November 12, 2025 • 29 mins
In this episode, we explore classic TV shows that wove real-world events into their storytelling. It wasn't the main focus, but as the backdrop shaping the tone and context of the episode. We’ll dive into how writers grounded fictional worlds in the real events their audiences were living through, creating TV that felt immediate and authentic.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Keith Loria (00:00):
Welcome to season three of Don't Touch That Dial,
a classic TV podcast.
So join us as we remember theshows that made watching TV in
the days of antennas so muchfun.
Anthony Stoeckert (00:09):
Grab your remote and get ready for some
fun and laughs.
Keith Loria (00:13):
And remember, Don't Touch That Dial.
Anthony Stoeckert (00:16):
Hello everyone, and welcome to another
mysterious episode of Don'tTouch That Dial, a classic TV
podcast.
This week, Jody is going tosurprise Keith and me with some
sort of fun and amazing topic.
I'm Anthony Stoeckert.
Keith Loria (00:33):
I'm Jody Schwartz.
And I'm Keith loria.
Anthony Stoeckert (00:36):
So this is something we do from time to
time.
One of us comes with a funTV-related topic.
The other two don't know whatit is.
Jody has this week's topic.
I keep saying the word topicover and over again.
Sorry about that.
Jody Schwartz (00:50):
It's on topic.
Anthony Stoeckert (00:51):
I have nothing more to say because I
don't know what's coming up.
Take it away, Jody.
Jody Schwartz (00:54):
There you go.
What I have for you guys todayis shows that had episodes that
revolved around real-lifeevents.
Obviously, fictional shows andsome sort of real-life event was
going on in the background asthey uh as the episode unfolded.
Not necessarily about the uhthat would be the event, but the
event was part of what washappening.
(01:15):
One of the ones I will startwith is the MASH Olympics from
uh season six, episode 11, whereColonel Potter decides the unit
is in pitiful shape um becausethey can't lift a uh turnedover
ambulance.
It takes like all of them, andthen like four MPs do it in two
seconds.
So he wants to uh get them inshape, and they decide that
(01:36):
instead of having just you knowtraditional exercises and
calisthenics, they're gonnasplit up into two teams and have
Olympic-like events.
And uh Hawkeye heads up oneteam, BJ heads up the other
team.
And while this is happening,it's the the 52 Olympics.
There's footage of that, likereal uh newsreel footage of the
52 Olympics unfolding in thebackground.
(01:57):
So like they cut to like a youknow a runner from the Olympics.
Anthony Stoeckert (02:00):
I don't remember that.
Jody Schwartz (02:01):
You actually see uh you actually see footage from
the 52 Olympics, and during thecourse of the episode, they're
talking about you know events atthe Olympics.
Anthony Stoeckert (02:09):
So does anybody say to Potter, let's see
those MPs, you know, cure aguy?
Jody Schwartz (02:14):
Uh yeah, yeah.
It's funny how with that showevery now and again they they
would worry about something thatthey never worried about before
or again.
Nobody cared before thatepisode what kind of shape
everybody was in.
Anthony Stoeckert (02:26):
How often does Klinger have to turn over a
fallen truck?
A fallen vehicle.
Jody Schwartz (02:31):
Exactly.
When is it ever gonna come up?
Keith Loria (02:35):
Should Dr.
Shirili be doing that?
Jody Schwartz (02:36):
Yeah, yeah.
That's a great point.
That that's the other point,too.
It you know, that's what set itall off.
The the MPs actually say, nexttime call us, don't hurt
yourself.
Keith Loria (02:47):
Like, would the three of us be able to turn over
a fallen ambulance?
I'm guessing no on that one.
Anthony Stoeckert (02:55):
Yeah, probably yeah, I would think
not.
Jody Schwartz (02:58):
I can't imagine we'd be able to do that.
Keith Loria (02:59):
All right, next week, guys, we're gonna get an
ambulance and before theepisode, we're gonna see what we
can do.
Anthony Stoeckert (03:09):
I have no idea.
Jody Schwartz (03:11):
One of the funny subplots of this episode, by the
way, is that uh the reason theystart helping, you know, start
with the calisthenics.
One of the reasons is that alsoHawkeye and BJ are helping this
uh this enlisted man who's veryoverweight, and they're gonna
kick him out of the army.
And you would think he'd wantto get out of the army.
Anthony Stoeckert (03:26):
What a coincidence!
Jody Schwartz (03:27):
Yeah, yeah.
How about that?
Anthony Stoeckert (03:29):
Yeah.
Jody Schwartz (03:30):
Uh Sergeant Aangs, they're gonna help him
lose weight so he can stay inthe army.
Um, and then Klinger finds outthat he's being kicked out for
being overweight, so he juststarts eating excessively.
So while so while he's runningthese events, like he's eating a
salami.
Anthony Stoeckert (03:46):
Now, does Margaret's husband show up in
the show?
Jody Schwartz (03:49):
Yes, I was gonna say Colonel Penobscot makes an
appearance, one of the the thesecond of uh two actors who have
played uh Penobscot.
And um, it's the guy fromSmoking the Bandit, the actor
from Oh, yeah, it's uh RufateJustice's son.
Yes, yes.
Anthony Stoeckert (04:05):
So so there's more than one actor who played
Penopscott, though.
Jody Schwartz (04:09):
Yes, correct.
He was the second one.
That's what he said.
Yeah, yeah, he was he was thesecond one.
Yeah, yeah.
So he was he makes twoappearances.
One of them is when they whenthey actually do get married,
which is Frank Burns' lastepisode, and this one.
And he he they need a person tobe uh to run an event because
Klinger is now stuck, hisstomach is now you know
bothering him from all thesalamis, so he takes Klinger's
(04:31):
place in the event, and uh youknow wackiness ensues from
there.
He ends up losing the finalevent.
They pick names out of a hat tosee who's gonna run this last
obstacle course.
So one of them is the the fatsergeant, and one of them is
Colonel Penobscot, who's justgot there, and now his name's in
the hat too.
Keith Loria (04:48):
Uh and I'm guessing tortoise in the hair.
I'm no, I know who's gonna win.
Jody Schwartz (04:52):
Yes, Penobscot starts showing off and then he
falls down and and falls intosome netting and loses.
And so, you know, Margaret'smad at him at the end.
Anthony Stoeckert (05:01):
She's mad at him.
Wow.
Jody Schwartz (05:03):
Yeah, she's mad at him for a little bit.
Keith Loria (05:04):
Well, because because if they won, they would
have had three days R and R.
Jody Schwartz (05:07):
Yeah, right.
Well, they were already goingaway for seven, so they and they
would have had an extra threedays if if they had won.
Anthony Stoeckert (05:14):
So she still had a week?
Jody Schwartz (05:15):
She's still at a week, yeah.
Anthony Stoeckert (05:17):
Come on, Margaret.
Jody Schwartz (05:17):
Yeah, she's still at a week.
But when he's when he's upsetthat she's angry at him, he
starts to act like like thecharacter in Smokey and the
Bandit.
It's kind of like come on,Margaret, it's just a race.
Anthony Stoeckert (05:28):
That's right.
He gets kind of at that moment,he gets kind of dopey.
Jody Schwartz (05:32):
He gets kind of dopey.
Anthony Stoeckert (05:34):
Yeah, yeah.
Jody Schwartz (05:34):
Then he gets kind of whiny toward the end.
Another episode, you know.
Well, I'm gonna do one.
You can't just take one.
Keith Loria (05:41):
Oh, oh, you you oh you have one already?
Okay, I was gonna, I was gonnawell once you start talking
about MASH, it came to me.
This is the only one I actuallythought of so far.
Anthony Stoeckert (05:49):
I thought of one also.
Keith Loria (05:51):
So this one takes place, um, starts off on New
Year's 1961, and the episodegoes an entire year.
51, right?
Oh, 51, I'm sorry, yes.
Episode goes the entire year,and they talk about the real
life event of the Bobby Thompsonhome run.
Klinger, you know, bets hisBrooklyn Dodgers and says
they're gonna win.
Potter wants the Cardinals,because I guess Potter's from
(06:13):
Missouri.
Jody Schwartz (06:14):
No, what happens is they bet and they say
whoever's ahead on July 4th winsthe bet.
Yeah.
Because the thinking iswhoever's ahead on July 4th will
win the penance.
Because they're not gonna bethere that long.
They're not gonna be there thatlong, and then they bet they
bet the Dodgers against the restof the National League.
Keith Loria (06:29):
Right, even though this is season nine.
Anthony Stoeckert (06:31):
Um Margaret's style by this point is very
80s.
Keith Loria (06:38):
Yes, but it's funny as they do in the you know, the
the war was what, just a fewyears, but they do an entire
year in one episode.
Yeah, yeah, the war was threeyears in total.
So, you know, it's funny.
So that when they do the bet,you know, Charles uh Emerson
Winchester um backs Klinger withall the money because he won he
knows that the Dodgers aregonna win, no one could beat
(07:00):
him.
So they're all listening toBobby Thompson's home run like
on the radio when it comes.
The Russ Hodges call.
