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Big John, Little John

  • TV Series
  • 1976–1977
  • 30m
IMDb RATING
7.3/10
80
YOUR RATING
Big John, Little John (1976)
ComedyFantasyRomance

A middle-aged schoolteacher transforms into a 12-year-old boy at inopportune moments.A middle-aged schoolteacher transforms into a 12-year-old boy at inopportune moments.A middle-aged schoolteacher transforms into a 12-year-old boy at inopportune moments.

  • Stars
    • Herb Edelman
    • Robbie Rist
    • Joyce Bulifant
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    7.3/10
    80
    YOUR RATING
    • Stars
      • Herb Edelman
      • Robbie Rist
      • Joyce Bulifant
    • 7User reviews
    • 1Critic review
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Episodes13

    Browse episodes
    1 Season1976

    Photos

    Herb Edelman in Big John, Little John (1976)
    Robbie Rist in Big John, Little John (1976)
    Robbie Rist in Big John, Little John (1976)
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    Top cast

    Edit
    Herb Edelman
    Herb Edelman
    • Big John Martin
    Robbie Rist
    Robbie Rist
    • Little John Martin
    Joyce Bulifant
    Joyce Bulifant
    • Marjorie Martin
    Mike Darnell
    Mike Darnell
    • Ricky Martin
    Olive Dunbar
    Olive Dunbar
    • Bertha Bottomly
    Stephen H. Cassidy
    • Stanley
    Kristoff St. John
    Kristoff St. John
    • Homer
    Cari Anne Warder
    • Valerie
    Hamilton Camp
    Hamilton Camp
    • Coach Adams
    Ivor Francis
    Ivor Francis
    • Dr. Jerome Hansen
    Sandra Gould
    Sandra Gould
    • Mrs. Kimberly
    Moosie Drier
    Moosie Drier
    • Casey Bates
    Arch Johnson
    Arch Johnson
    • Sgt. Bentley
    Don 'Red' Barry
    Don 'Red' Barry
    • Lionel P. Crabtree
    Patrick Cronin
    Patrick Cronin
    • Sheldon House, Private Eye
    Jack Mullaney
    Jack Mullaney
    • Mr. Logan
    Rockne Tarkington
    Rockne Tarkington
    • Magiconi
    Whitney Rydbeck
    Whitney Rydbeck
    • Mr. Fenton
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

    Edit
    • Connections
      Referenced in Enough Said (2013)

    User reviews7

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    Above-average live-action Saturday morning show
    The best forgotten TV project Sherwood Schwartz ever worked on, it ran on NBC on Saturday mornings during the 1976-77 season. Just as "Gilligan's Island" was a sitcom variation on "Robinson Crusoe," this show spoofed Ponce de Leon's Fountain of Youth mythology. Herb Edelman (best remembered as Bea Arthur's jinx of an ex on "The Golden Girls") plays "Big" John, a junior high school teacher on a trip to Florida. Thirsty, he gulps some water from a brook which -- wouldn't you know it -- turns him into 12-year-old "Little" John, a/k/a Robbie Rist (the Brady Bunch's jinx of a cousin Oliver, and Ted Baxter's genius adopted son on "Mary Tyler Moore"). However, the effect comes and goes unpredictably, with "Little" John reoccurring at the most inopportune times. "Little" John appears in junior high as teacher "Big" John's nephew, though the principal and other students are slow (make that real, REAL slow) to catch on that they never see the two Johns in the same place together at the same time.

    Yeah, it's a silly concept, but there's an inherent cheesiness to it I love. As with any Sherwood Schwartz TV production, there's a great theme song summing up the plot, and the opening credit sequence showing the younger versions of Edelman (or, if you will, the older versions of Rist) look NOTHING AT ALL like either of them, as if Schwartz is winking at us and saying, "I'm not taking the premise seriously, either." Some other bits of BJLJ trivia: "Big" John's wife (it's a Sherwood Schwartz kiddie show from 30 years ago, remember, so the grown wife/12-year-old husband theme NEVER EVER EVER gets exploited) was played by Joyce Bulifant, Murray's loyal wife Marie on MTM and the actress Schwartz originally signed to play Carol Brady on "The Brady Bunch," and Schwartz brought on the Zucker brothers and Jim Abrahams to contribute material to this show, around the time they were completing "Kentucky Fried Movie" and beginning work on "Airplane!" The complete series is going to be released on DVD in the fall of 2009 -- it's definitely worth a look.
    helpful•12
    0
    • ajm-8
    • Oct 25, 2005

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 11, 1976 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Filming locations
      • CBS Studio Center - 4024 Radford Avenue, Studio City, Los Angeles, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • D'Angelo-Bullock-Allen Productions
      • Redwood Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      30 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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