Airdate Issues (The Reporter, The Bus ..etc)

[boechsner]

Well, I’ve decided to revisit Alice and the airdate issues that I have come across. Back in 2001, when tvtome.com (now tv.com) was just starting I became editor of and began working on the Alice episode guide and focused on correcting the airdate inaccuracies that existed back then. At this point still editor for the series on tv.com, there are 8 issues that I have been working on. I was wondering if anyone could shed some light on any of the following issues, it would be greatly appreciated.

Issue #1: A Piece of the Rock Airdate: October 6, 1976.

For the longest time I could not find an airdate for this episode. TV Guide listings for Wisconsin did not have Alice scheduled. I found an actual listing in an old New York Times that had this episode scheduled and a full ad for it as well. I consider this episode airdate to be 100% accurate and this issue closed.

Issue #2: Alice By Moonlight: Airdate: October 30, 1977

TV Guide had The Sixty Minutes Man scheduled for this date, but when TV Guide listed The Sixty Minutes Man as the 11/13/77 episode, obviously it had been postponed. Alice by Moonlight did repeat during the summer and was the only repeat that I could not match with an airdate. Also the online Copyright Office listed this episode with a date of 10/28/77. (Which is common for the copyright office to be off by a few days) I consider this episode airdate to be 100% accurate and this issue closed.

Issue #3 and 4: The Reporter and The Bus, Airdates: Unknown

Well, online sources have listed The Reporter with an airdate as 2/12/78. However, CBS had The Wizard of Oz and the CBS on the Air Celebration scheduled that night, all shows were pre-empted and for 3/26/78, CBS had scheduled, 60 Minutes/All in the Family/Rhoda and CBS Movie: Gator. First of all I do not know where 2/12/78 or 3/26/78 came from, these were airdates that were listed for these episodes when I first got a hold of the tvtome.com episode guide. Second of all, these episodes were not scheduled even as a repeats during the 1977-1978 season, in syndication both have the 4th season opening and I have yet to even find an airdate anytime during 1977-1980 up thru Flo leaving. Interestingly enough the copyright office lists both episodes with dates of 3/1/78, yet they were not actually registered with the copyright office until 7/7/80 while all other Season 2 episodes were registered on 5/21/79. Another note, CBS began airing Alice in daytime in June 1980 and looking thru listings, both episodes were skipped each time, it was not until the series went into syndication did these episodes actually air. (CBS has been known to leave episodes unaired, see Good Times and Rhoda also does anymone think this could be a case similar to the Family Ties issue? NBC had ordered 24 episodes of Family Ties during its 2nd, 3rd and 4th seasons from Paramount and NBC later saved episodes, airing them years later)

Issue #5: Vera’s Popcorn Romance, Airdate: October 15, 1978

According to TV Guide, The Principal of the Thing was scheduled for this date but was postponed until 12/10/78. Either this episode or Mel’s in a Family Way aired.

Issue #6: Mel’s in a Family Way, Airdate: November 11, 1978

Alice aired on Sundays, however this week CBS aired an episode of Alice on a Saturday, 11/11/78. TV Guide had no listings, this is information pulled from a book called TV, the Television Annual 1978-1979. Either this episode or Vera's Popcorn Romance aired.

Issue #7: Alice’s Turkey of a Thanksgiving, Airdate: November 10, 1982

Carrie on the Rebound was scheduled for this date, but the episode was postponed and aired on 1/9/83. The series went on hiatus after the 11/10/82 episode, and the only episode I don’t have an airdate for is this Thanksgiving episode. I’m almost certain this episode aired on that date.

Issue #8: Sweet Erasable Mel, Airdate: June 5, 1983

Vera’s Secret Lover was originally scheduled but was postponed until 10/9/83. This was the only episode that was left without an airdate, I’m almost certain this episode aired on this date.



If anyone has any information, old TV commercials from CBS, know of any sources, please let me know. Does anyone think CBS or Warner Bros. Would be able to provide me with any info?? I recently found ION aired the series in airdate order, can anyone confirm the order??

[Jude The Obscure]

ION, as far I recall, aired most of the series in airdate order, because they were some episodes made for another season that were not aired until later in the rotation (such as The Reporter and The Bus), both had different opening titles than the season they were stuck in. Not every Alice episode aired on ION. In order to finish the run by a certain date, ION skipped a few, particularly in the last season.

[FredScuttle]

Those two 2nd season episodes, along with The Pharmacist and Earthquake seem to be oddballs. I don't know if they were shot first (their episode numbers are the 1st 4 of the season), or what, but Vera's hair is different, Mel wears a blue shirt instead of his white shirt, all 4 were produced by Noam Pitlik (the only episodes he produced), and like you mentioned, 2 of them have 4th season openings. All 4 also seem to be more serious vs. the typical Alice episode (compare the Pharmacist to, say, Close Encounters of the Worst Kind or Car Wars). I wasn't watching Alice yet in the 2nd season, so I don't know about the original airdates on these (I started watching it on the June 1980 weekday airings when I was home from school for the summer, and was hooked instantly I even have a few episodes on audio tape from those daytime airings)

[TeeVeeCloset]

This issue drove me crazy when creating artwork and cases for my 20 volume ION airings DVD set which contains over 100 episodes I called "The Best Of Alice", I also did a three disc "Holiday" set that contained all 11 holiday themed episodes. I noticed some problems but used the www.tv.com episode guide.....I always make color covers with titles, episode #'s, seasons and episode description for my homemade sets....thanks for all the research you have done.

[fordamian]

hi why don't you post here your artwork?? im curius