Inside the Box: The TV History Podcast

Inside the Box: The TV History Podcast

Inside the Box: The TV History podcast breaks down a particular era, innovation, trend, or program by spending an entire episode (or two) discussing it. Hosted by Jonathan Bullinger, Andrew Salvati, and Steve Voorhees, they apply their scholarly work in media studies to provide the history of TV, critique it at times, and just try to have some fun as they explore inside the box. Be sure to also check our supplementary content that accompany each episode on our home page www.tvhistorypod.com.

Episodes

Episode 115: Host Hangout

January 2, 2025 • 51 mins
This week join Andrew, Steve, and Jonathan as they hangout, chat, and close out this season's worth of episodes of Inside the Box: The TV History Podcast. They'll probably also talk a little bit about holiday TV programming and make a few New Year's resolutions as well.
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Episode 114: Hunter (1984) Pilot Episode: A Discussion of Representations of Law Enforcement in U.S. Culture

December 19, 2024 • 83 mins
An old-school style Inside the Box episode. No guests, just Steve and Jonathan discussing the 1984 pilot episode of the cop show, Hunter (1984-1991) starring Fred Dryer, Stepfanie Kramer, and Brian Dennehy. A mixture of lighthearted poking fun at some of well-worn tropes combined with serious talk that attempts to contextualize the series within the larger issue of representations of police in U.S. culture.
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Episode 113: TV Producer Joe Gannon, Part 02: In The Heat of the Night & How the Industry Has Changed

December 5, 2024 • 48 mins
Join as Steve continues his interview with TV producer, Joe Gannon, in part two of this two-part episode about his experiences working with actor Carroll O'Connor on In The Heat of the Night (1988-1995) and how the industry has changed from Gannon's perspective.
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Episode 112: TV Producer Joe Gannon, Part 01: Carroll O’Connor and Archie Bunker’s Place

November 21, 2024 • 52 mins
Join Steve as he interviews TV producer, Joe Gannon, in part one of this two-part episode about his experiences working with actor Carroll O'Connor and the significant effect O'Connor had on Gannon's career as a producer.
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Episode 111: Steve Besserman: Packaging Feature Films for National Broadcast

November 7, 2024 • 64 mins
This week join us for a truly Steve-centric episode as Steve Voorhees welcomes longtime CBS Manager of Prime Time Feature Films, Steve Besserman to the program. If you love the nuts-and-bolts of late-20th Century network television practices as Steve Voorhees does, you'll dig this episode. Learn about how the network chose, edited, scheduled, and promoted certain feature films to achieve the highest rating possible. Hear how certai...
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Episode 110: Dr. Kendall Phillips, Kolchak, The Night Stalker

October 24, 2024 • 56 mins
This week join Jonathan in conversation with Dr. Kendall Phillips about his recent book, Kolchak, The Night Stalker, a part of Wayne State University Press's Milestones series. Don't worry, Steve Voorhees is here too to comment on our conversation that includes ideas including: "Where was horror at in the U.S. by the late 1960s / early 1970s?", Kolchak's trio of creatives behind the scenes, Kolchak as an influential gothic investig...
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Episode 109: David J. Brokaw, The Twilight Zone – The Monsters on Maple Street

October 10, 2024 • 60 mins
This week join Jonathan and Steve in conversation with fellow academic, David Brokaw to discuss his new book, Monsters on Maple Street: The Twilight Zone and the Postwar American Dream. We discuss the false dichotomy between "good writing" and "bad television" during the 1950s, the psychology of advertising within 1950s culture, the effect Rod Serling's service during World War II had on his later writing, and where Twilight Zone-s...
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Episode 108: Stan Zimmerman, The Girls: From Golden to Gilmore

September 26, 2024 • 65 mins
This week join Steve and Jonathan in conversation with television writer and producer, Stan Zimmerman. Listen as Stan talks about writing for the first season of The Golden Girls, writing that VERY famous episode of Roseanne that got the country talking, and what it was like to work for his friend, Amy Sherman-Palladino, writing on Gilmore Girls. Stan also discusses what it takes to make it in a tough industry and how back-in-the-d...
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Episode 107: Dr. Paul Arras & America’s Live TV Coverage of the 9/11 Attacks

