Wednesday, November 3, 2010
TIVO ALERT: I just learned of the existence of the Hub Network tonight (it replaces Discovery Kids) (episode of Happy Days tonight in which Fonzie's engaged to be married until he learns the woman works as a stripper and lied about being a virgin, which was not cool), and if you've got the channel too, do prepare to record Thursday night at 8:30p (or Friday 2:30am) as they air A Very Special Family Ties episode from 1984, "Say Uncle," guest-starring a young Tom Hanks as Uncle Ned. Thank me later.
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I love Tom Hanks and Family Ties and I remember that episode making me a little uncomfortable when I first saw it when I was a kid. I'll have to check if I get that station.
ReplyDeleteGary David Goldberg talks about Tom Hanks and Family Ties in his memoir, <span>Sit Ubu, Sit.</span> Apparently there was some concern that the show would not get Hanks back for the second episode because his career really started to take off between the two episodes. Here it is straight from the book:
"Between filming the first episode with Tom and beginning to film the second about two months later, Splash came out in theaters, and it was a huge hit, catapulting Tom Hanks into the ranks of legitimate movie stars. We immediately receive a call from Tom's agent, basically reneging on our agreement.* There's almost no chance that he'll do the agreed-upon Family Ties episodes, we're told, and if he were to do them, it would be for at least ten times the originally agreed-upon price.
A day or two later the phone rings in my office, and it's Tom Hanks.
'Have these guys been bustin' your balls?' Tom wants to know, using the legal terminology for what's been going on here.
'A little bit,' I have to admit.
'Listen, man, I loved working with you guys. I love Mike Fox. Anytime, anywhere. At the original price, OK?'
'You drive a hard bargain, Tom. But OK.'
*No longer his agent."
I really like Tom Hanks.
I love Tom Hanks and Family Ties and I remember that episode making me a little uncomfortable when I first saw it when I was a kid. I'll have to check if I get that station.
ReplyDeleteGary David Goldberg talks about Tom Hanks and Family Ties in his memoir, <span>Sit Ubu, Sit.</span> Apparently there was some concern that the show would not get Hanks back for the second episode because his career really started to take off between the two episodes. Here it is straight from the book:
"Between filming the first episode with Tom and beginning to film the second about two months later, Splash came out in theaters, and it was a huge hit, catapulting Tom Hanks into the ranks of legitimate movie stars. We immediately receive a call from Tom's agent, basically reneging on our agreement.* There's almost no chance that he'll do the agreed-upon Family Ties episodes, we're told, and if he were to do them, it would be for at least ten times the originally agreed-upon price.
A day or two later the phone rings in my office, and it's Tom Hanks.
'Have these guys been bustin' your balls?' Tom wants to know, using the legal terminology for what's been going on here.
'A little bit,' I have to admit.
'Listen, man, I loved working with you guys. I love Mike Fox. Anytime, anywhere. At the original price, OK?'
'You drive a hard bargain, Tom. But OK.'
*No longer his agent."
I really like Tom Hanks.
I love Tom Hanks and Family Ties and I remember that episode making me a little uncomfortable when I first saw it when I was a kid. I'll have to check if I get that station.
ReplyDeleteGary David Goldberg talks about Tom Hanks and Family Ties in his memoir, <span>Sit Ubu, Sit.</span> Apparently there was some concern that the show would not get Hanks back for the second episode because his career really started to take off between the two episodes. Here it is straight from the book:
"Between filming the first episode with Tom and beginning to film the second about two months later, Splash came out in theaters, and it was a huge hit, catapulting Tom Hanks into the ranks of legitimate movie stars. We immediately receive a call from Tom's agent, basically reneging on our agreement.* There's almost no chance that he'll do the agreed-upon Family Ties episodes, we're told, and if he were to do them, it would be for at least ten times the originally agreed-upon price.
A day or two later the phone rings in my office, and it's Tom Hanks.
'Have these guys been bustin' your balls?' Tom wants to know, using the legal terminology for what's been going on here.
'A little bit,' I have to admit.
'Listen, man, I loved working with you guys. I love Mike Fox. Anytime, anywhere. At the original price, OK?'
'You drive a hard bargain, Tom. But OK.'
*No longer his agent."
I really like Tom Hanks.
I have no idea why when I comment it comes up multiple times, but it seems to only happen when I use my work laptop which has Firefox. Hmm. Sorry!
ReplyDeleteTom Hanks is so awesome that he makes up for the fact that his kid is a total dweeb.
ReplyDeleteFamily Ties had a pretty remarkable run of guest stars, with Tom Hanks and Geena Davis being the most notable. River Phoenix was a guy who pursued Jennifer at one point. Daphne Zuniga was Alex's high school girlfriend. Courteney Cox was his last girlfriend. Thanks for the reminder of the Uncle Ned episodes. Family Ties was my favorite show when I was in high school, and the Uncle Ned story ranked just behind My Name Is Alex (Alex grieves over his friend's death) as my favorite episodes. And that Gary David Goldberg memoir is great.
ReplyDeleteOne other good thing I noticed when I went to my DVR. That Hub channel follows the Family Ties reruns with The Wonder Years and some vintage NPH in Doogie Howser M.D.
