Car 54, Where Are You? (1961-1963)

I watched reruns of this show with my late dad when I was a toddler.  The only thing I remembered were a tall cop and his partner, a short cop who was always going, "Ooh, ooh!"  A local station has recently rerun this sitcom again, which is sort of a cult classic, and I've reacquainted myself with it.  The plots follow the antics of a Mutt and Jeff pair of New York City cops: quiet bachelor Francis Muldoon (Fred Gwynne) and stocky, married man Gunther Toody (Joe E. Ross).  Between the two, Toody was more of a dim bulb, and a source of frustration to the cops' boss, Captain Block (Paul Reed).  Toody's wife Lucille (Beatrice Pons) was often irritated by her husband as well. 

This slice of craziness was created by Nat Hiken, who was also responsible for "Sgt. Bilko/The Phil Silvers Show" (1955-1959).  The plots were full of misunderstandings and general nuttiness, populated by a gang of quirky characters including sarcastic cop Schnauser (Al Lewis) and his batty wife Sylvia (Charlotte Rae), and Toody's chauvinistic brother-in-law Al (Carl Ballantine).  I also note this show for having semi-regular African-American characters, a rarity in that point in TV history, played by Frederick O'Neal, Ossie Davis, and Nipsey Russell. 

Gwynne and Lewis would appear together again on "The Munsters" (1964-1966).  Ms. Rae was the motherly Mrs. Garrett, first on "Different Strokes" (1978-1984), then later "The Facts of Life" (1979-1986).  Carl Ballantine was one of the military guys on "McHale's Navy" (1962-1966).

"The Facts Of Life" (1979-1988)

One of the most fondly remembered sitcoms of the 1980's followed four girls who attended a prestigious prep school. Blair Warner (Lisa Whelchel) was the blond, haughty rich girl; Dorothy "Tootie" Ramsey (Kim Fields) was the sunny, friendly one, and one of the few African-American students at Eastland; Natalie Green (Mindy Cohn) was the class clown; and Jo Polniaczek (Nancy McKeon) was the tough girl from the Bronx.

When the series began, there were several girls to keep track of (including a young Molly Ringwald), but soon, the plots only focused on the four girls and Mrs. Edna Garrett (Charlotte Rae), who was the housemother. Mrs. Garrett had been Mr. Drummond's housekeeper on "Different Strokes", of which this show was a spin-off. The girls experienced enough pre-teen and teenage mishaps to keep Mrs. Garrett busy with advice and Kleenex. Even when Mrs. Garrett left Eastland to open her own gourmet shop (later a malt shop), the girls followed her along. Mrs. Garrett's character was gone for good after 1986, when she remarried and moved away. Her chatty sister Beverly Ann (Cloris Leachman) became the girls new "housemother".

The show continued for nearly ten years and followed the girls as they graduated, went on the college, and began to deal with being adults. There was an episode where Natalie went all the way with her boyfriend Snake (Robert Romanus), although it was not shown on camera. Blair was missing from that episode because actress Lisa Whelchel, a conservative Christian, did not want to endorse pre-martial sex.

A reunion TV movie several years later found Natalie had found sucess as a writer, Tootie had become an actress (and had a daughter), and Blair was having some martial problems. Jo sent her daughter to represent her at the reunion (Nancy McKeon had declined appearing in the film).

Charlotte Rae had a long career on TV, including playing the wife of Officer Schauser on "Car 54, Where Are You?" (1961-1963). Kim Fields was a child actress who had appeared in a series of adorable Mrs. Butterworth's Syrup commercials during the 1970s. She was also a regular on the 1990's sitcom "Livin' Single". Cloris Leachman is an excellent actress who has appeared in many films including, The Last Picture Show. Lisa Whelchel married a pastor, and is now an author of Christian books. George Clooney ("ER", Ocean's Eleven) appeared on the show for one season as handyman George Burnett. Geri Jewell, an comedian who has cerebral palsy, appeared as Blair's cousin for a few seasons.