Come And Knock On Our Door....
We'll be waiting for you -- Picture courtesy of TVLand
by blogSpotter
One of my guilty TV pleasures from the late 70’s is the sitcom Three's Company. The show was based on a British show called Man About the House. It was written and produced by Don Nicholl, Michael Ross and Bernie West – previously well-known for All in the Family and The Jeffersons. At the time Three’s Company debuted in March ’77, I was on my college high horse, and thought it was a lowbrow piece of fluff. I couldn’t believe that Nicholl, Ross and West had defected from bright political humor to high school sexual innuendo. I wasn’t alone at the time; TV critic Bart Andrews listed the show in his book The Worst TV Shows Ever. The LA Times called it “…inane, cheap sexual humor about as funny as a mugging…”.
Critics can get it wrong. Does anyone remember Mr T and Tina or Holmes and Yo Yo? May these short-lived series rest in peace. They were given first shot by ABC in '77 and rated more kindly by the critics. Three's Company is indeed a sex-giggles-and-jiggles sitcom centered around an aspiring chef, Jack Tripper, rooming with beautiful blonde Chrissy Snow and sensible (but also comely) brunette Janet Wood. To keep their landlord, Mr. Roper, from evicting him on a “morals” premise, Tripper says that he’s gay and adds that there is nothing between him and his foxy roommates. There really is nothing between Jack and the two girls but a lot of flirtatious shenanigans. Mr. Roper’s wife, Mrs. Roper is frustrated because the Ropers have no sex life. She constantly makes scalding, sarcastic remarks to remind Mr. Roper how undersexed they are. Here is some sample dialog:
MR. ROPER, (fixing the plumbing): I haven’t got the right equipment
MRS. ROPER: You’re telling me!
Having dismounted from my college high horse, I’ve seen All in the Family episodes that now seem preachy and self-righteous. Then again, I’ve seen many Three’s Company episodes that can make me laugh until I fall off the couch. The late John Ritter was extremely gifted at physical pratfalls and he is said to have been one of Lucille Ball’s favorite actors. The entire cast was gifted in their astonished double-takes and Shakespearean quality mix-ups. The show had several bumps along the way – The Ropers were spun off to a short-lived show. Suzanne Somers left after four seasons in a contract dispute. Still in all, the show kept its wonderful wackiness until a poorly conceived last season where they tried to marry off Jack and surround him with a new cast.
Things to love about this show: the over-the-top 70’s style and attitude. As someone who lived the first round of 70’s disco-era artifacts, and appreciates the retro fare of Urban Outfitters, you have to love Jack’s tricolor terry cloth shirts and the 70’s Herculon couch going on. There was nothing really tasteful about this show – deliberately so; it was in some ways a precursor to Married With Children. A TV show doesn’t have to be tasteful, preach or educate; all it really needs to do is entertain. If you find yourself channel-surfing some evening, stop at the TVLand channel and catch an episode of Three’s Company – there’s hardly anything more entertaining.
© 2007 blogSpotter
Labels: Humor, Television
posted by blogspotter @ 8:44 PM
2 Comments:
From what I remember, it was considered a somewhat scandelous show when it debuted. How could a show that got straight people talking about the escapades of a gay man. Even into the late 80's I remember how taboo it was for a non-married couple to live together. Granted it was in the heart of the so-called Bible belt, it still shows the power of taboos to stick around. The nested fiction-in-fiction made it ok to watch, and ever so funny but don't underestimate what the show accomplished. What M.A.S.H. did for the Vietnam War, 'Three's Company' did for the War on Sex. By presenting the situations as farce and making the protagonist homosexual, the show shined a bright light onto lots of taboos which then had to scurry for cover. The writer who wrote about the Nixon White House (I can't remember whether it was All the President's Men or The Star Chamber) remarked that if he had thought about it, he would have written an absurd comedy about it. The absurd comedy of sex is none other than Three's Company
The ABC programming manager told the producers that he wanted 3's Company to do for sex what All in the Family did for politics and race relations. Think they succeeded there. :-)
Occurs to me that both the actors portraying the Ropers are passed away as well as Don Knotts and John Ritter. Reminds me of "Bewitched" where most of the cast has passed away (some way too young).
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