Caroline's Comedy Hour: Tom Kenny

His then future claim to fame

Caroline's Comedy Hour: Tom Kenny
A & E
The first half of 1994
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
B-

Kenny riffs on everything from Barney to the Bobbitts (who made the news in June of '93 but would inspire tasteless jokes for months and years) to the Taster's Choice couple.  Not every joke hits but he's generally funny in his hyper, pop-culture way.  (I can't think of anyone else who invoked "an island of Charles Nelson Reillys" when the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" gays in the military controversy came along.)

Tom Kenny: Insurance

Tom Kenny: Insurance
Comedy Central
1992 or 1993
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
C+

The Met Life stuff is pretty good, but out of context (from The A-List) the self-crotch-grabbing section feels pretty random.

Whose Line Is It Anyway?: Episode 6.4

Whose Line Is It Anyway?: Episode 6.4
Channel Four
22 July 1994
Improv Game Show
VHS
C+

Not everything works here, but I like the line-up and the Bartender is great, from Ryan and Tony's problems (his wardrobe and being in love with an inflatable pig) to the reactions of the contestants and Clive.  Also, notice how the suggestion of "Richard Nixon back from the dead" (Nixon died the previous April) is incorporated by Greg into Superheroes, after he and Clive clash over two other suggestions.

Whose Line Is It Anyway?: Episode 6.3

Tony tries in Party Quirks.

Whose Line Is It Anyway?: Episode 6.3
Channel Four
15 July 1994
Improv Game Show
VHS
C

I might've gone with a C+, but I'm already tired of this line-up, and the Vasectomy Hoedown and Ryan & Colin's funhouse mirrors credit-reading sealed the C.  And if they're already repeating themselves in Song Title ("Where Have All the Flowers Gone?" "Oklahoma"), then it's a sign that either the games and/or the contestants need to be varied more.  The highlight is of course Tony, after Clive tells him how terrible his Party Quirks hosting was, saying a [bleeped out by Comedy Central] F-word.

Whose Line Is It Anyway?: Episode 6.2

Whose Line Is It Anyway?: Episode 6.2
Channel Four
8 July 1994
Improv Game Show
VHS
C+

While this isn't as memorable, Kitty Litter Duet aside, as the '93 version of this line-up, it is still nice to see the chemistry, platonic and not, still strong among this foursome.  (And Greg and Clive still bickering of course.)  If I had to pick a favorite game, it would be Funeral, dirge and all.  Note that I believe that, while this aired in July in the UK (and later that summer on Comedy Central), it was probably taped before O.J. Simpson's Bronco chase on June 17th, since there's little crowd reaction to the passing reference to Simpson in Greg & Mike's FATS.

This is the 2400th TV show I've reviewed.  Yes, we will hit 2500.

Whose Line Is It Anyway?: Episode 6.1

Trying hard, but without much of a result

Whose Line Is It Anyway?: Episode 6.1
Channel Four
1 July 1994
Improv Game Show
VHS
C

A new series and new credits, now red & white, very simple cartoon figures.  Some of the games are new, too, but the line-up is stale (and would be repeated twice more that year), as are some of the jokes, like in the Nativity Play in FATS.

Saturday Night Live: Dexys Midnight Runners, "Celtic Soul Brothers"

Saturday Night Live: Dexys Midnight Runners, "Celtic Soul Brothers"
NBC
May 14, 1983
Variety
VHS
B

Wow, I'm not even sure I knew this was tucked away on a tape my by-then ex-husband made for me of 1994 Whose Line Is It Anyway? episodes, the summer after our divorce.  In any case, there's nothing visually dazzling here, just a plain, hard-rocking bunch of "Celtic Soul Brothers" doing one of their best songs.  ("Come On Eileen" being the main fave, and we'll get to that later.)  It looks like the ex taped it during an Eddie Murphy marathon on Comedy Central and it was a delight to watch it again, probably for the first time in over twenty years.

