Tom Bosley

Question: I know you in the TV world frown on old fogies like us, but we've got a Murder, She Wrote question. Obviously, Jessica Fletcher was a writer on the show, but my friend says that's all she ever was. I say she was a teacher before that. Who's right? We're not betting people, but each of us would very much like to lord being right over the other one. Thank you for your time.

Answer: Before I get into that, Carole, allow me to distinguish between myself and those flighty showbiz folks. I am not of the TV world; I'm an outsider. And I call on my television powers to help those of all ages, not just those impertinent young 'uns with their too-loud music and too-low jeans.

That said, it's a shame you're not a bettin' woman because you could've gotten at least a free lunch out of this one. On the successful CBS series, wh read more

Question: Hi! I remember in the mid-'70s there was a show with Nancy Walker and a group of women who were either models or hostesses (I think). I remember my mom said that the show was TV at its worst, but my dad always seemed to "suffer" through it. Any idea what this show was?

Answer: Oh, that I do, Emma. And while I don't know the man personally, I'm betting I know why your pop "suffered" through Blansky's Beauties, which debuted on ABC in February 1977. The show, a weird sort of Happy Days spin-off, was about a troupe of Vegas showgirls overseen by the titular Nancy Blansky (Walker), who was a cousin of Happy Days father Howard Cunningham (Tom Bosley). A lousy show about showgirls? Torture for moms but something the average father was perfectly willing to read more

Question: Whatever happened to actors Harold Gould and Glenn Ford?

Answer: Veteran character actor Harold Gould, who had a Ph.D. in theater and taught drama at Cornell University before making it his personal mission to disprove the motto "Those who can't do, teach," has been acting for nearly 45 years in movies and on TV; his most recent feature-film credit is the remake of Freaky Friday (2003). Gould also originated the roles of Mr. Cunningham and Mr. Marie in the pilots of the popular TV series Happy Days and That Girl, but was replaced by Tom Bosley and Lew Parker, respectively, when the shows went to series. Glenn Ford, a versatile leading man of the '40s and read more