Yeah, he famously hits off aRalph Branca.
Um, Willie Mees is on deck, andyet the Giants win the pivot.
Jody Schwartz (07:14):
The Giants win the pennant.
And Winchester's like, he'safter him at the end.
So one of the funnier things iswhen he's starting to get um,
as the Dodgers lead starts todwindle a bit, and he's getting
antsy about that, he's like, Ican't believe I entrusted my
financial future to grown mennamed Duke and Pee-Wee.
It's great.
(07:38):
And then he's he's wearing aBrooklyn Dodger hat at the end,
and he's uh he's he's yelling atthem to you know who they
should bring in the pitch.
Keith Loria (07:48):
It's a great episode.
All right, do you have anon-MASH one?
Anthony Stoeckert (07:51):
I have a non-Mash one.
Why don't I get in case Jodymight have this on his list?
And I do not remember thedetails of this episode at all,
but maybe you guys will.
Uh there was an episode of WKRPin Cincinnati about that took
place after, obviously, and itit centered around the coup
(08:13):
concert in Cincinnati where theyhad like open seating and like
like some kids died becauseeverybody was you know running
to the you know to get to thethe close of the stage.
Does this ring a bell to youguys?
Keith Loria (08:26):
Oh yeah, absolutely.
Anthony Stoeckert (08:27):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Jody Schwartz (08:28):
It doesn't for me.
Anthony Stoeckert (08:30):
So I I I think it might have been eighty
one or eighty-two.
Jody Schwartz (08:34):
Well, the the the the concert that it was based
on happened in 75.
Anthony Stoeckert (08:38):
The episode was that it had been that that
that earlier?
Jody Schwartz (08:42):
Yeah, the the so the concert happened in 75.
The episode we're talking aboutwas probably 78 or 79.
Anthony Stoeckert (08:48):
Okay.
Jody Schwartz (08:48):
But the concert itself was was it was like
December of 75.
At the end of the episode, theyhave a a thing, you know, uh uh
uh you know uh words on thescreen that say uh hold on,
Jody.
Anthony Stoeckert (08:59):
I just I'm gonna I'm gonna clear something
up.
Uh the concert happenedDecember 3rd, 1979.
Jody Schwartz (09:05):
79?
Okay.
I thought it was I thought itwas 75.
All right, then then I waswrong.
Anthony Stoeckert (09:10):
Yeah, so I think I I I thought it was
shortly after the that concerthappened.
So so I guess they based anepisode where KRP was sponsoring
the concert or something.
Do you remember details of theepisode, Jody?
Jody Schwartz (09:22):
Yeah, they they were they were involved in the
in the concert somehow and theywere all going.
One of the one of the funnierthings that's going on in the
background is that Mr.
Carlson has a cold and um andhe's congested, and Jennifer
gives him a uh like one of thosemasks that that it I forget
what they call it, but yeah,yeah, I know the mask.
And he's walking around wearingit and he forgets he has it on.
Anthony Stoeckert (09:42):
Yeah.
Jody Schwartz (09:43):
So then everybody's like wondering why
he's wearing this mask, and he'sgetting ready to go to the
concert and he still has it on.
And then Johnny tells him to uhto you know he should he should
probably take it off at thispoint.
Anthony Stoeckert (09:54):
Yeah, because it ends on a very serious note,
yeah.
Obviously, because it was basedon a real life event where
people died.
Jody Schwartz (10:00):
Well the whole episode just feels like a normal
episode, and then what happensis they go to the concert and
then it cuts back to themsitting in the office all very
solemn, talking about what hadhappened the night before.
And the thing was that they hadthis, uh they had that thing at
the time called festiveseating, which is basically you
get a ticket, you can go in andsit anywhere.
Anthony Stoeckert (10:20):
Right, that was the thing.
Jody Schwartz (10:21):
Yeah, apparently, since the I don't know if the
city of Cincinnati actually didpass a law prohibiting that at
some point, and then it, I guessit became national.
They they mentioned that toowith the stuff that they have,
the tagline that they have atthe end of the episode.
Anthony Stoeckert (10:34):
The episode aired February 11th, 1980.
Jody Schwartz (10:38):
Really?
Okay.
Anthony Stoeckert (10:39):
Just a few months later.
It in retrospect, this seemsodd that they had like an
episode.
Eleven people died at thisconcert.
Jody Schwartz (10:46):
Yeah, 11 people died at the concert.
I thought it happened earlierthan 79.
Anthony Stoeckert (10:49):
So so, but uh, yeah, that's that's uh it's
it's odd that just a few monthslater they had this episode with
with jokes and all.
Jody Schwartz (10:56):
Yeah, well, they didn't they didn't I mean the
whole mo they didn't joke aboutanything like the whole episode
it was obviously prior to it,you know.
Anthony Stoeckert (11:04):
They didn't make jokes about the tragedy,
yeah.
It's it's weird that they hadlike a normal episode and then
it's this real life event thatyou know things got very heavy.
That's you know, yeah.
Keith Loria (11:15):
Did they did they advertise that they were doing
this?
Like I don't remember this atall.
Anthony Stoeckert (11:19):
I don't know.
Jody Schwartz (11:20):
I don't think they did.
I remember watching it for thefirst time, and um, I don't
think I knew about what hadhappened at the Who concert when
I saw the episode.
Right, yeah, how um yeah, Idon't I don't I don't think I I
knew about that, but but I knowI remember watching it and it
just didn't, you know, uh Ididn't see it coming that all
and then they when they cut tothe scene when they're all
sitting there all solemn becausethey don't they don't show them
(11:41):
at the concert.
Anthony Stoeckert (11:42):
No, no, no, yeah, they couldn't get Pete
Townsend and Roger Dole.
Jody Schwartz (11:47):
Yeah, yeah.
Well, there was an episodewhere they where they uh
sponsored a concert about a uh afictitious band called Scum of
the Earth, but um so there wasonly 11 weeks in between the
time the concert was and thetime the episode aired, so they
did that quick.
Yeah, that's that's yeah,that's that's that's yeah,
that's crazy.
That's yeah, that that's I Ithink that's why one of the
reasons I thought it was a muchbigger time span.
(12:09):
Yeah, I'll have to read this.
Anthony Stoeckert (12:11):
Who only recently returned to Cincinnati?
Yeah, like maybe on this mostrecent tour, or I mean they've
had 80 last tours, but um, itwas either this one or maybe the
one before that they went to umthat they actually ever
returned to Cincinnati.
I think that's the only one Ithought of offhand.
I'll try to think of others.
Jody Schwartz (12:29):
Yeah, so do you have another one, Keith, or
should I uh go down my list alittle more?
Keith Loria (12:33):
I mean, the only other one I I could think of was
the you know, happy days whatdealing with the election, the
1956 presidential election, yes,right, right.
You know, my bike likes Ikethat episode.
Jody Schwartz (12:45):
Fonzi delivering the message for Ike and Richie
dating rich Richie saying he'sfor Stevenson just so he could
date that girl.
Keith Loria (12:52):
Right, right.
A lot different though, becauseit wasn't like real life events
like so quickly, like the WKRPone.
Jody Schwartz (12:57):
This is you know, a hist history uh but the
election was part of it, and theissues involving the election
were talked about, you know,just in a comedic way.
Keith Loria (13:07):
Yeah, yeah.
I remember there was an episodeof LA Law where they were
watching something ontelevision, and I don't remember
what it was.
I don't remember if it was ariot or it was the LA riots, I
think.
Jody Schwartz (13:18):
Is that what it was?
Yeah, there was an episodewhere um what's his name?
Um Stuart, the tax attorney.
Right, gets beat up.
He gets beat up during the LAriot.
Keith Loria (13:26):
So, and that was based on obviously the real LA
Law riots.
Anthony Stoeckert (13:29):
So, but yeah, that's I I want to say
something about Happy Days, butfor some reason that LA law
thing is reminding me.
I don't know if this reallyfits, but I believe when ER did
that live episode, yeah, theyreferenced like whatever game
was going on.
Oh, they did.
They did.
Was it a baseball game or I Ithink it was a basketball game.
Keith Loria (13:49):
Yeah, it was.
It was okay.
But yes, and and I think otherlive shows did that as well.
Like Roseanne, when they didthis live episode, did that.
You know, they would talk aboutwhatever was happening that day
on the news.
Anthony Stoeckert (14:01):
But I I know everybody references Fonse
saying my bike likes Ike, but myfavorite part is when Fonsey
goes, if Ike don't win, the Fonzis gonna be mad.
And then at the end, uh Richiesays to the girl, because the
girl's really disappointed thatStevenson lost, and she and he
(14:23):
goes, uh, well, you know, maybeafter you get over the election,
we can get back together.
And she goes, No, you'll alwaysremind me of this.
My mother had to break up witha guy when Wendell Wilkie lost.
So those stand out.
Jody Schwartz (14:36):
The funny thing about that episode, too, is that
it it goes in with the 56election, which was the actually
the second time that AdelaideStevenson lost to Ike in the
presidential election.
