"The Paul Lynde Show" (1972) TV series 1972-1973

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

13 September 1972 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Paul Simms, a quiet, respectable attorney living with his wife and two daughters has his life turned...

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe.

Cast

Paul Lynde	...	Paul Simms (26 episodes, 1972-1973)
Elizabeth Allen	...	Martha Simms (26 episodes, 1972-1973)
John Calvin	...	Howie Dickerson (26 episodes, 1972-1973)
Jane Actman	...	Barbara Simms Dickerson (26 episodes, 1972-1973)
Pamelyn Ferdin	...	Sally Simms (26 episodes, 1972-1973)

Runtime:

30 min (26 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Columbia/Warner Bros. Ranch - 411 N. Hollywood Way, Burbank, California, USA

Company:

Ashmont Productions

Trivia:

Elizabeth Allen visited Washington, D.C., during a tour to promote the series. When told that the local ABC affiliate, WMAL-TV Channel 7 (now WJLA-TV), aired the series on weekend afternoons rather than in its scheduled prime time slot, she exclaimed rhetorically "How do they expect us to get good ratings?!"

Quotes:

Sally Simms: Dad, how's the rat race?
Paul Simms: The rats are winning.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "I Love the '70s: Volume 2" (2006)

Paul was great, but not the show

I believe my mom summed up "The Paul Lynde Show" accurately, after watching an episode or two. "He's really funny in short segments," she said, "but 30 minutes of him at a time is just too much."

Apparently Mom wasn't the only one who felt that way. Still, the series had one great trailer moment. Paul walks from his car, toward the door of the house, and someone (Howie, the son-in-law, I believe) cries out "How goes the rat race?" Lynde, in his patented style, gives a grimacing smile and replies "The rats are winning!" (Incidentally, has anyone ever tried to DESCRIBE Paul Lynde to someone who has never seen him on TV? Unless one can actually imitate his voice & mannerisms, it isn't easy!)

The plot, of course, was Paul being frustrated by his over-educated, unambitious, freeloading son-in-law. (Sound like any other 1970s sit-coms?) Lynde and the crew gave it a good whirl and the show wasn't bad at all. It was just as Mom said -- in snippets on Bewitched, Hollywood Squares, guest appearances on The Munsters and numerous sit-coms, or in his classic performance in Bye, Bye Birdie, Paul Lynde earned his reputation as one of the funniest comics of the 1960s and 1970s. But, like the Brylcream ad of the day, "A little dab'll do ya!"