These Friends of Mine: The Houseguest

These Friends of Mine: The Houseguest
ABC
May 24, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
C+

I feel like this Bell & Rosenthal story doesn't really work, although it has good moments, like Ellen and company coming back with new hairdos after attending the filming of a Tina Yothers hair-care infomercial.  Ellen wants to make her younger cousin's visit to L.A. fun, but everything goes wrong, including the cousin running off with tough-guy author Nestor Biggs (Dennis Burkley, who played Pee Wee on Who's the Boss?).

Christopher Darga, who was a House Buyer on Roseanne the previous year, is the Officer here.  John Bowab, who directed one episode of Soap, two of Bosom Buddies, and two of Who's the Boss?, stays true to form and directs his only episode of this series.

Roseanne: Altar Egos

Roseanne: Altar Egos
ABC
May 24, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B

This Ulin & Gilliland story is a fine season-closer.  Fred is convinced that Jackie has a crush on Dan and so he drunkenly punches Dan.  Dan believes it himself, not without cause.  (There are hints throughout the series, especially the episode where she played mom while Roseanne was away, and Barr and Metcalf have both confessed multiple times to crushes on Goodman.)  Roseanne resolves things as if she's still taking One Life to Live to heart.  It's fun to see the four adults play off each other, in pairs and threes.  The "kids" have less to do, although Darlene does get the outrageous last line, which is actually what I remember most about this episode.  (But then I'd forgotten about Fred shaving in the previous episode.  At least Adam Green would rock the goatee awhile longer.)  This is the first of twenty-two episodes that Mark K. Samuels would direct, but mostly late in the series.  And I'm again omitting Michael Fishman from the overcrowded credits.

Roseanne in Season Six ranges from C+ to B+, but two-thirds are B's and the average is B.  The addition of Sarah Chalke and the reduction of Sarah Gilbert's role hasn't so far significantly harmed the series.  As this episode shows, adding Michael O'Keefe provides a middle-aged set of two couples, sometimes in contrast to the two young couples.  Even little D.J. is growing up.  We are, however, about to enter the last third of the series and the beginning of the decline.  I recall it as gentle at first, but Season Seven will have some red flags.

Roseanne: Isn't It Romantic?

Roseanne: Isn't It Romantic?
ABC
May 17, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B-

This episode, with a story by Perry Dance, who'd do one more, and Timothy Schlattmann, who's known for Dexter rather than sitcoms, and a teleplay by Leif Sandaas (his first of four Roseanne stories) and Cynthia Hogle (absolutely no other IMDB credits), feels a little forced.  While it's interesting to see comparisons and contrasts between the various couples, and the One Life to Live homage isn't bad (I assume, I haven't watched OLtL in almost 40 years), it doesn't all hang together that well.  It's surprising, considering that Mancuso is back as director.  But oh well.  And, yes, note the irony that Darlene at this point emphatically doesn't want kids.

This is the 1300th ABC show I've reviewed, with many more to come.

Roseanne: Body by Jake

Roseanne: Body by Jake
ABC
May 10, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
C+

I don't know if it's Mackenzie's direction or the script by David Forbes, but this episode feels off, despite its potential.  Bev fractures her pelvis and it turns out that, one, it was by falling off the bed while having sex with Jake, and two, she's never enjoyed sex.  Meanwhile, Fred confides in Dan and for some reason Mark that he wants to propose to Jackie, but he instead suggests they live together.  The scene where Fred tells off and humiliates Bev is one that I remember at the time finding less funny than shrill on her part and cruel on his.  The tag is tone-deaf, going for shock value and throwing character and plausibility out the window, when Bev walks into her living room in a dominatrix outfit.  Still, there are moments, especially with Roseanne's reactions, that work very well, and this is certainly not Season Nine or even Season Two's murder-musical bad.

Louisa Abernathy had also been a Nurse on the show four years earlier.