So, you know, I don't I youknow I think it was probably a
bigger disappointment in 52 whenpeople thought he had a chance.
I think by 56, but uh you knowit was I don't I don't think it
was as right, yeah.
Anthony Stoeckert (14:57):
I guess I mean I you know I obviously
don't know.
You know, yeah, so but kind offunny, but you know, you know,
we're gonna really, you know,we're really gonna get a lot of
listeners with the AdleyStevenson talk.
People love Adley Stevensontalk.
Keith, can you do your AdleyStevenson?
Jody Schwartz (15:13):
Let's hear the Adelaide Stevenson talk.
Keith Loria (15:15):
Here we go.
Fellow Americans.
Excellent.
I'm Adley Stevenson.
Vote for me.
Thank you.
Thank you.
I get I get a lot of that man,the dates I used to get because
of that.
Jody Schwartz (15:26):
I think that really was his convention
speech.
I used to fight him off.
He was the governor ofIllinois.
Just a little fun fact there.
There you go.
Anthony Stoeckert (15:36):
All right, so what else you got, Jody?
Jody Schwartz (15:38):
All right, well, we'll stay with politics.
And the Wonder Years um had anepisode uh that was kind of
geared all around the 72presidential election in season
six.
Uh uh Kevin was dating Winnieat this point, and um, she was
working for the uh uh GeorgeMcGovern campaign in uh in 72.
George McGovern was Nixon'sDemocrat opponent in the 1972
(16:01):
election, and just for therecord, he got crushed.
As did Winnie.
Yeah, it was it was abloodletting.
But Kevin's getting jealousbecause of Winnie seems to have
a crush on the uh guy who'srunning the local office, the
the uh the the the election, theofficial running the local
office.
And that they're dating at thispoint, they're dating at that
(16:23):
point, and he's getting she'sgetting very involved in the
campaign, and she's she shebelieves in George McGovern, and
he's feeling like he um he hasa she has a crush on this guy
who's running the the campaignoffice, and so he acting all
crazy.
There actually is a scene whenhe meets George McGovern.
Yeah, you know, obviously notthe real guy, and it's just he
(16:43):
seemed back.
Anthony Stoeckert (16:44):
They didn't get the real George McGovern.
Jody Schwartz (16:45):
They didn't get the real George McGovern.
Anthony Stoeckert (16:47):
They couldn't he was pretty available at that
point.
Jody Schwartz (16:49):
Uh one would think, but uh but but he was
alive, he was alive, right?
By the the episode I thinkaired in 92, so so maybe keep
talking.
I'll take it up, keep talkingor 91.
Anthony Stoeckert (16:58):
But uh died in 2012.
Jody Schwartz (17:00):
All right, so he was around.
Anthony Stoeckert (17:01):
Yeah, yeah.
Jody Schwartz (17:02):
It was around.
They probably they probablydidn't want him associated with
the show too much.
So yeah, so he meets GeorgeMcGovern, and that that's and
then there's a there's actuallya scene at the end where you
know McGovern does lose.
And you know, a lot of liberalsat that time, because Nix every
you know, Nixon was so hated bythe liberal establishment, they
couldn't believe that Nixoncould win like this, and um uh
(17:25):
Winnie's sitting there cryingsaying, How could this happen?
Anthony Stoeckert (17:29):
Does Kevin care about the election at all?
Jody Schwartz (17:33):
Not really, and but but he starts to you know
again as it goes as it goes on,he starts to um you know starts
to care a little more, and ofcourse, his very conservative
father talking about all ofNixon's you know, you know,
virtues through through theepisode as well.
Keith Loria (17:47):
Yeah, but that was a show that did a lot with you
know that time period.
Jody Schwartz (17:50):
They talked about the war, of course, but but
they talked about a lot ofdifferent things, but this this
was one of the episodes where ituh this this real life event
was sort of circling the wholeepisode.
Yeah.
Obviously it was set in the 60sand it and you know they they
talked about Vietnam quite abit.
There weren't a lot of episodeswhere uh one actual event sort
(18:12):
of circled everything.
And I understand.
Anthony Stoeckert (18:14):
I I actually didn't watch Wonder Years, which
surprises they ever have onelike involving sports, like was
Kevin a baseball fan, and theyever had like an episode that
focused on a game back then orsomething like that, or not
really he was a Jets fan, thoughhe was yeah, they yeah, he wore
a Jets jacket through throughthe whole thing.
But I think he would have donesomething there.
(18:36):
Where was it set?
Where did they live?
Uh where did they live?
Jody Schwartz (18:39):
Was it Long Island?
I think it was Long Island,yeah, yeah.
It it was very it was just likea typical suburban, you know,
town.
And and keep in mind it waswhen people just started going
to the suburbs when you knowwhen the show was uh set.
I think when the show begins,the Jets had already won the
Super Bowl.
Okay, yeah, which is why he wasa homer.
Yeah, yeah, he was a he was ahomer.
(18:59):
The 60s are always part of it,but there's not a lot of
episodes where they talked abouta single event.
Yeah, anything that involvessports was typically with one of
the kids playing sports.
There was an episode where uhwhat's Wayne?
Well, no, uh Paul, and Pauljoins the basketball team, and
everyone's surprised he'sactually good.
Yeah.
Interesting.
Anthony Stoeckert (19:18):
I was gonna ask, maybe this would jog one of
your memories.
Did because family ties wasvery much about its time and
what did they have any episodesspecifically about?
Jody Schwartz (19:30):
They did have an episode centered around the 88
election, very late in its run.
And it, you know, where whereobviously Alex is in fate, you
know, is voting for George Bush,who was running against Michael
De Caucus.
And um, yeah, there was anepisode where that was a
circular, uh, you know, circlingthe episode, I like to say.
Absolutely.
Anthony Stoeckert (19:49):
Campaigning, like were they both working for
campaigns?
They were both active.
Keith Loria (19:54):
Yeah, and the parents were going.
Anthony Stoeckert (19:55):
Go ahead, Keith.
What were you gonna say?
Keith Loria (19:57):
No, the the they the parents were working for um
Dukakis, the caucus team, andum, you know, Alex obviously was
was being a little smug, um,the way Alex could be.
Yeah, and you know, and theymade it seem like you know, he
was it was it was a funnyepisode.
It was probably funnier than itit should have been, you know,
(20:18):
for something so serious like anelection, but it was a good
one.
They also family ties, youknow, that was a fairly comical
election.
Jody Schwartz (20:26):
Yes, yes.
Keith Loria (20:27):
Well, that's true.
They all are now, aren't they?
Jody Schwartz (20:29):
Well, that one that one had some stuff.
Keith Loria (20:31):
They during a clip episode, they had um um the
parents go back to Woodstock andthey showed like what they were
doing at Woodstock.
It wasn't a whole episodethough.
Anthony Stoeckert (20:41):
Oh, that's that but they had they had like
scenes with Michael Gross andMaratha Burney as their younger
selves at Woodstock.
Yes, that's I don't rememberthat.
That's cool.
I like it.
Keith Loria (20:50):
It was it was a clip episode.
It was like one of thosememories.
Oh, remember when we did this?
You know, yeah, yeah, yeah.
That was later in the run,though.
Anthony Stoeckert (20:57):
Nice, nice.
Jody Schwartz (20:58):
Yes.
The other thing, too, with thatepisode with the 88 election
with family ties was that atthat time, you know, the
Democrats had had, you know,going into 88, the Democrats had
lost back-to-back presidentialelections badly.
You know, you know, Carta,Carter got crushed twice.
Well, Carter got trusted in 80,Mondale got crushed in 80,
(21:18):
Reagan won by a lot twice.
Anthony Stoeckert (21:20):
So 80 wasn't like 84.
Jody Schwartz (21:22):
No, but Carter for an incumbent, Carta, Carta
got got knocked around.
Well, yeah, yeah.
Carter got knocked aroundpretty good.
Anthony Stoeckert (21:29):
I believe Mondale won only DC in
Minnesota.
Jody Schwartz (21:32):
Yeah, yeah.
13 13 electoral votes.
Anthony Stoeckert (21:35):
Yeah, it wasn't um.
I remember a stand-up comediangoing, that's only that's only
like it was Dennis Miller.
It's only like 13 more than Igot, or something like that.
Jody Schwartz (21:43):
Yeah, Dennis Miller said, uh, I didn't even
spend any money and I almosttied him.
Anthony Stoeckert (21:47):
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, but yeah, yeah.
Keith Loria (21:49):
But I have another one, sort of, and I don't know.
I didn't watch this show.
Maybe you guys did QuantumLeap.
So yeah, I watched that.
So obviously, I mean lots,yeah.
So the plot was he would jumpin the body of somebody and live
their life, right?
But as far as I know, it wasn'tusually historical figures, it
(22:10):
was mostly just run-of-the-millpeople, right?
Normal people.
Anthony Stoeckert (22:13):
That was the way it was, and then later,
well, I don't know how later inthe show, because the guy who
made the show said he wouldn'tdo anything that would like
change, you know, involve likereal people, and then they did
an episode about the Kennedyassassination.
