APPLES WAY great show, or the GREATEST show?

May 2024 · 13 minute read

I mean, that Ronnie Cox was hot — his hotness was built right into his NAME! And the show introduced the world to TV’s Patti Cohoon.

Debate continues to rage as to whether the fish-out-of-water first season or the today’s-issues second season is superior. But why choose — each is perfect in its own way.

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 91June 18, 2020 2:44 PM

Who can forget the compelling episode 11 from season 1:

[quote] Apple's fight to have a traffic signal installed at a dangerous corner turns into a personal crusade after his own son is seriously injured by a speeding car.

by Anonymousreply 1June 9, 2020 6:57 AM

It was supposed to be a modern era Waltons. I think it might have been made by the same production company.

I actually liked the Waltons somewhat and wanted to like this show but it just seemed boring as hell.

Also, I was a little kid and even this seemed too corny for me.

The 70s were a strange time. We though Nixon was going to be the worst president ever.

We were so wrong.

So many anti-christ presidents since then...all Republican.

by Anonymousreply 3June 9, 2020 7:56 AM

Threads like this make anything bad about DL worth it.

by Anonymousreply 4June 9, 2020 7:58 AM

Was this about Goop's daughter always having things her way on account of being an entitled, spoilt, uppity brat?

by Anonymousreply 5June 9, 2020 8:19 AM

I remember there was a lunchbox.

by Anonymousreply 6June 9, 2020 8:20 AM

Wasn't some iteration of Van Patten in this? And pre-Buddy Kristy McNichol.

by Anonymousreply 7June 9, 2020 8:27 AM

The show was created by Earl Hamner, Jr., who also created and wrote The Waltons.

I remember liking it when it aired and was disappointed when it was cancelled after two seasons. Don’t know how it holds up 45 years later.

by Anonymousreply 9June 9, 2020 8:43 AM

[quote]Debate continues to rage as to whether the fish-out-of-water first season or the today’s-issues second season is superior.

No it doesn’t.

by Anonymousreply 10June 9, 2020 12:09 PM

If Ronny Cox had played Apple the same way he played his character in RoboCop, this show would still be on the air today.

by Anonymousreply 11June 9, 2020 12:57 PM

As a gayling, I thought Vincent Van Patten was so hot.

by Anonymousreply 12June 9, 2020 1:27 PM

So did every gayling in 1975.

And Mark Shera and Michael Lembeck and Leigh J. McCloskey...

by Anonymousreply 13June 9, 2020 1:42 PM

C'mon, I know we can take this Apple's Way thread to 600! Don't let me down, DL.

by Anonymousreply 18June 9, 2020 4:24 PM

R18 ... posted eighteen hours ago.

by Anonymousreply 19June 10, 2020 6:13 AM

Amazing to think that someone labored over that little tune from the show opening, probably for weeks, then musicians were brought into a studio to record it. A lot of work and expense just to have it layered over that absurdly wholesome footage.

By the way Farah Fawcett had a guest star role on this show a few years before doing Charlie’s Angels. Then she went on to a semi-regular part on Harry O as a stewardess and Janssen’s much younger neighbor and lover — the sheer idea of which made my mother howl with derision! Then she got CA.

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 20June 10, 2020 6:30 AM

Steve Jobs admitted that the show made a deep impression on him.

by Anonymousreply 21June 10, 2020 7:03 AM

I remember watching this show as a child but all I remember about it is their 1973 ('74?) Ford Country Squire station wagon.

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 22June 13, 2020 11:30 AM

The show was ridiculously preachy and sappy. My mom always mocked it. My neighbors had the exact same station wagon. I wanted a water wheel.

by Anonymousreply 23June 13, 2020 12:05 PM

How do you go from geeky sweet bespectacled Franny Michaels to dykey sullen Kristy McNichol?

by Anonymousreply 24June 13, 2020 12:39 PM

Apple’s Way is a dated, corny dead end.

by Anonymousreply 25June 13, 2020 12:42 PM

Fucking hell, you reminiscing fossils will swoon over any old shit from 46 years ago.

