Let's Meet The Champagne Music Makers

Here's a clip from a 1955 telecast of The Lawrence Welk Show, with this particular broadcast originating live from Chicago.







No, this is NOT an early version of rap "music."

Filthy, Disgusting

Here is a 1959 cartoon from Paramount Cartoon Studios in New York City entitled "La Petite Parade" produced and directed by Seymour Kneitel (Max Fleischer's son-in-law).







The cartoon, originally released theatrically by Paramount Pictures, was subsequently released to television by the Harvey Company, which refilmed the titles, replacing the Paramount eblem with the Harveytoons logo, this being the case of the 1950-62 Famous-Paramount product, save for Popeye, which was sold separately to television in 1957.

As for Seymour Kneitel, he was a longtime animator with his father-in-law's studio and also worked on stories. Paramount, which beginning in 1927, started distributing the Fleischer brothers' cartoons, took over the studio in 1942. Seymour Kneitel became a director at the studio at that time, remaining with the outfit until his death in 1964.

Personnel:

Direction: Seymour Kneitel

Story: Irv Spector

Animation: Tom Johnson
Nick Tafuri

Scenics: Robert Gentle

Music: Winston Sharples

Voice Characterizations (uncredited):
Alan Swift

Cinematography (uncredited):
Leonard McCormick

Production Manager (uncredited):
Abe Goodman

Technicolor

RCA Sound System

6 Minutes

Released on March 6, 1959 by Paramount Pictures Corporation and produced by Paramount Cartoon Studios

It's About Time

Here is something that may make you want to smoke three packs of Chesterfields a day......



We have for you the opening and closing from an episode of It's About Time, which flopped as a prime time sitcom on CBS (1966-67). The series was created by Sherwood Schwartz, who created Gilligan's Island and The Brady Bunch.

Here Comes The Duke

Here is a 1942 Soundie with Duke Ellington and His Orchestra playing "Flamingo," featuring Herb Jeffries on the vocal, with dancing by Janet Collins (who looked smokin' hot) and Talley Beatty.






Mr. Jeffries, who is still with us today, will be 97 years old next Wednesday. He was also a singing cowboy, having sang and starred in a number of grade-B Westerns. He may well be the last of that breed, having outlasted the Gene Autrys, Roy Rogerses, Rex Allens, and Tex Ritters. In this short, he does a great job singing.

Well, Here Is Proof....

That cigarettes----well, Chesterfields, anyway---ARE good for you. That's George Fenneman, best remembered as Groucho Marx's sidekick on both the radio and television versions of You Bet Your Life. This commercial aired during an episode of the original version of Dragnet.



Also included, a commercial for a Remco drive-in movie theater for kids. How 'cum they didn't include Gunsmoke plus Kiko the Kangaroo, or Perry Mason plus Gandy Goose?

Okay, Kids, Time For An Educational Film

It's quite conceivable that you may have seen this film when you were in high school. Here is a 1950 film from Coronet Instructional Films how how to have a party, entitled What Makes A Good Party?


You'll get a bang out of this one.

Now, Who In Sam Hill

Would want to grab THAT kind of flavor?







Looks like this commercial aired back in the 1960s.

CSTV Promo

Here's an old promo for College Sports Television.




CSTV, which was purchased by CBS in early 2006, was further integrated into CBS Sports right after the start of this year and was renamed CBS College Sports Network this March.

And Now, Boys And Girls.....

Let's go back to 1955 for the original opening of an episode of Make Room For Daddy as was sponsored by the American Tobacco Company and televised on ABC. This clip includes a commercial for Pall Mall cigarettes. The series was also sponsored (on an alternating basis) by the Dodge division of Chrysler.




Danny Thomas' sitcom moved to CBS in 1957 and I think it wound up being sponsored by General Foods.

Here's One For The Kid In Us

I think this Kent Cigarette commercial, in color, was from the mid-1960s.







Sounds like the goddamned Ray Conniff Singers in this one.

Hey! Your Food Tastes Better!

When you change to OUR brand!

WATCH!



They sure come handy when one gets that "smoked-out" feeling.

And Now, For Something Completely Different..

Three cultural icons from early television:



Nothing like Dennis James hawking Old Gold cigarettes along with the dancing Old Gold cigarette pack and dancing matchbox.

Nope, It Ain't "Song Of The South"

But here, we viewers witness Brer Rabbit, once again outsmarting Brer Fox and Brer Bear in this commerical for the 1955 Rambler. This ad aired on the old ABC Disneyland show.



These cars were sold not only at Nash dealerships, as the off-screen narrator intones, but Hudson dealerships as well. Depending on what dealership the particular car was sold, it carried either a Nash or Hudson badge at the front grill of the car.

And Now, A Word From Our Sponsor

Here, we see Mickey Mouse and Pluto in a commercial for the 1955 Nash Ambassador and Statesman.



American Motors Corporation, created in 1954 from the consolidation of Nash-Kelvinator and the Hudson Motor Car Company, was a key sponsor of the old Disneyland show that aired on ABC. The animation was, or course, produced by Walt Disney Productions.

Time For A Visit With Yogi

Here is a Yogi Bear cartoon, from Hanna-Barbera Productions, entitled "Papa Yogi." This first aired in 1959 as a segment on the syndicated Huckleberry Hound Show. Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera produced and directed this cartoon









Yogi did not get his own show until 1961.

Rats!

Longtime animation veteran Bill Melendez, best remembered for his work directing and animating numerous television specials with Charles Schulz's Peanuts characters (A Charlie Brown Christmas, It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, et al), as well as a number of theatrical animated feature films with Charlie Brown, Snoopy and company, passed away on Tuesday at Santa Monica, California at age 91. Mr. Melendez, who in earliers times worked for Walt Disney, Warner Brothers, and UPA, also did the voices of Snoopy and Woodstock in the Peanuts specials.



Bill earned eight Emmy Awards and 17 Emmy nominations. For many years, he sported a handlebar mustache.