Keith Loria (22:27):
Right, that's what I was gonna bring up.
I saw they did one of those andthey did one of the about the
Civil War as well.
Anthony Stoeckert (22:32):
And it was the Civil War, but the Kennedy
one was a big deal.
Kennedy one was huge.
They might have been trying toyou know get a little uh you
know, heat off that.
Jody Schwartz (22:42):
Well, the the idea too with the with Quantum
Leap was he was supposed to helpsomething from prevent
something bad from happening,right?
And and and I think when theywhen they sent them back there,
the thinking was he was gonnastop Kennedy from being
assassination from beingassassinated, and then it turns
out he was there to save Jackie.
Anthony Stoeckert (22:59):
Yes.
Oh yeah, yeah, he thinks he'sthere to save Kennedy, he
doesn't save Kennedy, and hegoes to um Dean Stockwell?
Is that who was that?
Jody Schwartz (23:10):
Dean Dean Stockwell was his like mentor.
Anthony Stoeckert (23:13):
But he goes to Dean Stockwell, I failed, and
Dean Stockwell goes, No, youdidn't.
He goes, She died the firsttime.
And they and they look at thehospital and you see.
Yeah, but like like Stockwell'slike, what do you mean?
But you know, Sam only knew thetimeline where she lived.
Jody Schwartz (23:30):
Right?
Yeah, that's interesting.
Anthony Stoeckert (23:32):
Yeah, so yeah, it was pretty good.
That was a good one.
Jody Schwartz (23:36):
That is a good one.
Anthony Stoeckert (23:37):
And then real people well, I think
occasionally I don't know ifreal people showed up a lot.
I know there was one that wasset in Maine and some kind of
strange thing was going on, andthen at the end you saw like a
geeky kid with glasses writingin a book, and it it was I don't
know if they said it wasStephen King or it was supposed
to be.
It was like a young StephenKing.
Keith Loria (23:59):
Uh it wasn't one of us.
Anthony Stoeckert (24:00):
It was not one of us, no, because it took
place in the 50s.
But I I think like someonegoes, Oh, there's that King kid
again with his notebook or youknow something like that.
So interesting.
Yeah, yeah.
It was a good show.
I I I like that show.
That was a fun show.
Keith Loria (24:16):
Did you watch the reboot?
Anthony Stoeckert (24:17):
I did not.
Is it still is that rebootstill going on?
Jody Schwartz (24:20):
I I've watched a couple of episodes.
It's it's it's pretty good, thereboot, except that um, you
know, you f you feel m a littlemore sorry for him in in the
reboot.
You know, in in in theoriginal, he's just bouncing
from life to life, and you knowhis life is being interrupted
while he does this.
But in the in the reboot, it itthat they kind of push that
(24:41):
point home a little more of justhow bad this guy's life is
because he has to do this.
Anthony Stoeckert (24:46):
Yeah, yeah.
And when that show was on, meand a friend of mine were
working, and there was this guynamed Bob who I'm not gonna say
Bob's last name by any means.
And then he goes, Oh, I justsaid I just said a name I
shouldn't have said.
My friend said, Um, maybethey'll do a quantum leap where
he jumps into Bob and he goes,that wouldn't be a good show.
Keith Loria (25:12):
Well, guys, I got something to tell you.
I am not me today.
Yeah, yeah.
Somebody's jumped into you.
Scott Back, I am Scott Bacula.
Anthony Stoeckert (25:21):
Are you here to save the podcast?
I am.
Keith Loria (25:24):
I am.
We need some more laughs.
Jody Schwartz (25:28):
So we so we got Scott Bacula for that?
Scott Bacula.
We got Scott Bacula for morelaughs.
Keith Loria (25:35):
We should have got Joe Piscopo.
I don't know.
Anthony Stoeckert (25:37):
Maybe have you seen Scott Bacula in
anything, Keith?
I assume necessary roughness.
Was he in that?
Am I right about that?
Jody Schwartz (25:43):
Yeah, he was the he was the like 40-year-old
quarterback they had.
Yeah, he was good in that.
He was good in that.
That was not a bad movie.
That was that was not not atall.
Keith Loria (25:51):
Yeah, he was in um the major league movie too, like
the sequels.
Jody Schwartz (25:55):
Yeah, he was in the last one, the the the one uh
oh, just one?
Okay, yeah, the one where RogerDorn owns the twins.
Yeah, for some reason.
Anthony Stoeckert (26:03):
There are more than two major league
movies.
Jody Schwartz (26:05):
Yeah, there's there's a third one.
Yeah, there's a three.
Anthony Stoeckert (26:08):
I had no idea.
Keith Loria (26:09):
Yeah, oh, I think there might even be more than
three.
Jody Schwartz (26:11):
There's three I can remember.
If they had another one, Idon't know.
Anthony Stoeckert (26:15):
If they had another one, it's just one of
those things where like theymade one direct to video and
like it has nothing to do withthe first one.
Jody Schwartz (26:22):
Yes, you know, Roger Dorn is in it.
Roger Dorn's in the one withScott Bacchula, but was that a
theatrical release, though?
I I didn't I thought it was.
Keith Loria (26:30):
Yeah, I think it was.
And I'm looking now, a bunch ofthem are in it.
Jody Schwartz (26:34):
Yes, Pedro uh Serrano was in it.
Yeah, so the the Asian guy fromthe second one was in the third
one.
Anthony Stoeckert (26:42):
Right?
Pedro Serrano's the presidentfrom 24, right?
Yeah, yeah.
Keith Loria (26:45):
Dennis Hazard.
Anthony Stoeckert (26:46):
The All-State guy.
Jody Schwartz (26:47):
Well, yeah, nothing.
And the Allstate guy, yeah.
Keith Loria (26:49):
And Ted McGinley is in this one.
Jody Schwartz (26:51):
Yes.
Ted McGinley plays the managerof the twins.
Keith Loria (26:56):
Wow, how did we not see that?
Jody Schwartz (26:58):
Yeah, Ted McGinley, as always, coming into
a franchise late.
Anthony Stoeckert (27:03):
Major League spawned two sequels, major
league two, and this does soundfamiliar now.
Major League back in theminors.
Keith Loria (27:11):
Yeah, that's the the one we're talking about.
Anthony Stoeckert (27:13):
Yeah, so I think that's it, though.
Keith Loria (27:16):
Okay.
I don't know why I thoughtthere was another.
I'm sure there will be.
Jody Schwartz (27:20):
I have to see back in the minors again because
I'm wondering if they if theyexplain why Roger Dorn suddenly
owns the twins.
Like has nothing to do with theIndians anymore.
Uh uh, the Cleveland team, Iguess.
Not the Indians, but theGuardians.
No, this was this was my list.
You got you, and you know, Igot it.
This was this was it.
You guys uh contributed nicely.
Keith Loria (27:40):
There's probably some others out there, and you
know, now that we obviously wedidn't have time to prepare for
this, so I will try start tothink about some things.
Jody Schwartz (27:47):
Well, we could do a sequel.
Anthony Stoeckert (27:48):
Let's see if anything we we could do another
things we forgot episode oneday.
Keith Loria (27:52):
Yeah, well, we were supposed to do that last year
and we forgot.
Jody Schwartz (27:55):
So I have to say that almost always when when
sitcoms do this, it's it'seffective.
It's it usually it usuallyworks.
It's usually a uh a fun type ofthing that adds to it.
I mean the WKRP one, you know,was not obviously fun, but I
think it works when when they doit.
I thought the the uh the giantswin the pennant thing with the
man with mash was was terrific.
Keith Loria (28:16):
And yeah, I'm gonna look for that WKRP episode
because I if I saw it, I don'tremember it at all.
So I wonder if they didn'trerun it so so much because of
the serious nature.
Jody Schwartz (28:25):
They definitely re-ran it a couple of times
because I've I've seen it onreruns a number of times.
The thing about that episodeagain is like it's goofy up
until you know regular stuff,and then all of a sudden they're
sitting around very solemn.
And I don't know how manypeople watching when they when
it aired the first time.
I don't know how many peoplewatching were getting the
connection before that happened.
Oh, sure, sure.
You know what I mean?
(28:46):
So so I I just rememberwatching it the first time and
being like, wait a minute, whywhy are we all serious now?
Like what happened?
Keith Loria (28:51):
Yeah, yeah, because how would you even know about
this con if you were outside ofCincinnati?
I don't know how much pressthere would have been.
Anthony Stoeckert (28:57):
Uh well, I it wasn't right.
Jody Schwartz (28:58):
I knew about it because it made it made
national, it made national news,but but I mean, you know, I'm
talking, I mean, like I said, Iwas young when I saw the
episode, so it's it's it'sunderstandable I wouldn't know
it, but I'm saying there had tohave been people who probably
knew about the incident who werewatching who still didn't make
the connection.
Anthony Stoeckert (29:14):
Bye everyone.
Jody Schwartz (29:15):
Thanks everyone.
Take care.
Keith Loria (29:16):
Thanks for listening to Don't Touch That
Dial, the Classic TV podcast.
If you like what you've heard,be sure to subscribe.
