Old TV Show episodes you think everyone should watch

[Panache]

As a Father of two wonderful children ( a boy of 10 and a girl of 7) I have enjoyed the opportunity beginning to share via Netflix and such some of the TV shows from my childhood that I both enjoyed and learned from.

While I don't neccessarily think every episode of an old favorite show are great and worthwhile nowadays I think there are individual episodes that are worth sharing and are still relevant today.

I was wondering what particular episodes of their favorite old TV shows that my fellow Loungers felt that everyone should see.

I'll give an example

From the Original Star trek

Devil in the Dark (An episode that starts as horror and turns into true thoughtful Science Fiction. A fascinating episode that makes you think about what contacting an alien species would really be like)

Balance of Terror (For every kid that ever played played a variant of "Cowboys and Indians" and never thought about the face of the enemy. A wonderful illustration of the price of duty and honor and why sometimes those that should be dear friends must be bitter enemies )

Arena (Exciting, thoughtful, and wonderfully exemplifies the Quality of Mercy)

All three of these episodes have a common theme of the need for understanding and compassion. When I shared these with my children I shared part of my childhood. I hope that they got as much from them as I did.

So what particular episodes do you think everyone should see from your favorite shows of yesteryear?

Cheers

Jamie

 

[Feraud]

Can we include movies?

 

[Kitty_Sheridan]

I have become very nostalgic for some episodes of the Waltons, but can't seem to find them on DVD or online.
Some stick in my head, like when the Grandparents died..I loved Little House on the prairie too, Nelly was an awful creature!!

 

[LizzieMaine]

If I ran the world, every school child would be required to watch the 1959 "Playhouse 90" production of "Judgement at Nuremburg." It's even more powerful a production than the movie version, and it's also a valuable lesson in the dangers of marketing-driven censorship: the words "gas ovens" were blipped out of a speech by a prosecutor describing the horrors of Auschwitz at the insistance of the program's sponsor, the American Gas Association.

 

[Panache]

Can we include movies?

I have no problem with this.

However TV has never really had the budget of the movie industry. Television is the butt of many a joke and often accused (rightly so) of having little redeeming merit. So it is interesting to think about how the quickly made and far less expensive media of television created something that we consider important enough that we think everyone should see it.

So maybe TV movies fit the bill here but actual movies should be their own thread?

Cheers

Jamie

 

[Feraud]

Good points. Film seems to get more discussion so it is not a bad idea to keep this strictly televison related.

 

[kiltie]

How old?

Newhart is my personal favorite comedy of all time and is the kind of thing I'd really like to see come back to television. No attempts to be "cutting edge" or "shocking" ( read: profane, violent, and/or sexually explicit ). Good, 95% clean fun with a bit of plain old absurd.
To me, it's a good example of something that could have been presented on radio, but the subtle reaction shots and physical delivery of the characters had to be seen for the full effect. I believe that Newhart could have come off really well from anywhere between 1940 and the time it actually aired.

 

[Chas]

I can't recommend just one- but I would strongly recommend the entire series of I, Claudius - the gold standard for television in general and for miniseries specifically.

John Hurt as Caligula with some entertainment for Claudius and two friends. TV doesn't get any better than this.

[YOUTUBE]<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/tebTGIddPDk&amp;hl=en_GB&amp;fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/tebTGIddPDk&amp;hl=en_GB&amp;fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

 

[dhermann1]

Being the first generation of kids raised on TV, I have a lot of shows nobody else ever heard of that are treasured memories. When I was little Hopalong Cassidy was all the rage, and I'd love to see a modern kid's reaction to the hokey black and white (in more ways than one) nonsense we used to love.
There was a series of science shows produced by Bell Labs in 1957 and 1958, including "The Strange Case of the Cosmic Rays", and "Hemo the Magnificent", that were fabulous.
Likewise, a few episodes of Don Herbert as "Mister Wizard" might be fun. He took a couple of young kids and explained interesting scientific principles to them using every day household items.
There was also a lot of great Disney stuff in the early 50's, including episodes (from 1955) showing how one day man would go to the moon, which featured Dr. Werner Von Braun as its scientific adviser.

 

[The Wolf]

I made sure to show my sons the episode of "I Love Lucy" where she and Ethel get jobs (including wrapping candy on a conveyer belt) and the episode of "Bosom Buddies" where Henry gets Kip's art put in an exhibit.
Plus some old "Doctor Who"
I haven't brought home any "Avengers" yet.

Sincrely,
The Wolf

 

[AmateisGal]

I have to put in the episode of Hogan's Heroes - "Will the Real Adolph Stand Up?" where Carter imitates Hitler. Absolutely classic.

When he sees Schultz, he says, "What is this? I thought I gave the order, No more barrage balloons!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8xs3ZxBpG8

 

[Lone_Ranger]

From the Original Star trek



Balance of Terror (For every kid that ever played played a variant of "Cowboys and Indians" and never thought about the face of the enemy. A wonderful illustration of the price of duty and honor and why sometimes those that should be dear friends must be bitter enemies )

All three of these episodes have a common theme of the need for understanding and compassion. When I shared these with my children I shared part of my childhood. I hope that they got as much from them as I did.

