Date with the Angels
Date with the Angels is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from May 10, 1957, to January 29, 1958. The series, which stars Betty White and Bill Williams, began as a late season replacement for The Ray Anthony Show for the same sponsor, Chrysler's Plymouth division. Tom Kennedy was the show's announcer and spokesman for Plymouth.
| Date with the Angels | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Don Fedderson |
| Written by | George Tibbles Fran Van Hartesveldt Bill Kelsay |
| Directed by | James V. Kern |
| Starring | Betty White Bill Williams Jimmy Boyd |
| Composer | Frank DeVol |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 33 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Fred Henry |
| Producer | Don Fedderson |
| Running time | 24–26 minutes |
| Production company | Silverstone Films/Don Fedderson Productions |
| Distributor | MCA Television (original), CBS Television Distribution (current as of 2007) |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Picture format | Black-and-white |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | May 10, 1957 – January 29, 1958 |
Synopsis
The series revolves around newly married Vicki Angel and her insurance salesman husband Gus Angel who get themselves and their friends and neighbors into various comedic situations. Besides Betty White and Bill Williams, the series also featured for several episodes Richard Deacon, Richard Reeves, Maudie Prickett and Burt Mustin.
Among the series' guest stars were Nancy Kulp, Madge Blake, Joan Vohs, Chuck Connors, Reta Shaw, Dave Willock, Sid Melton, Russell Hicks, Hugh O'Brian, Hanley Stafford, and Willard Waterman.
The show's theme song was "Got A Date With An Angel", a semi-standard introduced in 1932 and long associated with the orchestra of Hal Kemp.
Date with the Angels was loosely based on the Elmer Rice play Dream Girl, and the series was originally intended to revolve heavily around Vicki's daydreaming tendencies, with more than half of a typical episode dedicated to fantasy sequences. However, the sponsor was not pleased with the fantasy elements and successfully exerted pressure to have them eliminated. "Without our dream sequences," White later said, "our show flattened out and became just one more run-of-the-mill domestic comedy[...]I can honestly say that was the only time I have ever wanted to get out of a show."[1]
The series produced 33 filmed episodes before it was canceled in late January 1958. White fulfilled her series commitment by reviving her previous live variety/comedy show, The Betty White Show, for the rest of the season.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Betty White | Vickie Angel |
| Bill Williams | Gus Angel |
| Jimmy Boyd | Wheeler |
| Richard Reeves | Mr. Murphy |
| Maudie Prickett | Mrs. Cassie Murphy |
| Richard Deacon | Roger Finley |
| Burt Mustin | Mr. Finley |
| Tom Kennedy | Announcer |
| Roy Engel | George Clemson |
| Natalie Masters | Wilma Clemson |
| Lillian Bronson | Mrs. Drake |
| Gage Clarke | Dr. Gordon |
Episodes
| Episode # | Episode Title | Original Airdate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Vicki Goes to a Party" | May 10, 1957 |
| 2 | "Mother by Proxy" | May 17, 1957 |
| 3 | "High Fever" | May 24, 1957 |
| 4 | "The Wheel" | May 31, 1957 |
| 5 | "The Tree in the Driveway" | June 7, 1957 |
| 6 | "The Feud" | June 14, 1957 |
| 7 | "Shall We Dance?" | June 21, 1957 |
| 8 | "Little White Lies" | June 28, 1957 |
| 9 | "The Blue Tie" | July 12, 1957 |
| 10 | "Heartburn" | July 19, 1957 |
| 11 | "The Surprise" | July 26, 1957 |
| 12 | "Pike's Pique" | August 2, 1957 |
| 13 | "Return of the Wheel" | September 2, 1957 |
| 14 | "The Gorilla" | September 13, 1957 |
| 15 | "Everybody's Baby" | September 20, 1957 |
| 16 | "Catered Party" | September 27, 1957 |
| 17 | "The Convention" | October 4, 1957 |
| 18 | "Night School" | October 11, 1957 |
| 19 | "Star Struck" | October 25, 1957 |
| 20 | "Diane" | November 1, 1957 |
| 21 | "Nobody's Father" | November 8, 1957 |
| 22 | "No-Risk Policy" | November 15, 1957 |
| 23 | "The Burglar" | November 22, 1957 |
| 24 | "The Chateau" | November 29, 1957 |
| 25 | "Chip Off the Old Block" | December 6, 1957 |
| 26 | "Santa's Helper" | December 13, 1957 |
| 27 | "Cousin Herbie" | December 20, 1957 |
| 28 | "A Day at the Track" | December 27, 1957 |
| 29 | "Wheeler at the Cabin" | January 1, 1958 |
| 30 | "The Train" | January 8, 1958 |
| 31 | "Double Trouble" | January 15, 1958 |
| 32 | "Francis Goes to School" | January 22, 1958 |
| 33 | "What an Opportunity" | January 29, 1958 |
References
- Nesteroff, Kliph (April 4, 2010). "The Early Betty White 1947-1973". WFMU's Beware of the Blog. Retrieved 2011-09-03.
External links
- Date with the Angels at IMDb
- Date with the Angels at TV.com
- A film clip of a christmas episode of Date with the Angels is available at the Internet Archive