The TV Time Machine - Destination 1970 Quiz

Answer: The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour

Glen Campbell, who was born in 1936 in tiny Billstown, Arkansas, was introduced to the guitar at an early age by his uncle Boo, who also taught his nephew to play. By 1954 he had become so proficient on the instrument, he was asked by another uncle to join him in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to play in his band, Dick Bills and the Sandia Mountain Boys.

In 1960, Campbell decided to move to California, where he became a much sought after session player, eventually joining the L.A. based group of studio musicians known as The Wrecking Crew.

In the latter part of the '60s he became a successful solo artist, consistently reaching the top ten on the Billboard Country charts. In 1968, Campbell was chosen to host a summer replacement show for "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour".

When it became a hit, CBS offered him his own show, which premiered in January of 1969. The show, which was a mix of sketch comedy and musical performances, hosted some of the biggest musical acts of the day, including Johnny Cash, Linda Ronstadt and Neil Diamond.

Answer: Mayberry R.F.D.

"Mayberry R.F.D." ran from 1968 to 1971, airing a total of 78 episodes. The central two characters from the show, widower Sam Jones (Ken Berry) and his son Mike (Buddy Foster), were already familiar to TV audiences, having appeared frequently on "The Andy Griffith Show" during its final season.

The show's premier episode, featuring the marriage of Andy Taylor and Helen Crump, was a ratings blockbuster, and the show continued its success, finishing at number four in the season ending Nielsen ratings from 1968.

The next two seasons the show remained popular, ranking at number four and number 15 respectively, but since CBS was in the process of moving away from rural themed comedies, they decided to cancel the show in 1971.

Answer: The Mod Squad

"The Mod Squad", which ran from 1968 to 1973, was created by Bud Ruskin, and was partially based on his experiences while working as a young undercover narcotics officer for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department in the 1950s. Though it took nearly eight years for Ruskin to get the show on the air, once the show finally did premier, in September of 1968, it proved to be very successful.

The show was especially popular among younger audiences, most likely due to the appeal of its three young stars, Michael Cole, Clarence Williams III and Peggy Lipton.

In four of its five seasons, "The Mod Squad" finished inside the top 30 in the Nielsen ratings, while also receiving six Emmy nominations during its run. So I guess you could say, to borrow one of Linc's favorite words, "The Mod Squad" was "solid".

Answer: The F.B.I.

J. Edgar Hoover, who became Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 1935, was allowed to supervise the scripts to ensure the series was maintaining its authenticity. The story lines were taken from real F.B.I. cases, though the stories were told using fictitious characters. "The F.B.I." also featured a segment called "most wanted", where at the end certain episodes the show's star, Efren Zimbalist, Jr., would talk directly to the T.V. audience, asking for help in the apprehension of some of America's most wanted fugitives. "The F.B.I." ran for nine seasons, 1965 to 1974, airing a total of 241 episodes.

Answer: Mrs. Beasley

In the show, siblings Cissy, Jody and Buffy were orphaned after a car accident claimed the lives of their mother and father. After living with various relatives, the three eventually moved to New York to live with their uncle Bill and his English valet Mr. French, turning both their lives upside down. "Family Affair" was so popular, especially with young girls, that Mattel Toys created a talking Mrs. Beasley doll and two other dolls patterned after Buffy.

The show, which ran from 1966 to 1971, finished in the top 15 of the Nielsen ratings in its first four seasons, but in the 1970-71 season it finished outside the top 30, which led to its cancellation.

Answer: Let's Make a Deal

The show, which was created Stefan Hatos and long time host Monty Hall, premiered in 1963 as part of the NBC daytime schedule. After five years on NBC the show moved to ABC, where it joined their Saturday night prime time line-up, beginning in the summer of 1968.

In the show, a member of the studio audience would be given something of value and then given an opportunity to trade it in for a chance to win a better prize, which was usually hidden behind a door or a curtain. In some cases the contestant would make the trade and get 'Zonked', or in other words, win a booby prize, which could be anything from a live animal to a covered wagon. Monty Hall, who was the original host of "Let's Make a Deal", appeared in over 4000 episodes during his time with the show.

Answer: The Doris Day Show

Doris Day began her acting career in 1948, eventually becoming one of the biggest box office draws in America. By the late '60s, with Day doing less film work, her then husband, Martin Melcher, arranged for her to star in her own TV show; the only problem was Day knew nothing about it.

In Day's autobiography "Doris Day: Her Own Story" she said she only found out about the series after Melcher died in April of 1968. The show premiered in September of 1968 and despite a number of format and cast changes, it performed quite well in the Nielsen ratings, ranking in the top 30 in four out of its five seasons.

Answer: Hee Haw

"Hee Haw" aired on CBS from 1969 to 1971. Even though the network canceled the show following the 1970-71 season, it continued to air in syndication until 1992. The show's format was similar to that of "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In", which included comedy bits and sketches, but focused much more on the music, with some of the biggest country stars of the day appearing on the show.

Answer: The Smith Family

Everyone knows about Henry Fonda's film career, but every so often he would turn up in a TV series, which was the case with "The Smith Family". The show featured Fonda as a police detective who not only had to deal with the pressures of his job, but also the various problems that arose at home with his wife and three children.

The show was also Ron Howard's first TV series following "The Andy Griffith Show", which concluded its run in 1968. The show was very successful in its first season, finishing at number 21 in the Nielsen ratings, but it couldn't sustain the momentum and was cancelled in 1972.

Answer: Marcus Welby, M.D.

"Marcus Welby, M.D." starred Robert Young as Welby and James Brolin as Dr. Steven Kiley, who worked together at a private practice in Santa Monica, California. Young was primarily a film actor, appearing in dozens of movies between 1931 and 1954, but he decided to give TV a try starring in the classic sitcom "Father Knows Best", which aired six seasons from 1954 to 1960, and another short-lived series, "Window on Main Street", which only lasted one season. "Marcus Welby, M.D." was Brolin's first starring role in a TV series, after spending most of his early career playing bit parts on TV and in film.

The show aired from 1969 to 1976 and was very popular during its first four seasons, but the ratings dipped starting in the 1973-74 season, leading to its cancellation.