Thursday, August 20, 2009

1.11.: Parity Begins At Home

"I am stupid."
"No!"
"I am smart?"
"No, you're not smart either..."

The show is now right there...right where I always thought it was. In that hilarious zone that too few American sitcoms reach. This episode is firing on all cylinders but, and this is why it's in that zone, it's not one of the absolute best. It's just funny, well-paced and fun. It has Lisa being dumb, charming and sexy; it has Oliver being funny, flustered and heroic in his own special way. Everyone else, except Eb, has a nice moment. The guest cast (including Jesse White in a very funny turn) add a little extra but do not in any way overshadow the regulars. Jay & Dick have written a strong script that has a main plot and tons of other business around it. And, Richard L. Bare, our consummate director always puts the camera in the perfect spot for the laugh. (Not as easy as you'd think.)

Act 1 has Oliver and Lisa spending most of their time goofing around the farm. Oliver is ready to plant his 160 acres with wheat. Lisa messes up her first load of wash. We learn the way the shower works. (Lisa describes it best in the episode but I didn't write it down. Suffice it to say, the shower is outside. Depending upon who is showering, they yell "Lisa" or "Oliver" and the water turns on and off.) Meanwhile, the Crabwell Corners Stabilization and Conservation Committee, which consists of two gentleman, are handing out allotments to all the farmers. There is an over-complicated system that tells farmers how much of a certain crop they can plant. They learn about Oliver buying the Haney place and decide to visit him.

Act 2 has the Committee arrive at the Douglas farm and see Lisa in the shower. One of the few (if only) times in the show that Eva Gabor does not have a wig on to accentuate her hair. And, frankly, she looks great in the shower. When she steps out with her towel, we get a moment, which, I would imagine, was rather racy for the time, of her in a fur bikini-type thing and the towel. Lisa's not a modest lady. And, it's a surprising moment. But, it's shrugged off as "nothing out of the ordinary" when Oliver steps out and says hello to the guys and not "What are you guys doing watching my wife take a shower?" The City Folks are a little more cosmopolitan. Anyway... The Committee (through much good comedy) tells Oliver that he can only plant a small amount of his land with wheat due to the law. Oliver goes nuts and calls a town meeting. He will send a petition to Washington to protest this law!

Act 3 wraps it up nicely. I won't give the final bit away but... Mr. Kimball shows up with the Hooterville World Guardian that has Oliver on the front page. ("New Resident Starts Trouble") Oliver will not back down even when Mr. Kimball reads him the law in, probably, the funniest moment of the episode. The framing of the shot as Oliver listens to the law while Hank reads is brilliant. Oliver is listening intently and, with each word, he starts to lose the point of it. His response and his delivery (in the next shot), when Hank finishes, is hilarious. It makes me laugh every time. But, in the end, everything's all right and Oliver can plant all he wants and Lisa messes up the wash again.

Watching this episode is like listening to Rubber Soul (by the Beatles, just in case). They have so much wonderful music and Rubber Soul is not their best but it's a group hitting it again and again. If it's not their best, it's only because, at other times, they've done just a little bit better. They're so good that when they just do their job they kick ass, naturally. That's what this episode is...a show that is already in such a good place that an average episode like this one has everything you could want. Now, is this hyperbole? Am I going overboard? Possibly. But, I'll tell you why I do this...

Back in 1986, this was the first episode of Green Acres that I decided to record.

Well, story time...And stop me if you've heard this but...

I begin 6th grade in the Fall of 1985. New home, new school. Bit of a teething problem at the start. I went to a Catholic School so we were one big class that sat together all day. We had 5 boys and about 14 girls. As you can imagine, a room full of 12-13 year olds can get fairly unruly in more ways that one. We were no different. (Most of that, however, is for another blog or a John Hughes-style film.) But, as the new kid, I got picked on. And, much to my shame, I did something I shouldn't have: There was one other new person. Her name was Debbie and she was overweight. In order to stop myself getting picked on, I picked on her, which deflected everyone away from me. It was rotten and I did apologize later. But, it was too late. Catholic Guilt has set it in and, whenever I dwell on it, I think "Dammit! What an asshead I was." Sorry, Debbie. You probably had to put up with too much of that in your life. I should have been a better person.

