Wednesday, February 29, 2012

From the Movie House to Your House...

TenList Presents: Movies You Probably Didn't Watch As TV Shows





1.) Down and Out in Beverly Hills (13 episodes, 1987)



Movie

TV Show


The movie had Richard Dreyfuss, Bette Midler, and Nick Nolte. The TV show  - one of the shows that launched the Fox TV network - had Hector Elizondo, the late great Anita Morris, and LGOOH Fave Tim Thomerson. At least both had Mike the Dog!





2.) A League of Their Own (6 episodes, 1993)



Movie

TV Show


For the film they hired Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, and Madonna. The TV show tried to make do with Sam McMurray, Carey Lowell, and Wendy Makkena. At least Jon Lovitz dropped by for a few guest appearances!






3.) Working Girl (12 episodes, 1990)

Movie

TV Show
The cast in theaters included Harrison Ford, Melanie Griffith, and Sigourney Weaver. On television you could see instead Sandra Bullock, and none of the other characters from the movie. At least they had Nana Visitor in one of the new roles!






4.) Look Who's Talking (series Baby Talk, 35 episodes 1991-1992)

Movie

TV Show

Kirstie Alley, John Travolta and a kid with the voice of Bruce Willis becomes Connie Sellecca (never on camera; quit before pilot), Julia Duffy (12 episodes), and Mary Page Keller (23 episodes); Scott Baio (23 episodes with Keller) and a kid with the voice of Tony Danza. At least we have that talking baby on the E*trade commercials now!





5.) Baby Boom (10 episodes, 1988-1989)


Movie

TV Show

Diane Keaton Tvifies into Kate Jackson.





6.) Return of the Killer Tomatoes (21 episodes, 1990-1991)


Movie

TV show
John Astin was in the movie and provided his own voice, so this one worked well. I love goofy crap like this!



7.) Stir Crazy (9 episodes, 1985-1986)

Movie


TV Show


The movie gave us another fun pairing of Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor; the TV show tried to make do with Joe Guzaldo and Larry Riley. They waited five years to try the TV version; for a 9 episode run - they shouldn't have bothered.



8.) Foul Play (5 episodes made, 2 aired, 1981)



Movie


TV Show

Chevy Chase and Goldie Hawn turn the roles over to Barry Bostwick and Deborah Raffin, and this one takes the prize for shortest run: five episodes in the can but cancelled after two episodes. The three unaired episodes have never turned up anywhere as far as I know.



9.) Blue Thunder (11 episodes, 1984)


Movie


TV Show
The late Roy Scheider and Daniel Stern acted in the movie; the late James Farentino and Dana Carvey (!) are joined by the late Bubba Smith and Dick Butkus for the TV show, which I kinda enjoyed as 80's TV cheese.





10.) Private Benjamin (37 episodes, 1981-1983)


Movie

TV Show

The ipso facto winner in this contest got a couple of seasons and a whopping 37 episodes out of the movie. Goldie Hawn, Eileen Brennan, and Hal Williams are replaced bodily by Lorna Patterson, Eileen Brennan, and Hal Williams for the series. Patterson was okay as a Hawn clone; but the other two were not as successful replacing their movie counterparts.






Of all of these series, only Blue Thunder rated a DVD release - which means all of the others are pretty much lost to the sands of time....



Until next post, you Can Poke Me With A Fork, Cause I Am Outta Here!
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11 comments:

  1. UnknownFebruary 29, 2012 at 2:20 AM

    Wow, I bow to you, the Pop Culture God! Your depth of knowledge amazes me. I remember Blue Thunder, but I preferred Stringfellow Hawk and Air Wolf. I vaguely remember some of these others, but I'm thinking they are better off lost to the sands of time.;)

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    Replies
    1. Craig EdwardsMarch 7, 2012 at 12:00 AM

      You may be right; we could be overwhelmed in a sea of hairspray and shoulder pads!

      Delete
  2. JamesFebruary 29, 2012 at 4:06 AM

    You are correct sir. I have never watched any of these shows.

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    Replies
    1. Craig EdwardsMarch 7, 2012 at 12:01 AM

      And you likely never will. Unless you come over to the house again...

      Delete
  3. Maynard MorrisseyFebruary 29, 2012 at 3:23 PM

    Thank god most of them didn't find their way to Europe.
    Look Who's Talking as TV series - WTF? why??

    ReplyDelete
  4. FilmMatticFebruary 29, 2012 at 4:00 PM

    Interesting post! I did not know a lot of these films were spawned from seldom-seen TV shows. I have to say I learned something today. You are, as Mel lovingly pointed out, imbued with the voluminous knowledge found only in a man who could be called the "Pop Culture God."

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    Replies
    1. Craig EdwardsMarch 7, 2012 at 12:03 AM

      Yep, TV has always like to bring movies down to their level; and seldom does it work very well. Thanks for coming by, MV!

      Delete
  5. Luana KrauseFebruary 29, 2012 at 5:06 PM

    Great post! I've seen all the movies except Return of the Killer Tomatoes and Blue Thunder, but NONE of the TV shows. Did any TV shows based on movies ever succeed? However, there have been a few TV shows that were made into good movies (Star Trek, Twilight Zone...any others?)

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    Replies
    1. Craig EdwardsMarch 7, 2012 at 12:04 AM

      It's funny you should say that, Luana, because the success of this post has made me think about at least one sequel post...watch this space...

      Delete
  6. Joe RichardsonMarch 9, 2012 at 10:09 AM

    With all the senseless stuff that's lovingly packaged and sold on Amazon, you'd think some savvy media marketing outfit would cut a deal to develop a short-run/pilot episode online flea market, where you could bargain buy or pay per view. Series that were DOA when they stumbled onto the small screen, or never aired, could see a little love and light. Or ridicule, as the case may be.

    The blogging potential alone boggles the mind...

    Sandra Bullock and Nana Visitor in a series? I'd pay a buck to see that.

    ReplyDelete