The Patty Duke Show

The Patty Duke Show stands as a testament to the acting ability of Patty Duke, who truly created two completely different characters as Patty and Cathy Lane. The stories, written in the main by Sidney Sheldon are heartwarming and typical of early 1960s sitcom scripts. William Schallert and Jean Byron were wonderful as Martin and Natalie, and wasn't Jean Byron one of the most gorgeous of all sitcom moms? Paul O'Keefe was suitably mischievous as little brother Ross, and Eddie Applegate was fine as the slightly oafish Richard Harrison, Patty's boyfriend (most of the time). Patty Duke herself was going through some really rough times during the filming of this show, and only in recent years has she been able to embrace what a good show it was and how truly good her performances were in it. How she escaped winning a best-actress Emmy for this show is beyond me. To this day there are those who still think that two actresses played these roles. Other actresses tried to emulate playing dual roles on their series, but Patty was absolutely the best at it. It must have been grueling work to essay two parts on a week-to-week basis. The series was filmed in New York for it's first two seasons because of the more relaxed child labor laws which allowed the producers to work Ms. Duke more hours than would have been possible if the show were filmed in California. The Patty Duke Show is fondly remembered by those who grew up watching it. It certainly holds up better than the current crop of sitcoms will in the future. And the theme song is maybe one of the all-time best.

I grew up on the Patty Duke show. I looked forward to coming home from school and watching it with my friends. We would take turns watching it at each other's houses. It had everything. It was funny. Some of the pranks were hilarious. It taught family values and, even if you didn't always see eye to eye all the time, how important your family was. The Patty Duke Show also taught morality. It showed kids how to have a good time just being with friends and family without any of the vices that kids unfortunately rely on today. It basically showed just how to enjoy being young. I have three teen-age boys. They love old music and old shows, and I just wish I had the opportunity to share this very special show with them. I would really appreciate it if you could bring it to TV Land.

I only stumbled across this classic 1960s sitcom about two months ago, having been vaguely aware of its existence beforehand and only knowing Patty Duke - who I couldn't have picked out of a line-up - as being Sean Astin's mum. After watching the insanely catchy opening credits, I decided to watch an episode of the series for two main reasons: (a) I've always been a big fan of the wonderful character actor William Schallert, who is probably best known for playing Nilz Baris in the classic "Star Trek" episode "The Trouble with Tribbles" and who still occasionally acts at nearly 91 and (b) there was an adorable Old English Sheepdog. Having previously owned one, I'm extremely partial to the breed! I wasn't expecting much, if I'm honest, but I found it to be an utterly charming and very funny series from the get go and began watching it from the beginning. Well, the dog disappeared without explanation about halfway through the first season but otherwise no complaints from me!

The series' premise may be a bit far-fetched but, considering the 1960s produced sitcoms featuring witches, genies and talking horses, it's pretty damn realistic, comparatively speaking. It concerns 16-year-old Cathy Lane (Patty Duke), the daughter of a globetrotting foreign correspondent, going to live with her uncle Martin (William Schallert) and aunt Natalie (Jean Byron) in Brooklyn Heights. Martin and Natalie have a daughter named Patty who is the same age as Cathy and just happens to look absolutely identical to her. The "explanation" for this is that Cathy and Patty's fathers are identical twins, which is quite funny as Patty Duke doesn't resemble William Schallert (who plays Cathy's father Kenneth in a few episodes) even slightly! While the premise is certainly gimmicky, the cousins' resemblance is used as a plot device far less than you might think. It's mostly an excuse for Patty Duke to play two completely different characters, the constantly scheming and slightly crazy Patty and the quiet, polite and demure Cathy, which she does to perfection. I sometimes forget that they are played by the same person. She won an Oscar at the age of 16 and it's easy to see why. Rounding out the main cast are Paul O'Keefe as Patty's wisecracking little brother Ross and Eddie Applegate as Richard Harrison, her gormless but good-natured half-puppy, half-ape of a boyfriend.

Most episodes focus on Patty's dating life or feature her jumping into a new project or scheme with a huge amount of (i.e. too much) enthusiasm, realising that she's gotten in over her head and being rescued by either Cathy or her parents. Cathy often acts as Patty's conscience and puts her back on the right track. The best thing about Patty is that, rather unusually for sitcoms of the era, she was a multi-faceted character who could at turns be kind, manipulative, sweet, egotistical, vulnerable and a fire storm. Cathy is a bit more one note at times but that's okay as she was designed as a foil for Patty anyway. William Schallert and the late Jean Byron are both extremely good as Patty's kind, patient, loving and often extremely understanding parents as they make Martin and Natalie seem like real people. They have fast become one of favourite TV fathers and mothers.

The humour is the series is gentle, generally producing a steady stream of chuckles and the occasional belly laugh in this fan, with many of the funniest lines being delivered (perfectly) by Paul O'Keefe, who was only 12 when the series started, almost all of which are at Patty's expense. It's a shame that he never got another big role (and only a few small ones) after the series ended. From what I can tell, the series is an accurate if idealised depiction of middle class 1960s America with Patty being a typical American teenager of the era, albeit one who faces more farcical situations and less serious problems than her real life counterparts. Overall, the Lanes feel like a real family, which isn't often the case with sitcom families of the era.

One thing that I found refreshing about the series is that quite a few of the extras, particularly in the school scenes, are African-Americans, which again wasn't common in late 1950s and early 1960s sitcoms. Apparently, only one single solitary black person appears in "Leave It to Beaver", which ran for 234 episodes. However, none of them are in Patty and Cathy's circle of friends and in the first two seasons only two black people - one of them being Sammy Davis, Jr. - have any dialogue. Still, it was a baby step in the right direction.

I'm curious to see how well and how fondly remembered the series is by people who watched it while it was originally on from 1963 to 1966. For those of you who aren't familiar with it, I can't recommend it highly enough. The acting, particularly from Patty Duke and William Schallert, and comic writing are both top notch. As an Irish person born in 1987, I'm proof that you don't need to be an American baby boomer to enjoy the series!

Having grown up in the 60's I like thousands of other boys fell in love with Patty Duke! Wednesdays at 8:30 on ABC were reserved for our date with Patty and Cathy! The show was so well done and Patty was wonderful as the 2 completely different cousins! It is a shame that television does not offer such wholesome entertainment today! I am a teacher and have shown my class clips from this show and believe it or not even inner city kids found this 60's relic entertaining! I hope TV Land brings it back!

This is a very good classic sit-com and gives a real sense of the mid 1960s America. The writing, direction and cast are superior to more famous shows from the same time. These episodes hold up surprisingly well. The writing is fairly intelligent and easy to take. Until now, only a few episodes have been available to see. THIS TV seems to be running the entire series right now. The films look excellent. This series is a real testament to Patty Duke's incredible acting. Her Cathy and Patty characters are so believably different. This is probably the finest performance of one actor portraying 2 different people in the same movie. This show was not highly regarded when it was first produced. Seeing it now, one must acknowledge that it was among the best of its time. William Schallert also deserves recognition for his wonderful, pivotal performances.