Welcome to another Wildcard Wednesday! I’m happy to announce that we have a winner in our first ever That’s Entertainment contest! Out of five players, the average score was 30.8. (That’s 15/50 episodes guessed correctly.) With a grand total of 50 points (or 25/50 episodes), Jeff is our grand prize winner! He wins:
- An original script for The Mary Tyler Moore Show‘s classic “Chuckles Bites The Dust” — autographed by MTM herself
- A complete series set of The Associates (1979-80, ABC)
- A $25 Barnes & Noble gift card
Jeff, I’ll be emailing you at your AOL account to get your mailing address. But our other four participants aren’t “going home empty-handed” either. Through email, they’ll be receiving .pdf copies of the above mentioned “Chuckles Bites The Dust” script!
Thank you to all who played — Track, Beau, Nat, Elaine, and Jeff. I wish there were more participants, but I’m so grateful for your readership and the effort you put into making your selections. I know it was a difficult contest, and I’m very glad you took the time to play. It means a lot that I can share my passions with you! Now, for the official list of my favorite sitcom episodes of the 1970s . . .
1970-71:
1. HERE’S LUCY: “Lucy Meets The Burtons”
2. THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW: “Today I Am A Ma’am”
3. ALL IN THE FAMILY: “Meet The Bunkers”
1971-72:
4. ALL IN THE FAMILY: “The Election Story”
5. ALL IN THE FAMILY: “Cousin Maude’s Visit”
6. ALL IN THE FAMILY: “Edith’s Problem”
7. ALL IN THE FAMILY: “Sammy’s Visit”
1972-73:
8. THE NEW DICK VAN DYKE SHOW: “The Former Mr. Preston”
9. ALL IN THE FAMILY: “The Bunkers And The Swingers”
10. MAUDE: “Maude’s Dilemma (I)”
11. THE ODD COUPLE: “Password”
12. THE BOB NEWHART SHOW: “Bob & Emily & Howard & Carol & Jerry”
13. THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW: “My Brother’s Keeper”
14. ALL IN THE FAMILY: “Archie Is Branded”
15. THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW: “Put On A Happy Face”
1973-74:
16. THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW: “The Lars Affair”
17. LOTSA LUCK: “Stanley And The Librarian” [a.k.a. “The Librarian”]
18. SANFORD AND SON: “The Members Of The Wedding” [a.k.a. “The Engagement”]
19. SANFORD AND SON: “Mama’s Baby, Papa’s Maybe”
20. ALL IN THE FAMILY: “Lionel’s Engagement”
1974-75:
21. THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW: “Will Mary Richards Go To Jail?”
22. MAUDE: “The New Housekeeper”
23. MAUDE: “Lovers In Common”
24. RHODA: “Rhoda’s Wedding (II)”
25. THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW: “You Try To Be A Nice Guy”
1975-76:
26. THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW: “Chuckles Bites The Dust”
27. THE BOB NEWHART SHOW: “Over The River And Through The Woods”
28. PHYLLIS: “Phyllis And The Little People”
29. THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW: “The Happy Homemaker Takes Lou Home”
30. THE JEFFERSONS: “Lunch With Mama”
31. ALL IN THE FAMILY: “Joey’s Baptism”
1976-77:
32. MAUDE: “Vivian’s First Funeral”
33. RHODA: “Together Again For The First Time”
34. THE PRACTICE: “The Dream”
35. PHYLLIS: “Mother Dexter’s Wedding”
36. THE TONY RANDALL SHOW: “Case: Franklin In Love”
37. THE JEFFERSONS: “A Case Of Black And White”
38. MAUDE: “Feminine Fulfillment”
1977-78:
39. SOAP: Episode 1
40. THE JEFFERSONS: “Once A Friend”
41. MAUDE: “The Gay Bar”
42. SOAP: Episode 20
1978-79:
43. SOAP: Episode 32
44. WKRP IN CINCINNATI: “Turkeys Away”
45. ALL IN THE FAMILY: “California, Here We Are (II)”
46. THREE’S COMPANY: “The Bake-Off”
47. WKRP IN CINCINNATI: “Fish Story”
1979-80:
48. SOAP: Episode 48
49. TAXI: “Reverend Jim: A Space Odyssey”
50. THE ASSOCIATES: “The Censors”
The only episodes unanimously guessed correctly were: “Archie Is Branded,” “Chuckles Bites The Dust,” “Vivian’s First Funeral,” “Turkeys Away,” and “Reverend Jim: A Space Odyssey.” Four of the players got: “Sammy’s Visit,” “Password,” and “The Lars Affair.” Meanwhile, the incorrect episodes that got more than two guesses were: “The Puerto Ricans Are Coming!,” “The Last TV Show,” and “The Weekend.” All three of those offerings, along with both “The Analyst” [a.k.a. “Maude Bares Her Soul”] and “Rhoda Meets The Ex-Wife,” were fantastic guesses and probably would have made a list of my 55 favorites!
Come back next Wednesday for another Wildcard post! And tune in tomorrow for the last ever Xena Thursday!
Awesome! Thanks Jackson.
Congratulations to you, Jeff! I have emailed you at your AOL address for information about your prizes!
Congrats to Jeff. Looking forward to a scan of the Chuckles script.
Also looking forward to the next competition — the best of the ’80s, maybe? :)
Thank you so much for playing, Elaine! Check your email; I have contacted you at your yahoo address.
I’m not sure about another contest. The turnout wasn’t as large as I’d hoped. But if I do it again, it will definitely be at the conclusion of our coverage on the ’80s. So stay tuned . . .
Congrats to all who played. I’m sorry, this is a busy time of year (particularly this year) for me to attempt this but I definitely would have gotten the ’70-’71 ones. I hope you do another one, Jackson, and I will fershure participate. :)
Hi, bobster427! Thanks for reading and commenting.
Good to know — we’ll be finishing up with the ’80s in early 2017, so stay tuned because I’d like to do another round (but maybe one not so time consuming)!
Not to make excuses, which I’m about to do, but I wound up not participating in the contest simply because with so much going on due to Christmas, I just never made the time to do so. I enjoyed reading the responses from those who did participate, though. It was a fun and inventive kind of a contest.
Hi, Randy! Thanks for reading and commenting.
Good to know. Stay tuned — there could be another contest here yet!