I thought you were bad with your pining for Harry "he was a dish!" Hamlin and Jon-Eric ('Lost Prince', no relation to Jon-Benet) Hexum.

by Anonymousreply 26June 13, 2020 2:46 PM

The son of one actors on the show lived with my friend's family when he was in college. My friend stayed at their house in Beverly Hills once. We were both amazed because we had no idea character actors got paid so much money. I mean, it made sense that they worked a lot - character actors were rarely out of work from the 1940s - 1970s. Lots of movies coming out of the studios in their heyday & then tv came along with anthologies, westerns, sitcoms, detective shows, family dramas. We just figured being a character actor paid the same as being a day worker in construction or a substitute teacher. We didn’t know that actors we never heard of before made enough money to live in mansions in Beverly Hills. But when you look back on it, mansions in Hollywood weren’t all that special. The built in swimming pool with patio was a big deal back then, as was having someone who landscaped your property’s trees, bushes, flowers, vines, lawn. Those things are pretty common now. I like the way the homes of the stars had a rambling suburban look back then & not the McMegaMansion look of today.

by Anonymousreply 27June 13, 2020 3:16 PM

I think I saw this show exactly once. I remember the big conflict was about teaching the grandfather how to eat artichokes. And the ugly girl with glasses was known for her Betty Crocker Snackin Cake commercials.

by Anonymousreply 28June 13, 2020 4:04 PM

[quote] The son of one actors on the show lived with my friend's family when he was in college.

It took a minute to unravel that.

by Anonymousreply 29June 13, 2020 4:44 PM

I first remember seeing Ronny Cox in "Taps." The movie is best known for launching Sean Penn and Tammy Cruise's careers.

by Anonymousreply 30June 13, 2020 5:09 PM

I thought "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" launched Sean Penn.

by Anonymousreply 31June 13, 2020 5:20 PM

My star vehicle launched Sean Penn, bitches.

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 32June 13, 2020 5:37 PM

My favorite kid actor photo: Harry Schearer in Alfred Hitchcock Presents. The one with Barry Fitzgerald as a drunk ex-con Santa Claus.

He looks the same except for hair color,

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 33June 13, 2020 5:44 PM

I remember the one with the tornado. It was months after the April 3rd tornado outbreak that hit my city. Everyone was struggling against a wind machine(!) to make to the storm cellar. Mrs. Apple's jam preserves were stored there. Grandpa Apple got hit on the head by a flying weather vane and he barely had a scratch. Patti Cohoon's character was crying that she was separated from her boyfriend and "I need HIS love!' I think Vinne Van Patten was playing baseball when it happened.

by Anonymousreply 34June 14, 2020 3:05 AM

It was no “The Family Tree”!!!

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 35June 14, 2020 3:12 AM

No no no — there are TWO Ronnies

by Anonymousreply 37June 14, 2020 4:56 AM

Valerie Bertinelli was on the show and wrote in her memoir that Earl Hamner was friendly to her.

by Anonymousreply 38June 14, 2020 5:00 AM

Kristy McNichol's failure to get billing in the opening credits is what started her decades-long slide into unmanageable bipolar disorder.

by Anonymousreply 39June 14, 2020 5:10 AM

Only one dinky plate of fried chicken for three adults and four kids?

by Anonymousreply 40June 14, 2020 5:12 AM

The show had 28 episodes and hasn't surfaced even in reruns since 1975. I wouldn't hold your breath for this thread reaching 600.

by Anonymousreply 41June 14, 2020 5:16 AM

Kristy McNichol learned how to make an apple bong while she was on this show.

by Anonymousreply 42June 14, 2020 5:18 AM

Damn, R38! That is sizzling! And people say this isn't a gossip board anymore

by Anonymousreply 43June 14, 2020 5:22 AM

[quote]I wouldn't hold your breath for this thread reaching 600.

