Hard Telling Not Knowing each week tries to answer your burning questions about why things are the way they are in Maine — specifically about Maine culture and history, both long ago and recent, large and small, important and silly. Send your questions to [email protected].
Local TV stations didn’t begin broadcasting in Maine until the mid-1950s, and right out of the gate, Mainers were making their own shows — often low budget and held together with spit and duct tape. They run the gamut from game shows and music showcases to programming about Maine traditions. We don’t see too many local TV shows these days, though a few still remain, like “207” on WCSH and “Borealis,” an outdoors show on Maine Public.
Do you remember any of the seven Maine TV shows highlighted below? Let us know in the comments. Did we forget one of your favorites? Tell us, and maybe we’ll write another story with more fun clips from back in the day.
‘Dialing for Dollars,’ ‘My Backyard’ and other Eddie Driscoll shows
Between 1955 and 1987, Brewer native Eddie Driscoll was a staple on eastern Maine TV screens. Over the course of his decades with WLBZ, the NBC affiliate in Bangor, he hosted shows like “Dialing for Dollars” a game show in which he called random people on the phone and asked them questions for cash prizes; “My Backyard,” a children’s show featuring the puppet Mason Mutt; and “Weird,” a late-night monster and sci-fi movie show. With a lot of creativity and ingenuity, he managed to entertain viewers with his brand of wacky comedy — often improvised, and usually with next to no budget.
‘Dick Stacey’s Country Jamboree’
On this local country music showcase that ran on WVII, the ABC affiliate in Bangor, for more than a decade in the 1970s and ’80s, the appeal was as much about the performers as it was about Dick Stacey, the ebullient local businessman who sponsored the show. For every seasoned local musician who could actually sing and play well, there’d be at least one amateur shakily warbling an old country tune — it was cringe before “cringe” became a slang word. Stacey would interject with his own ads for his gas station and motel businesses, often with his famous catchphrase: “See these hands? They pump gas! And they STINK!”
‘Bounty Bandstand’
We probably should have reserved the term “cringe” for this locally produced show from the 1980s, hosted by longtime Maine DJ “Mighty” John Marshall. “Bounty Bandstand” each week invited students from Maine high schools to come to Bangor for the Bounty Tavern’s chem-free nights, and dance to the latest pop hits on camera. Do you want to see some feathered hair and teased bangs? The hottest fashion from the Bangor Mall back in its glory days? Watch the above video featuring Orono High School, or some of the others featuring schools like Lee Academy and Dexter High School. See anybody you recognize? We’re sure they’d be absolutely thrilled if you posted about it on social media and tagged them.
‘Woods and Waters with Bud Leavitt’
Bud Leavitt was a multi-talented fellow: he was the Bangor Daily News’ outdoors writer and sports editor for nearly 50 years, he was a master Maine outdoorsman, and for 12 years between 1979 and 1991 he hosted a TV program on Maine Public Broadcasting Network called “Woods and Waters with Bud Leavitt.” The half-hour show found Leavitt interviewing experts, guides and outdoors enthusiasts about a wide array of topics, from wildlife management and land conservation to best practices for hunting, hiking, fishing and paddling.
‘La Bonne Aventure’
In collaboration with the University of Maine’s Franco-American Center, MPBN produced this children’s show in the 1970s in order to teach Maine youth about the rich heritage of French-speaking people in the state. The puppet characters spoke in both French and English, and taught children about various aspects of Maine, Canadian and New England language, history and culture — kind of like a locally produced “Sesame Street.”
‘In the Kitchen with Kendall’
The premise of this late 1970s and 1980s show on MPBN was incredibly simple: Maine humorist Kendall Morse sat around a kitchen table with other well-known Mainers and shared stories from the state we all love. That’s it. It’s as dry and funny as it sounds, and highlights the longstanding tradition of great Maine storytelling, including appearances from some of the greats like Marshall Dodge, the “I” in “Bert and I.”
‘So You Think You Know Maine?’
Another PBS show from the 1980s, this game show asked questions both tough and easy about the state of Maine, for panels of contestants composed of both kids and adults, depending on the episode. A similar show, “High School Quiz Show Maine,” now airs on MBPN. Watch the video linked above, and see if you can get all the answers. Bonus points if you don’t phrase them in the form of a question like on “Jeopardy!”
