| Toying Around the TV Set. |
| Written by Stephanie Finnegan |
| Monday, 30 January 2012 16:10 |
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It’s no secret that I LOVE TV. People often denigrate it by calling it the “boob tube” or the “idiot box,” but, to me, those are just One of the things I like best about just chilling out and watching a program—comedies and zombie shows are my favorites, go figure—is when a doll makes an unexpected guest appearance. So far, the new year is only a few weeks old, and already dolls are popping up everywhere on the pop culture front. For me, the happiest moment came when the second episode of this season’s “30 Rock” aired. Sad sack Liz Lemon, who seems to be a perpetual runner-up in the love sweepstakes, has finally found her soul mate. The handsome, though a tad too laid-back, fellow is named Criss (no “h” and two “s’s”) and he seems genuinely smitten by the quirky and kooky Ms. Lemon. To show his joy at celebrating their third-month anniversary, he surprises Liz with a mint-in-box “Terry, the Gender Neutral Doll,” fondly remembered from Liz’s childhood. It’s hilarious to hear Tina Fey exclaim, “Oh, my God, look! He/she comes with his/her original baseball glove and baby, plus two sets of genitals!” Quick-eyed viewers caught the fact that the forty-something Ms. Lemon is clad in nearly the exact same fashion as plastic “Terry.” Too bad, some marketing expert didn’t have a “Terry” doll available for purchase at the NBC network store. I think it would have sold quite a few that night, because Tina Fey truly captured the delighted look that an adult gets when she is handed a reminder of her childhood. I think “Terry” would have been a novelty gift for those of us who pine for our very own Cabbage Patch Kids and other dolls that followed Marlo Thomas’s “Free to Be You and Me” enterprise.
It’s entertaining to see how “right” a scriptwriter can make his or her fictional doll creation. (I feel like “Terry the Gender Neutral Blogger” The melding of the macabre and dolls has always gone hand-in-claw on TV. From “The Twilight Zone” to “The Outer Limits” to “Night Gallery,” dolls have always provided writers with a way to frighten viewers at home. Perhaps because every home has a doll squirreled away in it, these playthings are easy and convenient tools of terror.
Finding sanctuary in a doll in the middle of a zombie onslaught is part and parcel of “The Walking Dead.” It’s an unexpected douse of sanity into a world that has turned bleak and unforgiving overnight. The doll encapsulated everything beautifully.
Whether it’s madness or madcap antics, dolls are watching everything this season, and I’m watching it, too! If you’ve spotted dolls showing up in unexpected programs, videos, commercials, or films, let me know. It’s great to discover where our private passions are getting public airings. Catch you after the eleven o’clock news!
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Hi, Joan T: The show was "Family Affair," and the little girl was Buffy, who loved her doll beyond belief. She was always chatting with it. The doll was a regular part of the series, and could be bought at toy stores too. Clever marketing strategy back then.
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Anyone remember Mrs. Beasley? I can't even remember the series? Was it Bachelor Father? Somehow the little girl's doll became a character in the series and was often involved in the story line.
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I always see all the dolls lined up in the cubicles on The Office and wonder if they were chosen by the actors to decorate their offices and work spaces or if a set designer did that. Michael Scott's office was loaded down with dolls and toys. It must be fun to decorate a show's set with dolls and other unusual, unique items.
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