Sam’s question to Oliver (when learning of Oliver’s trip to Washington):“is Hoover still president?”
I didn’t see those. But I did see the god-awful Halloween with the New Addams Family.
Did anyone else say “Zis has been a Filmvays Presentation, dahling” out loud with Eva Gabor at the end? Just me?
A book I read on The Beverly Hillbillies said that the inspiration for Green Acres was Eva Gabor on a talk show (possibly her best friend Merv Griffin’s) bringing the audience into hysterics talking about her visit to a friend’s farm, getting her mink dirty and afraid she’d lose a diamond in the chicken feed, etc., and Henning said “Sitcom!” I’m glad he was confident enough to turn over actual creative maintenance to others or it would have been just another Beverly Hillbillies and Petticoat Junction (i.e. successful at the time, with an occasional moment that holds up maybe, but ultimately yawn).
There have been talks about bringing it back as a series or a movie before. Bette Midler and Fran Drescher were both attached at one point but neither, thank Arnold, ever came close to fruition.
Maybe so, but it was also a reboot of Sommers’ earlier radio program Granby’s Green Acres
Yeah, but the switch from Bea Benadarat to Eva Gabor is what made the show. (No offense to Bea, she was fine as Kate and as Cousin Pearl, but Lisa Douglas she was not.)
What was so wonderful about Lisa was that even though “New York was where [she’d] rather stay”, she was just such a sweet and lovable character towards everybody around her. I can’t think of any other actress before or since who could blend that sincere sweetness with natural elegance and the sexy accent.
I used to work with a guy whose name was Douglas Haney. I always wondered if his parents were Green Acres fans. he would have been born in the late 60’s.
also semi related, last summer I was in a dollar General Store at the check out line. A young girl (~11 yrs old) got behind me in line and started to look at a tabloid which had a hideous picture of Zsa Zsa Gabor. She asked me who it was.
I asked her if she had ever heard of the TV Show Green Acres? (I was going to explain that she was Lisa Douglas’ sister in real life). Well that didn’t work, and then I explained that Zsa Zsa was married to Paris Hilton’s great grandfather. She got that connection.
Much like Oliver and Lisa, Frank Cady has bought the farm.
What was also great was that they knew when the joke got old. For a while, they showed the hotscakes cooking and people would try to eat them. This would happen once or twice, but then the joke would be cut short – you’d just see them on the stove in every episode. Then in every other episode. The from time to time until they stopped using the bit. It kept the joke from getting tired, and often all you needed was Lisa saying “hotscakes” and showing a two second shot of them before moving on.
I just hope that when he gets to the afterlife, he can see the Eiffel Tower.
In this NOT SAFE FOR WORK recording of a joke told by Pat Buttram at a 1970s Friar’s Club roast you will hear Mr. Haney discussing things you may not have known he knew about it.
NOT SAFE FOR WORK JOKE by Pat “Eustace Haney” Buttram.
Ever try to convince a non-fan about everything mentioned here? The hilarity, the surrealism? People look at you like you’re from…from…Pixley or somethin’!
UT
Or, God forbid, Bugtussle!
I wrote a paper for my college “Humor in Literature” course, discussing the show and only got a C, while another paper about Jacques Tati got an A. It was especially disappointing because I actually came up with some concepts about TV vs film that I still think are valid even though I’ve never seen anyone else mention them.
Alvy Moore, who played Mr. Kimball, actually stumbled onto his character’s hallmark rambling. In his first appearance he was trying to find something nice to say about the Douglas farm, but there just wasn’t anything, so the result was a discombobulated pointless qualified series of statements. That becamse Kimball’s spiel.
Newhart is probably the closest show to Green Acres in the style of humor. Larry, Darryl, and Darryl could easily have fit in with Monroe Brothers construction, and Eb was probably fathered by George Utley on a youthful jaunt through Hooterville.
I think this may be the most insightful statement I’ve ever seen on the Dope! 
I loved the mysterious fife that began to play during Oliver’s patriotic speeches.
The phases of a man’s life can be tracked by which Petticoat Junction female attracts him.
When you’re a young boy, it’s Betty Jo. She’s the smallest, and a tomboy, so you could play baseball and tag with her.
Puberty hits, and Bobbie Jo and Billie Jo become the focus.
I almost married a “lady MD” when I was around 40, proof that Dr. Janet Craig is the one for middle age.
These days, with retirement just a few years off, my dream girl is a buxom widow who owns a country motel (Kate).
By the way, UT, go back and check the Mrs. Clark thread–I was just Bette Davising your Thelma Ritter, is all!
In Mr. Drucker’s own words, from his *NYT *obit today:
Eve:
I saw that, and I apologize. I should have recognized the quote, but my mind is still full of “Auntie Mame” lines from having watched it the other night.
It’s ghastly, I tell you - simply ghastly!
You were kind to reply.
UT