Nanny and the Professor

Last updated
Nanny and the Professor
Nanny and the Professor.jpg
Genre Sitcom
Created by AJ Carothers
Thomas L. Miller
Starring Juliet Mills
Richard Long
David Doremus
Trent Lehman
Kim Richards
Theme music composerGeorge Greeley
Opening theme"Nanny", written and sung by The Addrisi Brothers
ComposersCharles Fox
Arthur Morton
Sidney Fine
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes54 (list of episodes)
Production
Producer Charles B. Fitzsimons
Camera setup Single-camera
Running time30 min.
Production company 20th Century-Fox Television
Original release
Network ABC
ReleaseJanuary 21, 1970 (1970-01-21) 
December 27, 1971 (1971-12-27)

Nanny and the Professor is an early 1970s American sitcom created by AJ Carothers and Thomas L. Miller for 20th Century-Fox Television that aired on ABC from January 21, 1970 until December 27, 1971. During pre-production, the proposed title was Nanny Will Do. [1]

Contents

Premise

(clockwise from top) Richard Long, David Doremus, Trent Lehman, Kim Richards and Juliet Mills Nanny and the Professor cast 1970 No 1.jpg
(clockwise from top) Richard Long, David Doremus, Trent Lehman, Kim Richards and Juliet Mills

Playing upon the popularity of Mary Poppins and other magical nannies of literature, this TV series posited another ostensibly magical British nanny taking care of a family in need of guidance. Unlike the candid "magicality" of its forebears, this Nanny's paranormal nature was less overt and only implied. The Nanny's young wards, and the audience, were left intentionally uncertain of the nature of Nanny's "powers", if any.

The series starred Juliet Mills as Nanny Phoebe Figalilly, Richard Long as Professor Harold Everett, and in season 3 Elsa Lanchester in the recurring role of Aunt Henrietta. Figalilly is the housekeeper for Professor Everett and nanny to his three children: Hal, the intellectual tinkerer, played by David Doremus; Butch, the middle child, played by Trent Lehman; and Prudence, the youngest, played by Kim Richards. [2]

Nanny is apparently psychic, and has regular flashes of what is often more than intuition (accented by a musical tinkling sound effect); she frequently knows who is at the door before the doorbell even rings. There is the vague suggestion that she may be at least several hundred years old and more than human, which the children think they have discovered in an episode after they see a photo of Phoebe that looked like it was taken a century earlier. On outings, Nanny wears a navy blue Inverness cape and cap that resembled a deerstalker; the program's opening titles showed animations of both. Midway through the first season, Nanny and the kids restore a broken down 1930 Model A Ford, which Nanny names "Arabella". For some reason, the car's radio can only pick up radio broadcasts from 1930.

The location of the series remained unclear; in season 1 pilot episode and the season 2 episode "The Art of Relationships", it is mentioned that Everett is a professor at Collier University, but at the time there was no known college bearing that name.

Following the show's cancellation, two animated adaptations of the series ( Nanny and the Professor and Nanny and the Professor and the Phantom of the Circus) aired as part of The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie . Members of the original cast provided voices for their respective characters.

Main cast

Episodes

Season 1 (1970)

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
11"Nanny Will Do" Peter Tewksbury A.J. Carothers January 21, 1970 (1970-01-21)
22"The Wiblet Will Get You If You Don't Watch Out" Russ Mayberry A.J. CarothersJanuary 28, 1970 (1970-01-28)
33"The New Butch" David Alexander George Tibbles February 4, 1970 (1970-02-04)
44"The Scientific Approach" Norman Abbott John McGreevey February 11, 1970 (1970-02-11)
55"The Astronomers"Norman AbbottJoseph BonaduceFebruary 18, 1970 (1970-02-18)
66"Spring, Sweet Spring"Russ MayberryA.J. CarothersFebruary 25, 1970 (1970-02-25)
77"Nanny on Wheels" Gary Nelson Austin Kalish & Irma KalishMarch 4, 1970 (1970-03-04)
88"Strictly for the Birds"Gary NelsonJohn McGreeveyMarch 11, 1970 (1970-03-11)
99"The Tyrannosaurus Tibia" Richard Kinon Earl Hamner March 18, 1970 (1970-03-18)
1010"I Think That I Shall Never See a Tree" Jay Sandrich Joanna Lee March 25, 1970 (1970-03-25)
1111"The Games Families Play"Richard Kinon Rick Mittleman April 1, 1970 (1970-04-01)
1212"An Element of Risk"Gary NelsonJohn McGreeveyApril 8, 1970 (1970-04-08)
1313"The Philosopher's Stone"Jerry BernsteinJoanna LeeApril 15, 1970 (1970-04-15)
1414"A Fowl Episode"Richard KinonEarl HamnerApril 22, 1970 (1970-04-22)
1515"Nanny and the Smoke-Filled Room" William Wiard Lila Garrett and Bernie Kahn April 29, 1970 (1970-04-29)

Season 2 (1970–71)

