You have questions. I have some answers.
Q: I watch the original "Perry Mason" on MeTV. I like the early episodes where they often show Perry, Della Street and Paul Drake at home, and other scenes that aren’t there anymore. Do you know why these scenes disappeared?
A: You have touched on a dilemma for viewers of older television shows: the adding of more commercial time than the shows originally held.
The amount of content in commercial shows has shrunk steadily from more than 50 minutes an hour to about 40, with the remaining space filled with ads. When older shows are replayed today, content is often cut or sped up to make room for more advertising.
MeTV’s statement on its content policy calls for “preserving the original viewing experience for all our series as best we can. For example, this is why we air the original opening and closing credits full screen. We also don’t add intrusive banner animations over shows. Additionally, MeTV airs significantly less commercials per hour than our industry peers. However, some classic series require content adjustments to allow for even these modest commercial amounts. We make these adjustments as carefully and considerately as we can and only where we must.”
As for “Perry Mason” itself, the company said, “MeTV airs this series in late fringe (time) without editing content. You will notice the show airs 11:30 p.m. - 12:35 a.m. ET/PT as a result, five minutes beyond the half hour. The weekday morning 9 a.m. - 10 a.m. ET/PT airing is the syndicated version that does have some minimal edits.”
Of course, movie fans have long dealt with content cuts and other issues in films telecasts on commercial TV. And it hasn’t gone away. This note was on a recent FX movie: “This film has been modified from its original version. It has been formatted to fit this screen, to run in the time allotted, and edited for content.”
Q: In flashbacks on “The Righteous Gemstones,” John Goodman looks noticeably younger. Are they using the same technique that was used in “The Irishman” on Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci?
A: We’re seeing more and more de-aging of actors, not only in “The Irishman” but in “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.” I can’t say the “Gemstones” technique is the same, but it is painstaking tech. In an interview with Variety, "Gemstones" visual effects supervisor Bruce Branit said that creating what he called a “subtle and realistic” effect can take up to two months. “The VFX team requests to shoot the flashback episodes first in preparation for the tedious process,” Variety’s story added. And instead of just creating a CGI image or using a younger actor, the system modifies Goodman’s actual performance. “You’ve got John Goodman on camera, a national treasure, and the last thing you want to do is change his performance in any way,” Branit said.
Q: I sort of remember an episode from, I think, either “I Love Lucy” or “The Dick Van Dyke Show” where the mother had to rescue their child by lifting something heavy and their adrenaline “got stuck.” She then had super strength until something happened to them to get unstuck. I can’t find any mention of the episode anywhere. I’m beginning to wonder if I dreamed the whole thing up as a kid.
A: Our memories do play tricks, but in this case you’re not entirely wrong. Consider “Lucy, the Superwoman,” a 1966 episode of “The Lucy Show” (Lucille Ball’s successor to “I Love Lucy’). Says a description on IMDb: “When a heavy computer falls on Mooney's foot, Lucy's adrenaline kicks in, allowing her to lift the huge machine by herself. Strangely, her adrenal gland stays ‘on,’ giving her superhuman strength.”
Q: While I was watching “Yankee Doodle Dandy” on July 4, I saw the names of some of the hundreds of songs written by George M. Cohan. One of them seemed to be the theme song from "The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show.” Can that be so?
A: Sort of. The song, “The Love Nest,” used by Burns and Allen, was not written by Cohan but by Otto Harbach (music) and Louis M. Hirsch (lyrics). But it was originally for the musical “Mary,” which Cohan produced in 1920. In "Yankee Doodle Dandy," you hear "Love Nest" as the screen shows a theater marquee saying "George M. Cohan Presents 'Mary.'"
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