B.A. - Sgt. Bosco Baracus (Mr. T) from the adventure series THE A-TEAM/NBC/1983-87 was fondly called "B.A." by his fellow A-Team members, Vietnam veterans on the run from the United States Army for a crime (robbing a bank in Hanoi) they did not commit. According to the series, B.A. meant "Bad Attitude," because of his constant scowl and his threatening statements like "Don't mess with me, Sucker!" Sgt. Baracus was an expert mechanic whose vivid technical imagination could turn old spare parts/machinery into rocket launchers, armored tanks or machine guns. B.A.'s real name was Elliot. His childhood nickname was "Scooter."

Baby Cakes - Nickname of Cliff Huxtable (Bill Cosby), a New York obstetrician on the sitcom THE COSBY SHOW/NBC/1984-91. Cliff was given his nickname by his wife, Clair Huxtable (Phylicia Rashad) when they both attended Hillman College in Georgia. Cliff called Clair "Lum Lum."

Baby Dumpling - On the situation comedy BLONDIE/SYN/NBC/CBS/1954/1957/1968-69 Dagwood and Blondie Bumstead affectionately referred to their baby boy, Alexander (Stuffy Singer /Peter Robbins) as "Baby Dumpling." Characters were based on the comic strip created by Chic Young.

Backseat Beckie - College nickname of Miss Rebecca Howe (Kirstie Alley), manager of the Boston tavern named Cheers on the sitcom CHEERS/NBC/1982-93. Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer), a psychiatrist who frequented the bar, discovered that Rebecca Howe-an alumnus of the University of Connecticut-was considered a "party girl on campus." Carla (Rhea Permian), a waitress at Cheers couldn't believe that "Miss Granite Panties" could have ever been that amorous. And Sam Malone (Ted Danson) the head bartender who had been trying unsuccessfully to bed Miss Howe, commented in disbelief "the one who goes through life with her knees bolted together?! On further investigation with an ex-school chum of Rebecca's, Frasier Crane unearthed, the nickname "Backseat Beckie." When Rebecca realized everyone in the bar knew her college nickname, she told them that the appellation was given to her because she was very shy and that the girls in college thought it would be a "real gas" to call her the opposite of what she really was. Seeing that the crowd at Cheers was not buying that story, she countered with "I was really aggressive in college. I never took a BACKSEAT to anyone." Finally, in a quite moment she pulled Sam Malone to the side and agreed to tell the real story behind her nickname, if he kept it quiet. With Sam agreeing to her terms, she began: "I was living in a women's dorm on campus and one night a fire broke out. Well I didn't have time to change my cloths, so I had to run out into the parking lot wearing only a teddy...black, but see through. All of a sudden, I was caught in this fire engine's headlights. Well, I didn't know what to do. I looked all around, and suddenly I spotted this open convertible. Well, I climbed in and I slunk down into the back seat. Suddenly this hulking fireman was standing over me. It was magnificent. I looked in his eyes. I knew what he wanted...and I wanted it, too. When it was over I opened my eyes, and I notice we were not alone. Others had watched and not said a word. And that's why I'm known as Backseat Beckie. Satisfied?" Wiping his now sweaty face with a white bar towel, Sam entered the men's room. Rebecca then walked over to Carla. "Thanks for the story, Carla here's your ten bucks." To which Carla replied, "Yeah, the twenty dollar one would have killed him."

Bandstand Cover Girl, The - The nickname of teenager Carol Scaldeferri, an attractive, well-dressed precision dancer who frequently appeared in the early days on the rock and roll music program AMERICAN BANDSTAND/ABC/SYN/USA/1957-89 hosted by Dick Clark. In 2002, the NBC drama AMERICAN DREAMS featured Meg Pryor (Brittany Snow), a fictional 15-year-old who like Carol Scaldeferri became a dancer on the American Bandstand program. See also - "America's Oldest Living Teenager" 

Barky - Insulting nickname given to Dana Foster (Staci Keanan) by her stepbrother J.T. Lambert (Brandon Call) on the sitcom STEP BY STEP/ABC/1991-98. J.T. once teased Dana about not being invited to a party by saying "I'd invite you, but they don't allow dogs!" He also called Dana Vampira, Frosty the Step-sister and The Undateable. Dana, in turn, called J. T. a sleazeball and a knuckle-dragger among others quips. Frank's nephew Cody Lambert (Sasha Mitchell) however thought that Dana was very attractive. He once said "If she were a prehistoric creature, she'd be a "BABE"-ertooth tiger." Dana, however, thought Cody was "a brain-dead idiot" She elaborated by saying "If I had the choice of going out with you or putting out an oil fire with my tongue, I'd be on the first plane to Kuwait."

Barney the Beast See - "Crazy Gun Barney" 

Baron, The See -SPY GUYS & SECRET ORGANIZATIONS 

Bat Masterson - Pseudonym of William Barclay Masterson (1853-1921), gambler, frontiersman and US Marshal of Dodge City in the late 19th century. Before his death, the real W.B. Masterson spent his days as a sportswriter in the city of New York. The western adventure BAT MASTERSON/NBC/1959-61 starred Gene Barry as Bat Masterson, a well dressed gambler who sported a derby hat and gold-topped cane.

Batgirl See - BATS

Batman See - BATS

Batman, The - Former nickname of Italian-American housekeeper, Tony Micelli (Tony Danza) on the sitcom WHO'S THE BOSS/ABC/1984-92. He was called the "Batman" when he played second base for the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team. See also - "May Day Malone"

Bear, The - The Austrian bailiff, Gessler known to the villagers of the Alps as "The Bear" was the man who ordered the legendary Swiss hero, William Tell to shoot the apple off of his son's head. British actor Willoughby Goddard played this villain on THE ADVENTURES OF WILLIAM TELL/SYN/1957-58.

