Angel (1960 TV series)
Angel is an American sitcom that aired on CBS during the 1960–1961 television season. The series was created and executive produced by Jess Oppenheimer, and stars Annie Fargé as the title character.
| Angel | |
|---|---|
 Angel Smith with her "Goat Dog", a wedding gift from Uncle Jacques (1961) | |
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Jess Oppenheimer |
| Written by | Jess Oppenheimer Jack Elinson Charles Stewart Irving Elinson Fred S. Fox Roswell Rogers Arthur Alsberg Bill Davenport Bob Fisher Alan Lipscott Joe Quillan |
| Directed by | Lamont Johnson Ezra Stone |
| Starring | Annie Fargé Marshall Thompson Doris Singleton Don Keefer |
| Theme music composer | Eliot Daniel Jess Oppenheimer |
| Composer(s) | Eliot Daniel Wilbur Hatch |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 33 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Jess Oppenheimer |
| Producer(s) | Edward H. Feldman |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 22–24 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Burlingame Productions CBS Films (filmed at the studios of Desilu) |
| Distributor | Viacom Paramount Network Television CBS Paramount Television CBS Television Distribution |
| Release | |
| Original network | CBS |
| Picture format | Black-and-white |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | October 6, 1960 – June 14, 1961 |
Synopsis
Annie Fargé portrayed Angelique "Angel" Smith, a pretty, young scatterbrained Frenchwoman who comes to the United States and marries a young architect, John Smith, played by Marshall Thompson. With her distinct French accent, Angel gets into various problems with the culture, language, and procedures in her new country.[1] In the episode "The Dentist", for instance, she learns she must pay when late for her appointment with the dentist (played by Parley Baer in this episode).
Although it had much less slapstick comedy, Angel was somewhat akin to two other CBS sitcoms, I Love Lucy (already concluded) and Pete and Gladys, a spin-off of CBS's December Bride. The series co-starred Doris Singleton as Angel's sympathetic friend Susie and Don Keefer as Susie's husband George, roughly akin to the Ethel and Fred roles from I Love Lucy.[2]
Co-sponsored by General Foods (Post Cereals) and Johnson's Wax, Angel was initially broadcast at 9 pm Eastern on Thursday evenings between October 6, 1960, and April 13, 1961. On April 19, it moved to Wednesdays in the same time slot for the remaining first-run episodes, and then summer reruns.
Reception and cancellation
The series' competition included two other sitcoms, My Three Sons, which went on to a 12-year run, first on ABC and then CBS, and Bachelor Father, then in its last year on NBC, but having been on all three networks during its total five-year run from 1957 to 1962.
Angel followed the final season of Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater and preceded what turned out to have been the last of the three-year run of The Ann Sothern Show, which had been highly rated in its two earlier years.[3]
When CBS announced early in 1961 that Angel had been canceled because of low ratings, Time magazine suggested that at least the talented Fargé should be "salvaged from the wreckage" for another enterprise.[4]
Earlier, Time had commented that Fargé "triumphantly resists being merely Lucille Ball with a French accent. She is easily the brightest newcomer to situation comedy—small, pert, winsome, and somehow giving the impression of being attractively feathered."[5] Despite the good personal reviews, Fargé left U.S. television within a few years for a career in France, where she was often credited as "Annie Fargue".
Guest stars
Episode list
| Episode # | Episode title | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|
| 1-1 | "The French Touch" (pilot) | October 6, 1960 |
| 1-2 | "Voting Can Be Fun" | October 13, 1960 |
| 1-3 | "The Easy Touch" (aka "Angel and the Con Men") | October 20, 1960 |
| 1-4 | "The Maid" | November 3, 1960 |
| 1-5 | "Angel's Temper" | November 10, 1960 |
| 1-6 | "Democracy" | November 17, 1960 |
| 1-7 | "The Trusting Wife" | November 24, 1960 |
| 1-8 | "The Contest" | December 1, 1960 |
| 1-9 | "The Driving Lesson" | December 8, 1960 |
| 1-10 | "The Valedictorian" | December 15, 1960 |
| 1-11 | "The Museum" | December 22, 1960 |
| 1-12 | "Togetherness" | December 29, 1960 |
| 1-13 | "The Goat Dog" | January 5, 1961 |
| 1-14 | "The Dowry" | January 19, 1961 |
| 1-15 | "Happy Marriage" | January 26, 1961 |
| 1-16 | "The Joint Bank Account" | February 2, 1961 |
| 1-17 | "Call Me Mother" | February 9, 1961 |
| 1-18 | "The Second Marriage" | February 16, 1961 |
| 1-19 | "The French Lesson" | February 23, 1961 |
| 1-20 | "Little White Lies" | March 2, 1961 |
| 1-21 | "House Guests" | March 9, 1961 |
| 1-22 | "Phone Fun" | March 23, 1961 |
| 1-23 | "The Insurance Policy" | March 30, 1961 |
| 1-24 | "The Dentist" | April 6, 1961 |
| 1-25 | "The Honest Man" | April 13, 1961 |
| 1-26 | "Unpopular Mechanics" | April 19, 1961 |
| 1-27 | "The Guided Tour" | April 26, 1961 |
| 1-28 | "The Little Leaguer" | May 3, 1961 |
| 1-29 | "The Trailer" | May 10, 1961 |
| 1-30 | "Goodbye, Young Lovers" | May 17, 1961 |
| 1-31 | "Angel of Mercy" | May 24, 1961 |
| 1-32 | "The Wedding" | June 7, 1961 |
| 1-33 | "Promise To A Friend" | June 14, 1961 |
References
- "Angel (TV Series 1960–1961)". IMDb.
- "Angel (TV Series 1960–1961)". IMDb.
- 1960-1961 United States network television schedule, Thursdays
- "Television: Midseason Countdown". Time. January 6, 1961. Retrieved April 25, 2010.
- "Show Business: The New Shows". Time. October 24, 1960. Retrieved April 25, 2010.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Angel (1960 TV series). |
- Angel on IMDb
- Angel at TV.com
- Angel on YouTube