''To Rome with Love'' is an American

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 ...

that aired on CBS from September 28, 1969, to February 24, 1971.

Synopsis

''To Rome with Love'' is the story of widowed college professor Michael Endicott, who decided to leave his native

Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

following the death of his wife and accept a new position as an instructor at the

American Overseas School of Rome The American Overseas School of Rome (AOSR) is a private international school in Rome, Italy, accredited by the United States-based Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. It has three divisions: Elementary School, Middle School and Hi ...

. The

culture shock Culture shock is an experience a person may have when one moves to a cultural environment which is different from one's own; it is also the personal disorientation a person may feel when experiencing an unfamiliar way of life due to immigration ...

of his children in reacting to their new environment, and to an extent, his own, provided the main humor in the series. Family situations provided most of the rest. Early on, much of this came from Endicott's single sister, Harriet, who followed them to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, apparently for the sole purposes of dissuading them from living there and to cajole them into returning to Iowa. Harriet soon departed, but her place was taken shortly afterward by Andy Pruitt, Endicott's father-in-law and the children's grandfather. He came to Rome for a brief visit, but wound up staying indefinitely.

Broadcast history

Episode list

Season 1: 1969–70

Season 2: 1970–71

Reception

Originally airing on Sunday nights, the show went up against ABC's '' Land of the Giants'' and NBC's ''

The Wonderful World of Disney The Walt Disney Company has produced an anthology television series since 1954 under several titles and formats. The program's current title, ''The Wonderful World of Disney'', was used from 1969 to 1979 and again from 1991 to the present. The pr ...

'' and never garnered the ratings CBS had hoped for. Also,

Kay Medford Margaret Kathleen Regan (September 14, 1919 – April 10, 1980), better known as Kay Medford, was an American actress. For her performance as Rose Brice in the musical '' Funny Girl'' and the film adaptation of the same name, she was nominated ...

as Aunt Harriet did not catch on with viewers and, as a result, was phased out of the series shortly after its premiere. Nevertheless, the network agreed to renew the show for a second season. ''To Rome With Love'' was switched to Tuesdays at 9:30 in September, 1970. In order to give Forsythe a strong co-star,

Walter Brennan Walter Andrew Brennan (July 25, 1894 – September 21, 1974) was an American actor and singer. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performances in '' Come and Get It'' (1936), ''Kentucky'' (1938), and '' The Westerner ...

joined the cast as Michael Endicott's father-in-law, Andy Pruitt. However, the second season did even worse than the first. In January, 1971, in an attempt to salvage the series, CBS shifted the show to Wednesdays to make room for a new CBS sitcom: ''

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 ...

''. The move did not help, and the series was canceled in the spring of 1971.

Crossover episodes

"Roman Affair" (Season 2, Episode 4) features Anissa Jones and Johnnie Whitaker as their ''

Family Affair ''Family Affair'' is an American sitcom starring Brian Keith and Sebastian Cabot that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966, to March 4, 1971. The series explored the trials of well-to-do engineer and bachelor Bill Davis (Keith) as he attemp ...

'' characters Buffy and Jody, respectively. "Rome Is Where You Find It" (Season 2, Episode 6) features

William Demarest Carl William Demarest (February 27, 1892 – December 27, 1983) was an American character actor, known especially for his roles in screwball comedies by Preston Sturges and for playing Uncle Charley in the sitcom '' My Three Sons'' Demarest, ...

, Don Grady and

Tina Cole Christina Yvonne Cole (born August 4, 1943) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Katie Miller Douglas on the sitcom ''My Three Sons'' (1967–1972). Family Cole is the daughter of Yvonne King and Buddy Cole. ...

as Uncle Charley, Robbie Douglas and Katie Douglas respectively from ''

My Three Sons ''My Three Sons'' is an American television sitcom that aired from September 29, 1960, to April 13, 1972. The series was broadcast on ABC during its first five seasons, before moving to CBS for the remaining seasons. ''My Three Sons'' chroni ...

''.

Cast

* John Forsythe as Michael Endicott *

as Harriet Endicott (first season only) *

as Andy Pruitt (second season only) *Peggy Mondo as Mama Vitale *

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 ...

as Nico * Joyce Menges as Alison Endicott * Susan Neher as Penny Endicott * Melanie Fullerton as Mary Jane "Pokey" Endicott

References

*Brooks, Tim and Marsh, Earle, '' The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows''

External links

* {{IMDb title, id=0063958, title=To Rome With Love
''To Rome With Love'' opening credits on YouTube
1969 American television series debuts 1971 American television series endings 1960s American sitcoms 1970s American sitcoms CBS original programming English-language television shows Television series by Sony Pictures Television Television shows set in Rome