MovieChat Forums > The Ropers (1979) Discussion > Mr. Roper or Mr. Furley?

Mr. Roper or Mr. Furley?

posted 16 years ago by bookman7772000
23 replies | jump to latest

In the annals of trivial TV debating (Darren #1 vs. Darren #2, the Shelly Long years of "Cheers" vs. the Kirstie Alley years), the Roper vs. Furley debate never seems to come up. So who is your preference? I'm going to have to go with Roper. As wonderful a comic actor as Don Knotts was, he seemed to be doing a caricature of his nervous, bug eyed, overly confident persona. He was just a little too over the top at times. I loved Furley, but Roper was THEE man. Norman Fell just seemed to nail the character. Can't believe he was never nominated for an emmy as best supporting actor ina comedy series.

[–] im2cool4 16 years ago

i like furley way more. He was just comedy every scene he was in,also i think he was given all the good lines

The Dude: Jesus.
Jesus Quintana: You said it, man. Nobody *beep* with the Jesus.

[–] sdlocalhead 16 years ago

I think of them as marking a shift from the 70s to the 80s. Mr. Roper was supposed to be a fuddy duddy, so he was more grouchy and wore the cardigan sweaters. Mr. Furley, dressed in his bright colors, polyester knits, and neckerchiefs, embodied the 70s after they had become passe.

But all around, I prefer Mr. Furley. You can never go wrong with Don Knotts.

[–] 16 years ago

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[–] msilva7-1 16 years ago

THEY WERE BOTH TREMENDOUS BUT ROPER WAS MORE NATURAL AND UNFORCED...KNOTTS WAS ALWAYS PERFORMING AND SOMETIMES UNNATURAL. THREE'S COULD HAVE BEEN ON TOP A LONG TIME HAD THE ROPERS STAYED...BLAME IT ON THOSE GREEDY REPULSIVE TV EXECS.

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[–] truhorrorfan1 16 years ago

This is a tough one since I honestly liked both characters for different reasons...Mr Roper always cracked me up when he looked into the camera after he poked fun at Helen, Jack et al...Mr Furley was funny because he swore he was "Casanova, Ladies Man" and was far from it...LOL, oh boy...I guess I'd go with Mr Furley by a very slim margin

PEACE & BLESSINGS

[–] seventiesflicksgirl 15 years ago

Mr. Roper, without a doubt. Three's Company was never the same after The Ropers left. Norman Fell & Audra Lindley were an absolute joy to watch. I enjoyed their performances. I wasn't a Don Knotts fan. However, putting that aside, I thought Mr. Furley was just plain goofy & not very funny.

[–] fishinbuddy2 15 years ago

Definitely Mr Roper. He was more real and was funny. Mr Furley just seemed over the top.

To expand more on the original posters remarks:

I liked the first Darren on Bewitched -the best

I liked the first Lionel Jefferson on the Jeffersons- the best.

I liked the first John Boy Walton on the Waltons- the best.

I liked the first Becky on Roseanne- the best

I liked Suzanne Summers better than the next two roomates that replaced her.

I liked Flo on the tv show Alice, better than her two replacements (Belle and Jolene)

I liked Kirstie Alley better than Shelley Long on Cheers.

and now you know. :-)

[–] 15 years ago

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[–] g_barnette2 12 years ago

hands down Mr Roper
My Furley was Barney Fife in a leisure suit and horny lol
same character fr Mayberry but now desiring women below the belt

[–] megafauna005 12 years ago

I'm a big fan of the Ropers and think their show should've ran several seasons but Don Knotts was naturaly funnier than the Ropers.

[–] 12 years ago

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[–] LouGrammFanForEver 12 years ago

I Like Mr. Roper Better He Was Funnier Than Mr. Furley!

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