Call It Macaroni
Call It Macaroni is an American children's television series that premiered on January 24, 1975.[1] It was produced by Group W (Westinghouse Broadcasting Company, Inc.) with executive producers Gail Frank and Stephanie Meagher.[2][3] Prior to its release, Donald McGannon, the chair of Group W, announced the show was a call to action for children to have a specific slot for their television.[4] Intended to be a 12-part series of children's specials to be aired once a month, due to its popularity, another 12 specials were produced.[5][6]
Its goal was to show 10–12-year-olds different things they could experience in the United States.[7] It follows a different group of children each episode as they go to different places within the country, learning about a culture, city, environment, job, or hobby.
The first season was sold to 100,[5][8] 103[9] or 104[10][11] stations in syndication.[12] It was well received[5][10][13] and won a Peabody Award in 1975.[14][15]
Episodes
[edit]There are 24 half-hour episodes of Call it Macaroni.[10] Air dates listed below may be later than the first airing. One episode, "Gym Dandys", is viewable on YouTube.
| Episode | Air date | Synopsis |
|---|---|---|
| It's a Long Way Up | January 24, 1975[16] | Three teens climb Mount Hood in Oregon.[17] |
| Give the Circus a Tumble | February 19, 1975[3][18] | Three 11-year-olds spend a week with Circus Vargas as it tours and performs in Colorado.[3] |
| Fly like a Bird | March 19, 1975[19] | Two San Franciscans take glider and hang gliding lessons.[19] |
| Once Upon a Horse | April 20, 1975[20] | Two 12-year-olds get horse riding lessons and participate in a riding competition.[21] |
| Sail on the Winds of Time | April 24, 1975[22] | Teens learn aboard a replica of a 19th century schooner.[22] |
| Texas Tenderfoot | May 30, 1975[23] | Three teens from the San Francisco Bay region become wranglers, helping to drive horses from Big Bend National Park in West Texas to a ranch 60 miles (97 km) away.[23] |
| Exploring Yesterday | June 6, 1975[24] | Three children get to experience how the Native Americans of northern Minnesota lived.[25] |
| A Seaful of Adventure | July 22, 1975[26] | Three youngsters from the Boston area take a cruise on the Florida shrimp boat Lady Gin.[26][27] |
| The Boys and Girls of Summer | September 4, 1975[28] | A boy and a girl from Philadelphia go to the Philadelphia Phillies spring training camp in Florida.[28] |
| Path of Papagos | November 16, 1975[29] | Three youngsters experience the Native American way of life.[29] |
| Puppets and Other People[30] | December 6, 1975[31] | Three children from Boston construct a puppet under the supervision of puppeteer Kermit Love.[31][32] Kevin Clash, the best known puppeteer to perform as Sesame Street's Elmo, saw this episode as a teen and asked his mother to help him contact Love;[33] she succeeded, and Love eventually became his mentor. |
| Where Do we Sign Up, When Do We Leave? | December 15, 1975[34] | Three kids from the San Francisco area spend a week on a racing schooner exploring the Channel Islands of California.[35] |
| Nashville: Over the Rainbow | April 18, 1976[36] | In the first episode of the second year,[9] a 13-year-old Dobro guitar player goes to Nashville and gets to perform with Bobby Bare.[37] |
| Lights, Camels, Action | May 21, 1976[38] | Three New Yorkers join a production company working on the film Hawmps!, a comedy about the United States Camel Corps, on location in Arizona and become extras in one scene.[39] |
| And That's Jazz | June 11, 1976[40] | Two budding musicians from New York go to New Orleans and join a jazz session.[41] |
| Rogue Runners | July 23, 1976[42] | Some youngsters go on a five-day rafting trip on the Rogue River.[42] |
| Some of My Best Friends are Dolphins | August 20, 1976[43] | Two children work with dolphins at the Miami Seaquarium.[44] |
| It's Really Magic | September 21, 1976[45] | Two 11-year-olds from New York travel to Hollywood to work with the magician Shimada and perform at the Magic Castle.[45][46] |
| How Do You Make a Moose Smile? | October 1, 1976[47] | Three New York 11- and 12-year-olds are taught by a professional how to photograph wildlife in the wilderness.[48] |
| North of the Arctic | December 4, 1976[49] | Two youngsters from Portland, Oregon, become acquainted with an Eskimo family in Alaska.[49][50] |
| Dance to the Music | December 5, 1976[51] | Two teens spend a week at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York.[51][52] |
| When Bold Knights Lanced | January 10, 1977[53] | A boy and a girl attend the annual Medieval Festival at Fort Tryon Park in Manhattan.[53] |
| Gym Dandys | February 11, 1977[54][55] | Two kids from San Francisco receive lessons from gymnasts training for the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow.[54] |
| Sing, West Virginia, Sing | March 15, 1977[56] | Two young Philadelphians learn about the music and culture of Appalachia.[56] |
References
[edit]- ^ Willey, George (January 18, 1975). "A Closer Look: A new try at children's programming". The Argus – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Beals, Kathie (January 27, 1975). "It's New and just for kids". The Daily Item – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c "'Give the Circus a Tumble'". Daily Breeze. February 16, 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "McGannon ups the ante" (PDF). Broadcasting. January 13, 1975.
