The Good Guys (1968 TV series)

*The Good Guys*
The Good Guys
	From left: Bob Denver, Herb Edelman, Joyce Van Patten
Genre	Sitcom
Created by	Jack Rose
Written by	Arnold Horwitt ; Jack Rose; Mel Tolkin
Directed by	Charles R. Rondeau
Starring	Bob Denver ; Herb Edelman ; Joyce Van Patten ; Jack Perkins
Theme music composer	Ray Evans ; Jerry Fielding ; Jay Livingston
Opening theme	"Two Good Guys"
Composer	Jerry Fielding
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	42
Production
Executive producer	Leonard B. Stern
Producers	Jerry Davis; Jack Rose; Bob Schiller; Bob Weiskopf
Cinematography	William T. Cline; Robert Hoffman
Camera setup	Multi-camera
Running time	24 minutes
Production company	Talent Associates
Original release
Network	CBS
Release	September 25, 1968 –; January 23, 1970

Last updated May 17, 2024

The Good Guys is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from September 25, 1968, to January 23, 1970. Forty-two color episodes were filmed. The program was produced by Talent Associates.^[2]

Synopsis

The main characters are Rufus Butterworth (Bob Denver), the driver of a customized 1924 Lincoln ^[3] turned taxi, and his childhood friend Bert Gramus, played by Herb Edelman, owner of a local diner and neighborhood hangout called "Bert's Place", which Butterworth advertised on the taxi's fender-mount spare tire covers.^[4] Plots usually revolved around "get rich quick" schemes that invariably backfired.^[1] In the second season (1969–1970), Rufus gave up driving the cab and became a partner with Bert in the diner, which moved to a beach location. Other characters included Bert's schoolteacher wife, Claudia (Joyce Van Patten), and diner regulars Mr. Bender, Hal Dawson, and truck driver Big Tom (played by Denver's Gilligan's Island co-star Alan Hale Jr.).

Never a hit with viewers, The Good Guys failed to finish in the Nielsen Top 30 and was canceled during its second season.

Production notes

Rufus's taxi was created by George Barris. A 1/25-scale model kit was manufactured by MPC Corporation and examples are highly collectable today.

The first several episodes of the first season were filmed before a live studio audience (unusual at the time), with an accompanying laugh track to sweeten the laughs during post-production. Due to production changes, the majority of Season One episodes and all of Season Two were filmed without a studio audience. Episodes were fitted with a laugh track afterwards.^{[ citation needed ]}

Denver later recalled of the show's negative reception: "I still had some animus at how CBS threw us in the dumper. Herb Edelman and I'd done The Good Guys…but sour critics said it should have been just called 'Guys'."^[5]

Syndication

The Good Guys has never been shown in reruns in the United States. In his autobiography, Gilligan, Maynard and Me, Bob Denver related that poor-quality prints of the show were shown for a time in South America. TV Land considered showing episodes of the show in 1998 but opted instead to air episodes of another "lost" sitcom that was also produced by Talent Associates, He & She .

