This week It Was a Thing on TV brings to you plenty of competition along with a short look at one of the biggest bombs in TV history.

 

First, recently, word came out that American Gladiators is being rebooted...again.  By coincidence, we had this show slotted for this week in our schedule.  We talk about 4 shows which tried riding the coattails of the Gladiators--Knights and Warriors, Blade Warriors, Battledome, and Wild West Showdown.

 

Next, we go to the ballpark, as some of 1967's brightest Major League Baseball players went against celebrities back in the day on the softball diamond, with some very special celebrities handling the duties behind the mic and two legends acting as managers.

 

Finally, Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In was TV's most popular show in 1969.  The people behind it tried capitalizing on its popularity with a related show called Turn-On.  There were instant regrets, as ABC turned it off before the first episode aired in full.

 

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If you want to follow along with the marathon click this link at the bottom.

 

This week on It Was a Thing on TV we are presenting sequels to two of our most popular editions.

 

First, one of our most popular series of shows is back for a third (and final?) installment.  The three of us look at more video game adaptions of TV shows, one going back almost 40 years.  Grab your controller and press start on The Video Game Show, Part 3.

 

Then, we've scoured the Internet and found more of the crazy, cheap, and just bad local commercials, enough for this second helping.  From Dirt Cheap Liquor to our personal favorite Crazy Gideon, these ads have gone viral for a reason.

 

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This is it!  The big 2-0-0!  We look back at a great, short-lived show from the late 90s with a great cast of characters and array of guests, which got mishandled by the network during a time when there was a push towards educational and informational television on Saturday mornings.

 

This week there's something in the air that tells you good times are coming your way on the newest editions of It Was a Thing on TV at PTBN.

 

First, The new Fall TV season is here!  We're looking back at some classic Fall TV campaigns from the different networks, from reaching to the stars to insisting that we should all be there. Enjoy over two hours of jingles that would get you pumped for the new season from the big three plus since we don't want to ignore them, FOX's first campaign from 1987.

 

Then, it's listener request time!  We received a request to cover Wild West C.O.W.-Boys of Moo Mesa months ago, and we finally found a spot for it on our schedule.  When a comet lands in the Old West, the end result is anthropomorphic cows.  Enjoy their adventures in this ABC cartoon from the early 90s.

 

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This week on It Was a Thing on TV we present one of our most anticipated episodes of the podcast along with an entry exploring the oddities of tie games on one of America's most popular quiz shows.

 

First, Screech, Slater, and Zack have all graduated from Bayside.  What's up next for the recent grads?  College, of course.  They're up to their usual mischief with the occasional familiar face and some new faces.  And most importantly, Bob Golic.

 

Then, the 38th season of Jeopardy! began last week and we felt it appropriate to talk about show rarities over the years.  We discuss various oddball tied games over the years, specifically games where contestants tied at zero or games in which a tiebreaker was used.

 

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We've got a triad of topics coming at you on today's edition of It Was a Thing on TV here at Place to Be Nation.

 

First, one of our favorite shows back in the day was the Saturday morning cartoon preview show that generally aired the night before the premiere of the new fall Saturday morning lineups.  In 1985, CBS went all out, producing an hour-long show with Rowdy Roddy Piper and celebrities ranging from Pee Wee Herman to Herve Villechaize to Captain Lou Albano to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.  Who knew CBS' Saturday morning cartoons ran until 2 PM!

 

Next, we take a look back at the very first appearance of our favorite trio on Space Ghost: Coast to Coast. The Aqua Teens looked a lot different when they paid a visit to Space Ghost, Zorak and Moltar. We explain the differences between this and the regular series as the course of classic rock is changed forever in this episode, thanks a lot Space Ghost!

 

Finally, 20 years ago this week, a game show scandal broke in the UK, as Major Charles Ingram, his wife, and another contestant collaborated and coughed their way to £1,000,000.  The trio later went to trial over the matter.  Listen to this episode and judge for yourself whether the money was hard earned or hardly earned.

 

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Today on It Was a Thing on TV we serve these topics like the McDLT. Keep the hot side hot and the cool side cool.

 

First, last year, we gave you the 3rd Annual Collegiate Cheerleading Championship with Magic Johnson, Jayne Kennedy, Catherine Bach, and Gallagher.  We're back with the championships from a year later with John Davidson, Marilyn Michaels, Mary Ann Mobley, Andy Gibb, and Victoria Principal.

 

Next, before Jason Alexander was George Constanza, he was in a popular commercial for the McDLT, a McDonald's sandwich from the 80s.  Greg and Chico talk about the ad, future offerings from McDonald's, a Filipino commercial for one of those sandwiches, and a very special ending with another McDLT commercial.

 

Finally, a short-run show from 1984, Domestic Life involved a number of big stars including Steve Martin, Tom Hanks, and Martin Mull.  Some members of the media knew it was good, but it was just too late.  And it had Bob Ridgely!

 

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First, Norman Lear tried bringing a Latino-centric family comedy to network television in 1984 with limited success.  Paul Rodriguez would go on to bigger and better things, as well as one of his nephews.

