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Turn-on

Original title: Turn-On
  • TV Series
  • 1969–
  • 30m
IMDb RATING
4.6/10
157
YOUR RATING
Tim Conway and Carlos Manteca in Turn-on (1969)
SatireSketch ComedyComedy

A satire of sex, politics, and everything else, splattered across the screen at blinding speed. One producer called it "A visual, comedic, sensory assault involving animation, videotape, sto... Read allA satire of sex, politics, and everything else, splattered across the screen at blinding speed. One producer called it "A visual, comedic, sensory assault involving animation, videotape, stop-action film, electronic distortion, computer."A satire of sex, politics, and everything else, splattered across the screen at blinding speed. One producer called it "A visual, comedic, sensory assault involving animation, videotape, stop-action film, electronic distortion, computer."

  • Stars
    • Bonnie Boland
    • Hamilton Camp
    • Teresa Graves
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    4.6/10
    157
    YOUR RATING
    • Stars
      • Bonnie Boland
      • Hamilton Camp
      • Teresa Graves
    • 28User reviews
    • 3Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Episodes3

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    TopTop-rated1 season1969

    Photos30

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    Top cast17

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    Bonnie Boland
    • Sketch Performer…
    • 1969
    Hamilton Camp
    Hamilton Camp
    • Sketch Performer…
    • 1969
    Teresa Graves
    Teresa Graves
    • Sketch Performer…
    • 1969
    Maxine Greene
    • Sketch Performer…
    • 1969
    Ken Greenwald
    • Sketch Performer…
    • 1969
    Chuck McCann
    Chuck McCann
    • Sketch Performer…
    • 1969
    Maura McGiveney
    Maura McGiveney
    • Sketch Performer…
    • 1969
    Carlos Manteca
    • Sketch Performer…
    • 1969
    Cecile Ozorio
    • Sketch Performer…
    • 1969
    Robert Staats
    Robert Staats
    • Sketch Performer…
    • 1969
    Mel Stewart
    Mel Stewart
    • Sketch Performer…
    • 1969
    Tim Conway
    Tim Conway
    • Self…
    • 1969
    Debbie Macomber
    • Self…
    • 1969
    Robert Culp
    Robert Culp
    • Sketch Performer
    • 1969
    France Nuyen
    France Nuyen
    • Sketch Performer
    • 1969
    Alma Murphy
    • Self
    • 1969
    Alice MaVega
    • Self
    • 1969
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews28

    4.6157
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    Featured reviews

    illgetby

    All I remember was....

    ..a woman going to a Candy/Cigarette looking machine, putting in some money, and when the thing she was waiting for didn't come out, she started kicking, punching, and shaking the machine. Then they zoomed in on the machine, and a sign on it said "The Pill", and then the "Please stand by" sign came on. The whole family started to think it was another report on Vietnam interrupting the show, or maybe some other new on shooting at a college or something like that, but it was just the show had been canceled. I'm not sure what they put on for the rest of the hour, all I know is they TURNED OFF "Turn On" minutes after it started. It had to be the most short lived program I've ever seen.
    hung_fao_tweeze

    I, too, remember this show from my youth

    I didn't think it was funny either. It seemed very sterile and maybe a bit too fast-paced. The only bit I really recall is a ballet dancer spinning about and colliding with other dancers - which was almost funny. I believe another bit had the dancer falling into bed. It was a long time ago and the show was mostly forgettable. I don't remember it being 'dirty'. Maybe it was but it went over my head. Tim Conway was way out of place here. A complete waste. I, too, would like to see it again to make a more current judgment. It was probably conveyed to the audience improperly. The biggest problem may have been that there wasn't much banter ala Dan Rowan/Dick Martin. The show practically alienated from the outset.
    Howie0331

    Dreadful Rip-off of "Laugh-In"

    Yes, this one definately aired on ABC...I remember watching that one episode broadcasting out of New York in 1969. I was only ten years old at the time, so I wouldn't have understood much, if any, of the sexual innuendo. Although I wasn't completely green, having managed to view part of Jane Fonda's Barbarella a few months earlier, after the kiddie classic The Christmas that Almost Wasn't.

    From all the commercial hype leading up to the show I was expecting--no, hoping for--another "Laugh-In," which was the most talked-about series on TV during the 1968-69 season and Goldie Hawn the most talked-about new star. "Laugh-In" was my favorite show at that time, and figured two of the same was better than one.

    Which was what nobody got. I remember this being one of the most lame excuses for a prime-time show I had ever seen. My older sisters and I weren't horrified by the content so much as bored and disappointed.

    When it didn't come back the following week, I was surprised yet not surprised. I never saw a show disappear that quickly, no matter how bad. And yet I wouldn't mind seeing this again...if only to re-confirm what I thought then.
    5haildevilman

    There it is...oops we missed it.

    I (believe it or don't) saw blips of this on a Japanese sampler of "Comedy Shows From Around The World." I don't know where they got the clips from however.

    Setting a record for the fastest cancellation is this show's only mention in most cases. It's "Laugh-In" with the raunchy humor turned up a few notches. Teresa Graves is even in it.

    The rapid (and I do mean RAPID) fire humor looked like Monty Python on crystal meth. Too fast for most. And the double-entendres put off sponsors and censors. Big surprise there. The music was the WORST thing about this. That probably single-handedly prevented anyone from even caring if this got nixed.

    That said, the networks made a mistake by not trying to give it another chance. It probably could have been great. But the producers goofed and the censors were too tight.

    My personal fave joke? Sexy girl in front of a firing squad. "Miss, instead of you getting a last request, we would like to make a last request." Wink-wink.

    Anyone got this on video? Drop me a line if you do.
    TomReed

    Turned on, but did not stay on.

    The producers of "Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In" tried to outdo themselves with this ABC show, which had rapid-fire visual effects (sometimes lasting seconds). It was supposedly comedy produced by a computer monitored by two technicians. (In those days before effective videotape editing, it was produced on film to support those rapid cuts.)

    The show got many complaints for its "dirtiness", which to my memory consisted of guest star Tim Conway saying something about "damn kids" and a one-minute silent bit with Conway's and a cast member's disembodied heads bobbing around on a black screen, with big glowing neon letters spelling "SEX." The show was cancelled the next morning by ABC, which I believe is still the record holder for a TV show cancellation.

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    Related interests

    Peter Sellers in Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
    Satire
    Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele in Key and Peele (2012)
    Sketch Comedy
    Will Ferrell in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)
    Comedy

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The pilot aired February 5, 1969. Two stations refused to air the rest of the program after the first commercial break, 10 minutes into the show. A few stations on the West Coast refused to air it. Though it wasn't officially canceled for several days, it became the shortest-running US TV series ever.
    • Goofs
      In the scenes with the old lady on the motorcycle, you can clearly see it's on a kickstand with a block in front of the rear wheel, and of course to make it look like she's riding off (or backwards) the camera merely pans quickly.
    • Crazy credits
      The credits for each episode are completely spread out over the length of the episode.
    • Connections
      Featured in TV's Most Censored Moments (2002)

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    FAQ13

    • How many seasons does Turn-on have?Powered by Alexa

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • February 5, 1969 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Turn-On
    • Production company
      • George Schlatter-Ed Friendly Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 30m
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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