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RainyNightinGA (6)
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I feel this way about the final years of the show (Season 7-8) too. To me, the biggest issue was that Gracie was less involved in the storylines due to her health issues/wanting to retire, so most of the plots were centered around Ronnie. While I do think that Ronnie was a positive addition to the show (and enabled it to continue past Season 5), he and his friends just weren't very interesting. When the show moved back to California after the New York season there were too many repeated plots with Brian McAfee failing his classes, Bonnie Sue trying to break into movies, etc. The only new character I really liked was Mr. Jansen the plumber (played by Howard McNear).
I thought George's magic TV was funny at times (such as when he used it to mess with the Mortons), but it was relied on too much and made the plots feel too contrived/manufactured. Gracie become more Lucy-like and scheming, rather than innocently mixing things up with her illogical logic. I also noticed that Harry Morton became nastier to Blanche and lacked the tenderness that he occasionally showed in the earlier seasons.
However, these final seasons weren't all bad. Harry Von Zell stole the show with his antics and physical comedy. And Bea Benaderet was wonderful as always. It was great to see the show evolve over time as they transitioned from radio to live TV to filmed TV.
I’m curious if anyone knows why Norman Curtis stopped appearing after Season 1. I agree that there definitely seemed to be a mutual attraction between Kate and Mr. Curtis. He was a good foil to Homer Bedloe too. Perhaps the actor was unavailable?
Uncle Joe was a much better character in the first season. He was more loving with Kate and the girls, and didn’t cause as much trouble as he did in Season 2-onward. I’m not sure why the writers thought making him more obnoxious would be more appealing to viewers. His shenanigans were a better fit on Green Acres than on PJ.
Interesting discussion. Personally, watching her episodes over and over I think she had the right to be picky— most of the men put in her path were either clearly the wrong fit or plain lousy. I thought the delicatessen owner (played by Sid Melton in Season 4) was a little too pushy with all the flowers and attention, and basically wanting Sally to “trip into love” with him. He was sweet but basically pitying Sally into dating him. Not exactly romantic.
I don’t think a dominating force like Sally would have survived a marriage with Herman Glimscher. He brought a lot of comedy as a mama’s boy, but I don’t think he was “the one” for Sally.
Personally I think Sally was only compatible with Buddy; they understood each other’s humor and quirks and could keep each other in line. Yet, Buddy stayed married to Pickles...
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