The Ann Sothern Show

Edit links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by HopalongCasualty (talk | contribs) at 02:35, 10 August 2017 (→‎Cast: in-universe). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

The Ann Sothern Show
Ann Tyrrell and guest star Joe E. Brown, 1960
GenreSitcom
Written byTom Adair
James B. Allardice
Phil Davis
John Kohn
Terry Ryan
Bob Schiller
Robert Van Scoyck
Marvin Worth
Directed byJames V. Kern
Richard Whorf
StarringAnn Sothern
Don Porter
Ann Tyrrell
Jesse White
Jack Mullaney
Ernest Truex
Reta Shaw
Ken Berry
Theme music composerBonnie Lake
Ann Sothern
Opening theme"Katy"
ComposerTom Adair
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes92
Production
ProducerArthur Hoffe
CinematographyRobert Pittack
Running time24 mins.
Production companiesAnso Productions
Desilu Productions
Original release
NetworkCBS
ReleaseOctober 6, 1958 (1958-10-06) –
September 25, 1961 (1961-09-25)

The Ann Sothern Show is an American sitcom starring Ann Sothern that aired on CBS for 93 episodes. The series began on October 6, 1958, and ended on September 25, 1961.

The Ann Sothern Show was Sothern's second sitcom for CBS. Her first series, Private Secretary, ended in 1957 after a contract dispute occurred between Sothern and Secretary's producer Jack Chertok. Several of Private Secretary's cast members appeared in the show.

Synopsis

Katy O'Connor (Sothern) is the assistant manager of the Bartley House, a swank New York City hotel. Katy's boss, Jason Macauley (Ernest Truex), is a timid, elderly man who was constantly bullied by his overbearing and domineering wife, Flora (Reta Shaw). Katy's secretary, roommate, and often scatterbrained best friend Olive was played by Ann Tyrrell, who had also appeared in Sothern's first series, Private Secretary, in a similar role. Other characters include Johnny Wallace (Jack Mullaney), a bellboy who is working his way through college and has an unrequited crush on Katy. Jacques Scott appeared as Paul Monteney, a suave, French room clerk.

In an effort to improve ratings, the series was retooled midway through the first season. In the twenty fourth episode, "Katy's New Boss", Mr. Macauley is transferred to the Bartley House in Calcutta, along with wife Flora. Don Porter, who had also appeared in Private Secretary as Sothern's character's boss, portrayed James Arlington Devery, Mr. Macauley's replacement. Mr. Devery was a younger, somewhat stubborn manager who tended to get carried away with some new, far-fetched idea. After Porter joined the cast, ratings improved and the series was renewed for a second season.[1] In 1959, the series won a Golden Globe Award for Best TV Show.

During the second season, the series cast was changed again. The characters of Johnny Wallace and Paul Monteney were written out. Three new characters were added; Jesse White, another Private Secretary alum, appeared as Oscar Pudney, a scheming, dishonest newsstand owner who is Katy and Mr. Devery's frequent nemesis. Child actor Jimmy Fields joined the cast as Richy Gordon, a musical child prodigy with a widowed mother and three sisters that he helps to support by delivering newspapers. After Katy discovers his talent for playing piano, she becomes his mentor and allows him to practice at the Bartley House. Towards the end of the second season, Ken Berry joined the cast as Woody, a young bellboy. On the third season premiere episode "A Tooth for a Tooth", Louis Nye is introduced as Dr. Delbert Gray, a humorous dentist who becomes Olive's boyfriend and eventually, her husband.

Storylines typically revolve around the personal lives of the staff and guests of the Bartley House. The series was somewhat advanced for its time regarding women in the workplace and the issues they faced. Not only did the single Katy hold a position of authority in the hotel, which made her the supervisor of a host of male employees.

Throughout the three-year run, a storyline of potential romance between Katy and Mr. Devery lingered. In the series finale, Mr. Devery realizes that he is in love with Katy and proposes to her. That episode's ending was a cliffhanger as Katy kisses Mr. Devery but does not answer his proposal.

