*** boys clothing: depictions in television shows -- "m" alphabetical listings








Boys Costumes Depicted in Television Shows: "M" Alphabetical Listings

HBC will list TV series alphabetically here to make them easier to find. TV shows, except for American TV shows, are generally not well know in countries other than in the countries in which they were made. They are also much more current than movies. Almost all TV shows date from the 1950s at the earliest. Costume dramas have the same problems as in the movies, but a great deal of useful information is avialible from TV shows set in contemporary periods. As non-American TV shows are not as widely distributed as movies, often little information is available on these shows outside each country. Movies are often widely distributed in foreign countries. TV shows, with the exceptiion of American programs, are generally not. As an American, we have, for example, never seen German, French, and Italian TV shows. Thus the TV pages provide a much-needed source of information on foreign programing.

McHale's Navy - (US, 1962-67)

Particularly witless sitcom, set around the World War II U.S. Navy in the South Pacific. ABC brodcast 138 half-hour episodes from October 1962 to August 1966. We do not notice it being sjhown in syndication. Children were rarely involved in the sepisodes. One episode is an example of how obnoxious, spoiled brats were often costumed in short pants at a time when almost all boys on television wore long pants. The boy wearing short pants and proper knee socks, with a polo shirt. Wearing knee socks with his shorts without being actially mentioned, emphasized being pamered by the adults in his life. I believe the name of this episode was 'Monster of Midway'. The boy is the spoiled son of an admiral who is given to McHale's crew to monitor for a period of time. The vboy is so ensuferable that McHale finally takes him over his lap and spanks him. After McHale straigtens him out, he is last seen wearing a pair of long pants showing a coming of age.

Mc Keever and the Colonel - (US, 1962-63)

A military academy TV show also comes to mind. "Mc Keever and the Colonel", a one season show from 1962-63. Cadet Mc Keever was a schemer who usually got the best of the colonel. The show was something of a junior version "Mc Hale's Navy". Scott Lane played Cadet Gary Mc Keever, and Allyn Joslyn played Colonel Blackwell. Come to think of it, instead of comparing the show to "Mc Hale's Navy", I think a better comparison would be to "No Time for Sergeants", a junior version of such. HBC might compare it to "Seargeant Bilko". Viewers interested in miliatry schools should see the HBC military school movie list.

Magnum PI - (US, 1980s)

Useless detective series set in Hawaii. One episode had a group of British prep school boys in caps, blazers (rather boring black ones), shorts, and knee socks! The shorts looked more like contemporary European shorts, in many cases you couldn't even see their knees. But they were all in shorts and knee socks. They were only about 9 or 10, but a nice little sighting. It was a flash back of Higgins' old school. The master shows up to break up a fight and gives Higgins a thrashing his hands with a cane. This is a typical American view of English schools. In the story line Higgins refers to his "Public School", but a prep school clearly was pictured. Higgins later meets one of his school rivals who refers to him as "John-John," clearly name used for very little boys. Almost certainly at 1930s prep schools, last names would have been used.

Malcomb in the Middle - (US, 2000- )

This Fox sitcom has proven quite popular. It deals with a family of three boys, Malcomb of course is the middle boy. Some of the promotional bits on TV seem humerous. I haven't, however, watched it so can't say much about it yet. Hopefully our HBC readers can provide some information. It does realistically provide information on contemporary American boys' clothing. One reader tells us, "The boys in Malcolm in the Middle, wear typical clothes of the early 2000s, khakis, jeans and shorts. They all seem to wear more normal shorts than the reall ong baggy ones many kids wear. The button shirt over T-Shirts is also popular on the show. The series is one of the bthe best representation of what American boys wear today."

Mama's Family - (US, 1987)

"Mama's Family" was a spin-off of the "Carol Burnett Show" and featured Vicki Lawrence as family matriarch, "Thelma Harper". This was not a sitcom I especially liked. There were a few episodes, however, that had boys appear as well as flashbacks with period costuming.

(The) Man from U.N.C.L.E. - (US, 1964-68)

