Categories
Shazam!
"The Boy Who Said No"
October 26, 1974
"Snitches dig ditches" is a common phrase among the young today, sadly, but it seems to hold true with young Larry Burns. In this episode, John and Richard discuss the responsibility of youth to step forward and report wrongdoing, the question of powerful beings granting insight into potential danger, and the difficult stunts Jackson Bostwick had to perform.
It's all here and we want to hear from you on what you think of the episode. Write us as ShazamIsisPodcast@gmail.com.
Moral: “Some day you may see somebody do something wrong. If you don't know what to do about it, just remember that when a problem has you stumped, it's a good idea to talk with a grown-up you can trust. It could save you a lot of trouble in the long run!"
Guest Cast
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We present a new interview in our series with those who were a part of making it happen. And this time around, we have the man himself, Michael Gray, who played Billy Batson on Shazam! Michael talks with us about his career, his time on Shazam! including his favorite episodes, his dealing with typecasting and how it is so different for actors playing hero types today, and his comeback starting with an appearance on Archer.
Good looks and a couple of television roles helped to give actor Michael Gray many years in between and on the covers of Tiger Beat magazine. Born in Chicago, Michael moved to Florida when he was a young boy.
He caught the acting bug in high school, and eventually made his way to Hollywood. In 1972, Michael won the role of Ronnie on the NBC series The Little People, a charming sitcom that starred Brian Keith as a pediatrician with a practice on Oahu, Hawaii. The series was reworked for the second season and retitled The Brian Keith Show, and Michael was let go.
Signed to a management deal with Charles Laufer, pubisher of "Tiger Beat," Michael was able to keep a high profile while rounding up other acting roles. Michael's second series came in 1974, when he was cast in his signature role, as Billy Batson on the Saturday morning series Shazam. The series ran for 3 years but was then cancelled due to increasing production costs.
Some of Michael's other credits include:
Life with Father Entertainment Tonight
Room 222 MTV's - I Love the 70's
The Brady Bunch E Television, Life After Stardom
Marcus Welby M.D. The Rretro Radio Live Show
The Flying Nun VH1 - Superheros, Where Are
Dynasty They Now?
Although Michael Gray had all the tools one would expect to be necessary to build a sturdy career, due to type casting it became harder for him to make
a living at his craft.
The ever youthful Michael Gray is happily married and living in Northern California. He is currently writing a book about his life in Hollywood.
Links
Shazam!
"The Treasure"
October 19, 1974
This episode has a great deal of ties to the seventies as the struggles of the Native American were finally being recognized in American television. No longer were we seeing the Native American as the Indian, the enemy of the cowboy, but rather as a group of displaced people looking to be recognized and respected. But does the episode hold up? John and Richard discuss this and more on a new episode of the podcast.
It's all here and we want to hear from you on what you think of the episode. Write us as ShazamIsisPodcast@gmail.com.
Moral: “The desert and traditions of other people have much to teach us and must be preserved for future generations to see and to know."
Guest Cast
Ruben Moreno as Chief Adam
John Linton as Johnny
Allen G. Norman as Jed
Will Seltzer as Artie
Shazam!
"The Athlete"
October 12, 1974
After the dark themes of the previous two episodes, John and Richard tackle the ideas of equality and realizing your dreams in "The Athlete". Is this a tale that still needs to be told today? What is it about the "utterance of a single word" that lends such credibility to the show? Would this story need to be altered as we've discussed with previous stories in order to work for a modern audience? Are the stunts seen in this episode the best in the entire series?
It's all here and we want to hear from you on what you think of the episode. Write us as ShazamIsisPodcast@gmail.com.
Moral: “Everyone should be given a chance to prove his or her abilities."
Guest Cast
Shazam!
"The Road Back"
October 5, 1974
In the continuation of the review of this two-part story, John and Richard discuss if this episode holds up to the five "Holey Moley" rating the first part of the story received. They look at the legality of what Billy and Gary do in order to entrap Brok. They also comment on the lengthly chase scenes as was apparant in the last episode. In the end, does this hold up and does it remain as dark as the first part offered?
It's all here and we want to hear from you on what you think of the episode. Write us as ShazamIsisPodcast@gmail.com.
Moral: “It's important to be responsible for what we say and what we do.”
Guest Cast
Shazam!
"The Lure of the Lost"
September 28, 1974
The fourth episode of the first season, "The Lure of the Lost," is examined. There are many aspects of this story worth note. This is the first two-part episode for the series. This is the first darkly themed episode. Mentor's character is much more mysterious in this two-parter, something we won't see again. The main villain isn't going to be seen until the second half. With so much going on here, what did Richard and John think of the episode itself?
