Rural sitcoms of the 1960s

Hmm. Seasons 1 and 2 can be watched for free on Tubi, but that one is Season 6 and must be purchased or watched on dodgy Dailymotion etc.

I’ve noticed a little anomaly in the one season of Petticoat Junction in which Swedish actress Gunilla Hutton takes over the role of Billie Joe. She appears in a few episodes at the start and then just vanishes for about one-third of the season, during which time the series becomes effectively a two-girl show. There’s no in-show explanation for her disappearance (unless I missed it). Wonder what that was about.

Google sez hepatitis.

Huh, didn’t expect that

What was your hypothesis?

Frank Cady also makes a small appearance in Wilder's Ace In The Hole.

Seems like he was in a ton of television shows too but don't recall seeing those.

Also: The Petticoat Jungle = Best Andre Leon Talley memoir.

How does Operation Petticoat fit in?

I never got around to formulating a theory about the mysterious disappearance of Gunilla Hutton. I guess I’m getting lazy.

I remember when they only showed Floyd the Barber sitting down, and only in profile. Must've had a stroke or something

Which is my cue to post this for the umpteenth time:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OlYeufpLcI

When these sitcoms were new and I was a child I watched them all, some more devotedly than others, but all with sufficient frequency to say I knew them well. I can still sing the theme songs to Andy Griffith Show, Beverley Hillbillies, Green Acres, and ofc Gilligan's Island, but not Petticoat Junction (it must have been a pretty rotten theme song for me to forget it so completely). Here's how I rate them: I just don't care any more.

Green Acres is just one weird a$$ show. They did not have a wall on the bedroom and the phone was up on top of a pole. The pig could pretty much go anywhere it wanted and sometimes would be a part of the plot of the episode.

Wondering who was that one city slicker, that one guy, that one character, the railroad man.

Charles Lane as Homer Bedloe. He was a Capra regular and did tons of tv as well.

Rotten theme song? Forget it so completely? Its lyrics and chug-a-lug choo choo train rhythm are burned on the back of James Redd’s brane as permanently as the tattoo The Scientific People affixed to Gully Foyle’s face in The Stars My Destination.

Come ride a little train
That’s a goin’ down the track
To the junction

There’s a little hotel
Called The Shady Rest
At the junction

Lots of curves
You bet
But even more
When you get
To the junction
(Petticoat
Junction)

Okay, I mixed the first and second verse a little but still

In the final iteration one of the sisters was played by Meredith MacRae, daughter of s Gordon and Sheila. Completely forgot about her, as well as her being on My Three Sons.

Speaking of unforgettable theme songs, here’s a connection I was unaware of until just now:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lori_Saunders#Starring_roles

In 1973–74, Saunders played "Betsy" on the situation-comedy western Dusty's Trail. Created by Sherwood Schwartz and starring Bob Denver, the show was based on Gilligan's Island, but set in the wild west; her character "Betsy" was an ingénue drawn after Dawn Wells' character of "Mary Ann". Saunders quipped: "It was the same show, just no coconuts.

Oh you mentioned Meredith MacRae in the OP I see, sorry.

Not quite as surreal as Green Acres itself but
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbfX4bi8Epo

The first Bobbie Joe was Pat Woodell, whose acting career took a suprising final turn when she appeared in a few lurid drive-in films, such as Jack Hill's The Big Doll House with Pam Grier, and The Roommates with Marki Bey (of Hal Ashby's The Landlord).

Interesting.

Earlier speedwatched the "Christmas in Hooterville" episode of The Beverly Hillbillies. Mind = blown.

Starts out promisingly with Jethro opening his presents under the tree and talking to Jed on the phone.

Then there's some business with Mr. Drysdale in bed with Ellie's bear.

There's some stuff about Eb pitching woo with Elly Mae on a tiny hand-pumped two-person stand-up railcar and Grannie thinking Mr. Drysdale is about to propose to her.

Frank Cady as usual seems to steal every scene he's in. Finally, time stops when Steve and Betty Jo walk in and Steve sings some kind of sub-Robert Goulet number.

Steve and Betty Jo were married in real life for several years as well. She was the daughter of the show runner (although don't think they had that word back then), Paul Henning.

Along with Lori Saunders, Jeannine Riley was also in Dusty's Trail, thereby making it a cross-pollination of Gilligan's Island, F Troop AND Petticoat Junction.

In summary, at this point I feel like Green Acres is the only one I'd be willing to watch a random episode of from beginning to end, whereas with the other two there would have to be a lot of cherry-picking.

Wish I could find the Hitchcock interview I thought I recalled with him talking about how much he liked Frank Cady.

I’ve seen sources that mistakenly conflate Jeannine Riley with Jeannie C. Riley of “Harper Valley PTA” fame. Two different people.

Yes, have see something like that as well. Also, I need to type “Elly May” again a few times to remember how it is actually spelled.

Yo, Aimless!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRhi8Tk9nNE

^still leaves me kinda indifferent

https://www.metv.com/stories/mike-minor-made-a-date-with-linda-henning-his-first-day-on-petticoat-junction

xpost wikiTVT Records was launched in 1985 with the release of Television's Greatest Hits' first issue, the double LP compilation 65 TV Themes! From the 50's and The 60's. Creem's reviewer opined that the Talking Heads should cover the Petticoat Junction theme, and can still imagine Byrne playing and singing, all of them aboard that antsy, chuggin' momentum, down the track but not too fast, comin' to the Junction.

And yes, droppin' their Gs along the way.

Already can't remember if we discussed Frank Cady being in the Andy Griffith Show pilot playing the town drunk but maybe they wanted a more conventional portrayal.

https://www.metv.com/stories/this-andy-griffith-show-episode-had-a-subtle-tie-back-to-the-pilot-episode

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfQPTpFXbvk

Happy Birthday June Lockhart!

Also: Pat Buttram based Mr. Haney on an old acquaintance: Col. Tom Parker. #onethread

Slogging my way through Petticoat Junction s4 in which goddamn Steve Elliott sings a boring song in almost every episode. But he does sport a nice variety of windbreakers and together with his tapered chinos and suede Chelsea boots he cuts a nice figure as a 1960s casual action man. This is the the season when Billie Joe fully thinks Steve is gonna marry her, little does she know.

Guess I never told my story about sending away for celebrity photos from an ad in the back of a comic book when I was about 8. There wasn't even an order form to select from, so you could select any star. I had crushes on Anne Francis from Honey West, Goldie Hawn, and Jeannine Riley (who happened to look much like my third grade teacher) so I ordered those. The first two arrived fairly quickly, and then after a long delay a second shipment arrived... with a photo of Jeannie C. Riley. I was crushed.

Mo Rocca recently did a good piece on the Rural Purge: https://mobituaries.com/news/the-podcast/the-rural-purge-death-of-the-country-broadcasting-system/

*bookmarks thread*

It’s so sad when Charley Pratt leaves the Junction because they give him what is clearly, in retrospect, a send-off show just months (weeks?) before the actor Smiley Burnette passed away. Floyd and Charley are such a dependable source of laughs on the show. And then suddenly Floyd is running the train by himself with no room given for mourning.