Please leave a review oniTunes, Spotify, or wherever you
listen.
We'll be back soon with anotherjourney back in time to the
days of static, laugh tracks,and seven channels.
Welcome to season three of Don't Touch That Dial,
a classic TV podcast.
So join us as we remember theshows that made watching TV in
the days of antennas so muchfun.
Anthony Stoeckert (00:09):
Grab your remote and get ready for some
fun and laughs.
Keith Loria (00:13):
And remember, Don't Touch That Dial.
Anthony Stoeckert (00:16):
Hello everyone, and welcome to another
mysterious episode of Don'tTouch That Dial, a classic TV
podcast.
This week, Jody is going tosurprise Keith and me with some
sort of fun and amazing topic.
I'm Anthony Stoeckert.
Keith Loria (00:33):
I'm Jody Schwartz.
And I'm Keith loria.
Anthony Stoeckert (00:36):
So this is something we do from time to
time.
One of us comes with a funTV-related topic.
The other two don't know whatit is.
Jody has this week's topic.
I keep saying the word topicover and over again.
Sorry about that.
Jody Schwartz (00:50):
It's on topic.
Anthony Stoeckert (00:51):
I have nothing more to say because I
don't know what's coming up.
Take it away, Jody.
Jody Schwartz (00:54):
There you go.
What I have for you guys todayis shows that had episodes that
revolved around real-lifeevents.
Obviously, fictional shows andsome sort of real-life event was
going on in the background asthey uh as the episode unfolded.
Not necessarily about the uhthat would be the event, but the
event was part of what washappening.
(01:15):
One of the ones I will startwith is the MASH Olympics from
uh season six, episode 11, whereColonel Potter decides the unit
is in pitiful shape um becausethey can't lift a uh turnedover
ambulance.
It takes like all of them, andthen like four MPs do it in two
seconds.
So he wants to uh get them inshape, and they decide that
(01:36):
instead of having just you knowtraditional exercises and
calisthenics, they're gonnasplit up into two teams and have
Olympic-like events.
And uh Hawkeye heads up oneteam, BJ heads up the other
team.
And while this is happening,it's the the 52 Olympics.
There's footage of that, likereal uh newsreel footage of the
52 Olympics unfolding in thebackground.
(01:57):
So like they cut to like a youknow a runner from the Olympics.
Anthony Stoeckert (02:00):
I don't remember that.
Jody Schwartz (02:01):
You actually see uh you actually see footage from
the 52 Olympics, and during thecourse of the episode, they're
talking about you know events atthe Olympics.
Anthony Stoeckert (02:09):
So does anybody say to Potter, let's see
those MPs, you know, cure aguy?
Jody Schwartz (02:14):
Uh yeah, yeah.
It's funny how with that showevery now and again they they
would worry about something thatthey never worried about before
or again.
Nobody cared before thatepisode what kind of shape
everybody was in.
Anthony Stoeckert (02:26):
How often does Klinger have to turn over a
fallen truck?
A fallen vehicle.
Jody Schwartz (02:31):
Exactly.
When is it ever gonna come up?
Keith Loria (02:35):
Should Dr.
Shirili be doing that?
Jody Schwartz (02:36):
Yeah, yeah.
That's a great point.
That that's the other point,too.
It you know, that's what set itall off.
The the MPs actually say, nexttime call us, don't hurt
yourself.
Keith Loria (02:47):
Like, would the three of us be able to turn over
a fallen ambulance?
I'm guessing no on that one.
Anthony Stoeckert (02:55):
Yeah, probably yeah, I would think
not.
Jody Schwartz (02:58):
I can't imagine we'd be able to do that.
Keith Loria (02:59):
All right, next week, guys, we're gonna get an
ambulance and before theepisode, we're gonna see what we
can do.
Anthony Stoeckert (03:09):
I have no idea.
Jody Schwartz (03:11):
One of the funny subplots of this episode, by the
way, is that uh the reason theystart helping, you know, start
with the calisthenics.
One of the reasons is that alsoHawkeye and BJ are helping this
uh this enlisted man who's veryoverweight, and they're gonna
kick him out of the army.
And you would think he'd wantto get out of the army.
Anthony Stoeckert (03:26):
What a coincidence!
Jody Schwartz (03:27):
Yeah, yeah.
How about that?
Anthony Stoeckert (03:29):
Yeah.
Jody Schwartz (03:30):
Uh Sergeant Aangs, they're gonna help him
lose weight so he can stay inthe army.
Um, and then Klinger finds outthat he's being kicked out for
being overweight, so he juststarts eating excessively.
So while so while he's runningthese events, like he's eating a
salami.
Anthony Stoeckert (03:46):
Now, does Margaret's husband show up in
the show?
Jody Schwartz (03:49):
Yes, I was gonna say Colonel Penobscot makes an
appearance, one of the the thesecond of uh two actors who have
played uh Penobscot.
And um, it's the guy fromSmoking the Bandit, the actor
from Oh, yeah, it's uh RufateJustice's son.
Yes, yes.
Anthony Stoeckert (04:05):
So so there's more than one actor who played
Penopscott, though.
Jody Schwartz (04:09):
Yes, correct.
He was the second one.
That's what he said.
Yeah, yeah, he was he was thesecond one.
Yeah, yeah.
So he was he makes twoappearances.
One of them is when they whenthey actually do get married,
which is Frank Burns' lastepisode, and this one.
And he he they need a person tobe uh to run an event because
Klinger is now stuck, hisstomach is now you know
bothering him from all thesalamis, so he takes Klinger's
(04:31):
place in the event, and uh youknow wackiness ensues from
there.
He ends up losing the finalevent.
They pick names out of a hat tosee who's gonna run this last
obstacle course.
So one of them is the the fatsergeant, and one of them is
Colonel Penobscot, who's justgot there, and now his name's in
the hat too.
Keith Loria (04:48):
Uh and I'm guessing tortoise in the hair.
I'm no, I know who's gonna win.
Jody Schwartz (04:52):
Yes, Penobscot starts showing off and then he
falls down and and falls intosome netting and loses.
And so, you know, Margaret'smad at him at the end.
Anthony Stoeckert (05:01):
She's mad at him.
Wow.
Jody Schwartz (05:03):
Yeah, she's mad at him for a little bit.
Keith Loria (05:04):
Well, because because if they won, they would
have had three days R and R.
Jody Schwartz (05:07):
Yeah, right.
Well, they were already goingaway for seven, so they and they
would have had an extra threedays if if they had won.
Anthony Stoeckert (05:14):
So she still had a week?
Jody Schwartz (05:15):
She's still at a week, yeah.
Anthony Stoeckert (05:17):
Come on, Margaret.
Jody Schwartz (05:17):
Yeah, she's still at a week.
But when he's when he's upsetthat she's angry at him, he
starts to act like like thecharacter in Smokey and the
Bandit.
It's kind of like come on,Margaret, it's just a race.
Anthony Stoeckert (05:28):
That's right.
He gets kind of at that moment,he gets kind of dopey.
Jody Schwartz (05:32):
He gets kind of dopey.
Anthony Stoeckert (05:34):
Yeah, yeah.
Jody Schwartz (05:34):
Then he gets kind of whiny toward the end.
Another episode, you know.
Well, I'm gonna do one.
You can't just take one.
Keith Loria (05:41):
Oh, oh, you you oh you have one already?
Okay, I was gonna, I was gonnawell once you start talking
about MASH, it came to me.
This is the only one I actuallythought of so far.
Anthony Stoeckert (05:49):
I thought of one also.
Keith Loria (05:51):
So this one takes place, um, starts off on New
Year's 1961, and the episodegoes an entire year.
51, right?
Oh, 51, I'm sorry, yes.
Episode goes the entire year,and they talk about the real
life event of the Bobby Thompsonhome run.
Klinger, you know, bets hisBrooklyn Dodgers and says
they're gonna win.
Potter wants the Cardinals,because I guess Potter's from
(06:13):
Missouri.
Jody Schwartz (06:14):
No, what happens is they bet and they say
whoever's ahead on July 4th winsthe bet.
Yeah.
Because the thinking iswhoever's ahead on July 4th will
win the penance.
Because they're not gonna bethere that long.
They're not gonna be there thatlong, and then they bet they
bet the Dodgers against the restof the National League.
Keith Loria (06:29):
Right, even though this is season nine.
Anthony Stoeckert (06:31):
Um Margaret's style by this point is very
80s.
Keith Loria (06:38):
Yes, but it's funny as they do in the you know, the
the war was what, just a fewyears, but they do an entire
year in one episode.
Yeah, yeah, the war was threeyears in total.
So, you know, it's funny.
So that when they do the bet,you know, Charles uh Emerson
Winchester um backs Klinger withall the money because he won he
knows that the Dodgers aregonna win, no one could beat
(07:00):
him.
So they're all listening toBobby Thompson's home run like
on the radio when it comes.
The Russ Hodges call.
Yeah, he famously hits off aRalph Branca.
Um, Willie Mees is on deck, andyet the Giants win the pivot.
Jody Schwartz (07:14):
The Giants win the pennant.