Challenge ... accepted.

by Anonymousreply 44June 14, 2020 5:57 AM

Kristy McNichol? I second that emotion.

by Anonymousreply 45June 14, 2020 5:58 AM

The Family Tree was actually hot shit, R35!

Martin "Endless Love" Hewitt and James Spader as high school stepbrothers frequently found in their underwear, by the producers of Family!

And, unlike Apple's Way, the whole series is on YouTube:

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 46June 14, 2020 8:10 AM

I watched the show as a kid, at least a few episodes. The only thing I remember about the series now is the water wheel grist mill.

by Anonymousreply 47June 14, 2020 4:08 PM

Wikipedia indicates the show aired on TV Land and American Life TV in the late 1990s and early 2000s. So someone somewhere likely has VHS tapes of the show in their collection.

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 48June 14, 2020 4:10 PM

I remember there was a paperback tie-in book for the show.

by Anonymousreply 49June 14, 2020 4:16 PM

Let's do this! We can easily get to 600 by linking pics of mid-'70s Vince VP.

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 51June 14, 2020 5:23 PM

Promo stills from the show always have the characters laughing hysterically. That means the show was actually desperately unfunny.

by Anonymousreply 52June 14, 2020 5:24 PM

"Apple's Way will not be seen tonight, so that we can bring you the following special presentation."

You know there were some tears shed that night...

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 53June 14, 2020 5:28 PM

I don't think I ever watched it, but the thumbnail pic is triggering memories of wedge haircuts, denim leisure suits, and earth shoes.

by Anonymousreply 54June 14, 2020 6:23 PM

Ford was really about marketing their cars through TV shows and movies in the mid-70s. That wagon was in countless TV movies and shows when I was a kid. I wished our family had one but we only got GM cars. I remember it as the car from Burnt Offerings with Karen Black and Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell, as driven by Ms. Yvette Mimeux.

by Anonymousreply 57June 14, 2020 7:00 PM

There is more to the Earl Hamner story but I will leave it to the imagination.

by Anonymousreply 58June 14, 2020 10:34 PM

Is this some Mandela Effect shit? I consider myself a tv expert and have never heard of this.

by Anonymousreply 59June 14, 2020 10:37 PM

Have you heard of The Ken Berry 'Wow' Show, R59?

by Anonymousreply 60June 14, 2020 10:46 PM

It should be against the law to use the word “wow” in the same sentence as “Ken Berry.”

by Anonymousreply 62June 15, 2020 4:14 AM

LOL Cheryl Stopplemoor (Ladd) was in that WOW show.

by Anonymousreply 63June 15, 2020 7:13 PM

In '74/'75, I found it difficult to make time for Apple's Way. That it had Vincent Van Patten interested me a bit (whom I already knew from the 'Night Gallery' episode, 'Big Surprise'. Later he was hotter than hell in The Six Million Dollar Man episode, 'The Bionic Boy'), but insufficiently to get me to be in one spot at a particular time to watch it.

And then, just like that, it was gone. I never saw it again in syndication. It just dropped off the face of the earth.

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 64June 15, 2020 7:26 PM

LOL... I just moved to put Bootsy Gumdrop on ignore - again - and lo and behold..... OP disappears, R1 disappears and Bootsy's cunty R18 disappears.

Bootsy, you are truly one of the saddest creatures in the sewer parts of this place.

by Anonymousreply 65June 15, 2020 7:28 PM

Sorry, cunty R19. In my own defence, I was laughing pretty hard.

by Anonymousreply 66June 15, 2020 7:29 PM

Was this what played after R53's sad preemption interstitial?

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 67June 15, 2020 7:41 PM

Are those people in R17 using the red-checked tablecloth as napkins?

by Anonymousreply 68June 15, 2020 7:55 PM

I loved this show. Would love to watch it again. The clothes and hairstyles are triggering though.

Hey--does anyone know of a similar 70's family type show set somewhere in the desert. Maybe Arizona? I remember a woman with a blond bob and there were some cute dogs. That's all I got as far as clues.

by Anonymousreply 69June 15, 2020 8:07 PM

I was asked to star with Vince in Apple's Way, but held out for my star-making role with his Daddy!!