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. was a popular NBC spy series done a an icreasingly campy flavor as the shooting progressed. It was shot during Cold War and Vietnam War(1964-68), but steered clear of both. It was an effort to pick up on the populrity of the James Bond films. Ian flemming was even consulted. The secret agents, played by Robert Vaughn and David McCallum, worke for a secret international espionage and law-enforcement agency called U.N.C.L.E. Co-creator Sam Rolfe had the idea of leaving the meaning of U.N.C.L.E. ambiguous so it could be either a U.S. or U.N. agebcy. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer legal department about using "U.N." for commercial purposes resulted in the producers deciding to give U.N.C.L.E. the name United Network Command for Law and Enforcement. There were 105 episodes shot. Althouh shot during the Cold war, the adeversary was ThHRUSH, not the Soviet KGB. And Illya Kuryakin was created to give an idea of a joint American-Soviet effort against TRUSH. by Rolfe as just such an agent, Many popular TV series prove to be popular sindication shows, but 'Man from U.N.C/L/E.' is rarely seen in sindication. Children were rarely featured in the episodes, but a reader tells us about one exception. "Last night METV showed a 'Man from U.N.C.L.E. episode with Jay North. Ironically when Jay portrayed Dennis the Menace, he never wore short pants even though he was age appropriate and Kechem's cartoons commonly depicted Dennis wearing short pnts. And the show was done in an era when it would have been correct. Strangely, in 'The Man from U.N.C.L.E.' episode, Jay who is 14 years old is attired in a shorts pants school uniform. Unlike the Dennis series, this was not age appropriate or common in Aschools, at least American schools. Jay portrays a boy genius that TRUSH is after. All his scenes take place at a Swiss boarding school which presumably explains the short pants--giving a European flavor that fits in withthe spy theme. Surprisingly, Jay does not get mentioned as a co-star even though he was still well known in 1965 when the episode aired. In the school scenes he wears a white shirt, dark shorts, ankle socks, and dark Oxford shoes. IN the last scene he is shown with a blazer jacket, and tie, and peaked cap."

Marblehead Manor - (US, 1987-88)

Typically offensive American sitcom. The cast included a little Hispanic boy, Humberto Ortiz.

Married With Children (US, 1987-88)

Not very good family sitcom, but I must say it has begun to grow on me. The family has two teenagers, a girl and younger boy named Bud. One of the efforts by Fox to take on the networks. The boy was a younger teenager when he first appeared. He plays a particularly obnoxious TV teenager. Once the father is pictured as a rather boy, about 10 years old, being yelled at by the school librarian

Maya - (US, 1967-68)

Short-lived serial spun off from the movie. An American boy (Jay North) seeks his missing father in India. He is aided by an Indian boy (Sajid Khan) and his elephant (Maya). Jay was by now a teenager and the show did not prove popular. This was Jay's last big part, he never again landed a big role.

Maybury RFD - (US, 1968-71)

Spin off from "The Andy Griffith Show" after Andy Griffith left. The new lead also had a son, Mike played by Buddy Foster. I don't remember him.

Max Headroom (US, 1986?- )

I never watched this show as I dislike the namesake, a sort of mod computer-like human simulation. But in flipping the dials, amazing what one finds sometimes, the series was partially set in a school. The boys were wearing grey shorts and knee socks with white shirts, maroon sweaters, and ties. The show is set in the future. I don't know enough about the show to know if the school, Academy of Computer Science (ACS), is featured regularly. Interesting to speculate just who designed the uniform, it certainly is unlike any uniform American boys wear nowadays. My best guess is that some one was trying to project a special, private school for select kids. Some one had to go to a lot of trouble though as I don't even think grey shorts and knee socks are available in the United States.

(The) Medici: Godfathers of the Renaissance (United States, 2004)

Justin Hardy's TV documentary film, "The Medici: Godfathers of the Renaissance" (2004) is an excellent historical overview. The film dramatizes the rich and often violent history of the famous Florentine family that dominated one corner of Italy culturally, politically, and religously for almost two centuries. The film was produced in the UK and shown on television in the United States as a PBS series. It begins in 1400 when the family were rising to power and influence as merchant princes and bankers and takes the story forward to the end of the reign of Cosimo I, Duke of Florence, in the 16th century. The most impressive of the Medici rulers was probably Lorenzo de Medici (patron of Michelangelo, Bottecelli, Ficino, and other great artists and humanist intellectuals). The family produced no fewer than three popes (including the famous Leo X). Of course the roles of historical figures are reconstructed and interpreted by modern actors.

Melba - (US, 1988)

Fascinating PBS series on the famous Australian opera star. In the early versions her son was portrayed. There were some scenes set in France and then in England. He spoke French while in Paris and apparently suffered in the strict British school that his father put him in where the other boys called him "Frogy."

The Mouseksateers
Figure 1.--The Mickey Mouse Club was a mainstay of kids after school television in America diring the 1950s. The kids wore mousekeears, sweatshirts with their names and slacks or skirts.

Mickey Mouse Club - (US, 1955?- )

The show didn't provide much in the way of costume information as the mouskateers wore a kind of basic uniform complete with mouseketeers. The kids were always scrubbed and proper, but alas never wearing shorts -- even the little ones. It was all very controlled, never anything really interesting. Nothing like the modern kid shows that appeal to the perverse streak in kids. It did have one interesting series, "Spin and Marty." It was set in a summer camp. A spoiled boy (Marty), I think who is English, arrives in a big car and is wearing a short pants suit with kneesocks. (HBC readers differe on this.). He is soon "educated" by his new friends. There was another series called "Clint and Mac". This involved an American and British boy. I think it was set in England, but am not positive. The American boy had a flat-top hair cut and wore a whire "T" shirt with jeans. The British boy wore a school uniform, complere with cap, tie, blazer, short trousers, and kneesocks. I don't believe that it was as popular as "Spin and Marty". Another popular series was "The Hardy Boys Mystery".