These Friends of Mine: The Go-Between

These Friends of Mine: The Go-Between
ABC
May 4, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B-

In this Mark Wilding story, Ellen convinces Adam to take her boss, Susan (Cristine Rose again), to Susan's ex-husband's wedding.  (And, yes, Susan had a baby fairly recently, but obviously TFoM chronology is screwy.)  Ellen just wants to cheer Susan up, but things become awkward when Adam and Susan have sex, three times in one night.  Don't ask me how Ellen didn't overhear them; maybe she just got home really late.  Ellen's failure to launch the concept of "TGITWE" (Thank God It's The Week End) is what I remember most about this episode, although I will note it was a little surprising to hear a trans (female-to-male) joke about an unseen character.

Roseanne: I Pray the Lord My Stove to Keep

Roseanne: I Pray the Lord My Stove to Keep
ABC
May 3, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B

Pat Bullard wrote this episode with Kevin Abbott and plays Deliveryman #1, as an appliance company keeps accidentally delivering stoves to the Lunch Box.  Meanwhile, D.J. claims he's hanging out with his boring friend George (Joseph Gordon-Levitt again), but he's actually going to church every day.  The Conners do their best to deal with this change, and David offers to give up the nose-ring that Darlene talked him into.

Another Zappa kid appears in this episode: Dweezil as a guitarist in the tag.

These Friends of Mine: The Hand That Robs the Cradle

These Friends of Mine: The Hand That Robs the Cradle
ABC
April 27, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B

Mark Driscoll's first of ten scripts for the series makes an interesting contrast with the Bob Newhart Show episode called "The Modernization of Emily" (http://reviewingeverytvshowiown.blogspot.com/2016/03/the-bob-newhart-show-modernization-of.html), from two decades earlier.  Like Emily, Ellen is in her early 30s (32 in her case, vague in Emily's) and starting to feel no longer young.  With Emily, it's meeting a grown-up former student, while here it's Ellen dating a man who turns out to be 24.  Both women choose "hip" clothing to rejuvenate, but on BNS we just see Emily come in in the outfit, while here we get to go with Ellen on her shopping excursion.  In both cases, I don't think the outfits are that bad, but I can see why the friends react negatively.  The writing on BNS was sharper of course, but there are some good moments here, and it's cool to see Ellen do one of the things she'd become best known for on her talk show: be a dancin' fool.  Also, the slang here, like "phat" and "stoopid," is now as delightfully dated as Emily's mid-'70s attempts.

Eve Brent, who was Ms. Clover on Who's the Boss?, at 64 plays the Lovely Old Woman.  Daniel Edward Mora, who previously was a generic Deliveryman, here is the Water Delivery Man.

These Friends of Mine: The Promotion

These Friends of Mine: The Promotion
ABC
April 20, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
C+

David S. Rosenthal wrote this convoluted story which starts promisingly with Ellen's mother, Lois (Alice Hirson in her first appearance) advising Ellen to buy a baby gift for her boss, Susan (Cristine Rose, also in her first appearance).  But somehow this leads to Ellen being blackmailed by the Mexican nanny, who goes out with Adam and then gets Ellen and friends to bring her sons across the border, but Ellen gets arrested for importing art for Holly and Anita.  And, yes, Ellen's mother asking about her love life is even more awkward in retrospect.

Rosie Taravella, who was in all three parts of the Who's the Boss? finale, here plays a Clerk.

These Friends of Mine: The Class Reunion

These Friends of Mine: The Class Reunion
ABC
April 13, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B-

While there are things I like about this episode, Mark Wilding's first of three, like the use of period (ca. 1979) music, and Ellen and Adam pretending to be a married couple and doing fake laughter, it does feel off to me.  For instance, while there's some humor to Ellen's classmate Holly being jealous of Anita (who didn't go to their high school) being the belle of the ball, I kept waiting for some kind of confrontation, or at least line, resolving it.  Also, the actor playing Ellen's old crush comes across as a little creepy, so resolving that thread by having Adam and Rick (Greg Germann again) ruin the romance doesn't seem right.  Note that the episode's use of the word "bi" (in a throwaway line about a character we'll never see again) is a relatively early one for television, and not the last for the series.