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
161"The Human Element" Jack Arnold Arthur Alsberg & Don Nelson September 25, 1970 (1970-09-25)
172"The Haunted House"Gary NelsonEarl HamnerOctober 2, 1970 (1970-10-02)
183"Star Bright"David Alexander Joseph Hoffman October 9, 1970 (1970-10-09)
194"E.S. Putt" Ralph Senensky Robert Fisher & Arthur Marx October 16, 1970 (1970-10-16)
205"Back to Nature"Ralph SenenskyJohn McGreeveyOctober 23, 1970 (1970-10-23)
216"A Letter for Nanny"Jay SandrichGene ThompsonOctober 30, 1970 (1970-10-30)
227"The Great Broadcast of 1936"Jay SandrichArthur Alsberg & Don NelsonNovember 6, 1970 (1970-11-06)
238"The Masculine-Feminine Mystique"Gary NelsonJoanna LeeNovember 13, 1970 (1970-11-13)
249"The India Queen"Ralph Senensky Paul West November 20, 1970 (1970-11-20)
2510"The Visitor"Gary NelsonEarl HamnerDecember 4, 1970 (1970-12-04)
2611"My Son, the Sitter" Bruce Bilson Arthur Alsberg & Don NelsonDecember 11, 1970 (1970-12-11)
2712"From Butch, with Love"Ralph Senensky Robert Mosher December 18, 1970 (1970-12-18)
2813"The Humanization of Herbert T. Peabody"Ralph SenenskyJoanna LeeDecember 25, 1970 (1970-12-25)
2914"A Diller, a Dollar"Gary Nelson Jean Holloway January 8, 1971 (1971-01-08)
3015"Separate Rooms"Gary NelsonArthur Alsberg & Don NelsonJanuary 15, 1971 (1971-01-15)
3116"The Human Fly"Richard KinonA.J. CarothersJanuary 22, 1971 (1971-01-22)
3217"The Man Who Came to Pasta"Jack ArnoldJoanna LeeJanuary 29, 1971 (1971-01-29)
3318"The Art of Relationships"Bruce BilsonA.J. CarothersFebruary 5, 1971 (1971-02-05)
3419"The Balloon Ladies"Richard KinonA.J. CarothersFebruary 12, 1971 (1971-02-12)
3520"The Prodigy"Bruce BilsonGene ThompsonFebruary 19, 1971 (1971-02-19)
3621"How Many Candles?"David Alexander Juliet Mills February 26, 1971 (1971-02-26)
3722"The Unknown Factor"Gary NelsonJohn McGreeveyMarch 5, 1971 (1971-03-05)
3823"Kid Stuff"Gary NelsonJohn McGreeveyMarch 12, 1971 (1971-03-12)
3924"The Communication Gap"Russ Mayberry Michael Morris March 26, 1971 (1971-03-26)

Season 3 (1971)

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
401"Oh, What a Tangled Web" Bruce Bilson Joanna LeeSeptember 13, 1971 (1971-09-13)
412"The Flower Children"Richard L. BareRobert MosherSeptember 20, 1971 (1971-09-20)
423"Sunday's Hero"Bruce BilsonArthur Alsberg & Don NelsonSeptember 27, 1971 (1971-09-27)
434"South Sea Island Sweetheart" Richard Kinon A.J. Carothers October 4, 1971 (1971-10-04)
445"Aunt Henrietta's Premonition"Richard L. BareA.J. CarothersOctober 11, 1971 (1971-10-11)
456"Cholmondeley Featherstonehaugh"Richard KinonJean HollowayOctober 18, 1971 (1971-10-18)
467"Aunt Henrietta and the Jinx"Norman AbbottGene ThompsonOctober 25, 1971 (1971-10-25)
478"Nanny and Her Witch's Brew"Richard KinonAlbert E. LewinNovember 1, 1971 (1971-11-01)
489"The Conversion of Brother Ben"Hollingsworth MorseArthur Alsberg & Don NelsonNovember 8, 1971 (1971-11-08)
4910"Aunt Henrietta and the Poltergeist"Richard KinonA.J. CarothersNovember 15, 1971 (1971-11-15)
5011"Professor Pygmalion Plays Golf"Ralph SenenskyJohn McGreeveyNovember 22, 1971 (1971-11-22)
5112"The Great Debate"Hollingsworth MorseMichael MorrisNovember 29, 1971 (1971-11-29)
5213"One for the Road"Bruce BilsonArthur Alsberg & Don NelsonDecember 6, 1971 (1971-12-06)
5314"Good-bye, Arabella, Hello"Bruce BilsonArthur Alsberg & Don NelsonDecember 13, 1971 (1971-12-13)
5415"Whatever Happened to Felicity?"Bruce BilsonAustin & Irma KalishDecember 27, 1971 (1971-12-27)

Nanny's relatives

From time to time, some of Nanny's eccentric relatives (and some Nanny claimed as relatives because they were everybody's uncle) dropped by the Everett home for a visit. They include:

Ratings and cancellation

The series first aired as a mid-season replacement on January 21, 1970, on ABC, and was last telecast on December 27, 1971. The series enjoyed initial success due to its Friday night timeslot when it was scheduled between The Brady Bunch and The Partridge Family , which were shows aimed at similar demographics (largely young children and pre-teens). Ratings suffered in the third season when ABC moved the series to Monday night opposite Gunsmoke and Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In . After the show was canceled, it had a brief run in syndication. It was also one of the first shows rerun on FX Network in 1994. The show was added to getTV's lineup in May 2016 for a short time. The show also aired on Nick@Nite.

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References

  1. Weiner, Ed; Editors of TV Guide (1992). The TV Guide TV Book: 40 Years of the All-Time Greatest Television Facts, Fads, Hits, and History . New York: Harper Collins. p.  174. ISBN   0-06-096914-8.{{cite book}}: |author2= has generic name (help)
  2. McNeil, Alex (1984). Total Television: A Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present. Viking Penguin. p. 461. ISBN   9780140073775.