SpColl 28: Mike Douglas Collection

Introduction

The Mike Douglas Show, originating in Cleveland, Ohio and later moving to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was a 90-minute program that dominated the ratings during the important weekday afternoon time slot. At its peak, the show was seen on 171 television stations and an average audience of six million viewers. From 1961 to 1981, Mike welcomed many diverse guests, from show business, politics, and current events. The Mike Douglas Show offered viewers a mixture of thoughtful conversations and wholesome entertainment. Douglas once described his personality and appeal to the mass audience by stating, “I’d have to say I’m square and I’m happy that I am.” His personality encouraged such personalities as Marlon Brando, John Lennon, Barbra Streisand, Rose Kennedy and Princess Grace of Monaco to choose his program for their rare talk show appearances. One such guest was two year old Tiger Woods, doing tricks and golf shots impressing comedian Bob Hope and actor James Coburn.

Mike also lent his co-hosting duties out now and then. Such was the case of the week of February 14, 1972, when Mike asked John Lennon and Yoko Ono to co-host the show. It was hugely risky and controversial, but Douglas knew it would open the show up to a whole new audience. It garnered the largest rating in the show’s history and still ranks as a milestone in television history.

Mike can claim one huge discovery too: he learned of a young comedian rising through the ranks of Philly nightclubs and invited him to appear on his show. That comedian was Bill Cosby; he also gave Jay Leno and Howie Mandel their start in show business.

Around 1966, Mike scored a Top 40 hit with “The Man In My Little Girl’s Life”. This was the time of the Beach Boys and the Beatles. Mike Douglas provided the singing voice of Prince Charming in Walt Disney’s animated version of Cinderella in 1950. Douglas’s singing career never matched the popularity of his television career, however he did sing daily on his show.

In 1981, the Nielson ratings reported the Mike Douglas Show as number one around the country. However, a new generation of executives had taken over at Westinghouse, with new attitudes, new philosophies of programming. These executives decided not to renew Mike’s contract and hire a new younger host, John Davidson. Davidson had co-hosted a few times for Mike. Mr. Douglas was understandably not pleased but gracefully accepted this decision. After a twenty year run, Mike bid farewell to Westinghouse, and was welcomed back on the air by over a hundred stations who had signed on to broadcast the new Mike Douglas Show through independent syndication. The Davidson Show was canceled after a brief run, but Mike and his staff did not gloat. After their syndication came to an end, Mike felt it was meant to be and was glad to end his television career on his own terms.

Sources:

Mike Douglas, My Story by Mike Douglas, G.P. Putnam & Sons, ©1978 New York, New York

I’ll Be Right Back: Memories of TV’s Greatest Talk Show by Mike Douglas and Thomas Kelly and Michael Heaton ©2000 Simon & Schuster, New York, New York

"Mike Douglas" by Charles Coletta, ©2000 St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture, St. James Press, Farmington Hills, MI

Scope and Content

This album contains an assortment of black and white still photographs from the Mike Douglas Show when it was broadcast in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Inventory

