The Dick Van Dyke Show Online

Dick Van Dyke Mary Tyler Moore Rose Marie

Original Title :: The Dick Van Dyke Show
Genre :: TV Series / Comedy / Family
Cast :: Dick Van Dyke,Mary Tyler Moore,Rose Marie
Type :: TV Series
Time :: 30min
Rating :: 8.3/10

The misadventures of a TV writer both at work and at home.

The Dick Van Dyke Show Online

Rob, Buddy and Sally write for the Alan Brady TV show under the thumb of Brady's brother-in-law Mel. Rob and Laura live in new Rochelle next-door to Jerry and Millie.

Series cast summary:
	Dick Van Dyke	-	Rob Petrie / - 158 episodes, 1961-1966

	Rose Marie	-	Sally Rogers 158 episodes, 1961-1966

	Morey Amsterdam	-	Buddy Sorrell 158 episodes, 1961-1966

	Larry Mathews	-	Ritchie Petrie 158 episodes, 1961-1966

	Mary Tyler Moore	-	Laura Petrie / - 158 episodes, 1961-1966

	Richard Deacon	-	Mel Cooley 82 episodes, 1961-1966

Reportedly Mary Tyler Moore told the producers she was older than she really was in order to get the role of Laura. This fact was later incorporated in episode The Dick Van Dyke Show: Laura's Little Lie (1963) in which Rob and Laura have to get re-married in The Dick Van Dyke Show: Very Old Shoes, Very Old Rice (1963) because Laura had lied about her age, telling Rob she was 19. In reality, she was only a 17 year young damsel.

Carl Reiner would often ask cast and crew members about funny things that had happened to them, then he would write whole episodes about these occurrences. As a result, a majority of the episodes over the course of the show's five season run were based on actual events, that really occurred.

The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961) was the last show to have its entire run filmed in black and white. The show was due to be shot in color after the fifth season, but never happened because of the cast and producers' decision to end the show after five seasons.

The series originally was to focus on Rob at the office with Sally Rogers as the lead female character and Laura as a minor one. The character of Laura became so popular that Mary Tyler Moore became the lead female character and more of the focus of the show shifted to the relationship between Rob and Laura. Many times situations at the office were still focused on Rob and Laura. This put a strain on the relationship between Rose Marie and Mary Tyler Moore, and while the two ladies got along well, they never became close friends.

According to Dick Van Dyke, viewers used to make bets (during the opening credits of seasons 2, 3, 4 & 5) on whether or not Rob Petrie would stumble over the Ottoman, when walking into the door of his house.

The Dick Van Dyke Show: My Blonde-Haired Brunette (1961) (when Laura dyed her hair blonde, temporarily) was the ninth episode filmed during the first season, but it was the second episode to be aired, because Carl Reiner was so impressed with Mary Tyler Moore's rapid development that he wanted to highlight her in an episode as soon as possible. He had thoughts of it being the series' debut.

Carl Reiner and the other writers were very careful not to use any 1960s slang in the show's scripts. In fact, references to any time period or current events are very few and far between.

Laura usually wore Capri pants on the show. The network was against this at first, and said that she had to be in a skirt for a certain number of scenes per episode. To fight this, they filmed a scene where Laura walked into the kitchen in Capri pants and came out a second later in a skirt. The network finally relented.

Dick Van Dyke took a big chance agreeing to do this show because in order to do it, he had to leave the Broadway hit show "Bye Bye Birdie" for which he won a Tony Award. If the show was not a hit, he would have been out of work.

Dick Van Dyke originally objected to having Mary Tyler Moore on the series, because he felt that she was too young to convincingly play his wife. He changed his mind once their remarkable onscreen chemistry became apparent, especially after The Dick Van Dyke Show: Oh, How We Met on the Night That We Danced (1961), successfully filmed and with extreme humor.

The writers' office where Rob works is a recreation of the writers' bullpen from Your Show of Shows (1950), where Carl Reiner worked as a writer. The character role of Rob Petrie, was based on Reiner, and the character role of Buddy Sorrell was based on the longtime television comedy writer Mel Brooks. The character role of Alan Brady, was based on Sid Caesar.

For the first three seasons of the show, Alan Brady's face was never seen but his voice was occasionally heard, because Carl Reiner wanted to get a big star to play Alan. Reiner eventually decided to take on the role himself as the newest on-screen star.

Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore played a married couple so convincingly on the show that many viewers actually thought they were married in real life. They did in fact become very close - "like siblings", as Dick Van Dyke said - and both admit they had crushes on each other while the show was in production. They have remained close friends ever since.

Laura's maiden name was changed from Meeker to Meehan following Mary Tyler Moore's divorce from her first husband, Richard Meeker.

When CBS canceled the show after one season, Sheldon Leonard traveled to Procter & Gamble's main headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio, to make a personal plea for sponsorship, hoping it would sway CBS toward renewal. Procter & Gamble agreed to sponsor half a season. Eventually, Lorillard Tobacco Company, makers of Kent Cigarettes, agreed to pick up the other half, and the show was picked up by CBS for a second season. Ironically, when the show went off the air on its own five years later, CBS was doing the pleading for the show to continue.

Dick Van Dyke was granted a one-week leave from "Bye Bye Birdie" to film the series' debut. During his absence, understudy Charles Nelson Reilly filled in. When Van Dyke left "Bye Bye Birdie" permanently in April of 1961, he was succeeded by future host of The Match Game (1962), Gene Rayburn. Van Dyke was so nervous about filming the debut that he developed a cold sore on his upper lip, requiring additional makeup to cover it up, and he admits he cannot recall President John F. Kennedy being inaugurated on the same day the series' filming began.

