Latest News from The Interviews

"A-Team" Hits Theaters & DVD Shelves This Week

 Thu, 06/10/2010 It's A-Team week, with the complete season now out on DVD and the feature film coming out tomorrow. The original series found the team of freelance soldiers-of-fortune succeeding in mission after mission from 1983-87 and landing in the top ten of the year-end Nielsens for its first two seasons. Series creator Stephen J. Cannel talks about the genesis of The A-Team , from a seed idea of NBC executive Brandon Tartikoff in his Archive of American Television interview (see The A-Team under "shows...

Happy 100th Arthur Gardner!

 Mon, 06/07/2010 Noted producer Arthur Gardner ( Rawhide , The Big Valley ) turns 100 years old today. He becomes the Archive of American Television's first interviewee centenarian. Arthur Gardner's full Archive interview is currently posted on the emmytvlegends.org. In this segment from his interview, Gardner talks about working with his producing partners Jules V. Levy and Arnold Laven (Levy-Gardner-Laven Productions) and with the stars of two of his most successful TV series: Chuck Connors ( The Rifleman )...

Rue McClanahan, The Golden Girls' "Blanche" & Maude's Best Friend "Viv," Has Died

 Thu, 06/03/2010 Rue McClanahan's forty year TV career began with a regular role on soap opera Another World and guest roles on such series as All in the Family and Mannix . She's best known for her work on the series Maude , Mama's Family , and The Golden Girls . She won the Emmy Award in 1987 for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for her role as "Blanche Devereaux" on The Golden Girls . Click here for Rue McClanahan's entire May 4, 2006 Archive of American Television interview. Interview Description...

"The Adventures of Robin Hood" -- Classic 1950s TV, served Blacklisted Writers

 Wed, 05/26/2010 With a new Robin Hood in theaters, the Archive has created a show page for the classic 1950s TV series The Adventures of Robin Hood . Produced in England, the series ran on CBS from 1955 to 1958 and starred Richard Greene in the title role. Harry and Wally's Favorite TV Shows describes the series as "a well-done staging of the familiar swashbuckling tale, with excellent performances from the central cast, an authentic setting, good guest stars, and reasonably clever plots [with] Richard Greene...

Art Linkletter, TV Legend and "Pied Piper to Kids" Has Died

 Wed, 05/26/2010 Art Linkletter became a television icon in the 1950s, for his famed interactions interviewing children, and as the host of a string of successful series including Art Linkletter's House Party and People Are Funny . Linkletter has died at the age of 97. Art Linkletter was interviewed by the Archive of American Television on September 15, 1997; his full interview can be viewed at emmytvlegends.org. Interview Description: Art Linkletter discusses his early years in radio and his business...

"The Virginian" Season One on DVD

 Mon, 05/24/2010 The Virginian was one of the last of the early classic adult TV westerns. Airing from 1962-71, the epic 90-minutes-per-episode color series starred James Drury as the mysterious defender of law and order. Although Variety 's review of the series opener was unenthusiastic at best, particularly in regard to lead Drury ("If Drury didn't hurt, he certainly didn't help"), The Virginian became the third longest-running western series of all-time and peaked at #10 in the year-end Nielsen ratings in...

Bob Newhart Has a Dream: 20 Years Ago Today

 Fri, 05/21/2010 Considered one of the finest moments in scripted TV history, Newhart ended its eight season run with a brilliant TV in-joke. TV Land to Go: The Big Book of TV Lists, TV Lore, and TV Bests by Tom Hill describes the episode as "a bizarre final chapter in the strange tale of Bob's life in Vermont, and an ending that immediately became a television legend." The Archive of American Television celebrates the 20th anniversary of the Newhart finale two ways. Tune in tonight to the CBS Evening News with...

"Law & Order" Ends its Long Run on May 24

 Mon, 05/17/2010 NBC announced last week that Law & Order will end its 20-year run this season. Law & Order is the longest running crime drama on American prime time television and is tied with Gunsmoke for longest-running drama series. (Technically, Law & Order [Sept. 13, 1990 to May 24, 2010] outdistanced Gunsmoke [Sept 10, 1955 - March 31, 1975].) Created by Dick Wolf , the series is known for its two-part narrative approach: in the first half-hour, the criminal investigation and in the second...