1. Mike Douglas, seated on stool
2. Mike Douglas standing, laughing
3. Mike Douglas and wife
4. Mike Douglas and wife, daughter
5. Mike Douglas upper body, close up
6. Mike Douglas, upper body, further away
7. Mike Douglas smiling, profile
8. Mike Douglas, close up
9. Mike Douglas smiling, full body
10. Mike Douglas tapes two weeks in Las Vegas, speaking or singing into microphone
11. Mike Douglas and Sally Struthers
12. 50th Show Anniversary –Mike Douglas, Lucy Arnaz, Eddy Arnold, Norm Crosby, Clive David, John Davidson, Rocky Graziano, Kreskin, Jennifer O’Neill, Rosemarie, Gwen Verdon, Nancy Wilson
13. Mike Douglas with Kreskin and Jennifer O’Neill
14. John Davidson singing on the 11th Anniversary Show
15. Gary Wells motorcycle jump
16. "Is He Bigger Than a Breadbox?" Don Rickles, Mr. Jiggs, Mike Douglas, Ronald Winters
17. Mike Douglas, Tony Randall and Jean Stapleton
18. Princess Grace of Monaco and Mike Douglas
19. Mike Douglas and Andy Griffith
20. Mike Douglas and Burt Reynolds
21. Mike Douglas and Richard Thomas
22. Mike Douglas, Gisele MacKenzie, Snooky Lanson, Liberace
23. Mike Douglas and Mike Connors
24. Mike Douglas, Aliza Kashi and Elke Sommer
25. Mike Douglas at Disney World with mascots
26. Mike Douglas in front of Cinderella Castle with mascots
27. Mike Douglas golfing at Disney World with Mickey and Pluto
28. 4 Mini-pictures of Mike Douglas at Disney World: In front of castle with mascots, golfing with Mickey, riding on Dumbo ride, standing with Mickey in front of jet skiers
29. Jan Murray
30. Mike Douglas, Don Rickles, Barbi Benton
31. Mike Douglas and Beverly Sills
32. Mike Douglas, Lucy Arnaz, Eddy Arnold, Norm Crosby, Clive David, John Davidson, Rocky Graziano, Kreskin, Jennifer O’Neill, Rosemarie, Gwen Verdon and Nancy Wilson at 11th Anniversary, 2,750th show
33. Michael Landon
34. Mike Douglas and William Holden
35. Graham Kerr cooking
36. Mike Douglas and Jay M. Rogers, Jr.
37. Mark Spitz and Suzy Weiner Spitz
38. Mike Douglas, Jean Stapleton and Redd Foxx
39. Al Green and band performing
40. 4 Mini-pictures of Mike Douglas: in harness, with Carol Lawrence, flipping upside-down, in the harness in the air and on the ground with Carol Lawrence
41. Mike Douglas, Redd Foxx and Demond Wilson
42. Wayne Newton
43. Mike Douglas, Barbara Walters, Frank Gorshin
44. Mike Douglas, Pat, Bill and Grant Loud, Dennis Weaver
45. Mike Douglas, Bob Woodward, Carl Bernstein, Marvin Hamlisch
46. Mike Douglas and Glen Campbell
47. Jack Lemmon on the piano with the show’s band
48. Mike Douglas, Jesse Owens, Hugh Downs, Joe Garagiola
49. 3 Mini-pictures: Mike Douglas, Dennis Weaver and Howard Curtis gradually falling off a chair
50. Judy Collins
51. Hugh Downs conducting orchestra
52. Melba Moore
53. Mike Douglas, Mr. David and 11th Anniversary
54. Totie Fields
55. Mike Douglas, Joan Fontaine, Cliff Robertson, Brenda Lee, Louis Nye, Marilyn Michaels
56. Mike Douglas, Joan Fontaine, Cliff Robertson
57. Meredith Baxter and David Birney
58. Mike Douglas, Wayne Newton and the Bumpy Family
59. Mike Douglas, Fernando Lamas, Esther Williams
60. Mike Douglas, Bette Davis
61. Mike Douglas, Jean Stapleton, Maureen Stapleton
62. Mike Douglas, Shirley Eder, Earl Wilson, Doris Lilly, Cleveland Amory, Dorothy Manners
63. Mike Douglas, Anthony Newley
64. Mike Douglas, Pele, Diana Douglas, Michael Douglas
65. Mike Douglas, Anthony Quinn, Greek dancers, Tiny Tim
66. Mike Douglas and Tony Bennett
67. Mike Douglas and Bill Withers
68. Mike Douglas and Dennis Weaver
69. Mike Douglas and Marilyn Michaels
70. Mark Spitz
71. Mike Douglas and Eddie Fisher
72. Mike Douglas and Roger Miller
73. Mike Douglas and Jim Nabors
74. Mike Douglas with football on the beach
75. Jack Palance with football on the beach
76. Mike Douglas, Jack Palance, Larry Csonka, Dick Butkus, The Lennon Sisters, The Hudson Brothers
77. 6 Mini-pictures: Jim Lange, Allen Ludden, Bob Eubanks, Garry Moore, Tom Kennedy, Mike Douglas
78. Mike Douglas, Sergio Franchi
79. Mike Douglas and Jim Stafford
80. Mike Douglas, Marvin Hamlisch, Rocky Bleier
81. Mike Douglas, Elena Verdugo, Mayor Pete Wilson, Trini Lopez
82. Mike Douglas and Trini Lopez with Mexican dancer
83. Mike Douglas, Jean Stapleton
84. Mike Douglas, Richard Thomas, Jean Stapleton
85. Mike Douglas, dressed as girl character Mary Hartman, Graham Jarvis, Mary Kay Place, James Darren
86. Mike Douglas, Michael Douglas
87. Mike Douglas, Hal Linden
88. The Supremes – Mary Wilson, Lynda and Jean
89. Mike Douglas, The Sportsmen Quartet, and show announcer Don Wilson
90. Mike Douglas, Mary Hartman
91. Mike Douglas, Anita Bryant, Phyllis Diller
92. James Brolin
93. Mike Douglas, David Janssen
94. Eddy Arnold
95. Julie Harris
96. Mike Douglas, John Byner, Marilyn Michaels
97. Mike Douglas, Tony Bennett, Johnny Bench, Joanne Worley
98. Robert Conrad
99. Mike Douglas, Jonathan Winters
100. Mike Douglas, Linda Blair, Bobbie Gentry
101. Mike Douglas, David Hartman, Butterfly McQueen
102. Joel Gray
103. Kent McCord, Martin Milner