Rant #1,375: Old Goldies

This weekend, there was absolutely nothing to watch on TV.

All those channels, and nothing on.

In between doing several other things, I was plopped in front of the TV set, and there nothing for me to watch.

This forced me to get a bit creative.

I have Google Chromecast, which allows you to "cast" various sites onto your TV, including YouTube.

I went onto YouTube, and decided that I was going to search out some old TV--and I mean really, really old TV from the early 1950s to the later part of that decade.

And I hit the goldmine ... all in glorious black and white.

I used to watch "My Little Margie" as a kid in reruns, well into the 1960s.

It was an extremely popular show in its day, starring Gale Storm as Margie Albright, a conniving, but loveable girl next door type who, in every episode, got in and out of, various funny situations, mainly of her own doing.

If this plot sounds familiar, it is, because the show began as a summer replacement for "I Love Lucy" in 1952, and ran for a couple of seasons.

Anyway, who can forget the opening of the show, with the two photos of Margie and her dad, Vern Albright, played by Charles Farrell? Or the ending, where another portrait spoke to you? Very clever for the time period.

Anyway, I watched a few episodes of that show, watching Margie get in and out of trouble, often with her accomplice, Mrs. Odetts, the elderly lady next door--yes, you had a 20-something going on with a woman who must have been at least in her 80s! Pretty novel then, very novel today.

The show kind of holds up, it is funny in a mild way, but Gale Storm really was a sort of poor man's Lucy, and she really is the reason to watch this show, both then and now.

That show ended, and like today, when stars of successful TV shows move onto another show, Storm did too.

Years before "The Love Boat," there was "Oh Susanna," which was alternately known as "The Gale Storm Show," and I found that one too.

It is about Storm, who plays the social director of an ocean liner who often butts heads with the captain, played by erstwhile character actor Roy Roberts. Classic actress ZaSu Pitts is along for the ride, and while this show is a bit more abrasive than "My Little Margie," it is really run, cementing storm as an early, and pretty much forgotten, TV star.

After having seen these episodes, I figured I would try to hit the real jackpot, and look for some TV shows where Lou Costello appeared as a solo without Bud Abbott.

Abbott and Costello had broken up by the late 1950s, and Costello was carving himself out a solo career as mainly a comedic actor. He appeared on several TV shows, including "Wagon Train," and was set to play Fiorello LaGuardia on Broadway when he died in 1959. Tom Bosley took over that role, and became a star doing it.

Anyway, I found one of Costello's solo performances on "The General Electric Theater" hosted by Ronald Reagan. It was a slight comedy called "Blaze of Glory" about a plumber (Costello) who is unwittingly (to him) hired by the mob to get stolen jewels that are stuck in a hotel room's sink.

Leading the thugs is Jonathan Harris, who went on to play Dr. Smith in "Lost in Space."

Costello really does a good job here with some thin material, and everything works out for him in the end, but I was quite impressed with his performance. I had never seen this before, so I really hit the jackpot with this show.

I have to say, while not everything is on YouTube, there are some very, very interesting things, like the shows I just described.

And yes, when there is nothing on TV again--and invariably, that situation will happen again--I will turn to YouTube, and search out such interesting pieces of a different time and place.

If you have a chance, check this stuff out. I think you might be pleasantly surprised.

I will be taking the day off tomorrow to attend to some personal business. See you again on Thursday.

(For some reason, Google is not allowing me to add these videos to my entry. In lieu of that, simply go onto YouTube and search for the three shows that I mentioned. I am sure you will find a treasure trove of material, just like I did.)