Elizabeth Allen Paul Lynde The Paul Lynde Show 1972

''The Paul Lynde Show'' is an American television

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

that aired on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

. The series starred comedian

Paul Lynde Paul Edward Lynde (; June 13, 1926January 10, 1982) was an American comedian, actor and game show panelist. A character actor with a distinctively campy and snarky persona that often poked fun at his barely closeted homosexuality, Lynde was well ...

and aired for one season, with original episodes airing from September 13, 1972, to March 14, 1973.

Setting

The series starred Lynde as Paul Simms, a general-practice attorney and the father of a family that consisted of his wife Martha ( Elizabeth Allen) and daughters Barbara (Jane Actman) and Sally (

Pamelyn Ferdin Pamelyn Wanda Ferdin (born February 4, 1959) is an American animal rights activist and a former child actress. Ferdin's acting career was primarily during the 1960s and 1970s, though she appeared in projects sporadically in the 1980s and later ...

). The Simms family lived in the fictional city of Ocean Grove, California. It also starred John Calvin as Barbara's husband, Howie Dickerson, an eccentric university student who was of genius intelligence (IQ 185) and was a whiz with everything and full of advice, but inexplicably, he could not manage to hold down a job, and

Jerry Stiller Gerald Isaac Stiller (June 8, 1927 – May 11, 2020) was an American actor and comedian. He spent many years as part of the comedy duo Stiller and Meara with his wife, Anne Meara, to whom he was married for over 60 years until her death in 2015 ...

and

Anne Meara Anne Meara Stiller (September 20, 1929 – May 23, 2015) was an American actress and comedian. Along with her husband Jerry Stiller, she was one-half of the prominent 1960s comedy team Stiller and Meara. Their son is actor, director, and producer ...

as Howie's divorced parents, Barney and Grace Dickerson. Howie's misadventures around the house and his lack of steady employment brought his father-in-law to a state of slow-burn anger and drove him to distraction. Critics perceived the show as derivative of ''

All in the Family ''All in the Family'' is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS for nine seasons, from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. Afterwards, it was continued with the spin-off series '' Archie Bunker's Place'', which picked up where ''All in ...

'', then television's most popular primetime program, and the Paul Simms role bore similarities to Lynde's best-known film role, that of Harry MacAfee from the film and musical ''

Bye Bye Birdie ''Bye Bye Birdie'' is a stage musical with music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Lee Adams, based upon a book by Michael Stewart. Originally titled ''Let's Go Steady'', ''Bye Bye Birdie'' is set in 1958. The short story "Dream Man", authored ...

''. For his role in the series, Lynde was nominated for a Best Actor Golden Globe.

Cast

- Paul Simms * Elizabeth Allen - Martha Simms *

Jane Actman Jane Actman (April 6, 1949 – October 26, 2018) was an American actress. She played Barbara Simms Dickerson in the short-lived television sitcom ''The Paul Lynde Show''. Career Actman began her acting career starring in the Broadway play '' ...

- Barbara Simms Dickerson *

John Calvin John Calvin (; frm, Jehan Cauvin; french: link=no, Jean Calvin ; 10 July 150927 May 1564) was a French theologian, pastor and reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system ...

- Howie Dickerson *

- Sally Simms * James Gregory - T.R. Scott *

- Grace Dickerson *

Allison McKay Allison may refer to: People * Allison (given name) * Allison (surname) (includes a list of people with this name) * Eugene Allison Smith (1922-1980), American politician and farmer Companies * Allison Engine Company, American aircraft engine ...

- Alice *

- Barney Dickerson *

Herb Voland Herbert Maurice Voland (October 2, 1918 – April 26, 1981) was an American actor, best known for his various roles on the sitcom '' Bewitched'', as General Crandell Clayton on the sitcom '' M*A*S*H'' during seasons one and two, and the film ''A ...

- T.J. McNish *

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 ...

- Thelma *

Mabel Albertson Mabel Ida Albertson (July 24, 1901 – September 28, 1982) was an American actress of television, stage, radio and film who portrayed Phyllis Stephens in the TV sitcom ''Bewitched''. Early years Mabel Ida Albertson was born on July 24, 1901, in ...

- Mabel *

Charlotte Rae Charlotte Rae Lubotsky (April 22, 1926 – August 5, 2018) was an American character actress and singer whose career spanned six decades. Rae was known for her portrayal of Edna Garrett in the sitcoms ''Diff'rent Strokes'' and its spin-off, '' ...