Mike and Angelo (England, 199?)

A campy British TV seies on ITV had a kid series named Mike and Angelo about an A me rican boy living in Britain. In one episode he thinks he has inherited a Lordship and, playing a clueless American to the hilt, he began dressing in an elaborate Little Lord Fauntleroy suit as appropriate for his new status. It was played for laughs. Mike Benz who played the American had some previous experience, having actually appeared in an BBC production of Little Lord Fauntleroy. Interestingly, Mike must be the best known American of which Americans had never heard.

Mino--ein Junge zwischen zwei Fronten (Germany/Italy, 1986)

A good mini series dealing with the issue of war is the Italian-German �Mino- ein Junge zwischen zwei Fronten� of 1986 adapted by a book by Salvatore Gotta �Il piccolo alpino�. As for costume, the boy (Guido Cella) wears mainly military uniform, as he gets between the two parties of World War I. A German reader tells us, "This mini-series is about World War I, but it could be every war. The message it still up-to date. I watched it as a child and was moved by Mino and the sad and awful things he had to go through."

(The) Monkees - (US, 1960s)

TV Land aired a 1960s Saturday morning show, "The Monkees", early Saturday and Sunday mornings. One episode, originally broadcast February 20, 1967, is "Captain Crocodile," an offbeat spoof of "Captain Kangaroo." Throw in a little "Howdy Doody", too because there is a kiddie audience, like the old peanut gallery, for this show. The show is hosted by petty, jealous Captain Crocdile, played by Joey Forman. The Monkees, working a bit part on the show, are his favorite targets for cream pies, seltzer sprays, and other slapstick routines. They're tired of this gig and take their complaints to the producer of the show, who turns out to be a 13-year old boy, the son of a network executive. He presides over a fully appointed executive office, albeit scaled down to child size! For drinks, he offers the Monkees milk, "straight or on the rocks!" (One Monkee says he never drinks so early in the day!) The Monkees plead their case with Junior for script changes, to no avail; Captain Croc is too popular. So, the Monkees turn the tables on Captain Crocodile by inciting the kiddie audience to run amok. The junior producer and the TV audience love it. The junior producer is played by Joey Baio, born July 24, 1953; he's a cousin of Scott Baio of "Happy Days". Joey wears a dark blazer, grey shorts, dark knee socks, and a neck tie throughout the episode. A few of the boys in the kiddie audience wear pull over shirts or T shirts with shorts, but others wear long trousers or jeans. Even the Monkees don boys' garb for one scene in the show, all wearing shorts (one pair is a Madras plaid), pullover shirts, crew socks and sneakers. An interesting episode on a show given over to parody and takeoffs.

Morning Stars (Russia, about 1998)

A Russian reader has mentined "Morning Stars" (about 1998). It was a Sunday morning program which appears to have been a variety program. Some of the acts including children, including singers, musicians and dancers. They acts look to be amateurs trying to enter show business. Some of the dance routines were quite elaborately staged.

Morris 2274 - (England, 2003)

"Morris 2274" is about two boys and a girl and their time travels. Morris is an android, and wears a semi-trans, plastic like suit. The characters are all played by actors rather than robots and all look human, cheap budget. Hopefully our British readers will prvide costuming details.

Mr. Belvedere - (US)

A boy, Whesley (Brice Beckhman), is included in the cast, and he sometimes has big parts. He does a stint in a military school in one episode as a punishment, because he was getting into trouble at home. Whesley holds out though, he refuses to beg his father to let him come home. He says he won't come begging like "that whimpy little prince in England," the Butler is British. He explains that he has the top bunk because his bunk mate is a bed wetter. Clothes did not come up in the story line. In another episode he is beginning junior high school and is embarrassed about having to undress for a shower after gym. I remember that I was upset about that when I began junior high school. There is also an older brother so both pre-teen and teen clothing are shown. The older brother once had to dress up as a woman for a fraternity initiation.

Mr. Ed - (US, 1963-66)

This was not one of my favorite programs in the 1960s. It was popular at the time, although watch it I would imagine femanists might take exceptio with how women were pictured in the film--having to ask their husbands for money. This sort of thing had begun to change in thw 1960s, but feminism really is more of a 70s movement. The program is onethat hs been serialized around the world. The series won a Golden Globe award for Best TV Show in 1963. The star was a horse, Mr. Ed, a talking horse, who was constantly getting her owner Wilbur trouble. There were no children in the regular cast. There was a paperboy. I think there were Cub Scouts in one episode. I know Boy Scouts appeared in another episode.