Morey Amsterdam and Richard Deacon were actually close friends. According to Deacon, many of the best insults Buddy hurled at Mel were worked out while the two went out for a drink after work, or a screen filming time out.

Rob originally was from Danville, Illinois, which is where Dick Van Dyke spent his childhood.

A small controversy occurred because of Mary Tyler Moore wearing Capri pants on the show. Up until the show's premiere most housewives were seen in dresses, but Moore's explanation was that most of the housewives she knew wore pants. Because of Moore, Capri pants became a huge fashion craze in the early 1960s.

Rose Marie wanted to leave the show, when she became a widow as her husband, Bobby Guy, died. Director John Rich talked her out of quitting and she stayed until the series' end.

Inspired the later series Mad About You (1992). In 1995, series creator and occasional guest star Carl Reiner reprised the role of Alan Brady for an episode of that show.

Frank Adamo, who appeared in numerous episodes as a waiter, delivery man, walk-on, or just a face in the crowd, was often uncredited and Dick Van Dyke's personal assistant and stand-in. In the show's fifth and final season, Frank Adamo is credited as Head Waiter in the episode, "You Ought to Be in Pictures."

Morey Amsterdam wrote lyrics to Earle Hagen's famous musical theme, but they were never used. The lyrics are heard on a segment bonus of The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961)'s season 4 DVDs and blue-ray discs.

"Head of the Family", the original pilot starred the series' creator Carl Reiner.

In The X Files Mulder chooses for himself and Scully the names of Rob and Laura Petrie when they must work undercover as a married couple.

Rose Marie immediately suggested Morey Amsterdam for the role of "Buddy Sorrell" as she was signed for her "Sally Rogers" contract.

The running gag about Alan Brady's toupee was based on Max Liebman, the producer of Your Show of Shows (1950), who also wore a toupee. This fact was exposed in the final season's debut, The Dick Van Dyke Show: Coast to Coast Big Mouth (1965).

Carl Reiner asked network censors for permission to show Laura and Rob sleeping in one large bed together, reasoning (quite sensibly) that he and his wife did so in real life. The permission was denied, and the Petries are always depicted sleeping in nearby twin beds (as was the custom of TV series of the era).

During the final season, Carl Reiner temporarily gave up his producer duties in order to appear in Daar komen de Russen, daar komen ze aan... (1966).

According to Morey Amsterdam, the show was scheduled to return for the 1966-1967 season and was going to be seen in color for the first time. However, the plan was scrapped when Dick Van Dyke decided he had enough. This contradicts Carl Reiner, who is on record as saying the decision to end the series was his alone. In any event, Reiner made it clear that he would not be returning as producer after the fifth season, and the consensus opinion was that it would have been impossible to do the show without him. Apparently, what Morey Amsterdam was speaking of was The New Dick Van Dyke Show (1971).

Three episodes were filmed without a live audience. First, was The Dick Van Dyke Show: The Bad Old Days (1962) originally televised on Wednesday, April 4th, 1962. It used extra sped-up filmed inserts during Rob's dream of a 1920s lifestyle, which made shooting in front of an audience impractical. Second was The Dick Van Dyke Show: Happy Birthday and Too Many More (1964), because the cast were grieving after the assassination of President, John F. Kennedy, in Dallas Texas, on Friday, November 22nd, 1963. The third one was The Gunslinger (1966), which was filmed on location without a live audience.

The actors lip synced to their own prerecorded vocal tracks in every song performed during the show's five season run.

Johnny Carson was a runner-up for the role of Rob Petrie.

The show's production company was called Calvada Productions. The name came from the names of all of the key persons involved in production: Carl Reiner, Sheldon Leonard, Dick Van Dyke and Danny Thomas. In The Dick Van Dyke Show: Big Max Calvada (1963), co-producer, Leonard played character role "Big Max Calvada".

Bill Cosby was asked to perform for the cast and crew based on the recommendation of Carl Reiner's young son, Rob Reiner. Sheldon Leonard was so impressed that he cast Cosby in I Spy (1965).

In the series, Dick Van Dyke's brother Jerry Van Dyke played his brother, Stacey Petrie, in two two-part specials, first in season one & other in season four. Stacey was in fact the name of Dick's daughter, so this was undoubtedly done at his request. Apparently leading to his upcoming series, with the leading role in, My Mother the Car (1965).

In the 1959 television pilot "Head of the Family" which eventually became the basis for the show, Carl Reiner played Rob Petrie, Barbara Britton played Laura Petrie, and Sylvia Miles played Sally Rogers.

Ann Morgan Guilbert was pregnant during the first season, with her second daughter, Hallie Todd. Since her pregnancy was not written into the show, great pains were taken to conceal this fact.

Danny Thomas ultimately recommended Mary Tyler Moore for the part of Laura, remembering auditioning her for his show the previous year.

During Richard Deacon's first season as Mel Cooley, on The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961), he was also finishing up the last season as Fred Rutherford on Leave It to Beaver (1957), as it was in the process of concluding its seven season run. While in season four, Richard Deacon appeared in the movie That Darn Cat! (1965), for approximately fifteen minutes.

Both Rose Marie and Morey Amsterdam had the exact same response when they were told about The Dick Van Dyke Show. They both reportedly said, "What's a Dick Van Dyke?"

The telephone appears on the kitchen counter only in scenes that it rings.

In The Dick Van Dyke Show: Never Name a Duck (1962), Richie named the two ducklings Oliver & Stanley, referring to Hal Roach's comical duo, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy.

