TV Confidential with Ed Robertson

TVC 478.6: Tony, Donna, and Ed remember Khan! (CBS, 1975), the short-lived yet controversial series starring Khigh Dheigh as a contemporary private eye who is reminiscent of Charlie Chan. Khan! premiered Feb. 7, 1975 as part of This Week in TV History. Though it only aired for four weeks, Khan! sparked many protests among the Asian-American community, to the point where some CBS affiliates refused...

TVC 477.1: This Week in TV History: Tony, Donna, and Ed look at the legacy of The Simpsons on television and on pop culture in general. The first regular episode of The Simpsons originally aired on Jan. 14, 1990.  Want to advertise/sponsor our show? TV Confidential  has partnered with AdvertiseCast to handle advertising/sponsorship requests for the podcast edition of our program. They're great to...

TVC 477.2: Greg Ehrbar on the Blu-ray release of Space: 1999 (ITC, 1975-1977), the sci-fi series starring Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, and Barry Morse, and produced by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, that, in many respects, served as the gateway between the release of 2001: A Space Odyssey in 1969 and the release of the original Star Wars in 1977. Want to advertise/sponsor our show? TV Confidential  ha...

TVC 477.3: Greg and Ed discuss the many differences in style and tone between the second season of Space: 1999 and the first season, including a new producer, Fred Freiberger, and the reason why Barry Morse did not return to the show. Both seasons of Space: 1999 are now available on Blu-ray through Shout! Factory . Destination: Moonbase Alpha by Robert Wood is available through Amazon.  Want to ad...

TVC 477.4: Ed welcomes Emmy nominated and Golden Globe nominated actress Lynda Day George ( Mission: Impossible , The Silent Force , Chisum , The Gentle Rain ). Topics include Lynda's upcoming memoir ; falling in love with Christopher George while filming The Gentle Rain , an independent movie filmed on location in Brazil; Lynda's long association with the shows of Quinn Martin; and a few other me...

TVC 477.5: TV Confidential remembers Emmy winner and two-time Oscar nominee Buck Henry with a replay of our November 2017 conversation with screenwriter, story editor, and film historian Beverly Gray ( Seduced by Mrs. Robinson: How The Graduate Became a Touchstone of a Generation ). The iconic writer, director, and satirist who co-created Get Smart , Henry co-wrote the screenplay for The Graduate...

TVC 477.6: A remembrance of Edd "Kookie" Byrnes , the iconic star of 77 Sunset Strip and Grease who was also arguably TV's first teenage heartthrob.  Want to advertise/sponsor our show? TV Confidential  has partnered with AdvertiseCast to handle advertising/sponsorship requests for the podcast edition of our program. They're great to work with and will help you advertise on our show. Please email ...

TVC 476.2: Ed welcomes author and speaker Steven Taibbi ( Grateful Guilt: Living in the Shadow of my Heart ). Born with a cyanotic heart and three birth defects—all of which required operations from a very young age—Steven has also undergone and overcome two open heart surgeries and two heart transplants. Each of these procedures brought on feelings of gratitude and survivors guilt, which Steven r...

TVC 476.1: This Week in TV History celebrates the life and legacy of actor Alan Hale (The Skipper on Gilligan's Island ) on the thirtieth anniversary of his passing. Topics include The Lobster Barrel, the popular seafood restaurant and steakhouse in L.A. that Hale owned throughout the 1970s and '80s. Also in this segment: Tony, Donna, and Ed look back at A.M. America , the precursor to Good Mornin...

TVC 476.5: Ed remembers radio host David Cummings with a replay of a September 2017 conversation in which David shared some memories of his friendship with legendary voice artist June Foray ( Rocky and Bullwinkle ), including the role that Gary Owens played in bringing David and June together. The longtime host of Rockin' and Rhythm , a weekly music show that aired on both KFAI-FM Fresh Air Radio...

TVC 476.3: Part 3 of our three-part interview of our three-part interview with film and TV voice actor Michael Bell ( The Houndcats, The Plastic Man Comedy Adventure Show, SuperFriends, The Smurfs, Rugrats, The Transformers, G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero ). Topics include Michael's recurring role as Les Crowley , Bobby Ewing's banker, on Dallas ; the water-conservation invention that he co-create...

TVC 476.4: Greg and Ed take a look at some of the various other iterations of Jonny Quest that are available on Blu-ray through Warner Bros. Archive, including Jonny Quest: The Complete Eighties Adventures , The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest (Volumes 1 and 2), Jonny's Golden Quest , and Jonny Quest and The Cyber Insects .  Want to advertise/sponsor our show? TV Confidential  has partnered with Ad...

TVC 475.1 : A return visit award-winning filmmaker, comedienne, photographer, and former White House press corps member  Anna Wilding . Anna's acclaimed exhibit of photographs from the Obama White House,  Celebrate Hope , is now available as a limited edition fine art coffee table book, featuring select black and white and color images that promise to bring "The People's House" into your own home....

