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Reviews
The Consultant (1983)
I loved this back when I first saw it and have been looking for it ever since
Every so often, I look on the Internet to see if this miniseries shows up as being held as a copy anywhere. So far, no luck. I so very much enjoyed it when I saw it in the US on public TV, back forever ago. I remember it as fascinating and creepy; Hywel Bennett's character had an odd and dangerous charm, and I remember he corrupted others around him...and one wondered about who this character actually was, and what he actually felt. And I think that's a helluva fine actorly accomplishment. This series would probably seem rather dated now 'cause of the depicted computer technology of that time, but I think the acting would hold up, it left such a strong impression on me. I know I would be so grateful to see it again and judge for myself. Did this disappear forever, junked by the BBC? Someone somewhere must have a recorded copy... I hope! And might share!
Dragnet: The Big Producer (1954)
A bit of explanation about the "joke books"...
First, to the reviewer who was puzzled by the "Joke Books" reference: Early to mid-20th century porn was very commonly offered as small, crudely drawn comic strip books known as "Tijuana Bibles". Cheap and easy to distribute, but very filthy, often involving caricatures of famous people. They would have been considered comics, "funnies", albeit forbidden ones. These are most likely the type of thing being peddled around by the kid at school.
Second, I think this episode was one that must have been very tricky to present on TV in 1954, due to its subject matter. It put Hollywood in a bad light, and it trespassed into forbidden territory for the network, sexy stuff involving kids. Since the script was already written (recycled from the Dragnet radio show of two years earlier, already paid for) and was probably one of the social-rot ideas that both Jack Webb and his police consultants felt strongly about presenting as a true moral hazard to kids, it had to be made---but I bet the network fought Webb at every turn. Essentially, this story version was a sad compromise, differing somewhat from the more realistic radio version---this TV version soft-peddled the content and then went off into an idiotic digression about a nice old man who couldn't make a living in movies anymore.