Blog Archives
Bizarre Video of the Day: “The New Monkees”
Posted by Allison Lips
In the 1980s, MTV wanted to recapture the magic that was The Monkees, which the network was rerunning at the time, so they created New Monkees. Brian Boone over at Splitsider wrote an excellent article about why the show didn’t work. Here is the opening of the show, which for some reason features an imitation of the Rocky Horror lips, and the video to New Monkees’ single “What I Want.”
If I can find a full episode, I will review the show.
Posted in Cable, Cool TV Video of The Day, MTV, Music, Syndication
Tags: 1980s, band, mtv, music, music video, new monkees, the monkees, the new monkees
Top 5 Holiday TV Favorites
Posted by Allison Lips
Christmas Day is filled with marathons of A Christmas Story and It’s a Wonderful Life, which gets old fast. Instead of sitting back and watching the same movie over and over again, take a look at What! What’s a Dial?‘s Top 5 Holiday Favorites.
5. Letterman Quarterback Challenge
In 1998, David Letterman and Jets quarterback Vinny Testaverde tossed footballs at a meatball placed on top of the Late Show Christmas tree. Testaverde was unable to knock the football off. However, comedian Jay Thomas came from the green room and knocked the football off in one shot. This led to the tradition of Jay Thomas going on the Late Show and telling the story of his encounter with the Lone Ranger, which always precedes the annual Quarterback Challenge.
Posted in CBS, Christmas Specials, Classic Television, Comedy, Hanukkah Specials, Holidays, NBC, Network Television, Primetime, Syndication
Tags: cbs, christmas, christmas shopping, classics, david letterman, friends, hanukkah, hanukkah armadillo, holiday favorites, jack benny, late show, nbc, quarterback challenge, specials, the monkees, the nanny
Cool TV Video of the Day: Hey, Hey, They’re the Grungies
Posted by Allison Lips
The Monkees were huge in the mid-1960s. For two years, they had the number one show in the country and kept topping the music charts. After, the television show came to an end the popularity of the band quickly declined. Over the course of 3 years, Davy Jones, Mickey Dolenz, Peter Tork, and Michael Nesmith disbanded. However, The Monkees regained popularity in the mid-80s because of constant replaying on MTV and Nickelodeon. A few years later, The Ben Stiller Show would combine The Monkees’ newly found pop culture relevance with the Seattle sound. This brilliant parody of The Monkees and grunge even has an appearance from Mickey Dolenz.
Wait! What's A Dial? 