TVC 475.2 : Greg and Ed discuss the Blu-ray release of  Jonny Quest: The Complete Original Series  (ABC, 1964-1965), the iconic Hanna-Barbera animated series featuring the voices of Tim Matheson, Mike Road, Don Messick, and John Stephenson.  Jonny Quest: The Complete Original Series  is available through Warner Archive. Want to advertise/sponsor our show? TV Confidential  has partnered with Advert...

TVC 475.3 : From May 2019: Ed and  Star Trek  historian  Mark Cushman  ( These Are the Voyages ,  These Are the Voyages: Gene Roddenberry and Star Trek in the 1970s ) discuss how the Writers Guild strike of 1973 actually benefited production of  Star Trek: The Animated Series . The  Animated Series  was among the many collaborations between Roddenberry and  Dorothy "D.C." Fontana , one of the firs...

TVC 475.4 :  Part 2 of our conversation  with  Michael Bell , the prolific voice actor whose career in film and TV animation spans more than four decades and several hundred credits. In this segment, Ed and Greg ask Michael  about some of his many on-screen acting roles , what he means by "vocalbating," and his appearances on  Devlin ,  The Snorks ,  and  The Smurfs . Want to advertise/sponsor our...

TVC 475.5 : Ed welcomes  Jarrad Hewett , the longtime  voice of the Disney Channel  and a voice you've heard on more than 2,000 commercials, including national ad campaigns for CocaCola and White Castle hamburgers. Jarrad's latest book,  The Answer IS Energy , is a thirty-day guide that shows you how to shift energy and reframe thinking about family, money, relationships, abundance, control, and l...

TVC 475.6 :  Jarrad Hewett , longtime  voice of the Disney Channel  and a veteran of more than 2,000 commercials, tells Ed the story of how he landed his first national ad by practicing an exercise he learned from actress and teacher Dee Wallace. Jarrad's latest book,  The Answer IS Energy , shows you how to overcome any obstacle by tuning into your own personal energy frequency. Bonus online mate...

TVC 474.1:  Ed pays tribute to  Arthur Marks , the last surviving producer and director of the original  Perry Mason , by playing highlights from a 2015 conversation in which Art shared a few memories of Raymond Burr, Leonard Nimoy, and Margaret O'Brien, and from 2017, in which Art paid tribute to Barbara Hale and Mike Connors. Arthur Marks died Wednesday 11/13 at age 92. Want to advertise/sponsor...

TVC 474.2 : From 2013: Shelley Morrison ( The Flying Nun ,  Will & Grace ) and her husband, producer/director Walter Dominguez ( Weaving the Past: Journey to Discovery ) share memories with Ed about James Garner, David Janssen, and Joseph Campanella. Want to advertise/sponsor our show? TV Confidential  has partnered with AdvertiseCast to handle advertising/sponsorship requests for the podcast edit...

TVC 474.3 : Ed plays  Part 2 of Greg Ehrbar's interview  with singer, director, and teacher  Roberta Levitow , co-founder of Theatre Without Borders. Roberta's father, Abe Levitow, directed  Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol  (NBC, 1962); Roberta's album,  Lost in the Stars , features Roberta's renditions of songs from  Magoo  and other animated musicals that her father directed. Want to advertise/spons...

TVC 474.4 : Part 1 of a three-part conversation with  Michael Bell , whose prolific career in film and TV animation has spanned more than four decades. Topics include how Michael's career as a voice actor began somewhat accidentally, as well as his work on such shows as  The Plastic Man Comedy/Adventure Show  and  SuperFriends . Want to advertise/sponsor our show? TV Confidential  has partnered wi...

TVC 474.5 : Ed welcomes  Dr. Uli Chettipally , a recently retired emergency physician who is also president of the  Innovator MD Global Summit , a  two-day event coming up in San Francisco  (Jan. 11-12, 2020) that will shed light on the work of physician innovators who are doing their part to effect change in healthcare. Topics this segment include how George Clooney's performance as Dr. Doug Ross...

TVC 474.6 : From 2009: Michael Davis, author of  Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street , on why Oscar the Grouch is just as important a character on  Sesame Street  as Big Bird. Caroll Spinney, who played both Oscar and Big Bird,  narrated the audiobook version of  Street Gang . Spinney passed away Sunday 12/8 at age 85.

The Best of TVC: Ed interviews with Tommy Hawkins, the Emmy Award-nominated broadcaster, renaissance man and former NBA star who passed away in 2017 at the age of 80. Tommy Hawkins enjoyed a 10-year career in the NBA for both the Minneapolis Lakers, the Los Angeles Lakers and the old Cincinnati Royals, playing alongside such Hall of Famers as Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West, Elgin Baylor and Oscar Ro...