The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet

1952

Seasons & Episodes

  • 14
  • 13
  • 12
  • 11
  • 10
  • 9
  • 8
  • 7
  • 6
  • 5
  • 4
  • 3
  • 2
  • 1
7.4| TV-G| en| More Info
Released: 03 October 1952 Ended
Producted By:
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Info

The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet is an American sitcom, airing on ABC from October 3, 1952 through March 26, 1966, starring the real life Nelson family. After a long run on radio, the show was brought to television where it continued its success, running on both radio and television for a few years. The series stars Ozzie Nelson and his wife, singer Harriet Nelson, and their young sons, David and Eric "Ricky" Nelson. Don DeFore had a recurring role as the Nelsons' friendly neighbor "Thorny".

Genre

Comedy, Family

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The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet Audience Reviews

Scanialara You won't be disappointed!
Matialth Good concept, poorly executed.
filippaberry84 I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.
Haven Kaycee It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film
rcj5365 Cannot believe that this series has stood the test of time. "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet" was for it's time groundbreaking, cutting edge for a family oriented show that was unheard of when it premiered on radio in 1944 and then made the transition to television in 1952. This was the show that brought Rick Nelson into America's living rooms and made it acceptable not only for it's standards but kept it's morals in check too. This was the sitcom where the husband never works while the wife stays home with the well-behaved kids...sometimes with hilarious and unpredictable results making it one of the funniest shows ever conceived for television. "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet" premiered on ABC-TV on October 3, 1952 and ran for an astounding fourteen seasons on the air until April 23,1966 starring the entire Nelson family which included Ozzie Nelson his wife Harriet Nelson and sons David and Ricky Nelson. The series produced an astounding 435 episodes with seasons 1 thru 13 telecast and filmed in black and white with the 14th and final season of the series produced in color. Out of the 435 episodes that it produced a total of 409 episodes were in black and white from October 3, 1952 until March 17, 1965. The 14th and final season produced 26 episodes in color from September 18, 1965 until April 23, 1966. "Ozzie and Harriet" became the second longest running family sitcom in television history behind "My Three Sons". The sponsors were The American Gas Company, Proctor and Gamble, The Eastman Kodak Company, Quaker Oats Company, The Chrysler Corporation, Heinz Ketchup, and The Colgate-Palmotive Company throughout the series entire 14 season run.Ozzie Nelson was the creator-writer and executive producer of the series but also the director of several episodes as well. Ozzie Nelson directed a total of 358 episodes between 1952-1966. David Nelson directed 8 episodes of the series between 1963-1965. Writers include Dick Bensfield, Bill Davenport, Ben Gershman, Perry Grant, Don Nelson, and Jay Sommers. Ozzie Nelson along with Harriet Nelson, David Nelson, and Rick Nelson appeared in all 435 episodes of the series with the supporting cast members Don De Fore, Parley Baer, Lyle Talbot, Mary Jane Croft, Connie Harper, James Stacy, Joe Flynn, Kent McCord, and Frank Cady. The show had a low key style to it but when the boys got married that show had outlived it appeal and when the show went into it's fourteen and final season in color in the fall of 1965 ABC moved it to an earlier time slot(on Saturday nights) which led to it's cancellation in the spring of 1966 when the series was moved in favor of Batman. By 1966, the youth counter culture was changing and so was the television landscape as well,but for a series that was family friendly and had great appeal the times were changing that saw "Ozzie and Harriet" end it's astounding run on television and made it's place in cultural history.
Tmechanic54 yes I did watch as a kid,BUT,little did I realize,my future (1st)wife,(Deborah Schneider/then of La Mirada Ca./was on an episode!! I don't remember it as a kid, but her family showed me an 8mm(silent)home movie clip they took then,David and Ricky had to "kid-sit",and she sat on his lap, he sang to her....but don't know which song!!(8mm & Super8 were "silent").If someone knows, please send to this site,(since my P/C was stolen, have to use "public"(lib) computer. Still see her every now and then,shes still OK.. got to add some-more to "send"...thanks..>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>.......>>>>>>>>>.......>>>>>>>>.. Max Clayton,San Bernardino,Ca..
Little-Mikey Ah, those were the days. THE ADVENTURES OF OZZIE AND HARRIET was such a wonderful piece of Americana, back in the days when the neighbor came in through the back door to pay his pal a visit. Nowadays, when the neighbor comes in through the back door, it's to spend a little time with his pal's wife! Sad to say, many people would consider the comedy of this wonderful sitcom as being obsolete, giving the false notion that this show is not funny. Actually, this show was really very funny, in spite of the lack of crude humor, the lack of profanity and the lack of, dare I say? sexual situations.OZZIE AND HARRIET reminds me of that mythical sitcom featured on the movie, PLEASANTVILLE.Even though Ozzie's character wasn't the most assertive person around, he was still the man of the house and he did keep his family together. He certainly did a far better job as the man of the house than (sad to say) too many so-called assertive husbands today as the number of divorces and dysfunctional households continue to increase.The plots were funny enough. All those clever one-liners that took place throughout the program, only made what was originally a funny episode, even funnier, yet.Before jumping to the ignorant conclusion that this show was bland, one must also remember that this show was one of the first sitcoms to feature real rock and roll as later episodes featured Ricky Nelson performing his hits.This show not only brought rock and roll into American living rooms, it also made it acceptable to parents, proving that rock and roll music would not destroy American society.One story that was printed long after the series was canceled involved Ricky Nelson and his mother, Harriet. Unlike too many mothers of that era, who thought rock and roll posed a threat to modern society, Harriet commented that when she was Ricky's age, the older generation made the exact same comments (in the 1920s) about jazz.Another story that was printed involved Ricky Nelson's first encounter with Elvis Presley. Not knowing what to expect from this encounter, Ricky was surprised to discover that not only was Elvis a nice guy, he was also a big fan of THE ADVENTURES OF OZZIE AND HARRIET.
Westside-guy "Ozzie and Harriet" is often used as a buzzword for white-bread America: Husband runs the family spouting words of manly wisdom, while the wife stays home with the well-behaved kids. Funny thing is, the show really isn't like that. Ozzie is a guy who apparently never goes to work - it's a running gag throughout the show. His "great ideas" usually lead to disaster, and usually it's Harriet who quietly gets everything to turn out all right in the end. The kids, especially Ricky, often shoot off at the mouth. It was even Seinfeld-esque (and I say that as a rabid Seinfeld fan) - most episodes could fairly be described as being "about nothing".In truth it's one of the funniest shows ever on television. It was even cutting edge, for its time: Ozzie and Harriet slept in the same bed, which was unheard of. Ever see anyone on a TV show "break the fourth wall" (start talking to the camera)? This started on O&H - first with Ricky's end-of-show shrugs, and later with full-blown conversations directed to the camera. My personal favorite example of this is when Ozzie pretended to be a mind-reader (who of course no one recognized because of a cheesy goatee). When he gets exposed at the end, just about every character quips something or other straight into the camera.Do yourself a favor though. Don't start off with the late episodes where the boys are grown up and married. Those can be quite funny, but the show at times was just coasting on its reputation by then. Watch the earlier stuff from when the boys were little, when Thorny still lived next door. Give yourself time to get to know the characters, and you certainly won't regret it!