And Winchester's like, he'safter him at the end.
So one of the funnier things iswhen he's starting to get um,
as the Dodgers lead starts todwindle a bit, and he's getting
antsy about that, he's like, Ican't believe I entrusted my
financial future to grown mennamed Duke and Pee-Wee.
It's great.
(07:38):
And then he's he's wearing aBrooklyn Dodger hat at the end,
and he's uh he's he's yelling atthem to you know who they
should bring in the pitch.
Keith Loria (07:48):
It's a great episode.
All right, do you have anon-MASH one?
Anthony Stoeckert (07:51):
I have a non-Mash one.
Why don't I get in case Jodymight have this on his list?
And I do not remember thedetails of this episode at all,
but maybe you guys will.
Uh there was an episode of WKRPin Cincinnati about that took
place after, obviously, and itit centered around the coup
(08:13):
concert in Cincinnati where theyhad like open seating and like
like some kids died becauseeverybody was you know running
to the you know to get to thethe close of the stage.
Does this ring a bell to youguys?
Keith Loria (08:26):
Oh yeah, absolutely.
Anthony Stoeckert (08:27):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Jody Schwartz (08:28):
It doesn't for me.
Anthony Stoeckert (08:30):
So I I I think it might have been eighty
one or eighty-two.
Jody Schwartz (08:34):
Well, the the the the concert that it was based
on happened in 75.
Anthony Stoeckert (08:38):
The episode was that it had been that that
that earlier?
Jody Schwartz (08:42):
Yeah, the the so the concert happened in 75.
The episode we're talking aboutwas probably 78 or 79.
Anthony Stoeckert (08:48):
Okay.
Jody Schwartz (08:48):
But the concert itself was was it was like
December of 75.
At the end of the episode, theyhave a a thing, you know, uh uh
uh you know uh words on thescreen that say uh hold on,
Jody.
Anthony Stoeckert (08:59):
I just I'm gonna I'm gonna clear something
up.
Uh the concert happenedDecember 3rd, 1979.
Jody Schwartz (09:05):
79?
Okay.
I thought it was I thought itwas 75.
All right, then then I waswrong.
Anthony Stoeckert (09:10):
Yeah, so I think I I I thought it was
shortly after the that concerthappened.
So so I guess they based anepisode where KRP was sponsoring
the concert or something.
Do you remember details of theepisode, Jody?
Jody Schwartz (09:22):
Yeah, they they were they were involved in the
in the concert somehow and theywere all going.
One of the one of the funnierthings that's going on in the
background is that Mr.
Carlson has a cold and um andhe's congested, and Jennifer
gives him a uh like one of thosemasks that that it I forget
what they call it, but yeah,yeah, I know the mask.
And he's walking around wearingit and he forgets he has it on.
Anthony Stoeckert (09:42):
Yeah.
Jody Schwartz (09:43):
So then everybody's like wondering why
he's wearing this mask, and he'sgetting ready to go to the
concert and he still has it on.
And then Johnny tells him to uhto you know he should he should
probably take it off at thispoint.
Anthony Stoeckert (09:54):
Yeah, because it ends on a very serious note,
yeah.
Obviously, because it was basedon a real life event where
people died.
Jody Schwartz (10:00):
Well the whole episode just feels like a normal
episode, and then what happensis they go to the concert and
then it cuts back to themsitting in the office all very
solemn, talking about what hadhappened the night before.
And the thing was that they hadthis, uh they had that thing at
the time called festiveseating, which is basically you
get a ticket, you can go in andsit anywhere.
Anthony Stoeckert (10:20):
Right, that was the thing.
Jody Schwartz (10:21):
Yeah, apparently, since the I don't know if the
city of Cincinnati actually didpass a law prohibiting that at
some point, and then it, I guessit became national.
They they mentioned that toowith the stuff that they have,
the tagline that they have atthe end of the episode.
Anthony Stoeckert (10:34):
The episode aired February 11th, 1980.
Jody Schwartz (10:38):
Really?
Okay.
Anthony Stoeckert (10:39):
Just a few months later.
It in retrospect, this seemsodd that they had like an
episode.
Eleven people died at thisconcert.
Jody Schwartz (10:46):
Yeah, 11 people died at the concert.
I thought it happened earlierthan 79.
Anthony Stoeckert (10:49):
So so, but uh, yeah, that's that's uh it's
it's odd that just a few monthslater they had this episode with
with jokes and all.
Jody Schwartz (10:56):
Yeah, well, they didn't they didn't I mean the
whole mo they didn't joke aboutanything like the whole episode
it was obviously prior to it,you know.
Anthony Stoeckert (11:04):
They didn't make jokes about the tragedy,
yeah.
It's it's weird that they hadlike a normal episode and then
it's this real life event thatyou know things got very heavy.
That's you know, yeah.
Keith Loria (11:15):
Did they did they advertise that they were doing
this?
Like I don't remember this atall.
Anthony Stoeckert (11:19):
I don't know.
Jody Schwartz (11:20):
I don't think they did.
I remember watching it for thefirst time, and um, I don't
think I knew about what hadhappened at the Who concert when
I saw the episode.
Right, yeah, how um yeah, Idon't I don't I don't think I I
knew about that, but but I knowI remember watching it and it
just didn't, you know, uh Ididn't see it coming that all
and then they when they cut tothe scene when they're all
sitting there all solemn becausethey don't they don't show them
(11:41):
at the concert.
Anthony Stoeckert (11:42):
No, no, no, yeah, they couldn't get Pete
Townsend and Roger Dole.
Jody Schwartz (11:47):
Yeah, yeah.
Well, there was an episodewhere they where they uh
sponsored a concert about a uh afictitious band called Scum of
the Earth, but um so there wasonly 11 weeks in between the
time the concert was and thetime the episode aired, so they
did that quick.
Yeah, that's that's yeah,that's that's that's yeah,
that's crazy.
That's yeah, that that's I Ithink that's why one of the
reasons I thought it was a muchbigger time span.
(12:09):
Yeah, I'll have to read this.
Anthony Stoeckert (12:11):
Who only recently returned to Cincinnati?
Yeah, like maybe on this mostrecent tour, or I mean they've
had 80 last tours, but um, itwas either this one or maybe the
one before that they went to umthat they actually ever
returned to Cincinnati.
I think that's the only one Ithought of offhand.
I'll try to think of others.
Jody Schwartz (12:29):
Yeah, so do you have another one, Keith, or
should I uh go down my list alittle more?
Keith Loria (12:33):
I mean, the only other one I I could think of was
the you know, happy days whatdealing with the election, the
1956 presidential election, yes,right, right.
You know, my bike likes Ikethat episode.
Jody Schwartz (12:45):
Fonzi delivering the message for Ike and Richie
dating rich Richie saying he'sfor Stevenson just so he could
date that girl.
Keith Loria (12:52):
Right, right.
A lot different though, becauseit wasn't like real life events
like so quickly, like the WKRPone.
Jody Schwartz (12:57):
This is you know, a hist history uh but the
election was part of it, and theissues involving the election
were talked about, you know,just in a comedic way.
Keith Loria (13:07):
Yeah, yeah.
I remember there was an episodeof LA Law where they were
watching something ontelevision, and I don't remember
what it was.
I don't remember if it was ariot or it was the LA riots, I
think.
Jody Schwartz (13:18):
Is that what it was?
Yeah, there was an episodewhere um what's his name?
Um Stuart, the tax attorney.
Right, gets beat up.
He gets beat up during the LAriot.
Keith Loria (13:26):
So, and that was based on obviously the real LA
Law riots.
Anthony Stoeckert (13:29):
So, but yeah, that's I I want to say
something about Happy Days, butfor some reason that LA law
thing is reminding me.
I don't know if this reallyfits, but I believe when ER did
that live episode, yeah, theyreferenced like whatever game
was going on.
Oh, they did.
They did.
Was it a baseball game or I Ithink it was a basketball game.
Keith Loria (13:49):
Yeah, it was.
It was okay.
But yes, and and I think otherlive shows did that as well.
Like Roseanne, when they didthis live episode, did that.
You know, they would talk aboutwhatever was happening that day
on the news.
Anthony Stoeckert (14:01):
But I I know everybody references Fonse
saying my bike likes Ike, but myfavorite part is when Fonsey
goes, if Ike don't win, the Fonzis gonna be mad.
And then at the end, uh Richiesays to the girl, because the
girl's really disappointed thatStevenson lost, and she and he
(14:23):
goes, uh, well, you know, maybeafter you get over the election,
we can get back together.
And she goes, No, you'll alwaysremind me of this.
My mother had to break up witha guy when Wendell Wilkie lost.
So those stand out.
Jody Schwartz (14:36):
The funny thing about that episode, too, is that
it it goes in with the 56election, which was the actually
the second time that AdelaideStevenson lost to Ike in the
presidential election.
So, you know, I don't I youknow I think it was probably a
bigger disappointment in 52 whenpeople thought he had a chance.
I think by 56, but uh you knowit was I don't I don't think it
was as right, yeah.
