I hadn't seen this since I guess 1983, when I was ten. Surprisingly, I remembered quite a lot of it! In fact a number of these Weekend Specials have stuck in my memory: The Gold Bug, Zack & the Magic Factory, The Red Room Riddle, etc. There was treasurehunt-type one with a weathervane pointing against the wind; I don't remember what that was, anyone else? (PM me if you do).
In this one, a young boy (Christian Slater!) with a single mom (apparently) is urged to invite a new neighbor girl to go to the beach with them. He's not too hot on becoming friends with a girl, especially since she wears weird clothes, and her house is reportedly haunted by old man Waterman, who used to steal his baseballs. He introduces himself, though, and as soon as he tells her about the baseballs, a rotten old baseball comes slowly bouncing down the stairs and rolls between his feet.
He tells her about the treasure old man Waterman supposedly hid in the house, and they resolve to find it. She finds a map that seems to indicate a tunnel below the yard leading to underneath a big tree. They enlist neighborhood kids to dig up the yard, but get nowhere. They talk to old man Waterman's chauffeur, and some plans for the house are found, along with some other things and problems....
On the video you can tell where the commercials went, from freeze-frames and fades to black. The video is also in two parts (the first ends with "To be continued...", each with their own credits. In between them, and after the last one, the hosts of Weekend Special "Lester and Willie Tyler" appear and talk about the episode briefly. I remember them too. Lester is a dummy, and Willie a ventriloquist.
Christian Slater is recognizable because of his eyes, but otherwise I don't know if I would have known who he was. His voice sounds nothing like it does now! This might have been shot earlier than 1983 - he seems younger than fourteen.
There are arguably a number of morals to the story: the value of making new friends, doing research, and the importance of keeping your parents informed of where you are. Certainly not aimed at adults, but boy I did enjoy it when I was a kid and it was fun seeing it again.
In this one, a young boy (Christian Slater!) with a single mom (apparently) is urged to invite a new neighbor girl to go to the beach with them. He's not too hot on becoming friends with a girl, especially since she wears weird clothes, and her house is reportedly haunted by old man Waterman, who used to steal his baseballs. He introduces himself, though, and as soon as he tells her about the baseballs, a rotten old baseball comes slowly bouncing down the stairs and rolls between his feet.
He tells her about the treasure old man Waterman supposedly hid in the house, and they resolve to find it. She finds a map that seems to indicate a tunnel below the yard leading to underneath a big tree. They enlist neighborhood kids to dig up the yard, but get nowhere. They talk to old man Waterman's chauffeur, and some plans for the house are found, along with some other things and problems....
On the video you can tell where the commercials went, from freeze-frames and fades to black. The video is also in two parts (the first ends with "To be continued...", each with their own credits. In between them, and after the last one, the hosts of Weekend Special "Lester and Willie Tyler" appear and talk about the episode briefly. I remember them too. Lester is a dummy, and Willie a ventriloquist.
Christian Slater is recognizable because of his eyes, but otherwise I don't know if I would have known who he was. His voice sounds nothing like it does now! This might have been shot earlier than 1983 - he seems younger than fourteen.
There are arguably a number of morals to the story: the value of making new friends, doing research, and the importance of keeping your parents informed of where you are. Certainly not aimed at adults, but boy I did enjoy it when I was a kid and it was fun seeing it again.
