The Pruitts of Southampton

Last updated
The Pruitts of Southampton
The Pruitts of Southampton.jpg
Also known asThe Phyllis Diller Show
Genre Situation comedy
Created byDavid Levy
(based on the novel House Party by Patrick Dennis)
Starring Phyllis Diller
Gypsy Rose Lee
Reginald Gardiner
Richard Deacon
Grady Sutton
Pam Freeman
John Astin
Marty Ingels
Paul Lynde
Lisa Loring
Theme music composer Vic Mizzy (two different themes were used during the season)
Composer Vic Mizzy
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes30 [17 Pruitts of Southampton/13 Phyllis Diller Show]
Production
Executive producerDavid Levy
ProducersNat Perrin
Everett Freeman
Running time30 min.
Production companies Filmways TV Productions, in association with PhilDil Productions Limited
Original release
Network ABC
ReleaseSeptember 6, 1966 (1966-09-06) 
April 7, 1967 (1967-04-07)

The Pruitts of Southampton is an American situation comedy that aired during the 1966-67 season on the ABC network. The show was based on the novel House Party (1954) by Patrick Dennis. It was ABC's attempt to turn female stand-up comic Phyllis Diller into a sitcom comedienne very much in the style of Lucille Ball. Child actress Lisa Loring formerly of TV's The Addams Family also had a small role on the show as Phyllis's daughter Suzy Pruitt.

Contents

The program starred Diller as Phyllis Pruitt, and featured Gypsy Rose Lee and Richard Deacon in supporting roles with Diller feeling the series was an inverted version of The Beverly Hillbillies . [1] The show's producers originally sought comic actress Beatrice Lillie in the Diller role. [2] Exteriors of the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina were used as the locale.

In 2002, TV Guide ranked it number 20 on its TV Guide's 50 Worst TV Shows of All Time list. [3]

Premise

The Pruitts, a supposedly incredibly wealthy family living on Long Island in the Hamptons, have been approached by the Internal Revenue Service about overdue taxes. An audit revealed that the Pruitts were in fact broke. Rather than reveal this fact publicly and cause the economic depression which would presumably result, an improbably charitable IRS allowed them to continue living in their mansion and maintaining the pretensions of great wealth, which was difficult given their reduced circumstances. By mid-season, in order to raise more money, Phyllis Pruitt had opened the mansion to boarders, attracting a "nutty" collection of tenants as well, a group that included Paul Lynde as her hopeless brother, John Astin as her brother-in-law, and Marty Ingels as a handyman.

In the premiere episode, Phyllis Pruitt unsuccessfully tries to roast a turkey in a front-loading washing machine. [4]

Development and history

The show was created by executive producer David Levy, who also served in the same capacity on the ABC television series The Addams Family from 1964 to 1966. When ABC canceled that show in the spring of 1966, a few Addams Family alumni were recruited for the Diller series. Vic Mizzy, who composed the finger-snapping theme song to The Addams Family, composed the musical theme for Diller's show as well.

According to Television magazine, The Pruitts of Southampton finished 77th among the 91 shows rated during the 1966–1967 season. It began the season airing on Tuesdays, opposite The Red Skelton Hour on CBS, which finished second in the ratings.

On January 13, 1967, with the episode "Little Miss Fixit", the program changed its title to The Phyllis Diller Show. John Astin, who played Gomez Addams on The Addams Family, joined the cast the same month, and the show began airing on Fridays. In addition, the series marked a reunion for Astin and Marty Ingels who had starred in the 1962-1963 ABC-TV sitcom, I'm Dickens, He's Fenster .

In the fall of 1968, NBC signed Diller to a weekly variety series hoping that the comedian would have the same kind of success that Carol Burnett had achieved for the rival network CBS. The program, entitled The Beautiful Phyllis Diller Show, did poorly in ratings and was canceled after three months.

