The Great American Dream Machine

Last updated
The Great American Dream Machine
GenreComedy
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes34
Production
Running time90 min (1971)
60 min (1971-1972)
Production company WNET
Original release
Network PBS
Release6 January 1971 (1971-01-06) 
9 February 1972 (1972-02-09)

The Great American Dream Machine was a weekly satirical variety television series, produced in New York City by WNET and broadcast on PBS from 1971 to 1972. The program was hosted by humorist and commentator Marshall Efron. Other notable cast members included Chevy Chase and contributors included Albert Brooks, Paul Jacobs, Studs Terkel, and Andy Rooney. The show centered on skits and satirical political commentary. The show was originally 90 minutes long and usually covered at least seven different current event topics. In the second season, the show was reduced to an hour.

Contents

Titles

The show began and ended with patriotic marching music and red, white, and blue GREAT AMERICAN DREAM MACHINE lettering, striped like an American flag. There was an animated "machine" of sorts, with complex moving parts, that had no evident function. The title theme was composed and performed by Steve Katz of Blood, Sweat & Tears fame.

Features

Some of the skits would later be revamped for the movie The Groove Tube .[ citation needed ] There were also occasional short films presented on the show, most of them "experimental" or documentaries about artistic endeavours. Some of these were subtitled.

Each week there was a Great American Hero segment. One week was Evel Knievel; played over Evel's hospital footage was a honky-tonk song about putting body parts back together. The song was written and performed by Martin Mull. [1]

Consumerism

Efron also participated in some skits, especially those taking a critical look at consumerism. One notable skit focused on the different size descriptions on cans of food, that at a time prior to significant government regulation and standardization of labels. Efron sarcastically compared cans of olives with sizes like "Giant", "Jumbo", "Extra Jumbo", "Super Jumbo", "Colossal", "Super Colossal" and "Gargantuan." While the other sizes were really used in retail, "Gargantuan" was not. The "Gargantuan" can contained one olive that filled the entire can.

Another piece involved Efron attempting to cook a lemon cream pie by using the largely artificial ingredients found listed on a box of Morton frozen lemon cream pie. The final result contained, in his words, “No lemons. No eggs. No cream. Just pie.” [2] The skit inspired a cease and desist letter from the Morton company's lawyers, but the producers of the show aired the skit again after verifying that it was factual. [3] According to Efron, the company subsequently changed the recipe to replace artificial flavorings with concentrated lemon juice. [3]

Another piece had Efron taking the audience on a tour of his apartment, in a "non-event" style that was very much ahead of its time. He presented his "stuffed cat", which proceeded to wake up and look around.

A memorable segment trumpeted the trash compactor appliance. Efron's tagline: "The machine that turns 20 pounds of trash into 20 pounds of trash!"

Reception

John Lennon praised the show in a 1972 radio interview, saying "But this Great American Dream Machine that they have on [New York-area public TV station] Channel 13 is as good as, if not better than, anything that's on British TV, including Monty Python's Flying Circus , which is not as heavy as the Dream Machine". [4]

DVD release

A 4-DVD set from S'More Entertainment, featuring most of the episodes of this series (given at a length of 777 minutes, or approximately 13 hours), was released on September 29, 2015. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dessert</span> Sweet course that concludes a meal

Dessert is a course that concludes a meal. The course consists of sweet foods, such as candy, and possibly a beverage such as dessert wine and liqueur. Some cultures sweeten foods that are more commonly savory to create desserts. In some parts of the world there is no tradition of a dessert course to conclude a meal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evel Knievel</span> American stunt performer (1938–2007)

Robert Craig Knievel, known professionally as Evel Knievel, was an American stunt performer and entertainer. Throughout his career, he attempted more than 75 ramp-to-ramp motorcycle jumps. Knievel was inducted into the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1999. He died of pulmonary disease in Clearwater, Florida, in 2007, aged 69.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pie</span> Baked, filled pastry

A pie is a baked dish which is usually made of a pastry dough casing that contains a filling of various sweet or savoury ingredients. Sweet pies may be filled with fruit, nuts, fruit preserves, brown sugar, sweetened vegetables, or with thicker fillings based on eggs and dairy. Savoury pies may be filled with meat, eggs and cheese or a mixture of meat and vegetables.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apple pie</span> Dessert pie made with apples

An apple pie is a fruit pie in which the principal filling is apples. Apple pie is often served with whipped cream, ice cream, custard or cheddar cheese. It is generally double-crusted, with pastry both above and below the filling; the upper crust may be solid or latticed. The bottom crust may be baked separately ("blind") to prevent it from getting soggy. Deep-dish apple pie often has a top crust only. Tarte Tatin is baked with the crust on top, but served with it on the bottom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moon Pie</span> American snack cakes

A Moon Pie is an American snack, popular across much of the United States, which consists of two round graham cookies, with marshmallow filling in the center, dipped in a flavored coating. The snack is often associated with the cuisine of the American South, where they are traditionally accompanied by an RC Cola. Today, MoonPies are made by Chattanooga Bakery, Inc., in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Jones Soda Co. is a Canadian-American beverage company based in Seattle, Washington, United States. It bottles and distributes soft drinks, non-carbonated beverages, energy drinks, and candy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nerds (candy)</span> American confection launched in 1983