Both Dick Van Dyke and his on-screen wife Mary Tyler Moore co-starred with Julie Andrews in the 60s; Van Dyke co-starred with her in Mary Poppins, for which she won the Academy Award, and Mary Tyler Moore co-starred with her in Thoroughly Modern Millie; which would be Julie Andrews' last big box office hit (until Victor Victoria more than ten years later). Both Mary Poppins and Thoroughly Modern Millie would be have major Broadway Revivals years later; coincidentally.

Rose Marie has said in interviews she did not really get along with Mary Tyler Moore.

Six episodes from season 2 are in the public domain.

During filming for the weeks that the makers of Kent cigarettes sponsored the show, free cartons of Kent cigarettes were handed out by the company to the cast and crew. Mary Tyler Moore, then a heavy smoker, had quit during the fourth season.

The character of Sally Rogers was inspired by Lucille Kallen (who wrote for Your Show of Shows (1950)), and Selma Diamond (who wrote for Caesar's Hour (1954)).

The task of casting Laura proved to be the most difficult. About 60 actresses auditioned for the role before Mary Tyler Moore was chosen. She almost didn't go to the audition, but was persuaded by her agent.

Voted #13 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.

Sally's aunt Agnes was named after producer Danny Thomas's own aunt Agnes, who died when he was almost five.

The show's pilot was created by Carl Reiner and was highly autobiographical. CBS executives decided that the main character was too Jewish, too intellectual and too New York and cast Dick Van Dyke instead of Reiner.

Carl Reiner seriously considered filming the show in color as early as the third season, but due to the resulting higher production cost, it didn't happen.

CBS canceled the show after season one temporarily, then renewed it. When the show finally did go off the air, it was because the cast and producers wanted to quit while they were still proud of it. Addition fact, Carl Reiner personally said at the very beginning that the show would not run for more than five seasons.

After The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961) composer Earle Hagen also wrote the theme songs for three others. In order, they are Gomer Pyle: USMC (1964), That Girl (1966) and The Mod Squad (1968).

Just before TV Land replaced Nick-at-Nite, Dick Van Dyke was the master of ceremonies during a three hour special on Nickelodeon one evening, and related his personal top five favorites of the five season comedy. He also mentioned his personal five favorite episodes of the series. They were The Dick Van Dyke Show: The Attempted Marriage (1962), The Dick Van Dyke Show: It May Look Like a Walnut (1963), The Dick Van Dyke Show: I'd Rather Be Bald Than Have No Head at All (1964), The Dick Van Dyke Show: Never Bathe on Saturday (1965). His top favorite, The Dick Van Dyke Show: Where Did I Come From? (1962).

Larry Mathews (Ritchie Petrie) appears in only 7 out of 32 episodes of the fifth and final season.

The Last Chapter was the last episode aired; The Gunslinger was the last episode filmed.

Filming of the first episode, The Dick Van Dyke Show: The Sick Boy and the Sitter (1961) started on Friday, January 20th, 1961, the exact same day that John F. Kennedy was sworn in as the 35th President, replacing 34th of the United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953 - 1961).

Originally Buddy Sorrell was supposed to be a much younger man.

Her son on the show is named Ritchie. Her son in real life is also named Ritchie.

Rose Marie was meant to be the female star of the show, but Mary Tyler Moore surprised everyone by becoming the breakout star, bigger than Dick Van Dyke even.

Mary Tyler Moore bragged to her Dick Van Dyke co-stars that she would soon own her own tv studio called MTM, which would have an MTM pussy cat which meowed like the MGM lion, where she would produce hit TV shows. She was right! MTM did indeed become a tv studio and produced such hit shows as "The Mary Tyler Moore Show", "Lou Grant", "St. Elsewhere", "Hill Street Blues", "Rhoda", "The Bob Newhart Show", "Newhart" and "Phyllis".

Mr. Henderson, the name given to Sally Rogers' cat, is a possible reference to Fletcher Henderson, a band-leader with whom Rose Marie performed as a child and who accompanied her on her phonograph debut, during her Vaudeville days.

The Season 3 episode "The Alan Brady Show Presents" was CBS testing ground as to whether or not Dick Van Dyke could host a variety show similar to The Tonight Show.

This was the last series to have its complete run be in black and white. The show's sixth season would have been in color but it was decided to end the show after the fifth season.

Rob and Laura Petrie's telephone number, was 636-9970. It was revealed in link of episode, The Dick Van Dyke Show: The Impractical Joke (1965), as Phil Franklin actor, Lennie Weinrib asked Rob Petrie, a question of "Is this New Rochelle-6-9970?"

Mary Tyler Moore completely quit smoking cigarettes, during 4th season. Facts are revealed on a top favorite, of Dick Van Dyke, The Dick Van Dyke Show: Never Bathe on Saturday (1965).

In The Dick Van Dyke Show: A Bird in the Head Hurts (1962) Rob Petrie states in the phone to a game warden that his address is 148 Bonny Meadow Road. Later, in The Dick Van Dyke Show: The Case of the Pillow (1965) Laura Petrie, (in court, with Rob) said "148 Bonnie Meadow Road, New Rochelle, New York.", to the judge as well. (Just before ZIP codes were created).

If you look closely in Rob's office, you can see a picture of The Sands' (in Las Vegas) marquee with Danny Thomas on it. He was one of the producers.

The sheet music shown on the wall in the writers room is to Charles Frohman's The Dairymaids, with words by M.E. Rourke and music by Jerome Kern. The musical ran on Broadway from August 26-November 16, 1907.

Oscar Katz, former head of programming for CBS, said of the show, "They de-Jewishized it, midwesternized it and put Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore in the leads."

During season one, it is implied that Rob and his writing staff are responsible for writing the entire Alan Brady Show. Afterwards, it is stated that they simply write "this week's sketch".

Sally Roger's phone number was Plaza 3 -9098. Given to Thomas Edson Sally's Blind date set up by Laura Petrie who was Thomas's cousin.

