"The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet" (1952) TV series 1952-1966

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14

Release Date:

3 October 1952 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Family

Plot:

Very long running family saga, based largely on the actual actors involved. As the sons age we go through their teenage dating problems...

Plot Keywords:

Marriage | Actor Name In Title | Based On Radio Show | Sitcom | Brother Brother Relationship

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Ozzie Nelson	...	Ozzie / ... (435 episodes, 1952-1966)
Harriet Hilliard	...	Harriet / ... (434 episodes, 1952-1966)
David Nelson	...	David Nelson / ... (432 episodes, 1952-1966)
Ricky Nelson	...	Ricky Nelson / ... (432 episodes, 1952-1966)

Series Directed by
Ozzie Nelson		(274 episodes, 1952-1966)
David Nelson		(4 episodes, 1963-1964)

Series Writing credits
Don Nelson		(216 episodes, 1952-1966)
Dick Bensfield		(188 episodes, 1952-1966)
Perry Grant		(188 episodes, 1952-1966)
Ozzie Nelson		(174 episodes, 1952-1962)
Jay Sommers		(92 episodes, 1953-1961)
Bill Davenport		(44 episodes, 1952-1955)
Ben Gershman		(43 episodes, 1952-1955)
John L. Greene		(12 episodes, 1953-1957)

Series Produced by
Ozzie Nelson	....	producer / executive producer (259 episodes, 1952-1966)
Leo Pepin	....	associate producer (238 episodes, 1952-1966)
Robert Angus	....	producer (25 episodes, 1952-1953)
Bill Lewis	....	producer (25 episodes, 1952-1953)
James Bank	....	executive producer (15 episodes, 1952-1953)
Cecil Barker	....	executive producer (4 episodes, 1952)

Series Original Music by
Basil Adlam		(152 episodes, 1952-1961)

Series Cinematography by
Robert C. Moreno		(74 episodes, 1961-1966)
Neal Beckner		(64 episodes, 1955-1959)
William C. Mellor		(41 episodes, 1952-1955)
Harold Lipstein		(25 episodes, 1959-1961)
Frederick Gately		(18 episodes, 1952-1953)
Richard Batcheller		(6 episodes, 1966)
Lionel Lindon		(3 episodes, 1957)

Series Film Editing by
Newell P. Kimlin		(50 episodes, 1957-1966)
Jim Faris		(21 episodes, 1955-1959)
Robert Moore		(20 episodes, 1955-1961)
Bill Wiard		(14 episodes, 1959-1961)
Cotton Warburton		(11 episodes, 1953-1955)
Frank Tessena		(7 episodes, 1952-1953)
Hal Gordon		(7 episodes, 1953-1954)
Gerard Wilson		(7 episodes, 1953-1954)
Edward Mann		(5 episodes, 1953)
Chester W. Schaeffer		(5 episodes, 1956-1957)
Sherman A. Rose		(4 episodes, 1953)
George Jay Nicholson		(4 episodes, 1956-1957)
Tom Biggart		(3 episodes, 1952-1955)
Bill Murphy		(3 episodes, 1954-1955)
Archie Dattelbaum		(2 episodes, 1953)

Series Production Design by
Jim Roth		(40 episodes, 1957-1960)

Series Art Direction by
Jim Roth		(89 episodes, 1958-1966)
Frank Durlauf		(50 episodes, 1952-1957)
William Glasgow		(16 episodes, 1952-1953)
Gabriel Scognamillo		(8 episodes, 1957)

Series Set Decoration by
Jack D. Moore		(152 episodes, 1956-1966)
Tony Montenaro Sr.		(34 episodes, 1952-1955)
Al Orenbach		(9 episodes, 1955-1956)
Fred M. MacLean		(7 episodes, 1953-1954)
Jack Mills		(4 episodes, 1955-1956)

Series Costume Design by
Constance Edney		(unknown episodes)

