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Other Shows from the FIFTIES That You Enjoy


We've all discussed other shows we've enjoyed on this board, and they all seem to come AFTER
ILL. Are there any pre-1960's shows that anyone else likes...

On Youtube, I enjoy "Ozzie and Harriet." I also enjoy "The Honeymooners" on Youtube.

I also own the first five seasons of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents."

When I was a kid, I enjoyed "Father Knows Best." It wouldn't interest me now, although I
thought, and still think, the show was very well acted by all of them.

P.S: Years ago, when I was writing a magazine article on '60's actor Lee Kinsolving, I
contacted several actors who worked with him to get insight. One of the actors who
bothered to call me back was Billy Gray. He was very nice, and very informative. I told
him I thought his portrayal of "Bud" was very sensitive. But he simply never cared for
the show, calling it "dated and a total fantasy of '50's life."

P.S.: P.S.: Suzanne Pleshette called me back, just to tell me she never HEARD of Lee
Kinsolving! When I asked why she call back, she said, "Well, I thought it was rude to
not at least reply." Classy lady.

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I have always loved The Honeymooners!! I have the "classic 39" on DVD. There were other shows that I watched. But none of them had the staying power of ILL or the Honeymooners, at least not for me.

I saw Burns and Allen years ago. It was amusing, but not something I'd want to own on DVD.

Not a sitcom, but it was a fifties show, You Bet Your Life, hosted by Groucho Marx. I remember watching it on late nite TV back when I was in high school Groucho was a master of the quick comeback!

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Not from the 50's, but I love "Hazel". Shirley Booth is phenomenal. The chemistry between Booth and Don Defoe is great. Whitney Black is stunning,

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I could never get into "Hazel", and after seeing the brilliant Shirley Booth in her Oscar-winning performance as Lola,
the lonely wife of alcoholic Burt Lancaster in "Come Back Little Sheba", I thought that sitcom was such a comedown.

I did enjoy Don Defore on "Ozzie and Harriet", and felt the show wasn't the same after he was written out in '57.
According to what I've read, Defore wanted a huge raise, so Ozzie gave him his walking papers.

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Agreed Booth was a brilliant actress and that Sheba on stage and film was her pinnacle. However, you shouldn't look down at "Hazel"; Booth didn't - "I liked playing Hazel the first time I read one of the scripts, and I could see all the possibilities of the character—the comedy would take care of itself. My job was to give her heart. Hazel never bores me. Besides, she's my insurance policy."

What she was able to do with thin scripts was remarkable. I will confess when Hazel (the character) gets maudlin, I tear up.

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Well, I'm glad YOU enjoy it. That way , I don't have to sit through it.

I did enjoy the comic strip. Not the series. But, yes, the cast was very good.

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The Donna Reed Show
Dennis the Menace
Make Room for Daddy
Leave it to Beaver

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Good grief, I totally forgot about "Dennis the Menace", which, aside from it's awful fourth (and final) season, is still
a treat to watch. Joseph Kearns should've won an Emmy for Best Supporting Actor in a comedy. He was too funny!

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Joseph Kearns was amazing on that show. No offense to Gale Gordon who did as good a job as anyone trying to fill his shoes, but the show just couldn't recover from losing Kearns.

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And what's so odd is that physically, Gordon looked far more like the cartoon "George Wilson" than Kearns did.
Gordon just didn't have the same chemistry. I also loved Sarah Seegar - in OTHER shows. But here, all she
did was smile all over the place.

The biggest issue was that North, Jeannie and Billy Booth were simply too old for their roles.

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Dragnet, M Squad, and of course Peter Gunn.

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The Honeymooners, and what little I've seen of Ozzie and Harriet are the only 50's shows (besides Lucy) that come to mind. I'm more of a 60's guy when it comes to older television.

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The only '60's sitcoms I enjoy are "Bewitched", "Green Acres" and "Get Smart." Other than those, I don't think the
'60's offered much in sitcoms, at least not like the '70's did. "That Girl" was cute, but I doubt I could sit through
an entire episode now.

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I Love Lucy
Leave It to Beaver
Father Knows Best
The Honeymooners

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