TV Tuesday: Hot In Cleveland - Season 1; Episode 1 (2010)

 

Hot In Cleveland - 2010

On this edition of TV Tuesday, we feature the first episode of "Hot In Cleveland", which debuted in 2010.  In this show, three ladies from Los Angeles crash land in Cleveland and find that a whole new life is waiting for them there.

The episode's cast includes Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves, Wendie Malick, Betty White, John Schneider, Bil Dwyer, and Tim Bagley.

On a flight from L.A. to Paris, three ladies (from left to right: actress Victoria, eyebrow sculptor Joy, and author Melanie) commiserate over their sad dating lives back home.

Things get bad for Melanie when she bumps into her ex-husband on the plane.  He's traveling to Paris with his new girlfriend, who is half Melanie's age.  Victoria and Joy use the mirrors in their compacts to see what's going on.

Just when Melanie thinks things can't get any worse, the plane starts to rattle and shake.  The captain announces they need to make an emergency landing.  If they should somehow come out of the situation alive, the ladies all promise to do things they were too scared to do.

They find they've crash landed in Cleveland.  They aren't exactly thrilled.  However, when they go to a bar as they wait on a new flight to Paris, they find they are suddenly the objects of attention.  "They're looking at us," observes Melanie.  "In L.A., they look past us."  Some guys invite them to sit at their table and the ladies find they are completely in love with the dating vibe in the city.

The next morning, Melanie decides that she wants to move to Cleveland.  She's already found an amazing house at a fabulous price.  The other girls try to talk her out of it.  "Friends don't let friends move to Cleveland," says Victoria.

Melanie eventually does rent the house.  Surprisingly, it comes with an elderly caretaker.  "Why are you renting to prostitutes?" Elka Ostrovsky asks the real estate agent.  Turns out, she's sassy.

Elka recognizes Victoria Chase from "that show that got canceled".  When Victoria asks if she's a fan, Elka says, "No.  When it was canceled, I said good riddance."

Elka also begins a frenemy relationship with Joy, who catches the smell of pot in the air.  When Elka asks if she's a cop, Joy says no.  Instantly, Elka's face lights up.  "Then what's it to you?" she asks.

Eventually, Victoria and Joy agree to move to Cleveland with Melanie.  Their respective careers don't seem to be going anyplace.  So it seems like the best idea to stick together with Elka there to keep them grounded.

Cast rundown:

   Valerie Bertinelli................................Melanie Moretti

   Jane Leeves......................................Joy Scroggs

   Wendie Malick...................................Victoria Chase

   Betty White.......................................Elka Ostrovsky

   John Schneider..................................Hank

   Bil Dwyer..........................................Anders

   Tim Bagley........................................Larry

And that's it for Hot In Cleveland.  Initially, Betty White was only supposed to appear in one episode.  However, she completely stole the show.  So, producers upgraded her to series regular.  Betty won many awards for her performance as Elka.  I love the part in this episode where she tells the girls that she escaped from the Nazis.  "Escaping from the Nazis was the least of my worries," she says.  Joy looks puzzled and says, "Boy, you don't hear that very often."

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TV Tuesday: The Golden Girls - Season 1; Episode 1 (1985)

 

The Golden Girls - 1985

Coming up next on this edition of TV Tuesday, we have 1985's first episode of that instant TV classic "The Golden Girls", which sees roommates Blanche, Rose, Dorothy, and Sophia navigate life in Miami, Florida.

The episode's cast includes Beatrice Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan, Estelle Getty, Frank Aletter, and F. William Parker.

So, we start with three roommates.  They are Blanche (who works in a museum), Dorothy (a divorced substitute teacher), and Rose (a grief counselor).  Together, they make up quite a team.  Blanche is a sexpot.  Dorothy is the sarcastic, cynical one.  And Rose is the ditzy one, who is always going on about things "back in St. Olaf".

One night, Blanche drops a bombshell on her friends.  She's getting married to a man after knowing him only two weeks.  Rose and Dorothy are shocked.  And also, Rose is worried about where they are going to live, because Blanche owns the house!

That same night, Dorothy's mother, Sophia, arrives, saying that her retirement home Shady Pines has burned down.  She's quite the character, speaking her mind about any subject.

