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Before it became a household name, The Big Bang Theory was actually titled Lenny, Penny, and Kenny. But the placeholder title got changed after the creators’ duo, Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, contemplated paying an ode to a TV producer-director-actor, Sheldon Leonard, citing that Jim Parsons‘ character name was taken from this theory.

Further citing about the title of the show, in a book titled ‘The Big Bang Theory: The Definitive, Inside Story of the Epic Hit Series’ by Jessica Radloff, the cast and crew share their take on this. It turns out that the show’s co-creator, Chuck Lorre, wasn’t just thinking about the scientific theory; he was also giggling at a s*xual double entendre. Talking about it further, Lorre said,

“I emailed Bill and said, ‘Let’s take a look at various scientific phrases and see if there’s anything in any of them.’ One of...

The Big Bang Theory’s iconic character Sheldon Cooper almost had a completely different name, which may not have suited his stoic personality. Played by Jim Parsons, Sheldon has become known for his exceptional genius, devoid of understanding social cues, sarcasm, and empathy.

However, I was stunned to learn that it’s not what the show creators initially had in mind. According to The Big Bang Theory: The Definitive, Inside Story of the Epic Hit Series, the character was originally named Kenny, in accordance with its original title.

“‘Lenny, Penny, and Kenny’ was the original placeholder title of the show,” co-creator Bill Prady revealed, adding, “Lenny was the Leonard character, and Kenny was the Sheldon character.” Thankfully, the idea was scrapped, eventually causing the creators to take a pivot and give meaningful names to characters, who would go on to become a pop culture phenomenon.

How The Big Bang Theory...

If you showed a time traveler the opening sequence of The Andy Griffith Show with the sound off, they’d be like, “Why are you showing me this? Also, when did the world get color? Also, wait, ‘Ronny Howard’?”

It’s hilariously simple, following Griffith and the future Oscar-winning director as they carry their fishing poles to a lake. Once you turn the sound on, though, you get it. The Andy Griffith Show theme song is maybe one of the most recognizable in TV history, even though it doesn’t contain any words.

At least, it didn’t.

The Andy Griffith Show was actually pretty groundbreaking in terms of the use of music on TV. Creator Sheldon Leonard refused to rely on stock music, a standard practice at the time, and insisted on hiring a renowned composer to score the series. He chose Earle Hagen, whose credits included Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and Carousel.

Robin Williams owes his big break to George Lucas and Dick Van Dyke.

That’s because Garry Marshall’s kid was a huge fan of Star Wars when it took over the galaxy in 1977. The son begged his father, who just happened to be the producer of the hit sitcom Happy Days, to create comedy about a visitor from outer space.

Marshall, who stuck his finger in the wind and recognized a good idea, turned to Happy Days director, Jerry Paris. How about an alien who visits the Cunninghams in Milwaukee? It turns out that Paris had been cooking up a similar idea, all based on another sitcom episode he directed for The Dick Van Dyke Show.

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“It May Look Like A Walnut” is probably the weirdest episode in the history of The Dick Van Dyke Show. It was also the first show Paris ever directed. Paris, who played...

While Andy Griffith is remembered now as one of the original sitcom superstars, he once had a career as a popular movie actor. He turns in an astonishing performance as Lonesome Rhodes in Elia Kazan’s A Face in the Crowd, quickly followed by his hilarious team-up with Don Knotts in No Time for Sergeants. That comedy smash was the fourth highest-grossing film of 1958. Griffith appeared to be heading to movie stardom, but that train was quickly derailed.

The problem? Studio greed. After the success of No Time for Sergeants, Warner Bros. wanted to keep raking in that sweet Andy Griffith cash. It rushed another military comedy, Onionhead, into theaters, just five months after Sergeants. One of the film’s posters announced, “That wonderful No Time for Sergeants meathead Andy Griffith is back as Onionhead!”

He’s “goofin’-up the Coast Guard now!” trumpeted another.

Unfortunately for the studio and the actor,...

While The Dick Van Dyke Show is remembered as an all-time classic sitcom, few would describe its comedy as “edgy.” But a few of the show’s plot lines did break new ground. “Carl (Reiner) was excellent at pushing the boundaries in subtle ways, like acknowledging that Rob and Laura were intimate, as husbands and wives are, or allowing others to venture into new and dicey territory,” Van Dyke wrote in his memoir, My Lucky Life In and Out of Show Business.

New and dicey? Those modifiers applied to one episode in particular, and “we fought the network tooth and nail,” Van Dyke recently told People. “They just didn’t want us to do it.”

Bill Persky and Sam Denoff penned the script for “That’s My Boy,” a flashback episode in which Rob and Laura reminisce about the day their son Ritchie was born. Misdelivered flowers at the hospital give...

Carl Reiner wrote his sitcom pilot Head of the Family with a specific star in mind: Carl Reiner. Who better to play the part of comedy writer Robert Petrie, since Reiner based the character and the sitcom’s plots on his own experiences writing for Your Show of Shows?

