Every moment of every episode of this TV series is tasteful and clever.
The Petries and their gifted sidekicks could have been plucked from any era; the show and it characters are still relevant over a half a century later. The show was way ahead of its time in terms of the writing and the other creative sensibilities. The stories and the humor are timeless, thanks in part to the creative genius of Carl Reiner.
I'm actually amazed at how daring some of the topics were considering this was aired in America at the end of the 1950s--a very conservative period by all counts. I literally have to ration myself so I don't run out of episodes too quickly. I treasure them & watch them sparingly, and they *always* make me happy. In fact, they're a form of therapy for me.
My favorite episode was Season 4's 'Pink Pills and Purple Parents'. I was actually laughing out loud (versus the usual chuckles, smiles and giggles.) We get to see how funny Mary Tyler Moore was (is) at physical comedy---something we don't always have the fortune of seeing since she sort of played "straight man" to Van Dyke's goofy one. My favorite episodes are of course those written by Carl Reiner, which were most of the ones in the first season. After that, others did the writing and he just produced them. But his influence is palpable. And he does have several cameos sprinkled throughout the seasons. Is that man a genius or what?
Can someone please please produce more shows like The Dick Van Dyke Show?
~NN
The Petries and their gifted sidekicks could have been plucked from any era; the show and it characters are still relevant over a half a century later. The show was way ahead of its time in terms of the writing and the other creative sensibilities. The stories and the humor are timeless, thanks in part to the creative genius of Carl Reiner.
I'm actually amazed at how daring some of the topics were considering this was aired in America at the end of the 1950s--a very conservative period by all counts. I literally have to ration myself so I don't run out of episodes too quickly. I treasure them & watch them sparingly, and they *always* make me happy. In fact, they're a form of therapy for me.
My favorite episode was Season 4's 'Pink Pills and Purple Parents'. I was actually laughing out loud (versus the usual chuckles, smiles and giggles.) We get to see how funny Mary Tyler Moore was (is) at physical comedy---something we don't always have the fortune of seeing since she sort of played "straight man" to Van Dyke's goofy one. My favorite episodes are of course those written by Carl Reiner, which were most of the ones in the first season. After that, others did the writing and he just produced them. But his influence is palpable. And he does have several cameos sprinkled throughout the seasons. Is that man a genius or what?
Can someone please please produce more shows like The Dick Van Dyke Show?
~NN