Who's the Boss?: Teacher's Pet

Who's the Boss?: Teacher's Pet

ABC

January 3, 1989

Sitcom

DVD
C

In Alan Carl's last appearance as Mason, he teaches Tony's Ancient History class and shows him favoritism.  Unfortunately, the writing by Donley & Graham is weak, not particularly funny and including questionable advice.  There is some Tony & Angela flirtation though.  Alan Oppenheimer and Chelsea Noble return as Dean Brown and Cynthia, both getting more to do this time.

Who's the Boss?: Nineteen Again

Who's the Boss?: Nineteen Again
ABC
November 1, 1988
Sitcom
DVD
B

Donley & Graham wrote this story where Tony goes to a frat party and his "date" Angela* gets drunk on spiked punch.  She insults Dean Brown (Alan Oppenheimer, who among other things, played four characters on That Girl and who would return in this role).  After she sobers up, they talk about their adolescences and it ends up being a bonding experience.

Bobby Brett, who's Gene here, would later play Ike.  Bill Calvert plays another (presumably unrelated) character named Patrick on Ellen.


*They present themselves as single, although she is referred to as his date more than once.  They end up spending very little time together at the party, although they do share a holding cell later.  This will not be counted when they later in the season discuss whether they're going on a "first date."

What's Happening!!: Food Poisoning

What's Happening!!: Food Poisoning
ABC
March 2, 1979
Sitcom
DVD
B-

While the plot of Rerun seeming to get food poisoning at Rob's and then being tempted to sue is predictable, the regular cast and the guest cast do nice work with it.  Nathaniel Taylor and Chip Fields return as Rerun's brother-in-law Ike and sister Donna, the nurse.  Richard Stahl plays the doctor, while Alan Oppenheimer, whom I've decided to finally tag, plays the shifty lawyer, Mr. Sloan.  And Richard Couture makes probably his most unusual appearance, as the heavily bandaged Mr. Flynn.

This is the only writing Bruce Kalish & Philip John Taylor did for this show, but they'd co-write three Mork & Mindy episodes, while this is the middle of three WH scripts for Tom Moore & Jeremy Stevens.

Soap: Episode 7

Soap: Episode 7
ABC
November 1, 1977
Dramedy
DVD
B-

Harris co-wrote this episode with Lang, but I don't know if that's the reason that the first two scenes don't work too well.  First we have the Major capturing neighbor Mr. Kirby (Alan Oppenheimer), who's been mentioned before and here makes a threat, but then we never see him again.  The second scene has Danny, even though he's afraid of heights, go up to the top of a building that Burt's construction company is working on.  Danny could easily have extended the invitation to the mountain cabin that evening at home.  Still, this is the episode that introduces Chuck and Bob (Jay Johnson), so points for that.  Meanwhile, Claire tells Jessica about the affair with Chester, but Jessica thinks Claire is delusional.  Corrine is absent, presumably over at Peter's.

There's a hint about how much time has passed, since Burt says he's found two sons in two weeks, "that's a son a week."  And it seems to be the evening after Chuck's arrival that Burt and Danny go to the cabin.

Welcome Back, Kotter: And Baby Makes Four, Part 2

Welcome Back, Kotter: And Baby Makes Four, Part 2
ABC
September 15, 1977
Sitcom
DVD
B

Eric Cohen also wrote this part, which aired right after Part 1, and it has some nice moments of its own, from the Sweathogs singing, "Let's all go to the lobby" (which at nine I did not know was a reference to movie-viewing in the '50s), to Mr. Woodman's rambling story about "getting a girl in trouble" (by enabling her to run off with a shoe salesman).  Gabe and Julie are sweet together, before and after their twin daughters are born.

Alan Oppenheimer, who plays Dr. Melmann appeared on That Girl four times.  His character delivered Gabe, which is consistent with a Season One episode where he was Gabe's pediatrican, but Oppenheimer was born in 1930, so he would've been in high school at the time Gabe was born.

That Girl: Gone-A-Courtin

That Girl: Gone-A-Courtin
ABC
March 5, 1970
Sitcom
DVD
C+

I have to admit that some of the entertainment value for me in this Joseph-Bonaduce-written episode was exclaiming, "That doesn't make any sense."  Ann goes to an audition for a role as "a typical emancipated woman" who's apparently supposed to be emasculating as well, but the producer has a tantrum and scares her.  Then later she's thrilled to be called back to his office at 8 p.m., but the role he wants her to play is that of clumsy secretary to his lawyer, in order to prove that he didn't stab a man with a shish-kabob and the man instead stabbed himself.  By the time Ann is holding a flaming shish-kabob in the courtroom and scaring that man, any realism has pretty much disappeared, not that it hasn't been slipping away from the show in the last two or three years anyway.  Still, um, Ann wears some cute outfits.  Oh, and there's another How Did This Tag Get Past the Censors tag, where Ann spills water in Donald's lap, she tries to help, and he says a line that sounds ad-libbed by Bessell: "Move your hand away."

Associate producer Lew Gallo and creator Sam Denoff are two of the men who go to the hat check stand.  Alan Oppenheimer's third of four roles on the show is as Morgan Jerome.  Allen Davis, who's Lionel Vernon, was the Desk Clerk in the Vegas episodes.  Harvey J. Goldenberg, who plays Jones, would later be an Assistant Chef.  Thirty-one-year-old Hal Williams, later of 227, has his first of three TG roles, as the Court Clerk.

Alan Oppenheimer shares my reaction.

That Girl: Ten Percent of Nothing Is Nothing

That Girl: Ten Percent of Nothing Is Nothing
ABC
January 1, 1970
Sitcom
DVD
C

Welcome to the '70s, sort of.  (It won't feel very '70s till maybe '72.)  And Morty Gunty turns out to be no funnier as Sandy Stone than as himself in yet another unnecessary Orenstein-Turteltaub story.  As with the episode where the boxer turns out to have a "hilarious" comedy routine, I was generally not amused, although the Nichols & May like routine that Sandy and Ann do (pretending to be on the phone), is probably the best of the bunch, if five or ten years out of date in format.  I also didn't see why Donald insisted on going to every performance and then complaining about the food.  I will say that the episode improved as it went on, mostly because there was less of Sandy.

Producer Sam Denoff does another of his cameos, this time as the Big Guy who punches Donald, while associate producer Lew Gallo makes his first of three, as Man at Table.  Bob Ross (not that Bob Ross) has his first of six TG roles, as a Party Guest.  Alan Oppenheimer makes his second of four TG appearances, this time as Mr. Katz.  Secretary Diana Herbert would appear on Three's Company eight years later.

That Girl: Sue Me, Sue Me, What Can You Do Me?

That Girl: Sue Me, Sue Me, What Can You Do Me?
ABC
March 27, 1969
Sitcom
DVD
B-

This script, co-written by Milt Rosen, Ruth Brooks Flippen, and Danny Arnold, has Jerry urging Lew to sue Newsview when Lew slips on some water near a drinking fountain.  Donald ends up quitting, after four years, when his integrity is questioned.  The episode never quite comes together, but it has its moments.  Alan Oppenheimer plays his first of four TG roles, as Stewart Hurly.

The season ends after 26 episodes, as compared to 36 for Gilligan's Island in '64-'65.  I don't know the reasons why seasons shrank at this time, with half the year in "summer reruns."  Perhaps it was production costs, but this length for a season would be consistent I believe well into the '90s.  (For sitcoms anyway.  Obviously, Saturday morning TV was a different matter.)

The average for That Girl's third season remains a B-, but now on the lower end rather than the higher.