film_poster_fan

This is a very good episode of "The Dick Van Dyke Show" filmed under very stressful circumstances. The news of the assassination of President John F Kennedy reached the cast and crew on Friday, November 22, 1963 during rehearsals for this episode. "He's been shot," Glenn Ross, the show's prop man announced. "What?" asked Carl Reiner, "Who? Who's been shot?" "The president, Kennedy," Ross responded. "The guy on the radio said the president had died at one o'clock," recalled Rose Marie. "And then we just looked at one another. Carl Reiner then said "Well, that's it for today . . . Let's go home." The episode was almost cancelled, but it was filmed, though, under the circumstances, without a live studio audience. "We just sat around all week in a stupor," recalls Dick Van Dyke.

The only other review does not even acknowledge the sad events of surrounding the filming of this episode, but focuses on cost of a children's birthday party. Certain people have different priorities.

According to "The Official Dick Van Dyke Show Book," (Vince Waldron, Hyperion, 1994) John Rich , the director of the episode, said about Jerry Van Dyke "he got it just right, the shy, self-deprecating lovely quality that was the character." Dick Van Dyke is also quoted as saying "he was very nervous, but his comedy instincts were good, particularly when he had an audience to work with. ANd by the time we hit the audience , he was doing great." (pages 160-1). Carl Reiner recalled "He came in, and he was delightful." Jerry Van Dyke performance in this episode is very funny and wonderful.

The only other review disagrees writing "he he just seems boorish and annoying. Not a terrible episode but clearly a very weak one in comparison to most of the shows."

"Girls In Chains" is a 1943 women in prison film directed by Edgar G. Ulmer starring Arline Judge and Barbara Pepper. It was released by Producers Releasing Corporation. (PRC). Contrary to popular belief, PRC was an actual Hollywood Studio - albeit the smallest - with its own production facilities and distribution network. PRC lasted from 1939 until 1947 and occupied the former Grand National Pictures physical plant on Santa Monica Blvd. One review states "they usually rented space in other studios at night...filming when the big studios were sound asleep," but this far from the truth.

Many of the reviews on this site mock Arline Judge's hair style, which seems childish. Another review writes Barbara Pepper "is better known as the lady who played the first Mrs. Zipfel on "Green Acres," when she actually played Doris ZIffel. This same review mentions that Sid Melton "played Al Monroe on the same show!" but the character was Alf Monroe.