So what particular episodes do you think everyone should see from your favorite shows of yesteryear?

Cheers

Jamie

I'd have to say, the first two seasons of Have Gun, Will Travel, are a must see. Some were even written by Gene Roddenbury.

BTW- The episode Balance of Terror, was actually based on the movie The Enemy Below.

 

[Dav]

The World At War.
The whole series, I've just watched the Auschwitz episode, educational and moving.

 

[Wally_Hood]

I'd have to say, the first two seasons of Have Gun, Will Travel, are a must see. Some were even written by Gene Roddenbury.

BTW- The episode Balance of Terror, was actually based on the movie The Enemy Below.

I have started watching HG,WT on the Encore channel and am enjoying the plots and acting. Paladin's quotations from classic literature are a cool juxtaposition to the wild gun play that erupts from time to time.

I saw a show last week that I remembered watching as a kid when it was running in the sixties, the one where an old man has been trying to catch a fish for years and interfers with Paladin's attempts to recover a sunken chest filled with gold. I hadn't seen it since its first airing, but the story had stayed with me for decades.

 

[Miss sofia]

I can't recommend just one- but I would strongly recommend the entire series of I, Claudius - the gold standard for television in general and for miniseries specifically.

I'll agree wholeheartedly with that, awe-inspiringly good, british tv at it's finest, actually they are repeating Dennis Potter's Lipstick on your Collar on Yesterday at 11pm, great stuff, all of Dennis Potters made for TV drama like the Singing Detective are a must in my books. Great music, great acting and great period detail!

 

[Wire9Vintage]

I'm a sucker for old sitcoms... I *know* they are a dreamworld and quite narrow-minded, but I find them to be a comforting one when things are feeling complicated.

My all-time favorite is Father Knows Best. I love Robert Young, and love the children, and the wife is strong. Compared to Donna Reed's "wife," who acted the bufoon so many times, she is a pretty neat lady. And Bud is just awesome!

I also love the old Dick Van Dyck show and the reality of it...yes, the parents argue, yes there's trouble at work, yes things go wrong... a lot! But the general hope and sweetness of it all is lovely.

And one more: Betty White's Life With Elizabeth. She was way before her time. I'm glad she being appreciated again. And Life With Elizabeth was fantastic!

 

[Honey Bee]

The Andy Griffith Shows...my favorites are the black and white ones.
The Rifleman with Chuck Conners-this show has a fan site too http://riflemansrifle.com/

 

[Navin323i]

I have 2 little girls... one who will be turning 6 years old in a few days and the other who will be turning 10 months old.

Two TV shows that I would share with them once my youngest daughter gets old enough to watch them would be:

1) Star Trek the Next Generation - the episode where it goes into detail as to how Picard got an artificial heart and what his life would have been like if he had not underwent the events that led up to him getting an artificial heart... I like this episode because my heart is partly mechanical so I can relate to Picard, plus the episode helps to illustrate how our hardships define our character... had I not been born with a heart condition that required me to undergo 5 life threatening open heart surgeries then I'm sure I'd have been a completely different person... one who doesn't appreciate life to the extent that I do now.
Basically the message I would pass onto my kids would be for them to understand that sometimes it's the bad things in life that we must go thru and overcome to truly shape our character, and that not going thru those hardships could have made us a totally different person... maybe in a good way or maybe in a not so good way.

2) The Incredible Hulk (Bill Bixby/Lou Ferigno) - Episode entitled, "The First".
This episode was significant in that it was the only episode in the series where the Hulk battled someone else with superhuman strength. There are a number of lessons I could teach my kids here with this episode particularly towards the end of the 2 part episode before the 2 Hulks fight each other. One lesson would be to anticipate the worst and think a step ahead to avoid a potential disaster... example... Bill Bixby's Banner character wants to help Dell Frye (whose alter ego is the evil Hulk) by curing him of the "Hulk disease". There are only 2 vials of the antidote... and Banner uses one of the vials on Dell while the other vial he leaves close by to the machine that Banner needs to use on Dell. Dell of course turns into the evil Hulk and sees the other antidote vial meant for Banner and in his rage throws the vial at Banner which winds up crashing against the wall pillar next to Banner and smashes the glass vial and smashes Banner's hopes of finally curing himself of the Hulk disease.
Had Banner only taken the appropriate action to anticipate the worst and place the vial someplace safe or better yet cure himself FIRST then cure Dell next then Banner would have achieved his goal of getting cured.

 

[Widebrim]

Most episodes of The Twilight Zone. The program struck a chord in me as a very young boy (when it was towards the end of its first run), the effect of which has lasted until this day. My favorite show ever...

 

[Feraud]

^ Agree. The Twilight Zone was my favorite as a child and I still enjoy re-runs. I used to watch it on a small b&w television in my bedroom and can still recall the thrill of the opening theme and the great storylines.