In The Dick Van Dyke Show: The Last Chapter (1966), the series' last episode, Rob writes his autobiography and shows it to everyone. At the end of the episode, Alan decides to buy the rights to the manuscript and turn it into a TV series with him as the star, after he finishes the variety series.

User reviews

Khiceog

As a teenager growing up in the early 1960's, I was a big fan of "The Dick Van Dyke Show". And this episode is the one I remember the best, after all these years. It is a flashback to when Ritchie was born and Rob becomes convinced that the hospital accidentally switched their baby for another one born at the same time of a family with a similar name. The climactic moment (which I will not reveal) was both one of the funniest things I ever saw on television in my life and an amazing demonstration of how American attitudes were changing. I have read that this is Dick Van Dyke's personal favorite episode, and I completely agree with him. Apparently, the live studio audience laughed so long and hard that the cameras had to stop until they calmed down and the actors could continue.

I would guess that today the shock of this moment is lost to a great extent, but for its time, it was an astonishing, courageous moment - and also side-splittingly funny.

Vishura

The Dick Van Dyke Show has always been one of my favorites; from the first time I saw it in syndicated reruns, to the recent dvd releases. Despite the passage of time, it still holds up. The reason? It had the best writing and performances of any show and it presented real characters in believable situations. You can argue about other classic shows, like I Love Lucy, All in The Family, MASH, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Seinfeld, or Cheers; but, in my opinion this was the finest comedy show on television.

Carl Reiner is a comedy genius who turned his own life into a comedy goldmine. After starring in an unsold pilot, he was faced with the fact he was wrong to portray his own life. With the help of Sheldon Leonard and Danny Thomas, he was able to bring Rob Petrie to life, via Dick Van Dyke. He filled the series with great actors and the best writing on television. It was a perfect format, a show about a writer for a top variety show. It lent itself to logical guest appearances and a host of unusual and amusing situations. It was filled with a cast of great characters: lovable, if klutzy Rob Petrie, beautiful and talented wife Laura, joke machine Buddy Sorrell, sarcastic and love-starved Sally Rogers, pompous, but exploited producer Mel Cooley, demanding egomaniac boss Alan Brady, neighbors Jerry and Milly Helper, and cute son Richie Petrie. Everyone had their moments.

So many of the shows were classics that it is hard to pick favorites. There are the wonderful dream stories, such as "The Gunslinger", "It May Look Like A Walnut", and "The Bad Old Days". There are the performance shows, like "The Alan Brady Show Presents", "The Sam Pomerantz Scandals", and "The Alan Brady Show Goes to Jail". There are the flashbacks to Rob and Laura's courtship and early days of marriage, as well as Rob's beginnings with the Alan Bady Show. Then there are the ones that are just plain fun, like "A Ghost of A. Chantz", "Never Bathe on Saturday", and numerous others. The shows could also be quite touching, like "Buddy Sorrel, Man and Boy". Even weaker shows had great moments.

One of the reasons the show holds up well is that it lasted only 5 seasons and didn't get a chance to wear out its welcome. Everyone was at the top of their game when they called it quits.

When the show first came to "Nick at Night," I was ecstatic. I hadn't seen the show in several years and proceeded to tape the entire premiere marathon (which meant getting up early in the morning to change tapes). Those tapes quickly became worn out. Now, I have them on dvd, complete with promos, commentaries, features and other extras. This show will continue to live on as testament to the best of television comedy. Too bad they don't make shows like this anymore.

Nikohn

This is one of the all time classic sitcoms in the history of television!!! "The Dick Van Dyke Show" was pioneer as a sitcom revelation which implemented many different forms of comedic conversation!! Because "The Dick Van Dyke Show" used so many dead pan dialog techniques, and one liner diatribes of amusement, it left a positively impressionable trademark on the television audience!! For an extended period in prime-time during this era , it effortlessly became the most popular T.V. Show on television!!! The talent was there, on and off the screen!! Dick Van Dyke, RoseMarie, Morey Amsterdam, Jerry Paris, Richard Deacon, and of course, MTM Productions mogul, Mary Tyler Moore!! Off the screen, you had Bill Persky, Sam Denoff, John Rich, and the creator of the show, Carl Reiner!! This show exuded a plethora of talent!! Comical situations persistently amused the small screen viewer by illustrating predicaments of precarious identifiability, and aspects of utterly human quirkiness that were never depicted on television shows before!! "The Dick Van Dyke Show" was the inventor of the triple!! What is the triple? When two statements follow a pattern, and the third statement breaks the pattern which sparks a laughter!!! Examples of the triple are:

Does this restaurant serve anything flaming?

1) Saganaki

2) Bananas Foster

3) Richard Simmons?

Another one: You need something that breathes a lot:

1) A Full Bodied Bordeaux

2) A Summer Linen

3) A Raunchy Pervert

Another one: Did something go down the wrong way?

1) Something You Ate

2) Something You Drank

3) Your Last Property Tax Bill!!