But network and sponsor reaction to the pilot was “fair to middling,” Reiner wrote in his book, Why and When The Dick Van Dyke Show Was Born. He was ready to give up on his sitcom idea when producer Sheldon Leonard called to say how impressed he was with the scripts for the proposed show. Reiner didn’t want to fail twice with the same project, but Leonard had a solution to fix the failed pilot: “We’ll get a better actor to play you!”

Leonard and Sheldon looked at several performers for the part. “Over the years, I have heard...

Following the advent of prestige TV, which changed the way viewers consumed TV shows, many felt that sitcoms might cease to exist amidst the changing trends. This sentiment couldn’t have been more wrong, as Chuck Lorre has singlehandedly continued the genre’s dominance on the small screen since the 2000s.

Sheldon and Leonard | Credit: CBS

Although Two and a Half Men propelled Lorre to new heights, his magnum opus remains The Big Bang Theory, and interestingly, he named the two lead characters after one iconic sitcom figure.

Sheldon Leonard served as a basis for The Big Bang Theory leads

Heading into the 2010s, prestige TV was the new norm, whether it was Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, etc. But despite their dominance, The Big Bang Theory continued to score high among fans and critics, keeping the iconic genre that shaped television in the ’50s and ’60s alive.

The Big Bang Theoryis an incredibly successful show that inspired a whole franchise. With its 12 seasons and two full-blown spin-offs, it's hard to believe this wasn't even going to be the title of the series. At some point in production, The Big Bang Theory was going to be called "Lenny, Penny, and Kenny." As happens with most sitcoms at the time of its creation, writers considered other options when crafting the show we all know and love. The Big Bang Theory could have had very different characters and a much less appealing title, so it's safe to say it all turned out for the better.

People might believe that the title of a sitcom doesn't really affect it, but in the end, it's the audience's first approach to the show. An off-putting title can totally change someone's opinion on watching a new series if they don't have much information about it.

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For 12 seasons and years on "The Big Bang Theory," the show's lead character Sheldon Cooper — played by Jim Parsons, whose departure from the show ultimately ended the entire series — defined the series, for better and for worse. Sheldon is a uniquely drawn character, created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady (who crafted the show together) and performed perfectly by Parsons. He even won multiple Emmys for the role and the character was popular enough to get his own spin-off, "Young Sheldon," which ran for 7 seasons from 2017 to 2024. At the same time, Sheldon can be frustrating, especially when it comes to the way he treats his friends Leonard Hofstadter (Johnny Galecki) and Penny (Kaley Cuoco), just to name a few ... although in the end, they do always accept him for the stubborn yet brilliant person he is.

Also, he was almost named Kenny.

The Andy Griffith Show is considered to be one of the most wholesome, beloved sitcoms in television history — unless, of course, you subscribe to the theory that Sheriff Andy Taylor secretly murdered his wife.

But, oddly enough, the classic series owes its existence to the demands of a conservative breakfast cereal company.

Before appearing in his own show, Andy Griffith’s lovable sheriff character first popped up in an episode of The Danny Thomas Show (formerly Make Room for Daddy), a sitcom starring the nightclub comic as a fictional version of himself. Griffith was written into an episode after producer Sheldon Leonard caught Griffith in the Broadway show No Time for Sergeants.

In the episode, appropriately titled “Danny Meets Andy Griffith,” Thomas’ character Danny Williams and his family are driving through the quaint town of Mayberry, when he’s pulled over and arrested by Sheriff Taylor for running a stop sign.

"It's a Wonderful Life" is one of the best Christmas movies of all time -- a fantastic, poignant movie that doubles as a great indictment of rampant capitalism. Though Frank Capra never expected this movie to be that popular, it has become an integral part of the holiday season for many American homes throughout December, as well as a staple of classic cinema in general.

The movie follows James Stewart's idealistic George Bailey, a man who hates the idea of living in his small hometown doing nothing but serving the community ... and yet, at every turn, he puts his own ambitions on the back burner in favor of helping others, his dreams constantly winding up on hold as incident after incident sends him on a different path than he imagined. But when he falls on hard times and the crushing fist of capitalism threatens to destroy his life's work,...

Few shows have had the staying power of The Dick Van Dyke Show. Premiering on October 3, 1961, and wrapping up in ‘66, unlike most shows that end due to low ratings, this one simply concluded because the cast was ready to move on to fresher pastures.

A still from The Dick Van Dyke Show | Credits: FilmRise Television, Youtube

With such a talented team, it made sense to spread the creativity around. Even 10-year-old Larry Mathews, who played Ritchie, was already looking ahead to his next big break. There were no big speeches or tearful goodbyes on the final day of filming. Instead, the cast spent their last moments together cracking jokes, recording tracks, and trading one-liners.

Created by comedy legend Carl Reiner, the series saw the incomparable Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore bring performances to life that won the show 15 Emmy Awards in a five-season run. But what happened to...

