"The Odd Couple" (1970) TV series 1970-1975

User Rating:

8.4/10   

Writers:

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

Release Date:

24 September 1970 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Two men, a neat freak and a slob separated from their wives, have to live together despite their differences.

Plot Keywords:

Odd Couple | Perspective | Friends Who Hate Each Other | Roommate | Cult TV

Awards:

Won Golden Globe. Another 4 wins & 13 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Tue. July 14	2:00 AM	CW	Lovers Don't Make House Calls	#1.16
Wed. July 15	2:00 AM	CW	You've Come a Long Way, Baby	#1.19

Cast

Tony Randall	...	Felix Unger / ... (114 episodes, 1970-1975)
Jack Klugman	...	Oscar Madison / ... (114 episodes, 1970-1975)
Al Molinaro	...	Police Officer Murray Greshler / ... (44 episodes, 1970-1975)

Runtime:

30 min (114 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

1049 Park Avenue, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Paramount Television

Trivia:

The two episodes of the series that featured ABC sportscaster Howard Cosell increased the ratings of the show.

Quotes:

Oscar Madison: Don't talk to me about Christmas, will ya? All that sticky, phony goodwill. I'd like to get a giant candy cane and beat the wings off a sugar plum fairy.

Movie Connections:

Featured in ABC's 50th Anniversary Celebration (2003) (TV)

One of the great sitcom classics of the 1970's

Let me asked you this question................

How many TV shows do you know were major hits after they were made into feature films? How many of those movies made the transition into a great TV series?

Answer: "The Odd Couple","M*A*S*H","Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore"(Alice),and "In The Heat Of The Night".

First off,let me say that "The Odd Couple" was the first and foremost based on a Neil Simon play to successfully make the transition from being on Broadway,to motion pictures,and finally to television as a weekly series. In 1968,the motion picture version starred Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon,and on September 24,1970,the television series version premiered on ABC-TV and it starred Tony Randall and Jack Klugman and was produced by Garry Marshall.

The television series was one of ABC-TV biggest hits and it won back to back Emmys during its incredible five year run on the network from 1970 to 1975. It also in the top ten Nielsen during its run making it one of the most funniest shows of the decade. Tony Randall and Jack Klugman offered more to the roles than the movie or the Broadway play put together and every comedical line was simply magic. Indeed,the show was wickedly funny and sometimes having the two end up in some various situations especially,Randall(who played Felix Unger)who always tries to do the impossible for him and his divorced roommate Klugman(who played Oscar Madison),but ends up with hilarious results.

The show was produced by Garry Marshall,who went on to produced "Happy Days","Laverne and Shirley",and under the supervision of the playwright himself,Neil Simon who oversaw the production. Speaking of "The Odd Couple",this series hasn't been shown in years and it needs to be brought back,since the last time it was shown was on Nick-At-Nite's sister channel TV Land,and the former cable network TNN( formerly The Nashville Network and changed it title to The National Network which is now these days Spike TV).

**Getting back to the other shows that were great feature films and went on to become great TV shows: "M*A*S*H"(CBS-TV:1972-1983),"Alice" (CBS-TV:1976-1985),"In The Heat Of The Night"(NBC-TV:1986-1992 and also on CBS-TV:1992-1994)