Series Run : 1975-1977
48 episodes
Network: CBS
Series Premise (as far as I can tell):
Phyllis Lindstrom, from the Mary Tyler Moore show, moves to San Francisco and lives with her deceased husband’s parents
Episode Watched: You’re Not Getting Older, You’re Getting Better (Season 2)
Episode Summary: Phyllis’ 45th birthday is approaching and she realizes she doesn’t have friends, so she calls Mary Richards to come and visit her.
My Thoughts: This was the 2nd of 3 spin offs from the Mary Tyler Moore show, and the one that was the shortest lived. Cloris Leachman is the star here, taking her character of the self-centered/absorbed Phyllis to San Francisco. As is the case in so many failed sitcoms, a character that is so good in small doses, fails to have the appeal when they dominate the entire show. Thus we have the situation here, in the entry I watched, early in season 2, they even have Mary herself come back to try to help what I assume were falling ratings. Most notable to me here was that of the 4 main characters, 3 were of the senior citizen variety, something you do not see on TV nowadays, and those 3, especially the eldest Mother Dexter, were quite funny. Cloris Leachman does her best, but the character she plays is just too one-dimensional and the jokes become very tired, very quickly. On a personal level, its kind of cool to hear your last name on a tv show, may happen more often for others, but for me this is the only show I can think of where my surname appears. Its worth watching just for the one liners and appearances of Mother Dexter and her showdown with Mary at the end. Otherwise, this show ends up on the stack of failed spinoffs.
Memorable Quotes:
“How were the wrestling matches Mother Dexter?”-Audrey
“Pregnant?! By Whom?”- Mary “I don’t know.” – Phyllis
“If more people abstained in the first place we wouldn’t have all these kids to take care of”– Leonard
Acting Notables:
Cloris Leachman- Phyllis Lindstrom
John Lawlor- Leonard
Henry Jones- Judge Dexter
Judith Lowry- Mother Dexter
Tomorrow: A hit from an SNL cast member
365 Days of Sitcoms 