A Bird in the Head Hurts 

Ritchie claims he keeps being attacked by a giant woodpecker.

Director:

John Rich

Writers:

Carl Reiner, Carl Reiner (created by)

Stars:

Dick Van Dyke, Rose Marie, Morey Amsterdam

Cast

Episode cast overview:
Dick Van Dyke	...	Rob Petrie
Rose Marie	...	Sally Rogers
Morey Amsterdam	...	Buddy Sorrell
Larry Mathews	...	Ritchie Petrie
Mary Tyler Moore	...	Laura Petrie
Ann Morgan Guilbert	...	Millie Helper
Cliff Norton	...	Game Warden

Storyline

Ritchie comes running into the house scared and in tears. He claims that he was being eaten by a giant woodpecker. Laura knows he is obviously crying wolf - or in this case crying woodpecker - but she does whatever she can to calm him down. When a concerned Laura, not knowing what to do, tells Rob, they try to figure out the cause for Ritchie needing this attention. Regardless, Rob believes that playing along with Ritchie and saying that he killed the woodpecker may finally calm Ritchie down for good, but when what they believe the cause for needing that attention no longer exists (a fight with neighbor Freddie Helper) and Ritchie again comes crying into the house saying that he was being eaten by that giant woodpecker, Rob and Laura come to a different conclusion based on information from Millie. Rob and Laura's problem then becomes how not to sound like they too are crying wolf - or crying woodpecker - without sounding crazy. Rob ultimately feels he has no choice but to take matters...

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Plot Keywords:

woodpecker | cage | game warden | hair | deductive reasoning | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Family

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Certificate:

TV-G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 December 1962 (USA)

Filming Locations:

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

Company Credits

Production Co:

Calvada Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The woodpecker that attacked Richie's head appears to be a male Williamson's Sapsucker, which is indeed a woodpecker. The female is must more nondescript. It is native to the western United States. (One would never be found near New Rochelle, NY, but filming was done on the west coast, and this particular bird fit the story.)

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Quotes

Sally Rogers: Hold it! Wait a minute! I got a bagel sandwich on rye.

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