- ^ a b c "Everyone liked our "Macaroni" so much, we're giving them a second helping" (PDF). Broadcasting. June 30, 1975.
- ^ "Call it renewed" (PDF). Broadcasting. July 7, 1975.
- ^ Brown, Les (1977). The New York Times Encyclopedia of Television (PDF). Times Books. p. 66. ISBN 9780812907216.
- ^ Call it macaroni : a series of 12 half-hour television programs for young people, aired once a month, since January 1975 by 100 stations throughout the U.S. WorldCat. OCLC 318535716.
- ^ a b "Through the Eyes of Children". Cashbox. July 5, 1975.
- ^ a b c "We're Busy!" (PDF). Broadcasting. February 16, 1976.
- ^ "Look what we're up to!" (PDF). Broadcasting. June 13, 1977.
- ^ Brown, Les (June 5, 1975). "Children's Fare Taking a Giant Step on Local TV". The New York Times.
- ^ O'Connor, John J. (December 28, 1975). "TV View". The New York Times.
- ^ "Call it Macaroni - Peabody Awards".
- ^ "Seton Hall Radio Station Wins A Peabody Award for 'Poetry'". The New York Times. March 29, 1976.
- ^ "Television Today". Oakland Tribune. January 24, 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Designed for Discovery". Kenosha News. April 26, 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Best Bets". San Francisco Examiner. February 19, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Wednesday March 19, 1975 Evening". The Baltimore Sun. March 16, 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Sun. TV Hilights". Statesman Journal. April 20, 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Friday May 23 Evening". Redlands Daily Facts. May 23, 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "TV Hi-lites". The Reporter – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "'Texas Tenderfoot' Teaches City Children to Wrangle". Missoulian. May 24, 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Sunday". The Morning Call. June 6, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "TV Highlights". San Antonio Express. August 9, 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b McLean, Robert A. (July 22, 1975). "Dial-Log". Boston Globe – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "TV Previews". Bridgeport Telegram. July 25, 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Tonight's Movies and Highlights". Ellwood City Ledger. September 4, 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Friday Evening". The Boston Globe. November 16, 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Today's Highlights". Lincoln Journal Star. 21 December 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "'Call It Macaroni': Puppets". Edwardsville Intelligencer – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Engle, Murry (11 July 1975). "The World's a Better Place With Love". Honolulu Star-Bulletin – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Kevin Clash: The Man Behind Elmo (interview)". NPR. 15 December 2011.
- ^ "Tonight". San Francisco Examiner. December 15, 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Taking the New World to Explore Remote Islands". San Francisco Examiner. December 14, 1975 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Highlights". The Cincinnati Enquirer. April 18, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Wilson, John S. (April 18, 1976). "Guitarist". The New York Times.
- ^ "Tonight". The Portsmouth Herald. May 21, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "'Lights, Camels, Action'". Sunday News. May 30, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tuesday Evening". The Press Democrat. June 11, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Sunday Morning". Chicago Tribune. July 25, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Friday Evening". Boston Globe. July 23, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Friday: Tops Today". The Boston Globe. August 15, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Sunday Afternoon". South Bend Tribune. June 26, 1977 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Call It Macaroni It's Really Magic TV listing". The Morning News. September 21, 1976. p. 29 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Sunday Afternoon". South Bend Tribune. September 21, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Thursday Night". The Wichita Beacon. October 1, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Series, Debate, 'Puzzle Children' and lesser events to fill out week". Peninsula Times Tribune. October 16, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Saturday". Orlando Sentinel. November 28, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Sunday Afternoon". South Bend Tribune. July 24, 1977 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Sunday, Dec. 5". Omaha World-Herald. December 5, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Boy, girl visit dance center". Dayton Daily News. November 9, 1976 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Afternoons, Monday through Friday". The Republic. January 8, 1977 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Kids Train with Champs". The Weirton Daily Times. February 11, 1977 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "TV for Children, Sunday". The Cincinnati Enquirer. September 18, 1977 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Tuesday Evening". Boston Globe. March 15, 1977 – via Newspapers.com.
