70's Obscurities: "Mulligan Stew" 1972

Decided to do a few blogs about some obscure 70's television shows from my childhood.  The kind of show that only aired a few episodes before disappearing into obscurity for ever. The kind that only comes up in "remember when" conversations, and then someone goes "oh yeah, I remember that show" and before long you are all singing the theme song and wondering what happened to the stars of that show, did they go on to other things or spiral down the dark path of teen TV history....

Mulligan Stew was shown on PBS stations, it was a children's educational program, sponsored by the 4-H Council and shown both in schools and on television. It was produced by Michigan State University, and premiered in 1972 during National 4-H Week in Washington D.C.  The show was named for the hobo dish (and also for the initials of Michigan State), and each of the six half-hour episodes gave school-age children information about nutrition.

Produced by V. "Buddy" Renfro, Mulligan Stew featured a multi-racial group of five kids: Maggie (Sherry Wright), Mike (Steven Einbender), Micki (Mion Hahm), Manny (Benjamin Sands), and Mulligan (Larry Friedman), plus one adult, Wilbur Dooright (played by Barry Michlin, who later had a minor career in movies and TV). The group went on nutritional adventures around the globe, although the series' filming usually stuck close to Lansing Michigan. (the opening sequence was filmed in MSU's football stadium.) see opening credits below:

School packages included a companion comic book with further adventures of the characters, reviews of things learned from the show, and lyrics to the show's songs (performed by Mulligan Stew, a band comprising the five kids in the program).

The show was noted for the key phrase "4-4-3-2" that was often invoked to refer to the USDA's then-recommended number of daily servings of the "Four Food Groups" — "fruits and vegetables," "breads and cereals," "milk or cheese," and "meat, fish or fowl." Thanks in part to the popularity of "Mulligan Stew", 4-H membership was boosted to an all-time high in 1974,  and it remained on the air (in reruns) until 1981.

This is how a typical episode of "Mulligan Stew" went down

"Countdown 4-4-3-2"