Wednesday Trivia Question

What was the name of the tap-dancing horse on the BOOKWORM BUNCH?

BOOKWORM BUNCH was a programming block aimed at preschoolers which ran on PBS Kids in the early 2000s. The series featured shows based on books and included MAX SHRINKS, SEVEN LITTLE MONSTERS, CORDUROY, TIMOTHY GOES TO SCHOOL, ELLIOT MOOSE and the series which featured a titular tap-dancing horse.

The show was co-produced by Nelvana and PBS Kids and created by Michael and Betty Paraskevas. It originally ran from 2000 to 2002 and followed a dancing horse with a black mane and a tail who performed in Fast-Talking Jack’s carnival. The horse, who used to be in film and on Broadway, had tuxedo-themed hooves that made tapping sounds. He also wore a red bowtie. Other characters included a pink elephant named Diamonds, Elizabeth the Emotional Pig, Stripes the Tiger and Eddy Largo, a 9-year-old boy who works as a gofer.

So what was the horse’s name? Who was the tap-dancing horse seen on the BOOKWORM BUNCH?

Where Do I Know That Actor?

As regular viewers know, January brings new drama to Sunday nights. This year, we’ve been treated to new seasons of MISS SCARLET & THE DUKE and ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL. But at 10pm, there’s FUNNY WOMAN, a new program starring Gemma Arterton.

Based on the novel Funny Girl by Nick Hornby and set in the Swinging Sixties, FUNNY WOMAN chronicles a woman’s struggle to find her voice in the male-dominated world of comedy. The series aired on Britain’s Sky Max early last year and runs on PBS through February 11.

But who’s who? Where have you spied the familiar faces among the cast? That’s what we’re here to find out…

Gemma Arterton stars as Blackpool beauty queen Barbara Parker who heads to London to take the entertainment industry by storm. About 15 years back, Arterton starred as Tess Durbeyfield in Tess Of The D’urbervilles on Masterpiece. But that’s about it until now.

Monday Montage

What’s happening, what’s on and what’s interesting this week …

The United Kingdom comprises over 6,100 islands and rock formations. Scattered across the British coast, these areas are home to rich cultures, ancient history, unique wildlife and spectacular landscapes. Join Stewart McPherson for an exploration of BRITAIN’S SECRET ISLANDS – Tuesday night at 8:30 on the Explorer Channel.

Sir Ian McKellen (Vicious) talks returning to Shakespeare’s Prince of Denmark at the age of 84.

Explore the life and legacy of one of the most significant African American leaders of the Reconstruction Era. Don’t miss GEORGE H. WHITE: SEARCHING FOR FREEDOM – Thursday at 10pm on PBS NC.

Hey, It’s Photo Friday!

Caught sight of these two Muppet pals huddled together down in our Rootle area. I’m sure Cookie Monster is supposed to be shouting “cookie!” but I swear it just look like he’s in utter shock at something. Saaaay, where’s that other hand, Big Bird?

Flashback: January 1992

Check out the cover of our January 1992 Monthly Program Guide, Centerpiece…

Sounds Familiar

“Who’s the dummy writing this show?” – J. Arthur Crank (Jim Boyd), THE ELECTRIC COMPANY

Wednesday Trivia Question

What current Oscar nominee aired on PBS?

As you may know, the nominations for the 96th Academy Awards were announced yesterday. I’m a cinephile as well as a lover of television, so I was anxiously waiting to see what films would be up for the golden statuette. And I always keep an eye out for PBS links. No big connections in the acting categories, aside from the wonderful Carey Mulligan who has appeared in a DOCTOR WHO episode (the now classic “Blink”), a MARPLE and a few MASTERPIECE presentations (“Northanger Abbey” and “The Amazing Mrs. Pritchard” and “Bleak House”). But I did notice a familiar name among the nominees as one of the films has already aired on PBS.