Blanche's fiancé, Harry, arrives and meets the girls.  They all like him, except for Sophia, who declares him to be a "scuzzball".

We fast forward to Blanche's wedding.  Rose has a bad feeling about Harry and wants to tell Blanche, but Dorothy advises against it.  In fact, she forces Rose to keep quiet on the subject.

This proves to be more than a little uncomfortable for Rose.  Dorothy uses ever tactic to keep her quiet.

However, Rose is proved right.  A policeman comes to the door and tells Blanche that Harry has been arrested for bigamy.  He's got six wives and is wanted in four states.  She's dodged a bullet.

Three weeks later, we find Sophia has moved in permanently with the girls.  Dorothy routinely checks to see if her mother is alive, because "you never know".

Blanche comes out of her room following weeks of depression.  She tells the girls that they have helped her through it.  They vow to stick together even if they all get married.  Sophia, too.

Cast rundown:

   Beatrice Arthur...................................Dorothy Zbornak

   Betty White.......................................Rose Nylund

   Rue McClanahan.................................Blanche Devereaux

   Estelle Getty......................................Sophia Petrillo

   Frank Aletter......................................Harry

   F. William Parker.................................Minister

And that's it for The Golden Girls.  This first episode was the start of a phenomenon that has been enduringly popular.  Even today, there are board games, Christmas ornaments, and other memorabilia that you can purchase involving these funny ladies.

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TV Tuesday: What's My Line? - Season 6; Episode 41 (1955)

 

What's My Line - 1955

Happy New Year!  Welcome to 2022 on The Silver Screen Project.  For this edition of TV Tuesday, we pay tribute to Miss Betty White, a television funny-lady who passed away just a couple of weeks short of her 100th birthday this past December 31.  So, this 1955 episode of "What's My Line?" is a tribute to her.  Let's meet our panelists.  Shall we?

They are newspaper columnist Dorothy Kilgallen, humorist Fred Allen, television star Betty White, and publisher Bennett Cerf.  There is a really sweet interaction between Betty and Bennett when she introduces him.

And, of course, we are ably guided through the program by our host, Mr. John Charles Daly.

Our first contestant runs an alligator farm in Arizona.  The panel has quite a bit of trouble guessing his line.

When Fred Allen asks if the product is a dry crocodile, John Daly asks exactly what he means.  Fred explains: "Well, a crocodile that has no river.  In Arizona they have no rivers.  I thought it might have gotten out of its way and...well, many things settle in Arizona."  The audience erupts with laughter.  The contestant wins the full $50 by default.  Nobody can guess that he runs an alligator farm.

Our next contestant models maternity clothes.  Before taking her seat she goes to meet the panel.  Because she comes from California, Fred Allen asks her about the smog problem out there.  She smiles and moves on to the next panelist.  "Won't answer, huh?" says Fred with a smile.

Fred keeps the audience in stitches.  His first question has to do with fathers.  Because she's a maternity clothes model, the audience bursts into a frenzied laughter.  Poor Fred has no idea why people are laughing before he has even gotten the question out of his mouth.

The panel doesn't guess her line either.  And she wins the $50 by default as well.

Then it's time for the mystery guest.  The panel is blindfolded and they have to guess the guest's identity.  It's funny man Arnold Stang.  He keeps the panel laughing.

The panel can't guess who it is.  Everybody has a great time.  Mr. Stang used a German accent the entire time and fooled the panel completely.

The final contestant is a Mr. William Gunn, who makes guns.  The audience is very amused by this.

Time runs out on our panel before they can guess what he does, so he also wins the money by default.  It's not a good night for our panelists.  They were unable to guess a single line.  They do get quite a laugh when John tells them all that Mr. Gunn makes guns.

Cast rundown:

   John Daly.......................................Himself

   Dorothy Kilgallen.............................Herself

   Fred Allen.......................................Himself

   Bennett Cerf...................................Himself

   Betty White....................................Herself

   Arnold Stang..................................Himself

And that's it for What's My Line?.  This has to be one of Betty White's first game show appearances.  And she is completely sweet and delightful.  At the time she appeared on this episode, Betty was starring in her own television show, "Life With Elizabeth".

This very funny episode is available for you to watch in its entirety right here.

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