He & She

Someone should rerun "He & She" on a regular basis (are you listening, TV Land?) because it's one of the true underrated gems in TV sitcom history. The cast and the writing are all first-rate, and it's one of the few sitcoms of the '60s to be filmed in front of a live studio audience, which means there's no annoying laugh track. It really is a forerunner of "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and "Cheers", and perhaps it came along too soon. But it's a witty, intelligent show that tried to do something different. I've caught a few episodes of it here and there. (TV Land used to run an occasional episode every once in a while, usually part of a "box set" of shows with a common theme.) "He & She" deserves to be seen again.

If you research CBS's fall schedule in 1967-68, they placed this show in a terrible time slot. "He & She" was out-of-place on the network to begin with, which, at the time was loaded with rural sitcoms. I believe this show was on right after "Green Acres." It was an adult type show that deserved to be on Saturday nights, perhaps following a classic, like "The Jackie Gleason Show." Jack Cassidy definitely was a pre-Ted Baxter and Paula Prentiss and Richard Benjamin were a post Rob & Laura. This show was filmed in front of a live audience and most shows back then were not. It was a shame. CBS never gave this show a chance and it was years ahead of its time. When the network purged all of their rural sitcoms in 1971, they should have brought this gem back, first in re-runs, and then new production starting right after. TV Land did re-run an episode or two, but for the most part, nobody has seen this show since it left the airwaves in 1968.

I have to agree with the majority here. He & She deserves to be on DVD -- I have hoped for this show to come to home video for a long time.

Think Mary Tyler Moore Show. Think Dick Van Dyke Show. Think Bob Newhart Show. The show had that kind of feel, with a small pinch of "madcap" added.

Jack Cassidy was a pompous precursor of Ted Baxter, Kenneth Marrs was as amiable and gently insane as ever, Paula Prentiss was a funny beautiful woman, a bit dingy, but not "whacky". Dick and Paula played a wonderful straight counterpart to the others.

My memory is dim, not having seen this show for a Jillion years, but I remember many scenes, and I know I always felt satisfied after watching it.

Bring it to DVD!!

Please Richard and Paula, or to whom it may concern, can you please try and get this very funny series out on DVD, once and for all. It's only one year(season), it could all fit into one box. I, myself, have other favorites, and when I see them being released on DVD, one season after another, to tell you the truth, I am reluctant to purchase them because of the huge out lay of cash to purchase every year, one after another, such as Bewitched. However, I did purchase the cartoon series Topcat, and The Jetsons, since they were only on for one season, and I knew ahead of time that I could still enjoy my favorite shows and not have to shell out money for each succeeding season. So, PLEASE again, try and get this HIP series out on DVD, while the cast members can still make comments on it.

This show definitely had a Mary Tyler Moore Show feel to it. The reason? It was produced by David Davis, who went on to produce all those classic sitcoms for MTM Studios in the early 70's (MTM, Bob Newhart, Rhoda, etc). If this show had come along 3 years later, it would have fit right into that popular CBS Saturday night comedy block & would have been held in equal esteem with those aforementioned classics. The premise: Benjamin & Prentiss as the anti-Petries! Benjamin's character being a sort of Rob Petrie with the deadpan of a Bob Hartley & Prentiss as a less-whiney Laura Petrie/Mary Richards (see the connection?). Davis backed them up with his usual brilliant ensemble casting: Jack Cassidy in his most cartoonish role ever as 'actor' Oscar North, a precursor of Ted Baxter (but even MORE vain, if you can imagine) & the great Kenneth Mars (Franz Liebkind in "The Producers") lending his talents as Harry the fireman, who regularly made his entrance from the fire station into the Hollister's living room via a wooden plank precariously placed on the window ledges between the buildings (yet another great running gag). Sadly, CBS didn't know what to do with this one & the show was bounced around the schedule before suffering it's untimely demise after just one underrated & under-appreciated season.

Someone PLEASE bring this one back!