Welcome to a new Wildcard Wednesday! This week, I’ve got a book-themed version of my Q&A series, where I answer questions submitted by readers. Thanks to everyone who sent in something — if you don’t see your “Q” here, I just may “A” it next time. (And keep ’em coming; any topic on which you want my opinion and/or a little research?)
Gregg Simon needs advice… I am introducing my friend from Kenya to American television. She’s 35 years old, but has never seen any television comedies at all. She laughs until her sides ache at I love Lucy. She stares blankly at the Lucy show. as do I. I think she would love Gracie, what episodes do you recommend as being the best of the whole series?
You sound like a great friend — I love both shows, so let me see if I can help you out. My first piece of advice would be to comb through my Burns And Allen lists to see what my favorites were back in 2020 and then choose which ones you think your friend might personally enjoy the most — you know her best. My second piece of advice would be to pick up my new 2025 book, Great American Sitcoms of the 1950s — where I share many additional (updated, better articulated) thoughts about the series, including a list of my Top 50 Sitcom Episodes from the decade, on which Burns And Allen is very well represented. However, in the meantime, to give you a more specific answer regarding Burns And Allen entries that might appeal most to someone who’s already a fan of I Love Lucy, you’d perhaps be looking for samples with some physical comedy. One of my favorites for that — it’s got a slapstick climax — is Season Eight’s “An English Tea.” In general, I think Burns And Allen goes for bolder, often more visual comedy in its final season, so that would be the collection I’d recommend focusing on first. See more here.
Kevin has a request… I would love you to review the Jack Benny’s Program on Tv. Your reviews of the radio program are always right on the money, so I’d love to know how you would evaluate the TV show episodes. It is of course a very mixed bag when compared to the radio show, but there are quite a few episodes that are pure gold.
Kevin, thanks for the compliment — and I have good news: in my new book, I discuss and track Jack Benny’s TV series — which I call a “modified” sitcom, for it’s like his radio program in offering elements of situation comedy within an otherwise more overarching comedy-variety show structure. For research, I watched everything that circulates of the program and even screened rare, heretofore unreleased live broadcasts at UCLA. In fact, I couldn’t let my “Top 50 Sitcom Episodes of the 1950s” list go out without some Jack Benny representation. That is, he’s such an important comic entity, beautifully exemplifying — in such a formative way for this genre — what it means to be a well-defined character, someone capable of motivating situation comedy, that I simply couldn’t ignore his contributions. So, while I don’t have any plans to look at his TV series on this website in any formal, chronological study — unfortunately, too little of it is readily available for that to make sense — my book is the next best thing!
Scott Best also has a request… are you planning to do a best episodes series on the Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet? I know you don’t like it as much as the Danny Thomas Show, but I would be interested to read your episode picks.
I have no current plans to cover that series in full on this blog, but I tell you honestly — I think you’ll really enjoy my new book. I discuss Ozzie And Harriet a lot in there — and despite some criticism about the character work (for Harriet and the kids in particular), I’m actually warmer to it than you might expect. Not only do I share plenty of picks for the show’s best episodes (from its 1950s seasons), you may also be surprised to see an entry pop up on my Top 50 list…
Track asks… do you have a show that you liked where you did not cover for any particular reason?
There are many sitcoms that I’ve never covered here simply because they’re not available in full and/or not widely available to readers — especially older shows from the 1950s-1970s, which are less easily found (and not always extant). In fact, one of the best things about my book for long-time readers is that I discuss many titles I’ve avoided covering here for the reasons expressed above — the two most notable being Mister Peepers and The Bob Cummings Show.
Lastly, Steven Rosenberg is curious… How do you do it? I’ve been following and enjoying your columns for several years. I’ve marveled at your ability to find obscure videos and audios of hard to find shows. I’ve never seen you refer to Patreon/Substack/etc. subscriptions. Yet you obviously spend a colossal amount of time researching and watching. Is this a hobby? Are you an academic?
Thank you for the kind words. This started as a hobby, but it’s my life’s work now – everything I do professionally relates to my love of sitcoms or the study of the genre that this blog has made formal. As for business, I consult on projects, both in entertainment (I read scripts and have helped with development) and in academia (I have helped with research), and this website is a great advertising tool for my services. I am reluctant to put it behind a paywall because I don’t want to seem as if I am charging people for providing access to material that I don’t own, like the rare shows or scripts that I offer here for subscribers’ private, educational, non-commercial use, in aid of the commentary and research that is my primary focus. However, you can support my efforts financially for the first time – as I’ve plugged throughout this post, you can buy my first book, which was just released by McFarland last month! Get it here.
Have a question for me? Submit it at the “Ask Jackson (Q&A)” link.
Come back next week for another Wildcard! And stay tuned Monday for another musical rarity!