Is ‘Council of Dads’ returning?
Q: Will the phenomenal show “Council of Dads” return this fall?
A: No. NBC has dropped the show after a single season. While it seemed designed to draw the “This Is Us” audience, ratings were reportedly low.
Q: I believe Barbara Stanwyck had a son, Stephen. What happened to him?
A: From what I can find, the acclaimed actress Stanwyck had only an adopted son, Dion Anthony Fay, from her marriage to actor Frank Fay. (The marriage ended in divorce, as did a later one to actor Robert Taylor.) Mother and son did not have a happy time. Stanwyck’s obituary in The New York Times in 1990 said they had been “estranged for decades.” Dion Anthony Fay died in 2006. As for Stephen, you may be thinking of Stephen Bogart, the son of Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart.
Q: On “I Dream of Jeannie” both Tony Nelson and Roger Healey are the same rank, both astronauts and both are stationed at the Cocoa Beach space base. Given all these similarities, why are their uniforms different colors? Tony’s is blue and Roger’s green. Does this signify some distinction?
A: Although both were in the space program, Tony (played by Larry Hagman) was in the Air Force while Roger (Bill Daily) was in the Army. You may remember that the seven original U.S. astronauts included Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps pilots.
Q: My family used to watch Craig T. Nelson’s show “The District.” Great writing, acting, stories. There was an actress, I think her name was Elizabeth Marvel. I believe I did see her on a “Law & Order: SVU,” but would like to know if she’s still acting.
A: She is. Besides playing Nancy Parras on “The District” in 2000-04, and Rita Calhoun in more than a dozen “SVU” episodes, she has had significant roles in the TV series “Manifest,” “Homeland,” “House of Cards,” “Person of Interest,” “Fargo” and more. Movie appearances include “Lincoln,” “Gifted” and the remake of “True Grit.” And there has been theater work, for example in a Broadway production of “King Lear” starring Glenda Jackson.
A recent question and answer about the old “Andy Griffith Show” apparently prompted a slew of other questions about the comedy. I’ve combined the questions and answers below.
Q: In all the shows I’ve watched, I have not seen a single mention of Opie’s mom or whatever happened to her. Am I missing one where this is explained?
Before Barney started dated Thelma Lou, he had some sort of girlfriend named Juanita. Did she ever make on to the screen, or was just appeared off camera by phone?
All the characters had a job of sorts. What about Thelma Lou? She just seems to hang out with Barney, Andy and Helen!
A: With help including “The Andy Griffith Show Book” by Ken Beck and Jim Clark, here are some answers:
It was on “The Danny Thomas Show,” which included the pilot for Griffith’s show, that we learned that Andy’s wife — Opie’s mom — died when Opie was a “speck of a baby.”
Barney was fond of Juanita Beasley, a local waitress, who was never seen on-screen. (Viewers did see Juanita Pike, one of Mayor Pike’s daughters.)
According to Beck and Clark, Thelma Lou “works in an office in town (we’re never told exactly where she works or what she does).”