The mystery of what Penny's last name is on The Big Bang Theory has remained even after the show ended. However, as it turns out, the series had already secretly revealed it very early on. As the only female character from the original sitcom, Kaley Cuoco's Penny appeared in all 12 seasons of the CBS popular show. Although she seemed to stand out from her nerdy group of friends, she went through tremendous personal growth throughout those years, becoming one of the most popular characters in the series.

After moving to California as an aspiring actress, Penny eventually gave up on her Hollywood dreams. When season 8 started, she became a pharmaceutical sales representative working with Bernadette (Melissa Rauch). Despite her initial hesitation, she gradually rose through the ranks and appears to be perfectly content by the end of The Big Bang Theory. After all, both her personal and professional lives turned out great.

Ron Howard reveals Andy Griffith's comedic standards in the classic sitcom. In a recent interview on Conan OBrien Needs a Friend, Ron Howard shed light on the comedic principles that guided The Andy Griffith Show.

The former child star, who played Opie Taylor on the beloved 1960s sitcom, explained how Andy Griffith's discerning approach shaped the humor of the show. Host Conan OBrien noted that The Andy Griffith Show was a "character comedy" known for its willingness to embrace long pauses, allowing the humor to emerge naturally from the characters themselves. Howard emphasized that Griffith was adamant about avoiding broad jokes. "Andy used to kill jokes if they were too broad," Howard said. "He believed the South was plenty funny on its own without having to resort to slapstick or over-the-top antics."

Related Ron Howard's Jim Henson Movie Holds Perfect Rotten Tomatoes Score

Critics and viewers have given universal...

The Andy Griffith Show valued character development over broad humor or slapstick for a unique approach to sitcom comedy. Andy Griffith's insistence on realistic dialogue and everyday scenes added to the show's authenticity and success. The show's overall tone was carefully crafted to reflect Griffith's sensibility, showcasing his talent in finding humor in everyday life.

Ron Howard explains The Andy Griffith Shows one main rule for comedy. Beginning on the show when he was only six years old, Howard played Opie Taylor, the son of protagonist Andy Taylor, in the series. Howard continued to play the role during the duration of The Andy Griffith Show, which ran for eight seasons from 1960 to 1968. In addition to Howard and Andy Griffith, The Andy Griffith Shows ensemble cast featured Don Knotts, Frances Bavier, Colin Male, George Lindsey, Howard McNear, Tom Jacobs, Aneta Corsaut, and Jack Dodson.

Speaking in an interview with Conan OBrien Needs a Friend,...

E. Duke Vincent, a naval aviator and novelist who also, with partner Aaron Spelling, produced some of the most popular shows in television history, died on February 10 in Montecito. That, according to his wife, actress Pamela Hensley. He was 91.

Born Edward Ventimiglia, Vincent’s 40-year TV career kicked off after he joined the Navy, became a Naval aviator and eventually joined The Blue Angels. About that time, he flew the F8F-8P filming the aerial photo sequences for the NBC’s The Blue Angels.

On resigning from the Navy in 1962, he followed his interest in TV and got a job producing seven one-hour documentaries called Man In Space. While in Los Angeles, filming sequences for the series, Vincent met with Danny Thomas and Sheldon Leonard, the executive producers of The Dick Van Dyke show. After writing a spec script for them, he signed on to do their next series,...

E. Duke Vincent, the writer and two-time Emmy-winning producer who partnered with Aaron Spelling on such hugely popular shows as Dynasty, Beverly Hills, 90210, Charmed, 7th Heaven and Melrose Place, has died. He was 91.

Vincent died on Feb. 10 in his home in Montecito, California, his wife, actress Pamela Hensley, announced.

He and Spelling produced more than 40 series together, also including Hotel, Vegas, Matt Houston, Madman of the People and The Colbys; seven miniseries, among them Jackie Collins’ Hollywood Wives in 1985 and James Michener’s Texas in 1994; and more than three dozen telefilms.

Vincent won his Emmys for executive producing Day One, a 1989 CBS movie about the Manhattan Project that starred David Strathairn as J. Robert Oppenheimer, and the 1994 HBO movie And the Band Played On, centering on the AIDS epidemic.

An only child, Edward Ventimiglia was born on April 30, 1932, in Jersey City, New Jersey. His father, Egizio, was a pilot...

E. Duke Vincent, an Emmy-winning TV producer, died on Feb. 10 in Montecito, Calif. He was 91.

With Aaron Spelling, the duo worked on 43 TV series, such as “Dynasty,” “Hotel,” “Vegas,” “Matt Houston,” “The Colbys,” “Beverly Hills 90210” and “Melrose Place,” in addition to seven miniseries including Jackie Collins’ “Hollywood Wives” and James Micheners’ “Texas.” They also hold 39 TV movie credits, including Emmy winners “Day One” and “And the Band Played On.”

Additionally, Duke and Spelling served as executive producers on Warner Bros. Network’s long-running series “Charmed” and “7th Heaven,” the network’s highest rated and longest running drama. Duke wrote or produced over 2,300 hours of programming over the course of his 40-year career in Hollywood, with 1,600 hours of primetime and 750 hours of daytime TV.