Episodes

Sources ^[6]^{[ better source needed ]}

Season 1 (1968–1969)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
1	1	"Keep the Home Fires Burning"	Unknown	Unknown	September 25, 1968 (1968-09-25)
After purchasing insurance on the diner from a friend of his – a hapless insurance agent whose clients always seem to end up filing insurance claims – Bert buys a new grill for the diner. The grill promptly catches fire, and Bert soon finds himself under investigation for insurance fraud.
2	2	"Pie in the Sky"	Leonard B. Stern	Jack Rose	October 2, 1968 (1968-10-02)
Bert and Rufus hire a company to make a television commercial for Bert's Place. During production, they argue, and Bert develops stage fright.
3	3	"Let 'Em Eat Rolls"	Leonard Stern	Jack Rose, Milt Rosen, Leonard Stern, Mel Tolkin	October 9, 1968 (1968-10-09)
The pilot episode for the series. Rufus convinces Bert that they should become the agents for a struggling musician. They approach Claudia’s former boyfriend, now a record executive, about getting the musician a recording contract, but to get him to agree, Bert has to convince him that Bert’s Place is part of a chain of successful restaurants. As part of the ruse, Bert places an order for 3,000 rolls, and after they are delivered, Bert and Rufus have to find a way to hide them all before Claudia finds out.
4	4	"A Man for Off-Season"	Unknown	Unknown	October 16, 1968 (1968-10-16)
When Bert goes on a vacation in a cabin, Rufus joins him and drives him crazy.
5	5	"Bert's Rufus-in-Law"	Unknown	Unknown	October 23, 1968 (1968-10-23)
Bert and Rufus have a falling out when Rufus falls for a waitress and Bert tries to keep them apart.
6	6	"Is This Trip Necessary?"	Unknown	Unknown	November 6, 1968 (1968-11-06)
Bert accidentally causes Rufus to suffer an injury in a fall outside the diner, is forced to pay for a hospital stay in which Rufus is surrounded by attractive nurses, and allows Rufus to recuperate in the Gramus home.
7	7	"Nostradamus Rides Again"	Unknown	Unknown	November 13, 1968 (1968-11-13)
Rufus believes that he has developed extrasensory perception and predicts that Bert does not have long to live.
8	8	"Credit Won't Buy You Happiness"	Unknown	Unknown	November 20, 1968 (1968-11-20)
Although Rufus warns him not to, Bert signs up for a credit card and spends far too much. He then loans the card to Rufus, who promptly loses it.
9	9	"A View From the Teraza (or Let's Hear It For the Old Man)"	Peter Baldwin	Milt Rosen, Jack Rose, Mel Tolkin	November 27, 1968 (1968-11-27)
Rufus and Bert compete against another restaurant.
10	10	"Guess Who's Coming to Poker?"	Unknown	Unknown	December 4, 1968 (1968-12-04)
Bert is upset when his poker buddies don't want Rufus joining in their game.
11	11	"Sake to Me"	Unknown	Unknown	December 11, 1968 (1968-12-11)
Rufus and Bert try to duplicate their old U.S. Army mess sergeant's recipe for pancakes, the key ingredient for which is sake , and they go too far with the sake.
12	12	"Ouzo Annie"	Unknown	Unknown	December 18, 1968 (1968-12-18)
Rufus and Bert help their Greek handyman Niko impress his mother by letting him pose as the owner of Bert's Place.
13	13	"Take a Computer to Lunch"	Unknown	Unknown	January 1, 1969 (1969-01-01)
Rufus tries a computer dating service and the computer identifies Claudia as his ideal mate.
14	14	"They Eat By Night"	Unknown	Unknown	January 8, 1969 (1969-01-08)