Nerds is an American candy launched in 1983 by the Sunmark Corporation under the brand name Willy Wonka Candy Company. Nerds are now made by the Ferrara Candy Company, a subsidiary of Ferrero Group. With their anthropomorphic covers, Nerds usually contain two flavors per box, each flavor having a separate compartment and opening.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robbie Knievel</span> American stunt performer (1962–2023)

Robert Edward Knievel II was an American motorcyclist and stunt performer. He had also used the stage name Kaptain Robbie Knievel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swiss roll</span> Sponge cake formed in a spiral roll, with filling

A Swiss roll, jelly roll, roll cake, cream roll, roulade or Swiss log is a type of rolled sponge cake filled with whipped cream, jam, or icing. The origins of the term are unclear; in spite of the name "Swiss roll", the cake is believed to have originated elsewhere in Central Europe, possibly Austria or Slovenia. It appears to have been invented in the nineteenth century, along with Battenberg cake, doughnuts, and Victoria sponge. In the U.S., commercial snack-sized versions of the cake are sold with the brand names Ho Hos, Yodels, Swiss Cake Rolls, and others. A type of roll cake called Yule log is traditionally served at Christmas.

Wonderama is a children's television program that originally appeared on the Metromedia-owned stations from 1955 to 1977. The show was revived from 1980 to 1987, and again in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crab meat</span> Meat found within a crab, or more specifically, the leg of a crab.

Crab meat or crab marrow is the meat found within a crab, or more specifically, the leg of a crab. It is used in many cuisines around the world, prized for its soft, delicate and sweet taste. Crab meat is low in fat and provides around 340 kilojoules (82 kcal) of food energy per 85-gram (3 oz) serving. Brown crab, blue crabs, blue swimming crabs, and red swimming crabs are among the most commercially available species of crabmeat globally.

Marshall Efron was an American actor and humorist originally known for his work on the listener-sponsored Pacifica radio stations WBAI New York and KPFK Los Angeles, and later for the PBS television show The Great American Dream Machine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sponge cake</span> Type of cake

Sponge cake is a light cake made with egg whites, flour and sugar, sometimes leavened with baking powder. Some sponge cakes do not contain egg yolks, like angel food cake, but most of them do. Sponge cakes, leavened with beaten eggs, originated during the Renaissance, possibly in Spain. The sponge cake is thought to be one of the first non-yeasted cakes, and the earliest attested sponge cake recipe in English is found in a book by the English poet Gervase Markham, The English Huswife, Containing the Inward and Outward Virtues Which Ought to Be in a Complete Woman (1615). Still, the cake was much more like a cracker: thin and crispy. Sponge cakes became the cake recognised today when bakers started using beaten eggs as a rising agent in the mid-18th century. The Victorian creation of baking powder by English food manufacturer Alfred Bird in 1843 allowed the addition of butter to the traditional sponge recipe, resulting in the creation of the Victoria sponge. Cakes are available in many flavours and have many recipes as well. Sponge cakes have become snack cakes via the Twinkie.

The second season of Top Chef: Just Desserts was broadcast on Bravo. It featured 14 pastry chefs fighting to win the title of Top Chef.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doug Danger</span> American motorcycle racer

Doug "Danger" Senecal, born March 31, 1962, in Palmer, Massachusetts, is known as Doug Danger. He is an American motorcycle jumping world record holder and stunt performer and Stage 4 cancer survivor who lives in Oak Hill, Florida.

Pie in American cuisine has roots in English cuisine and has evolved over centuries to adapt to American cultural tastes and ingredients. The creation of flaky pie crust shortened with lard is credited to American innovation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bipartisan Cafe</span> Coffee shop in Portland, Oregon, U.S.

Bipartisan Cafe is a coffee shop and bakery in the Montavilla neighborhood of Portland, Oregon, United States. Since Hobie Bender and Peter Emerson started the business in 2005, the venue has hosted events that include meetings of civic groups and politicians, and viewing parties for political events. Bipartisan Cafe has garnered a positive reception, and has been named as one of Portland's best coffee and pie eateries. The venue's marionberry pie was included in the American Automobile Association's 2022 list of the ten best regional Western dishes.

References

  1. "Knievel Rock". Steve Mandich. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  2. "THE GREAT AMERICAN DREAM MACHINE: "Better Living Through Marshall Efron: Pie"". YouTube . Archived from the original on 2021-12-13. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  3. 1 2 Ledbetter, James (1998). Made Possible By...: The Death of Public Broadcasting in the United States. Verso. p. 55. ISBN   9781859840290.
  4. Burger, Jeff, ed. (2017). Lennon on Lennon: Conversations with John Lennon. Chicago: Chicago Review Press Incorporated. p. 277. ISBN   978-1-61374-824-4.
  5. tvshowsondvd.com Press Release: "The Great American Dream Machine - From the Early '70s...Before 'SNL,' Before 'The Daily Show!'", August 10, 2015. Archived August 12, 2015, at the Wayback Machine