057: Rock 'n' Roll Rookie

Rock'n'Roll star Elvin Pelvin is drafted into the Army, which presents the Pentagon with a problem - a screaming mob of fans follows him around wherever he goes.

But maybe they can find a small, backwater Army camp where his legion of fanatics won't find him and the locals probably haven't heard of him? Yep - Fort Baxter - and of course, he gets put into Bilko's platoon, much to Colonel Hall's dismay.

Elvin is of course the Bilko Universe equivalent of Elvis Presley, and a pedantic person might find this problematic, because Elvis himself has already been mentioned in a few episodes.

Naturally Bilko sees an opportunity to make a fortune.

The lad who plays Elvin is not a bad likeness for the King of Rock'n'Roll. Not brilliant, but not bad.

I remember this one well and had always thought it was based on Elvis being drafted, but it was broadcast a year before that happened. Quite prescient.

Frank from Kojak appears again, this time as an Army officer.

I imagine Elvis was probably seen as a passing fad when this was made. Perhaps Rock'n'Roll was, as well.

Wordle 617 4/6

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Very quick one, about 90 seconds.

I love this guy's film reviews. Usually Segal movies, though the latest one isn't.

056: The Son of Bilko

Bilko's in New York with Rocco and Henshaw, but unlike his two corporals - he doesn't have a date. Then he runs into an old friend who gives him the phone number of a mutual female friend, who's been trying to get in touch with him.

He goes to see her, but she's married. So why's she keen to see him? Well, her 17 year old son wants to join the Army. Bilko takes a shine to him; perhaps the son he never had.

On his return, he finds that an awkward and introverted 18 year old has been transferred to the Motor Pool platoon. Bilko's brief experience as a father figure leads him to take the lad under his wing. Unfortunately, the young man's propensity for practical jokes makes him rather unpopular, eventually even with Bilko.

Clever one this, but with some surprisingly dark humour. I don't remember ever seeing this one, and I wonder if it was never shown on the BBC back in the day.

Very good one this, even if I saw the final payoff coming a mile off.

We did play British Bulldogs at Scouts, and some other games. But the only impromptu self-organised game I played as a kid was footy, with a tennis ball.

I suspect you'd end up weeing most of it unless you were dehydrated first, or unless it's very hot and you're straining yourself.

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Very similar story here .. had to methodically go through the combinations to find the solution.

055: Bilko's Television Idea

The agents of a failing TV comic called Buddy Bickford decide to put him in a sitcom about the Army. To help him ease into his new character, they arrange for him to stay at Fort Baxter for a week.

Naturally, Bilko sees an opportunity to make some money.

Buddy is played by an actor named Danny Dayton, who played much the same character - a tediously zany comedian who isn't particularly funny - in an episode of M*A*S*H, about twenty-five years later (but also set in the '50s, of course). As you can see, Colonel Hall is more impressed than Major Winchester.





There's a nice moment near the end where the script gently nudges the fourth wall.

Bilko at his most cynically devious and manipulative. Loved it. I remember this one very well, I think I watched it in the '80s some time.

I went to a pretty ordinary junior school then a grammar school, but I can't remember anything like this. Clearly I missed out.

Just bought Niall Ferguson's Empire: How Britain Made the Modern World.

Brecker Brothers - Detente

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Ten minutes, most of them trying to find a word to fit for the fourth go. Ignored one of the clues on the second go, annoyingly.

054: Bilko Enters Politics

Bilko tries to persuade the local mayor to build a serviceman's club, with the intention of making money out of it of course. But the local mayor is not remotely interested.

Fortunately there's an election coming up. Usually the mayor runs uncontested, so Bilko has the idea of running one of the platoon against him - just to pressure him into making a deal over the club.

I loved this exchange :

Henshaw: "How about Paparelli?"
Bilko: "Paparelli? I don't think he's a citizen. I think we captured him in Italy, he's just sorta tagged along"

Bilko settles on Doberman.

There's a running joke in this one about a middle-aged woman who's affronted that she was wolf-whistled at by a soldier. It gets a big laugh in 1957, because it's an overreaction to something harmless and trivial. But in 2023 I believe that's a misogynist hate crime, now.

Feels like a little movie, this one. Should have made it into a feature film.

I think you've misunderstood the meaning of that post.

It's not personal.