ReplyDeleteUm guys, you are all missing the real news. Hub is also showing na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na Batman! The kids have watched every episode so far. And I have to say that, as awful as the show is, in many many ways, Adam West legitimately had a lot of charisma and no small amount of acting ability. Between that and most of the guest star villians, its a fun show.
ReplyDeleteHe drinks vanilla extract, right? Or mouthwash? Or both?
ReplyDeleteI remember it as the syrup from maraschino cherries.<span> </span>
ReplyDeleteHmm. Can it be worse for kids than Penguins of Madagascar? I don't think so.<span> </span>
ReplyDeleteThere's also a show called "The Adventures of Chuck and Friends" which I like to imagine is the Saturday Morning cartoon spinoff of "Chuck."
ReplyDeleteYou know, people like to diss on the 60's Batman show as being some sort of perversion of Batman. Except that if you look at DC Comics from that era, that's exactly what they were like; kind of weird, more than a little silly and a hell of a lot of fun. I'm just saying that if Bat Shark Repellent had showed up in a Batman title in 1976 (a little later, but work with me), it would quite possible have been the least weird thing in an issue where an age-regressed Batman beats up a bear.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I was pretty darn shocked about that Happy Days episode (from season two, 1975) for several reasons:
ReplyDelete-- explicit talk about how Fonzie wants to marry a virgin. [Which gets into all sorts of stuff that Klosterman addressed in a book.]
-- Dad takes Richie and Fonz to a strip club?
-- According to Wiki, and I didn't know this, it's the first episode with the Fonz jukebox tap and the first Fonz snap=silence.
Also, Henry Winkler was already 30 at the time. It showed.
My DVR picked up the Family Ties pilot, so I had to watch it, of course. Damn, everyone looks so young. I recently also reqatched one of my favorite episodes, involving Mallory joining Alex's quiz bowl team. I was amazed at how much of it I remembered ("The Straits of MAAAAAAAAAAAAA....," "Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus!," The judges adoring Mallory, the St. Mary's girls whispering the answer to the Kinsey question in Michael Gross's ear...) I must have watched more Family Ties in reruns than I remember.
ReplyDeleteMan, I loved Family Ties. Too bad I don't have cable anymore.
ReplyDeleteI just watched that episode, too! (Mallory on the Quiz Bowl team, and Alex freezing in front of the cameras.)
ReplyDeleteThere are certain shows that I scan the Channel Guide every now and then, looking to see if anyone is running repeats. Family Ties is pretty much my favorite sitcom of all time, so I've been looking for it for YEARS. I'm thrilled that this channel is running repeats! Can't wait to see the episode where Mallory ruins Alex's college interview, or when Alex has two dates to the prom, and of course, "A, My Name is Alex."
Frighteningly, I have seen the Alex's-college-interview episode so many times that I can tell you without looking it up that his interviewer is Dean Memminger.
ReplyDeleteIs "Say Uncle" the one where Ned lost his job, or the one where Ned's an alcoholic?
ReplyDeleteI believe the college interview one featured one John Dukakis (somehow related to Michael) as Mallory's cheating boyfriend.
ReplyDeleteI also remember so many great lines or anecdotes, like when Alex invested a bunch of his dad's money in Video Industries of the Philippines. Or the time the parents went away on Leland's homecoming weekend and Alex rented rooms out to visiting alums. Mr. Keaton: "Parents are expected to a few minor problems when they leave their children alone. Spilled milk. A broken dish.... There was a KANGAROO in my living room!"
I think it's easier to remember the lines because Family Ties had so many (even more than most sitcoms of that era) flashback episodes that were merely excuses to run clips from earlier episodes.
Check the comments from this post telling everyone about The Hub:
ReplyDeletehttp://throwingthings.blogspot.com/2010/10/dan-promise-me-something.html#comments
Re: John Dukakis, you are correct, sir. I believe John is Mike's stepson -- John's other claim to acting fame was a featured role in Jaws 2 (one of the teens out with the Brody boys on the catamarans).
ReplyDeleteVanilla extract, and maraschino cherries. And many Special Moments.<span> </span>
ReplyDeleteOne thing Hub is likely to create is a massive price lowering in bootleg sets of "The Wonder Years" on DVD. Because of the music rights issues and the difficulty of replacing music in the show, it's unlikely to ever get a legit DVD release.
ReplyDeleteAlcoholic.<span> </span>
ReplyDeleteSit, Ubu, Sit, is a really fun book - definitely recommended for anyone interested in TV in general, and particularly for those who grew up watching Family Ties.
ReplyDeleteYes, our TiVo automatically picks up NPH, so we've been getting Doogie Howser, which the kiddo loves.
ReplyDeleteWish this had been around when the kiddo was in his superhero phase (age 4? 6?) and we watched lots of Batman on YouTube, since it wasn't on DVD.
ReplyDeleteThey ripped off the Cindy Brady quiz bowl camera-freeze!
ReplyDeleteThe Hub also plays episodes of Fraggle Rock and the Transformers cartoon which makes me feel like a 5 year old kid in 1984 all over again!
ReplyDeletethink i need to watch Hub :) Bring back China Beach!!!!!
ReplyDelete