Anthony Stoeckert (14:57):
I guess I mean I you know I obviously
don't know.
You know, yeah, so but kind offunny, but you know, you know,
we're gonna really, you know,we're really gonna get a lot of
listeners with the AdleyStevenson talk.
People love Adley Stevensontalk.
Keith, can you do your AdleyStevenson?
Jody Schwartz (15:13):
Let's hear the Adelaide Stevenson talk.
Keith Loria (15:15):
Here we go.
Fellow Americans.
Excellent.
I'm Adley Stevenson.
Vote for me.
Thank you.
Thank you.
I get I get a lot of that man,the dates I used to get because
of that.
Jody Schwartz (15:26):
I think that really was his convention
speech.
I used to fight him off.
He was the governor ofIllinois.
Just a little fun fact there.
There you go.
Anthony Stoeckert (15:36):
All right, so what else you got, Jody?
Jody Schwartz (15:38):
All right, well, we'll stay with politics.
And the Wonder Years um had anepisode uh that was kind of
geared all around the 72presidential election in season
six.
Uh uh Kevin was dating Winnieat this point, and um, she was
working for the uh uh GeorgeMcGovern campaign in uh in 72.
George McGovern was Nixon'sDemocrat opponent in the 1972
(16:01):
election, and just for therecord, he got crushed.
As did Winnie.
Yeah, it was it was abloodletting.
But Kevin's getting jealousbecause of Winnie seems to have
a crush on the uh guy who'srunning the local office, the
the uh the the the election, theofficial running the local
office.
And that they're dating at thispoint, they're dating at that
(16:23):
point, and he's getting she'sgetting very involved in the
campaign, and she's she shebelieves in George McGovern, and
he's feeling like he um he hasa she has a crush on this guy
who's running the the campaignoffice, and so he acting all
crazy.
There actually is a scene whenhe meets George McGovern.
Yeah, you know, obviously notthe real guy, and it's just he
(16:43):
seemed back.
Anthony Stoeckert (16:44):
They didn't get the real George McGovern.
Jody Schwartz (16:45):
They didn't get the real George McGovern.
Anthony Stoeckert (16:47):
They couldn't he was pretty available at that
point.
Jody Schwartz (16:49):
Uh one would think, but uh but but he was
alive, he was alive, right?
By the the episode I thinkaired in 92, so so maybe keep
talking.
I'll take it up, keep talkingor 91.
Anthony Stoeckert (16:58):
But uh died in 2012.
Jody Schwartz (17:00):
All right, so he was around.
Anthony Stoeckert (17:01):
Yeah, yeah.
Jody Schwartz (17:02):
It was around.
They probably they probablydidn't want him associated with
the show too much.
So yeah, so he meets GeorgeMcGovern, and that that's and
then there's a there's actuallya scene at the end where you
know McGovern does lose.
And you know, a lot of liberalsat that time, because Nix every
you know, Nixon was so hated bythe liberal establishment, they
couldn't believe that Nixoncould win like this, and um uh
(17:25):
Winnie's sitting there cryingsaying, How could this happen?
Anthony Stoeckert (17:29):
Does Kevin care about the election at all?
Jody Schwartz (17:33):
Not really, and but but he starts to you know
again as it goes as it goes on,he starts to um you know starts
to care a little more, and ofcourse, his very conservative
father talking about all ofNixon's you know, you know,
virtues through through theepisode as well.
Keith Loria (17:47):
Yeah, but that was a show that did a lot with you
know that time period.
Jody Schwartz (17:50):
They talked about the war, of course, but but
they talked about a lot ofdifferent things, but this this
was one of the episodes where ituh this this real life event
was sort of circling the wholeepisode.
Yeah.
Obviously it was set in the 60sand it and you know they they
talked about Vietnam quite abit.
There weren't a lot of episodeswhere uh one actual event sort
(18:12):
of circled everything.
And I understand.
Anthony Stoeckert (18:14):
I I actually didn't watch Wonder Years, which
surprises they ever have onelike involving sports, like was
Kevin a baseball fan, and theyever had like an episode that
focused on a game back then orsomething like that, or not
really he was a Jets fan, thoughhe was yeah, they yeah, he wore
a Jets jacket through throughthe whole thing.
But I think he would have donesomething there.
(18:36):
Where was it set?
Where did they live?
Uh where did they live?
Jody Schwartz (18:39):
Was it Long Island?
I think it was Long Island,yeah, yeah.
It it was very it was just likea typical suburban, you know,
town.
And and keep in mind it waswhen people just started going
to the suburbs when you knowwhen the show was uh set.
I think when the show begins,the Jets had already won the
Super Bowl.
Okay, yeah, which is why he wasa homer.
Yeah, yeah, he was a he was ahomer.
(18:59):
The 60s are always part of it,but there's not a lot of
episodes where they talked abouta single event.
Yeah, anything that involvessports was typically with one of
the kids playing sports.
There was an episode where uhwhat's Wayne?
Well, no, uh Paul, and Pauljoins the basketball team, and
everyone's surprised he'sactually good.
Yeah.
Interesting.
Anthony Stoeckert (19:18):
I was gonna ask, maybe this would jog one of
your memories.
Did because family ties wasvery much about its time and
what did they have any episodesspecifically about?
Jody Schwartz (19:30):
They did have an episode centered around the 88
election, very late in its run.
And it, you know, where whereobviously Alex is in fate, you
know, is voting for George Bush,who was running against Michael
De Caucus.
And um, yeah, there was anepisode where that was a
circular, uh, you know, circlingthe episode, I like to say.
Absolutely.
Anthony Stoeckert (19:49):
Campaigning, like were they both working for
campaigns?
They were both active.
Keith Loria (19:54):
Yeah, and the parents were going.
Anthony Stoeckert (19:55):
Go ahead, Keith.
What were you gonna say?
Keith Loria (19:57):
No, the the they the parents were working for um
Dukakis, the caucus team, andum, you know, Alex obviously was
was being a little smug, um,the way Alex could be.
Yeah, and you know, and theymade it seem like you know, he
was it was it was a funnyepisode.
It was probably funnier than itit should have been, you know,
(20:18):
for something so serious like anelection, but it was a good
one.
They also family ties, youknow, that was a fairly comical
election.
Jody Schwartz (20:26):
Yes, yes.
Keith Loria (20:27):
Well, that's true.
They all are now, aren't they?
Jody Schwartz (20:29):
Well, that one that one had some stuff.
Keith Loria (20:31):
They during a clip episode, they had um um the
parents go back to Woodstock andthey showed like what they were
doing at Woodstock.
It wasn't a whole episodethough.
Anthony Stoeckert (20:41):
Oh, that's that but they had they had like
scenes with Michael Gross andMaratha Burney as their younger
selves at Woodstock.
Yes, that's I don't rememberthat.
That's cool.
I like it.
Keith Loria (20:50):
It was it was a clip episode.
It was like one of thosememories.
Oh, remember when we did this?
You know, yeah, yeah, yeah.
That was later in the run,though.
Anthony Stoeckert (20:57):
Nice, nice.
Jody Schwartz (20:58):
Yes.
The other thing, too, with thatepisode with the 88 election
with family ties was that atthat time, you know, the
Democrats had had, you know,going into 88, the Democrats had
lost back-to-back presidentialelections badly.
You know, you know, Carta,Carter got crushed twice.
Well, Carter got trusted in 80,Mondale got crushed in 80,
(21:18):
Reagan won by a lot twice.
Anthony Stoeckert (21:20):
So 80 wasn't like 84.
Jody Schwartz (21:22):
No, but Carter for an incumbent, Carta, Carta
got got knocked around.
Well, yeah, yeah.
Carter got knocked aroundpretty good.
Anthony Stoeckert (21:29):
I believe Mondale won only DC in
Minnesota.
Jody Schwartz (21:32):
Yeah, yeah.
13 13 electoral votes.
Anthony Stoeckert (21:35):
Yeah, it wasn't um.
I remember a stand-up comediangoing, that's only that's only
like it was Dennis Miller.
It's only like 13 more than Igot, or something like that.
Jody Schwartz (21:43):
Yeah, Dennis Miller said, uh, I didn't even
spend any money and I almosttied him.
Anthony Stoeckert (21:47):
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, but yeah, yeah.
Keith Loria (21:49):
But I have another one, sort of, and I don't know.
I didn't watch this show.
Maybe you guys did QuantumLeap.
So yeah, I watched that.
So obviously, I mean lots,yeah.
So the plot was he would jumpin the body of somebody and live
their life, right?
But as far as I know, it wasn'tusually historical figures, it
(22:10):
was mostly just run-of-the-millpeople, right?
Normal people.
Anthony Stoeckert (22:13):
That was the way it was, and then later,
well, I don't know how later inthe show, because the guy who
made the show said he wouldn'tdo anything that would like
change, you know, involve likereal people, and then they did
an episode about the Kennedyassassination.
Keith Loria (22:27):
Right, that's what I was gonna bring up.
I saw they did one of those andthey did one of the about the
Civil War as well.
Anthony Stoeckert (22:32):
And it was the Civil War, but the Kennedy
one was a big deal.
