M*A*S*H: Of Moose and Men

Unlike in the first season episode, "moose" here means
girlfriend rather than servant, although the lines are blurred.

M*A*S*H: Of Moose and Men
CBS
November 21, 1975
Dramedy
DVD
B-

This first of five M*A*S*H stories by Jay Folb takes awhile to get going, and I kept wondering if Frank is crazier this season than in the first three years and why no one seems to notice.  But I particularly liked the plot where Hawkeye is rude to a "superior" officer, Col. Spiker (Tim O'Connor, who'd return in a different role), and then later saves the man's life.  The scene where Hawkeye in disbelief finds himself thanking Spiker for not punishing him, while he was expecting to be thanked, is well played by Alda.

Lois Foraker for now takes over the rotating role of Nurse Able.  Johnny Haymer (Zale, with a subplot about his reaction to his wife's infidelity after nine years of marriage), Jeff Maxwell (Straminsky), and Kellye Nakahara (Yamato, with a scene where her facial reaction to Frank's racism is good, even while wearing a surgical mask) return.  This is the only M*A*S*H episode directed by John Erman, who had recently directed his only Bob Newhart Show episode, but he did do ten of the early That Girl episodes

The Bob Newhart Show: Change Is Gonna Do Me Good

The Bob Newhart Show: Change Is Gonna Do Me Good
CBS
October 4, 1975
Sitcom
DVD
B-

Gordon and Lynne Farr's story has its moments, like the deadpan "manager's specials" over the supermarket loudspeaker, but I feel like it didn't completely gel.  It's the only BNS episode directed by John Erman, who did a bunch for That Girl, but I don't think it's his fault.  And the "Emily is in a rut" plot, although done better on the Katherine Helmond episode, is by no means bad.  This is just an inevitable falling off for the short streak at the beginning of the season.  Note that Bob's mother's maiden name is Smith.

Box Boy Brian Byers would later be on M*A*S*H and Three's Company.  

That Girl: A Tenor's Loving Care

That Girl: A Tenor's Loving Care
ABC
February 23, 1967
Sitcom
DVD
B-

Carroll O'Connor is cast very much against type as an amorous Italian opera singer in Joseph Bonaduce's second TG script.  I like how Ann uses her wits to scare him away, and even her threat to blackmail him is understandable.  Herb Ellis, who's the Detective here, was Mr. Walters on Gidget.  James McCallion is Cooper here and would be Max later.  Jim Begg plays Tom here, and since I've got the MST3K versions of a couple of his movies, I'm going to tag this scene-stealing actor.

That Girl: What Are Your Intentions?

That Girl: What Are Your Intentions?
ABC
February 16, 1967
Sitcom
DVD
B

This is Milton Pascal's middle of five TG scripts and at this point Don and Ann have been dating eight months, so her father asks the question of the title.  Although it is a bit odd, yet period appropriate, for not only Ann to be a "girl" and Donald to be a "boy" (the same terminology was being used on Gilligan's Island, for instance, also about people in their 20s) but for them to be "going steady," I like that they resist her father pressuring them into marriage before they're ready.  And she says she wants to pursue her career, which would not have been a common statement on television, especially in sitcoms.