Hoping to attract truck drivers to Bert's Place, Rufus persuades Claudia to pose as a gum-chewing, sharp-tongued, wisecracking waitress called "Frisco Fritzi." It works, and a large number of truckers, including Rufus's old friend Big Tom, show up to eat at Bert’s Place, leaving Bert struggling both to cook for them all and to keep them away from Claudia. Alan Hale Jr. guest-stars as Big Tom.
15	15	"Wanted: An Honest Thief"	Unknown	Unknown	January 15, 1969 (1969-01-15)
Bert and Rufus decide to operate Bert's Place as a 24-hour diner, requiring them to hire additional staff, and the man they hire turns out to be an ex-convict.
16	16	"The Importance of Being Hairy"	Unknown	Unknown	January 22, 1969 (1969-01-22)
Believing that Bert is unhappy about getting older and being bald, Rufus goes to a lot of trouble to surprise him with a toupée for his birthday, but Bert hurts his feelings by flatly refusing to wear it. Then Claudia persuades Bert to try it on – and, to her dismay, he becomes a changed man.
17	17	"The Courtship of Miles Butterworth (or Big Tom Gets Married)"	Reza S. Badiyi	Jack Rose, Mel Tolkin	January 29, 1969 (1969-01-29)
Too tongue-tied to propose to his girlfriend Gertie, Big Tom talks Rufus into doing it on his behalf, then gets cold feet about the wedding. Gertie's three protective brothers hold Rufus responsible for making sure the often-drunk Big Tom shows up at the wedding – and arrives sober. Alan Hale Jr. guest-stars as Big Tom.
18	18	"The World's Second-Greatest Lover"	Unknown	Unknown	February 5, 1969 (1969-02-05)
Bert hires a man who is irresistible to women but unhappy about it.
19	19	"Win, Place and Kill"	Hal Cooper	Dick Bensfield, Perry Grant	February 12, 1969 (1969-02-12)
A bookie who has been operating out of Bert's Place flees, and Rufus and Bert frantically try to hide $50,000 from two thugs who come looking for the missing bookie.
20	20	"Father Knows Nothing"	Unknown	Unknown	February 19, 1969 (1969-02-19)
Claudia’s stuffy father, Henry Arsdale, visits and is surprised and disappointed to find her working at a diner, so he tries to convince Bert and Rufus to let him take her on a Florida vacation by making them believe he does not have long to live. Jim Backus guest-stars as Henry.
21	21	"Once More Without Feeling"	Unknown	Unknown	February 26, 1969 (1969-02-26)
A Hollywood movie studio uses the diner as the setting for a dramatic movie starring Rufus, Bert, and Claudia.
22	22	"The Splitting Headache"	Unknown	Unknown	March 5, 1969 (1969-03-05)
Big Tom moves in with Rufus after getting into a fight with Gertie. When Rufus finds that he can't stand living with the boisterous Big Tom, he and Bert come up with a scheme to get Big Tom to move out by having Rufus romance Gertie. Alan Hale Jr. guest-stars as Big Tom.
23	23	"Love Comes to Annie Butterworth"	Beryl Gelfond	Jack Rose, Mel Tolkin	March 12, 1969 (1969-03-12)
Trying to get his widowed father-in-law, Henry, out of his life by finding him a wife, Bert tries to fix him up with a female astrologer, but Bert's plan goes awry when the astrologer tells Henry that the stars say that his fate is to marry Rufus’s mother, Annie. Jim Backus guest-stars as Henry.
24	24	"The Best Ship of All is Friendship"	Unknown	Unknown	March 19, 1969 (1969-03-19)
Bert is forced to auction off the diner – and Rufus accidentally buys it.
25	25	"The Bluebook Blues"	Unknown	Unknown	March 26, 1969 (1969-03-26)
Claudia's father, Henry, gets Claudia invited to an upscale social event thrown by her old boyfriend, Dewey Hamilton. Bert is suspicious that Henry is trying to get Claudia to leave him for Dewey, and Bert and Rufus pose as waiters to keep an eye on her. Jim Backus guest-stars as Henry.

