Blondie

NOTE: I had originally written most of this review on August 3, 2015 and had submitted this in the episode # 6 entry which is now deleted.

Dagwood is asked by his boss, Mr. Dithers (Robert Burton), to buy a certain gun using Dithers' money. His wife and kids, Alexander (Stuffy Singer) and Cookie (Mimi Gibson), see Dag at a sports store talking to a Mr. Miller (Joseph Kearns) thinking the gun is for him. (It's Dag's birthday) and Blondie keeps coming back to get it for him raising the price doing so. Dagwood keeps having to do the same as well. Anyway, this was a little funny much of the time possibly due to director Abby Berlin's timing. He had previously been an assistant to director Frank Strayer on the initial series of Blondie movies before taking over after he left. Berlin would eventually do other things before his death on August 9, 1965. Other players include Lucien Littlefield as Mr. Beasley the mailman, Robin Raymond as Tootsie Woodley, and Isabel Withers as Mrs. Cora Dithers. The last one had previously played HARRIET Woodley in the final one of the Blondie movie entries-Beware of Blondie. Pamela Britton was Blondie and Hal Le Roy was Dagwood. He and Arthur Lake, besides both having played Mr. Bumstead, had also once played Harold Teen, Lake in a silent version and Le Roy in a musical one. I also have reviewed on this site a further ep of this series with Lake and Ms. Britton called "Puppy Love" which is #17...

Dagwood and Blondie Bumstead were brought to life by revered cartoonist Chic Young and quickly debuted in a syndicated comic strip in September 1930. In newspapers coast to coast "Blondie" became the big cartoon buzz, growing to become the most popular comic strip in America. "Blondie" follows the comedic misadventures of Dagwood Bumstead, a naive, uncoordinated man whose main enthusiasm is eating. He runs afoul with his boss Mr. Dithers and at home with his wife Blondie raising their children and dogs. Young drew over 15,000 strips until his death in 1973. Since then his son has taken on the role for what continues to be a popular syndicated comic published today in papers throughout the world. The immense success of the comic strip was a natural match to be released as a series of comic books beginning in the 1940s. It also led to Columbia Pictures releasing 28 low budget Blondie films from 1938-1950. Similarly, a radio program ran from 1949-1950. Two separate television series (1957 and 1968-67, respectively) were formed and each ran for one lone season. Animated cartoons appeared throughout the 80s. A wide variety of merchandise has been released and even restaurants formed featuring Dagwood's famously large sandwich. There's a recipe for "The Dagwood", which has entered people's lexicon for a large sandwich. "Blondie" left it's impression in the world in becoming one of the most popular comic strips ever created.

The first television series was released by Hal Roach Studios, running from January 4, 1957- July 5, 1957 and followed situations of the comic strip. It starred an embracingly typecast Arthur Lake who also portrayed Dagwood in the film series. The role of Blondie went to Pamela Britton, familiar to classic TV fans as neighbor Lorelei Brown in "My Favorite Martian". Harold Peary, known as radio hit "The Great Gildersleeve" has a recurring role as Dagwood's friend Herb Woodley.

Reflecting upon the series, "Blondie" proves how difficult it is to turn a comic strip into a successful sitcom. The first few episodes started decently before really languishing through most of its run and picking up steam near the end. That's a shame, really, as it finally seemed the cast was comfortably gelling. Many plot elements are a reach, but that's forgivable being its fun-first comic roots. Still, some episodes are hard to watch as a result. Some became hard to watch because of Blondie's character being so self-centered to the point of being mean spirited. Until the end the comedy was really hit or miss or failing to live up to its potential, but had its moments. Some of the best comedy was misinterpreting a situation. In that regard I personally found the best episodes to be "The Rummage Sale" and "Follow That Man". The beginning and end of the series is worth a look for classic TV fans, and of course for fans of "Blondie".

Having been a long time fan of both the Chic Young comic strip and the Blondie movies starring Dagwood lookalike Arthur Lake and lovely Penny Singleton, I was looking forward to seeing it all on television. When the show premiered in January 1957 I was thirteen and stayed home from a basketball game I wanted to see just to watch. Arhtur Lake would reprise his role as Dagwood but Pamela Britton, who is best remembered as the nosy landlady in the later popular TV series "My Favorite Martian," would take Penny Singleton's part as the star of the series. Was I disappointed. How I wish I had gone to the ballgame instead.

What went wrong? The writers included Chic Young himself. All the characters were there with one of my favorite radio personalities Harold Peary, The Great Gildersleeve, in the role of Herb Woodley. The humor fell flat. The show was one big bore. The cast did their best with what they had. Yet none of it jelled. I only watched the first few episodes, hoping that it would improve. Alas, I finally stopped watching as did all the other Blondie fans apparently. The show was canceled the same year it premiered.

By all means, watch those wonderful Blondie movies (nineteen or so) or read the cleverly written comic strip. Don't waste your time on trying to track down any of the 26 episodes that are stored away in that great early television library somewhere.

Back in the 1930s and 40s, the Blondie & Dagwood films were very popular....so popular they made 28 of them!! Not surprisingly, about a decade later, they tried a television version but it only lasted a single season. Oddly, they made it without any of the original cast other than Arthur Lake (Dagwood)...and Penny Singleton was replaced by Pamela Britton ("My Favorite Martian") and Mr. Dithers (who was played by a couple different actors in the films) was replaced as well. Now it did make sense to re-cast the kids...as by now the originals were just too old to play the parts.

I don't think the series failed because of the new cast. Instead, I think it was the inconsistencies in the writing. The episodes ranged from excellent to terrible...and I am sure this didn't help the show! My biggest complaint is that some of the shows portrayed characters in a mean-spirited manner....which is crazy, as the charm of the films were the nice characters. In one episode, for example, in "Husbands Once Removed", Blondie convinces Dagwood they aren't married and makes him pay rent and cuts him off physically and emotionally....even though he'd done nothing wrong and was generally a wonderful husband! She just wanted to 'keep him on his toes'....and she seemed really mean in this one. Likewise, in "Follow That Man", Mr. Dithers thinks Dagwood is embezzling from him!! I can only assume they ran out of ideas and the series had pretty much run its course. Worth seeing if you can find the DVD set but certainly not as lovable as the films.

One of the bigger victims of typecasting was Arthur Lake. After a while no one could see him as anything else but the henpecked Dagwood Bumstead from the Blondie comics. Lake did a series of films for Columbia Pictures that ended in 1951 based on Chic Young's comic strip. One of the reasons it came to an end was the blacklist troubles of Penny Singleton playing Blondie.

While Lake lived there was no one else who could remotely be considered for the part of Dagwood and he was considered for nothing else. So in 1957 Blondie got revived for television with Pamela Britton as Blondie. Their two children were Stuffy Singer and Ann Barnes. The Woodleys the ever prying neighbors were Harold Peary and Hollis Irving. And Dagwood's boss J.C. Dithers was Florenz Ames.

Dagwood was a trip. Those eight inch concoctions of sandwich he made, his constant collisions with the poor mailman while racing for the bus. Honestly I never figured out why this guy just didn't time his deliveries when he knew Lake was at work. And his razor like mind when it came to math. I still remember those adding machine noises he made while working with figures. All in his head and he was always right. Today he'd be working at some top secret government project.

It was a funny show, but sad to say it only lasted a season. And poor Arthur Lake could never get another role.