Several complete editions of classic TV shows have been (re-)released on home video this month: Leave It To Beaver on DVD and the Japanese cult classic Ultraman on Blu-Ray. Coming in November: Charlie’s Angels on Blu-Ray. Order below and help support ClassicTVBlog.com!
Tag Archives: Crime Dramas
MeTV Adds Flintstones, Barnaby Jones in September
Classic TV diginet MeTV is bringing the classic 1960s animated comedy The Flintstones back to broadcast television.
MeTV will air back-to-back episodes of the stone-age sitcom from 6-7PM Eastern starting September 30, 59 years to the day of it’s original ABC primetime premiere in 1960.
Other additions to the MeTV fall schedule include the Buddy Ebsen detective series Barnaby Jones, Bat Masterson, Carol Burnett & Friends, Highway Patrol and the original Twilight Zone.
Departing the schedule are The Carol Burnett Show, Mama’s Family, Night Gallery, The New Twilight Zone and the MeTV original series Collector’s Call.
Please note the schedule below is effective September 2 and does not include The Flintstones, which won’t premiere until September 30. We’ll keep you posted of any additional changes.
MeTV Fall 2019 ScheduleDVD Deal of the Week: Mannix
For 8 seasons between 1967 and 1975, private investigator Joe Mannix was shot, beaten and knocked unconscious over and over again. Yet he always survived and beat the bad guys!
Mike Connors starred as Mannix, aided by his loyal secretary Peggy Fair (Gail Fisher). Notable recurring characters were played by Joseph Campanella, Robert Reed (The Defenders, The Brady Bunch) and Larry Linville (M*A*S*H). Guest stars included Norman Alden, Hugh Beaumont, Victor French, Beverly Garland, John Hellerman, J. Pat O’Malley, John Randolph, Marion Ross, Loretta Swit, John Vernon, Jessica Walter, Fritz Weaver and William Windom.
Mannix has the distinction of being the last TV series produced by the DESI Arnaz/LUcille Ball production company Desilu. The company also created such hits as I Love Lucy, Star Trek and The Untouchables.
This week you can own the complete collection of Mannix on DVD, all 194 episodes on 48 DVDs, for just $119.99. That’s a 68% discount over the $374.99 list price.
Book ‘Em Danno!
Amazon has a great deal this week on Hawaii Five-0: The Complete Series
This box set includes 283 episodes on 72 DVDs. According to the reviews on Amazon, there is one episode missing from the second season.
The episode in question is called “Bored, She Hung Herself.” Apparently someone reenacted what they saw and died, hence the show has never aired in syndication or home video. Kinda strange they would pull the episode, given all the violence on TV and movies these days.
Since there is one episode missing, we’ll call this Hawaii Five-0: The ALMOST Complete Series. Still a great show…enjoy!
Classic TV Shows on Hulu
Although I no longer subscribe to Hulu Plus, the online streaming service has an impressive selection of classic TV series in their library.
There are actually two Hulus, the original Hulu online and Hulu Plus. The latter is a subscription streaming service which costs the same as Netflix, $7.99 a month. The difference is Hulu Plus carries programming with “limited commercial interruptions.”
The commercials are kind of annoying for a pay service, but their classic TV library is pretty vast. Many shows are limited, however, so you may only see a season or two.
I spent a lot of time searching the Hulu site for classic TV shows (1950s-1960s-1970s) and put together the following list organized by category. Please note that not all series may be available on Plus. This list was researched in mid-January 2014 and is subject to change:
Adventure/Crime Drama
Adam-12, The Adventures of Black Beauty, The Adventures of Robin Hood, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, The Avengers, The Buccaneers, Dangerous Assignment, Dragnet, Ellery Queen, Flipper, Highway Patrol, I Spy, Ironside, It Takes A Thief, Kojak, Man with a Camera, Movin’ On, Naked City, Peter Gunn, The Rockford Files, Route 66, Sea Hunt
British
I Claudius, UFO, Yes Prime Minister
Cartoons/Kids
The Adventures of Flash Gordon, The Archies, Archie’s Funhouse, Dick Tracy, Dudley Do-Right, The Electric Company, Fat Albert & The Cosby Kids, Felix The Cat, Fireball XL-5, Fractured Fairy Tales, Godzilla, Gumby, The Jackson 5ive, Jason of Star Command, Johnny Soko & His Flying Robot, Lancelot Link Secret Chimp, The Mr. Magoo Show, The New Three Stooges, Popeye the Sailor, Return to the Planet of The Apes, Rocky & Bullwinkle & Friends, The Secrets of Isis, The Soupy Sales Show, Speed Racer, Supercar
Comedies
The Abbott & Costello Show, All In The Family, The Andy Griffith Show, Barney Miller, Bewitched, The Bob Newhart Show, Buster Keaton (Short Films), Date With The Angels, Dennis The Menace, The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Donna Reed Show, The Doris Day Show, Ernie Kovacs, Father Knows Best, Good Times, Green Acres, Here’s Lucy, I Dream of Jeannie, I Love Lucy, Laurel & Hardy (Lost Films), The Lucy Show, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, McHale’s Navy, Mister Ed, The Mothers-in-Law, My Favorite Martian, My Living Doll, My Mother The Car, Nanny and the Professor, Rhoda, Sanford and Son, The Three Stooges, WKRP in Cincinnati
Dramas
Lassie, Studio One, The White Shadow
Game Shows
You Bet Your Life
Science Fiction/Dramas
Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Battlestar Galactica, Dark Shadows, Flash Gordon, The Incredible Hulk, Land of the Giants, Lost In Space, Night Gallery, One Step Beyond, The Outer Limits, Space: 1999, Star Trek, Tales of Tomorrow, The Time Tunnel, The Twilight Zone, Voyage To The Bottom of the Sea
Variety
The Colgate Comedy Hour, The Ed Sullivan Show, The Lawrence Welk Show
Westerns
Alias Smith and Jones, The Big Valley, Bonanza, The Cisco Kid, The Lone Ranger, The Rifleman, The Roy Rogers Show
If you like classic TV and don’t mind watching on your PC, check out all the free shows on Hulu. If you’d rather watch on your TV, get a Roku or other streaming box and subscribe to Hulu Plus.
Classic TV Shows on Netflix
I’ve had Netflix for several years now and L-O-V-E it! 8 bucks a month and you can stream on multiple devices…what a bargain!
I currently have it set up on 3 Roku boxes, my desktop PC and my Kindle Fire.
Being a self-confessed classic TV junkie, I’m not very interested in movies. Netflix does have a nice selection of classic series and that’s what keeps me hooked.
Although I couldn’t found a simple directory of all classic TV shows in their library, I did some manual searching and came up with my own list of classic TV (1950s-1960s-1970s) on Netflix (as of January 2014):
Adventure/Crime Drama
Adam-12, Columbo, Dragnet, Emergency!, Hawaii Five-O, McMillan & Wife, Mission: Impossible, Quincy M.E., The Rockford Files
British
All Creatures Great and Small, Classic Doctor Who, Fawlty Towers, Upstairs Downstairs
Cartoons
Felix The Cat, Star Trek: The Animated Series
Comedies
The Andy Griffith Show, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Leave It To Beaver, The Munsters
Science Fiction/Mysteries
Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Battlestar Galactica, Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, The Incredible Hulk, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Star Trek, The Twilight Zone
Keep in mind programming on Netflix comes and goes, so series may disappear and reappear from your queue. Still, for only $8 a month I can’t complain. I was even able to use my USA Netflix account when I visited Finland last year…not as big of a selection but it works for me 🙂