Series Makeup Department
Naomi Cavin	....	hair stylist (109 episodes, 1956-1962)
Monty Westmore	....	makeup artist (95 episodes, 1958-1966)
Barbara Lampson	....	hair stylist (23 episodes, 1962-1966)
Billie Southern	....	hair stylist (6 episodes, 1964)
Charlene Johnson	....	hair stylist (5 episodes, 1965-1966)
Nick Marcellino	....	makeup artist (3 episodes, 1960)

Series Production Management
Frank McKelvey	....	post-production supervisor (23 episodes, 1952-1956)
Leo Pepin	....	production supervisor / production manager (19 episodes, 1952-1953)

Series Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Richard Bremerkamp	....	assistant director (167 episodes, 1952-1963)
Robert Agnew	....	assistant director (18 episodes, 1952-1953)
James Myers	....	assistant director (14 episodes, 1964-1965)
Ralph Ferrin	....	assistant director (7 episodes, 1965-1966)
Jack Roe	....	assistant director (6 episodes, 1963-1964)
William D. Faralla	....	assistant director (2 episodes, 1956)
Christopher N. Seiter	....	assistant director (2 episodes, 1963)

Series Art Department
Jack Iannarelli	....	property master (146 episodes, 1956-1966)
Josef Bernay	....	property master (16 episodes, 1952-1953)
Jim Roth	....	set designer (5 episodes, 1957)

Series Sound Department
Victor Guarnier	....	sound effects (131 episodes, 1957-1966)
Jack F. Lilly	....	sound mixer (84 episodes, 1959-1965)
Max M. Hutchinson	....	sound mixer (57 episodes, 1956-1959)
Thomas Ashton	....	sound (22 episodes, 1952-1953)
Harry Bekkar	....	sound supervisor (14 episodes, 1956-1957)
Jerry Kosloff	....	sound mixer (9 episodes, 1965-1966)

Series Camera and Electrical Department
Joseph Edesa	....	chief electrician (78 episodes, 1957-1961)
Joe Smith	....	chief electrician (58 episodes, 1961-1966)
Irv McClellan	....	master grip (36 episodes, 1962-1966)
William A. Fraker	....	camera operator (20 episodes, 1961-1964)
Charles Rosher Jr.	....	camera operator (14 episodes, 1964-1965)
Homer Plannette	....	chief electrician (11 episodes, 1956-1957)
Edward E. Nugent	....	camera operator (10 episodes, 1962-1963)
James Sherrill	....	lighting supervisor (3 episodes, 1952)

Series Costume and Wardrobe Department
George Sedilla	....	wardrobe (127 episodes, 1956-1965)
Dorothy Beal	....	clothes: Harriet Nelson / costumes: Harriet Nelson (18 episodes, 1952-1953)
Helga	....	clothes: Harriet Nelson (15 episodes, 1958-1959)
Gene Martin	....	wardrobe (7 episodes, 1965-1966)
Ronnie Ross	....	wardrobe (5 episodes, 1964)
Shirley Brewton	....	wardrobe (3 episodes, 1965)
Wally Harton	....	wardrobe (2 episodes, 1965)

Series Editorial Department
Bill Murphy	....	supervising editor (301 episodes, 1955-1966)
Marvin Coil	....	supervising editor (25 episodes, 1952-1953)

Series Music Department
Frank McKelvey	....	music editor (135 episodes, 1957-1966)
Bob Bain	....	musician: guitar (37 episodes, 1952-1953)
Jimmie Haskell	....	music arranged and conducted by / conductor / ... (34 episodes, 1955-1966)
George Brand	....	music editor (26 episodes, 1955-1957)

Series Other crew
Dorothy Aldrin	....	script supervisor (140 episodes, 1952-1963)
Joe Byrne	....	script supervisor (30 episodes, 1962-1966)
Verne Smith	....	announcer (21 episodes, 1953-1956)
William J. Hole Jr.	....	script supervisor (8 episodes, 1953)
Don McDougall	....	script supervisor (7 episodes, 1952)
Amalia Wade	....	script supervisor (6 episodes, 1960)
Ulla Bourne	....	script supervisor (6 episodes, 1962-1963)
Mai Santacroce	....	script supervisor (5 episodes, 1961)
Jean Downing	....	script supervisor (3 episodes, 1963)
Joseph Gannon	....	script supervisor (2 episodes, 1956)