Beauty-1 - Code name of government operative V.H. Adderly (Winston Rekert) on the espionage adventure ADDERLY/CBS/1986-89. Adderly was reassigned to the Department of Miscellaneous Affairs when his left hand (always covered by a black glove) was smashed by enemy agents during an interrogation. His seeming routine jobs at the "Department" often turned out to be quite dangerous.

Beaver - The family nickname of Theodore Cleaver (Jerry Mathers) on the sitcom LEAVE IT TO BEAVER/CBS/ABC/1957-63 and the sequel series STILL THE BEAVER/DIS/1983-85 and THE NEW LEAVE IT TO BEAVER/TBS/1986-89. When Theodore was born, his brother, Wally (Tony Dow) tried to pronounce his new brother's name but ended up mouthing "Tweeter" which sounded like "Beaver" to his parents, Ward (Hugh Beaumont) & June (Barbara Billingsley) and so began the saga of Beaver Cleaver and the jokes about his name. Beaver's real name, Theodore was based on June's Aunt Martha's brother. Eddie Haskell (Ken Osmond), a wisecracking, insincere friend of teenager Wally Cleaver who called Beaver "Squirt" and "Creep" would greet him with taunts like "Hiya Beaver, you gnaw down any trees today? Beaver's brother Wally often said the phrase "Boy, Beave, are gonna get it." During a 1995 episode of the sitcom ROSEANNE/ABC/1988-97 which gathered together many of the famous TV family mother characters, Roseanne Conner (Roseanne Barr) sarcastically responded to June Cleaver's (Barbara Billingsley) criticism of her parental skills by saying "Yeah, well at least I didn't name my kid, Beaver!" TRIVIA NOTE: The nickname "Beaver" was inspired by the toothy smile of the Indian character "Little Beaver" in the western adventure serial RED RYDER/SYN/1956. When series star Gerald "Jerry" Patrick Mathers (a.k.a. the "Beaver") was in high school, he teamed up with former cast member Richard Correll (who played Richard Rickover) to form a rock and roll band. They called themselves "Beaver and the Trappers" and recorded the single "Happiness Is Havin'" (White Cliff Records). Jerry Mathers also recorded "Wind Up Toy" (Atlantic Records). And TV rerun fanatics from the Huron High School intramural softball team in Michigan named themselves "The Almighty Beavers." Their team motto was "We don't care." In May 1982 when Hugh Beaumont died (the Beaver's TV father), the team wore black armbands in mourning. (TV Guide 6/18/83). The series title LEAVE IT TO BEAVER was probably inspired by a previous sitcom called LEAVE IT TO LARRY/CBS/1952 starring Eddie Albert. See also - FRATERNAL ORGANIZATIONS  - "The Beavers"

Bedroom Ambassadors, The - TV personalities Al Lohman and Roger Barkley were known as "The Bedroom Ambassadors" when they hosted the syndicated game show BEDTIME STORIES/SYN/1979.

Best Bad Girl on TV, The - In the early 1950s, Cloris Leachman's penchant for vixen parts (a cockney blonde, a Chinese girl, etc.) earned her the reputation as "The Best Bad Girl on TV" Her television screen roles have been quite varied including playing a private investigator's secretary, Effie Perrine on the drama CHARLIE WILD, PRIVATE DETECTIVE/CBS/ABC/DUM/1950-52; Ruth Martin, a farmer's wife on the animal adventure LASSIE/CBS/1954-71; Phylis Lindstrom, an insensitive, egocentric landlady, on the sitcom THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW/CBS/1970-77; and a spin-off of that same character on PHYLLIS/CBS/1975-77. In 1986 she joined the cast of the FACTS OF LIFE/NBC/1979-88 as Beverly Ann Stickle, the chatterbox sister of Edna Garrett (Charlotte Rae).

Best Second Banana in the Business, The - Show business appellation bestowed on the talented actor/comedian Art Carney who is best known for this role as Ed Norton, New York City sewer worker and friend to blustery bus driver Ralph Kramden (Jackie Gleason) on the sitcom THE HONEYMOONERS/CBS/1955-56. One of his earliest television supporting character roles was on THE MOREY AMSTERDAM SHOW/CBS/DUM/1948-50 when he played the hilarious Charlie the Doorman and later Newton the Waiter (before TV he worked in Vaudeville & radio). In 1952 he became a regular on CAVALCADE OF STARS/DUM/1949-52 where he proved to be a perfect foil to the series host Jackie Gleason in a variety of sketches. One of which was THE HONEYMOONERS. In 1957 Carney left the company of Jackie Gleason to explore greener pastures. He has since proven himself to be an excellent leading man in the movies Harry & Tonto (1974) and The Late Show (1977) and on Broadway in "The Rope Dancers," "The Odd Couple," "Lovers," and "The Prisoner of Second Avenue." In 1977, he starred in the police drama LANIGAN'S RABBI/NBC/1977 as a police chief in small town of Cameron, California and as James "The Weasel" Cavannaugh on the sitcom THE CAVANAUGHS/CBS/1986-89. In recent years the term "Second Banana" has been appropriately linked to Ed McMahon who has been the announcer and sidekick of Johnny Carson on the NBC's THE TONIGHT SHOW from 1962-92.

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