Michael Chieffo, who was the Two of Spades in the 1985 Alice in Wonderland TV-movie, plays Ellen's classmate who's a Bank VP.  Brenda Varda, who played Lizzie on Who's the Boss?, here is Ellen's lawyer classmate.

These Friends of Mine: A Kiss Is Still a Kiss

These Friends of Mine: A Kiss Is Still a Kiss
ABC
April 6, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B-

Suzanne Martin's first of five Ellen stories has Ellen, Adam, and Holly answering personal ads, with mixed results.  This is as good a place as any to note how accelerated relationships feel on this show, with people (in their 30s) referring to "boyfriends and girlfriends" after a matter of weeks or even days.  I don't know if that's a '90s thing or a television thing.  Also, we learn that platonic roommates Ellen and Adam had one date and she claims to have forgotten they kissed.

Tracy Tweed, who plays Tara, was Girl #2 on Who's the Boss? a couple years earlier.  Daniel Edward Mora would again play a Deliveryman this season.  This is the first episode shown, but not taped, with David Higgins as snarky "brewmaster" Joe Farrell, and, yes, by this point in filming, Maggie Wheeler had left the series.  This is the first to air of the five TFoM episodes directed by Andrew S. Weyman, who had done most of the Season Four and Season Five episodes of Roseanne.

These Friends of Mine: The Anchor

These Friends of Mine: The Anchor
ABC
March 30, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B

Although this was the second TFoM episode to air, and the first in the regular slot on Wednesdays, it was actually the fifth shot, and indeed the TFoM/Ellen air-date order would be drastically different than the production order.  In any case, this episode, written by David S. Rosenthal, is interesting, and funny in its own right, as it introduces Ellen's annoying friend Audrey Penney, played perfectly by Clea Lewis.  Oddly enough, her character is originally overly negative, while later she would be unbelievably upbeat.  Ellen accidentally offends her through call-waiting, and there are some nice visual gags with split screens.  Meanwhile, Holly stuffs her bra to make a point and then wonders if her new boyfriend will accept her "breast reduction."  And, yes, the references to puppies would later become ironic.

This was the first episode where Ellen's weird neighbor Rick, played by Greg Germann, appeared.  Rob Schiller directed this and four other early episodes.

These Friends of Mine: Pilot

These Friends of Mine: Pilot
ABC
March 29, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B-

This aired as These Friends of Mine but is retroactively (including on the DVD set) seen as the first episode of Ellen.  Besides the Danzaly named Ellen Morgan, these friends are the also not creatively named Holly Fulger as Holly Jamison, Arye Gross as Adam Green (subtle, matching initials), and Maggie Wheeler as bizarrely Anita Warwheel.  Yes, it's the What's Happening!! syndrome.

Anyway, the thirtysomething singletons hang out and deal with important issues like unflattering DMV photos and dates who bark like Arsenio.  It's hard to believe that three or four seasons later this would be a controversial series.  And ironically, Ellen would have trouble getting an onscreen lesbian kiss past the censors, but they seem to have had no more problem with Holly heterosexually sleeping around than with Jackie Harris doing so on Roseanne.

William Bumiller, who was Derrick on Mork & Mindy, plays Roger.  Matt Landers, who was the Courier on a Night Court episode I reviewed, is the Photographer here.  Creators Carol Black, Neal Marlens, and David S. Rosenthal wrote this episode, and Marlens directed.  (Marlens also wrote a couple Three's Company episodes.)  Judging by the copyright date, this was made in '93 before it ended up as a mid-season replacement, debuting right after Roseanne in the Coach spot, before moving over to Wednesdays.