The only child of Margaret and Egizio Ventimiglia, he was born Edward Ventimiglia in Jersey City, N.J. on April 30, 1932. After graduating from Seton Hall University,...

Dale McRaven, the television writer and creator of Perfect Strangers and Mork & Mindy, died on September 5. He was 83.

McRaven was at his home in Porter Ranch, California when he died. Throughout his career, he received major accolades like nominations from the Writers Guild of America Awards and the Emmys for his work on Mork & Mindy, which he co-created with Joe Glauberg and late director Garry Marshall. The ABC sitcom that starred Robin Williams and Pam Dawber lasted for four seasons.

Hollywood & Media Deaths 2022: A Photo Gallery

Perfect Strangers with Bronson Pinchot and Mark Linn-Baker was also created by McRaven. The ABC sitcom ran for eight seasons with 150 episodes produced.

In his first showbiz job, McRaven was hired by Marshall in 1963 to be part of the writers for The Joey Bishop Show. McRaven would go on to write for The Dick Van Dyke Show after he was found by...

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Dale McRaven, the Emmy-nominated comedy writer and producer who created Mork & Mindy with Garry Marshall and then the long-running Perfect Strangers on his own, has died. He was 83.

McRaven died Sept. 5 of complications from lung cancer at his home in Porter Ranch, California, his son, David McRaven, told The Hollywood Reporter.

McRaven also served as a writer on the fifth and final season of CBS’ The Dick Van Dyke Show and as a writer-producer on ABC’s The Partridge Family during that musical comedy’s 1970-74 run. Plus, he and Marshall created the 1979-80 ABC sitcom Angie, starring Donna Pescow and Robert Hays.

Perfect Strangers, from Miller-Boyett Productions and Lorimar Television, debuted in March 1986 and starred Mark Linn-Baker and Bronson Pinchot as mismatched cousins — one an American, the other from the fictional island of Mypos — who live together in a Chicago apartment.

Kino reaches into the Universal Vault for vintage Paramount and Universal thrillers. This ‘noir’ collection surprises us — it contains one terrific example of the style, newly-hatched and looking very different for its year. The other two titles are in B&w (check), and revolve around murders (check). But if there were a TV quiz show called ‘Noir or Not Noir’ they’d shape up as third-tier also-rans. The talent on view is impressive, especially the leading ladies: Claire Trevor, Louise Platt, Merle Oberon, Ella Raines, and Gale Sondergaard. Kino appoints the film with good commentators: Jason A. Ney, Anthony Slide, Kelly Robinson.

Film Noir the Dark Side of Cinema VIII

Street of Chance, Enter Arsene Lupin, Temptation

Blu-ray

Kl Studio Classics

1942-1946 / 1:37 Academy / 266 minutes / Street Date July 19, 2022 / available through Kino Lorber / 49.95

Starring: Burgess Meredith, Claire Trevor; Charles Korvin, Ella Raines; Merle Oberon, George Brent.

Directed by Jack Hively, Ford Beebe,...

Celebrating its 60th anniversary on October 3, “The Andy Griffith Show” is one of the most charming comedies in the history of American television. The CBS program was never outside of the top seven in TV ratings throughout its eight-year run and continues a strong six-decade domination in syndication.

Starting with the 1960 debut as a spinoff from “The Danny Thomas Show,” the series starred comedian Andy Griffith as Andy Taylor, sheriff of small-town Mayberry in North Carolina. One of the keys to the popularity was casting Don Knotts as bumbling but well-meaning deputy Barney Fife. Audiences got to know the young Ron Howard as Andy’s son Opie, long before his successful time on “Happy Days” and decades before his Oscar-winning career as a film director and producer.

SEERon Howard movies: 15 greatest films ranked from worst to best

While Griffith never received an Emmy nomination for his work on the program,...

Celebrating its 60th anniversary on October 3, “The Andy Griffith Show” is one of the most charming comedies in the history of American television. The CBS program was never outside of the top seven in TV ratings throughout its eight-year run and continues a strong six-decade domination in syndication.

Starting with the 1960 debut as a spinoff from “The Danny Thomas Show,” the series starred comedian Andy Griffith as Andy Taylor, sheriff of small-town Mayberry in North Carolina. One of the keys to the popularity was casting Don Knotts as bumbling but well-meaning deputy Barney Fife. Audiences got to know the young Ron Howard as Andy’s son Opie, long before his successful time on “Happy Days” and decades before his Oscar-winning career as a film director and producer.

While Griffith never received an Emmy nomination for his work on the program, Knotts won five times as Best Comedy Supporting Actor. In fact,...

Abbott & Costello – The Complete

Universal Pictures Collection

Blu ray

Shout! Factory

1940-1955/1:33-1:85

Starring Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Bela Lugosi, Boris Karloff

Directed by Arthur Lubin, Erle C. Kenton, Charles Barton

Two footloose Jersey boys with no particular place to go, Bud Abbott and Lou Costello finally found themselves – literally and figuratively – on the burlesque stage. Their act, equal parts smart talk and ancient slapstick, was honed alongside curvy chorus girls and tassel-twirlers but it took a lady of a decidedly different stature to make them superstars. On March 24, 1938, Kate Smith, “The First Lady of Radio”, invited them to perform “Who’s On First”, a routine delivered with such hairpin curve precision it left listeners breathless. That appearance fast-tracked the duo to their own radio series and a contract with Universal Pictures.

