Camp Runamuck

Camp Runamuck is an American sitcom that aired on NBC during the 1965-1966 television season. The series was created and executive produced by David Swift, and aired for 26 episodes.

Camp Runamuck
Alice Nunn as Mahalia May Gruenecker
GenreSitcom
Created byDavid Swift
Written byWilliam Freedman
Ben Gershman
Sidney A. Mandel
Ann Marcus
Bob Rodgers
David Swift
Directed byCharles Barton
Bruce Bilson
Howard Duff
Hal March
R. Robert Rosenbaum
David Swift
StarringArch Johnson
David Ketchum
Dave Madden
Alice Nunn
Theme music composerFrank DeVol
Jack Keller
Howard Greenfield
Opening theme"Camp Runamuck Theme"
Composer(s)Edward J. Forsyth
Country of originUnited States
Original language(s)English
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes26
Production
Executive producer(s)David Swift
Producer(s)Billy Friedberg
Irving Temaner (assistant)
Editor(s)Ralph James Hall
Running time2224 minutes
Production company(s)Runamuck Productions Inc.
Screen Gems Television
Release
Original networkNBC
Picture formatPathécolor
Audio formatMonaural
Original releaseSeptember 17, 1965 (1965-09-17) 
September 2, 1966 (1966-09-02)

Synopsis

The series related the wacky goings-on at the titular boys' summer camp, and at Camp Divine, its girls' counterpart across the lake. Runamuck was run by Commander Wivenhoe (Arch Johnson), a man who couldn't stand kids, and senior counselor Spiffy (David Ketchum), his assistant of sorts.

Helping them out were counselor Pruett (Dave Madden), Doc Joslyn, and camp cook Malden (Mike Wagner). Eulalia Divine (Hermione Baddeley) was the owner of the girls' camp, which was run by chief counselor Mahalia May Gruenecker (Alice Nunn). Nina Wayne (younger sister of Carol) played Camp Divine's curvaceous counsellor Caprice Yeudleman. The competitiveness between the two camps and the incidents and accidents that would normally occur at such summer camps - missing kids, people falling into the lake, food poisoning, and so on - formed the basis of most of the show's plots.

The series was scheduled opposite CBS's The Wild Wild West and ABC's The Flintstones and struggled in the ratings. The series was canceled in September 1966 after one season.[1]

Production notes

Composer and bandleader Frank DeVol (who also wrote the series' theme song) played the part of Doc Joslyn in the pilot episode but illness forced him to quit the role, and he was replaced by Leonard Stone for the actual series.[2] DeVol's original theme song was performed by Bobby Darin. Hugo Montenegro provided a new theme song and score to the episodes.

In April 1966, Dell Comics issued a Camp Runamuck comic book.[3]

Some of the characters on that show were based on some of the names described in the song "Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh" by Allan Sherman, including Joe Spivey.

Cast

  • Arch Johnson as Commander Wivenhoe
  • David Ketchum as Senior Counsellor Spiffy
  • Dave Madden as Counselor Pruett
  • Frank De Vol as Doc Joslyn (1)
  • Leonard Stone as Doc Joslyn (2)
  • Mike Wagner as Camp Cook Malden
  • Hermione Baddeley as Eulalia Divine
  • Alice Nunn as Mahalia May Gruenecker
  • Nina Wayne as Caprice Yeudleman
  • George Dunn as The Sheriff

Episodes

Episode #Episode titleDirected byWritten byOriginal airdate
1-1"Camp Runamuck"David SwiftDavid SwiftSeptember 17, 1965
1-2"Rabbits of the World Unite"David SwiftDavid SwiftSeptember 24, 1965
1-3"Fraternize"R. Robert RosenbaumDavid SwiftOctober 1, 1965
1-4"I'm in Luv with Your Beautiful Limpid Eyes, But I Can't Marry You Because You're a Cow"David SwiftDavid SwiftOctober 8, 1965
1-5"Say, You're A Bleeder Aren't You?' Tom Asks Cuttingly"Hal MarchDavid SwiftOctober 15, 1965
1-6"There Not Making Hurricanes Like They Used To"Howard DuffDavid SwiftOctober 22, 1965
1-7"Turtle???"R. Robert RosenbaumSidney A. Mandel & Bob RodgersOctober 29, 1965
1-8"Slaughter"David SwiftDavid SwiftNovember 5, 1965
1-9"Today is Parent's Day"David SwiftDavid SwiftNovember 12, 1965
1-10"Masquerade"Howard DuffSidney A. Mandel & Bob RodgersNovember 19, 1965
1-11"Spiffy Quits - Part 1"David SwiftSidney A. Mandel & Bob RodgersNovember 26, 1965
1-12"Spiffy Quits - Part II"David SwiftDavid SwiftDecember 3, 1965
1-13"Soapsuds"R. Robert RosenbaumSidney A. Mandel & Bob RodgersDecember 10, 1965
1-14"The New Swimming Pool"R. Robert RosenbaumSidney A. Mandel & Bob RodgersDecember 24, 1965
1-15"Wivenhoe's New Car"Howard DuffSidney A. Mandel & Bob RodgersDecember 31, 1965
1-16"Tomboy"Hal MarchAnn Marcus & David SwiftJanuary 7, 1966
1-17"Look Out, Here Comes Arnie"Howard DuffSidney A. Mandel & Bob RodgersJanuary 14, 1966
1-18"Diet"R. Robert RosenbaumSidney A. Mandel & Bob RodgersJanuary 28, 1966
1-19"Air Conditioner"R. Robert RosenbaumSidney A. Mandel & Bob RodgersFebruary 4, 1966
1-20"Food Poisoning"Howard DuffSidney A. Mandel & Bob RodgersFebruary 11, 1966
1-21"Building"R. Robert RosenbaumDavid SwiftFebruary 25, 1966
1-22"Termites"Charles BartonSidney A. Mandel & Bob RodgersMarch 4, 1966
1-23"Peace"Howard DuffSidney A. Mandel & Bob RodgersMarch 18, 1966
1-24"Malden Falls in Love"David ButlerBill Freedman & Ben GershmanMarch 25, 1966
1-25"Senior Citizens"Howard DuffSidney A. Mandel & Bob RodgersApril 8, 1966
1-26"Commander for a Day"Bruce BilsonBill Freedman & Ben GershmanApril 15, 1966

Syndication

The series aired in the UK by the BBC on Saturday mornings ten years after it aired in the United States. (Although this was the first network UK screening of Camp Runamuck, the series was aired by some ITV regional stations in 1969). In the United States, it briefly ran on Nickelodeon[4] and Comedy Central.

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References

  1. Hyatt, Wesley (2003). Short-lived Television Series, 1948-1978: Thirty Years of More Than 1,000 flops. McFarland & Co. p. 155. ISBN 0-7864-1420-0.
  2. Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle (1999). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present (7 ed.). Ballantine Books. pp. 157. ISBN 0-345-42923-0.
  3. Eury, Michael; Giordano, Dick (2003). Dick Giordano: Changing Comics, One Day at a Time. TwoMorrows Publishing. p. 1967. ISBN 1-893905-27-6.
  4. "Saturday afternoon". Reading Eagle. August 5, 1990. Retrieved 2019-10-14. Scroll to the right.
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