The New Bob Cummings Show

The New Bob Cummings Show is an American sitcom which was broadcast by CBS during the 1961–62 television season. The series was originally titled The Bob Cummings Show when it first appeared on the CBS schedule on October 5, 1961; however, this led to confusion between this program and series stars Bob Cummings' earlier 1955 series, also called The Bob Cummings Show; thus, the title The New Bob Cummings Show was officially adopted beginning with the December 28 episode.

The New Bob Cummings Show
Bob Cummings and Roberta Shore
Also known as	The Bob Cummings Show
Genre	Sitcom
Created by	Roland Kibbee
Written by	Jerry Adelman Roscoe J. Armbuster Jr Mel Diamond Lee Erwin Robert Fisher Austin Kalish Sheldon Keller Howard Leeds Alan Lipscott Milt Rosen Sheldon Stark
Directed by	Earl Bellamy John English Don Weis
Starring	Bob Cummings Roberta Shore Murvyn Vye
Composer	Stanley Wilson
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	22 (list of episodes)
Production
Camera setup	Multi-camera
Running time	22–24 minutes
Production company	Revue Studios
Distributor	NBCUniversal Television Distribution
Release
Original network	CBS
Picture format	Black-and-white
Audio format	Monaural
Original release	October 5, 1961 – March 1, 1962

Synopsis

The New Bob Cummings Show began two years after production had ended on Cummings' previous, successful sitcom The Bob Cummings Show, which, when the newer program began its run, was still being rerun on ABC's daytime schedule under the title Love That Bob, which it was to retain through many years in syndication.

The new program, like its predecessor, took advantage of Cummings' real-life interests; once again, the character he played, Bob Carson, was a pilot. Carson owned two planes, a conventional, twin-engine plane which he used for long trips, and the Aerocar, which, as its name implied, was a vehicle which could be alternately flown or, with its wing detached, driven on highways as an automobile, which he used for short hops near his California base.

In addition to his activities as a charter pilot, Carson was an amateur detective, a fact which provided the basis for the plots of most of the episodes. In contrast to Cummings earlier program, which had several co-stars, the only recurring roles in The New Bob Cummings Show other than Cummings' own were that of "Lionel", Carson's bodyguard, played by Murvyn Vye, and "Hank", the tomboyish-yet-precocious teenage daughter of the owner of the airstrip where Carson's planes were based, played by Roberta Shore.

Production

When The Bob Cummings Show ended, Cummings said he was not keen to do comedy for his next series. However The New Bob Cummings Show was very much in the same vein as the first one.

The show was announced in April 1961. The network said Cummings' character would do anything that was not "illegal, immoral or underpaid".[1]

It was filmed by Revue Productions and sponsored by the Kellogg Company and Brown & William Tobacco. The show replaced Angel on the network line up.[1]

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
1	"Executive Sweet"	Don Weis	RKibbee, RJArmbusterJr	October 5, 1961
2	"Very Warm for Mayan"	Don Weis	RKibbee, SStark, MDiamond	October 12, 1961
3	"Vive La Credit Card"	Don Weis	RKibbee, HLeeds	October 19, 1961
4	"The Ox-Tail Incident"	John English	RKibbee, RJArmbusterJr	October 26, 1961
5	"Roamin' Holiday"	Don Weis	RKibbee, ALipscott, RFisher	November 2, 1961
6	"Who Chopped Down the Cherokee"	Don Weis	RKibbee, JAdelman, LErwin, MDiamond	November 9, 1961
Bob tries to convince some Native Americans to give up land for a missile base.
7	"Always On Tuesday"	Earl Bellamy	RKibbee, HLeeds	November 16, 1961
8	"Re: Fifi"	Earl Bellamy	RKibbee, SKeller, MDiamond	November 23, 1961
9	"The Guns of Abalone"	Earl Bellamy	RKibbee, AKalish, MRosen, MDiamond	November 30, 1961
10	"Lavender's Hale"	TBA	RKibbee	December 7, 1961
11	"The Saga of Twangy McCoombs"	TBA	RKibbee	December 14, 1961
12	"National Satin"	TBA	RKibbee	December 21, 1961
13	"La Dolce Roma"	TBA	RKibbee	December 28, 1961
14	"The Unretouchables"	TBA	RKibbee	January 4, 1962
15	"Swiss Family Gogerty"	Don Weis	RKibbee	January 11, 1962
16	"The Turbulent Thirties"	TBA	RKibbee	January 18, 1962
17	"U.N. The Night and the Music"	TBA	RKibbee	January 25, 1962
18	"A Cuppa Cawfee, a Sangwich, and Youse"	TBA	RKibbee	February 1, 1962
19	"My Son, The Voodoo Doctor"	TBA	RKibbee	February 8, 1962
20	"Operation Cake Lift"	TBA	RKibbee	February 15, 1962
21	"North by Southeast"	TBA	RKibbee	February 22, 1962
22	"Fasten Your Money Belt"	TBA	RKibbee	March 1, 1962

Reception

The show aired on Thursday nights opposite two popular shows, The Real McCoys on ABC and Dr. Kildare on NBC.

The New York Times said "the style but not the setting is about the same as his past series... Fast talk, pretty girls and breezy comedy are still the main ingredients. It's bright, quick, inconsequential and inoffensive."[2]

Cancellation

Two months after the show debuted in October the title was changed to The New Bob Cummings Show. Ratings did not improve and the show was cancelled in January.[3] The last episode aired on March 1, 1962. It was replaced by Oh, Those Bells!.[4]

References

1. V. A. (Apr 3, 1961). "CUMMINGS PLANS TV COMEDY SHOW". New York Times. ProQuest 115382120.
2. R.F.S. (Oct 6, 1961). "Bob cummings show". New York Times. ProQuest 115244338.
3. V. A. (Jan 28, 1962). "NEWS OF TV-RADIO". New York Times. ProQuest 115932042.
4. V. A. (Feb 5, 1962). "SLAPSTICK SERIES PLANNED BY C.B.S.". New York Times. ProQuest 115966739.

External links

• The New Bob Cummings Show at IMDb
• The New Bob Cummings Show at TV.com