8 ms·

Huell Howser Archives: California’s Gold

78 points by thaw13579 4y ago

mtgentry 4y ago
Any Huell link gets a instant upvote from this guy.
Waterluvian 4y ago
Required viewing: https://youtu.be/kWVFEVWJMz8 https://youtu.be/kWVFEVWJMz8 Huell’s show had a real loose feeling without a budget. I loved that. At one point he had a phone call with the owner of a cafe to ask about a photo of Burt Lancaster on the wall. The other half of the call wasn’t recorded and the conversation went nowhere but they still aired it. I cherish the authenticity of it all.
- Buildstarted 4y ago
  I was going to post this exact one if nobody else did. Excellent episode. It certainly was a great show. Very informal and informative.
- Aloha 4y ago
  I love how that thing sounds
- PopAlongKid 4y ago
  That is one episode I never saw on cable reruns. Is that for real? Or does the performer just pantomime the motions of making the music?
  - Waterluvian 4y ago
    The Fotoplayer is based on a player piano so the musician isn’t always playing the piano, leaving them with a much more sensible amount of work to do. One person bands are very much a thing and I think this performance falls well within the realm of plausibility. Indeed this is real and not a pantomime.
- david2ndaccount 4y ago
  Huell Howser visiting the Bagdad Cafe is a classic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImpGsMenmSs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImpGsMenmSs
PopAlongKid 4y ago
I used to watch his programs on cable TV, back when he was still alive. Even after death, I recall that his videos were still being sold by his company/estate, both on VHS at one point and DVD. But I can no longer find evidence of these direct sales, so I guess only used copies for sale are available now. Trivia: the character on TV series "Breaking Bad" named Huell was a nominal reference to Huell Howser, according to the video commentary.
Aloha 4y ago
Huell Howser was a big part of my childhood - he had this authentic "aww shucks" way about him, while also asking the questions most people would probably ask, seeing a given thing.
- dopeboy 4y ago
  He had this charm about him that made anyone talking to him feel heard and excited.
milleramp 4y ago
Gotta love the bunny museum episode! https://youtu.be/1D5LCd5ytRc https://youtu.be/1D5LCd5ytRc
basementcat 4y ago
I had the good fortune to meet him and he was just as warm, gracious and personable off camera as he was on camera. His archives are a treasure. At the 12:30 mark in the linked video, Huell visits NASA's Deep Space Network complex in Goldstone, CA. https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1998/01/08/big-things-in-the-desert-californias-gold-909/ https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1998/01/08/b...
cjensen 4y ago
Personal favorites "Salt" about the salt ponds around the South Bay. https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1999/01/08/salt-californias-gold-1001/ https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1999/01/08/s... "Drawbridge" about a ghost town in the marshes of the South Bay. To me, it was more interesting as a glimpse into how people lived a hundred years ago. https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2002/01/08/drawbridge-californias-gold-4007/ https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2002/01/08/d... And because I think it's important to remember the ugly parts of history, lest it be repeated, I'd recommend "Manzanar" https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2002/01/08/manzanar-californias-gold-4012/ https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2002/01/08/m..., "A Tale of Two Cities" about Colonel Allensworth State Park https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1992/12/10/a-tale-of-two-cities-californias-gold-308/ https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1992/12/10/a..., and "Weedpatch" about the 'Okies' https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1995/12/10/weedpatch-californias-gold-601/ https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1995/12/10/w....
- beej71 4y ago
  Every time I'd take the train down to SJ, Drawbridge was always a favorite sight.
  - JKCalhoun 4y ago
    Someone had told me there was some sort of Speakeasy thing out there during Prohibition. Urban folklore as far as I know.
    - kurthr 4y ago
      I don't know either, but my father-in-law claimed to have got drunk there during prohibition. He died a decade ago, but by my calculation he would have only been 17 when prohibition was repealed in '33. Only know that because he was 24 when he was called up for WW II. Could be true or a very old wives tale.
- PopAlongKid 4y ago
beej71 4y ago
And in case you haven't seen his Simpsons appearance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOnbVbgrZms https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOnbVbgrZms
- SaintGhurka 4y ago
  Also he voiced the Backson in a Winnie the Pooh movie. A mysterious creature that had everybody scared out of their wits throughout the show until (spoiler alert) he finally shows up at the end and is the friendliest sounding character you can imagine
suzzer99 4y ago
"Now, now hold on a minute. You say there's a cayhhuve down there? And you can just go walk in the cayhhuve?" "Well ahhve just about seen everything now. Come on folks, we're gonna have some fun today."
joshuaheard 4y ago
I love these shows. Huell’s joyful child-like curiosity would light up and elucidate even the most arcane attraction or monument. It’s good that they are saving these for posterity. They truly are… California’s Gold.
wrongplatform 4y ago
This brings back good memories as a kid watching Huell with my parents

78 points by thaw13579 4y ago

Any Huell link gets a instant upvote from this guy.

