The Mike Douglas Show

The group were interviewed and filmed filmed singing from the exotic birds cage at San Diego zoo.

However, they are not listed on The Mike Douglas Show web-site as guests and this message was received from their production company after I enquired for information: "We don't see any dates with ABBA appearing on The Mike Douglas Show. However, we do have them listed as appearing on The John Davidson Show on 3/5/81. The show tape still exists, but in it's original 2" tape format. It would cost you between $200 and $300 to get the show transferred to a current day tape format." 

To clarify the above - there is conflicting information on this entry. On the one hand, we have specific information about San Diego zoo - and some people actually remember the clip. But as it's not recognised by The Mike Douglas Show web-site, it looks very confusing.  Happy for clarification one way or the other please!

ABBA on TV regular Rianne Schaffers contacted the USA archives for The Mike Douglas show and The Merv Griffin Show (c/o Donna M. Fields)  about the footage of ABBA's appearances. The response was a little confusing, "Please understand that the shows you are interested in, we own the rights.  But the shows featuring ABBA no longer exists. They may have been destroyed years ago or exposed to the elements and disintegrated. But they do not exist. There is no where to get them."

However, she also said, "Our computer shows there is an American Journal program featuring ABBA. However, I don't know what the footage is comprised of because these tapes are in storage. Do you want us to order it? Otherwise, we do not have any other listings of their appearances."

So on one hand they say that footage doesn't exist and on the other hand they HAVE something but it's in storage and they don't know what it is! 

Another ABBA on TV regular, Yuri, also contacted Donna M. Fields - from the company that holds the rights to Mike Douglas Show - and provided her with TV listings for the show for the specific dates when ABBA were scheduled to appear. She informed me that the list of show guests available on the web-site is NOT FULL because it comes ONLY from the program tapes that were reviewed and re-mastered. And those supposedly with Abba on them were not reviewed  yet. Ms. Fields wrote: "It would cost you $150.00 to get this tape cleaned and reviewed to determine if Abba was on that show". So the reason for Abba not being listed as guests on the show Website is apparently because NOT all tapes of show were reviewed and re-mastered.

If anyone has $150 they can dangle in front of these people, we may get a more comprehensive answer!

Mike Douglas died on 11 August 2006.

Information from ABBA - The Book by Jean-Marie Potiez (p.119). Thanks to Ian Cole, Rianne Schaffers and Yuri.
Extra thanks to Jeff Thorpe c/o ABBAMAIL