They made their big screen debut in 1940’s One Night in the Tropics, a low budget...

Earle Hagen, the Emmy-winning composer who wrote the iconic themes for “The Andy Griffith Show,” “The Dick Van Dyke Show,” “I Spy” and many others, would have turned 100 years old on July 9.

He was one of the most influential composers in TV history, formally recognized for his landmark work when the Television Academy inducted him, posthumously, into its Hall of Fame in 2011. He was only the second musician to be so honored.

Hagen pioneered the creation of original music for television in the 1950s, when most TV music was cheaply recorded mood music licensed from pre-existing libraries. By the 1960s, he was composing, arranging and conducting for as many as five shows a week — “The Danny Thomas Show,” “That Girl” and “The Mod Squad” among them — and set a high standard that other TV composers would aspire to in years to come.

“Earle was a huge influence on us, and really good with the tunes,...

TheWrap takes a look at some fun trivia about “It’s a Wonderful Life” directed by Frank Capra, courtesy of Alonso Duralde, IMDb and Old Hollywood biographer Robert Matzen in his new book, “Mission: Jimmy Stewart and the Fight for Europe.”

According to Alonso Duralde’s book, “Have Yourself a Very Movie Christmas,” Uncle Billy actor Thomas Mitchell was actually considered to play Mr. Potter, but Lionel Barrymore got the role because of his popularity after radio versions of “A Christmas Carol.”

Jimmy the Raven appeared in Capra’s “You Can’t Take It With You” (1938) and other post-“Wonderful Life” Capra movies.

The film was such a financial disappointment that it busted Capra’s production company, Liberty Films.

“It’s a Wonderful Life” was the first and last time Capra produced, financed, directed and co-wrote a film.

The original screenplay began with a scene in Benjamin Franklin’s workshop in heaven.

All references to Bill Cosby have been removed from Television Academy’s website, including from the list of honorees in the organization’s Television Hall of Fame.

In addition, the Academy confirmed Wednesday to Variety, a bust of Cosby that had been removed during construction at the organization’s North Hollywood campus will not be returned to display. An Academy spokesperson told Variety that the organization has no plans to rescind Cosby’s four Primetime Emmy awards.

Cosby has not been removed from the academy’s Television Hall of Fame, as had been previously reported by another outlet, only from the online list of Hall of Fame honorees.

Cosby last month was found guilty in a retrial on sexual assault charges. A jury ruled against Cosby for aggravated indecent assault in all three counts brought against him by Andrea Constand. The 80-year-old comedian and actor now faces the possibility of...

“Having Opie sass back to Andy might get a few laughs but it hurts the father/son relationship,” said Rance Howard.

Aaron Ruben, Sheldon Leonard and Andy Griffith were surprised. Where did this 32-year-old father of child actor Ronny Howard find the nerve to chime in and pitch changes to their new CBS sitcom? Where did this guy come from?

Our dad Rance, born Harold Beckenholdt on November 17, 1928, was an Oklahoma farm boy who caught the acting bug at age 12, performing in a Christmas pageant in the town’s one-room schoolhouse.

A brief stint at the University of Oklahoma was...

Rance Howard died Nov. 25 at the age of 89. In a statement posted on Twitter, his son, director Ron Howard, announced his father’s death: “Clint & I have been blessed to be Rance Howard’s sons. Today he passed at 89,” Ron, 63, tweeted, referring to his brother Clint Howard, who is also an actor. “He stood especially tall 4 his ability to balance ambition w/great personal integrity. A depression-era farm boy, his passion for acting changed the course of our family history. We love & miss U Dad.” In the days following his passing, brothers Ron and Clint reflected on their father’s life in an obituary,...

Et caught up with Carl Reiner on Wednesday, as The Dick Van Dyke Show creator was still coming to terms with the loss of his friend and former colleague, Mary Tyler Moore.

"I spoke to her husband the day or so before she passed away," Reiner tells Et. "I remember telling him, 'She may not hear you, but whisper in her ear that it's Ok to go. You can go.'"

Watch: Mary Tyler Moore Dies at 80

Moore died Wednesday from cardiopulmonary arrest after she had contracted pneumonia, her rep confirmed to Et.

Reiner says the last time he saw Moore was at a formal event, where the TV icon looked well, but he could tell that her health was waning.

"She had this childhood diabetes and had lost her sight -- practically all of it," Reiner recalls. "I came up to her, and she was looking at me, and she wasn't recognizing me until I spoke...

Chicago – The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (Cso) has come up with the perfect celebration for the pre-holiday weekend, presenting Frank Capra’s classic film “It’s a Wonderful Life in Concert.” On Dec. 10th and 11th, 2016. The Cso will accompany the soundtrack on a restored version of the film.

