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"The Phil Silvers Show" A Mess Sergeant Can't Win (1956)
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Overview
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TV Series:
"The Phil Silvers Show" (1955)Original Air Date:
13 November 1956 (Season 2, Episode 9)Plot:
Bilko tries to lose money to Ritzik in a series of gambles that backfire. full summary | add synopsisPlot Keywords:
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Ernie Shows His Big Heart moreCast
(Episode Cast overview, first billed only)| Phil Silvers | ... | M / Sgt. Ernest G. 'Ernie' Bilko | |
| Joe E. Ross | ... | Sgt. Rupert Ritzik | |
| Jimmy Little | ... | Sgt. Francis Grover | |
| Ned Glass | ... | Sgt . Andrew Pendleton | |
| Beatrice Pons | ... | Mrs. Emma Ritzik | |
| Paul Ford | ... | Colonel John T. Hall | |
| Hope Sansberry | ... | Mrs. Nell Hall | |
| Allan Melvin | ... | Cpl. Steve Henshaw | |
| Harvey Lembeck | ... | Cpl. Rocco Barbella | |
| Walter Cartier | ... | Pvt. Claude Dillingham | |
| Bernard Fein | ... | Pvt. Gomez | |
| Karl Lukas | ... | Pvt. Stash Kadowski | |
| Herbie Faye | ... | Cpl. Sam Fender | |
| Maurice Gosfield | ... | Pvt. Duane Doberman | |
| Billy Sands | ... | Pvt. Dino Paparelli |
Series Cast
These people are regular cast members. Were they in this episode?| Billie Allen | ... | WAC Billie |
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Mrs. Emma Ritzik: [to Rupert] If Bilko says you were born in Singapore, you were born in Singapore. moreFAQ
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Poor Rupbert Ritzik; he can't win. No matter what the situation, if Sgt. Bilko makes a bet with the mess sergeant the poor slob loses.
Ritzik's time in the army is up and he's leaving, mainly because his wife Emma (Beatrice Pons) told him so. She's sick of Bilko taking every penny from her husband in one form of gambling or another. They are going to open up a diner in Peoria for $400.
A going-away party is going to take place but Bilko is not invited. That hurts Ernie's feelings. He knows $400 isn't going to be enough for the couple to start their business venture so he good-heartedly auctions off his worldly goods to get Ritzik another $400 to help him out. Ritzig won't take the money, thinking there's a catch to it.
The rest of the show is Bilko trying desperately to lose a bet to Ritzik, so the latter will get the money but Ritzig.....you guessed it....can't win nobody how sure the bet looks.
However, without giving anything away, there's a nice ending where Bilko really shows what a good heart he has underneath his facade.