That Girl: This Little Piggy Had a Ball

That Girl: This Little Piggy Had a Ball
ABC
March 23, 1967
Sitcom
DVD
B

This middle of five collaborations between Arnold Margolin and Jim Parker has Ann in a very Lucy Ricardo kind of situation, with her toe stuck in a bowling ball when she has to go to a banquet on behalf of a friend, but it does play out differently.  We again see how supportive, literally as well as figuratively, Donald is and the last scene with them is sexy as well as sweet.  The episode is also notable for funny people in minor roles, including the first of two TG guest shots for Teri Garr (then going by Terry) and the second of three for Rob Reiner.  The instantly recognizable Jane Dulo plays the Nurse (a typical role for her, she'd be a Nurse on Welcome Back, Kotter for instance) and would return to the show later.

Shirley Bonne plays Sharon Hackett and was Charlotte on the Pilot.  Burt Taylor was a Waiter, is Frank here, and would be an M.C. later.  The Fireman is the second of four roles Jerry Fogel would play on the show.

That Girl: The Honeymoon Apartment

That Girl: The Honeymoon Apartment
ABC
March 16, 1967
Sitcom
DVD
B-

Another of Ann's relatives shows up, this time her cousin Harold Turner (Warren Berlinger, who'd appear in another role later).  He and his new bride spend the night at her apartment, so she stays with the Bessemers.  Don is going to go out of town but then it's cancelled, so the couple can't stay at his place.  And of course Ann could never stay overnight at Don's.  So instead we get a scene where Desk Clerk Dick Wilson is confused into thinking Don is checking into a honeymoon suite with two women, one of whom is crying.  Some cute farce, but I'm not a fan of episodes where people impose on each other to this extent.

Austin and Irma Kalish had written some Gidget episodes but this is their only one for TG.

That Girl: Paper Hats and Everything

That Girl: Paper Hats and Everything
ABC
February 9, 1967
Sitcom
DVD
B-

This is the first of two TG scripts by Sydney Zelinka and has Ann's father taking her out for her birthday, while she's expecting a surprise party.  Richard Dreyfuss plays a "nutty" actor friend, but the guests at the party are mostly forgettable.  Mitzi Hoag had earlier played Helen but is Patty here.  Laurie Main is the Maitre D' and would be Grimsley on a two-parter.

That Girl: Phantom of the Horse Opera

That Girl: Phantom of the Horse Opera
ABC
December 8, 1966
Sitcom
DVD
B-

This second episode written by Peggy Elliott and Ed Scharlach is an odd one.  From Donald going into Ann's apartment and, without asking, pouring himself a glass of milk and slicing a piece of cake, and then forgetting them when he and Ann leave suddenly, to the resolution that the sweet old organist, played by Sterling Holloway, is wanted by the police in seven states, it's just a weird episode, especially for That Girl.

That Girl: What's in a Name [revised]

That Girl: What's in a Name [revised]
ABC
November 17, 1966
Sitcom
DVD
B-

This reworking of the Pilot is an improvement but I'm marking it down from a B to a B- because it's not seamless, as when they don't change Ann's apartment number in the dialogue, and more significantly when Lew is told that "strange men" aren't allowed upstairs, and we've already seen, on a previous episode, the rich borderline-stalker in Ann's place when she's not home.  (Arguably Ann and Donald's '65 vs. '66 hairdos make continuity errors as well, but these are forgivable.)  Still, the recasting is definitely justified when comparing this to the original.

Cliff Norton, who plays Charlie, would be Charley [sic] Fitch later in the series.

That Girl: Break a Leg

That Girl: Break a Leg
ABC
November 10, 1966
Sitcom
DVD
B

This is the episode where a very clean-cut George Carlin suggests Marlo Thomas push Sally Kellerman out the window, but this proves unnecessary because Dabney Coleman diagnoses Sally as having the measles.  Besides the OMGness of the casting, I think the story is solid, with Ann as understudy to her old friend who's making her Broadway debut.  Speaking of debuts, this is Carlin's very first screen credit, as Ann's agent.  It's also notable that Ann is still enough of a theater newbie to not know even such common superstitions as wishing someone luck with the episode's title.

This was Arnold Margolin and Jim Parker's second TG collaboration.

That Girl: Little Auction Annie

Judy became a redhead a few episodes ago.

That Girl: Little Auction Annie
ABC
October 27, 1966
Sitcom
DVD
B-

This is the first of four TG episodes written by Rick Mittleman and is more suspenseful than usual, although of course it all turns out to be a misunderstanding.  Menacing Michael Conrad (later of Hill Street Blues) is not only an FBI agent but a former baseball player.  Whew!

Ken Lynch, who plays Officer Dombrowski, would return as Carl Sheldon.

That Girl: Never Change a Diaper on Opening Night

The uncredited baby, now about 50.

That Girl: Never Change a Diaper on Opening Night
ABC
September 22, 1966
Sitcom
DVD
C+

The first of five TG episodes written by Milton Pascal, this has Ann torn between babysitting for the neighbors-- with a mustache-less Dabney Coleman introduced as Judy's husband Leon the obstetrician-- and auditioning for an insufferable but apparently brilliant acting teacher, Jules Benedict played by Billy De Wolfe.  While it's nice to see Ann working on her career and I appreciated the moments where she stands up for herself, I was getting so irritated with everyone that I wished it was an episode about Ann & Donald or Ann and her parents.