It's all here and we want to hear from you on what you think of the episode. Write us as ShazamIsisPodcast@gmail.com.
Moral: “When you're faced with a problem that you don't feel you can handle, running away isn't the answer. Try talking it over with somebody you can trust.”
Guest Cast
Christina Hart as Holly
Derrel Maury as Mark
Christopher S. Nelson as Gary
Shazam!
"Thou Shalt Not Kill"
September 21, 1974
John and Richard settle down to discuss the third episode of the series, "Thou Shalt Not Kill". They look at the legal precedent set in the story by the sheriff and Captain Marvel. They are amazed by the horse that can talk without moving its lips. And they puzzle over the double message the Elders give Billy in their weekly meeting.
It's all here and we want to hear from you on what you think of the episode. Write us as ShazamIsisPodcast@gmail.com.
Moral: “It's important for us to remember that laws are made to help us, and that when they stop helping us, they can be changed, legally.”
Guest Cast
Shazam!
"The Brothers"
September 14, 1974
John and Richard discuss the second episode of the first season of Shazam!, "The Brothers". Among the topics discussed in this podcast are how the series went from animated to live action, the dual identity of Billy Batson, Lance Kerwin's post-acting career, and the appeal of stories dealing with blind people in 60s-80s television.
It's all here and we want to hear from you on what you think of the episode. Write us as ShazamIsisPodcast@gmail.com.
Moral: “People with problems or handicaps can get along just as well as any of us.”
Guest Cast
Lance Kerwin as Chad Martin
Steve Tanner as Danny Martin
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The first in our series of interviews with those who worked on Shazam! and/or Isisstarts with author Donald F. Glut. Donald is the writer of the first season Shazam! episode, "The Brain". Donald talks with us about how the episode came about, why he never wrote for Shazam! after his highly rated episode aired, and about his near opportunity to work with Jackson Bostwick on another iconic character.
DONALD F. GLUT has been professionally active in both the entertainment and publishing industries since 1966.
Born in Pecos, Texas, Don grew up in Chicago, IL. At age nine, already bitten by the film-making “bug,” he made Diplodocus at Large, the first of 41 amateur movies featuring dinosaurs, human monsters (Frankenstein’s Monster, Teenage Werewolf, etc.) and superheroes (Spider-Man, Captain Marvel, etc.) Some of these films made during the late 1960s (e.g., Spy Smasher vs. the Purple Monster) were eventually shown in theatres and on TV.
Moving to Los Angeles to attend the University of Southern California, Don professionally entered show business as an “extra” (a POW) in the movie Von Ryan’s Express (1965), the first of several such “roles.” He began his professional writing career in 1966, writing articles for and finally editing the magazine Modern Monsters. In 1967, after graduating from the University of Southern California with a BA degree (for Cinema) in Letters, Arts and Sciences, Don worked as a musician, singer and songwriter in The Penny Arkade, a rock band produced by “Monkee” Michael Nesmith. Shortly after that he briefly furthered his acting career, having a speaking role in a national television commercial starring Dick Clark.
However, most of Don’s professional life has been as a freelance writer. To date he has authored numerous motion picture and television scripts (Shazam!, Land of the Lost, and animation, e.g., Spider-Man & His Amazing Friends, Transformers, G.I.Joe, Duck Tales, Jonny Quest, X-Men, others), comic-book scripts (Captain America, Tarzan, etc., including creating for Gold Key Dagar the Invincible, The Occult Files of Dr. Spektor and Tragg and the Sky Gods), more than 35 novels and nonfiction books, also numerous short stories, articles, songs, album-liner notes, etc. The Dinosaur Dictionary(1972) and Dinosaurs: The Encyclopedia (1997), two of Don’s many non-fiction books about dinosaurs, both were listed by the American Library Association among the best reference books of their years of publication. With The Dinosaur Dictionary Don created the much-imitated book format based upon an alphabetical listing of dinosaur names. Perhaps Don is best known for his novelization of the movie The Empire Strikes Back (1980), the nation’s No. 1 bestseller for almost two months, which to date (still in print) has sold over 3.5 million copies. In 1982 he created characters and back story for Mattel’s “Masters of the Universe” toy line. Among his more recent books is Chomper, an entry in the popular “Dinotopia” series.
Don produced, wrote and directed various videos (including the documentaries Dinosaur Movies and Hollywood Goes Ape! and the music-video compilation Dinosaur Tracks®), theatre and movie projects. He has worked as a consultant on numerous other video, film and TV projects, and was “Dinosaur Consultant” on Roger Corman’s movie Carnosaur (1993).