Rating: 5.0/5.0

This is “It’s a Wonderful Life” (Iawl) as you’ve never seen it before, restored to a brilliant print and with the original Dimitri Tiomkin soundtrack score enhanced by the majesty of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The film is projected above the orchestra, and with each symphonic moment in the story, the musicians and choral singers take over the music live. Iawl had many variations of themes in the soundtrack, so besides the Tiomkin original score, there are snippets of WW2 songs “Over There” and “This is the Army, Mr. Jones,” along with the holiday songs “Hark the Herald Angels Sing,...

Bogart finds Bacall and movie history is made; for once the make-believe romantic chemistry is abundantly real. Howard Hawks' wartime Caribbean adventure plays in grand style, with his patented mix of precision and casual cool. It's one of the most entertaining pictures of the 'forties. To Have and Have Not Blu-ray Warner Archive Collection 1944 / B&W / 1:37 flat Academy / 100 min. / Street Date July 19, 2016 / available through the WBshop / 21.99 Starring Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Walter Brennan, Hoagy Carmichael,Dolores Moran, Sheldon Leonard, Walter Szurovy, Marcel Dalio, Walter Sande, Dan Seymour. Cinematography Sid Hickox Art Direction Charles Novi Film Editor Christian Nyby Original Music Hoagy Carmichael, William Lava, Franz Waxman Written by Jules Furthman, William Faulkner from the novel by Ernest Hemingway Produced by Howard Hawks, Jack L. Warner Directed by Howard Hawks

Reviewed by Glenn Erickson

Speaking for myself, I can't think of a more 'Hawksian' picture than To Have and Have Not.

Timeless Media, which is affiliated with Shout! Factory, has released the classic 1960s TV series "I Spy" in a boxed set that contains all 82 episodes. Although Image Entertainment had released the series previously on DVD, this marks the first time the show is available in its entirety in one set. The show was one of many TV series that capitalized on the recent success of the James Bond films. Suddenly, TV and cinemas were playing spy-related fare virtually non-stop. NBC had some of the best elements of the spymania craze with "The Man From U.N.C.L.E.", Get Smart" and "I Spy". The latter series premiered in 1965 and ran three seasons through 1968. It presented Robert Culp as Kelly Robinson, who uses his status as an international tennis pro as a cover for his activities as a CIA agent. He is assisted by his good friend Alexander Scott (Bill Cosby), who ostensibly is his trainer,...

Long before The Dick Van Dyke Show signed off in 1966, Carl Reiner knew he had a classic on his hands, so crafting the perfect finale was just as important as producing a series that would hold up over time.

Since this is the time of year when series prepare to sign off for good (and since we recently addressed finales in EW‘s April 11 issue titled “The Art of Saying Goodbye”), EW caught up with Reiner who’s currently promoting the DVD release of The Dick Van Dyke Show: Classic Mary Tyler Moore Episodes. Reiner talked about finale dubbed “The Last Chapter,...

As promised last week, here’s the list of my favorite Christmas movies, starting with all my very favorite-est…

It’s A Wonderful Life (1946). Directed by Frank Capra, who declared it his favorite of all his films and showed it every Christmas at his home, it stars James Stewart as “everyman” George Bailey, Donna Reed as his wife Mary Hatch Bailey, Lionel Barrymore as the banker Mr. Potter, and a veritable Who’s Who of notable character actors, including Beulah Bondi as Ma Bailey, Thomas Mitchell as Uncle Billy, Ward Bond as Bert the cop, Frank Faylen as Ernie the cab driver, Gloria Grahame as Violet the “bad” girl, Sheldon Leonard as Nick the bartender, and Harry Travers in the pivotal role of the angel Clarence Odbody. The story of an ordinary man who lives an ordinary life, driven to despair of having his dreams crushed once and for all...

Doris Day movies: TCM’s ‘Summer Under the Stars 2013′ lineup continues (photo: Doris Day in ‘Calamity Jane’ publicity shot) Doris Day, who turned 89 last April 3, is Turner Classic Movies’ 2013 “Summer Under the Stars” star on Friday, August 2. (Doris Day, by the way, still looks great. Check out "Doris Day Today.") Doris Day movies, of course, are frequently shown on TCM. Why? Well, TCM is owned by the megaconglomerate Time Warner, which also happens to own (among myriad other things) the Warner Bros. film library, which includes not only the Doris Day movies made at Warners from 1948 to 1955, but also Day’s MGM films as well (and the overwhelming majority of MGM releases up to 1986). My point: Don’t expect any Doris Day movie rarity on Friday — in fact, I don’t think such a thing exists. Doris Day is ‘Calamity Jane’ If you haven’t watched David Butler’s musical...

The Wasteland:

Television is a gold goose that lays scrambled eggs;

and it is futile and probably fatal to beat it for not laying caviar.

