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David_ Birney, 83, TV actor Bridget Loves Bernie; St. Elsewhere)
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That Derek
May 3, 2022, 10:29:27 AM5/3/22
to
radioacti...@gmail.com
May 3, 2022, 11:01:33 AM5/3/22
to
One of my fave facts from TV history: TV Guide magazine reported circa 1975 (back when it practiced more-reliable journalism) that both the late Birney as well as the still-kicking Meredith Baxter were in fact--notably unlike their most celebrated sitcom characters--WASPs.
"Bridget Loves Birney"--I meant Bernie!--WAS an artfully-written comedy, though.
BRYAN STYBLE/Florida
"Bridget Loves Birney"--I meant Bernie!--WAS an artfully-written comedy, though.
BRYAN STYBLE/Florida
A Friend
May 3, 2022, 11:27:02 AM5/3/22
to
In article <24dced94-4e1b-40f0...@googlegroups.com>,
It was a Saturday night show on CBS, so it did very well, but there was
an outcry against it because it showed a marriage between a Jew and a
Christian, and intermarriage was seen as an ongoing threat to American
Judaism. The TV show was simply acknowledging what was already going
on, and what has been going on ever since then. The series also showed
that Bridget was adopting Bernie's ways and customs; we'd see her at a
seder, but we'd never see him at a Christmas vigil.
I didn't think the series was very good.
When the actors actually did get married, some people got upset, not
realizing that David Birney was not actually Jewish. For my part, I
thought the two leads were fine, but the families were terribly
stereotypical. I also thought they got the little stuff wrong. For
example, there was an episode where Bernie's family was supposed to
bribe a health inspector into giving them an A sticker for their deli.
At the time, there was no such thing in NYC as an A sticker, or
anything like one; stickers were an L.A. thing.
The series was controversial enough that it never made the rerun
circuit. Evangelist Pat Robertson's channel ran it early on, but only
briefly.
an outcry against it because it showed a marriage between a Jew and a
Christian, and intermarriage was seen as an ongoing threat to American
Judaism. The TV show was simply acknowledging what was already going
on, and what has been going on ever since then. The series also showed
that Bridget was adopting Bernie's ways and customs; we'd see her at a
seder, but we'd never see him at a Christmas vigil.
I didn't think the series was very good.
When the actors actually did get married, some people got upset, not
realizing that David Birney was not actually Jewish. For my part, I
thought the two leads were fine, but the families were terribly
stereotypical. I also thought they got the little stuff wrong. For
example, there was an episode where Bernie's family was supposed to
bribe a health inspector into giving them an A sticker for their deli.
At the time, there was no such thing in NYC as an A sticker, or
anything like one; stickers were an L.A. thing.
The series was controversial enough that it never made the rerun
circuit. Evangelist Pat Robertson's channel ran it early on, but only
briefly.
Lenona
May 3, 2022, 11:36:28 AM5/3/22
to
> The series was controversial enough that it never made the rerun
> circuit.
Wow...that's amazing.
> circuit.
But I suppose the main reason one doesn't see it today is that too few people remember it - and the critics didn't praise it enough.
Lenona
May 3, 2022, 11:50:41 AM5/3/22
to
> Evangelist Pat Robertson's channel ran it early on, but only
> briefly.
My jaw dropped when I stumbled on this, years ago. (I know very little about him, other than that in some ways, he's probably more conservative than Billy Graham was.)
https://christianpundit.wordpress.com/2013/11/18/christian-tv-show-host-pat-robertson-disrespects-virginity-says-pre-marital-sex-is-not-a-bad-thing/
"On today’s 'The 700 Club,' a viewer in his early 20s wrote to hosts of the show with a question. The letter writer says he is a virgin and wants to wait for marriage to have sex. The guy said he found out his girlfriend is not a virgin. He wanted to know if dating her is wrong.
"You can watch the video yourself here..."
(snip)
Robertson said, in part:
"There is nothing that says you should marry a virgin...the fact that somebody has had a little experience isn't necessarily a bad thing...if she happened to have an encounter with someone she was deeply attracted to, get over it."
A Friend
May 3, 2022, 1:23:58 PM5/3/22
to
In article <43a02e26-c372-4fa0...@googlegroups.com>,
I'm glad to find that Robertson is not being hypocritical, as his
girlfriend was pregnant when he married her.