- Aunt Charlotte

Episodes

Reception

Scheduled opposite the first half of the Top 30 hit ''

The Carol Burnett Show ''The Carol Burnett Show'' is an American variety/sketch comedy television show that originally ran on CBS from September 11, 1967, to March 29, 1978, for 279 episodes, and again with nine episodes in fall 1991. It starred Carol Burnett, Harvey ...

'' on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

and the Top 20 hit ''

Adam-12 ''Adam-12'' is an American television police procedural crime drama television series created by Robert A. Cinader and Jack Webb. The series follows Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers Pete Malloy and Jim Reed as they patrol the stre ...

'' on NBC, the first episode proved to be a major hit; strong negative reactions led to bad word of mouth and a resulting collapse in ratings.Bruce Vilanch on "The Paul Lynde Halloween Special"
''Archive of American Television Interviews'' via

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

(August 2, 2016). Retrieved February 26, 2020. The show was canceled after a single 26-episode season.

Production

The show was based on the play ''Howie'', about a lawyer, played by Lynde, whose daughter marries a slacker named Howard, or "Howie". The Lynde character despises him as he is not interested in earning money or traditional pursuits. ''Howie'' was developed for

in 1962, as a replacement for ''

The Dick Van Dyke Show ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' is an American television sitcom created by Carl Reiner that initially aired on CBS from October 3, 1961 to June 1, 1966, with a total of 158 half-hour episodes spanning five seasons. It was produced by Calvada Product ...

'', but when that series was saved from cancellation, plans for ''Howie'' were shelved.Film Threat: "The Bootleg Files: The Paul Lynde Show"
/ref>

William Asher William Milton Asher (August 8, 1921 – July 16, 2012) was an American television and film producer, film director, and screenwriter. He was one of the most prolific early television directors, producing or directing over two dozen series. Wit ...

later resurrected the ''Howie'' concept for ABC and

Screen Gems Screen Gems is an American brand name used by Sony Pictures' Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group, a subsidiary of Japanese multinational conglomerate, Sony Group Corporation. It has served several different purposes for its parent ...

as a replacement for ''

Bewitched ''Bewitched'' is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typic ...

''. Asher and then-wife

Elizabeth Montgomery Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery (April 15, 1932 – May 18, 1995) was an American actress whose career spanned five decades in film, stage, and television. She is best remembered for her leading role as the witch Samantha Stephens on the televisi ...

were contractually obligated for two more seasons of ''Bewitched'' for ABC. Montgomery was not interested in continuing the series (she and Asher were also on the verge of divorcing), and Lynde was also under contract to ABC. ''The Paul Lynde Show'' (along with the first incarnation of ''

Temperatures Rising ''Temperatures Rising'' is an American television sitcom that aired on the ABC network from September 12, 1972 to August 29, 1974. During its 46-episode run, it was presented in three different formats and cast line-ups. The series was develo ...

'') was created to fulfill the contracts. Lynde had appeared numerous times on ''Bewitched'' as "Uncle Arthur". Asher designed ''The Paul Lynde Show'' to be ABC's counterpart to CBS's ''

All In The Family ''All in the Family'' is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS for nine seasons, from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. Afterwards, it was continued with the spin-off series '' Archie Bunker's Place'', which picked up where ''All in ...

''; however, the show lacked the controversial and topical issues brought up by ''All In The Family'', due to ABC's continued restriction on social issues at the time. This was despite Lynde's rewrite of the show's dialog in an effort to make the series more lively and comedic. The show was filmed before a live audience, with a

laugh track A laugh track (or laughter track) is a separate soundtrack for a recorded comedy show containing the sound of audience laughter. In some productions, the laughter is a live audience response instead; in the United States, where it is most common ...

added during post-production for "sweetening" purposes. Unusual for such a series, the production included a frequently seen backyard set with a fully functional swimming pool, which Lynde would occasionally fall into. The next season, ABC would cast Lynde as the lead on the re-tooled ''

'' over Asher's objections. That series lasted until 1974. ABC would burn off Lynde's contract by placing him in

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical theatre, musical performances, sketch comedy, magic (illusion), magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is ...

s such as ''

The Paul Lynde Halloween Special ''The Paul Lynde Halloween Special'' is a Halloween-themed television special starring Paul Lynde broadcast October 29, 1976 on ABC. It featured guest stars Margaret Hamilton in a reprisal of her role as the Wicked Witch of the West from '' Th ...

'', '' 'Twas the Night Before Christmas'' and '' Donny & Marie''.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Paul Lynde Show 1972 American television series debuts 1973 American television series endings 1970s American sitcoms American Broadcasting Company original programming English-language television shows Television series about families Television series based on plays Television series by Screen Gems Television shows set in California