Suffice it to say, the element of the triple is a lot of fun, not to mention, very effective!! The above triples are mere examples, "The Dick Van Dyke Show" had their own, and popularized the use of the triple tremendously!! The triple has been a sitcom staple ever since!! This show discusses a lot of real life experiences with the characters on the show, as well as many typical proclivities which are indicative of many New Yorkers!! This show was an excellent portrayal of a polite comedy writer who displays his latent tendencies through a lot of physical humor (Dick Van Dyke)!! Razor sharp sarcasm was replaced with succinct accuracy!! The Madison Ave boys who are writing the show can be the ones who are acrimonious, they are better at it anyway!!! When the show went off the air in '1966, it left an indelible mark on small screen entertainment!! The episode with Laura falling out of the hallway closet with a bunch of walnuts is considered THE!! classic episode of all time!! My favorite episode is the one with the Spanish dancer who was auditioning for a benefit show that Rob was in charge of!! Her dancing redefined sensuality for suburban Connecticut (New Rochelle). Her sex appeal was the genuine article, as opposed to someone like Laura, who just looks sophisticated in worsted wool!! A lot a people may recognize this episode in which I am talking about!! This series, in my opinion, is one of the best sitcoms ever!! Many critics rank it third, putting it only behind "The Honeymooners" and "M*A*S*H". This series was totally outstanding!! The "Dick Van Dyke Show" was a definite diamond in the rough!!

adventure time

I used to love watching reruns of this show when I was younger but now that I've seen it on TV Land, I have absolutely fallen in love with it. This precious gem of a classic is full of laughs and awesome characters. It was certainly different from many other situation comedies of its time and that, in my opinion, is tremendous enjoyment in itself. Hands down, one of the greatest shows ever to grace television.

Hamrl

I have to say, even knowing enough about TV history to have respect for this show didn't prepare me AT ALL for how ridiculously funny it is. As a long time fan of "Mad About You," which is clearly a tribute, I can see the setup here, but it's amazing to see how one of the truly landmark television shows still stands up after all this time. I'm just finishing Season 2 on DVD, and I have to say kudos to whoever put these together.

As to the show itself, if you've never seen it, you're seriously missing out. Some of the best laughs I've ever had watching television have come from watching this show. In fact, watching this, I can see many early glimpses of popular sitcom characters from later years.

A real treat!

Small Black

If there was ever a show that seemed an unlikely candidate to be regarded years later as a masterpiece of TV comedy, it would have to be the Dick Van Dyke Show (TDVDS). And younger viewers who happen upon it while cycling through their many cable channels might not give it a chance when they see the banal-looking living room of Rob and Laura Petrie that looks like it was furnished by K-Mart, or the office of the comedy writers of the Alan Brady Show which looks more like a waiting room at a dentist's office. But behind the veneer of what looks like a vanilla-clad suburban cliché is actually a little TV wonder boasting biting wit, outlandish circumstances, and perpetual unstoppable humor. This was the show that the likes of The Brady Bunch or Happy Days aspired to but could never ever hope to attain.

There are three reasons why The Dick Van Dyke is the best and not to be missed: The writing, the writing, and the writing. It all starts with the genius of Carl Reiner who did what all young writers are told to do at the beginning of their careers: write what you know, and Reiner did just that. He wrote about the life of a comedy writer, which is what he was. For years he was one of the writers for two of Sid Caesar's shows: "The Caesar Hour" and "Your Show of Shows" from the 1950's. And when he created the Dick van Dyke Show he re-created much of what he had experienced as a comedy writer and layered it into this new sitcom.

When Rob Petrie (Dick Van Dyke) is not at home with his wife Laura (Mary Tyler Moore), he is the head comedy writer of a fictional television show, The Alan Brady Show. His fellow comedy writers are Sally Rogers (Rose Marie) and Buddy Serrell (Morey Amsterdam), and his boss Alan Brady occasionally appeared played by Carl Reiner, the producer of the Dick Van Dyke Show in real life. Even the premise seems tame at first.

Why does this show work? What Reiner did was take a scenario that seems rather hum-drum on the outside, and then gradually take the characters into unchartered territory simply for the purposes of entertaining TV audiences for 30 minutes (well really 22 minutes). There are many standout episodes, but some of the best involve Alan Brady, the self-centered star and boss of The Alan Brady Show who could give Atilla the Hun a run for his money. One episode, which has become a TV classic, involves Laura accidentally revealing on national TV that Alan Brady wears a toupee, and how Rob and Laura must jump through hoops to soften the damage. Another episode equally as hilarious recounts when the comedy writers, Rob, Sally, and Buddy, are mad at Brady and decide to write an insulting script about him with the intention of discarding it without Brady seeing it. Of course, it ends up falling into Brady's hands! The comedy writers then go on a wild goose chase trying to get it back before he reads it! You'll be rolling over the floor with this one.

Another ingredient, often overlooked, is the comic genius of Morey Amsterdam. Amsterdam, as the other comedy writer, improvised many of his caustic biting sarcasm that gives the needed edge to scenes at the office. Often, Mel Cooley, Brady's lackey, is the butt of much of Amsterdam's cruel humor. Amsterdam was actually a major inspiration to Robin Williams who became Mork of "Mork and Mindy" fame, another show that was inspired by The Dick Van Dyke Show. Check out "the Walnut" episode, and read some of Buddy's dialog under the "quotes" section. Are you sold yet?

Ironically, The Dick Van Dyke is far better than the Sid Caesar shows, which were its parents. Today the Caesar shows come off dated, while the Dick Van Dyke Show continues to gain new audiences, even since the passing of Amsterdam. A strange and wonderful chemistry came together although it was under-appreciated during its original airing. Dick Van Dyke himself became one of the biggest entertainment stars of the 1960's, and Mary Tyler Moore got her own show ten years later, and twenty years after that was nominated for an academy award for "Ordinary People". But the Dick Van Dyke Show reigns supreme as possibly the funniest show ever produced by American television, much funnier than even "Saturday Night Live". As for THE funniest show ever to air on television, you have to go overseas because the award for that goes to "Monty Python's Flying Circus".

Gogul

The crazy tales of comedy writer Rob Petrie (Dick Van Dyke), his wife Laura (Mary Tyler Moore), son Ritchie (Larry Matthews) and co-workers Buddy Sorrell (Morey Amsterdam) and Sally Rogers (Rose Marie). Usually, some mishap starts out small, but spreads and ends up involving everyone. As a side note, whenever Rob, Buddy and Sally's producer Mel Cooley (Richard Deacon) enters the office, Buddy always makes unfriendly remarks about his bald head.

