Car 54, Where Are You? (1961-1963)

I watched reruns of this show with my late dad when I was a toddler.  The only thing I remembered were a tall cop and his partner, a short cop who was always going, "Ooh, ooh!"  A local station has recently rerun this sitcom again, which is sort of a cult classic, and I've reacquainted myself with it.  The plots follow the antics of a Mutt and Jeff pair of New York City cops: quiet bachelor Francis Muldoon (Fred Gwynne) and stocky, married man Gunther Toody (Joe E. Ross).  Between the two, Toody was more of a dim bulb, and a source of frustration to the cops' boss, Captain Block (Paul Reed).  Toody's wife Lucille (Beatrice Pons) was often irritated by her husband as well. 

This slice of craziness was created by Nat Hiken, who was also responsible for "Sgt. Bilko/The Phil Silvers Show" (1955-1959).  The plots were full of misunderstandings and general nuttiness, populated by a gang of quirky characters including sarcastic cop Schnauser (Al Lewis) and his batty wife Sylvia (Charlotte Rae), and Toody's chauvinistic brother-in-law Al (Carl Ballantine).  I also note this show for having semi-regular African-American characters, a rarity in that point in TV history, played by Frederick O'Neal, Ossie Davis, and Nipsey Russell. 

Gwynne and Lewis would appear together again on "The Munsters" (1964-1966).  Ms. Rae was the motherly Mrs. Garrett, first on "Different Strokes" (1978-1984), then later "The Facts of Life" (1979-1986).  Carl Ballantine was one of the military guys on "McHale's Navy" (1962-1966).

The Wiz (1978)

The all African-American musical version of The Wizard Of Oz starred Diana Ross as Dorothy. I remember there were a lot of complaints about Ms. Ross being cast over Stephanie Mills, the singer/actress who originated the role on stage. There was also flak over Ms. Ross playing a twenty-something when, in real life, she was much older. Unfortunately, Ms. Mills was not the big name, and Ms. Ross was.

The plot is essentially the same: girl and dog get swept into a strange world, and travels a road with some colorful characters to find a powerful wizard who can help her get home. There are some grand movie musical moments: The Scarecrow (Michael Jackson) and Dorothy dancing down the yellow brick road singing "Ease On Down The Road"; the Emerald City's residents changing the color of the moment at the Wizard's (Richard Pryor) whim; a jubilee dance after the Wicked Witch (Mabel King) has been defeated. Very colorful film.

The late Nipsey Russell was The Tin Man, Ted Ross was The Cowardly Lion. Quincy Jones appears as a piano player in one scene, and if you listen closely, you can hear the late Luther Vandross singing during "Can You Feel A Brand New Day". The late Mabel King was Roger and Dee's mom on the 1970's sitcom, "What's Happening?"