Roseanne: Lies My Father Told Me

Roseanne: Lies My Father Told Me
ABC
March 29, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B

While there are good things about this episode, whose story is by Rob Ulin and whose teleplay is by Eric Gilliland, I don't feel that the tonal shifts are as well handled as they would've been in Season Five or even Season Four, keeping this from a B+ or even A-.  At the end of the previous episode, Dan came home from committing his mother, Audrey, to a mental institution.  In this episode, he blames his father and even gets drunk so he can tell his dad off, but Ed isn't home, so Dan ends up wrecking the living room and scaring Crysal and Lonnie (Kristopher Kent Hill in his last appearance).  Crystal later tells Roseanne in an offscreen phone call that Audrey's mental issues predate her marriage.  It's difficult and painful for Dan to accept the truth, but he goes to talk to his father and they make up.  Unfortunately, this is the last we'll see of Ed, and I'm going to miss how Beatty and Goodman act so well together.  Meanwhile, the older kids' attempts to make D.J. think he's going crazy like Grandma Conner are funny, but I'm not sure how well they work as comic relief, coming across as overly tasteless under the circumstances.

I'm reluctantly omitting Estelle Parsons from the overcrowded tags.

Roseanne: Past Imperfect

Roseanne: Past Imperfect
ABC
March 22, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B

David Raether wrote this story where Fred finds out that Jackie has been with about 60 men, while Fred has been with three women (presumably counting Jackie).  He has trouble coping with it but Roseanne of course finds a way to make him accept it, by reminding him that he and Jackie are in love and had a baby together, and she lies and says that Jackie said he was the best.  On a personal note, I'll say that watching this as a 26-year-old who'd only kissed one guy besides my then about to be ex-husband was a very different experience than watching it in middle age.  (Although my total is still much closer to Fred's.)

The other thread is about Dan's father being late with an alimony payment and Dan confronting his dad (Ned Beatty's penultimate appearance in the role), before going to pay his mother the money himself.  It was weird to see Ed and Crystal again, because it feels like they belong to a completely different era of the show, and I wished that, as good as the Fred & Jackie plot was, that more time had been spent on this plot.  Still, the next episode will focus more on Dan's family.

Future Roseanne writer Bob Nickman here makes his first onscreen appearance, as the Waiter.

Roseanne: Labor Day

Roseanne: Labor Day
ABC
March 8, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B-

Miriam Trogdon wrote the teleplay based on a story by Rob Ulin.  Jackie goes into labor and much time is spent on who's going to be in the delivery room with her, Fred or Roseanne, before they're both allowed in.  In the credits, we see Metcalf with her real baby (whose father, Matt Roth, had played Fisher).

Jeannetta Arnette, probably best known for Head of the Class, was Detective Green on Three's Company and is the Nurse here.  Tom McTigue makes his second and understandably last appearance as Jackie's Doctor.

Roseanne: Don't Ask, Don't Tell

Roseanne: Don't Ask, Don't Tell
ABC
March 1, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B

Berg & Zimmerman wrote the teleplay based on Michael Borkow's story and it's worth remembering that this was at the time controversial and ground-breaking, simply because a lesbian kissed Roseanne, not with mouths visible to the audience and not reciprocally.  Watching it now, I think an off-the-cuff line (by Nancy) about a male "accountant with pierced nipples" is more shocking, as is Mark's line about Becky wanting to "ride" her ex, but it was the kiss that made this infamous.

Nancy has been dating her new girlfriend, a stripper named Sharon (Mariel Hemingway, who would return once more) for three months but has hesitated to introduce Roseanne and Jackie to her, very different from when she went out with Marla.  Roseanne (in a line I'm sure Barr loved delivering) points out that Nancy's girlfriends tend to be gorgeous blondes, while the boyfriends look like Arnie.  The four women go dancing at a gay bar, although Jackie, now in her ninth month of pregnancy is very uncomfortable.  Sharon gives Roseanne a friendly kiss, which Roseanne isn't sure how to deal with, partly because it makes her realize she's not as cool as she thinks she is.

