TV Confidential with Ed Robertson

TVC 713.3: As long as we're in an F Troop frame of mind, we thought we'd bring you an encore presentation of our conversation with Ken Berry ( F Troop , Mayberry, R.F.D. , Mama's Family ) from January 2018. Topics this segment include the role that Leonard Nimoy played early in Berry's career, and how Ken learned both how to be a straight man and how to deliver a punch line when he worked with Abb...

TVC 713.4: From January 2018: Ken Berry talks to Ed about his early years as a dancer with the Billy Barnes Revue; his friendship with Buster Keaton (not to mention the major influence the silent film star had on his career); and the important role that Carol Burnett played throughout Ken's career. Ken Berry passed away on Dec. 1, 2018. Our conversation with Ken was one of the last, if not the las...

TVC 713.5: Ed welcomes back actress and author Louise Sorel ( Days of Our Lives, Santa Barbara ). Louise's new book, If There Were No Dogs: Musings and Mutterings , is a collection of prose pieces and poems drawn from her life, childhood, and career that not only shares memories of her working with Art Carney, Charles Boyer, George C. Scott, Walter Pidgeon, Rita Moreno, Dame Judith Anderson, Don R...

TVC 713.5: Louise Sorel ( Days of Our Lives, Santa Barbara ) talks to Ed about why she enjoys writing about some of the many canine companions she has had in her life, including a poem that she once wrote from the point of view of her dog Jiggs. Louise's new book, If There Were No Dogs: Musings and Mutterings , is available wherever books are sold online through Book Baby and Amazon.com. Louise So...

TVC 712.1: From January 2013: Phil Gries joins Ed for a special edition of The Sounds of Lost Television honoring John Zacherle, the popular New York TV personality known as The Cool Ghoul. At a time when horror movies were a staple of local late-night television, Zacherley set himself apart from his contemporaries with an array of zany antics that were usually far more entertaining than the films...

TVC 712.2: From January 2013: Phil Gries plays more audio highlights from the early television career of legendary New York TV horror movie host John Zacherle, as well as a clip from Phil's own interview with Zacherle from October 1997, in which Zacherle discusses how he came up with many of the routines that he did on-camera. Other topics this segment include Zacherle's other work in local televi...

TVC 712.3: Part 2 of a conversation that began last week with Joseph Dougherty , Tony Figueroa, and Dan Farren about some of our favorite local TV horror movie hosts from the 1960s and '70s. This segment particularly focuses on Bob Wilkins, the erudite host of Creature Features on KTVU Channel 2 (Oakland-San Francisco) who was known for his trademark cigar, horn rim glasses, and the catchphrase "K...

TVC 712.4: Emmy Award-winning writer, producer, director, and author Joseph Dougherty ( thirtysomething, Pretty Little Liars, The First Cylinder , Comfort and Joi , Rod Serling at 100 ) joins Ed, Tony, and Dan Farren for some more thoughts on local TV horror movie hosts hosts from the 1960s and '70s. Topics this segment include how part of the appeal of watching horror movies on late night televis...

TVC 712.5: Part 2 of a conversation that began last week with Paul Myers , author of John Candy: A Life in Comedy , a heartwarming portrait of the beloved actor, improv comedian, and box office star who, had he lived, would have turned seventy-five on Oct. 31, 2025. Topics this segment include how Candy and his fellow cast members of SCTV all embodied the spirit and philosophy of Second City, a "m...

TVC 712.6: Paul Myers , author of John Candy: A Life in Comedy , talks to Ed about two instances in the film career of John Candy in which art imitated life—the scene in Stripes in which Candy's character, Dewey Oxburger, reveals his motivation for joining the Army; and Dell Griffith's "I like me" speech in Plains, Trains, and Automobiles— and how the latter particularly illustrates how director J...

TVC 711.1: From October 2015: Tony, Donna, and Ed remember the premiere of My Three Sons (CBS/ABC, 1960-1972), one of the few series that enjoyed long runs on two different networks, back in the three-network universe. Topics this segment include why the ABC episodes of My Three Sons , which were filmed in black and white, were rarely seen in syndication until Nick at Nite acquired the rights to t...

TVC 711.2: Emmy Award-winning writer, producer, director, and author Joseph Dougherty ( thirtysomething, Pretty Little Liars, The First Cylinder , Comfort and Joi , Rod Serling at 100 ) joins Ed, Tony, and Dan Farren for a roundtable discussion about some of our favorite local TV horror movie hosts—a staple of television that began in the late 1950s and continued into the 1980s and which, for many...