Lee Loevinger

When people argue over the quality of television programming, both sides — it’s addictive crap v. underappreciated populist art — seem to forget one of the essentials about commercial TV. By definition, it is not a public service. It is not commercial TV’s job to enlighten, inform, educate, elevate, inspire, or offer insight. Frankly, it’s not even commercial TV’s job to entertain. Bottom line: its purpose is simply to deliver as many sets of eyes to advertisers as possible. As it happens, it tends to do this by offering various forms of entertainment, and occasionally by offering content that does enlighten, inform, etc., but a cynic would make the point that if TV could do the same job televising fish aimlessly swimming around an aquarium,...

The Dick Van Dyke Show, “The Sick Boy and the Sitter”

Written by Carl Reiner

Directed by Sheldon Leonard

Aired on October 3rd, 1961 on CBS

The Dick Van Dyke Show is one of the most enduring sitcoms of television history. While most series fall from recognition shortly after their finales, it remains a staple of Best Comedy lists to this day. The premise is very straightforward- Dick Van Dyke stars as Rob Petrie, a comedy writer at the fictional The Alan Brady Show. He’s married to Laura, played by Mary Tyler Moore, and the two have a son, Ritchie, and live in New Rochelle. We follow Rob at home and at work, where he often shares scenes with fellow writers Buddy Sorrell (Morey Amsterdam) and Sally Rogers (Rose Marie) and occasionally with their straight-man producer, Mel Cooley, played by Richard Deacon.

The pilot opens simply. Laura’s in the...

Guys and Dolls remake supposedly to star Channing Tatum, Joseph Gordon-Levitt (photo: Channing Tatum in Magic Mike) Guys and Dolls will be brought back to the big screen by way of 20th Century Fox, according to Deadline.com. Back in 1955, Joseph L. Mankiewicz directed for independent producer Samuel Goldwyn a highly successful movie version of the Broadway musical based on a Damon Runyon short story. Distributed by MGM, that particular Guys and Dolls starred Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra, and Vivian Blaine. This time around, Fox supposedly wants Channing Tatum and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, whose singing prowess was amply displayed in, respectively, G.I. Joe: Retaliation and The Dark Knight Rises. And Tatum and Gordon-Levitt can dance, too, as proven at the 2013 Oscar show (and, in Tatum’s case, Magic Mike). But hey, Goldwyn didn’t care that neither Marlon Brando nor Jean Simmons could sing (or dance), either. And Brando...

Of Dick Van Dyke's many talents, the most remarkable may be the moment you think about him, you smile.

The affable actor, singer and dancer has that effect on audiences. His colleagues think highly of him, too. They're bestowing upon him the Life Achievement Award at the 19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, airing live on TNT and TBS Sunday, Jan. 27.

Although his former co-star Mary Tyler Moore took this honor last year, Van Dyke says, "It never occurred to me I might be next. It was a total surprise to me. I found out a couple of months ago. They told me, and I just couldn't believe it. It was another surprise in a career of surprises."

Few people realize that Van Dyke, 87, started with Walter Cronkite. Van Dyke wouldn't come right out and say he was proud of his career, which continues with his singing quartet, The Vantastix.

This story first appeared in the Feb. 1 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. The Hollywood Reporter: Carl, how did you and Dick first meet? Carl Reiner: I had done a pilot for what became The Dick Van Dyke Show called Head of the Family, but it wasn’t very good. But I was invited to meet with Sheldon Leonard and Danny Thomas. I said to Sheldon, “I don’t want to fail with the same material twice," but Sheldon said: “You won’t fail. We’ll get a better actor to play you. There’s a guy in New York called Dick Van Dyke.” So I went

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Dick Van Dyke, beloved actor, singer, dancer, writer and comedian, will receive SAG-AFTRA.s highest honor . the SAG Life Achievement Award for career achievement and humanitarian accomplishment. Van Dyke will be presented the performers union.s most prestigious accolade, given annually to an actor who fosters the .finest ideals of the acting profession,. at the 19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards®, which premieres live on TNT and TBS on Sunday, Jan. 27, 2013, at 8 p.m. Et, 7 p.m. Ct, 6 p.m. Mt and 5 p.m. Pt.

In making today.s announcement, SAG-AFTRA Co-President Ken Howard said, .Dick is the consummate entertainer — an enormously talented performer whose work has crossed nearly every major category of entertainment. From his career-changing Broadway turn in ‘Bye Bye Birdie’ and his deadpan humor in the Emmy® winning ‘Dick Van Dyke Show,’ to his unforgettable performance as Bert in ‘Mary Poppins,. he sets a high bar for actors.

Decoy

Directed by Jack Bernhard

Written by Nedrick Young (screenplay) and Stanley Rubin (story)

U.S.A., 1946

Film noir is film noir because of a variety of recognized qualities which concern both visuals cues as well as some specific narrative aspects, including stereotypical character traits. It stands to reason that that is how the genre, or any other genre for that matter, is recognized. However, there are some examples of films that, by the very fact that they follow the standards of the genre, somehow manage to create their own special uniqueness. It might be because said movie exemplifies those characteristics particularly well. Other examples prove to be more challenging to evaluate as to what makes them special. The reasons may be more difficult to flesh out simply because one is uncertain as to whether or not the picture is actually good. Watching Jack Berhard’s Decoy in preparation for...