As for Becky's ex, Dean Bates (David Allan Donah) returns and David tries to make Mark jealous for Becky's sake, but then it turns out that Dean is giving Darlene a lift back to Chicago.  Nothing more happens with this plot, not even a line pay-off in the tag or something.  My guess is that this episode went through many drafts, especially when there were ABC censors to placate and then defy, and some things got lost in the shuffle.  Still it's an interesting dynamic watching the two Healy-Conner couples together.

Lois Bromfield, who plays the Blonde Who Cruises Jackie, wrote five earlier episodes and played a different character.  Beautiful stand-up comic Laura Kightlinger has a nice little role as the Bartender but I don't have room for her in the tags.  This is the 600th B I've given to one of my shows.

Roseanne: Don't Make Room for Daddy

Roseanne: Don't Make Room for Daddy
ABC
February 15, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B

Abbott & Fromstein wrote this episode where Fred sues Jackie for custody of their unborn baby.  It's interesting that his side is shown, but Jackie's reaction is understandable, especially as Roseanne points out, she's still emotionally scarred from her relationship with Fisher.  Becky takes Jackie's side, while Mark and Dan sympathize with Fred.  David, whose masculinity is questioned not only by Mark but by D.J., gets caught in the taking sides trap, until he learns how to play the sides against each other.  In the end, Jackie and Fisher reconcile, thanks to Dan offscreen.

Tony Edwards makes his second appearance as a Customer, although it was a different workplace in '91, while Customer Rob Elk previously played Joel.  Tom McTigue would return as Jackie's Doctor.

Roseanne: Everyone Comes to Jackie's

Roseanne: Everyone Comes to Jackie's
ABC
February 8, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B+

This Borns & Gandolfi story manages to be soap-operatically juicy, as several storylines explode, and laugh-out-loud funny.  Gilbert in particular is at the top of her game, showing what so much of this season has missed, but the rest of the cast is solid, too, including Goodman, who again shows what happens when Dan stops controlling his anger.  He blames David for living with Darlene in Chicago, but Roseanne tells a different version of their own second date to show that Darlene isn't as blameless as he thinks.  There's a throwaway line where Dan, in his anger, tells Fred he should sue Jackie for custody, which Fred will take seriously in the next episode.

Roseanne: David vs. Goliath

Roseanne: David vs. Goliath
ABC
February 1, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B

Roseanne exploits the situation of knowing that D & D were shacking up in Chicago by making David do lots of housework.  He isn't comfortable lying to Dan, who considers him an "almost son."  He tells the truth (omitting that Roseanne and D.J. knew) and Dan kicks him out.  Roseanne pressures Jackie into letting David move in until she can guilt Dan into letting David move back, but instead Dan is guilted into hiring Mark at the garage that Dan manages for the city, the one where Fred works for him.  Meanwhile, Jackie refuses to take money from Fred to help with her baby, so he storms out.  She feels guilty about upsetting him and she figuratively cries on David's shoulder.  He thinks she's hitting on him, which amuses her a lot.  The tag is a well-done Graduate parody, costumes and movie dialogue and all.

Mystery Science Theater 3000: Village of the Giants

Mystery Science Theater 3000: Village of the Giants
Comedy Central
January 22, 1994
Riffing
VHS
B-

While this has some funny moments, I feel like the action of the '65 Bert I. Gordon movie and the riffing slow down after the bad teens become giants.  Still, it is fun to listen to the Jim-Begg-spotting.  Note that there's a David Duke reference that's unfortunately not dated.  For once, I enjoyed the non-movie sequences, as Mike and the Bots sympathize with TV's Frank, who's been fired.  They sing a musical tribute to him, which doubles as a tribute to Frank Zappa, yes, the second tribute this month, on my shows alone.

Bob Random, who plays Rick, would that Fall (of '65) be one of Gidget's TV boyfriends.  Murphy directed this episode.

I don't know if I have a representative sampling, or if it's completely fair to rate episodes that in most cases I edited down.  But as it stands, my twelve MST3K episodes range from C to B+, and average to a B.  I'm still not a MiSTie but it has been fun revisiting the series.  And, yes, it would go through further morphing and spin-offs.