I watch "The Dick Van Dyke Show" every chance I get. From the moment that Rob trips over the ottoman in the opening sequence, you know that something loony is fast approaching. Whether Rob and Laura accidentally eavesdrop on their neighbors Jerry and Millie Helper (Jerry Paris and Ann Morgan Guilbert), or Sally's relationships remain in limbo, TDVDS never disappoints me.

While of course Rob is the main character, my favorite character is Buddy. I nearly die laughing at his comments about Cooley's bald head. It's just wickedly funny. The sort of material that could only come from Carl Reiner (who occasionally appeared on the show as Rob, Buddy and Sally's boss, the tyrannical Alan Brady).

All in all, TDVDS is definitely one of the funniest shows in TV history. I hope that it never stops rerunning!

crazy mashine

This was the sitcom that broke the mold when it came to the head of the household actually having a profession and showing him at work. For many years before this show premiered, you would always here about "dad" being at work but you would never hear what kind of work he did. In some cases you would even see them at home all the time (eg. Ozzie Nelson). This was the first show where you got to see the main character interact with his co-workers as well as his family at home. And very often the two would meet, especially in the classic episode "Coast to Coast Blabbermouth" when Laura almost cost Rob his job by revealing that Alan Brady wore a toupee. This show is just as funny today as it was when it first premiered in 1961.

GoodLike

I have reviewed shows like Buffy where even today (whenever you are reading this, this will still be true) there are essays and theses still being written about how Joss Whedon's "vision" of what a story arc "should be" changed the nature of TV forever. This was another such show.

To appreciate it, simply (for example) compare and contrast a similar show from a mere 7 years earlier, Father Knows Best. On the surface they are both "family" shows, ie, father comes home from work and adventures ensue. But the similarity stops there. In FKB, the lead role was played by Robert Young, a straight-laced and fairly boring dramatic actor left over from the pre-TV film era. In DVD, the lead is played by a gifted physical comedian, who, if he needed to, could also sing and dance. In FKB, the wife was also played straight and dull, by Jane Wyatt. In DVD, wife by Mary Tyler Moore, not only one of the most attractive TV stars of the day but someone who, if needs be, could hold her own with Dick on a theatre stage. In FKB, lots of kids. In DVD, one child, better matching the new demographic of 1960s America. Now here it really gets interesting.

In FKB, we never see Young at work! In DVD -- and this was the real brilliance of the show - Dick spends about half the show at work where (whatta concept!) he is a writer on a TV comedy working with a bunch of other writers.

This was ground-breaking in its day. Remember that when these writers talked about a skit for their "star," - a common setup -- the skit itself was never funny, but the inter-action between them, the bickering, was. Raised the bar for TV, set the bar for TV, one of the most formative TV shows of all time. The censors were in your face of course and years later the two stars doing interviews would explain that they not only had to have separate beds for all the bedroom scenes, but at least one of them had to have a "foot touching the floor" at all times. Tyler Moore went on to become a TV phenom, and justifiably so.

Malak

Carl Reiner made one of the most best written shows with this series by creating all of the scripts by himself. The man has an innate talent for comedy, timing and characters as the first show known where the characters spend half of the time hurling funny insults at their boss, and the other half showing the life of a happily married couple very much in love with each other. This is probably the first show to show the husband at work where so many other tv husbands vanished to "the job;" for all we know, Ward Cleaver and Ozzie Nelson could of been embezzlers or secret agents. This show went one more level further by showing the scenes behind the writing of a comedy-variety show. Dick Van Dyke is an eternally likeable talent and Mary Tyler Moore was demurely sexy and wonderfully irresistible before her looklike cousin got a job in that Minneapolis news office. That role was a far distant cry to this one. Forget the Bradys, they were the parents I wanted; they were both wonderful, fair and funny, but who wants to have a crush on their mom ? Larry Matthews was every model son as he played the "low-maintenance kid" missing from shows on end. Morey Amsterdam and Richard Deacon were perfect comedy foils for each other as was Rose Marie who played eternally optimistic bachelorette Sally Rogers. Jerry Paris and Ann Morgan Guilbert were everyone's favorite neighbors. All this and appearances by Reiner himself as oft seen Alan Brady, the star of the show within the show, made this series a comedy classic even above The Cosby Show or the Brady Bunch.

Binthars

I guess the most dated item on "The Dick Van Dyke Show" are those silly twin beds in Rob and Laura's bedroom. This had to be one of the last sitcoms to feature such absurdities.

Regardless, "The Dick Van Dyke Show" is the best sitcom ever! The writing, characterizations, and timing are flawless. Few sitcoms since the mid '60's have measured up to the quality of this series. None have surpassed it.

Be thankful for the incredible 5-season DVD set. This set has been a long time coming, but the wait has been worth it. The DVDs will help preserve the greatness of this show into the 21st century.

Gold as Heart

I've been buying the season-by-season DVD sets as they come out; my wife and I have been watching them with great enjoyment. It's very interesting to see how the show and characters develop, how Laura changes from a more-or-less standard sitcom wife into a very distinctive personality.

Dick Van Dyke is one of the greatest comedy performers ever; I think he's up there with the great silent clowns--but really, only on this series. I mean, has anyone seen SOME KIND OF NUT or, say, FITZWILLY lately? He must have been the target of some awful career advice. But at least this show exists to show his incredible physical abilities, his perfect timing, his genial personality and so forth. Bless the hearts of whoever decided to put this show out on DVD.