Season 2 (1969–1970)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
26	1	"Winer, Diner and Mover"	Alan Rafkin	Arthur Alsberg, Don Nelson	September 26, 1969 (1969-09-26)
Bert decides to move the diner – building and all – to a new beachfront location, and wants to do it without Claudia catching on. Rufus has given up driving his cab and become a full partner in the diner – now renamed Bert and Rufe's Place – so Bert places him in charge of moving the diner while he takes Claudia out for a night on the town so he can surprise her with the move – and she is very surprised.
27	2	"Two's a Crowd"	Unknown	Unknown	October 3, 1969 (1969-10-03)
After Bert and Rufus have an argument, they decide to divide the diner in two with a line down the middle, and Bert buys Rufus's share of their partnership, taking on all of Rufus's responsibilities. The division of the diner in two is more than its customers can bear, and Bert has nightmares about how Rufus will survive without him – only to discover that Rufus does not miss him at all.
28	3	"To Catch a Rufus"	Unknown	Dick Bensfield, Perry Grant	October 10, 1969 (1969-10-10)
Bert finds that money is disappearing from the diner's cash register and can't believe Rufus could have been stealing it, but he sets out to use a hidden camera to catch Rufus in the act anyway.
29	4	"Fly in My Stew"	Unknown	Unknown	October 17, 1969 (1969-10-17)
Mr. Middleton, a health inspector, threatens to close Bert and Rufe's Place and puts it on probation, forcing Bert and Rufus to give the diner a makeover so it will pass inspection. Vincent Price guest-stars as Mr. Middleton.
30	5	"Claudia Sows a Few"	Unknown	Unknown	October 24, 1969 (1969-10-24)
While Bert and Claudia are driving, Claudia decides to beautify the countryside by sowing flower seed capsules from their moving car's window, but two suspicious policemen think she is trying to plant marijuana seeds and arrest them.
31	6	"Total Honesty"	Unknown	Unknown	October 31, 1969 (1969-10-31)
Rufus and Bert encounter their old U.S. Army captain, and believing him to be down on his luck, decide a throw a benefit for him, not realizing that he actually is a millionaire.
32	7	"Fireman, Save My Diner"	George Tyne	Arnold Horwitt	November 7, 1969 (1969-11-07)
Hoping to get firemen to eat at Bert and Rufe's Place, Rufus and Bert decide to join the volunteer fire department. Rufus is accepted because he gets along with the firehouse dog, but Bert is rejected because the dog dislikes him.
33	8	"Biggest Madre of Them All"	Jerry Davis	Si Rose	November 14, 1969 (1969-11-14)
An old prospector named Sierra Jake who has no money to pay for his breakfast pays his bill with a ragged treasure map he claims leads to a pirate's bounty. Bert laughs it off, but Rufus is convinced the map is real, and Rufus, Bert, and Claudia set off to discover the fortune, arousing Bert's suspicions that Rufus will double-cross Claudia and him.
34	9	"No Orchids for the Diner"	Coby Ruskin	Ron Friedman	November 21, 1969 (1969-11-21)
Rufus and Bert learn that a famous jet-set restaurant critic named Lilli Resphighi lives nearby, so they set out to get her to give Bert and Rufe's Place a good review. When Lilli and her entourage visit the diner, Bert wears a toupée to impress her, but everything he does to impress her with his culinary skills ends in disaster. However, Rufus charms Lilli, and she agrees to sample a picnic lunch from the diner. Phyllis Diller guest-stars as Lilli.
35	10	"The Eyes Have It"	Seymour Robbie	Robert Fisher, Arthur Marx	November 28, 1969 (1969-11-28)
Claudia's eyesight is failing and she wants to get eyeglasses, but Bert talks her into getting contact lenses instead – and after she does, Rufus accidentally drops one of them into a pie.
36	11	"The Chimp"	Alan Rafkin	Arnold Horwitt	December 5, 1969 (1969-12-05)
Rufus finds a chimpanzee named Sam abandoned at his doorstep and trains Sam to wait on tables at the diner. Sam becomes so popular with the customers at Bert and Rufe's Place that Bert becomes jealous of him – and Sam is so good at waiting on tables that he receives an offer to open a restaurant of his own.
37	12	"A Familiar Ring"	Unknown	Unknown	December 12, 1969 (1969-12-12)
Claudia loses her engagement ring, and a battle over the insurance money for the ring ensues when she wants to use it to buy new fixtures for the diner and Bert wants to use it to replace the ring.
38	13	"Communication Gap"	Charles Rondeau	Howard Albrecht, Lee Loeb	December 19, 1969 (1969-12-19)
When Bert and Rufus take a communications class taught by an attractive female psychologist, Rufus becomes smitten with her.
39	14	"A Fine Kettle of Fish"	Unknown	Unknown	January 2, 1970 (1970-01-02)
Bert and Claudia are excited to take a long-delayed vacation together, and leave Rufus in charge of the diner and of taking care of their landlord's rare tropical fish, but his bungling interferes with their plans.
40	15	"Deep Are the Roots"	Unknown	Unknown	January 9, 1970 (1970-01-09)
Rufus has his family tree done and is depressed to learn that he comes from a long line of cowards. The discovery undermines his desire to summon the courage to stand up to a gruff landowner in order to impress Bert and Claudia's nephew, so Bert and Claudia try to boost his ego.
41	16	"Compulsion"	Unknown	Unknown	January 16, 1970 (1970-01-16)
To deal with Rufus's craving for candy, Bert sends him to the office of Dr. Booth, who cures him via hypnosis – but Rufus becomes stuck in a trance.
42	17	"Art a la Carte"	Charles Rondeau	Albert E. Lewin	January 23, 1970 (1970-01-23)
To try to help an artist who draws portraits for food and is seeking exposure for his paintings, Rufus and Bert happily display his paintings on the diner's walls, but the paintings drive away all of the diner's customers.

