Mrs. G. Goes to College

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 64.183.42.58 (talk) at 01:36, 11 July 2017 (indentation for Karyn Kupcinet's name on the cast list, farther down in the text clarify that her role was very small -- very little dialogue). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Mrs. G. Goes to College
Hardwicke and Berg, 1961.
GenreSitcom
Written byGertrude Berg
Cherney Berg
Arthur Stander
James B. Allardice
StarringGertrude Berg
Cedric Hardwicke
Mary Wickes
Marion Ross
Aneta Corsaut
Karyn Kupcinet
Skip Ward
Theme music composerHerschel Burke Gilbert
ComposersLionel Newman
Alfred Perry
Rudy Schrager
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes26
Production
ProducerHy Averback
EditorChandler House
Running time24–25 minutes
Production companyFour Star-Jahfa
Original release
NetworkCBS
ReleaseOctober 4, 1961 (1961-10-04) –
April 5, 1962 (1962-04-05)

Mrs. G. Goes To College (retitled The Gertrude Berg Show starting with episode 14) is a 26-episode American sitcom which aired on CBS from October 4, 1961 to April 5, 1962. The series starred Emmy Award-winning actress Gertrude Berg.

Synopsis

Having previously starred in the long-running radio and television series The Goldbergs, Gertrude Berg returned to episodic television as Sarah Green, a 62-year-old widow who enters college. The character of Sarah Green (very similar to "Molly Goldberg") had been previously introduced to viewers as "Aunt Sarah" on Jackie Cooper's Hennesey sitcom on CBS earlier in 1961. English actor Cedric Hardwicke played Professor Crayton, and popular character actress Mary Wickes portrayed landlady Winona Maxfield. Skip Ward was cast as fellow student Joe Caldwell, and Marion Ross appeared in five episodes as Berg's daughter, Susan Green. Aneta Corsaut (the future Helen Crump on The Andy Griffith Show) appeared in 13 episodes as Irma Howell, a professor's wife. Karyn Kupcinet played a young fellow student of Sarah Green. Her role is very small, and she is heard saying very little dialogue.

The plot centers around Sarah Green, a widow in her early sixties, who decides to acquire higher education, matriculates in her hometown college and interacts with, among others, her Cambridge University exchange professor (Cedric Hardwicke) and next-door neighbor George Howell Paul Smith, a character analogous to Smith's Roy Norris from Fibber McGee and Molly, replete with a no-nonsense wife (Aneta Corsaut).

The series aired during the 9:30 Eastern slot on Wednesdays, under the sponsorship of General Foods, following CBS's Checkmate. Mrs. G. Goes to College aired during the second half of ABC's Hawaiian Eye and NBC's Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall.[1] Nielsen ratings were mediocre. After thirteen episodes, a midseason move from Wednesday to Thursday night, along with a title change designed to emphasize Berg's name, The Gertrude Berg Show, did not improve the Nielsen ratings for the remaining thirteen episodes. CBS abruptly cancelled the series in April 1962 without showing any repeats. [2]

Beginning on March 20, 2017, the series is being shown on get TV.

Production notes

Mrs. G. Goes to College was released by Dick Powell's Four Star Television.[3] The series was produced by Hy Averback, the music was by Herschel Burke Gilbert.

Co-star Cedric Hardwicke, in a 1962 TV Guide article that focused on his work in the series, and references him as "Sir Cedric," is quoted as commenting, "If you're going to work in rubbish, you might as well get paid for it."[4]

Episodes

Episode # Episode title Original airdate
1-1 "The First Day" October 4, 1961
1-2 "First Test" Guest star Peter Lorre October 11, 1961
1-3 "Sam's Car" October 18, 1961
1-4 "Lonely Sunday" October 25, 1961
1-5 "Mrs. G. Meets Dr. Hennessey" November 1, 1961
1-6 "The Baby Affair" November 8, 1961
1-7 "Crayton on TV" November 15, 1961
1-8 "Red, Red Rose" November 22, 1961
1-9 "Romance for Maxie" November 29, 1961
1-10 "The Trouble with Crayton" Guest star Peter Lorre December 6, 1961
1-11 "The Teacher" December 13, 1961
1-12 "Mrs. G. Meets the Faculty" December 20, 1961
1-13 "Mrs. G.'s Private Telephone" December 27, 1961
1-14 "Maxie's Silent Partner"(Starting with this episode the series is called The Gertrude Berg Show) January 11, 1962
1-15 "Mrs. G. Versus the Kingston Trio" January 18, 1962
1-16 "Sunday Dinner" January 25, 1962
1-17 "The Mother Affair" guest star Arlene Francis February 1, 1962
1-18 "Peace Corps" guest star Fabian Forte February 8, 1962
1-19 "Goodbye Mr. Howell" guests William Windom, Doris Singleton and Ken Berry February 15, 1962
1-20 "How Now, Brown Cow?" February 22, 1962
1-21 "High Finance" March 1, 1962
1-22 "One of Our Books is Missing" guest Vaughn Taylor (actor) March 8, 1962
1-23 "Curfew Shall Not Ring Tonight" March 15, 1962
1-24 "Gentleman Caller" March 22, 1962
1-25 "Dad's Day" March 29, 1962
1-26 "The Bird" April 5, 1962

Awards and nominations

The show received two Emmy nominations, Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Series (Lead) for Gertrude Berg and Outstanding Performance in a Supporting Role by an Actress for Mary Wickes.

Year Award Result Category Recipient
1962 Emmy Award Nominated Outstanding Performance in a Supporting Role by an Actress Mary Wickes
American Cinema Editors Best Edited Television Program Chandler House
(For episode "A Lonely Sunday")

References

  1. ^ 1961-1962 American network television schedule
  2. ^ Ingram, Billy (2007). Tvparty!: Television's Untold Tales. Bonus Books, Inc. p. 1940. ISBN 1-56625-184-2.
  3. ^ Four Star Productions
  4. ^ McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television. Penguin Books USA Inc. New York
  • Lackmabb, Ron (2003). The Encyclopedia of 20th-Century American Television. Checkmark Books. p. 132. ISBN 0-8160-4555-0.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mrs. G. Goes to College.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mrs._G._Goes_to_College&oldid=790013901"