TV Q & A: Docs were on TV

Answer: "The Doctors," so named as to erase all confusion about its subject, ran on NBC from 1963 until 1982. James Pritchett played one of the central characters, Dr. Matt Powers, for the entire run of the series. Other main characters included Dr. Maggie Powers (played originally by Ann Williams and later by Bethel Leslie and Lydia Bruce); Dr. Althea Davis (played by Elizabeth Hubbard for most of the show's run) and Dr. Mike Powers, played by all kinds of people, including Assante. Turner played Nola Aldrich in 1978-79, and Harrold played the same role from 1976 until '78. Other soon-to-be notables in the cast were Alec Baldwin (Billy Aldrich, 1980-82), Jonathan Frakes (Tom Carroll, 1977-78) and Ian Ziering (Erich Aldrich, 1981-82).

Question: Back in the 1950s or '60s, there was a TV series with a tugboat named the Cheryl Ann. I think it was called something "Paradise," but I just can't remember.

Answer: Yes, my idea of Paradise has always included a tugboat. You're actually confusing your TV shows set on large bodies of water. One of them is "Adventures in Paradise," which ran on ABC from 1959 until 1962. Gardner McKay played Adam Troy, skipper of the schooner Tiki III, not to be confused with a tugboat named the Cheryl Ann, which was part of "Waterfront," a syndicated series that was produced from 1954 until 1956. Preston Foster played Captain John Herrick, who piloted the tug and helped fight crime in the Los Angeles harbor because — well, because if he didn't, there wouldn't have been a TV show and thousands of women in their 50s across America wouldn't have been named Cheryl Ann. All right, smarty pants?

Question: It seems there was a TV movie made in the early 1990s about an airplane disaster based on a real-life event. The flight was en route from the states to Hawaii when suddenly the top of the plane ripped open and one female flight attendant was nearly sucked out. She was caught by a passenger or someone who held on to her feet (or legs). That's all that my friend remembers about this movie, but there's also a book about it. Could you please tell us what the title of the movie is and if it's available on either VHS or DVD?

Answer: Hmm — TV movie from the early 1990s, eh? Then it must star either Lindsay Wagner, Donna Mills or Connie Sellecca. That's the 1990 TV movie "Miracle Landing," with Sellecca (Told you so!), Wayne Rogers and James Cromwell. Alas, it isn't on video or DVD.