Roseanne: Busted

Roseanne: Busted
ABC
January 11, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B

Amy Sherman wrote this eventful episode.  Dan and Roseanne both try to reconcile Becky and Mark, going over to the bachelor paradise apartment of Mark's friend Royal (Ahmet Zappa giving a nice understated performance on an episode that plays tribute to his then recently deceased father; Ahmet would return in another role).  Dan wants to move in, while Roseanne on her visit finds that one, Mark blames himself for being too stupid for trade school, and two, (thanks to Royal's confusion of the Conner sisters) David is living with Darlene in Chicago.  Roseanne and Mark drive to Chicago so she can confront D & D.  Meanwhile, Becky blames Roseanne but Dan helps her see that it's her own expectations of Mark that she has to deal with.  Roseanne brings David home, to Darlene's relief, since she and David have been fighting, but Roseanne doesn't tell Dan the truth yet.  Meanwhile, in a throwaway line, we find out that D.J. is still a monster on the hockey team.

Roseanne: Suck Up or Shut Up

Roseanne: Suck Up or Shut Up
ABC
January 4, 1994
Sitcom
DVD
B-

This episode, with its teleplay by Borns & Gandolfi, based on a story by someone who didn't work on any other of my shows, is mainly notable for its celebrity cameos.  Florence Henderson plays a local businesswoman (also named Florence) that Roseanne sucks up to for the restaurant, although it becomes a challenge when D.J. quotes Roseanne's mockery of the woman's weird son.  (Henderson was then 59 but didn't look it, so I guess it's just plausible she could be the mother of a preteen.)  And in the tag, Anthony Geary and Genie Francis appear as Luke & Laura, and the Becky switch is lampshaded.  The other plot thread has Mark getting fed up with school but Becky, on Roseanne's advice, pushes him until he leaves her.  It seems like such a waste that Mark was sent to school, while straight-A Becky is working at Bunz.

Selma Archerd, who had acted with Henderson before, on the "goat" episode of The Brady Bunch and in A Very Brady Christmas, here has her first of two Roseanne roles, as Lucille.  Note that Chuck is currently the Lobo bartender, and again I have to omit Pickens from the overcrowded tags.

The Best of "The Hollywood Palace": excerpts

The Best of "The Hollywood Palace": excerpts
ABC
November 25, 1992
Variety
VHS
C+

Somers hosts the highlights of the '60s variety show, which judging by what I taped, didn't age particularly well.  Still, yes, you do need to see Groucho Marx and a near-death Margaret Dumont in '65 do an updated "Captain Spaulding" routine, bikini reference and all.

The Arsenio Hall Show: Siskel & Ebert and Miranda Richardson

The Arsenio Hall Show: Siskel & Ebert and Miranda Richardson
Syndicated
March 26, 1993
Talk Show
VHS
B-

Arsenio gets boxing gloves for Gene and Roger since this is right after the spoiler debate about The Crying Game, which Miranda has an opinion on of course.

Thomas Dolby: She Blinded Me with Science

Thomas Dolby: She Blinded Me with Science
Song released October 1982
Music Video
VHS
B

Early video with a dream-like feel and a refrain that will stay with you, especially with that overacting scientist: "She blinded me with science!"  Includes title cards, although not at all a silent movie of course.

Arrested Development: People Everyday

Arrested Development: People Everyday

Song released May 1992

Music Video

VHS
B-

An adaptation of Sly and the Family Stone's "Everyday People," with an anti-violence "moral of the story."

Blind Melon: No Rain

Blind Melon: No Rain
Song released September 1992
Music Video
VHS
B

The long-haired '90s band juxtaposed with a little girl in a bee costume who finds "her people" elsewhere in the green field on a rainless day.  Both poetic and silly.

Paul Kozlowski: People's Court

Paul Kozlowski: People's Court
Comedy Central
1992
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
C

Kozlowski's set-up has potential: People's Court as a game show.  But, as he notes at the end, he's "having more than you are."  Also marred by a prison-rape joke.  I would've gone with a C-, but the Rice-a-Roni flavors part is kind of funny.