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 70June 15, 2020 11:57 PM

EXPLOSIVE tell-all interview with superstar Patti Cohoon!

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 71June 16, 2020 12:39 AM

[quote]I remember there was a paperback tie-in book for the show.

And a board game!

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 73June 16, 2020 1:36 AM

[quote]I remember watching this show as a child but all I remember about it is their 1973 ('74?) Ford Country Squire station wagon.

The '74 had a hood ornament if that helps, the kind that would just bend over if hit by a baseball.

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 74June 16, 2020 1:38 AM

The youngest son looks terrifyingly similar to the evil Dodie on My Three Sons.

by Anonymousreply 75June 16, 2020 2:18 AM

I know I watched Apple's Way, but like R-someone above, the only thing I remember about it is the water Wheel.

I do actually remember watching the Jack Benny tribute that preempted Apple's Way. I don't think I had ever seen Jack Benny before he died (his show ended before I was born). I was fascinated by the tribute and became a Jack Benny fan. True story.

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 76June 16, 2020 2:32 AM

"Apple's Way will not be presented tonight..."

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 77June 16, 2020 2:35 AM

R76 I remember the Jack Benny thing as well. It seemed to be a big deal when he died.

I know we watched Apple’s Way but don’t remember much about it or even how often we watched it.

by Anonymousreply 78June 16, 2020 3:33 AM

It was a Waltons rip-off. I guess network executives thought that if people loved the Waltons they'd also love this. WRONG!

by Anonymousreply 79June 16, 2020 3:36 AM

Vincent was hot as a Wonder Woman baddie!

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 80June 16, 2020 3:42 AM

FOLK TV should snap this up.

by Anonymousreply 81June 16, 2020 3:48 AM

Who was the hottest Van Patten?

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 82June 16, 2020 6:12 PM

[quote] The Family Tree was actually hot shit, [R35]! Martin "Endless Love" Hewitt and James Spader as high school stepbrothers frequently found in their underwear, by the producers of Family! And, unlike Apple's Way, the whole series is on YouTube:

Six 30 minute episodes and zero underwear scenes. Cancelled after those 6 episodes.

by Anonymousreply 83June 16, 2020 8:06 PM

I vaguely remember this show from when I was a kid. Don't think I watched more than one or two episodes, since it was more boring than The Waltons. However, I might be open to giving this show another try. Based on the clip shared at R17, it seems the only way to enjoy this show is to watch it ironically ... the ridiculous opening alone is full of country stereotypes and is ripe for mockery.

by Anonymousreply 84June 16, 2020 8:24 PM

It was very holier than thou - as if John-Boy grew up to be a Humorless Granola SJW. The show took that 70s “a very special episode” mindset to an absurdist extreme.

by Anonymousreply 85June 16, 2020 9:02 PM

[quote] Bootsy, you are truly one of the saddest creatures in the sewer parts of this place.

I like to think so!

Don’t worry, I won’t be ridiculing Bernie in this thread. I designate it a safe space!

by Anonymousreply 86June 16, 2020 11:39 PM

JOYCE was the hottest Van Patten.

by Anonymousreply 87June 17, 2020 6:44 PM

BULIFANT was the hottest Joyce.

by Anonymousreply 88June 17, 2020 11:53 PM

Did anyone notice the name Melora Hardin in The Family Tree credits?

Offsite Link
by Anonymousreply 89June 18, 2020 12:02 AM

BROTHERS was the hottest JOYCE doctor.

by Anonymousreply 90June 18, 2020 12:44 PM

What on earth was Earl Hamner thinking to name the family "Apple"?? Ridiculous.

by Anonymousreply 91June 18, 2020 2:44 PM

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pa3TmqOorZ6csm%2BvzqZmraCimq6le5FvaXBwaW5%2Bbq3PqaOeq12srrp5hH5pXnBgWoZ1ecarnJqsXai1sMOMqKlmrJiaeqi%2BxJqrnqukYsCpu9Zm