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: Rain, Snow and Rice

That Girl: Rain, Snow and Rice

ABC

February 2, 1967

Sitcom

DVD

B

While so far Ann and Donald's courtship has been loving and affectionate but far from hot and heavy, here they find themselves in a situation fraught with ABC Censor-Induced Sexual Tension (hereafter referred to as ABCCIST).  This is not limited to ABC of course, and there are exceptions at ABC (notably with Bernie Kopell's The Love Boat), and I'm aware that some of this tension comes from the societal shift, with even "nice girls" like Ann facing the sexual revolution.  But the way it plays out is visible, for instance, a decade later on Three's Company and even more so two decades later on Who's the Boss?  Because this is early on, and That Girl is a genteel show, it doesn't get too farcical, or steamy here, but when Donald and Ann share a bedroom so that their friends (Kopell as Jerry, with Arlene Golonka now in the role of Margie) can be alone on their wedding night, there is definitely more tension than usual for our leading couple.  They resolve it while staying in character, playing gin rummy and then having Donald sleep on the tiny couch.  There is humor, too, of course, whether J. Pat O'Malley as Judge Hardy calmly talking about his divorce, or Lew jumping to conclusions, not to mention Don in the "whoopie pajamas" he borrows from Jerry.  I almost went with a B+, but I didn't think the episode quite crossed over into near-classic.  And much of my interest in it is meta.  Definitely an improvement over James L. Brooks's Christmas script in any case.

James O'Rear was a Bailiff on an earlier TG and is the Clerk here.

That Girl: Gone with the Breeze

I assume Ann isn't a flasher, but who knows?

That Girl: Gone with the Breeze
ABC
January 26, 1967
Sitcom
DVD
B

Another nice "couple episode" by Tom and Helen August, here with Don wanting Ann to read his novel but her thinking she's lost the manuscript.  I could've done without Jerry's domestic violence joke, but otherwise this episode has aged much better than the preceding TG.

Audrey Christie is Ann's boss Miss Dailey and would return as Ella.  Mitzi Hoag plays Helen here and would be Patty later in the series.  This is the first of two TG appearances for Richard Schaal, here as the Lost & Found Man.  (He'd be more notable on The Bob Newhart Show and in Americathon.)

That Girl: Kimono My House

That Girl: Kimono My House
ABC
January 19, 1967
Sitcom
DVD
C

Another Peggy Elliott & Ed Scharlach collaboration, this is pretty wincey, with a subservient Japanese maid (Caroline Kido, who was Karen on Gidget).  Well, at least Ann wears some cute outfits.  Yuki Tani also played a Waitress on the previous episode with a scene in a Japanese restaurant.

That Girl: These Boots Weren't Made for Walking

That Girl: These Boots Weren't Made for Walking
ABC
January 12, 1967
Sitcom
DVD
B-

This is another episode written by Peggy Elliott and Ed Scharlach and it has something odd about it.  No, not the Paul Lynde guest shot, which is no stranger than anything else he's done, or that Ann is a "shoe salesman."  I mean that Donald and Jerry have a new secretary, Margie, who has a crush on Jerry (not seen in this episode), but we never hear anything further about it.  Why not just have her buying slippers for her nameless boyfriend?

Charles Lampkin, who plays the Janitor, would return years later as Horace Hansen, while Art Lewis and Patty Regan (just "Man" and "Woman" here) would each have two more TG roles.

That Girl: Christmas and the Hard-Luck Kid

That Girl: Christmas and the Hard-Luck Kid
ABC
December 22, 1966
Sitcom
DVD
C-

This first of three TG scripts by James L. Brooks is meant to be sweet and touching but I found it awkward and boring.  The main interest is that it has a flashback to three years ago, when Ann was apparently old enough to teach school, and her boss is played by John Fiedler.

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: All About Ann

That Girl: All About Ann
ABC
December 1, 1966
Sitcom
DVD
B-

This is Milton Pascal's second TG script and again features Ann training to be a better actress.  But mostly the episode is about a misunderstanding, where Don is gathering information on Ann for an article he wants to surprise her with, while she, encouraged by best friend Judy, thinks he's cheating on her with a girl from her acting workshop.  It sounds farcical, but it plays out so that we feel Ann's pain, and that makes the episode less enjoyable.  If this were a more cartoonish show, like Three's Company, we could shake our heads at the failure to communicate, while here Donald and Ann are enough like real people that it's like watching our friends be stupid.  I think both are to blame, he for keeping the article secret, and she for jumping to conclusions.

This is the first of ten TG episodes John Erman would direct.  And, yes, that's nineteen-year-old Rob Reiner as Chuck, his first of three TG roles.