Hazel

A wonderful series that should be shown again for all of us who have fond memories of the character's (mainly Dear HAZEL - what a great theme tune too!) and the storylines. A gentle comedy with its heart in the right place. Shirley Booth was the ideal maid/nanny and her voice was unique, if I remember correctly - that was the appeal to me as a child watching. She seemed so lovable and warm. I just wish I could watch it again to see how it stands the test of time. It was from the era of a lot of great, gentle comedies such as: Mr Ed, Greenacres, Addams Family, Munsters, Bewitched, My Three Sons, The Beverly Hillbillies, Casey Jones and probably quite a few more that I don't remember at the moment.

The wonderful thing about this unusually good-natured domestic sitcom is that an older woman is the star. I remember enjoying it immensely. Acting, plots, camera are all respectful of the viewer: no slapstick, no mockery or denigration. This is very rare in comedy, where cruelty is usually a major component. When will they show this gem again?

I do remember "Hazel" so well. Oh how I wish I had VCD tapings of all those shows! It is my outlet of escape from the harsh reality of today's society and today's television. I am not sure if anyone ever knew in what part of the country the Baxter's were situated, but where ever it was it had the perfect setting of how I felt America should be. There were no racial issues (African-American Robert Johnson played a waiter, and there were a few others), or sex scenes, or violence. George Baxter had the ideal house; and I do remember the family sitting down in the family room watching, on TV, a Perry Como special. This prompted me to recently purchase a Perry Como CD of his best songs. Hazel was the best cook, and I often dreamed of tasting some of her fabulous dishes. The warmth of "Somewheresville", USA gave me a "quaint ole feeling" that I hope to get when I re-settle in the States. If only I could view those programs here in China; how at home I would be! Shirley Booth's character and her portrayal seemed so realistic. Many of the actors/actresses in those days seemed thus. What has happened to acting these days? I was shocked to recently discover that Bobby Buntrock had been killed over 20 years ago. He and Booth were the show during its entire run. When "Hazel" moved from NBC to ABC and "Mr. Steve" replaced "Mr. 'B'", Booth's talents could still, in my opinion, pull the show through successfully. Hats off to Ms. Booth and her great supporting cast.

I've got a question about the cast of "Hazel". In the storyline of the show, George and Dorothy Baxter leave the country on business. They cannot take Harold with them, I assume for school; so Harold and Hazel go to live with George's brother and his family.

My question is in reality, why did Don DeFore and Whitney Blake leave the show? Was ther some sort of salary dispute? Did they leave when the show changed networks?

Shirley Booth is a great character actress. Who can forget her memorable performances. She and her husband were involved in "Duffy's Tavern".

When I was growing up in New Jersey in the 60s, I remember watching the reruns of Hazel on Channel 5. It was a very good sitcom, thanks to the outstanding performance of Shirley Booth as the title character. It was her breakout TV role that won her a couple of Emmys.

Also adding to the show's success was Don DeFore as George (Mr. B) Baxter, Whitney Blake, who later went on to co-create the hit CBS sitcom One Day at a Time as his wife Dorothy aka "Missy" and Bobby Buntrock as their young son Harold. Sadly, Buntrock was killed in a car accident at the age of 21.

Not only was Hazel an outstanding maid, she was also a really good bowler. I remember the episode where she competed in a bowling tournament.

Unfortunately, I don't remember any of the fifth season episodes, where DeFore and Blake were replaced by Ray Fulmer as Steve and Lynn Borden as Barbara. Those two have rarely been heard from in years.

Coming from Screen Gems, who had a hit with another sitcom based on the comic strip Dennis the Menace, Hazel ran for five years and ended its run, not because of declining ratings but because Booth was tiring of the role. The show was in reruns for years and later disappeared. But fear not, thanks to the new digital broadcast network Antenna TV, viewers can finally see this lost gem of the 60s.

As the theme song stated early in the run "Who's the gal that's everybody's pal? It's Hazel."