MovieChat Forums > The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show (1950) Discussion > The Real Episode guide

The Real Episode guide

posted 15 years ago by DemonPazuzu
4 replies | jump to latest

Unfortunately, the season by season episode guide here at IMDb is incomplete and somewhat scant in its descriptions.

I am trying to get IMDb to accept all of my changes. My source is the book, "Say Goodnight, Gracie!" by Cheryl Blythe and Susan Sackett. In its 2nd appendix is the complete season by season episode guide.

Take note that episodes were not titled until season six. Some earlier episodes have been titled on their VHS and DVD issues but it is uncertain whether they were given titles by the persons compiling the episodes for video release or if the titles assigned were originally titled by the staff writers. For my own purposes, I have gone ahead and given the untitled episodes clear, definitive titles that relect the episode plot. Since there were several plot points in every episode, it is not uncommon to see the exact same episode given completely different titles from distributor to distributor.

A good example is Season 1, Episode one. I have a VHS copy where it is called "Meet the Mortons". Yet a subsequent DVD release calls it "Book Salesman" (referring to the opening bit with Henry Jones as a book salesman) IMDb lists it as "The Klee-bob Card Game", referring to the final gag. My personal title choice is "Fights vs. Movies" since the central plot actually revolves around the girls wanting to go to the movies and the guys wanting to go to the fights.

Also note that seasons 1 & 2 were live shows (captured and preserved on kinescopes) and were done every other week. When B & A went to film in season three, they assumed an every week film/broadcast schedule.

Until IMDb allows me to make the appropriate changes to the episode guide, I am willing to send as a text doc my complete episode guide for B & A to anyone who would like it. Send inquiries to [email protected]

[–] HarlowMGM 13 years ago

Does anyone know how many episodes are known to survive? Considering it's long run, it's surprising how fairly few have found their way on to dvd, apparently all in public domain versions.

[–] robert4770 13 years ago

How could a long running show like this fallen into public domain? I thought Columbia/Sony distributes it.

[–] HarlowMGM 13 years ago

I don't know if the whole series has fallen into public domain but there are many big shows from the 50's and 60's that have a number of episodes that are p.d.: Jack Benny Show, The Lucy Show, The Beverly Hillbillies, Dick Van Dyke Show. Apparently those episodes were either never copyrighted or fell into public domain before the copyrights were renewed. It's pretty rare for every episode of a show to be public domain though unless perhaps in the case of some of the obscure 1950's shows.

[–] VinnieRattolle 11 years ago

The first two seasons were broadcast live and the existing kinescope copies are now in public domain. The copyrights were renewed on the filmed episodes from 1952-58. And for the record, most episodes of the longer-running "Jack Benny Program" are in public domain. The 1978 copyright act seems to have caused mass confusion in the TV industry, and a lot of rights were either botched (like the aforementioned selected "Hillbillies" and "Lucy Show" episodes) or not renewed at all.