September 12, 2024 • 56 mins
This week join Jonathan and Steve as we commemorate the 9/11 terrorist attacks by speaking with Dr. Paul Arras (SUNY: Cortland) about his new book, American Television's Live Coverage of the 9/11 Attacks: Journalism on the Screen (Rowman & Littlefield).
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Episode 106: Season Finale

December 28, 2023 • 10 mins
Join Jonathan for a short episode that explains the end of this podcast season and what to look forward to in the future and when.
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Special Encore Presentation: Episode 57: All In The Family, Part 02

December 21, 2023 • 40 mins
This week join Steve and Jonathan as they continue their discussion of the groundbreaking US sitcom, All In The Family. We discuss it's transition from All In the Family to Archie Bunker's Place, what other shows tried to fill the void, what shows today attempt to take on its themes, and whether the show could be re-done today to address our newest president…
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Episode 105: Christmas with Joanna Wilson

December 14, 2023 • 71 mins
This week join Steve and Jonathan as we usher in the holidays by discussing Christmas TV shows with author and expert, Joanna Wilson. Be sure to check out Joanna's website: http://www.christmastvhistory.com/p/about-joanna-wilson.html for all the information you need about her multiple media appearances, articles, and books on the topic of Christmas on TV!
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Mining the Archive Mondays: Episode 08: All-Star Party for “Dutch” Reagan

December 11, 2023 • 69 mins
This week Jonathan, Steve, and Andrew attend the All-Star Party for Ronald "Dutch" Reagan. Do you like barely warmed over jokes? Do you love generic sound stages in Burbank? Want to see Sinatra struggle through a song that should be an easy home run? Want to see a group of aged genuine Hollywood stars pretend Reagan was a star? Well, rent your tux, call your driver, let us know whether you'd prefer the fish or the steak and join us...
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Special Encore Presentation: Episode 56: All In The Family, Part 01

December 7, 2023 • 35 mins
As a way to pay tribute to recently passed television producer Norman Lear (1922-2023), this week join Steve and Jonathan as they discuss the groundbreaking US sitcom, All In The Family. Why it worked, in what ways is it a product of the 1970s and in what ways is it timeless? We'll even tip-toe toward whether the show could be re-done today to address our newest president…
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Episode 104: Regional Sports Networks with Dr. Craig Coenen

November 30, 2023 • 58 mins
This week join Steve in conversation with welcomed returned guest, Dr. Craig Coenen as they discuss the current state of Regional Sports Networks in the U.S.
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Mining the Archive Mondays: Episode 40: Regional Sports Networks

November 27, 2023 • 54 mins
This week join Steve, Jonathan, and Andrew as they discuss the pros and cons of increased regionalization of sports TV networks, and their histories.
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Thanksgiving Day Special: Encore Presentation of Our Very First Episode: Introducing TV at the 1939 World’s Fair

November 23, 2023 • 40 mins
In this episode Andrew, Steve, and Jonathan discuss David Sarnoff’s introduction of television for RCA at the 1939 World’s Fair at Flushing Meadows NY. Tune in to listen to this story about hope, the future, and looking for the “World of Tomorrow” during a time between economic depression and the cusp of world war. You might just learn something and have a few laughs along the way. Be sure to check out some of the historical photog...
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Episode 103: DuMont Plus

November 16, 2023 • 52 mins
Inspired by a real Jeopardy episode's jokey category title, this week Jonathan and Steve discuss a hypothetical: what if The DuMont Network had survived past 1956? What would the channel have presented? Would we associate the NFL and DuMont like peanut and jelly? If it did survive for decades, what would its streaming service be showing us today?
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Mining the Archive Mondays: Episode 02: The DuMont Network: 1946-1956

November 13, 2023 • 37 mins
In this episode Steve, Andrew, and Jonathan discuss the often forgotten DuMont television network. Innovative, with stations in key east coast major markets, the DuMont network was ultimately done in by a combination of forces -- the least of which being its uncooperative partner, Paramount Studios. Join us as we discuss DuMont and its legacy upon others' later attempts at establishing a fourth network.
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Mini-Episode 12: Politicians and Marathon TV Sessions

November 9, 2023 • 27 mins
This week join Jonathan as he discusses a famous example of politicians using television for marathon "sales" pitches (for themselves) - Thomas E. Dewey's 1950 usage of the then-new medium of television.
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