VD Blues
{{Infobox television
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| writer = Donald Fouser
Gary Belkin
Jules Feiffer{{cite book |last1=Fay |first1=Martha |title=Out of Line: The Art of Jules Feiffer |date=19 May 2015 |publisher=Abrams |isbn=978-1-61312-292-1 |page=855 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Mgr4CAAAQBAJ&dq=%22VD+Blues%22&pg=PT855 |language=en}}
| screenplay =
| story =
| director = Israel Horovitz
Stanley Lathan
| starring = Dick Cavett
James Coco
Marcia Rodd
Arlo Guthrie{{cite book |last1=Reineke |first1=Hank |title=Arlo Guthrie: The Warner/Reprise Years |date=1 June 2012 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-0-8108-8332-1 |page=146 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W4vdUdfAKpYC&dq=%22VD+Blues%22&pg=PA146 |language=en |quote=To offset the sensitive nature of the topic, VD Blues masqueraded as a television variety show featuring celebrities, musical performances, and comedy sketches that gently educated viewers about the dangers of syphilis.}}
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| num_episodes = 1
| producer = Gary Belkin
Israel Horovitz
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| network = WNET
| released = {{Start date|1972|10|09}}{{cite book |last1=Day |first1=James |title=The Vanishing Vision: The Inside Story of Public Television |date=8 January 2021 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-35663-4 |page=184 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M_nnDwAAQBAJ&dq=VD+Blues&pg=PA184 |language=en |quote=VD Blues aired on October 9, 1972. Only two stations refused it : one in Jackson, Mississippi, and one in Little Rock, Arkansas . Most not only ran it but mounted local follow - up shows with experts responding to viewers ...}}
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VD Blues was a one-hour PBS Special of the Week, created by Donald Fouser that aired in 1972 about the dangers of venereal disease.{{cite news | title=The VD Blues, written and created by Donald Fouser | date= October 9, 1972 | publisher=Time, Inc. | url =http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,906534,00.html | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20101022194724/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,906534,00.html | url-status =dead | archive-date =October 22, 2010 | access-date = 2008-07-07 }}
Plot
The show consisted of a series of skits and sketches that were hosted by Dick Cavett and starred well-known performers such as James Coco, Marcia Rodd, and Arlo Guthrie. It was underwritten by the 3M Company. The show featured the Shel Silverstein song "Don't Give a Dose" performed by Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show.{{cite book |last1=Oullette |first1=Laurie |title=Viewers Like You: How Public TV Failed the People |date=24 July 2012 |publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=978-0-231-52931-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wkhj0gtP1dMC&dq=%22VD+Blues%22&pg=PT134 |language=en |quote=VD Blues (1972), declared “one of the most significant events in the history of television as a medium for education, enlightenment, and raised consciousness,” rejected stodgy public television formats in an aggressive attempt to ...}}{{cite book |last1=Brown |first1=James Isaac |title=Reading Power |date=1975 |publisher=D. C. Heath |isbn=978-0-669-85571-5 |page=260 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HsBaAAAAYAAJ&q=%22VD+Blues%22 |language=en |quote=You certainly didn't feel preached at if you were watching VD Blues . Instead, you saw a bizarre, sometimes hilarious, and remarkably informative show — saw it, enjoyed it, stayed tuned to one of numerous " breakaway " half hours ...}}{{cite book |title=Health Services Reports, Volume 89 |date=1974 |publisher=Health Services Administration |page=295 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NthJIpaXzBcC&dq=%22VD+Blues%22&pg=PA295 |language=en |quote=... which followed a 1 - hour national program entitled " VD Blues " that starred Dick Cavett . Following this 2 - hour broadcast, WETA-TV aired an additional 1 - hour program in which participants from the " Free Metro D.C. from VD ...}}{{open access}}{{cite book |author1=United States Congress Senate Committee on Commerce Subcommittee on Communications |title=Public Broadcasting: Hearings, Ninety-third Congress, First Session, on S. 1090 .. |date=1973 |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |page=273 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PPnPAAAAMAAJ&dq=%22VD+Blues%22&pg=PA273 |language=en |quote=More of the ' VD Blues ' type that inspires local follow - up . " " The objective is actually the objective of our entire schedule and can, I think, be better met by individual series, each dealing with a specific area of the Arts or ...}}{{cite journal |last1=Greenberg |first1=Bradley S. |last2=Gantz |first2=Walter |title=Public television and taboo topics: The impact of VD Blues |journal=Public Telecommunications Review |date=1976 |volume=4 |issue=1 |pages=56–59}}
Sequel
In 1973, PBS made a sequel,{{cite book |title=Cincinnati Magazine |date=April 1973 |publisher=Emmis Communications |page=20 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pOsCAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22VD+Blues%22&pg=PA20 |language=en |quote=April 2, 8 p.m. V.D. Blues. A dynamic program of information on venereal disease.}} VD Blues, Part 2, in which student volunteers from Drama classes at the University of Rochester in Rochester, NY were filmed in staged "candid" situations, asking key questions to be answered. An example: turning from a table of students at a seminar, one asks into the camera, "How do I know if I have V.D.?" One of the most memorable images of VD Blues, Part 2 was returning host Dick Cavett brandishing a toilet seat and stating, "You won't get VD from one of THESE!"{{citation needed|date=June 2020}}
Awards
The show won an Emmy Award in the category of "Special Classification of Outstanding Program Achievements awarded to Donald Fouser."{{cite web|url=http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0151546.html |title=1972–1973 Emmy Awards |access-date=2008-07-07 |work=Infoplease |publisher=Pearson Education }} Time Magazine called it the "most venturesome single show" of 1972.{{cite magazine | title=The Year's Most | date= January 1, 1973 | publisher=Time, Inc. | url =http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,903676,00.html | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20081214081033/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,903676,00.html | url-status =dead | archive-date =December 14, 2008 | magazine =Time | access-date = 2008-07-07 }}
Book
A paperback book containing a transcript of the show was published by Avon Books in 1973.{{cite book | last = Avon Books | title = VD Blues | publisher = Educational Broadcasting Group | year = 1973 | url = https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0017QNT4A }}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|1157560}}
- [http://www.cybercollege.com/sexmedia.htm Cyber College: Youth, Sex and the Media]
Category:PBS original programming
Category:Documentary films about health care
Category:Mass media portrayals of STDs
Category:Television series by WNET