THE ADVENTURES OF OZZIE AND HARRIET: THE FALL GUY (OCTOBER 24, 1952)

Ozzie Nelson formed the Ozzie Nelson Band in 1930.  It had limited success until the New York Daily Mirror polled tis readers to determine their favorite band.  Reportedly, Nelson had band members stuff the ballot box and his band came out the winner, beating Paul Whiteman's band.  Over the next two decades the band --  now Ozzie Nelson and His Orchestra -- recorded for a number of labels and had several hits.  Around 1932 Harriet Hilliard joined the band as its primary vocalist; she and Nelson were married in 1935.  The pair began appearing regularly on radio, first on The Baker's Broadcast, then on The Red Skelton Show.  When Skelton was drafted in 1944, Nelson crated his own family radio comedy show, using his own family as the characters, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.  Child actors played the Nelson's real-life children, David and Ricky, until 1949, when the real-life Nelson kids -- now aged 12 and 8 -- took over the roles.  The show moved to television on October 10, 1952, and lasted until April 23, 1966 -- making it the longest lasting live-action television sitcom at the time.  Exterior shots of the Nelson's actual house were used in the television show; interior shots were filmed in a studio  but were designed to look like the actual interior rooms of the Nelson home.  In total, 435 episodes were filmed over the show's fourteen seasons.

Understand that what follows is my personal opinion; your mileage may vary.  The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet set the standard for television family sitcoms in the fifties -- bland, innocuous, and un challenging.  I liken it to the television equivalent of mashed potatoes.  Even Father Knows Best was edgier, and at least Leave It to Beaver had its Eddie Haskell.  But Ozzie, with his laid-back personality and his gee-whiz conversations with his neighbor Thorny, could not be more monotonous or more like milk toast.  I'm sure there were some family misunderstandings and minor crises over the fourteen seasons,  but none stick out in my mind.   Indeed, the most exciting action that I remember was Harriet searching for the last evening's newspaper to give to a neighborhood paper drive.  **sigh**  I also do not remember either Ozzie of Harriet singing in any of the episodes.

What we do have is Ricky singing, beginning in 1957, marking the start of a successful singing career, which lasted until his death in a plane crash in 1985.  Ricky -- later, Rick -- also had a successful film and television career. Older brother David went on to  career in acting, directing, and producing. 

From the show's first season, "The Fall Guy," Ozzie tells David not to allow people to take advantage of his good nature, then regrets it.  Directed by Ozzie and written by Bill Davenport, Ben Gershman, and Don Nelson (Ozzie's brother), the episode also features Don DeFore as Thorny and Carl Greyson as the show's announcer.

As I said, your  mileage may be different from mine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hylGndkt4mE