Related Research Articles

Gilligan's Island is an American sitcom created and produced by Sherwood Schwartz. The show's ensemble cast features Bob Denver, Alan Hale Jr., Jim Backus, Natalie Schafer, Tina Louise, Russell Johnson, and Dawn Wells. It aired for three seasons on the CBS network from September 26, 1964, to April 17, 1967. The series follows the comic adventures of seven castaways as they try to survive on an island where they are shipwrecked. Most episodes revolve around the dissimilar castaways' conflicts and their unsuccessful attempts to escape their plight, with the ship's first mate, Gilligan, usually being responsible for the failures.

Taxi is an American television sitcom that originally aired on ABC from September 12, 1978, to May 6, 1982, and on NBC from September 30, 1982, to June 15, 1983. It focuses on the everyday lives of a handful of New York City taxi drivers and their abusive dispatcher. For most of the run of the show, the ensemble cast consisted of taxi drivers Alex Reiger, Bobby Wheeler, Elaine Nardo, Tony Banta, and "Reverend" Jim Ignatowski, along with dispatcher Louie De Palma and mechanic Latka Gravas. Taxi was produced by the John Charles Walters Company, in association with Paramount Network Television, and was created by James L. Brooks, Stan Daniels, David Davis, and Ed. Weinberger, all of whom were brought on board after working on The Mary Tyler Moore Show.

Robert Osbourne Denver was an American comedic actor who portrayed beatnik Maynard G. Krebs on the 1959–1963 series The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis and Gilligan on the 1964–1967 television series Gilligan's Island.

WKRP in Cincinnati is an American sitcom television series about the misadventures of the staff of a struggling fictional AM radio station in Cincinnati, Ohio. The show was created by Hugh Wilson and was based upon his experiences working in advertising sales at Top 40 radio station WQXI in Atlanta, including many of the characters. Wilson once told The Cincinnati Enquirer that he selected WKRP as the call sign to stand for C-R-A-P.

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.

<i>Heres Lucy</i> Television series (1968-1974)

Here's Lucy is an American sitcom starring Lucille Ball. The series co-starred her long-time comedy partner Gale Gordon and her real-life children Lucie Arnaz and Desi Arnaz Jr. It was broadcast on CBS from 1968 to 1974. It was Ball's third network sitcom, following I Love Lucy (1951–57) and The Lucy Show (1962–68).

Alan Hale Jr. was an American actor and restaurateur. He was the son of actor Alan Hale Sr. His television career spanned four decades, but he was best known for his secondary lead role as Captain Jonas Grumby, better known as The Skipper, on the 1960s CBS comedy series Gilligan's Island (1964–1967), a role he reprised in three Gilligan's Island television films and two spin-off cartoon series.

The Brady Kids is an American animated television series and a spin-off based on the ABC live-action sitcom The Brady Bunch, produced by Filmation in association with Paramount Television. It aired on ABC from September 9, 1972, to October 6, 1973, and also spun off another Filmation series, Mission: Magic!, starring Rick Springfield.

The Jackie Gleason Show is the name of a series of American network television shows that starred Jackie Gleason, which ran from 1952 to 1970, in various forms.

Maynard Gwalter Krebs is the "beatnik" sidekick of the title character in the U.S. television sitcom The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, which aired on CBS from 1959 to 1963.

Hack is an American crime drama television series created by David Koepp that aired on CBS in the United States from September 27, 2002 to March 13, 2004, having 40 episodes broadcast over two seasons. The series centers on former Philadelphia police officer Mike Olshansky, who leaves the force after being accused of corruption and works as a taxi driver.

Herbert Edelman was an American actor of stage, film and television. He was twice nominated for an Emmy Award for his television work. His best-known role was as Stanley Zbornak, the ex-husband of Dorothy Zbornak on The Golden Girls. He also had a recurring role on the 1980s medical drama St. Elsewhere.

Joyce Benignia Van Patten is an American film and stage actress. She is best known for her roles in films like The Bad News Bears (1976), St. Elmo's Fire (1985), and as Gloria Noonan in Grown Ups (2010).