Production Companies

• Stage Five Productions
• Volcano Productions

Distributors

• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1952-1966) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• Madacy Entertainment (1994) (USA) (VHS)
• Delta Expedition (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Laserlight Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Timeless Video (1999) (USA) (VHS)
• Delta Expedition (2000) (USA) (DVD) (Christmas episodes)
• Gaiam (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• GoodTimes Home Video (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Madacy Entertainment (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Navarre Entertainment (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Alpha Video Distributors (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Digital 1 Stop (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Reel Media International (2004) (worldwide) (video)
• Critics' Choice Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Passport International Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Alpha Video Distributors (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Reel Media International (2007) (worldwide) (all media)
• Shout! Factory (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Disney Channel (198?-199?) (USA) (TV)
• Encore Home Video (????) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• American Gas Company  original sponsor
• Coca-Cola Company, The  original sponsor
• Colgate-Palmolive Company  original sponsor
• General Service Studios  filming location
• Glen Glenn Sound Company  sound
• Kodak  original sponsor
• The Quaker Oats Company  original sponsor

Also Known As:

Runtime:

30 min (435 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Selznick International Studios - 9336 Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Stage Five Productions

Trivia:

Ricky Nelson's launch as a rock star on this series is an interesting tale. He was already musically talented, having inherited his ability from his parents. As rock-n-roll was starting to grow and Ricky's interest in the music grew, he kept asking father Ozzie Nelson to let him play on the show. Initially, Ozzie resisted until he realized that it was an opportunity to take advantage of Ricky's growth as a "teen idol" and would thereby help the show's popularity. Ricky first sang a cover of Fats Domino's "I'm Walking" on the episode "Ricky the Drummer" and soon afterward more episodes were tailored around showcasing Ricky's talents. However, not everyone was pleased with his foray into Rock-n-Roll. Most parents in America were still concerned that rock would be a bad influence on their children and many wrote letters to Ozzie and Harriet Hilliard protesting their allowing their son to take part in the music. The Nelsons dealt with the furor by injecting moments in the episodes in which Ozzie and/or Harriet would offer a sound and practical reasoning for supporting their son's music. With that, the furor died down and Ricky went on to become a major rocker with hits like "It's Late", "Traveling Man" and "Hello, Mary Lou".

Movie Connections:

Featured in Influences: From Yesterday to Today (1999) (TV)

Program GREAT through Rick's college years, then it goes downhill

I have had a chance to catch a number of episodes of this long-running sitcom on Catholic Familyland. The episodes up until Rick and Dave Nelson are married are nothing short of hysterical, but it really lost its luster after that.

For the most part, in the very early episodes, little Ricky Nelson is very comical with the wise-cracking one liners. No wonder he was introduced as the "irrepresible Ricky".

As the boys grew up and Rick Nelson's music career took off, the episodes were more focused on showcasing Rick's singing talents, which are great! He is shown at the end of each episode performing one of his hit songs, to a group of peers, which is conveniently worked into each episode.

After Dave and Rick were married in the series, however, you see the downfall as they are now both serious adults. Moreover, Rick's wife Kris is chronically portrayed as extremely snippy and nothing short of intolerable, and it leaves you to wonder with all the nice girls Rick dated in college (in the program), how he ended up with someone like that. In every episode with Kris, she is quick to accuse, quick to jump to the wrong conclusion, quick to display jealousy, and very demanding and extremely insecure - you pretty much see Rick really getting henpecked. One really aggravating episode is when it is Kris' birthday and Rick gets her a puppy. Kris and Rick are at Ozzie and Harriet's and you constantly hear her whine in a demanding tone: "Where's my present? Where's my present?" like a little five year old. Knowing that Kris in real life was anxious to please, she was willing to embarrass herself.

I agree with one of the other reviewers that this program was one of the funniest, until Rick and Dave are grown and married. Prior to this, it showcased a number of twists and turns and keeps you compelled to watch until the end. If you can catch any of the episodes prior to the marriages, you are in for a real treat!