 

Then, the 1980s contained many wars--The Cold War, the war on drugs, The Cola Wars, and The Fast Food Wars.  Wendy's struck first with Clara Peller and her catch phrase, "Where's the Beef?"  McDonald's had its own game plan with the McDLT.  Burger King went with a geeky guy who had never eaten at Burger King before named Herb?  Herb had a very short life span, but he did get around in 1985 and 1986.

 

Finally, the 80s show Press Your Luck had an iconic cast of characters as contestants, including a future American Gladiator, a future talk show host, and an ice cream truck driver who broke the bank.  One of our favorites is a gentleman named Gene Snyder, the subject of this minisode.

 

Remember to follow us on our socials over @ItWasAThingOnTV and send any show suggestions and feedback to our e-mail at itwasathingontv@gmail.com

It Was a Thing on TV presents their latest live show. What started out as a joke in the pre-shows with Greg when he found out about this straight-to-DVD movie starring Kelsey Grammer and the WWE's Adam "Edge" Copeland turned into an obsession when we saw a recent episode of Honest Trailers on YouTube about the plot of this film.

 

Now, we present to you a special Live Show about this movie brought to you by the youngest Lawrence brother (WHOA!)

Two warnings for this episode.

1. Lots of language throughout the course of this episode.

2. Tons and tons of (tense dramatic music).

This week on It Was a Thing on TV, it's nice to see you, to see you nice!

 

First, what happens when you have a fun game format on ABC and you import one of Britain's most popular TV personalities?  You get Bruce Forsyth's Hot Streak, a show up against two daytime powerhouses.  13 weeks later, it was gone.  At least one person from this show got their big break just a few months later.

 

Then, last year we did Hulk Hogan commercials and this year we're covering the Nature Boy Ric Flair in the various commercials he's done over the years.

 

Finally, in 1979, your run-of-the-mill baseball doubleheader between the Detroit Tigers and the Chicago White Sox turned into one of the most infamous promotions in sports history, leading to chaos, arrests, a White Sox forfeit, and many shards of vinyl on Comiskey Park's field.  In this edition, we revisit Disco Demolition Night.

 

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WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

This week on It Was a Thing on TV if you think you know a lot about Early FOX in the Late 1980's then you don't know beans.

 

If you thought a high schooler couldn't also double as a secret agent trying to find his father, you don't know Beans.  Come for the Beans, stay for the plethora of references to HBO's Encyclopedia Brown from the early 90s and the clip from Mac & Me.

 

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Beans

This Week, It Was a Thing on TV concludes their Olympic series of episodes with three episodes featuring hot dog eating, bears, chimps and Reebok Pump's.

 

First, we start our games by bringing you athletes and normal people competing against animals in two FOX specials--Man vs. Beast.  Come for Olympic runners going against jungle animals, stay for little people battling an elephant in a test of strength.

 

Then, we continue with men battling bears in bear-themed competition.  That's it.  We talk about other things like Bil Dwyer and Matt Vasgersian because...it's just men battling bears.  Did you know Honey Bump is a bear?  IMDb says so!

 

Finally, the Olympic Triplecast wasn't the only big flop in 1992.  Reebok ran an ad campaign with two highly touted athletes, only for one to not make it to Barcelona. One ended up eventually winning gold four years later though and hey at least it sold a lot of Reebok Pump's.

 

For the next two weeks It Was a Thing on TV goes Olympic as we talk about some Olympics related topics.

 

First, we start off our coverage is one of the biggest flops of all time.  Three channels of 24/7 Olympic coverage for $125 in 1992?  What's the catch?  There are a few.  At least those who bought in to the Olympic Triplecast have a Triplecast remote control which likely doesn't do anything nowadays.

 

Then, Our Olympic extravaganza continues with a look into the life and loves of Ryan Lochte, the semi-quotable and infamous star of the 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympic games.  The first half of this edition is about What Would Ryan Lochte Do?, while the second half is mostly about Lochte's wit and wis-dumb including interviews and quotes said by the man himself.  Jeah!

 

Also, remember to follow our socials on @ItWasAThingOnTV and any e-mails or show feedback can be sent to itwasathingontv@gmail.com

 

Jeah!

This week It Was a Thing on TV Presents a mega jumbo drop for you with three action-packed episodes filled with singing, time travel and Larry "Bud" Melman.

 

First, everybody had a variety show in the 70s, or at least it seemed that way.  Telly Savalas was no exception, starring in this one-off special with Diahann Carroll, Barbara Eden, and Cloris Leachman.  Grab a sucker and contemplate the question, "Who loves ya, Baby?"

 

Then, we talk about  the 1980s time traveling cult favorite Voyagers!  This could have lasted more than a season, but NBC did a boneheaded move in 1983.  You can hear more about that decision in this episode.

 

Finally, we have honored TV celebrities in the past. We pay tribute to an icon from the 80s and 90s, Larry "Bud" Melman.  Not only was he a comic foil on Letterman's shows, he had bit parts in other TV shows and movies, he was a writer, he was a spokesman, and he even had his own workout video...sort of.  Grab your Toast on a Stick and enjoy this installment of It Was a Thing on TV.