TVC 711.3: Joseph Dougherty , Dan Farren, Tony Figueroa, and Ed remember Chilly Billy Cardille, Sir Graves Ghastley, Moona Lisa (pictured), and other local TV horror movie personalities from the 1960s and '70s—including Count Floyd, the character played by Joe Flaherty on  SCTV that was both a parody of and a homage to the genre.

TVC 711.4: Part 2 of a conversation that began last week with actress, comedienne, author, and entrepreneur Rhonda Shear ( Up All Night , Rhonda Shear Intimates , Up All Night: From Hollywood Bombshell to Lingerie Model, Life Lessons From An Accidental Feminist ). Topics this segment include the famous "mannequin" act with Rhonda early in her career, along with Kenny Ellis; her many collaborations...

TVC 711.5: Ed welcomes musician, author, and comedy historian Paul Myers ( Kids in the Hall: One Dumb Guy ). Paul's latest book, John Candy: A Life in Comedy , is a heartwarming portrait of the beloved actor, improv comedian, and box office star who would have turned seventy-five this coming Friday, Oct. 31. John Candy died tragically of a heart attack in April 1994 at the age of forty-three. Topi...

TVC 711.6:  Paul Myers , author of John Candy: A Life in Comedy , talks to Ed about Candy's impact in the movies, particularly at a time when many major comedy stars were also huge box office stars. John Candy: A Life in Comedy tells the full story of the man behind the laughs from the people who knew him best, including Dan Aykroyd, Chevy Chase, Tom Hanks, Ron Howard, Steve Martin, Catherine O'Ha...

TVC 710.1: Ed welcomes back Rich Podolsky , longtime journalist, onetime beat writer for the Miami Dolphins, onetime staff writer for CBS Sports and ABC Television, and the author of several books, including You Are Looking Live: How The NFL Today Revolutionized Sports Broadcasting . Rich's latest book, Madden & Summerall: How They Revolutionized NFL Broadcasting , takes a deep dive in the twenty-...

TVC 710.2: Rich Podolsky , author of Madden & Summerall: How They Revolutionized NFL Broadcasting , talks to Ed about the so-called "contest" between Pat Summerall and Vin Scully in the early weeks of the 1981 NFL season over who would welcome John Madden's permanent on-air partner on CBS; how the commercials Madden did for Lite Beer from Miller helped sell then-CBS president Van Gordon Sauter on...

TVC 710.3: From October 2015: Tony, Donna, and Ed remember the premiere of The Phil Silvers Show (CBS, 1955-1959), aka You'll Never Get Rich (the original title of the series), aka Sergeant Bilko and Bilko (as the show was both known once it went into reruns). The series not only made a star of Phil Silvers, but established Nat Hiken as a creative force in television.

TVC 710.4: Ed welcomes back actress, comedienne, author, and entrepreneur Rhonda Shear ( Up All Night , Rhonda Shear Intimates , Up All Night: From Hollywood Bombshell to Lingerie Model, Life Lessons From An Accidental Feminist ). Rhonda is bringing back Up All Night —by popular demand—as a series of specials, in partnership with the Kings of Horror channel on YouTube , that will spotlight all kin...

TVC 710.5: Rhonda Shear talks to Ed about studying improvisation from Harvey Lembeck when she first came to Los Angeles, and how Lembeck taught her to become fearless as a comedienne; why learning improv is a good skill to have, no matter what your profession; how the perception of women in comedy has changed considerably since Rhonda began her career; and Rhonda's approach to writing comedy. Rhon...

TVC 709.6: Part 2 of a conversation that began last week with Emmy Award-winning actress, producer, and author Mariette Hartley ( The Incredible Hulk, Goodnight, Beantown, Breaking the Silence , Law and Order: SVU ). In this segment, Mariette talks to Ed about "Cotter's Girl," the classic episode of Gunsmoke from 1963 whose storyline is reminiscent of Pygmalion ; her frequent appearances on shows...

TVC 709.1: From October 2015: Tony, Donna, and Ed remember the premiere of Captain Kangaroo (CBS, 1955-1984) and its impact on other children's television programs, including Romper Room and Bozo the Clown .

TVC 709.2: From October 2015: Tony, Donna, and Ed continue their look at the broadcast history of Captain Kangaroo (CBS, 1955-1984), including a few word about The New Captain Kangaroo , the reboot starring John McDonough, which ran on the Fox Family Channel from 1997-2000.

TVC 709.3: Part 2 of the conversation that began last week with Howard Smith , author of My Friend Johnny , a memoir of Howard's twenty-year friendship with Johnny Carson, which began in 1985 when Howard found himself living four doors down the street from Carson in Malibu, and which continued until the end of Carson's life. Topics this segment include a look at some of the other celebrities from...