"The Bob Cummings Show" (1955) TV series 1955-1959

User Rating:

7.9/10   

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

Release Date:

2 January 1955 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

The romantic misadventures of Bob Collins, a suave, sophisticated bachelor and photographer operating in Hollywood, California. The show centers around his womanizing ways with his models, and his sister's attempts to make him settle down.

Plot Keywords:

Sitcom | Actor Shares First Name With Character

Awards:

Won 2 Primetime Emmys. Another 15 nominations

Cast

Ann B. Davis	...	Charmaine 'Schultzy' Schultz / ... (106 episodes, 1955-1959)
Rosemary DeCamp	...	Margaret MacDonald / ... (106 episodes, 1955-1959)
Dwayne Hickman	...	Chuck MacDonald / ... (105 episodes, 1955-1959)
Robert Cummings	...	Bob Collins / ... (105 episodes, 1955-1959)

(more)

Series Directed by
Robert Cummings		(31 episodes, 1957-1959)
Rodney Amateau		(25 episodes, 1955-1956)
Norman Tokar		(5 episodes, 1956-1957)

Series Writing credits
Paul Henning		(34 episodes, 1955-1959)
Dick Wesson		(23 episodes, 1957-1959)
Shirley Gordon		(21 episodes, 1955-1958)
Phil Shuken		(5 episodes, 1956-1957)
William Cowley		(4 episodes, 1955-1956)
Bill Manhoff		(2 episodes, 1955)

Series Produced by
Paul Henning	....	producer / executive producer (43 episodes, 1955-1959)
Edward Rubin	....	associate producer (13 episodes, 1958)
Joseph Depew	....	assistant producer (4 episodes, 1958)

Series Original Music by
Lou Kosloff		(21 episodes, 1957-1959)
Mahlon Merrick		(6 episodes, 1955-1957)
Grace Merrick		(2 episodes, 1955)

Series Cinematography by
Harry J. Wild		(33 episodes, 1955-1959)

Series Film Editing by
Robert Crawford		(29 episodes, 1955-1959)
Stanley Frazen		(3 episodes, 1955)
Guy Scarpitta		(2 episodes, 1955)

Series Casting by
Kerwin Coughlin		(14 episodes, 1958)

Series Art Direction by
George Van Marter		(13 episodes, 1958)

Series Set Decoration by
Claude E. Carpenter		(15 episodes, 1955-1958)

Series Makeup Department
Gene Romer	....	makeup artist (15 episodes, 1955-1958)
Bertha French	....	hair stylist (14 episodes, 1955-1958)

Series Production Management
George King	....	production supervisor (12 episodes, 1958)

Series Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Joseph Depew	....	assistant director (15 episodes, 1955-1958)

Series Sound Department
Earl Snyder	....	sound (14 episodes, 1958)
Don Sykes	....	sound editor (8 episodes, 1958)
Richard Sperber	....	sound editor (6 episodes, 1958)

Series Camera and Electrical Department
William D. King	....	chief electrician (5 episodes, 1958)

Series Costume and Wardrobe Department
Ernestine Wood	....	costumer (13 episodes, 1958)

Series Editorial Department
Guy Scarpitta	....	editorial supervisor / supervising editor / ... (30 episodes, 1955-1959)

Series Music Department
Del Sharbutt	....	composer: theme "A Romantic Guy, I" (1 episode, 1958)

Series Other crew
Ulla Bourne	....	script supervisor (14 episodes, 1958)
Joseph Depew	....	assistant to producer (12 episodes, 1958)
Wallace Seawell	....	technical advisor / technical adviser (10 episodes, 1955-1958)

Production Companies

• Laurel Productions
• McCadden Productions

Distributors

• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1955) (1957-1959) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1955-1957) (USA) (TV)
• Reel Media International (2004) (worldwide) (all media)
• Alpha Video Distributors (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Critics' Choice Video (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Moviecraft (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Reel Media International (2007) (worldwide) (all media)
• Shokus Video (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Shokus Video (????) (USA) (VHS)

Also Known As:

"Love That Bob!" (USA) (rerun title)

Runtime:

30 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

General Service Studios - 1040 N. Las Palmas, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Laurel Productions

Trivia:

Decades later, Ann B. Davis reprised the role of Schultzy for a cameo in The Brady Bunch Movie (1995).

Quotes:

[at the opening of the series.]
Bob: Hold it! I think you're gonna like this picture!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Skydivers (#7.9)" (1994)

Historic TV that's worth a look

Bob Cummings was a pioneer in the early days of sitcoms, making this show worth viewing if you're interested in the history of television programming. There's a certain "live on tape" feel to some episodes, when actors accidentally step on each others' lines, which also makes the atmosphere a little more natural than today's highly polished (tightly edited) sitcoms.

It's a treat to see a young Ann B. Davis, best remembered today as "The Brady Bunch"'s housekeeper, Alice. In the 50s, she was considered a fairly major TV star, and she was an undeniably inventive comic actress. In many episodes of "The Bob Cummings Show," she has a pretty substantial amount of screen time -- far more than she usually got in the Brady household.

Another classic sitcom star is on hand: Before Nancy Kulp played Miss Jane Hathaway on The Beverly Hillbillies, she honed her TV skills in "The Bob Cummings Show." Her character, a snooty, sexually aggressive bird-watching enthusiast has much in common with Miss Jane. In fact, in many ways they're practically identical. In later years, Kulp came out of the closet and lived as an openly gay woman. Her character in "The Bob Cummings Show," while aggressively pursuing Bob, certainly has a lesbian vibe. In the episode "Bob Goes Bird Watching," for example, when Kulp enters the episode, she's clad in a very masculine suit, with a "butch" hairstyle, but throughout the scene she's trying to persuade Bob abandon his swimsuit-clad models and join her at Griffith Park, to check out some "tit mouse" birds -- no double entendres were wasted in this show...

Dwayne Hickman is also in the cast, perfecting his Dobbie Gillis character. Like Kulp, he carried this character's basic traits into another show -- so it's interesting to watch him learning his craft here.

Like many shows of this time period, "The Bob Cummings Show" was performed at a pace most viewers now find stunningly slow. But many of the scripts hold up fairly well, and the acting, though a bit stagey at times, is naturalistic and enjoyable. If you want lightening- quick repartee, tune into "Will and Grace," but if you're ready for some relaxing old-time humor performed by some of the best actors from TV's early days, check out "The Bob Cummings Show."