"Make Room for Daddy" (1953) TV series 1953-1965

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | unknown

Release Date:

29 September 1953 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Family

Plot:

Danny Williams, a successful nightclub singer, encounters a variety of difficult or amusing situations...

Plot Keywords:

Spit Take | Beautiful Woman | Teenage Girl | Mayberry | Sitcom

Awards:

Won 5 Primetime Emmys. Another 16 nominations

Cast

Sherry Jackson	...	Terry Williams (104 episodes, 1953-1961)
Danny Thomas	...	Danny Williams (99 episodes, 1953-1964)
Rusty Hamer	...	Rusty Williams (96 episodes, 1953-1964)
Marjorie Lord	...	Mrs. Kathy "Clancey" Williams / ... (75 episodes, 1957-1964)
Angela Cartwright	...	Linda Williams / ... (65 episodes, 1957-1964)

Also Known As:

The Children's Hour (USA) (working title)
The Danny Thomas Show (USA) (new title)

Runtime:

30 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Desilu Studios - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Marterto Productions

Trivia:

First television series for theme composer Earle Hagen.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Hollywood Screen Tests: Take 2 (1999) (TV)

A Neglected Milestone in Television Comedy!

"Make Room For Daddy" aka "The Danny Thomas Show" was one of the cornerstones of situation comedy. It was the longest running situation comedy in American television history (11 years in prime time) until "Cheers" tied it for longevity.

"Make Room For Daddy" was a milestone in showing how families truly behaved: indulgent parents, manipulative children and relatives,the trials of balancing a career and home life, ethnic pride vs. assimilation into American society. No other situation comedy of the period came close to such honest depictions of American family life.

The show provided the perfect showcase for Danny Thomas. He never found anything else that effectively showcased his comedy. His supporting players were excellent actors, including and especially, the child actors playing his children (Sherry Jackson, Rusty Hamer, and Angela Cartwright). The scripts were generally excellent. The show ended its run only because Danny Thomas was tired of it, not due to falling ratings.

"Make Room For Daddy" gave showcase roles for many up-and-coming players:

Pat Harrington, Jr., Annette Funicello, Pat Carroll, Piccola Pupa, Bill Dana (as the memorable Jose Jimenez). Thomas was generous enough to provide the great Hans Conreid his most memorable character besides the classic work he did on the Jay Ward cartoons.

"Make Room for Daddy"'s success helped create Desilu Productions as the first major television company in America and allowed Danny Thomas to become the most prolific television comedy producer of all time. Such shows as "The Andy Griffith Show", "Mayberry RFD","The Dick Van Dyke Show", "That Girl", "I Spy" (an action series laced with comedy)were all products of Danny Thomas and his business partner, Sheldon Leonard (who had a recurring role in "Make Room for Daddy").

Lastly, "Make Room for Daddy" featured Jean Hagen and Marjorie Lord with their best-remembered television roles.

"Make Room for Daddy" deserves belated ranking with the great television shows of all time. Nothing less!