TVSquad

Last night I had to play detective. Seriously, I was like Encyclopedia "Mother-F'n" Brown. I was all, like, solvin' shtuff.

I'll explain: I was poking through ye olde Tivo seeing if there was anything on worth recording, and I noticed it had some reruns of Everybody Hates Chris listed on VH1. That's odd, since the show airs on the CW. I hopped on my computer and went to VH1's site, but there was no mention of it at all. If you look at the schedule, it lists "VH1 Special" from 8pm to 10:30pm on Saturday, January 20. Well, that "special" is five back-to-back episodes of Everybody Hates Chris according to both my Tivo and TV Guide. If you haven't seen the show, you should check it out, as it's one of the better sitcoms on television right now.

Also, fans take note: new episodes of the series return to the CW on January 22.

The first season of one of the only network sitcoms I actually watch, Everybody Hates Chris, will be out on DVD this Tuesday. The CW series is loosely based on Chris Rock's life as a child growing up in Brooklyn. I say "loosely" because obviously some exaggeration must be used to make the show funny, and also there's no way Chris Rock was thirteen in 1983. The set, which is retailing for a hefty $49.99, will include commentaries from Chris Rock and the cast. The supplemental material is cleverly labeled the same as the episodes, with items such as "Everybody Hates the Making of Everybody Hates Chris" and "Everybody Hates Bloopers."

Hey kids, gather around. Please don't shove, and feel free to enjoy the peanut butter and crackers and Hi-C I've set out for you. This is where you can share memories of some of the local kid's programming you grew up with. In other words, these are shows that were produced locally and never shown nationally. Got all that? Okay, here's a couple of TV memories from my Iowa boyhood:

The Floppy Show: Mention Floppy to anyone who lived in Iowa from 1957 to 1987 when the show aired and they'll immediately know what you're talking about. The show featured local celeb Duane Ellet and his puppet pal, a dog named Floppy. Kids would tell Floppy riddles (the same riddles over and over again, actually) between Tom and Jerry cartoons. Floppy is an icon of Iowa television history, the "Howdy Doody" of the Hawkeye State, if you will. He is now on display at the Iowa State Historical Building in Des Moines.

The House with the Magic Window: Betty Lou Varnum was a reporter on WOI-TV, the ABC affiliate in Des Moines. She also hosted a children's program which began in 1951 and ran for 43 years. The House with the Magic Window featured some puppets, episodes of Felix the Cat, and an old BBC show called Tales of the Riverbank. The thing that has always stuck in my craw, however, is a cartoon featuring a stuffed rabbit with checkered ears who would spin them and fly around like a helicopter. I have never been able to find any information on this cartoon and it's been slowly driving me insane for most of my life.

So what did they show in your neck of the woods?