Q: There was a show on in the 1960s called "Davey and Goliath." It was a Christian show on values using animation. Are there any DVDs available?
A: Well, first let's give a little background.
"Davey and Goliath," filmed in stop-motion animation, was produced from 1960-65 by Art Clokey, who died recently and also gave us "Gumby."
Clokey produced the series for the United Lutheran Church, which offered the segments free to any TV station that was interested in running them, which is why "Davey and Goliath" was on TV a lot in the 1960s and '70s.
Davey Hansen (voice by Dick Beals) was the young master of talking dog Goliath, who was often the show's moral voice. His voice was provided by Hal Smith. Irony of ironies — this was at the same time Smith was playing Mayberry town drunk Otis Campbell on "The Andy Griffith Show"!
Anyway, the series explored spiritual themes in a very subtle manner. I still remember one episode called "All Alone," in which Davey gets trapped in a railroad freight car and the noise the train makes as it rolls along sounds like "All alone, all alone, all alone."
Waaaaaah!
There were sporadic "Davey and Goliath" specials produced into the 1960s and '70s, and in 2004 Art Clokey's son Joe gave us "Davey and Goliath's Snowboard Christmas."
"Davey and Goliath" is on DVD, and you can even download episodes on iTunes.
Q: The salute to the Mounties during the Vancouver Olympics reminded me of a show many years ago about a Mountie and his dog. Can you tell me the title? Wasn't it on the radio, too?
A: That show was "Sergeant Preston of the Yukon," also known as "Challenge of the Yukon." "Challenge of the Yukon" began as a radio in 1938, originating from station WXYZ in Detroit, the same place from whence "The Lone Ranger" and "The Green Hornet" came.
"Challenge of the Yukon" aired on WXYZ (and was syndicated to other markets) until 1947, when it jumped to ABC for two years and then to the Mutual network from 1950 to 1955. Jay Michael, who also provided the voice of bad guy Butch Cavendish on "The Lone Ranger," was the first voice of Sgt. Preston. He was succeeded by Paul Sutton, and in the show's final years the voice was provided by Brace Beemer, who had also been the longtime voice of the Lone Ranger.
In 1951, the show's title was officially changed to "Sergeant Preston of the Yukon," and the TV series version ran on CBS from 1955 to 1958. Richard Simmons played Sgt. Preston.
No, not that one. Somebody ELSE named Richard Simmons.
Q: I watched a TV performance, many years ago, of a young Meryl Streep in "The Taming of the Shrew." I have searched unsuccessfully to find it. It was a fabulous performance and I would love to have it to show my children. I have no idea who else was in it with her.
A: Actually, that was a documentary called "Kiss Me, Petruchio," and it aired on PBS in 1981. It was a behind-the-scenes look at a production of "The Taming of the Shrew" with Streep and Raul Julia and included interviews with them as well as scenes from the play.
Alas, it isn't on video or DVD.