Episode list

TitleDirected by:Written by:Original air date
1"Phyllis Goes Broke" Gene Nelson T: Stanley Roberts;
S/T: Lawrence J. Cohen,
Fred Freeman
September 6, 1966 (1966-09-06)
Series pilot.
2"Phyllis, the Milkmaid" Oscar Rudolph T: Leo Rifkin;
S/T: Sidney A. Mandel,
Roy Kammerman
September 13, 1966 (1966-09-13)
3"Phyllis Beats the Rap" Nat Perrin Lou Derman,
Elon Packard
September 20, 1966 (1966-09-20)
4"Phyllis, Take a Letter"UnknownUnknownSeptember 27, 1966 (1966-09-27)
5"Phyllis, the Cookie Tycoon"UnknownUnknownOctober 4, 1966 (1966-10-04)
6"Phyllis Fires the Butler"UnknownUnknownOctober 11, 1966 (1966-10-11)
7"Phyllis Saves the Day"UnknownUnknownOctober 18, 1966 (1966-10-18)
8"Phyllis Goes Commercial"UnknownUnknownOctober 25, 1966 (1966-10-25)
9"Phyllis Entertains Royalty"UnknownUnknownNovember 1, 1966 (1966-11-01)
10"Phyllis, the Upstairs Girl"UnknownUnknownNovember 15, 1966 (1966-11-15)
11"Phyllis, the General Stealer"UnknownUnknownNovember 22, 1966 (1966-11-22)
12"Phyllis, the Dress Maker"UnknownHoward Harris,
Sydney Zelinka
November 29, 1966 (1966-11-29)
13"Phyllis Goes Arty"UnknownUnknownDecember 6, 1966 (1966-12-06)
14"Santa Was a Lady"UnknownLou Derman,
Elon Packard
December 13, 1966 (1966-12-13)
15"The Hubcap Caper" Nat Perrin Lou Derman,
Elon Packard
December 20, 1966 (1966-12-20)
16"Phyllis, Queen of the Road" Hollingsworth Morse Lou Derman,
Elon Packard
December 27, 1966 (1966-12-27)
17"My Brother Harvey"UnknownUnknownJanuary 3, 1967 (1967-01-03)
18"Little Miss Fixit" Arthur Lubin UnknownJanuary 13, 1967 (1967-01-13)
First episode as The Phyllis Diller Show
19"Learn to Be a Millionaire"Nat PerrinLou Derman,
Elon Packard
January 20, 1967 (1967-01-20)
20"The Ghost of Pruitt Mansion"UnknownUnknownJanuary 27, 1967 (1967-01-27)
21"Portrait of Krump"UnknownUnknownFebruary 3, 1967 (1967-02-03)
22"How to Rob a Millionaire"Nat PerrinLou Derman,
Elon Packard
February 10, 1967 (1967-02-10)
23"Nobody Here But Us Chickens"UnknownUnknownFebruary 17, 1967 (1967-02-17)
24"Phyllis, the Bat Girl"Arthur LubinLou Derman,
Elon Packard
February 24, 1967 (1967-02-24)
25"Marry a Million"UnknownUnknownMarch 3, 1967 (1967-03-03)
26"Goddess of Love"UnknownUnknownMarch 10, 1967 (1967-03-10)
27"My Sister-in-Law Phyllis" Ralph Levy S: Carol & Joseph Cavella;
T: Nat Perrin
March 17, 1967 (1967-03-17)
28"Krump, the Playboy"UnknownUnknownMarch 24, 1967 (1967-03-24)
29"Phyllis, the Beauty Queen"Arthur LubinUnknownMarch 31, 1967 (1967-03-31)
30"The House Is Not a Zoo"Arthur LubinUnknownApril 7, 1967 (1967-04-07)

Related Research Articles

<i>The Addams Family</i> Fictional family created by Charles Addams

The Addams Family is a fictional family created by American cartoonist Charles Addams. They originally appeared in a series of 150 standalone single-panel comics, about half of which were originally published in The New Yorker between 1938 and their creator's death in 1988. They have since been adapted to other media, such as television, film, video games, comic books, a musical, and merchandise.

<i>The Cosby Show</i> American television sitcom (1984–1992)

The Cosby Show is an American television sitcom co-created by and starring Bill Cosby. The series aired from September 20, 1984, to April 30, 1992, on NBC. It focuses on the Huxtables, an upper middle-class African-American family living in Brooklyn, New York; the series was based on comedy routines in Cosby's stand-up comedy act, which in turn were based on his family life. The series was followed by a spin-off, titled A Different World, broadcast from 1987 to 1993 for 144 episodes in six seasons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laugh track</span> Recorded laughter in broadcast comedy show

A laugh track is an audio recording consisting of laughter usually used as a separate soundtrack for comedy productions. The laugh track may contain live audience reactions or artificial laughter made to be inserted into the show, or a combination of the two. The use of canned laughter to "sweeten" the laugh track was pioneered by American sound engineer Charles "Charley" Douglass.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Astin</span> American actor (born 1930)

John Allen Astin is a retired American actor and director who has appeared in numerous stage, television and film roles, primarily in character roles. He is best known for starring in The Addams Family (1964–1966), as patriarch Gomez Addams, reprising the role in the television film Halloween with the New Addams Family (1977) and the animated series The Addams Family (1992–1993).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phyllis Diller</span> American stand-up comedian, actress, author, musician and artist

Phyllis Ada Diller was an American stand-up comedian, actress, author, musician, and visual artist, best known for her eccentric stage persona, self-deprecating humor, wild hair and clothes, and exaggerated, cackling laugh.

<i>Bewitched</i> American sitcom (1964–1972)

Bewitched is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typical suburban housewife. The show was popular, finishing as the second-rated show in America during its debut season, staying in the top ten for its first three seasons, and ranking in eleventh place for both seasons four and five. The show continues to be seen throughout the world in syndication and on recorded media.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Deacon (actor)</span> American actor (1922–1984)

Richard Lewis Deacon was an American television and motion picture actor, best known for playing supporting roles in television shows such as The Dick Van Dyke Show, Leave It to Beaver, and The Jack Benny Program, along with minor roles in films such as Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) and Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds (1963).

The following is the 1966–67 network television schedule for the three major English language commercial broadcast networks in the United States. The schedule covers primetime hours from September 1966 through August 1967. The schedule is followed by a list per network of returning series, new series, and series cancelled after the 1965–66 season.