Dennis Regan: Game Shows

Regan more recently

Dennis Regan: Game Shows
1990
Comedy Central
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
C+

Generic observations on game shows, e.g. Turtle Wax.

Greg Proops: Studs continued

Greg Proops: Studs continued
Comedy Central
1992
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
B

Greg gets to the part of the show where the "preverbal" contestants have to match up quotes to their dates.  He doesn't seem to have exaggerated much.

Greer Barnes: Gilligan's Island and TMNT

Greer Barnes: Gilligan's Island and TMNT
Comedy Central
1993
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
C+

While African-American comic Barnes is versatile at doing different accents, he does overuse stereotypes.

Tom Agna: E.T.

Tom Agna: E.T.
1992
Comedy Central
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
C+

Agna talks about how well cast E.T. was but sadly never worked again.

Tom Agna: His Hair etc.

Tom Agna: His Hair etc.
Comedy Central
1993
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
C+

Agna talks about, among other things, his "Prince Valiant" hairdo on the following clip, which he says aired on "The Comedy Channel" [sic].

Kevin Meyers: The Dating Game, Utah, Mormons, and Coffee

Kevin Meyers: The Dating Game, Utah, Mormons, and Coffee
Comedy Central
1989
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
C

Meyers has some potentially funny material here, talking about his experience on The Dating Game.  But he doesn't seem to know how to tell a joke or a series of jokes, repeating himself so much that we're left with diminishing returns.

Taylor Negron: The Dating Game

Taylor Negron: The Dating Game
Comedy Central
1985
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
C+

Negron tells of his experiences on The Dating Game, including something that CC bleeped out.

Greg Proops: Studs

Greg Proops: Studs
Comedy Central
1992
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
B

Greg analyzes the sleazy '90s answer to The Dating Game, from its "fashion faux pas of the epoch" to its "bizarre Euclidean gang-date" matches.

Robert Wuhl: Dating Game, Sally Struthers, and "a guy goes into a bar"

Robert Wuhl: Dating Game, Sally Struthers, and "a guy goes into a bar"
Comedy Central
1986
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
C+

Wuhl tells of his experience on The Dating Game, makes fun of Sally's weight, and tells a meh joke about a drunk.  This is belatedly the 700th "show" from the '80s I've reviewed.

Greg Proops: Little Drummer Boy

Greg Proops: Little Drummer Boy
Comedy Central
December 1992
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
B-

Greg explains just why the song is so annoying.

Brett Butler: Sexist Heckler

Brett Butler: Sexist Heckler
Comedy Central
1992
Stand-Up Comedy
VHS
B-

This clip first aired on Women Aloud but I taped it off of Short Attention Span Theater, both of which were on Comedy Central.  Brett talks about a male audience member who "was apathetic and sexist at the same time," never voting although he would "agin" a female presidential candidate.

INXS: Need You Tonight/Mediate

INXS: Need You Tonight/Mediate
MTV
Song released September 23, 1987
Music Video
VHS
B

Another funny and sexy music video from INXS, although at least time the humor seems to be deliberate.  The song remains catchy and who else* would end a video with a bunch of words, some of them misspelled, on cue cards?

*Maybe Bob Roberts.  OK, and Bob Dylan.

The Unnaturals

Around that time

The Unnaturals
Ha!
1991
Sketch Comedy
VHS
C+

This Mike-centered show is more interesting than funny.  At least Jane Brucker is better than she was on Whose Line Is It Anyway?  There are moments that I like, such as Mike imitating a French ambulance, and there is a certain what-the-hell-why-not quality to the proceedings.  Still, I probably would've gone with a C if not for the Mark Mothersbaugh theme, which is used not only at opening and closing but between scenes.  And, yes, this was made for Ha! but taped two years later on Ha!'s merger with the Comedy Channel: Comedy Central.