Patty Duke Show, The (TV Series) (DVD)

In 1963, 17-year-old Patty Duke took the stage to accept a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her dramatic and inspired performance as the blind Helen Keller in "The Miracle Worker." That same year, she cut loose--split, you might say--as a goofy, boy-crazy American teen whose demure, identical cousin from Europe comes to stay with the family. Duke played both a Gidget-type in Patty Lane, and a reserved, almost matronly young woman in cousin Cathy, with well-traveled character actor William Schallert as the father and Jean Byron the mother. Paul O'Keefe played little brother Ross, who was basically there for the cousins to react to and everyone to pick on. I'm sure he's in therapy now.

But seriously, the Sixties were a golden age for sitcoms, and the first season that "The Patty Duke Show" aired, the top TV show in America was "The Beverly Hillbillies." Seven out of the top 10 shows were sitcoms. "The Patty Duke Show" finished at Number 18, ahead of shows like "Gunsmoke," "Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color," "McHale's Navy," and "Dr. Kildare." Duke was a cutie and she had charisma--times two, in this show--so drawing a 23.9 share of the audience was really not surprising, given her Oscar star power.

The second season the audience dropped off a bit, though the episodes were just as consistently written and performed. It came in at Number 28. As sitcoms go, it was pretty average, though Duke's perky Patty character brought a nice energy to each episode. What makes it an average sitcom rather than a superior one are the hackneyed plots that seem to be standard-issue for situation comedies. Some of the episodes are even blatant rip-offs of the first season. Produced by William Asher (who gave us "Bewitched"), "The Patty Duke" show relies on the old formulas and hits some of them several times this season too. That they're still entertaining is more a tribute to the cast and dialogue than the formulas themselves.

The draw for contemporary audiences is that this family comedy does a pretty good job of showcasing attitudes and activities from an era that now seems as quaint as a cottage with a white picket fence. And the hair ranges from ducktails to doper-dos. Episodes this season involve building a soap box derby racer, a father-daughter dance, an attempt to join the Peace Corps, and dating so proper that it'll surely strike today's teens and 'tweens as unbelievable. Same with the politeness. But hey, it wouldn't hurt for a little of that to rub off. My kids (ages 12 and 8) have gotten into this show, though the girl likes it considerably better than the boy--for obvious reasons. "The Patty Duke Show" has a real Dear Diary feel to it.

Thirty-six episodes are included on six single-sided discs, housed in three slim, clear plastic keep cases and tucked inside a colorful cardboard slipcase. Here's a rundown on the episodes, as described in a wonderful six-page booklet that's printed on both covers:

1) "The Green-Eyed Monster." Jealousy erupts within Richard when Geoffrey Davis III returns to town and begins courting Patty.

2) "Practice Makes Perfect." Much to the dismay of the Lane family, Patty shows off her lack of musical talent when she decides to take up tuba lessons.

3) "Simon Says." Anger fills the halls of the high school after Patty's new advice column for the school paper goes from helping couples to breaking them up!

4) "Patty, the Organizer." To win more household privileges, Patty spearheads a new union: UAFUM, the United Association for Unprotected Minors.

5) "Patty, the Pioneer." To defend the honor of "spoiled teens" everywhere, Patty volunteers to live the life of a pioneer for one week, but the lessons learned from her experience come a little harder than she expects.

6) "The Boy Next Door." When a cute boy moves in next door to the Lanes, a bitter war is waged between the two identical swooning cousins.

7) "Patty, the People's Voice." The democratic process becomes tough for Patty and Cathy when they come to realize that the candidate running for office against Martin's boss is actually the better choice.

8) "The Greatest Psychologist in the World." Patty uses her keen skills in psychology to convince her parents to let her attend the Harvard prom with Sue Ellen's cousin, Rip.

9) "Patty and the Peace Corps." Excited about the prospect of helping a third-world country, Patty lies about her age and joins the Peace Corps. There's just one problem: her parents don't know!

10) "How to Succeed in Romance." When Cathy falls for the shy new boy at school, she asks her much more outgoing cousin for advice. Meanwhile, the shy boy, Christopher, is getting advice from Richard about Cathy. With all this "helpful" advice, can the two teens ever get together?

11) "Block That Statue." Cathy enamors the high school football hero, but she just isn't interested. What can she do?

12) "This Little Patty Went to Market." On discovering all the money to be made in the stock market, the entrepreneur in Patty decides it's time to form her own marketing company: Patty Lane, Inc.

13) "Best Date in Town." When her father's called out of town on an important newspaper assignment, Patty is left disappointed--and dateless--for the eagerly anticipated father-daughter dance.