There are many shows which are described as "beloved" but only a few which truly deserve that description. The Andy Griffith Show is one of those precious few. The long running series, which inspired two spin-offs (Gomer Pyle Usmc; Mayberry Rfd), has been rerun consistently since its initial run (1960-1968), always on the air somewhere. The series celebrated it's 50th anniversary in 2010. While it's true that many shows are still remembered decades after they aired, how many are remembered as fondly as the Andy Griffith Show?

The Andy Griffith Show 50th Anniversary: The Best of Mayberry collects 17 of the most popular episodes of the series, as well as several other bonus treats. One of the best extras in the set is "Danny Meets Andy Griffith", an episode of the popular 1950s series Make Room for Daddy (Aka The Danny Thomas Show) which served as the prototype for Griffith's own show.

There are many shows which are described as "beloved" but only a few which truly deserve that description. The Andy Griffith Show is one of those precious few. The long running series, which inspired two spin-offs (Gomer Pyle Usmc; Mayberry Rfd), has been rerun consistently since its initial run (1960-1968), always on the air somewhere. The series celebrated it's 50th anniversary in 2010. While it's true that many shows are still remembered decades after they aired, how many are remembered as fondly as the Andy Griffith Show?

The Andy Griffith Show 50th Anniversary: The Best of Mayberry collects 17 of the most popular episodes of the series, as well as several other bonus treats. One of the best extras in the set is "Danny Meets Andy Griffith", an episode of the popular 1950s series Make Room for Daddy (Aka The Danny Thomas Show) which served as the prototype for Griffith's own show.

When we first heard about The Big Bang Theory, we weren’t sure if geeks of all shapes and sizes were going to be ridiculed, mocked or used as comic foils. Fortunately, the producers came with a pedigree for smart, funny comedies, headed by Chuck Lorre (Dharma & Greg). His take was that if the media declared the geeks had won and were taking over, they were ripe for a sitcom, using their foibles and interests for fodder. Coupled with a cool theme song from the Barenaked Ladies, the show debuted to good reviews and middling ratings, good enough to get a second season.

We should all be thankful since the second season strongly builds on the characters and situations, deepening the quintet of friends and sharpening the humor. The four-disc second season set is being released today by Warner Home Video and is a Must Have for ComicMix readers.

For those unaware,...

The B Noir festival is a hit! It's always a delight to hear about retrospective programming doing well. There are still people out there interested in and trying out old movies in theaters. Or maybe the San Francisco noir crowd is just that strong. I'd written about "I Wake Up Dreaming" a couple of weeks back (read it here); I have since went and saw some of the movies they're playing.

If you're in the Bay Area and you haven't spared the time, there's good news. The festival was supposed to end this Thursday, but I have just been informed that since it is selling out so well, they've decided to add another week of showings!

The list of extra screenings is at the bottom, but before that, I want to recommend trying to get to this Friday's showing of The Devil Thumbs a Ride, which I managed to catch on the fest's opening night.

Earle Hagen, Emmy-winning composer of some of the most memorable musical themes in TV history and the man heard whistling the theme song of "The Andy Griffith Show," died Monday of natural causes at his home in Rancho Mirage, Calif. He was 88.

In addition to writing the folksy "Andy Griffith" tune, Hagen penned the themes for "The Dick Van Dyke Show," "The Danny Thomas Show," "I Spy," "That Girl," "The Mod Squad" and "Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer," many for famed TV director Sheldon Leonard.

Hagen composed original music for more than 3,000 episodes during his TV career, which spanned more than three decades.

The composer also was active in the film business, mostly as an arranger and orchestrator for 20th Century Fox. He received a 1960 Oscar nomination (shared with Lionel Newman) as musical director for the Marilyn Monroe film "Let's Make Love."

Hagen, who played trombone with the Benny Goodman and Tommy Dorsey orchestras,...

Earle Hagen, Emmy-winning composer of some of the most memorable musical themes in TV history and the man heard whistling the theme song of The Andy Griffith Show, died Monday of natural causes at his home in Rancho Mirage, Calif. He was 88.

In addition to writing the folksy Andy Griffith tune, Hagen penned the themes for The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Danny Thomas Show, I Spy, That Girl, The Mod Squad and Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer, many for famed TV director Sheldon Leonard.

Hagen composed original music for more than 3,000 episodes during his TV career, which spanned more than three decades.

The composer also was active in the film business, mostly as an arranger and orchestrator for 20th Century Fox. He received a 1960 Oscar nomination (shared with Lionel Newman) as musical director for the Marilyn Monroe film Let's Make Love.

Hagen, who played trombone with the Benny Goodman and Tommy Dorsey orchestras, composed the jazz standard Harlem Nocturne. Written in 1939 for big-band leader Ray Noble, the tune went on to be recorded by Les Brown, Glenn Miller, Stan Kenton, Woody Herman, Ray Anthony and many other bands.