Required viewing: https://youtu.be/kWVFEVWJMz8 https://youtu.be/kWVFEVWJMz8 Huell’s show had a real loose feeling without a budget. I loved that. At one point he had a phone call with the owner of a cafe to ask about a photo of Burt Lancaster on the wall. The other half of the call wasn’t recorded and the conversation went nowhere but they still aired it. I cherish the authenticity of it all.

Buildstarted 4y ago
I was going to post this exact one if nobody else did. Excellent episode. It certainly was a great show. Very informal and informative.
Aloha 4y ago
I love how that thing sounds
PopAlongKid 4y ago
That is one episode I never saw on cable reruns. Is that for real? Or does the performer just pantomime the motions of making the music?
- Waterluvian 4y ago
  The Fotoplayer is based on a player piano so the musician isn’t always playing the piano, leaving them with a much more sensible amount of work to do. One person bands are very much a thing and I think this performance falls well within the realm of plausibility. Indeed this is real and not a pantomime.
david2ndaccount 4y ago
Huell Howser visiting the Bagdad Cafe is a classic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImpGsMenmSs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImpGsMenmSs

PopAlongKid 4y ago

I used to watch his programs on cable TV, back when he was still alive. Even after death, I recall that his videos were still being sold by his company/estate, both on VHS at one point and DVD. But I can no longer find evidence of these direct sales, so I guess only used copies for sale are available now. Trivia: the character on TV series "Breaking Bad" named Huell was a nominal reference to Huell Howser, according to the video commentary.

Aloha 4y ago

Huell Howser was a big part of my childhood - he had this authentic "aww shucks" way about him, while also asking the questions most people would probably ask, seeing a given thing.

dopeboy 4y ago
He had this charm about him that made anyone talking to him feel heard and excited.

milleramp 4y ago

Gotta love the bunny museum episode! https://youtu.be/1D5LCd5ytRc https://youtu.be/1D5LCd5ytRc

basementcat 4y ago

I had the good fortune to meet him and he was just as warm, gracious and personable off camera as he was on camera. His archives are a treasure. At the 12:30 mark in the linked video, Huell visits NASA's Deep Space Network complex in Goldstone, CA. https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1998/01/08/big-things-in-the-desert-californias-gold-909/ https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1998/01/08/b...

cjensen 4y ago

Personal favorites "Salt" about the salt ponds around the South Bay. https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1999/01/08/salt-californias-gold-1001/ https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1999/01/08/s... "Drawbridge" about a ghost town in the marshes of the South Bay. To me, it was more interesting as a glimpse into how people lived a hundred years ago. https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2002/01/08/drawbridge-californias-gold-4007/ https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2002/01/08/d... And because I think it's important to remember the ugly parts of history, lest it be repeated, I'd recommend "Manzanar" https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2002/01/08/manzanar-californias-gold-4012/ https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2002/01/08/m..., "A Tale of Two Cities" about Colonel Allensworth State Park https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1992/12/10/a-tale-of-two-cities-californias-gold-308/ https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1992/12/10/a..., and "Weedpatch" about the 'Okies' https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1995/12/10/weedpatch-californias-gold-601/ https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/1995/12/10/w....

beej71 4y ago
Every time I'd take the train down to SJ, Drawbridge was always a favorite sight.
- JKCalhoun 4y ago
  Someone had told me there was some sort of Speakeasy thing out there during Prohibition. Urban folklore as far as I know.
  - kurthr 4y ago
    I don't know either, but my father-in-law claimed to have got drunk there during prohibition. He died a decade ago, but by my calculation he would have only been 17 when prohibition was repealed in '33. Only know that because he was 24 when he was called up for WW II. Could be true or a very old wives tale.
PopAlongKid 4y ago

beej71 4y ago

And in case you haven't seen his Simpsons appearance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOnbVbgrZms https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOnbVbgrZms

SaintGhurka 4y ago
Also he voiced the Backson in a Winnie the Pooh movie. A mysterious creature that had everybody scared out of their wits throughout the show until (spoiler alert) he finally shows up at the end and is the friendliest sounding character you can imagine

suzzer99 4y ago

"Now, now hold on a minute. You say there's a cayhhuve down there? And you can just go walk in the cayhhuve?" "Well ahhve just about seen everything now. Come on folks, we're gonna have some fun today."

joshuaheard 4y ago

I love these shows. Huell’s joyful child-like curiosity would light up and elucidate even the most arcane attraction or monument. It’s good that they are saving these for posterity. They truly are… California’s Gold.

wrongplatform 4y ago

This brings back good memories as a kid watching Huell with my parents