<i>The Mothers-in-Law</i> American television series

The Mothers-in-Law is an American situation comedy featuring Eve Arden and Kaye Ballard as two women who were friends and next-door neighbors until their children's elopement made them in-laws. The show aired on NBC television from September 1967 to April 1969. Executive produced by Desi Arnaz, the series was created by Bob Carroll, Jr., and Madelyn Davis.

<i>Dustys Trail</i> American TV series or program

Dusty's Trail is an American Western/comedy series starring Bob Denver and Forrest Tucker that aired in syndication from September 1973 to March 1974. The series is a western-themed reworking of Denver's previous series Gilligan's Island.

Whispering Smith is an American Western television series that originally aired on NBC. It has the same ultimate source material as the 1948 film of the same name, but differs in some significant respects.

The first season of the American comedy television series Gilligan's Island was shown in the United States on September 26, 1964 and concluded on June 12, 1965 on CBS. The season introduced the comic adventures of seven castaways as they attempted to survive and escape from an island on which they had been shipwrecked. Most episodes revolved around the dissimilar castaways' conflicts and their failed attempts—invariably Gilligan's fault—to escape their plight. The season originally aired on Saturdays at 8:30-9:00 pm (EST).

The second season of the American comedy television series Gilligan's Island commenced airing in the United States on September 16, 1965, and concluded on April 28, 1966, on CBS. The second season continues the comic adventures of seven castaways as they attempt to survive and escape from an island on which they had been shipwrecked. Most episodes revolve around the dissimilar castaways' conflicts and their failed attempts—invariably Gilligan's fault—to escape their plight. The season originally aired on Thursdays at 8:00-8:30 pm (EST). Unlike the first season, this season was shot in color.

<i>Gilligans Island</i> season 3 Season of television series

The third and final season of the American comedy television series Gilligan's Island commenced airing in the United States on September 12, 1966, and concluded on April 17, 1967, on CBS. The third season continues the comic adventures of seven castaways as they attempted to survive and escape from an island on which they had been shipwrecked. Most episodes revolve around the dissimilar castaways' conflicts and their failed attempts—invariably Gilligan's fault—to escape their plight. The season originally aired on Mondays at 7:30-8:00 pm (EST).

Don Nelson was an American screenwriter, film producer and jazz musician. He is best known for his work on the American situation comedy The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, for which he wrote from 1952 to 1966. The series starred his elder brother Ozzie Nelson, his sister-in-law Harriet Nelson and his nephews David Nelson and Ricky Nelson.

References

1 2 "TV Today: Two More Fall Series Make Bows on Big Tube". Chicago Tribune. September 26, 1968. p. B29. Retrieved March 6, 2010.
↑ Witbeck, Charles (September 3, 1968). "Small Town Look For 'Good Guys'". The Toledo Blade. p. 34. Retrieved March 6, 2010.
↑ Kleiner, Dick, "Andrews Still Sans Senses", National Editorial Association, From: The Sumter Daily Item , October 11, 1968. Retrieved April 14, 2016
↑ Gowran, Clay (August 15, 1968). "TV Today: CBS Series to Offer Slapstick in W. C. Fields Tradition". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 6, 2010.
↑ KDKA radio interview May 12, 1989
↑ magnolia.gowatchit.com The Good Guys

External links

The Good Guys at IMDb

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[trib680926-1] 1 2 "TV Today: Two More Fall Series Make Bows on Big Tube". Chicago Tribune. September 26, 1968. p. B29. Retrieved March 6, 2010.

[blad680903-2] Witbeck, Charles (September 3, 1968). "Small Town Look For 'Good Guys'". The Toledo Blade. p. 34. Retrieved March 6, 2010.

[3] Kleiner, Dick, "Andrews Still Sans Senses", National Editorial Association, From: The Sumter Daily Item , October 11, 1968. Retrieved April 14, 2016

[trib680815-4] Gowran, Clay (August 15, 1968). "TV Today: CBS Series to Offer Slapstick in W. C. Fields Tradition". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 6, 2010.

[5] KDKA radio interview May 12, 1989

[6] .gowatchit.com The Good Guys

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]