In 1963, 17-year-old Patty Duke took the stage to accept a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her dramatic and inspired performance as the blind Helen Keller in "The Miracle Worker." That same year, she cut loose--split, you might say--as a goofy, boy-crazy American teen whose demure, identical cousin from Europe comes to stay with the family. Duke played both a Gidget-type in Patty Lane, and a reserved, almost matronly young woman in cousin Cathy, with well-traveled character actor William Schallert as the father and Jean Byron the mother. Paul O'Keefe played little brother Ross, who was basically there for the cousins to react to and everyone to pick on. I'm sure he's in therapy now.

But seriously, the Sixties were a golden age for sitcoms, and the first season that "The Patty Duke Show" aired, the top TV show in America was "The Beverly Hillbillies." Seven out of the top 10 shows were sitcoms. "The Patty Duke Show" finished at Number 18, ahead of shows like "Gunsmoke," "Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color," "McHale's Navy," and "Dr. Kildare." Duke was a cutie and she had charisma--times two, in this show--so drawing a 23.9 share of the audience was really not surprising, given her Oscar star power.

The second season the audience dropped off a bit, though the episodes were just as consistently written and performed. It came in at Number 28. As sitcoms go, it was pretty average, though Duke's perky Patty character brought a nice energy to each episode. What makes it an average sitcom rather than a superior one are the hackneyed plots that seem to be standard-issue for situation comedies. Some of the episodes are even blatant rip-offs of the first season. Produced by William Asher (who gave us "Bewitched"), "The Patty Duke" show relies on the old formulas and hits some of them several times this season too. That they're still entertaining is more a tribute to the cast and dialogue than the formulas themselves.

The draw for contemporary audiences is that this family comedy does a pretty good job of showcasing attitudes and activities from an era that now seems as quaint as a cottage with a white picket fence. And the hair ranges from ducktails to doper-dos. Episodes this season involve building a soap box derby racer, a father-daughter dance, an attempt to join the Peace Corps, and dating so proper that it'll surely strike today's teens and 'tweens as unbelievable. Same with the politeness. But hey, it wouldn't hurt for a little of that to rub off. My kids (ages 12 and 8) have gotten into this show, though the girl likes it considerably better than the boy--for obvious reasons. "The Patty Duke Show" has a real Dear Diary feel to it.

Thirty-six episodes are included on six single-sided discs, housed in three slim, clear plastic keep cases and tucked inside a colorful cardboard slipcase. Here's a rundown on the episodes, as described in a wonderful six-page booklet that's printed on both covers:

1) "The Green-Eyed Monster." Jealousy erupts within Richard when Geoffrey Davis III returns to town and begins courting Patty.

2) "Practice Makes Perfect." Much to the dismay of the Lane family, Patty shows off her lack of musical talent when she decides to take up tuba lessons.

3) "Simon Says." Anger fills the halls of the high school after Patty's new advice column for the school paper goes from helping couples to breaking them up!

4) "Patty, the Organizer." To win more household privileges, Patty spearheads a new union: UAFUM, the United Association for Unprotected Minors.

5) "Patty, the Pioneer." To defend the honor of "spoiled teens" everywhere, Patty volunteers to live the life of a pioneer for one week, but the lessons learned from her experience come a little harder than she expects.

6) "The Boy Next Door." When a cute boy moves in next door to the Lanes, a bitter war is waged between the two identical swooning cousins.

7) "Patty, the People's Voice." The democratic process becomes tough for Patty and Cathy when they come to realize that the candidate running for office against Martin's boss is actually the better choice.

8) "The Greatest Psychologist in the World." Patty uses her keen skills in psychology to convince her parents to let her attend the Harvard prom with Sue Ellen's cousin, Rip.

9) "Patty and the Peace Corps." Excited about the prospect of helping a third-world country, Patty lies about her age and joins the Peace Corps. There's just one problem: her parents don't know!

10) "How to Succeed in Romance." When Cathy falls for the shy new boy at school, she asks her much more outgoing cousin for advice. Meanwhile, the shy boy, Christopher, is getting advice from Richard about Cathy. With all this "helpful" advice, can the two teens ever get together?

11) "Block That Statue." Cathy enamors the high school football hero, but she just isn't interested. What can she do?

12) "This Little Patty Went to Market." On discovering all the money to be made in the stock market, the entrepreneur in Patty decides it's time to form her own marketing company: Patty Lane, Inc.

13) "Best Date in Town." When her father's called out of town on an important newspaper assignment, Patty is left disappointed--and dateless--for the eagerly anticipated father-daughter dance.