Dennis the Menace

Dennis the Menace was my favorite show growing up. I used to run from the school bus to my house to see it coming on. I would really like to have it on DVD. I hope it will be made available in the near future. Even though Dennis got into plenty of trouble, it was good, wholesome, clean viewing. I know plenty of children today(along with adults like me) would enjoy seeing it now. There was never any disrespect shown to adults in this program. It was always intriguing wondering what Dennis was going to get into in each episode. Everything always worked out in the end and it was just refreshing to watch something that was so entertaining. I would really enjoy seeing this show again. It is the kind of program that you can watch and laugh and forget about how hard the day may have been. Hopefully it will be made available soon.

Every time we heard this line we knew that trouble was coming. Jay North, Dennis Mitchell (The Miracle of the Hills) the cute kid who wore coveralls and carried a sling shot in his back pocket was walking chaos. He was well intended and did not mean to do anything wrong. He was so innocent, but he caused a thousand of dollars in losses for the entire neighborhood, especially for the Wilsons, his next door neighbors. George Wilson, Joseph Kearns (Anatomy of a Murder) and Martha Wilson, Sylvia Fields (Stewed, Fried and Boiled) were the empty nesters next door. The Mitchell's neighbors lived in perfect harmony, and in perfect little houses, things always got messy ultimately because of Dennis. Everybody laughed a lot watching the show, at least, I did. Henry Mitchell, Herbert Anderson (Rascal), and Alice Mitchell, Gloria Henry (Keeper of the Bees), were a nice couple but had the terror kid. I loved the series! There are "Dennises" everywhere I go. That series led me to watch the new Dennis the Menace with Walter Matthau as Mr. Wilson. My husband and I rolled with laughter watching it.

Until it was obvious that Jay North was entering puberty the Dennis The Menace Show ran for four years. After that some of Dennis's antics might have put him in juvenile court;

The only child of the adult Mitchells Herbert Anderson and Gloria Henry, Hank Ketcham's cartoon urchin was played by Jay North who had the right peroxide blond look for the part as Ketcham drew him.

Of course the favorite foil of Dennis was neighbor Joseph Kearns who struck the right note of curmudgeonlyness. There was also Mrs. Wilson who would have been the perfect grandmother if the Wilsons had grandkids, played by Sylvia Field.

This half hour show set in suburban ideal town USA and it had like Mayberry a host of familiar character players who might pop up in recurring roles. When Wilson wasn't around, Dennis menaced the others.

Kearns died during the run so he was replaced by Gale Gordon as brother John Wilson. Another glaring look and slow burn master.

Poor Jay North, his life was truly spoiled by the show. Still he was a television icon for a while.

It was a great TV show! I watch it every chance I get. When I first discovered the show about 12 years ago on Nickelodeon, I thought it was very funny and very unique, A bright boy with a lot of energy who is always wanting to help people out, especially his next door neighbor Mr. Wilson who Dennis drove crazy and quite often got him in trouble. I just could never figure out why his parents didn't punish Dennis more often for some of the trouble he got into. Never the

less, The TV show was funny up until the end of the 3rd season

when Joseph Kearns who played the 1st Mr. Wilson passed away. Joseph Kearns was the best, he played his role as Mr. Wilson

with a real inspiration. Gale Gordon, Who played Mr. Wilson towards the end of the 3rd season and all of the 4th season was good, but he just was not the character that Joseph Kearns was. Another thing you could tell is that Herbert Anderson (Henry Mitchell) got along with and worked better with Joseph Kearns then he did with Gale Gordon. I think it's quite obvious that Herbert Anderson liked working with Joseph Kearns a lot better then he did with Gale Gordon, it comes clear throughout the last season.

My wife and I watch this together and we both enjoy it. It has lots of good fun in every episode.