DVD Transfer 108 is another "odds and ends" upload; beginning with a VHS dub of some ABC coverage of the Oliver North testimony and including a trio of recordings from DVR

CONTENTS

1. 1987 ABC News Coverage (Iran-Contra hearings; this is a recording from WABC-TV 7 involving testimony from Marine Corps Lt. Col. Oliver North as he is cross-examined by Senate counsel Arthur Liman. What Iran-Contra involved was several members of the National Security Council under the Reagan administration - led by North and National Security Advisor Admiral John Poindexter and predecessor Robert "Bud" McFarlane - arranged for secret sales of weapons to Iran in exchange for the release of hostages held in Lebanon {this was despite President Reagan repeatedly blasting Iran as a major state sponsor of terrorism}; with North then coming up with a plan to divert the proceeds to the Nicaraguan contras; a band of freedom fighters battling the Communist-run Sandinista government {again problematic considering that this violated the Boland Amendment, a series of amendments to the Defense Authorization Act of 1983 sponsored by Massachusetts Democratic Congressman Ed Boland that prohibited U.S. funding of the Contras. That act - with the Boland amendments - passed the House unanimously by a 411-0 margin and had been signed into law by President Reagan in late 1982} while also seeking the aid of Nicaragua's leader, Gen. Manuel Noriega, to help in toppling the Sandinistas. The whole cloak and dagger deal came apart in November 1986, after which Poindexter resigned and President Reagan outright fired North. By July 1987; North began appearing before Congress to testify, admitting to misleading Congress and that he and his secretary, Fawn Hall, shredded numerous documents under the suggestion of CIA director William Casey (Casey had suffered two seizures in December 1986 - one day before he was scheduled to testify; was diagnosed with a brain tumor and died on May 6, 1987; leaving what his role was uncertain) as well as helping Bud McFarlane delete references to the Contras in official documents. In March 1988; North was indicted on 16 felony counts and on May 4, 1989; North was convicted on charges of accepting an illegal gratuity, aiding and abetting in the obstruction of a congressional inquiry, and ordering the destruction of documents; receiving a 3-year suspended prison sentence, 2 years probation, a $150,000 fine and 1200 hours of community service; only for the convictions to be overturned in July 1990 after an appeals court determined witnesses in his trial might have been influenced by his Congressional testimony - significant considering that North's testimony was under limited immunity from prosecution - and the charges were ultimately dropped in 1991. North would eventually run for the Senate seat held by Democratic incumbent Chuck Robb in 1994; and in what was otherwise a phenomenal election cycle for the Republicans {winning control of the Senate and achieving control of the House of Representatives for the first time in 40 years}; North - despite raising over $20 million in direct mail - had his campaign mortally wounded by claims by Nancy Reagan that North had lied to President Reagan when discussing Iran-Contra with the President and narrowly lost his bid to unseat Robb, finishing with 43% of the vote to Robb's 45% and 11% going to independent candidate Marshall Coleman {who had been a Republican Attorney General and 2-time unsuccessful candidate for Governor in 1981 [when Coleman lost to Robb] and 1989 [losing to Douglas Wilder] and had been endorsed by the somewhat more liberal Republican Senator John Warner}; hosted his own radio talk show from 1995-2003; hosted FOX News' "War Stories" weekend series from 2001-16 and most recently was president of the National Rifle Association from 2017-19; when North left in a dispute with longtime NRA chairman Wayne LaPierre. Anchoring ABC coverage was World News Tonight anchor Peter Jennings; with reports during a break in testimony from White House correspondent Sam Donaldson and Capitol Hill correspondent Brit Hume)

2. NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four Game (UNC Tar Heels vs. Duke Blue Devils; in the second game of the Final Four - broadcast on TBS - saw the Tar Heels {8th seed in the Eastern Regional} take on arch-rival Duke {2nd seed in the Western Regional} at Caesar's Superdome in New Orleans, LA. That game saw the Tar Heels narrowly defeat the Blue Devils 81-77 in what would be the final game for Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski {whose appearance saw him pass UCLA legend John Wooden for most Final Four appearances by a coach} prior to his retirement to advance to the National Championship game against the Kansas Jayhawks {UNC would eventually lose to the Jayhawks 72-69}. Calling the action are CBS' Jim Nantz, Bill Raftery and Grant Hill; with Tracy Wolfson reporting from the sidelines, while hosting coverage was provided by Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith {all from TNT's "Inside the NBA" pregame crew} along with Seth Davis, Greg Gumbel, Bobby Hurley, Candace Parker as contributors and Gene Steratore {while better known as an NFL referee, he also worked college basketball games as well} as rules analyst)

3. The A-Team ("Water, Water Everywhere" {S2E10}; one of the guest stars includes Jim Knaub, a wheelchair athlete who had been left paralyzed following a 1978 car accident, as part of a group of partially disabled Vietnam veterans trying to open a hotel only to run into problems with a rancher sending thugs to run them out of town)

4. Leave It to Beaver ("In the Soup" {S4E32}; this episode has Beaver - on a dare from Whitey Whitney {Stanley Fafara} - climb into a cup of soup on a billboard sign to see if anything was in it {one of those "would have made more sense for Beaver to do this in Seasons 1 or 2" type episodes}. Other guests {besides Fafara and semi-regulars Ken Osmond as Eddie Haskell and Frank Bank as Lumpy Rutherford} include Harry Holcomb {as Whitey's father Frank}; Lenore Kingston {as Whitey's mother}; Jack Mann as a fireman and Jimmy Gaines as a little boy. In the autobiography "...And Jerry Mathers as the Beaver"; Mathers would note that this was the series' most expensive episode)