One reason I think this is superior even to, say,THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW is that none of the regulars on DICK VAN DYKE were created as Comedy Characters--all are essentially realistic rather than clownish types like Ted Baxter on MTMS. That's a great series, too, but I have to give DICK VAN DYKE the edge.

Lanadrta

"The Dick Van Dyke Show" is definitely one of my favorite shows. Every episode is well written and acted, and is genuinely fun to watch. All of the characters are well defined. An interesting window into the suburban world of the 1960s.

mr.Mine

Well i was born in 1975 and i live in the UK and had never heard of "The Dick Van Dyke show" in my life since it wasn't shown in my day in the UK. My parents had heard of it but they were around in the 60's so they knew all about classic sitcoms. I'm always looking out for more sitcoms to get into and i find that the old ones are the best ones such as "Bewitched" (when Dick York was Darrin)and animated sitcoms such as "The Flintstones" and "The Jetsons" I first came across "The Dick Van Dyke show" this past April (2004)yes all these years simply because television in the UK had no exposure to old sitcoms, instead favoring soccer and soap operas (which seem to be all about people screaming at each other and nothing else). When sitcoms are shown in the UK they are usually British with the exception of "Friends" which is given a lot of exposure. I have Sky Digital and this past April i was watching old reruns of "On the buses" (a British sitcom) at 1.00am on Granada Plus and i saw an advert of "The Dick Van Dyke show" coming on next. I thought well i got nothing else to do and it looks interesting so i'll watch that and who knows, maybe it will turn out to be a good show i can get into, although i was not expecting it to be. I'm so glad i decided to give it a go. It grew on me more as i got to know the characters and i was hungering for much more. I looked forward so much to 1.30am five nights per week where i could release the days tension and have a good laugh before going to bed. Unfortunately Granada Plus was only showing selected episodes from the different seasons so i had to use eBay to locate the DVD boxsets from the US. The DVD's are simply wonderful, i'm almost finished watching season one and i have season two and three in my home currently awaiting viewing. The first episode i saw on Granada Plus was titled "The attempted marriage" which caught my attention and gave me a few laughs. After that came some of the most memorable i have seen thus far such as "Gesundheit darling" "Empress Carlotta's necklace" and "Punch thy neighbor" I'm looking forward to watching all five seasons on DVD and reliving the magic many times over in years to come. "The Dick Van Dyke show" is very well written (the Emmey awards are proof positive of that)it's very funny, well acted and lighthearted. I recommend "The Dick Van Dyke show" as quality entertainment for the whole family, there's something for everyone and it's humor is still very funny today. My rating is an easy 10/10.

Hǻrley Quinn

this show ranks up there with only 2 other shows-- the honeymooners and i love lucy. if you watch any of these shows, please only do it on video or dvd. for some reason tvland and other stations butcher these classic tv shows, almost 7% of each of these shows end up on the cutting room floor, thats aproximatly 5 to 7 minutes and it's a shame. these shows on video are aproximatly 25:00 minutes on tv they are aproximatly 18 to 21 minutes, it's as bad as watching a pan and scan video-- that's a movie formatted to fit your tv-- for you novices. long live, dick, jackie and lucille

BroWelm

One of the best ensemble casts ever put together was for the Dick Van Dyke Show which ran for five seasons in the first half of the sixties. Had the show run double that length I've often wondered would little Richie Petrie as played by Larry Matthews become part of the counter culture? Can't you see him as a hippie?

Dick Van Dyke as Rob Petrie is hired as a new comedy writer for the Alan Brady Show. His staff consists of fellow writers Sally Rogers and Buddy Sorrell played by Rose Marie and Morey Amsterdam. It's not easy for Rob, he has to win them over. But he does manage to it in an unforgettable flashback episode.

The show neatly segmented in the professional and personal lives of Rob Petrie. Half the shows involved Rob's professional life, every week trying to come up with fresh material for a demanding boss played by Carl Reiner. The boss had a flunky brother-in-law who was the producer Mel Cooley, played by Richard Deacon. Part of his job apparently was to be the target of Morey Amsterdam's zingers. Poor Deacon, of all the characters there I felt kind of sorry for him. He knows he's in the job because of his family connection and yet he wasn't a bad soul. A lot of the time he really didn't deserve the treatment Amsterdam gave him.

Rose Marie was the eternal unmarried woman and later on her role probably would have been rewritten to make her a more feminist role model. She and Amsterdam seemed so suited for each other, but Morey was married to Pickles who like the unseen Gladys in December Bride was also a target of his humor. We did in fact see Pickles played by Joan Shawlee on a few shows.

The other segment was the Petrie home life in New Rochelle and home and hearth were kept by Mary Tyler Moore who popularized Capri pants for women. Did they ever show her figure off. More than that, Mary Tyler Moore showed in fact she was a great comedienne in the tradition of Lucille Ball. Part of the show was her getting involved in some Lucy like situations with neighbor Ann Morgan Guilbert who was married to Jerry Paris. They were the Ethel and Fred of the group.

Sometimes the professional and personal worlds did mingle. And those were some of the best shows.

No one got shortchanged on the Dick Van Dyke Show. Every cast member got to strut their stuff and the talent on that show was awesome. What would it cost now to put it together assuming all the cast members were still with us.

Shakar

I have the complete series on DVD. The DVD treatment for this show is excellent, fitting since the Dick Van Dyke show is one of the greatest sitcoms ever, Was there ever a TV show as perfect as this? The show went off the air 41 years ago and does not seem dated at all with the exception of the twin beds,of course, Carl Reiner was an absolute genius and the cast may have been the most perfect ever assembled for a series.

