The Ann Sothern Show
| The Ann Sothern Show | |
|---|---|
Ann Tyrrell and guest star Joe E. Brown, 1960
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| Genre | Sitcom |
| Written by |
Tom Adair James B. Allardice Phil Davis John Kohn Terry Ryan Bob Schiller Robert Van Scoyck Marvin Worth |
| Directed by | James V. Kern Richard Whorf |
| Starring |
Ann Sothern Don Porter Ann Tyrrell Jesse White Jack Mullaney Ernest Truex Reta Shaw |
| Theme music composer | Bonnie Lake Ann Sothern |
| Opening theme | "Katy" |
| Composer(s) | Tom Adair |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 92 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Arthur Hoffe |
| Cinematography | Robert Pittack |
| Running time | 24 mins. |
| Production company(s) | Anso Productions Desilu Productions |
| Distributor |
Desilu Productions (1958-62) United Artists Television (1962-68) Paramount Television (1968-80) Metromedia Producers Corporation (1980-86) 20th Century Fox Television (1986-present) |
| Release | |
| Original network | CBS |
| Picture format | Black-and-white |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | October 6, 1958 – September 25, 1961 |
The Ann Sothern Show is an American sitcom starring Ann Sothern that aired on CBS for 93 episodes. The series began on October 6, 1958, and ended on September 25, 1961.
The Ann Sothern Show was Sothern's second sitcom for CBS. Her first series, Private Secretary, ended in 1957 after a contract dispute occurred between Sothern and Secretary's producer Jack Chertok. Several of Private Secretary's cast members appeared in the show.
Katy O'Connor (Sothern) is the assistant manager of the Bartley House, a swank New York City hotel. Katy's boss, Jason Macauley (Ernest Truex), was a timid, elderly man who was constantly bullied by his overbearing wife, Flora (Reta Shaw). Katy's secretary, roommate, and best friend Olive was played by Ann Tyrrell, who had also appeared in Sothern's first series, Private Secretary, in a similar role. Other characters included Johnny Wallace (Jack Mullaney), a bellboy who had a crush on Katy, and Paul Monteney (Jacques Scott), a suave, French room clerk.
In an effort to improve the series' ratings, it was retooled midway through the first season. In the twenty fourth episode, "Katy's New Boss", Mr. Macauley is transferred to the Bartley House hotel in Calcutta, along with wife Flora. Don Porter, who had also appeared in Private Secretary as Sothern's character's boss, portrayed James Devery, Mr. Macauley's replacement. Mr. Devery was a younger, somewhat stubborn manager who tended to get carried away with some new, far-fetched idea. After Porter joined the cast, ratings for the series improved and it was renewed for a second season. In 1959, the series won a Golden Globe Award for Best TV Show.
During the second season, the series cast was changed again. The characters of Johnny Wallace and Paul Monteney were written out. Three new characters were added; Jesse White, another Private Secretary alum, appeared as Oscar Pudney, a dishonest newsstand owner who was Katy's nemesis. Child actor Jimmy Fields joined the cast as Richy Gordon, a musical child prodigy whom Katy helped. Dr. Delbert Gray (Louis Nye), a humorous dentist who became Olive's boyfriend and eventually, her husband was also added along with Ken Berry as Woody the bellboy.
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