''Barefoot in the Park'' is an American sitcom that aired in 1970 on ABC. Based on

Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He has received mo ...

's Broadway play of the same name, the series cast members are predominantly black, making it the first American television sitcom since ''

Amos 'n' Andy ''Amos 'n' Andy'' is an American radio sitcom about black characters, initially set in Chicago and later in the Harlem section of New York City. While the show had a brief life on 1950s television with black actors, the 1928 to 1960 radio show ...

'' to have a predominantly black cast (

Vito Scotti Vito Giusto Scozzari (January 26, 1918 – June 5, 1996), also known as Vito Scotti, was an American character actor who played both dramatic and comedy roles on Broadway, in films, and later on television, primarily from the late 1930s to the ...

is the sole major white character). ''Barefoot in the Park'' had been a 1967 film starring Robert Redford and Jane Fonda.

Synopsis

Scoey Mitchell plays Paul Bratter, a newlywed attorney for the law firm Kendricks, Keene & Klein living in lower Manhattan with his wife Corie (played by Tracy Reed). The show was a slice-of-life comedy about surviving in New York City. Other regulars included

Thelma Carpenter Thelma Carpenter (January 15, 1922 – May 14, 1997) was an American jazz singer and actress, best known as "Miss One", the Good Witch of the North in the movie ''The Wiz''. She was born in Brooklyn, New York, the only child of Fred and Mary C ...

as Corie's mother, Mable Bates, Harry Holcombe as Mr. Kendricks,

as Mr. Velasquez, and

Nipsey Russell Julius "Nipsey" Russell (September 15, 1918 – October 2, 2005)Nipsey J. Russell, born September 15, 1918, died October 2, 2005. Social Security Administration. ''Social Security Death Index'' ( Death Master File).U.S. Census, January 1, 1920, ...

as local

pool hall A billiard, pool or snooker hall (or parlour, room or club; sometimes compounded as poolhall, poolroom, etc.) is a place where people get together for playing cue sports such as pool, snooker or carom billiards. Such establishments commonly ser ...

owner, Honey Robinson.

Guest stars

Dead End Kids The Dead End Kids were a group of young actors from New York City who appeared in Sidney Kingsley's Broadway play '' Dead End'' in 1935. In 1937, producer Samuel Goldwyn brought all of them to Hollywood and turned the play into a film. They prov ...

alumnus

Huntz Hall Henry Richard "Huntz" Hall (August 15, 1920 – January 30, 1999) was an American radio, stage, and movie performer who appeared in the popular " Dead End Kids" movies, including ''Angels with Dirty Faces'' (1938), and in the later " Bowery ...

and actor Jackie Coogan appeared on the 10th episode, aired December 3, 1970, titled ''Disorder in the Court'' (which gets its title from the 1936

Three Stooges The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy team active from 1922 until 1970, best remembered for their 190 short subject films by Columbia Pictures. Their hallmark styles were physical farce and slapstick. Six Stooges appeare ...

short).

Penny Marshall Carole Penny MarshallBorn Carole Penny Marshall in 1943, as per ''My Mother Was Nuts, a Memoir'', p. 10; . Copyright 2012 (October 15, 1943 – December 17, 2018) was an American actress, director and producer. She is known for her role as ...

made one of her early television appearances on the fourth episode of the series, aired October 5, 1970, titled "In Sickness and in Health". Marshall's later co-star of the mid-1970s television success '' Laverne & Shirley'',

Cindy Williams Cynthia Jane Williams (born August 22, 1947) is an American actress and producer, known for her role as Shirley Feeney on the television sitcom ''Happy Days'' (1975–1979), and ''Laverne & Shirley'' (1976–1982). Early life Williams was bo ...

, appeared on the sixth episode, which aired on October 29, 1970, titled "The Marriage Proposal".

Cancellation

When ''Barefoot in The Park'' premiered on Thursday, September 24, 1970, at 9 p.m., it was the lead-in program for another series based on a Neil Simon play, ''

The Odd Couple Odd Couple may refer to: Neil Simon play and its adaptations * ''The Odd Couple'' (play), a 1965 stage play by Neil Simon ** ''The Odd Couple'' (film), a 1968 film based on the play *** ''The Odd Couple'' (1970 TV series), a 1970–1975 televisi ...

'', which debuted immediately afterward. Because both comedies followed ABC’s popular series '' Bewitched'', which aired the same evening at 8:30 p.m., it was hoped that the long-running sitcom would provide a strong ratings segue for both series. However, ''Bewitched'' was in its seventh season and experiencing a ratings slump. As a result, viewership for both ''Barefoot in the Park'' and ''The Odd Couple'' was disappointing. In the case of ''Barefoot in the Park'', there was also behind-the-scenes strife. Star Scoey Mitchell was fired due to "differences of opinion" with the series' producers. By this time, only 12 episodes of the sitcom had been produced. Rather than replace Mitchell with another actor and disenchanted with the low ratings, ABC decided to cancel ''Barefoot in the Park'' in December, 1970. In January 1971, the network moved ''The Odd Couple'' to Friday nights where its ratings improved. Despite the fact that it never placed in the top 30 television shows, ''The Odd Couple'' had a five-year run on ABC and won Emmy Awards for its two stars

Tony Randall Anthony Leonard Randall (born Aryeh Leonard Rosenberg; February 26, 1920 – May 17, 2004) was an American actor. He is best known for portraying the role of Felix Unger in a television adaptation of the 1965 play '' The Odd Couple'' by Neil Sim ...

and

Jack Klugman Jack Klugman (April 27, 1922 – December 24, 2012) was an American actor of stage, film, and television. He began his career in 1950 and started television and film work with roles in '' 12 Angry Men'' (1957) and '' Cry Terror!'' (1958). ...

. The installments of ''Barefoot in the Park'' were rerun as episodes of '' Love, American Style'' in syndication.

Production notes

The show was produced by William P. D'Angelo, and various episodes were written or directed by much of the same team that had developed ''The Odd Couple'' (

Jerry Paris William Gerald Paris (July 25, 1925 – March 31, 1986) was an American actor and director best known for playing Jerry Helper, the dentist and next-door neighbor of Rob and Laura Petrie, on ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'', and for directing the majo ...

, Harvey Miller, Bruce Bilson and

Garry Marshall Garry Kent Marshall (November 13, 1934 – July 19, 2016) was an American filmmaker and actor. He started his career in the 1960s writing for ''The Lucy Show'' and ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' before he developed Neil Simon's 1965 play '' The Odd C ...

). Director Charles Rondeau also had directed almost the entire first half of the first season of the American sitcom

F-Troop ''F Troop'' is a satirical American television sitcom Western about U.S. soldiers and Native Americans in the Wild West during the 1860s that originally aired for two seasons on ABC. It debuted in the United States on September 14, 1965, and ...

, which also aired on ABC.

Episode list

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, 0065276, Barefoot in the Park 1970 American television series debuts 1970 American television series endings 1970s American sitcoms 1970s American black sitcoms American Broadcasting Company original programming English-language television shows Television series based on plays Television series by CBS Studios Television shows set in New York City Television series based on works by Neil Simon