I’m trying to find the title of a late '60s/early ‘70s kids’ science show that reruns of which used to be broadcast in the '90s during the afternoons on the local PBS station (WPTD in Dayton, and maybe WCET out of Cincinnati). I can describe it thusly: the host was a severe man in his late 50s or 60s, who had a receding hairline; what hair he did have was bushy and gray, and he had this intense stare that was made all the more effective because his eyebrows were so bushy. He tended to favor short sleeved dress shirts, in the breast pocket of which he’d hang his microphone (very similar to the microphones you see the senators and representatives use on C-Span when they have the floor). Again, he was very, very severe and intense, and the show was, as a result, absolutely wonderful! I would give anything if someone could recognize the show I’m talking about and give me a title. I would be beside myself with joy if anyone could point me in the direction of clips from the show, or, even better, whole episodes.
Seriously, you don’t know how many years I’ve been trying to find out about the good doctor and his show, but I had no names, only description. You’d be surprised how many people recognized him from the description, but, like me, were unable to come up with either his name or the show title(s). And the reason I thought it might be a state production is, well, one of the reasons I love the show so much: the bargain basement production values.
::Sigh:: I’m now that much closer to being able to die a happy man.
I loved public television during the daytime when I was a kid. Write On! Letter People! Think About!
There was another guy I used to watch – younger, sort of looked like Stephen Wright. The one I remember in particular was the episode where he demonstrated the vapor layer of very quickly boiling water which protected him when he dipped his hand in molten lead. You could see him thinking on screen “Am I absolutely fucking sure I did this right?” right before the hand went in.