I can only think of a handful of series that belong in the "great" category and that includes Mary Tyler Moores own show along with "I Love Lucy" "The Honeymooners" "Cheers" and "Seinfeld".

Thank God for DVDs and the wonderful treatment this show was afforded. I just finished watching one of the episodes and I just had to submit my thoughts.

Mavegar

Dick Van Dyke is a Television God! Simply the best family oriented sitcom ever produced. It still holds up wonderfully after all these years. I was only 10 when this show first aired, and to this day, whenever I catch an episode on Nick at Nite or TV Land, it is as if time has reversed and I am that ten year old boy again, eyes glued to the flickering images on our old Zenith. Watching the brilliant antics of Rob, Laura, Buddy and Sally. Gotta go, now. I am getting misty for the old days

Bladebringer

This was, is, and will always be the best sitcom on television. It has flawed likable characters who have real problems and concerns, but love each other anyway, and not in that snarky 'brady bunch' way. Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore were the perfect couple, less abrasive than Lucy and Desi, and constantly reinvigorating their love. A good example for all of us, except for the innate sexism of the early sixties that is. I love this show, and can't wait till it comes out on DVD.

Framokay

I really love this show. I love Buddy and Sally and how all of the characters mesh nicely, and it feels comfortable when they play off of each other. The plots keep my attention...not all shows are so good at doing that, haha! The only thing is I sometimes forget that it's Mary Tyler Moore before her own show came about...she just doesn't seem like the same person to me! :)

Charyoll

This was one of the best shows to ever air on tv. It was funny, clever and witty. With each episode the series got better and better. My favorite was the episode they stayed in the haunted house. It's a classic. Another great episode was the one where Rob dreamed about walnuts and the people with no thumbs. Great show!

Whitebeard

Strange to see virtually no commentary on what must be, if not the best, one of the best television shows ever. Though of course a bit dated, with Rob & Laura Petrie sleeping in separate beds & those weird male outbursts about Rob being the man of the family that have always made me uncomfortable, it remains the sort of show that you can have watched for a two-hundredth time & still laugh.

So many reasons... Buddy Sorrell with his corny one-liners, coming alive with insults when Mel Cooley entered the office; Dick Van Dyke's inimitable physical comedy; the mysterious Alan Brady & his complete & utter dominance of his world (but having no control whatsoever over his toupee); how incredibly attractive Mary Tyler Moore was then, all Jackie Kennedyed & cute...

Much has been written on the trials & tribulations of the show, & on its importance in television history, but the one thing that always strikes me when I see it is the absolute joy that the actors display. They knew they were in on a good thing & loved every minute of it. I've seen telelvision shows, manufactured nonsense that got a green light from God knows where & puttered along like a dying jalopy, in which the jokes were stale & the actors uninspired. Not so here - the humor is so natural, the acting so perfect, the characters so adorable & wonderful you feel a bit flattered that you get to see a bit of their lives. Hell, having lived through a decade where an annoying kid named Urkel starred in a hit show makes Little Richie's screeching a bit more bearable.

Should you have a friend, from outer space or the middle of Siberia, somewhere unreal & remote, ask you what "popular culture" in the United States means, drag them to a couch & have them watch this show. It's so American & honest, a reflection not only of the family & the telelvision business, but of a perception we had (& perhaps still have) of ourselves: social, loving, with a good sense of humor & an ability to take certain of life's tricks & make them into part of our act. Rob did eventually learn, after all, to avoid the ottoman.

(Just don't show them the episode with the walnuts & the people with no thumbs. When I was a kid, that show gave me nightmares for a week.)

LiTTLe_NiGGa_in_THE_СribE

I'm not the demographic nor right age nor nationality even, but my mother loved old television shows because her mother had watched them with her and she watched them with me. I grew to love old American movies and stars and television and there is a special place in my heart for The Dick Van Dyke Show. I had spent my childhood watching actors and movies that were 60 years or more before my time, so I loved not only Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore but the old vaudevillian types like Morey Amsterdam and Rose Marie, and the 60's stalwarts like Richard Deacon. To me it suggests a time of decency, whatever the political landscape may have been, and of old delicatessens and smoking in the office and so many other things that taken by themselves may mean nothing but in their entirety suggest a way of life far more sophisticated and paradoxically simple and pure than anything we have in my generation today.

The Dick Van Dyke show is about far more however; it's about funny, thoughtful, clear headed meaningful people as most Amerians I think used to be, and about laughing with people instead of at them. People like Buddy Sorel and Sally Rogers and Rob and Laura Petrie are so greatly missed, it's lovely to be able to visit them from time to time.

These people were real artists, and this show is one of the best, most literate, ever. It makes me long for an era I never knew.

Ustamya

Poor Laura Petrie. Forced to slave at home, shop, clean house, and raise a child, while her husband enjoys all the privileges of taking the train every morning (then probably, the subway) to go to work, work all day, take the subway and train home at night! Poor Laura didn't know how abused she was. Why she couldn't even have a career of her own! Nope! Not with that bastard husband of hers keeping her tied up with the apron strings.

Pause. Breath.

The Dick van Dyke Show, is a delightful glimpse into a world that is no more, where a family could afford to live in a house, go on vacations, see Broadway shows, etc, etc, on only ONE income. Ah, but that's chauvinism. Well, no, uh... not everyone was raised with the belief that being a housewife/mother was a disgraceful way to live out one's life. In fact, it was once considered healthy, both for society and for individuals.

And, the show is funny. Really, quite funny. So give it a chance and see a planet that is now so very, very far away.

Manazar

This is simply the best television program ever. If they ever came up with a cable The Dick Van Dyke Show Network, I would never tire of watching this program one episode after another. It's a work of art, timeless, and always fresh. I hope they will someday colorize it.

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