Forgotten TV: The Jim Nabors Show (1978)

 By the late 70's, reruns of The Andy Griffith Show & Gomer Pyle, USMC were plentiful in syndication. Jim Nabors was seven years removed from his self-titled CBS variety hour, and had spent those years making movies and appearing on an annual basis on The Carol Burnett Show. The Lost Saucer, Nabors' foray into Saturday morning science-fiction, was a distant memory.

Someone, though, convinced the Alabama native he could try a daily talk-variety show, like the biggest names in daytime talk in those days (i.e. Mike Douglas, Merv Griffin, though Griffin aired at night in most cities). I was in high school at the time, and never saw The Jim Nabors Show. Then again, I don't think it played in the northeast.

The gimmick to the show was the use of a guest announcer for each episode, a mix of average folks and celebrities, such as Jo Anne Worley (ex-Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In) and, in this sampler, Fred Travalena (ex-The Kopykats), who nails a perfect Nabors mimic to start the show.

Edit, 1/18/24: Had to change the video. Here's the opener, with Carol Burnett:

No rating. While Nabors was inspired, and likely influenced, by his good friend, Carol Burnett, he only got 15 weeks.