So, Green Acres...isn't it great? How about that Hank Kimball?

I would get home from school a little after 3. I'd do my homework (always a breeze) and, for those first few weeks kind of flail around. With no one to play with, I was left to my own devices. Sometimes in the past I'd watch TV (You Can't Do That On Television, mainly) but now I began to totally immerse myself in it (I had a subscription to TV Guide for a year) with the assistance of our VCRs, mainly one of our Betamax players. I began taping lots of TV shows and watching them whenever. I rarely watched something when it aired (and this was late 1985). But, there was one run of shows that I watched religiously...on the CBN Network, starting at 4PM every weekday.

4:00 - Hazel and a bowl of ice cream
4:30 - Father Knows Best
5:00 - Green Acres

Three sitcoms that seem to come from different eras. Father Knows Best was a radio show transplanted to TV. It's sometimes wacky, sometimes fuzzy. Hazel has the calmest laugh track ever on it. I thought I was watching a drama the first time I tuned in. Then, I heard these calm distant laughs and thought "Oh! A sitcom." Green Acres is...well, you know.

But, I enjoyed all three. I fear Hazel may no longer interest me unless I have a bowl of ice cream every time I watch. Father Knows Best I prefer on radio now. Why? I don't know. I just do. Maybe I like to create the town and home in my mind. Maybe in my "Father Knows Best Reviews" column, which may never happen, I'll go into that. Green Acres, however, kicked me right in the slats.

I started watching the show near the end of its run, mid-to-late Season Six. And, I adored it. It was funny and weird and, get this, I laughed at things happening on it! Didn't happen much on sitcoms. Then, one day, the show looped back to the beginning and I got to see everything build up around Oliver and Lisa. And, with Parity Begins At Home, I began taping it. Day after day, week after week, month after month. Summer of '86 - Went to Boy Scout Camp and canoed 100 miles through the lakes of Upstate New York and Canada - Meanwhile back home, my sister taped each episode for me. By the end of eight grade, I had apx. 150 of the 170 episodes on Beta. And, it was awesome.

They would show them in order, generally. Every once in a while they'd throw in a random one but they were pretty consistent. They just kept skipping some episodes. And, after I'd gone through once and got everything I could, it became tougher to get the stragglers. I'd have to tune in or tape it just to see if it was one I had. Generally, it was. As high school began, I drifted to slasher films but my Beta collection of Green Acres stood proud and tall. Until, by the mid 90's, both our Betas had broken down...

Columbia House helped. I got 11 VHS tapes from them with 44 uncut episodes. Then, the MGM discs gave me Seasons 1-3. 92 episodes of magic. Then, TV Land provided the rest (except for one) and here I am...I still watch it as I used to. When I'm in a GA mood, I throw on a disc and just watch until I can't watch no more. Back in the 80's, it was a Beta tape and a whirlwind. I used to tape the five episodes of the week and then, on Friday night, sit and watch all five. My Goodness, I had a great time.

It was (is) such a joyous show, rarely mean-spirited, full of great characters that made me laugh. That's why I started this blog. To try and transfer some of my joy over to you...I remember my Uncle Roger, one cold night in 1986, watching some episodes with me and saying "Green Acres? I remember this. Why are you watching this?" He was the man who introduced me to Doctor Who (the only TV show I prize above GA). I so wanted him to enjoy it. But, he seemed disinterested. I kept laughing and saying "Isn't that great?" but nothing.

Uncle Rog, you readin' this? Go watch some Green Acres. Payback for all the great stuff you introduced me to.

Everyone else...please continue enjoying. In the spirit of discovery, no more "Next Time" tags. Just know that, until we reach the end, there will be a next time.

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