Screen Gems, then the TV arm of Columbia Pictures, and presently the 3rd movie brand of the studio, had experimented with a 1 hour comedy-drama with The Wackiest Ship in The Army, only to see that fail after 1 season. Perhaps it was a little too early, but then, Wackiest was treading on ground already tread by the shorter, more popular McHale's Navy.
In 1968, Harry Ackerman, in charge of sitcoms at Screen Gems, commissioned the studio's 2nd hour long comedy-drama, Here Come The Brides. Set in 19th century Seattle, which of course wasn't the metropolis it is today, the series focused on the Bolt brothers--Jason (Robert Brown), Joshua (David Soul), & Jeremy (Bobby Sherman)---at the core of the show's ensemble. The cast also included Joan Blondell, Henry Beckman, and Mark Lenard, better known for his work on Star Trek. Unfortunately, Brides lasted two seasons, and after a syndication run in the 70's, hasn't seen the light of day much since.
Sherman was under contract to Screen Gems, and while he started climbing the pop charts with songs like "Easy Come, Easy Go", he returned with the musically themed sitcom, Getting Together, which would be his last series. Brown's last entry was the short-lived Ivan Tors series, Primus, which few people saw in 1971-2. Of course, David Soul went on to Starsky & Hutch and iconic status, even scoring a 1-hit wonder with "Don't Give Up on Us" in 1976.
Here's the open, including a vocal version of "Seattle", the show's theme song:
Was it ahead of its time? Hard to say, but it was fun to watch.
Rating: B.
Head of the show but never saw it. Funny seeing David Soul in something before S&H!
ReplyDeleteBobby Sherman was supposed to be the teen idol in training by this point. He was replacing Davy Jones on the teen magazines by '68 (ironic since they performed together in a Monkees episode in which Davy replaced Bobby's character!) and I think he also sang the HCTB theme song on one collection or other.
It sounds like good family programming. I seem to remember it being part of the lineup on the old Family Channel back in the 80s.
Sherman did record a version of "Seattle", but I am not sure if it was used on the show.
ReplyDelete"Teen idol in training"? LOL.