-type show (akin to the Today show) called Tonight! America After Dark, which lasted until July 1957 when The Jack Paar (Tonight) Show debuted. Following Paar was a six month interim Tonight Show that ran from April to September 1962 with guest hosts, until future "King of Late Night" Johnny Carson (photo, right) became a TV icon hosting The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson from 1962 to 1992.

Little known today is the show that launched NBC's late night programming: Broadway Open House. This variety series began on May 29, 1950 and ran from 11 PM to 12 Midnight. The initial hosts were Jerry Lester (Tuesday, Thursday, Friday) and Morey Amsterdam (Monday, Wednesday). The loosely formatted undertaking is described by The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows thusly: "Stars were invited to drop in and chat, or perform if they felt like it, and the regulars performed in comedy skits, songs, and dances." Broadway Open House aired its final show on August 24, 1951. Between Broadway Open House's demise and Steve Allen's Tonight, NBC filled the late night time slot with the occasional special, such as several productions under the banner of NBC Opera Television Theatre.

Watch an episode of Broadway Open House (with Jerry Lester) and listen to one of the series' directors, Alan Neuman, at the Archive's Broadway Open House show page, that also features links to all of the versions of the Tonight Show.

"Today" Show Reunites Family Sitcoms Next Week

Tune in next week for the Today show's reunions with Eight Is Enough (Monday, March 1), The Partridge Family (Tuesday, March 2), and 227 (Thursday, March 4). Under the banner Great TV Families Reunited, such stars as Dick Van Patten, Shirley Jones, and Marla Gibbs will take to the Today show stage to reminisce about their classic TV shows.

"Your Show of Shows" 60th Anniversary

Sixty years ago today Your Show of Shows debuted, creating a blueprint for American TV sketch comedy to come. The forerunner of such shows as The Carol Burnett Show and Saturday Night Live, Your Show of Shows is a touchstone of the kind of programming for which the Golden Age of Television is known.

Following the demise of the short-lived 1949 series Admiral Broadway Revue, many of the talents from that show were assembled to make up Your Show of Shows, including producer Max Liebman, writers Mel Tolkin and Lucille Kallen; and stars Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca. Additionally, such stars as Carl Reiner and Howard Morris and such writers as Mel Brooks and Neil Simon contributed to the show's legendary behind-the-scenes and in-front-of-the camera chemistry. Memorable sketches include the Bavarian "Clock" that goes awry with the performers as mechanical figures; "This Is Your Story" a take-off of "This Is Your Life" with an unforgettable Howard Morris as "Uncle Goopy"; the recurring Professor sketch with Carl Reiner interviewing Sid Caesar's eminent expert; and the movie parodies, such as "From Here to Obscurity" a send-up of "For Here to Eternity" in which Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca are splashed by the waves as they lay on the beach.

Not to be forgotten is that in addition to the famed comedy sketches, Your Show of Shows, as a variety series, also employed the considerable talents of such regulars as singer Bill Hayes and choreographer James Starbuck (working with such talents as Bambi Linn & Rod Alexander and Marge & Gower Champion).

"My view of comedy is you have to believe what the [performers] are doing. You have to believe it, so you can laugh. Because if it's off the wall, you'll laugh one time. If they can't follow the story, and they don't believe it, they lose interest. Even though it's a comedy. So they have to believe you, [as if] you're doing a drama. It's a funny drama. You don't know it's funny. The fun is that you don't know it's funny. Let the audience find out." — Sid Caesar

The Archive of American Television interviewed many of the contributors to Your Show of Shows including Sid Caesar, Carl Reiner, and Marge Champion; and late greats Lucille Kallen, Mel Tolkin, and Howard Morris. Check out the Archive's curated Your Show of Shows page (with links to Caesar's other "live" series: Admiral Broadway Revue and Caesar's Hour) to watch reminiscences of these interviewees on this classic series.

Jack Benny Puts Up His Own Money

Jack Benny was pained to part with his money. So ingrained was this part of the Jack Benny persona that on his radio program, among his biggest laughs came when a robber held him up demanding "Your money or your life?" prompting a long pause from Benny... who finally said "I'm thinking it over!"

In the 1950s, when Benny's popular radio show made the transition to TV (where it had a fifteen year run), audiences were well aware of Benny's penchant for stinginess. So his appearance on quiz show The $64,000 Question was especially popular.

But equally funny was the follow-up to Benny's quiz show stint, when $64,000 Question host Hal March returned the favor by guest-starring on The Jack Benny Program. The twist? March would participate in Benny's version of The $64,000 Question... with Benny putting up his own money! The result was a very funny, very memorable show (March is quite a sport, as you'll see). Watch Archive interviewee Irving Fein (Benny's longtime manager) talk about Benny's initial appearance on The $64,000 Question, plus an embed of the Jack Benny episode itself at the Archive's page for The Jack Benny Program: "Hal March Show."

Look also for Benny's visit from his "fan club" president and secretary who answer a burning question they have about Benny's hair.

David Canary Retiring from "All My Children" in April

Daytime Emmy-winner David Canary, who has played one of soap's most famous dual roles-- twin brothers Adam & Stuart Chandler on All My Children-- is retiring from the series after a 27-year run. Canary is also known for two primetime '60s TV classics: western Bonanza (playing ranch foreman Candy Canaday) and primetime soap Peyton Place (as Dr. Russ Gehring).

David Canary was interviewed by the Archive of American Television on July 19, 2004 and his interview is now available on EMMYTVLEGENDS.ORG

Interview Description:
David Canary was interviewed for two hours plus in New York, NY. Canary spoke in great detail about the daytime soap opera All My Children and the dual role for which he is most well known, the twins “Stuart and Adam Chandler.” He described the challenges of playing the roles and how the show has changed over the years. Canary also talked about his significant work as a regular on primetime’s Peyton Place and Bonanza,, as well as the soap Another World. For Bonanza, he described the production, significant episodes featuring his character “Candy Canaday,” and working with the regular cast. He also detailed guest roles on such series as Gunsmoke. The interview was conducted by Connie Passalaqua.

New Archive Newsletter

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"Tonight Show" Walk Out

Long before the Conan O'Brien-Jay Leno hubbub of the last several weeks, there was a much more famous and dramatic exit of a Tonight Show host: Jack Paar.

Fifty years ago today, following his monologue, Jack Paar walked out on The Tonight Show (with his tearful utterance: "...there must be a better way of making a living than this"). Paar had been angered over a joke that had been "bleeped" by the network and on February 11, 1960 announcer Hugh Downs was left to contend with the hosting duties. A few weeks later, Jack Paar returned to the show and remained until 1962.

Hugh Downs talks extensively about this infamous moment in television history in his Archive of American Television interview (in chapter four), his conversation with Paar before it happened and Downs' reaction when it was happening.

"They showed a shot of me looking astonished and I explained to the audience why I looked astonished because I didn't know he was going to leave when he left. I knew he was going to leave, but I didn't know how soon."

Audio of Paar's walk out speech as posted on You Tube: