Episode 43: A Man's Teeth Are Not His Own

Rob feels guilty after going to a dentist other than Jerry.

In this episode, we see Jerry's home dental office.

Quotes:

---

Sally: “Wow, he broke his tooth on a bone?”

Buddy: “I don’t think he broke it on the mayonnaise.”

---

Jerry: “Hey, Rob, I’m glad the girls are gone, I heard a couple of jokes at the convention I gotta tell you.”

Rob: “Uh, Jer, I don’t think we ought to be telling any jokes, haven’t you been reading the papers?”

Jerry: “What, what?”

Rob: “Well, there’s a lot of famine and drought and pestilence.”

Jerry: “Where?”

Rob: “Well, it’s around, a lot of it going around, Jer!”

Episode 42: Gesundheit, Darling

Rob fears that he has become allergic to Laura.

Dick Van Dyke was a master of the comedic sneeze. He used it to hilarious effect not only in this episode, but in others as well.

Episode 41: A Bird in the Head Hurts

Richie claims that he is being repeatedly attacked by a giant woodpecker; Rob is convinced he's making up the story.

I noted earlier that Richie started to become a less prominent character as the first season advanced into the second. But he still has significant episodes to come; here is one of them.

Quotes:

---

Rob: “You know, those little guys like that develop powerful crushes on their teachers. Boy, I remember I had a teacher that I would have married in a minute. Miss Eisenstadt, gorgeous redhead with a figure like you never...”

Laura: “What year was this?”

Rob: “Third.”

Laura: “Grade school.”

Rob: “No, college.”

Episode 40: The Secret Life of Buddy and Sally

Rob suspects Buddy and Sally of having an affair.

The episode features Rob's and Laura's third duet of the series -- a song and dance called "Harmony".

Adamo sighting: Waiter at Herbie's Hiawatha Lodge.

Quotes:

---

Laura: “Buddy and Sally? Buddy’s a married man!”

Rob: “So was George Sanders a married man, he went to Tahiti to paint ladies!”

Laura: “George Sanders the actor?”

Rob: “No, in the movie, ‘Moon and Sixpence’, he played Paul Gaugin, the famous artist. He left his wife, he left his family in England, he took a boat to Tahiti and nobody ever heard from him again. Boy, except for the boat and the native girls, it’s the Paul Gaugin story all over again.”

Episode 39: The Night the Roof Fell In

Rob and Laura have a fight -- but have two very different accounts of what happened.

A highlight of the episode is Rob's imitation of Fred Astaire.

Food note: Laura's favorite meal is Chinese -- especially Moo Goo Gai Pan. Richie likes hamburgers -- with tuna fish.

Quotes:

---

Richie: “You gonna be a wild man, Daddy?”

Rob: “No, I’m not, Rich.”

Richie: “Then I’m gonna go watch television.”

---

Rob: “Honey, is that enough moo goo gai pan?”

Laura: “A little heavier on the goo.”

"Doodly-doodly-doo-doo-doo"

Buddy often employs a musical catchphrase: "Doodly-doodly-doo-doo-doo" -- singing it, or, on one occasion, playing it on his cello.

Buddy uses it to mean one of the following:

-There's a romance brewing between two characters (for example, Sally and a prospective husband)

-There's a potential romantic triangle situation

-There's been a fight between Rob and Laura

The tune to which Buddy sings the nonsensical words is from "Der Erlkonig" by Schubert.

Episode 38: Like a Sister

Sally falls for the handsome guest star of the "Alan Brady Show" -- but it's unrequited love.

Of the first 38 episodes, this is the third that's about Sally's quest for a husband; and probably the second or third that mentions lasagna.

Quotes:

---

Buddy: “Hey – doodly-doodly-doo-doo-doo!”

Rob: “What do you mean, ‘doodly-doodly-doo-doo-doo’? What...”

Buddy: “Yeah.”

Rob: “No!”

Buddy: “Believe me, doodly-doo.”

Episode 37: My Husband Is Not a Drunk

An old Army buddy of Rob's comes over for dinner and entertains the guests by hypnotizing them; but Rob is hypnotized without anyone realizing it.

Already, little more than a fifth through the series, I've lost count of the number of times Rob and Laura have entertained at their house. They were a sociable couple!

Episode 36: What's in a Middle Name?

Richie discovers that his middle name is "Rosebud".

Another flashback episode. We see the old writers' room of the "Alan Brady Show", which seems to contain many of the same furnishings as the new office -- right down to the dart board and darts stuck in the wall instead of the board.

Quotes:

---

Sally: “Would you name your kid Maria Ouspenskaya?”

Buddy: “No, and for only one reason.”

Sally: “Why?”

Buddy: “Because my brother named his kid that.”

---

Grandpa Petrie: “Ulysses David if it’s a boy, Ulyssia Davida if it’s a girl. That’s it! Or don’t you care about sending an old man to his grave happy?”

Rob: “Grandpa, you know we want you to be happy!”

Sam: “Pa, nobody’s sending you to your grave yet.”

Grandpa: “I’ll go to my grave when I want to! And just try and let anybody try and stop me!”

Episode 35: Hustling the Hustler

Rob is hustled in a pool game by Buddy's black sheep brother.

The episode opens with a very nice, harmonized singing of "On Moonlight Bay" by Rob, Buddy, and Sally.

Another occasion in which the changing value of money is important. Rob loses $300 to Blackie -- about $2,000 in 2011 dollars.

We see the Petrie's basement in this episode. It's a homey-looking room: Pool table, comfortable chair and sofa, card table, eclectic decor. It's surprising that Rob and Laura and their guests don't spend more time here.

Episode 34: The Attempted Marriage

Rob's and Laura's back story is continued in a flashback episode recalling their wedding.

Adamo sighting: Rob's best man.

Quotes:

---

Rob: “Uh huh, there it is. A motor.”

Episode 33: Bank Book 6565696

Rob discovers that Laura has a secret bank account.

Once again, it's important to remember the different value of money at the time. $378.16 doesn't sound like much, but it would be nearly $3,000 today.

DVD shows off his physical comedy ability in a scene in which he looks for his birthday present -- crawling, running, and jumping around the living room.

The sports car Rob covets is the "XKG-JFK-4000". Perhaps its nickname is "Tarantula" -- a sports car featured in a later episode of the series.

Quotes:

---

Rob: “Just think, at this very moment, the mighty Niagara, harnessed to giant generators, its energy surging along 400 miles of copper wire, just to heat our toaster. All we have to do is wait.”

Laura: “ Don’t we have to plug it in?”

Rob: “You’d think with that 400 mile running start it could jump the last two feet by itself.”

---

Buddy: “For years, my wife kept throwing quarters into a cookie jar. Drove me nuts! Finally, I found out what she was saving for.”
Rob: “What was it?”

Buddy and Sally: “Cookies!”

Episode 32: The Two Faces of Rob

Rob tries to fool Laura with a fake accent over the telephone; but he worries when it appears she is flirting with his alter ego, Dr. Binelli.

Of many enjoyable aspects of this episode, my favorite is the very nice, and very well-timed, use of the tune "Santa Lucia" when Rob comes home and Laura enters the living room.

Quotes:

---

Rob: “She never hummed my phone calls!”

---

Rob: “Dr. Binelli! I’ll kill him! Oh... I can’t.”

Food Notes

Food plays an important role in several episodes of the show, and a peripheral, but interesting, part of others. In "Sol and the Sponsor", the hors d'ouevres offered by the Petries to Rob's sponsor and his wife include salami, olives, anchovies, liver pate, gherkins, herring, and four kinds of cheese. In "One Angry Man", Laura serves lox, bagels, and cream cheese at the working brunch of the writing staff. In "Never Name a Duck", we learn that the Petries had spaghetti for breakfast. And in the fridge was a $10 (about $75 in today's money) tin of caviar, being saved for a special occasion. In "The Two Faces of Rob", Laura serves Armenian string cheese and prepares an Italian dinner including garlic bread. Rob, Buddy, and Sally eat everything from doughnuts and pastries to corned beef or pastrami sandwiches or hamburgers  while working at the office. And lasagna, a specialty of Sally's, makes several appearances during the course of the series.

The Curious Geometry of the Petrie House

In a previous post, I noted that the Petrie home is in a neighborhood containing typical, '50s-style houses. The photo at left shows a scene from the opening titles of the Carl Reiner pilot, "Head of the Family", which was later re-tooled as "The Dick Van Dyke Show." That house would clearly be full of right angles and rectangular rooms. But the internal layout of Rob's and Laura's house  doesn't fit that template. The house is all odd angles and unusual configurations. In the first episode of Season 2, we get a rare look at Richie's bedroom, which we know is somewhere behind the living room/kitchen area. Yet it's hard to imagine any way to fit that room, the window you see to the left of the door, and the hallway outside the door, into any kind of logical layout of the house as a whole (and remember, the den has to fit in there somewhere, too).

Episode 31: Never Name a Duck

Rob brings two baby ducklings home; Richie falls in love with them, but it won't be possible for the family to keep them.

This first episode of Season 2 includes the first showing of the famous title sequence in which Rob trips over the ottoman. There's yet another continuity issue, as a woman at the veterinarian's office is played by the actress who later plays Laura's mother.

Adamo sighting: He plays the vet's assistant, and has a couple lines of dialogue.

Quotes:

---

Sally: “Now look, this isn’t fair – we’re grabbing all the toys, and Rob’s the only one that’s got a kid.”

Buddy: “She’s right – give us the kid.”

A Timeless Show?

Carl Reiner always claimed that he did not use references to current events in "The Dick Van Dyke Show", because he was looking towards the future and wanted the show to appear fresh, no matter how far into the future it might be viewed. In his recent autobiography, Dick Van Dyke repeats this claim. But is it true?

Not really. The episode I just blogged, "The Return of Happy Spangler", contains a direct reference to John and Jackie Kennedy. I recall another, later episode in which Rob is clearly imitating Lyndon Johnson. Other contemporary references I can think of, just off the top of my head, include:

Rob going to the movie "The Guns of Navarone"; Millie alluding to the movie "Psycho"; Richie's naming his favorite ballplayer, Mickey Mantle; mentions of celebrities including Danny Thomas, Marilyn Monroe, Ingrid Bergman, Rock Hudson, Sophia Loren; Rob's brother, Stacy, naming rock stars Elvis Presley and Ricky Nelson; references to TV shows of the time including "The Twilight Zone", "I've Got a Secret", and "Candid Camera". No doubt there are many other examples.

Even without these direct references, the show is full of images and plot elements that identify the time period. The clothing and hair styles, the furniture in the Petrie home -- and the mentions of money. Buddy buys yogurt for a quarter; a couple can dine in a nice Manhattan restaurant for $12, including tax and gratuity.

So Reiner's claim is spurious; but who cares? One thing about the show is indeed timeless: Its comedy.

Episode 30: The Return of Happy Spangler

Rob runs into his old comedy mentor, and hires him to write for the "Alan Brady Show".

An episode that is probably most remembered for the slapstick comedy bit, performed by DVD, in which he suffers various painful injuries.

Quotes:

---

Mel: “Oh, Buddy will never be a has-been. He’ll always be a never-was.”

Episodes 28 and 29: I Am My Brother's Keeper/The Sleeping Brother

Rob's brother Stacy comes for a visit -- and causes consternation with his sleep-walking.

Jerry Van Dyke guest stars in this two-part story. He is reasonably funny in his banjo playing and stand up comedy; but the highlight is the excellent, jazzy, Rob and Laura duet of "Mountain Greenery" in Episode 29.

Adamo sighting: A guest at the Petrie parties in both episodes.

Quotes:

---

Mel: “You know he won’t play unless he has six hands.”

Sally: “Six hands – reminds me of a boyfriend I once had.”

---

Rob: “I’m sorry, Buddy, Laura asked me to check her ribs.”

Buddy: “Oh, well, when you’re through, Doctor, I got an ingrown toenail...”

Episode 27: The Bad Old Days

Egged on by Buddy, Rob decides that Laura has been making him do woman’s work, and decides to put his foot down and refuse to help her around the house anymore.

The second dream-sequence episode of the series is one that has never been among my favorites, because Rob treats Laura pretty shabbily.

Episode 26: Where You Been, Fassbinder?

Sally's approaching birthday is an unwelcome reminder that she is still single.

The episode gives the first glimpse of Sally's apartment, and of her cat, Mr. Henderson.

Continuity issue: Buddy's wife, Pickles, is played by the first of two actresses who will fill the role during the course of the series.

Quotes:

---

Richie: “I’m six. How old are you?”

Laura: “Uh, Richie, dear, we don’t ask ladies how old they are.”

Richie: “Why not”

Buddy: “They won’t tell you.”

Episode 25: One Angry Man

Rob is called for jury duty, and ends up disrupting the trial with his antics.

This is a clever take-off on the dramatic movie "Twelve Angry Men", with Rob as the sole hold-out in a jury wanting to convict -- though not for the noble reasons Henry Fonda voted "not guilty" in the play.

The second consecutive episode without Richie, as the stories continue to lean towards the adult part Rob's world. In fact, the previous episode -- "The Twizzle" -- was the first of many in which Rob and Laura go out without any discussion of what to do with Richie. Presumably he was staying at a friend's house for the evening.

Adamo sighting: One of the jurors.

Quotes:

---

Rob: “Now, Honey, now wait a minute, now wait! I can explain... nothing!”

Episode 24: The Twizzle

Sally discovers a new talent: a young man who invents a new dance craze called the "Twizzle" (an obvious reference to a popular dance of the day).

An opportunity for the whole cast to show off their dance moves in this episode. The song, "The Twizzle", is actually kind of catchy.

Adamo sighting: Part of the dance crowd at the bowling alley.

Episode 23: Father of the Week

Rob learns he's been named "Father of the Week" in Richie's class -- but Richie doesn't want him to come, thinking his occupation is inferior to those of other students' fathers.

Continuity issue: Mrs. Given, Richie's teacher, is played by the actress who played Mrs. Burmont a few episodes earlier -- and will play Rob's mother in future episodes.

Episode 22: The Talented Neighborhood

Rob is overwhelmed by parents asking him to put their "talented" children on the Alan Brady Show.

Cast note: At least one of Dick Van Dyke's children has a small role; Barry Van Dyke (who later co-starred with his father in "Diagnosis: Murder") plays a young violinist with perfect pitch.

Quotes:

---

Rob: “Hold it! Nobody dances in this bedroom except me!”

Episode 21: A Word a Day

Richie learns some bad words from the new kid in the neighborhood.

The scene where Rob and Laura open the door to greet the parents of Richie's friend is somewhat of a foreshadowing of the one where they meet the Peters' in "That's My Boy?".

Episode 20: The Boarder Incident

Buddy becomes a house guest of the Petries' for several days, creating bad feelings among all concerned.

Food note: Buddy attempts to make Eggs Benedict, with disastrous results.

Quotes:

---

Sally: “Look, fellas, I once shared an apartment with some very close friends, and it just didn’t work out. We fought all the time.”

Rob: “Who were they?”

Sally: “My mother and father.”

Episode 19: Where Did I Come From?

Rob tells Richie about the events surrounding his birth; the second flashback episode of the series.

Prop notes: Rob appears to be wearing the same cardigan that Jerry wore in the previous episode. Also, the lamp in Rob's and Laura's bedroom (in the house they lived in when Richie was born) is the same lamp that usually resides in the office of the "Alan Brady Show" writing staff.

Adamo sighting: Frank Adamo is the delivery man from the dry cleaners.

Episode 18: Punch Thy Neighbor

Jerry goes too far in kidding Rob about the week's "Alan Brady Show" episode being rotten.

The episode includes the first look inside 146 Bonnie Meadow Road -- Millie's and Jerry's house.

Adamo Sighting: Frank Adamo, DVD's assistant has his second appearance of the series -- this time a speaking role, as he plays a messenger delivering a singing telegram to Rob.

Episode 17: The Curious Thing About Women

Rob resents Laura's opening his mail without his permission.

The scene most viewers probably remember about this episode is the one in which Laura opens the package containing the inflatable raft. And Mary Tyler Moore does act that part of the show brilliantly. But in my opinion, the best scene is a 5-minute sequence that gives us our first glimpse of Rob, Buddy, and Sally working together to create, from beginning to end, a comedy sketch for "The Alan Brady Show" -- with Buddy having the idea for the sketch, and the three writers then rapidly tossing ideas at each other until they come up with the finished concept.

Quotes:

---

Sally: “Hey, I got it – don’t anybody move!”

Buddy: “What, what?”

Sally: “Now you moved, I forgot it!”

Episode 16: Sol and the Sponsor

Rob and Laura are put in a tough situation when Rob's old Army buddy, Sol, shows up for a visit on the evening the Petries are entertaining the sponsor of "The Alan Brady Show".

Continuity issue: Mrs. Burmont -- the sponsor's wife -- is played by the actress who would later play both Richie's teacher, and Rob's mother.

Quotes:

---

Mr. Burmont: “Well, I thought last week’s show was very funny.”

Rob: “Boy, so did I.”

Mr. Burmont: “If you like slapstick.”

Rob: “Well, you can overdo it.”

Mr. Burmont: “I, of course, like slapstick.”

Rob: “I love it!”

Mr. Burmont: “But not on my show.”

Rob: “No, not on our particular show.”

Mr. Burmont: “Not every week.”

Rob: “No, I...”

Mr. Burmont: “I like it once in a while.”

Rob: “That’s me, I like it once in a while.”

Episode 15: Who Owes Who What?

Rob is unwilling to remind Buddy that Buddy owes him $25.

The present day viewer may wonder why Laura makes so much of a mere $25 owed Rob. Remember that this is the early '60s, though; $25 would be equivalent to about $190 today.

The episode contains what I think is the only view ever shown of the fourth wall of the writers' office.

Quotes:

---

Rob: “It just so happens that you don’t know me as well as I know me, because I’m with myself almost constantly!”

Episode 14: Buddy, Can You Spare a Job?

Buddy takes a job as head writer of another show -- and immediately regrets the decision.

This episode is the first in which Richie does not appear. This is a trend that will continue, as the focus of the show turns to Rob's relationships with Laura, and with his co-workers.

Episode 13: Empress Carlotta's Necklace

Rob buys a copy of a garish royal necklace for Laura.

Continuity issues: For the first time, we see Rob's parents -- but both are played by actors who will not repeat the roles in future episodes in which the parents appear.

Episode 12: Sally is a Girl

The second episode on the theme of Sally's unwilling status as a professional writer rather than a married woman.

Quotes:

---

Buddy: “I don’t play poker with females.”

Sally: “Yeah, me neither.”

Episode 11: To Tell or Not to Tell

Rob is worried that Laura may take a full-time job as a dancer on "The Alan Brady Show".

The episode features a solo dance routine by Laura during a party at the Petrie house. It also includes an appearance by Jamie Farr (later of "MASH"), in what was a semi-regular role for a short time during the first season as a lunch delivery man in the office building where the writers work.

Quotes:

---

Sally: “You know something, Buddy? The more you talk, the more I realize there’s something in what you say. And most of it is pretty stupid.”

Episode 10: Forty-Four Tickets

Rob forgets that he has promised tickets to "The Alan Brady Show" to the local PTA members.

This episode marks the first appearance of the annoying Mrs. Billings, head of the PTA. The episode shows an external view of the studio where "The Alan Brady Show" is filmed.

Adamo sighting: Doorman outside the TV studio.

Quotes:

---

Sally: “Oh, come on, Rob, it’s only the PTA.”

Rob: “Only the PTA? Do you know what the PTA stands for? Three things I respect and fear: parents, teachers, and associations!”

Episode 9: My Blonde-Haired Brunette

Laura, feeling that Rob is beginning to take her for granted, accepts Millie's suggestion that she dye her hair blonde -- a decision she quickly regrets.

Quotes:

---

Rob: “Honey – Honey, you can stop crying, I’m eating my eggs!”

---

Rob: “Laura – Laura, now I’m serious. Laura, listen to the tone of my voice!”

Episode 8: Harrison B. Harding of Camp Crowder, Mo.

A man turns up who seems to know Rob very well -- but Rob can't remember ever having met him.

Continuity issue: Harding is played by an actor who later becomes Rob's army buddy, Sam.

Quotes:

---

Rob: “I’d like to report a possible robbery – maybe later this evening.”

---

Rob: “Drink that tomato juice!”

Laura: “Why?”

Rob: “Drink the tomato juice! Give me the glass -- it magnifies the sound... no, it doesn’t... give me a napkin, quick!"

Laura: “What for?”

Rob: “Tomato juice in my ear.”

Episode 7: The Unwelcome House Guest

Rob agrees to keep Buddy's German Shepherd over the weekend -- a commitment for which he should have first obtained Laura's concurrence.

Quotes:

---

Rob: “Honey, why do you let the boy eat chocolate pudding in the broom closet?”

Episode 6: Oh, How We Met on the Night That We Danced

The first of many flashback episodes; Rob and Laura tell Richie how they first met, and fell in love.

The episode is notable for having the first Rob and Laura duet; a song and dance of "You Wonderful You".

Continuity issues: Sol Pomeroy is played by Marty Ingels. Later in the series, Rob is shown to have had an Army buddy named Sam Pomerantz. Possibly he did have two friends, Sol Pomeroy and Sam Pomerantz. In any case, however, there were three different actors playing Army buddies with some variation of the names.

Also, Laura's last name in this episode is Meeker -- later changed, in other episodes, to Meeghan.

Episode 5: Washington vs. the Bunny

Rob is torn between his responsibility to his boss, and Laura's wishes that he attend Richie's school play.

This episode features the first (but not last) dream sequence in the DVD Show. And it's a wild one, featuring Rob as a marionette; a dancing Mel Cooley; Laura in a pretty daring (for 1961 TV) bunny costume; and an avalanche of stuffed rabbits that foreshadows a more famous scene involving walnuts in a future episode.

The show also includes what I believe is the first on-screen appearance of Frank Adamo, Dick Van Dyke's assistant and stand-in. He can be seen at the back of the airplane. More about Adamo later.

Quotes:

---

Rob: “You see, I’ve seen every one of his performances!”

Laura: “No, you didn’t; you didn’t see him when he played Hamlet.”
Rob: “Hamlet!”

Laura: “Yeah, see, you missed his Hamlet.”

Rob: “When was that?”

Laura: “Last year, at the Kindergarten Shakespeare Festival.”

148 Bonnie Meadow Road

Beaver Cleaver's family lived in "Mayfield" in an unnamed state. The Anderson family lived in "Springfield" in an unnamed state. Sheriff Andy Taylor lived in a real state -- North Carolina -- but in an unreal town, Mayberry.

But Dick Van Dyke Show creator Carl Reiner placed his fictional family, the Petries, in a house on a real street in a real city; in fact, on a street on which Reiner had lived: Bonnie Meadow Road in New Rochelle, New York. (The Petries' address of 148, however, does not exist in real life).

Here's an aerial view of the neighborhood today. According to tax rolls I found online, the houses shown here are the same ones that existed at the time of the show; most were built in 1954. We learn, in "Your Home Sweet Home is My Home", that Rob and Laura bought their house when it was new, for $27,990. Adjusted for today's dollars, that would be about $234,000 -- yet the tax rolls show the values of the homes on Bonnie Meadow Road today to be a half million dollars and up. It seems the Petries made a good buy.

Episode 4: Sally and the Lab Technician

Laura attempts to play matchmaker, setting up Sally with her cousin, Thomas.

This episode is the first -- but not the last -- focusing on Sally's unhappy status as a single woman.

Finally, we see the familiar living room of the Petrie house -- a room that will see many more dinner parties and other gatherings over future episodes.

Quotes:

---

Laura: “Sally, this is my cousin, Thomas Edson.”

Sally: “Thomas Edson?”

Rob: “Oh, no....”

Sally: “Well, you did a great job on that light bulb, Tom! I wanna talk – I SAY I WANNA TALK TO YOU ABOUT...”

Episode 3: Jealousy

Laura become concerned as Rob spends late evenings working with the beautiful guest star of the week's "Alan Brady Show".

The show's creators still haven't figured out all the details -- including the main characters' names! Laura Petrie is called "Laurie" throughout this episode.

We are introduced to Millie and Jerry Helper in Episode 3, and are immediately clued in to the fact that Jerry is a bit of a jerk. We also learn what a tough boss Alan Brady is, as he requires the writers -- and his guest star -- to work until 3am on multiple nights.

Quotes:

---

Laura: “You’re not going to sleep with your clothes on, are you?”

Rob: “No, I’m gonna undress. I want to take a nap before I go to sleep.”

Episode 2: The Meershatz Pipe

Rob becomes insecure in his job when it appears his boss's favorite writer is Buddy.

In this episode, we first see the master bedroom of the Petrie house; but the living room set apparently has still not been put together.

There are some sloppy elements in this second episode: The door to the writers' office, seen from outside, opens the wrong way; the elevator doors outside the office are opened and closed by hand by the operator; and in one scene, you can see the shadow of a crew member pass across the scene, and even hear his or her footsteps.

Quotes:

---

Buddy: “Hey, did you ever see the collection Alan has? Oh, he must have 500 pipes in his den.”

Rob: “In his den? In his house?”

Buddy: “No, the den in his car!”

---

Laura: “Rob – Rob – you’re gargling with chicken rice soup!”

Rob: “Rice?”

Laura: “Yes.”

Rob: “Good. I thought my teeth were falling out.”

Episode 1: The Sick Boy and the Sitter

If you watch "The Dick Van Dyke Show" on late-night television, which may show the episodes out of order, you might be puzzled when this one pops up. There are so many odd things about it -- all of which, however, are simply attributable to its being the first episode. For example:

- Van Dyke is wearing excessive makeup, with a pale face and dark lips.

- The kitchen looks a bit different from its appearance in future episodes.

- Richie's room is located on the opposite side of the house from its location in subsequent episodes.

- The writers' office also has a different layout from that of other episodes.

- The Petries' neighbors are Sam and Dottie, not Jerry and Millie.

So at this earliest part of the series, the show's creators were still trying to figure things out.

Quotes:

---

Rob: “Fifteen today isn’t like when you were fifteen. If you were fifteen years old today, you’d have to be at least twenty-three!”

---

Janie: “Just a minute – what did you say was on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator?”

Rob: “Who knows? If it’s food, eat it! If it’s a phone number, call it!”

Beginning

This blog will record my observations as I watch all 158 episodes of “The Dick Van Dyke Show”.