Pop culture Q&A

By Rich Heldenfels

McClatchy Newspapers

Q. After “Gilligan’s Island” was canceled in 1967, I vaguely remember Bob Denver starring in another TV sitcom shortly thereafter. I don’t believe the show lasted long. Do you have any information on this show?

A. In September 1968, about a year after the end of “Gilligan’s Island,” Bob Denver starred with Herb Edelman in the CBS comedy “The Good Guys.” According to “The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows,” Edelman played a diner owner; Denver was a cabdriver who also helped in the diner.

The series was canceled during its second season, but I enjoyed it. And it had a nice theme song, “Two Good Guys,” with music by Jerry Fielding and lyrics by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans.

Q. One of my favorite shows is “So You Think You Can Dance.” Is it coming back soon? I sure hope so.

A. Coming back, yes. But I would be careful about “soon.” Most of the time it has been a summer show, and auditions for the next season are scheduled in various cities until at least March 1, so I’d expect the new season in late May or June. By the way, Mary Murphy is rejoining the show as a full-time judge, replacing Mia Michaels.

Q. I am trying to find a DVD of “The Lighthouse” with Richard Dreyfuss. I think it came out in 2010 and I am having no luck finding anything. I can see the trailer on the computer, but how do I get my hands on this?

A. I think you are looking for “The Lightkeepers,” a 2010 movie with Dreyfuss as a lighthouse keeper on Cape Cod. The cast also included Blythe Danner, Bruce Dern, Julie Harris and Mamie Gummer, who is now on ABC’s “Off the Map” — and the daughter of Meryl Streep. The movie has been released on DVD and Blu-ray.

Q. I’ve been wondering whatever happened to “Whatever,” the talk show starring Martha Stewart’s daughter, Alexis, and her friend, that used to air on the Hallmark channel at noon. It disappeared before the holidays and has now been replaced by a new show.

A. A Hallmark executive told the New York Post in October that the channel had been “a bit too aggressive” in loading up with Martha-related programming. A long block of shows was trimmed, and the trimming included “Whatever With Alexis & Jennifer,” with hosts Alexis Stewart and Jennifer Koppelman Hutt. But they are still talking on Sirius Satellite Radio’s Martha Stewart Living channel.

Q. Years ago, I recall watching a Western movie in which some men were looking for a satchel full of money that had been buried in a hole.

At the end of the movie, one man got the bag, but when he opened it, a rattlesnake bit him, and he died. Does this sound familiar to you? Do you recall the title of this film?

A. It sounds like something that could have been used in a lot of Westerns. But one I know of that did is “There Was a Crooked Man,” a well-regarded film from 1970, with Henry Fonda and Kirk Douglas.

Q. “NCIS” is my favorite show. Who plays Jimmy Palmer, Ducky’s assistant?

A. Jimmy is played by Brian Dietzen, a Colorado native who has done Shakespeare onstage and “From Justin to Kelly,” the notorious Kelly Clarkson-Justin Guarini movie, onscreen.

Before getting his recurring role on “NCIS,” he was also on the short-lived series “My Guide to Becoming a Rock Star.”