Going Back...

True, I often gaze retrospectively, that's a given. But right now I'm going back in order to bring you the Newsday TV Book covers of November and December 1973, plus January of '74 since I skipped that month as well. Maybe someday I'll revisit them with more detail like I usually do, but for now I'd just like to get caught up. (In the meantime, if you really feel you're missing out, here's a look at a January 1974 issue I wrote ages ago, and here's the Christmas week edition of 1973, and 1983 to boot.)

I left off at the last week of October 1973, so here it is. If you think I'm giving that week short shrift, take a look--Newsday left off two days!

Barbra Streisand's latest special, "Singer Presents Barbra Streisand... and Other Musical Instruments" doesn't get much of a touting in her two-page interview with Newsday's Jerry Parker. As she closes their conversation, she says she likes it, but then she suggests Parker call this article "She'd Rather Stay Home." Way to shill, Babs!

"The Men Who Made the Movies" was an eight-part PBS series created by Time Magazine's Richard Schickel and hosted by Cliff Robertson. Newsday film critic Joseph Gelmis offers four columns, mostly about Raoul Walsh and Frank Capra, and staff artist Bernie Cootner gets busy with the cover.

"Vivacious Valerie Harper" graces the next cover. Her interview is pretty straight-forward--there's talk of her own spin-off!--but critics of her lefty activism will be delighted to learn that the Jersey girl's first role (at the age of five, in the South Orange Winter Pageant) was as a snowflake...

This makes me miss Thanksgiving. Seriously, let's go back!

November wraps up with this color Gary Viskupic cover depicting Michael Sarrazin as himself and Frankenstein's Monster. I'll throw in the Bill Kaufman article.

We're into December now, with knobby-nosed Karl Malden in his Streets of San Francisco role.

 His article talks about how he'd delve into parts through hands-on research, as he was taught at The Actor's School (and which he himself taught at many colleges). He enjoyed performing card tricks, learned while filming The Cincinnati Kid.

 

The World at War was a British documentary series narrated by Sir Laurence Olivier, airing at the time on New York City's WOR-TV channel 9. The episode of this particular week, "Whirlwind," about bombing raids on Germany between 1939 and 1944, can be viewed here.

So, yeah, the issue for December 16th through the 22nd is missing from my collection. (I'm not OCD exactly, but I'd prefer to not even think about it.) Thus we move on to Christmas week with Maude's Bill Macy, born Wolf Martin Garber, getting cozy with a snowman.

The New Year brings Bowl games, of course, so this issue offers Newsday sports guy Stan Isaacs a rare opportunity for a TV Book piece. Much of it is about Rex Lardner, Jr., of NBC Sports (and Ring's grand-nephew). In another unusual by-line, Newsday Religion Writer Ken Briggs covers Religious America, a PBS series which I couldn't find any clips from (but I did dig up this review by not-yet-Archbishop John J. O'Connor).

ABC aired "The Fragile Mind," a special narrated by Joanne Woodward, profiling five people with mental disorders. Today, they'd each get their own E! show.

In the article for this week's cover story, Bill Bixby claimed to have become an accomplished magician under the tutelage of Mark Wilson. Bixby's show, The Magician, was retooled after folks found part of the premise too far-fetched: in early episodes, the title crime-fighting character traveled around in an enormous jet which served as his base (and garage for his Corvette), flown by a single pilot. This conceit was scrapped and his home became a mansion, reportedly based on the Magic Castle in Hollywood.

Last, we have Benjamin Kubelsky giving Nathan Birnbaum (or possibly his wax figure) a touch-up for "Jack Benny's Second Farewell Special." A third was not to be: Jack died eleven months later, the day after Christmas.

Stay tuned, I'll be back with a more detailed look at the month of February, 1974. I'm missing a week here too, unfortunately, but listen to this: the next issue's cover features crusty old Jeanette Nolan as Dirty Sally. No wonder you can't tear yourself away!