Rich Heldenfels
You have questions. I have some answers.
Q: A long while ago a TV series on the Manhattan Project was shown. Is there any place to see it again? With the “Oppenheimer” movie, I would like to see it.
A: Besides documentaries, there have been several screen efforts dealing with the development of the atomic bomb and J. Robert Oppenheimer. They include “Manhattan,” sometimes written as “Manh(a)ttan,” a series that aired for two seasons on WGN America in 2014-15; it included Daniel London as Oppenheimer among mostly fictional characters. Two places to find it are on Prime Video and Blu-ray.
There’s also a 1980 TV series called “Oppenheimer,” with “Law & Order’s” Sam Waterston in the title role. The movie 1989 “Fat Man and Little Boy” stars Paul Newman as Leslie Groves, the military man in charge of the project, with Dwight Schultz as Oppenheimer. That same year, Brian Dennehy played Groves in the TV production “Day One,” with David Strathairn as Oppenheimer. Then there’s the 1947 film “The Beginning or the End,” which stars Brian Donlevy as Groves and Hume Cronyn as Oppenheimer.
All those titles have been released on DVD, although the “Oppenheimer” series can be expensive; still, you can find it on YouTube or check with your local library for it and the other films. “Fat Man and Little Boy” is also on Prime Video. And if the interest in the “Oppenheimer” movie continues, you might want to keep an eye on your TV listings for these earlier titles.
Q: I watched “SEAL Team” when it was on CBS but don’t get to see it now that it switched to Paramount+. Will it ever be on CBS again?
A: Yes. As the networks look for ways to fill their fall schedules with some fresh shows while the writers and actors are on strike, we’re seeing two main solutions: more unscripted programming and shows from other venues. “SEAL Team,” as you know, aired for four seasons on CBS before moving to Paramount+ for its fifth and sixth seasons (with a seventh ordered). The network has announced that the fifth season will be on CBS this fall as part of a strike-related schedule. If the strike continues, we may even see the sixth season on the broadcast network.
For some viewers, an even bigger deal is CBS’s decision to bring “Yellowstone” to broadcast this fall, starting with its first season. And it will air the original British version of “Ghosts” under the title “UK: Ghosts.”
One question hanging over these decisions: how much will “Yellowstone” and “SEAL Team” be edited for broadcast TV. Both have some stronger content than is usual for broadcasts.
Q: Back in the 1960s there was a show called “Sugarfoot” that starred Will Hutchins. What happened to him after the show went off the air? And did he also appear in an Elvis Presley movie?
A: Of the many Westerns on TV, two of my favorites remain “Maverick” (when James Garner starred in 1957-60) and “Sugarfoot” (1957-61). Hutchins, now 93, was an amiable leading man in the manner of James Stewart, and worked often after “Sugarfoot,” including in two Elvis movies, “Clambake” (1967) and “Spinout” (1966). He also starred in a couple of other TV series, “Hey, Landlord” (1966-67) and the comics-based “Blondie” (1968-69), playing Dagwood Bumstead in the latter. And he spent several years as a circus clown. You can find plenty of his showbiz memories in his column “A Touch of Hutch,” available on www.westernclippings.com.
Do you have a question or comment about entertainment past, present and future? Write to Rich Heldenfels, P.O. Box 417, Mogadore, OH 44260, or [email protected]. Letters may be edited. Individual replies are not guaranteed.