Of course, it aired under the banner of a regular series and was featured last fall as a single episode of that long-running program. I don’t want to give too much away. If you’re a regular viewer, you may have watched it or seen it promoted on our airwaves. Even if you missed it, you’ll likely be able to narrow it down given the criteria. Regardless, this is a big honor for public television and I know which nominee I’m pulling for in that particular category.

So what film is it? What current Academy Award nominee has already aired on PBS?

My Top Five: Monty Python Names

MONTY PYTHON’S FLYING CIRCUS is, of course, a groundbreaking sketch comedy series that has entertained and influenced generations. It aired on the BBC from 1969 to 1974 and crossed the Atlantic to the US shortly thereafter. Many PBS stations carried the series in that time frame or have since. I’ve been a fan since I first saw it in the late 1970s (ironically, NOT on a public television station) and have watched, rewatched and memorized jokes, bits and sketches for decades.

One of things I love about the show is that characters are often given humorous names. Sometimes the names are not even referenced on the program but are only seen in the scripts. Like any good Python fan, I purchased THE COMPLETE MONTY PYTHON’S FLYING CIRCUS: ALL THE WORDS, a two-part collection of the series’ scripts, when it was published in 1989, so I often see these names written down.

So I thought, “What are my favorite Monty Python character names?” Which ones do I think are clever, feel were perfectly used for the sketch or just laugh at when I hear them? I was a hard task to pick a handful but I was up to it.

Thus, here they are: MY TOP FIVE MONTY PYTHON NAMES. Straight from the original series so no movies or ancillary projects. And as always these are my personal choices, reflecting nothing other than my own interests.

5) Norman St John Pole-Vaulter. He’s the man who likes to contradict people. Played by Terry Jones, he was interviewed in the 22nd episode by Michael Palin with a fake hand.

Monday Montage

What’s happening, what’s on and what’s interesting this week …

From impressive engineering to global supremacy, the years of Queen Victoria’s reign are often seen as a high point in British history. Examine Victorian Britain from the perspective of different regions throughout the nation as historian Dr. Onyeka Nubia hosts WALKING VICTORIAN ENGLAND – Tuesday night at 7 on the Explorer Channel.

Lesley Manville (Magpie Murders) and Mark Strong (Anna Karenina) will star in a West End revival of Oedipus this fall at the Wyndham Theatre.

Follow artist Victoria Milstein as she creates North Carolina’s first monument dedicated to the women and the children of the Holocaust in Greensboro. Don’t miss SHE WOULDN’T TAKE OFF HER BOOTS – Thursday at 10pm on PBS NC.

Hey, It’s Photo Friday!

Today’s broadcast world is digital. Ones and zeros, that’s all your TV shows are, whether you view them online or over the airwaves. But in a time not so long ago, in the pre-digital world, videotape was the primary method of transmission. And sometimes slides. Yes, slides. Not the fun playground type but the photographic kind. Basically, a slide is a color transparency in a plastic frame. You may had had to sit through a slide show of someone’s vacation photos so that’s the stuff we’re talking about.

Back in the day, as late as the 1990s, we ran funding credits from slides. So when you watched a show and saw a still picture of the show’s underwriter, that credit was broadcast from a slide with a pre-recorded audio cart to provide the voiceover (“The MacNeil/Lehrer Report is brought to you by…”). We also utilized slides as backup for programs in the event of technical difficulties. So let’s say an episode of AMERICAN PLAYHOUSE was running and the tape broke or the satellite feed was lost then the master control operator could pull up the show’s title slide while the problem got sorted.

That’s dozens of slides needed for a daily roster of programming equaling hundreds of slides total that we had to keep track of and supply for broadcast. Eventually underwriting credits went to tape and then all broadcasting went digital so the slides got sidelined. However, they didn’t get trashed as I saved notebooks of them for posterity. Here’s some shots of the notebooks and some individual slides we once used on a regular basis…

One of the notebooks which holds dozens of slides.

A closer look. You can see each slide is numbered for quick identification.