Ye Olde Rocket Forum

Go Back   Ye Olde Rocket Forum > Weather-Cocked > FreeForAll
User Name
Password
Auctions Register FAQ Members List Calendar Today's Posts Search Mark Forums Read


Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
  #1  
Old 03-18-2015, 04:53 PM
ghrocketman's Avatar
ghrocketman ghrocketman is offline
President, MAYHEM AGITATORS, Inc.
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Nunya Bizznuss, Michigan
Posts: 13,443
Default First Episode of EMERGENCY! on MeTV

Watching the first episode of EMERGENCY! on MeTV.
Even in THIS episode, Randolph Mantooth has a look on his face that says "Yep, I just CRAPPED my pants AGAIN !"
How did this clown ever get cast for ANYTHING ???
Dawg-Crapp awful actor....
__________________
When in doubt, WHACK the GAS and DITCH the brake !!!

Yes, there is such a thing as NORMAL
, if you have to ask what is "NORMAL" , you probably aren't !

Failure may not be an OPTION, but it is ALWAYS a POSSIBILITY.
ALL systems are GO for MAYHEM, CHAOS, and HAVOC !
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 03-18-2015, 07:04 PM
tbzep's Avatar
tbzep tbzep is offline
Dazed and Confused
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: TN
Posts: 11,610
Default

His casting was probably due to his heritage and his looks.

He is part Native American. If you are old enough to remember, there was a significant increase in casting of Native Americans in dramas in the early 70's. Not just Emergency as a permanent series cast member, but in episodes of McMillin and Wife, Quincy, McCloud, Streets of S.F., Kung Fu, Columbo, etc. etc. etc. I'm guessing this casting was partly due to increased awareness of Native American civil rights movement that eventually climaxed in 73 at Wounded Knee (show started in 72) and awareness via children through Sesame Street's increased number of N.A. kids and cultural segments, along with heavy doses of N.A. culture, skills, etc. in Boy and Cub Scout organizations in the 60's and into the 70's.

The show needed cast members to appeal to the family demographic (Roy was married with children) and women (Johnny was single). The male demographic along with children was covered by the action scenes, fire apparatus, etc. Mantooth's photos got good results when shown to women. His acting did get a little better as the show matured, but it was never close to the two real actors in the cast. ** His character is supposed to be a bit irritating, so it makes his acting seem worse.

**Robert Fuller (Dr. Brackett) had been in several TV western series and Julie London (Dixie) was a long time professional singer and movie actor. Bobby Troup (Dr. Early) was a professional musician, famous for writing "Route 66". His delivery was worse than Mantooth's. If you want his character to be ruined for you, listen and you will notice it sounds like he's sitting in a grade school reading class reading aloud in class.

The rest of the cast with the exception of Mike Stoker had all been bit actors and extras in other shows, mainly in shows produced by Jack Web. Mike Stoker (real name) was a career firefighter and eventually retired as Captain. Tim Donnaly (Chet) was a stoner on Adam-12 and Dragnet. His brother Dennis was a stock director for Webb and directed a few episodes of Emergency. Mantooth's brother was in an episode or two.

All that said, Emergency! has that cult following thing going for it. With all it's lumps, it's very addictive, especially for me. I was a very impressionable 6 year old when it debuted. Watching it brings back awesome childhood memories!
__________________
I love sanding.
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 03-18-2015, 07:44 PM
chrism chrism is offline
Master Modeler
 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Greenville, PA
Posts: 1,291
Default

Here in the Twin Cities, we've got a companion channel to MeTV called Heroes and Icons Channel (H&I) a few months ago. It airs programming geared to a male audience such as westerns, police dramas, and some sci-fi such as Lost In Space and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. The channel is owned by the same company as MeTV, so look for it in your viewing area.

BTW, I liked the Emergency Series and for the most part, today's Chicago Fire on NBC.
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 03-18-2015, 08:07 PM
tbzep's Avatar
tbzep tbzep is offline
Dazed and Confused
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: TN
Posts: 11,610
Default

I watch Chicago Fire, but I don't care much for it mainly because it's a straight up soap opera. I'm not sure why I keep recording it.

I hate the stupid masks they use. Sigs30, are you with me there? Nobody on the planet uses masks that are anything like that. In fact, they would be a total pain in the ass to use in real life. Emergency! proved that you don't have to see their mouths to show emotion or create drama.

There's almost zero firefighting. Emergency always had at least one large structure fire or disaster and they actually spent 10-15 minutes developing and hashing out the event. Chicago Fire usually has some sort of fire or something, but almost no time is spent on it, usually one or two minutes max. It's just a vehicle to introduce a new soap opera style career threatening issue for a cast member that takes the next two or three episodes to flesh out.
__________________
I love sanding.
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 03-18-2015, 11:27 PM
ghrocketman's Avatar
ghrocketman ghrocketman is offline
President, MAYHEM AGITATORS, Inc.
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Nunya Bizznuss, Michigan
Posts: 13,443
Default

I would agree that the acting by Robert Fuller is the best on the show and likewise find Bobby Troup atrocious and worse than Mantooth.
That said, I still do like the show.
They should have killed off Chet's character early on in some sort of disaster. He is totally obnoxious and annoying. Adds NOTHING of value to the show in the least.

