Do You Remember Here’s Boomer?

Friends, it might not come as surprise to you that I have always enjoyed visiting antique stores and flea markets. I count myself as being very fortunate that my Wife is also fond of the same thing, even if due to the pandemic we have had to severely curtail the activity. The other day however we managed a brief visit and among the remembrances of the past I came across a lunch box for a television series entitled Here’s Boomer – a television show that I have absolutely no recollection of ever seeing. I took a moment to snap a quick photograph of the collectible with my phone, sending it to a few of my fellow Pop Culture Retrorama colleagues. Which resulted in the intro for the early ’80s TV show being sent to me, and catchy theme song aside, I can honestly say that I have no memory of this series in the least.

A Christmas for Boomer was a made-for-TV Holiday special that aired on NBC on December the 6th of 1979 – acting as a pilot for the Here’s Boomer series – although the canine character originated in another show. A Saturday morning series entitled The Red Hand Gang – featuring the likes of then Little House on the Prairie and future Whiz Kids star, Matthew Labyorteaux. The show focused on the adventures of a group of five children who managed to solve various crimes around their hometown.

The plot for Here’s Boomer involved the titular character wandering the country, showing up to help someone in need before taking off once again – like a canine version of David Banner (Bill Bixby) in the popular The Incredible Hulk TV series. You might be interested to know that the character of Boomer was played by a rescued four-year-old mutt named Johnny – in fact the original title for Here’s Boomer has been said to have been “Here’s Johnny”. That idea however was abandoned as it was the obvious catchphrase made popular by Ed McMahon during the intro to The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.

Here’s Boomer ran for two seasons on NBC starting on March 14th of 1980 and managed to feature an amazing cast of guest stars over it’s 20 episode run. Just a few include Tom Bosley (Happy Days), Michael J. Fox (Family Ties), Todd Bridges (Diff’rent Strokes), Doris Roberts (Remington Steele), Roddy McDowall (Planet of the Apes), and John Amos (Good Times).

While I will never say I am an expert on anything in regards to pop culture – I still find it so bizarre that I have zero recollection of Here’s Boomer. What about yourself though, do you remember this television series?