In 1990, Don and Pete Von Sholly founded Fossil Records, which has already produced a half dozen albums. These include Dinosaur Tracks®, More Dinosaur Tracks® and Dinosaur Tracks® Again, featuring paleontology-related rock music written mostly by Don (Dinodon Music/BMI), performed by Don and Pete (as the Iridium Band).
More recently, Don became president of Frontline Entertainment (www.frontlinefilms.com), for which he wrote, directed and co-produced the comedy/fantasy motion picture Dinosaur Valley Girls™, followed by a series of campy/sexy/horror movies, which have already achieved “cult movie” status, and Before La Brea, a documentary commissioned by the George C. Page Museum of La Brea Discoveries in Los Angeles. In 2000, he was commissioned by Irena Belle Productions to direct the movie The Vampire Hunters Club, featuring an all-star genre cast.
In addition to his entertainment and publishing fields work, Glut is known internationally for his work with dinosaurs (see http://www.donglutsdinosaurs.com to see Don's "prehistoria" collection), a subject he has been seriously interested in since the age of seven. He has lectured on dinosaurs at museums, universities and other institutions in the USA and Europe, and often appears on TV and radio talk shows, and in videos, discussing dinosaurs, monster movies and other topics. Regularly he speaks at seminars for actors. In 1999 and 2000, respectively, he became a volunteer at both The Field Museum (Chicago) and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.
Among Don’s many interests are paleontology (obviously), movies (especially the older horror films, Westerns, serials and film noir), science fiction and fantasy, music (playing and listening), comic books, motorcycles, reptiles, stage magic, electric trains, the Three Stooges, Jackie Gleason, old-fashioned amusement parks and side shows, partying and “holy relics."
Learn even more about Donald by visting his website - http://www.donaldfglut.com/
Shazam!
"The Joyriders"
September 7, 1974
A young man must figure out what to do when his friends insist on stealing cars and going on joy rides.
John and Richard sit down to discuss this first episode in the series. They talk about the production values, the stunts, and the first use of the phrase, "Holy Moley!" Plus, is Shazam! just a modern day Shakespeare story? It's all here and we want to hear from you on what you think of the episode. Write us as ShazamIsisPodcast@gmail.com.
Moral: “It takes more courage to do what is right then follow along with the crowd.
Guest Cast
Lee Joe Casey...Rich
Ty Henderson...Kyle
Kerry MacLane...Chuck Wagner
Barry Miller...Mike
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We start off the podcast by sharing a Roundtable episode of The Chronic Rift. In it, Shazam star Jackson Bostwick talks about his time on the classic Saturday morning series. He gets into how he was hired, how he did many of his own stunts, and how he ultimately left the series as the second season was starting.
The actor says his audition was a very low-pressure situation. "I had just signed with a commercial agent, and a week later he sent me out on an interview. I thought it was for a Captain Marvel cereal, like Captain Crunch, because he was a commercial agent. So, I went out there in a white T-shirt, jeans and cowboy boots, thinking it was a general cattle call at Filmation Studios. They had done the Lone Ranger cartoon, which was their big claim to fame before Shazam! I walked in and met the producer, Bob Chenault. Bob told me later that he knew when he heard my voice and saw my smile that I would be their Captain Marvel. I didn't realize that they had been looking for more than four months! They had narrowed it down to four people, and had gone from actors who were athletes to athletes who were actors. Now they were back to actors who were athletes."
Bostwick approached the role of Captain Marvel in much the same way that his friend, legendary actor Clayton Moore, approached the Lone Ranger. "Being a fan of the Lone Ranger, I wanted to give the kids something to lookup to like Clay gave me to look up to. And I hope I did that. I know how critical kids are, and I wanted to make sure I was presenting myself right, and not putting my hands on my hips and preaching to them.
Bostwick has always been inclined toward the arts, ever since childhood in Alabama, where he was also a comic book reader. His favorite? Captain Marvel, of course! "Captain Marvel was always a hero of mine when I was growing up with comics. My mother, God love her, threw out all my comics when I went to college, thinking she was doing me a favor. The would be worth a fortune today.
The actor still reports that he's still recognized today for his role in Shazam! "Most of the time it's, "I know I've seen him--no, you ask him!" And once they find out, then everybody knows! It loosens them up. Then it's "I knew you looked familiar!" My dad told me that he knew I was doing all right when they went to the country club and it was no longer "Dr. & Mrs. Bostwick," but "Captain Marvel's mom and dad..."