hmmm

hey have you realisd that every one who knows about doctor who in america knows alot about it

regenerated and done wrote:

hey have you realisd that every one who knows about doctor who in america knows alot about it

Everyone in the UK, besides the little 8 year olds, who know about Doctor Who know alot about it, too

I've yet to meet anyone here in the states that knows much about DW except it's about the guy with the long scarf and hat.

Fans are an exception though.

In the US, you either get the vague "guy in scarf on PBS" people or the hardcore fans. Doesn't seem to have the casually aware fans the way Star Trek seemed to.

By the way - I'm going to move this thread elsewhere. The service section is intended for topics related to purchasing, shipping and whatnot.

Its a shame people just see it as "The guy with the hat and scarf" because it is a MASSIVE part in my culture. If I was to mention a Dalek in class, bearing in mind my generation are into fighting, drugs, blowing people up on CoD, they would instantly know I was talking about Doctor Who and could give me some facts that I probably didn't even know! (Not that I know everything Who related. I only started watching the classics 2 years ago!).

But I suppose it isn't their faults they don't know much about it. With it being a British cult TV classic, of course its going to be a part of all our lives. But in the US, I don't think it was ever shown in those days. So people across the pond won't know much about it, its no big deal. All we can do is try to get them into it, and learn more!

But to be honest, I'm glad the British just have something to be proud of for once, and can call it theirs.

Jon

I always wondered how far back in time did the USA get episodes of Doctor Who to show? I think I've read that episodes were shown in the 70s, so I'm guessing people at least saw Pertwee stories not long after they aired.

And I find it odd (yet cool at the same time) that the USA is getting a bunch of Doctor Who toy exclusives, when the show is more "a British thing!"

I can confirm it was being shown in the states during the 70s. I remember seeing my first story although not in its' entirety with Tom Baker in 1979. Y'know the guy with the scarf.

As mentioned above, people who are casual viewers only know of Tom Baker. A couple of times DW has snuck into the Simpsons in the guise of, you guessed it, Tom Baker. Most likely because he's the only Doctor most people know of.

There were Pertwee episodes shown in the early 70s, not sure exactly when, but I do remember talking about Daleks in grade school!

I wonder if the Pertwee stories ever made it to the Boston PBS back then. I do know that the Tom Baker stories were run down into the ground which is why even to this day I don't get too excited about him. Not that I don't like him, but even his really good stories I tend to shy away from watching these days because they were repeated so often.

Pertwee episodes weren't shown widely around the US in the early '70s, but they were shown in enough markets to convince PBS stations around the country that the Tom Baker episodes were worth getting when the BBC offered them.

I have been been watching Doctor WHo for 30 years now. Do the math.

Same here, HW. 30 for me too.


Do you suppose they'll give us gold watches or something?

The 2nd Doctor Roberts wrote:

Same here, HW. 30 for me too.


Do you suppose they'll give us gold watches or something?

I'll take a gold TARDIS thank you very much!

I have been joking at my college lately that I could teach a course on Doctor Who. And don't think it would be easy either!

I've only been watching for about 23 years! No gold TARDIS for me yet. I watched it when I was a kid on a PBS station out of South Bend. But for years and years they just played Tom Baker's episodes on a loop! It wasn't until later they started with the First Doctor and played the rest.

Like Hoosier, I should have a gold TARDIS coming. And in the area of weird coincidence, Hoosier and I were watching the same PBS affiliate back in the day!

jonwes wrote:

I've only been watching for about 23 years! No gold TARDIS for me yet. I watched it when I was a kid on a PBS station out of South Bend. But for years and years they just played Tom Baker's episodes on a loop! It wasn't until later they started with the First Doctor and played the rest.

That's what happened in my area as well, but I still suffer from Tom Baker overload.

Rogue:

Doctor Who first crossed the pond in 1972 with a limited number of Pertwee episodes shown in a handful of markets. In 1977, PBS stations began broadcasting series 12 (Tom Baker) 3 years behind the original BBC broadcasts. Most stations continued broadcasting through until the 1989 "hiatus", though the show would continue looping through Doctor 4, 5 and 6 in many areas until recently.

Iowa was the last PBS station still broadcasting Classic Who (afaik). I was actually in studio (wearing my scarf) when they announced it was being canceled. Twas' a sad day.

1977? Well then, I guess I finally know what year I started watching Who. Still rather young and watching on a B+W set, but I remember Tom every week (on Sunday mornings where I was). And season 12 through 15 for many, many years. It wasn't until 1984 or 1985 when I moved to Texas that I finally (partially) saw the Key to Time. And then they made a Saturday marathon out of Season 18 with the new titles and costume.

But no other Americans ever mentioned Who around me until the early 2000's when my sister married a casual Tom Baker fan. They're both very casual with almost no depth of Who knowledge.

Ah, OK. I just know I watched Tom Baker stories back when I was very young, and my mother remembers the show (and that my brother and I loved it). One of my oldest "TV memories" that I never forgot (I was probably 4 or 5) was Tom Baker with the cactus makeup in "Meglos." My memory distorted it over the years and I always thought it was the Doctor turning evil, and that the thorns were flesh-colored and more like single toothpicks (rather than the actual makeup FX, the greenish clusters of cactus pricklies). I suppose I also watched Davison stories back then too, but I can't really remember.

I got the chance to re-watch the Tom Baker run (and later, Doctors 5-7, then 1-3) on one of my local PBS stations in 1995 or so. When the TV movie aired, I was so excited, it was an all-time high for me at that time, having rediscovered one of my childhood favorite TV shows just a year or so prior.