1972-73 Television Season 50th Anniversary: The Bold Ones (final episode close)

We've reached the end of the line in our tribute to the 1972-1973 television season with a final series to consider and discuss: The Bold Ones.

This video clip is from the series final episode from May 1973. Just four words: Jane Wyman's a Doctor?! And a surgeon??!! (okay, seven words).

Indeed she is, and we think that is a pretty cool way for the series to end. There is still David Hartman on staff for this finale', but this final broadcast episode is all Jane's.

The series was one of several 'wheel series' of rotating detective and/or police/detective series on NBC during this early 1970's period. It was 'the hey day' for this genre, and The Bold Ones was really the second of the 'rotating wheel' genre, following 'The Name of the Game', which debuted a bit earlier.

The Bold Ones ran a success four years, starting back on September 14, 1969. Originally, 'the wheel' was comprised of 'The Doctors', 'The Lawyers' and 'The Protectors'. We looked back in our archive files to our video post from September 2019, and it helped us recall that first season line up.

As with any of the wheel series, not every storyline/series within the rotating wheel was a viewer favorite, and hence, some sub-series would be canceled along the way. After that first season, 'The Protectors' was canceled that spring 1970. That series was replaced in the wheel by a new show titled 'The Senator'. Even with Hal Holbrook as lead, it was hard back then to find an audience for a show about Congress/Senate. The Senator was canceled at the end of season 2.

By the fourth and final season in fall 1973, The Doctors was the last surviving series within the Bold Ones wheel', and the show's cast had been someone reduced. It's the old story of a show needing to do some cost-cutting along the way and particularly near to the end of its run, as ratings begin to wane, and the network (which foots much of the production costs) is trying to save money as advertising dollars begin to wane.

Nevertheless, The Bold Ones as a fine series, and the DVD set that includes the entire series run is well worth adding to one's vintage television library. We're not certain if NBC (Universal) is streaming this series via Peacock, but it not, they should. A solid effort by all involved and a good snapshot of the fine work that we being done on television in that early 1970s era.
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Okay, that's a wrap here... the time has arrived to say goodbye. Time to wrap up our work for the season and bid farewell until the fall. We thank you all for watching and for staying tuned-in throughout this season (and all that have come before). We'll be back in September for the fall 1974 kick-off.

In the meantime, we hope you will stay close to your screen as we bring aboard our summer team with their slate of television special reporting from Memorial Day to Labor Day. From our last staff meeting, the summer programming was still 'a work in progress', but they are getting very close to putting things in place, and that begins on Monday.

In the meantime, 'M' will be here at the desk tomorrow for a special 40th anniversary tribute to Cheers, which will be a nice"1980s" segue to the work that the summer team is assembling for this summer. More on that on Monday.

In the meantime, thank you for watching, and remember, vintage television still has great value... it shows us what has come before, and the quality work that was done 'back in the day.' Well worth remembering.

We thank you for watching and for taking this journey back in time with us to uncover television's past ,and the vanguard of people and shows that helped make it all happen..

Take care, Television Vanguard staff