Mr. Majeika
Figure 2.--A British children's show, "Mr. Majeika", based on a popular book series, fearured an extrarestrial magician and some prep school children in England.

Mr. Majeika - (UK, 1988-89)

An other interesting series was Mr Majeika. Mr. Majeika is a magician from another planet, an extraterrestial who is teaching at a British prep school. The program is based on a popular series of children's books by Humphrey Carpenter. At some prep schools you could probably hardly tell the difference, at others an ET might stand out a bit. The children appear in traditional prep school uniforms. The children wear a striking striped blazer with short grey shorts. The boys wear a striped blazer with short grey shorts. The principal boy involved is about 11 or so. All the boys at school wear proper grey shorts. In one scene they have a Cub outing. Dreadful stories but children are usually featured. In one the good Dr. takes a properly dressed Cub troop on an outing. At this time, however, HBC know little about the program. We believe it was primarily a children's program. Stanley Baxter played the title role of Mr Majeika. Andrew Reed and Simeon Pearl played the two boys that appeared in prep school uniforms.

Mr. President - (US, 1987)

Fox network sitcom. The President has a son about 13 or so. I don't know of any interesting plots.

Mr. Rhodes - (US, 1996)

Sitcom about a flaky, longhaired new teacher at a very stuffy private boarding school. The students wear uniforms with blazer and ties, but of course all the boys wear longs.

Mr. Science - (US)

Series sponsored by New York channel 11, but widely carried on cable. They were little inserts during the intermission of a horror school. He often involved children in the little skits.

Mr. Wizard's World - (US, 1988?-89)

Don Herbert as "Mr. Wizard" helps modern day kids learn about science. Originally produces as "Watch Mr. Wizard." Quite a nicely done show and the children are always models of deportment. They use real kids, not actors for the show. Thus the clothes the children wear are a good indication of contemporary styles. The boys rarely appear in shorts. One regular on the show, Jason, appeared in shorts several times.

The Mundsterrs
Figure 3.--The complete Munster family is show here, except of course for Spike, thevT-Rex under the staircase.

(The) Munsters (U.S., 1964-66)

Perhaps no character is more associated with a velvet Fauntleoy suit than Eddie Munster who has appeared countless times in sindication all over the world. The comic premise of the show was the Munsters at 1313 Mockingbird Lane considered themselves as normal and American as apple pie. The neighbors and viewers, however, saw them as a bid odd. Eddie Wolfgang Munster's costume was a good example of this. American television rarely put boys in short pants, let alone a velvet suit. But as the show was done for comic relief, it apparent was alright. The actor, Butch Patrick, was a little shy about wearing his costume, but he never got teased about it as part of the plot lines.

*(The) Munsters Today - (US, 1988)

Remake of the original Munsters. It doesn't approach the charm of the original series, but the new Eddie is smartly outfitted in a violet velvet suit with a large white collar and short pants with white or violet knee socks. He appears to be about 11 or 12 years old, a bit older than the original Eddie. A lot of the shows include long scenes with Eddie, who never got the attention he deserved in the original. He tends to give out little wolf yells which I don't remember much of in the original series.

My Family - (UK, 2004?)

This is a british comedy sitcom. The father is a dentist and he has a daughter and three sons the oldest being probanbly 14 years old.

*My Family and Other Animals - (UK)

Nice serial about Gerry, a 10? year old boy, and his eccentric family. The boy (Darren Redmayne) is interested in natural history and begins to write a book about his findings on Corfu during the 1930s. He soon finds his family more interesting than the animals. The boy wears terrible baggy shorts with closed-toe sandals as was common in England during the 1830s. Based on the best-selling childhood recollections of naturalist Gerald Durrell.

My Friend Flicka - (US)

Story of a sensitive boy's relationship with a horse that was thought too wild to tame. Gene Evans.

My Son Jeep - (US, 1953)

A widowed physician tries to care for his children, a 13-year old girl and 10-year old Jeep (Martin Houston).

My Three Sons (U.S., The 1960s-70s)

Long-running family sitcom about a widower and his three sons. The younger boy (Chip) was quite young at the beginning of the series. In the first years when "My Three Sons" was still in black and white (early 1960's), Don Grady, who played the then-middle son Robbie in high school, sometimes wore casual Bermuda shorts on the show. I don't recall any dialogue about it, indicating that this wasn't considered remarkable or out of the ordinary by then--although rarrely depicted on television. The boys eventually grow up and an adopted son (Ernie) has to be added so there will be a younger boy on the show. The boys always wore long pants. The boys wore contemporary 1960s clothing, mostly preppy styles. There were also a few episodes that dealt with clothing, including a Little Lord Fauntleroy suit and Scottish kilts.








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Created: May 30, 2001
Last updated: 8:25 AM 6/2/2015