I know the show is a R.A.Cinader production, who partnered with Jack Webb on some previous shows. I don't think Webb is ever credited in Emergency.

I have a "Great-Uncle" that is a retired Deputy Chief of the Pontiac, Michigan (Oakland County) Fire Department, which when he served covered Auburn Hills and several other small communites that were spun off of Pontiac about 25 years ago. He is 90 years young now and still comments how UN-realistic ALL of the TV Firefighting shows have been. He has said that Emergency was the CLOSEST to having SOME sense of realism.
__________________
When in doubt, WHACK the GAS and DITCH the brake !!!

Yes, there is such a thing as NORMAL
, if you have to ask what is "NORMAL" , you probably aren't !

Failure may not be an OPTION, but it is ALWAYS a POSSIBILITY.
ALL systems are GO for MAYHEM, CHAOS, and HAVOC !

Last edited by ghrocketman : 03-19-2015 at 12:15 AM.
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 03-19-2015, 06:27 AM
mycrofte's Avatar
mycrofte mycrofte is offline
Trust me, it'll work!
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Illinois
Posts: 1,840
Default

I have started paying attention to some of the acting lately. It seems we have gotten used to the new voice overs they go back and do. I have found a lot of acting I thought was crappy is really the way people talk.

Still to this day, when I see an ambulance, I call out "Squad 51"!

I also noticed, for the first time, in the second Matrix movie freeway scene the police radio calls out "One-ADAM-Twelve"...
___________________
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 03-19-2015, 08:11 AM
tbzep's Avatar
tbzep tbzep is offline
Dazed and Confused
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: TN
Posts: 11,610
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by ghrocketman
I know the show is a R.A.Cinader production, who partnered with Jack Webb on some previous shows. I don't think Webb is ever credited in Emergency.

He is credited in a big way at the end of every show....but not by name. Mark VII Limited (the hammer and chisel at end of the show) was Jack Webb's production company.
__________________
I love sanding.
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 03-19-2015, 08:22 AM
tbzep's Avatar
tbzep tbzep is offline
Dazed and Confused
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: TN
Posts: 11,610
Default

There is a problem with realistic firefighting and tv/movies. When you go inside, you generally can't see anything at all until you find the seat of the fire and then it's just an orange glow. If the structure has been vented enough for you to see a little, it still causes major issues with optics. Go out in fog and look around. Take a picture and compare it with what you saw. You see even less in the picture.

They basically have to set up their live burns by using small propane wands in windows and doors to make the exterior shots look good. Inside, they are in an extremely well vented area with tiny amounts of flame in comparison to the real thing.

One cool thing about Emergency is that they scouted for real structures that had been involved in actual fires weeks earlier and often got permission to shoot burn scenes in them. Some of the exterior shots were done by actually setting them on fire again instead of using the wimpy propane wands in windows and doors.
__________________
I love sanding.
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old 03-19-2015, 08:59 AM
foamy's Avatar
foamy foamy is offline
Master Modeler
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: The Land of Pleasant Living
Posts: 1,115
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by tbzep
He is credited in a big way at the end of every show....but not by name. Mark VII Limited (the hammer and chisel at end of the show) was Jack Webb's production company.

This may or may not be true, but I was told that that was Jack Webb himself (hands) with the stamp and hammer.

I like Emergency well enough, but I like Dragnet and Adam 12 better. That Chet guy is always cast as a looney of some sort. On Emergency, his character gives you someone to dislike. One thing is fairly obvious, if Webb liked you—you got to work.

Does this album cover freak you out? JW is waaaay out of charactor on that one. Does not compute.
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:  14ebb21da96416bbfd30c65deef7231f.jpg
Views: 63
Size:  11.2 KB  
__________________
Retro-grouch
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Old 03-29-2015, 02:08 AM
ghrocketman's Avatar
ghrocketman ghrocketman is offline
President, MAYHEM AGITATORS, Inc.
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Nunya Bizznuss, Michigan
Posts: 13,443
Default

I did notice that in the early (1972) episodes of EMERGENCY!, Jack Webb is credited by name at the end of listing credits as "Executive Producer", followed by the Mark VII Limited "Hammer and Die"
__________________
When in doubt, WHACK the GAS and DITCH the brake !!!

Yes, there is such a thing as NORMAL
, if you have to ask what is "NORMAL" , you probably aren't !

Failure may not be an OPTION, but it is ALWAYS a POSSIBILITY.
ALL systems are GO for MAYHEM, CHAOS, and HAVOC !
Reply With Quote
Reply


Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 11:43 AM.


Powered by: vBulletin Version 3.0.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Ye Olde Rocket Shoppe © 1998-2024