Cast

Guest stars

In 1957, after her first television series ended its prime-time run, Ann Sothern guest-starred on the first episode of Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show, "Lucy Takes a Cruise To Havana". Sothern appeared as her character from Private Secretary, Susie MacNamara. In the episode, it is explained that Susie met and became friendly with Lucille Ball's character Lucy MacGillicudy Ricardo, when the two worked as stenographers in New York City. The two later go on a cruise to Cuba together where Lucy meets Ricky Ricardo (Desi Arnaz) and Susie meets Carlos Garcia (Cesar Romero). The episode is one of the earliest examples of a television character "crossing over" from one series to another. Lucille Ball, one of Sothern's close friends and part owner of Desilu Studios (where The Ann Sothern Show was produced), reciprocated two years later, when she guest starred on a 1959 Ann Sothern episode entitled "The Lucy Story". This time, Ball's character (Lucy Ricardo) is an old friend of Katy O'Connor (Sothern), who checks into the Bartley House Hotel after having an argument with Ricky.[2]

Other notable guest stars include:

Attempted spin-offs

During The Ann Sothern Show's third season, two episodes aired which were intended to be spin-offs. The series were to be produced by Sothern's company Anso Productions. The first episode, "Always April", aired on February 23, 1961, and featured Constance Bennett. In the episode, Bennett starred as Guinevere Fleming, a former actress who had retired along with her actor husband David Fleming (John Emery) to Vermont. Much to their chagrin, their daughter April (Susan Silo) longs to be an actress and runs away from boarding school to the Bartley Hotel. April meets Katy O'Connor who convinces her to tell her parents of her plans.[3]

The second proposed spin-off episode was "Pandora", which aired on March 3, 1961. The episode featured Pat Carroll as Pandora, a young, slightly eccentric country girl who traveled to Los Angeles on the advice of her mother. Katy O'Connor hires her as a secretary for handsome Hollywood actor Anthony Bardot (Guy Mitchell).[4] Neither series were picked up by a network.

Production notes

The series was produced by Sothern's Anso Productions and Desilu Productions and shot at Desilu Studios. Ann Sothern and her sister, Bonnie Lake, wrote the series' theme song "Katy".[5]

Unlike most Desilu produced shows, The Ann Sothern Show was not filmed before a live studio audience as Sothern reportedly did not like to play comedy in front of an audience. A laugh track was used throughout the show's run. For a time, some episodes featured a disclaimer during the end credits reading "Audience Reaction Technically Produced".[3]

Sponsors

During its run, The Ann Sothern Show was sponsored by General Foods (Tang, Maxwell House coffee),[6] Johnson Wax (Glo-Coat and Pledge), and Post Cereals. Sothern and her cast mates would often appear in commercials for the sponsors' products at the end of the episode. Sothern would then sign off with, "Well, goodnight everybody. Stay happy!".[3]

Ratings and cancellation

During its first two seasons, The Ann Sothern Show aired on Monday nights at 9:30 P.M. on CBS immediately following The Danny Thomas Show (Make Room For Daddy).[7] The series' first two seasons received decent ratings, however, at the start of the 1960-1961 season, the series moved to Thursday nights at 9:30 P.M opposite the ABC hit show The Untouchables. The ratings plummeted and CBS canceled the show in the spring of 1961.[8]

Syndication

The series was previously distributed by Desilu Productions, United Artists Television, and Paramount Television. Ann Sothern and Paramount Television sold the series to Metromedia Producers Corporation (which is now owned by News Corporation) in 1980.[9]

Cable channel Nick at Nite aired The Ann Sothern Show from 1987 to 1990. To date, no plans for a DVD release have been announced. 20th Century Fox owns the rights to the program at present.

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Result Recipient
1959 Emmy Award Best Actress in a Leading Role (Continuing Character) in a Comedy Series Nominated Ann Sothern
1959 Golden Globe Award Best TV Show Won
–

References

  1. ^ (Tucker 2007, p. 136)
  2. ^ (Spangler 2003, p. 58)
  3. ^ a b c (Tucker 2007, p. 135)
  4. ^ (Tucker 2007, p. 147)
  5. ^ (Schultz 1990, p. 11)
  6. ^ "Scoreboard On TV Fall Plans". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc.: 10 May 26, 1958. ISSN 0006-2510.
  7. ^ "New TV Show Set For Ann Sothern". Star-News. July 28, 1952. p. 11. Retrieved January 7, 2013.
  8. ^ (Schultz 1990, p. 12)
  9. ^ US Copyright Office Document No V1770P297 1980-02-13

Sources

  • Schultz, Margie (1990). Ann Sothern: A Bio-Bibliography. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 0-313-26463-5
  • Spangler, Lynn C. (2003). Television Women from Lucy to Friends: Fifty Years of Sitcoms and Feminism. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 0-313-28781-3
  • Tucker, David C. (2007). The Women Who Made Television Funny: Ten Stars of 1950s Sitcoms. McFarland. ISBN 0-786-42900-3

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Ann_Sothern_Show&oldid=794793350"