The guy who wrote that letter, OTOH, is three kinds of jerkwad.
girlfriend was pregnant when he married her.
The guy who wrote that letter, OTOH, is three kinds of jerkwad.
That Derek
May 3, 2022, 1:49:06 PM5/3/22
to
I never realized until a couple of years ago that since Meredith Baxter (-Birney) is the daughter of “Hazel” co-star Whitney Blake, then Ms. Blake must have been married to some guy named “Baxter,” and that when “Hazel” was happening Whitney Blake was a one-time “Mrs. Baxter” portraying a “Mrs. Baxter.”
Lenona
May 3, 2022, 2:42:58 PM5/3/22
to
On Tuesday, May 3, 2022 at 1:23:58 PM UTC-4, A Friend wrote:
people don't realize a few things about the last half-century that
are unlikely to change any time soon.
1. For multiple economic reasons, it doesn't make sense for many
to marry before age 30 or sometimes even 40. (Especially if you
both want to be loan/debt-free first, live in a safe neighborhood, AND be
financially prepared for the more likely disasters in life - such as
crippling car accidents.)
2. Hardly anyone waits for sex that long. Those who do wait till 30,
gay or straight, are assumed to be either asexual or just plain unpopular.
3. If there's anything young men are scared of today, it's the horrors
of divorce court.
4. Therefore, no sensible man will marry a woman barely out of her
teens - or anyone over 25 or so who has never done more than kiss
another person. Marry an asexual person and you'll likely soon be in...
divorce court. (The same goes for those who marry people with
hidden debts.)
>
> Lenona wrote:
> >
> > Robertson said, in part:
> >
> > "There is nothing that says you should marry a virgin...the fact that
> > somebody has had a little experience isn't necessarily a bad
> > thing...if she happened to have an encounter with someone she was
> > deeply attracted to, get over it."
> I'm glad to find that Robertson is not being hypocritical, as his
> girlfriend was pregnant when he married her.
>
> The guy who wrote that letter, OTOH, is three kinds of jerkwad.
As I told a certain conservative columnist, a while back, many
> Lenona wrote:
> >
> > Robertson said, in part:
> >
> > "There is nothing that says you should marry a virgin...the fact that
> > somebody has had a little experience isn't necessarily a bad
> > thing...if she happened to have an encounter with someone she was
> > deeply attracted to, get over it."
> I'm glad to find that Robertson is not being hypocritical, as his
> girlfriend was pregnant when he married her.
>
> The guy who wrote that letter, OTOH, is three kinds of jerkwad.
people don't realize a few things about the last half-century that
are unlikely to change any time soon.
1. For multiple economic reasons, it doesn't make sense for many
to marry before age 30 or sometimes even 40. (Especially if you
both want to be loan/debt-free first, live in a safe neighborhood, AND be
financially prepared for the more likely disasters in life - such as
crippling car accidents.)
2. Hardly anyone waits for sex that long. Those who do wait till 30,
gay or straight, are assumed to be either asexual or just plain unpopular.
3. If there's anything young men are scared of today, it's the horrors
of divorce court.
4. Therefore, no sensible man will marry a woman barely out of her
teens - or anyone over 25 or so who has never done more than kiss
another person. Marry an asexual person and you'll likely soon be in...
divorce court. (The same goes for those who marry people with
hidden debts.)
A Friend
May 3, 2022, 2:46:49 PM5/3/22
to
In article <04def6c0-92a5-428a...@googlegroups.com>,
I never realized that, either, but I have to admit that I never thought
about it much.
John Thomas Baxter Jr. was Whitney's first (of three) husbands. BTW
Whitney was at the Pasadena Playhouse while George Reeves and Dabbs
Greer were there.
about it much.
John Thomas Baxter Jr. was Whitney's first (of three) husbands. BTW
Whitney was at the Pasadena Playhouse while George Reeves and Dabbs
Greer were there.
Louis Epstein
May 6, 2022, 11:26:20 PM5/6/22
to
Lenona <leno...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> > The series was controversial enough that it never made the rerun
>> circuit.
>
> Wow...that's amazing.
Single-season series rarely get rerun.
> > The series was controversial enough that it never made the rerun
>> circuit.
>
> Wow...that's amazing.
> But I suppose the main reason one doesn't see it today is that too few people
> remember it - and the critics didn't praise it enough.
The World Trade Center towers MUST rise again,
at least as tall as before...or terror has triumphed.
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