The "Friday night death slot" or "Friday evening death slot" is a perceived graveyard slot in American television. It implies a television program in the United States scheduled on Friday evenings is likely to be canceled.

<i>Love, American Style</i> American television series 1969-1974

Love, American Style is an anthology comedy television series that aired on ABC from 1969 to 1974. The series was produced by Paramount Television. During the 1971–72 and 1972–73 seasons, it was a part of ABC's Friday primetime lineup that included The Brady Bunch, The Partridge Family, Room 222, and The Odd Couple. It featured some of the earliest work of future stars Diane Keaton, Sally Struthers, Albert Brooks, and Harrison Ford. Room 222 star Karen Valentine appeared in four episodes. Brady Bunch star Ann B. Davis and The Partridge Family star Dave Madden each appeared in two episodes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marty Ingels</span> American actor (1936–2015)

Martin Ingerman, known professionally as Marty Ingels, was an American actor, comedian, comedy sketch writer, and theatrical agent, who is best known as the co-star of the 1960s television series I'm Dickens, He's Fenster.

<i>The New Scooby-Doo Movies</i> American animated television series (1972–74)

The New Scooby-Doo Movies is an American animated mystery comedy television series produced by Hanna-Barbera for CBS. It is the second television series in Scooby-Doo franchise, and follows the first incarnation, Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! It premiered on September 9, 1972, and ended on October 27, 1973, running for two seasons on CBS as the only hour-long Scooby-Doo series. Twenty-four episodes were produced, 16 for the 1972–73 season and eight more for the 1973–74 season.

Miriam Flynn is an American voice and character actress. She is best known as Cousin Catherine in the National Lampoon's Vacation and Grandma Longneck in The Land Before Time franchises. She has acted in other films and in several television series, the latter including a recurring role as Sister Helen on the Fox/WB sitcom Grounded for Life.

<i>The Addams Family</i> (1964 TV series) American sitcom

The Addams Family is an American macabre/black comedy sitcom based on Charles Addams's New Yorker cartoons. The 30-minute television series was responsible for taking the unnamed characters in the single-panel gag cartoons and giving them names, back stories, and a household setting. It was spearheaded by David Levy, who created and developed the series with Donald Saltzman in cooperation with cartoonist Addams, who gave each character a name and description for the first time. The series was shot in black-and-white, airing for two seasons on ABC from September 18, 1964, to April 8, 1966, for a total of 64 episodes. The show's opening theme was composed and sung by Vic Mizzy.

<i>The Addams Family</i> (1973 TV series) American TV series or program

The Addams Family is an American animated sitcom adaptation of the Charles Addams single-panel comic for The New Yorker. The show was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for Saturday mornings in 1973, and was later rebroadcast the following season. Jackie Coogan and Ted Cassidy, who played Uncle Fester and Lurch, respectively, in the 1960s television series, returned in voice-over roles. The cast also included 10-year-old Jodie Foster, who performed the voice of Pugsley Addams. The show's theme music was completely different and had no lyrics or finger snapping, but retained a recognizable part of the four-note score from the live-action series.

<i>Im Dickens, Hes Fenster</i> American TV sitcom

I'm Dickens, He's Fenster is an American sitcom starring John Astin and Marty Ingels that ran on ABC from September 28, 1962, to September 13, 1963.

<i>The Hogan Family</i> American television series

The Hogan Family is an American sitcom television series that began airing on NBC on March 1, 1986, and finished its run on CBS on July 20, 1991, for a total of six seasons. It was produced in association with Lorimar Productions (1986), Lorimar-Telepictures (1986–1988), and Lorimar Television (1988–1991).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catchy Comedy</span> American digital multicast TV network

Catchy Comedy is an American digital broadcast television network owned by Weigel Broadcasting. The network, which is mainly carried on the digital subchannels of television stations, primarily airs classic television sitcoms from the 1950s through the early 1990s. Established in 2015, the network was previously called Decades.

Family Affair is a television comedy that aired on The WB from September 12, 2002 to March 13, 2003. It was a remake of the original 1966 television series. This version was from Sid and Marty Krofft, and was produced by Sid & Marty Krofft Pictures, Pariah Films, and Turner Television. The WB canceled the series after airing thirteen of the fifteen episodes produced.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sitcoms in the United States</span> Broadcast genre; recurring cast comedy

Situation comedies, or sitcoms, have long been a popular genre of comedy in the US, initially on radio in the 1920s, and then on television beginning in the 1940s. A sitcom is defined as a television series featuring a recurring cast of characters in various successive comedic situations.

References

Notes

  1. Diller, Phyllis; Buskin, Richard (2005). Like a Lampshade in a Whorehouse: My Life in Comedy. New York: The Penguin Group. pp.  190–193. ISBN   1-58542-396-3.
  2. The Curtain Will Rise Soon for 34 New Television Programs, published August 28, 1966, in the Reading Eagle , page 27; via Google News Archive
  3. TV Guide Guide to TV . Barnes and Noble. 2004. pp.  228. ISBN   0-7607-5634-1.
  4. 100 Favorite Moments in Television at scrubbles.net

See also