My Mother the Car

My Mother the Car is an American fantasy comedy that aired for a single season on NBC between September 14, 1965, and April 5, 1966. Thirty episodes were produced by United Artists Television. The series is about a man whose deceased mother is reincarnated as an antique car, who communicates with him through the car radio. Many TV comedies of the 1960s utilized similar premises of extraordinary characters in ordinary situations: a talking horse (Mister Ed), a Martian (My Favorite Martian), a beautiful robot (My Living Doll), a suburbanite witch (Bewitched), an obedient genie (I Dream of Jeannie), or a flying nun (The Flying Nun).

My Mother the Car had an experienced production team with extensive comedy credentials: Rod Amateau (The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show and The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis); Allan Burns (wrote for Jay Ward and went on to create several critically acclaimed shows, including The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Rhoda, and Lou Grant); James L. Brooks (Room 222, Taxi, and later served as executive producer of The Simpsons)<ref name="venice">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="venice magazine">Template:Cite news</ref> and Chris Hayward (produced and wrote for Barney Miller during its first several seasons).

Critics and adult viewers panned the show. In 2002, TV Guide proclaimed it to be the second-worst television show of all time, behind The Jerry Springer Show.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> TV Land's first day of programming in April 1996 included the series premiere as a collection of television firsts and rarities, billing it as "the strange but true...infamous series".

Synopsis

The show follows the exploits of attorney David Crabtree (played by Jerry Van Dyke) who, while shopping at a used-car lot for a station wagon to serve as a second family car, instead purchases a dilapidated 1928 Porter touring car. Crabtree hears the car call his name in a woman's voice. The car turns out to be the reincarnation of his deceased mother, Gladys (voiced by Ann Sothern). She talks (only to Crabtree) through the car's radio: the dial light flashes in synchronization with "Mother's" voice. In an effort to get his family to accept the old, tired car, Crabtree brings it to a custom body shop for a full restoration. The car is coveted by a fanatical collector named Captain Manzini (Avery Schreiber), but Crabtree purchases and restores the car before Manzini can acquire it.

For the rest of the series, Crabtree is pursued by the avaricious Captain Manzini, who is determined to acquire the valuable automobile by hook or by crook. In a running gag characterizing his shifty nature, Manzini (who resembles a 1920s silent film villain) always mangles Crabtree's name when speaking to him. "Now, then, Crabapple..." "That's Crabtree." "Whatever."

Others in the cast included Maggie Pierce as wife Barbara, Cindy Eilbacher (sister of Lisa Eilbacher) and Randy Whipple as the kids, Cindy and Randy. Veteran movie and television character actors played supporting roles, including Bill Daily, Harold Peary, Byron Foulger, Bob Jellison, Sam Flint, and Willis Bouchey.

Production

The show was created by Allan Burns and Chris Hayward, who had better success with Rocky & Bullwinkle, The Munsters, and Get Smart (which debuted the same season). Aluminum Model Toys (AMT), a well-known producer of plastic model car kits, introduced a Template:Frac-scale kit of the Porter in late 1965.

The theme music was composed and conducted by Ralph Carmichael, with lyrics written and sung by Paul Hampton. It was later used on an episode of Arrested Development also called "My Mother, the Car".

The show began with a black-and-white pilot, which was later refilmed in color. The pilot did not originally air, but has been shown several times on Canadian television.Template:Cn Network censors insisted that one particular scene be deleted where the car backfired.Template:Cn

Car

The on-set car, called a "1928 Porter Stanhope" touring car, was a custom car, rebuilt by Norm Grabowski,<ref name="Rumpsville-Grabowski">Template:Cite web</ref> from a 1924 Ford Model T, and later restyled by property master Kaye Trapp and Norm Breedlove.<ref name="rumpsville-20">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="catalog.afi-370529">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="hagerty-mother-car">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="tcmdb-1495957">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="consumerguide-mother-car"/> A stunt car, driven by a rear-floorboard-hidden driver, was built by George Barris as a replica.<ref name="consumerguide-mother-car">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="ATAS-mother-car">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="streetmusclemag-mother-car">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The actual Porter Motor Company existed briefly from 1900-1901 and made an automobile only in the runabout style, not the stanhope or touring car style.

The on-set car used in My Mother the Car was, in 2016, located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and owned by Dave Bodnar.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The stunt car was once owned by casino giant William Harrah, who had one of the largest special-interest and antique auto collections of all time in Reno, Nevada. After Harrah's death in 1984, the auction catalogue advertised the car as having a carnation red body with white top and created from parts of a Ford Model T, a Maxwell, a Hudson and a Chevrolet. Harrah's F.R.P. is, since 1994, at the Seal Cove Auto Museum on Mount Desert Island in Maine. As of 2012, the stunt Porter was at the Star Cars Museum in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On September 3, 2017, the car sold at the Dragone auction, part of the Historic Festival 35 at Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, CT, for $50,000.Template:Citation needed

Soundtrack

The series was scored by Ralph Carmichael with the lyrics of the title song by Paul Hampton. Sammy Davis Jr. performed a cover version of the song as an opening number on his 1966 musical variety show.<ref name="Davis">Template:Cite news</ref> The song is also included on two of his albums: The Sammy Davis Jr. Show and That's All!.

Cast

• Jerry Van Dyke as Dave Crabtree
• Maggie Pierce as Barbara Crabtree (née Netwick)
• Ann Sothern as Mother the 1928 Porter (formerly Gladys Crabtree (née Brown))
• Avery Schreiber as Captain Bernard Manzini
• Cindy Eilbacher as Cindy Crabtree
• Randy Whipple as Randy Crabtree
• Paula Winslowe as Mrs. Netwick

Critical reception

A review of the show by John Sinnott on DVD Talk reported that, although "the concept is pretty stupid" and that the show "has gained a reputation for being one of the worst shows to ever air on American TV," it is "actually not that bad," noting that "Jerry Van Dyke does a very good job," "the pretty and perky Maggie Pierce was also very good," and that it "gives some decent laughs."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A review of the show on Vulture described it as "the epitome of dated, stupid, campy, embarrassing, lowest common denominator television," that "any blatant attempts at comedy were not successful," and that this "prime example of hackneyed, brainless situation comedy did not have a laugh track for most of their episodes. This helped result in a lot of really tonally confusing work."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Release

In the United Kingdom, the series debuted on ITV on 8 November 1965.Template:Cn

Ownership status

The show's owner is Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (now part of Amazon MGM Studios), which bought United Artists in 1981.

Home media

TGG Direct released a DVD box set of the series on 12 November 2013. It contains the 30 episodes that aired, but not the unaired pilot. The laugh track was removed for the DVD set.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

All 30 episodes were available for viewing on Hulu.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The show is also available on MGM's YouTube channel.Template:Cn

Syndication

Antenna TV began airing episodes of the show on September 19, 2015.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

External links

• [https://www.imdb.com/{{#if: 58830

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