Kennedy one was huge.
They might have been trying toyou know get a little uh you
know, heat off that.
Jody Schwartz (22:42):
Well, the the idea too with the with Quantum
Leap was he was supposed to helpsomething from prevent
something bad from happening,right?
And and and I think when theywhen they sent them back there,
the thinking was he was gonnastop Kennedy from being
assassination from beingassassinated, and then it turns
out he was there to save Jackie.
Anthony Stoeckert (22:59):
Yes.
Oh yeah, yeah, he thinks he'sthere to save Kennedy, he
doesn't save Kennedy, and hegoes to um Dean Stockwell?
Is that who was that?
Jody Schwartz (23:10):
Dean Dean Stockwell was his like mentor.
Anthony Stoeckert (23:13):
But he goes to Dean Stockwell, I failed, and
Dean Stockwell goes, No, youdidn't.
He goes, She died the firsttime.
And they and they look at thehospital and you see.
Yeah, but like like Stockwell'slike, what do you mean?
But you know, Sam only knew thetimeline where she lived.
Jody Schwartz (23:30):
Right?
Yeah, that's interesting.
Anthony Stoeckert (23:32):
Yeah, so yeah, it was pretty good.
That was a good one.
Jody Schwartz (23:36):
That is a good one.
Anthony Stoeckert (23:37):
And then real people well, I think
occasionally I don't know ifreal people showed up a lot.
I know there was one that wasset in Maine and some kind of
strange thing was going on, andthen at the end you saw like a
geeky kid with glasses writingin a book, and it it was I don't
know if they said it wasStephen King or it was supposed
to be.
It was like a young StephenKing.
Keith Loria (23:59):
Uh it wasn't one of us.
Anthony Stoeckert (24:00):
It was not one of us, no, because it took
place in the 50s.
But I I think like someonegoes, Oh, there's that King kid
again with his notebook or youknow something like that.
So interesting.
Yeah, yeah.
It was a good show.
I I I like that show.
That was a fun show.
Keith Loria (24:16):
Did you watch the reboot?
Anthony Stoeckert (24:17):
I did not.
Is it still is that rebootstill going on?
Jody Schwartz (24:20):
I I've watched a couple of episodes.
It's it's it's pretty good, thereboot, except that um, you
know, you f you feel m a littlemore sorry for him in in the
reboot.
You know, in in in theoriginal, he's just bouncing
from life to life, and you knowhis life is being interrupted
while he does this.
But in the in the reboot, it itthat they kind of push that
(24:41):
point home a little more of justhow bad this guy's life is
because he has to do this.
Anthony Stoeckert (24:46):
Yeah, yeah.
And when that show was on, meand a friend of mine were
working, and there was this guynamed Bob who I'm not gonna say
Bob's last name by any means.
And then he goes, Oh, I justsaid I just said a name I
shouldn't have said.
My friend said, Um, maybethey'll do a quantum leap where
he jumps into Bob and he goes,that wouldn't be a good show.
Keith Loria (25:12):
Well, guys, I got something to tell you.
I am not me today.
Yeah, yeah.
Somebody's jumped into you.
Scott Back, I am Scott Bacula.
Anthony Stoeckert (25:21):
Are you here to save the podcast?
I am.
Keith Loria (25:24):
I am.
We need some more laughs.
Jody Schwartz (25:28):
So we so we got Scott Bacula for that?
Scott Bacula.
We got Scott Bacula for morelaughs.
Keith Loria (25:35):
We should have got Joe Piscopo.
I don't know.
Anthony Stoeckert (25:37):
Maybe have you seen Scott Bacula in
anything, Keith?
I assume necessary roughness.
Was he in that?
Am I right about that?
Jody Schwartz (25:43):
Yeah, he was the he was the like 40-year-old
quarterback they had.
Yeah, he was good in that.
He was good in that.
That was not a bad movie.
That was that was not not atall.
Keith Loria (25:51):
Yeah, he was in um the major league movie too, like
the sequels.
Jody Schwartz (25:55):
Yeah, he was in the last one, the the the one uh
oh, just one?
Okay, yeah, the one where RogerDorn owns the twins.
Yeah, for some reason.
Anthony Stoeckert (26:03):
There are more than two major league
movies.
Jody Schwartz (26:05):
Yeah, there's there's a third one.
Yeah, there's a three.
Anthony Stoeckert (26:08):
I had no idea.
Keith Loria (26:09):
Yeah, oh, I think there might even be more than
three.
Jody Schwartz (26:11):
There's three I can remember.
If they had another one, Idon't know.
Anthony Stoeckert (26:15):
If they had another one, it's just one of
those things where like theymade one direct to video and
like it has nothing to do withthe first one.
Jody Schwartz (26:22):
Yes, you know, Roger Dorn is in it.
Roger Dorn's in the one withScott Bacchula, but was that a
theatrical release, though?
I I didn't I thought it was.
Keith Loria (26:30):
Yeah, I think it was.
And I'm looking now, a bunch ofthem are in it.
Jody Schwartz (26:34):
Yes, Pedro uh Serrano was in it.
Yeah, so the the Asian guy fromthe second one was in the third
one.
Anthony Stoeckert (26:42):
Right?
Pedro Serrano's the presidentfrom 24, right?
Yeah, yeah.
Keith Loria (26:45):
Dennis Hazard.
Anthony Stoeckert (26:46):
The All-State guy.
Jody Schwartz (26:47):
Well, yeah, nothing.
And the Allstate guy, yeah.
Keith Loria (26:49):
And Ted McGinley is in this one.
Jody Schwartz (26:51):
Yes.
Ted McGinley plays the managerof the twins.
Keith Loria (26:56):
Wow, how did we not see that?
Jody Schwartz (26:58):
Yeah, Ted McGinley, as always, coming into
a franchise late.
Anthony Stoeckert (27:03):
Major League spawned two sequels, major
league two, and this does soundfamiliar now.
Major League back in theminors.
Keith Loria (27:11):
Yeah, that's the the one we're talking about.
Anthony Stoeckert (27:13):
Yeah, so I think that's it, though.
Keith Loria (27:16):
Okay.
I don't know why I thoughtthere was another.
I'm sure there will be.
Jody Schwartz (27:20):
I have to see back in the minors again because
I'm wondering if they if theyexplain why Roger Dorn suddenly
owns the twins.
Like has nothing to do with theIndians anymore.
Uh uh, the Cleveland team, Iguess.
Not the Indians, but theGuardians.
No, this was this was my list.
You got you, and you know, Igot it.
This was this was it.
You guys uh contributed nicely.
Keith Loria (27:40):
There's probably some others out there, and you
know, now that we obviously wedidn't have time to prepare for
this, so I will try start tothink about some things.
Jody Schwartz (27:47):
Well, we could do a sequel.
Anthony Stoeckert (27:48):
Let's see if anything we we could do another
things we forgot episode oneday.
Keith Loria (27:52):
Yeah, well, we were supposed to do that last year
and we forgot.
Jody Schwartz (27:55):
So I have to say that almost always when when
sitcoms do this, it's it'seffective.
It's it usually it usuallyworks.
It's usually a uh a fun type ofthing that adds to it.
I mean the WKRP one, you know,was not obviously fun, but I
think it works when when they doit.
I thought the the uh the giantswin the pennant thing with the
man with mash was was terrific.
Keith Loria (28:16):
And yeah, I'm gonna look for that WKRP episode
because I if I saw it, I don'tremember it at all.
So I wonder if they didn'trerun it so so much because of
the serious nature.
Jody Schwartz (28:25):
They definitely re-ran it a couple of times
because I've I've seen it onreruns a number of times.
The thing about that episodeagain is like it's goofy up
until you know regular stuff,and then all of a sudden they're
sitting around very solemn.
And I don't know how manypeople watching when they when
it aired the first time.
I don't know how many peoplewatching were getting the
connection before that happened.
Oh, sure, sure.
You know what I mean?
(28:46):
So so I I just rememberwatching it the first time and
being like, wait a minute, whywhy are we all serious now?
Like what happened?
Keith Loria (28:51):
Yeah, yeah, because how would you even know about
this con if you were outside ofCincinnati?
I don't know how much pressthere would have been.
Anthony Stoeckert (28:57):
Uh well, I it wasn't right.
Jody Schwartz (28:58):
I knew about it because it made it made
national, it made national news,but but I mean, you know, I'm
talking, I mean, like I said, Iwas young when I saw the
episode, so it's it's it'sunderstandable I wouldn't know
it, but I'm saying there had tohave been people who probably
knew about the incident who werewatching who still didn't make
the connection.
Anthony Stoeckert (29:14):
Bye everyone.
Jody Schwartz (29:15):
Thanks everyone.
Take care.
Keith Loria (29:16):
Thanks for listening to Don't Touch That
Dial, the Classic TV podcast.
If you like what you've heard,be sure to subscribe.
Please leave a review oniTunes, Spotify, or wherever you
listen.
We'll be back soon with anotherjourney back in time to the
days of static, laugh tracks,and seven channels.
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