"Hazel" (1961) TV series 1961-1966

Creator:

Ted Key
(more)

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

Release Date:

28 September 1961 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

George Baxter was a highly successful corporation lawyer who was always in control of everything at the office...

Plot Keywords:

Wife | Maid | Beautiful Woman | Sitcom | Household Servant

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 2 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Shirley Booth	...	Hazel Burke (154 episodes, 1961-1966)
Bobby Buntrock	...	Harold Baxter (154 episodes, 1961-1966)
Don DeFore	...	George Baxter (125 episodes, 1961-1965)
Whitney Blake	...	Dorothy Baxter (125 episodes, 1961-1965)

Series Directed by
William D. Russell		(134 episodes, 1961-1966)
Charles Barton		(10 episodes, 1965-1966)
E.W. Swackhamer		(7 episodes, 1965-1966)

Series Writing credits
Robert Riley Crutcher		(38 episodes, 1961-1966)
William Cowley		(36 episodes, 1961-1965)
Ted Key		(34 episodes, 1961-1962)
Peggy Chantler Dick		(27 episodes, 1961-1964)
Louella MacFarlane		(26 episodes, 1961-1966)
Jane Klove		(10 episodes, 1964-1966)
Ted Sherdeman		(10 episodes, 1964-1966)
Keith Fowler		(9 episodes, 1962-1965)
Phil Leslie		(9 episodes, 1962-1965)
John McGreevey		(8 episodes, 1963-1966)
James Fonda		(4 episodes, 1962-1966)
Dorothy Cooper		(3 episodes, 1963-1964)
Frank Grenville		(3 episodes, 1963-1964)
Jim Allen		(2 episodes, 1961)
R.S. Allen		(2 episodes, 1961)
Ed Haas		(2 episodes, 1963)
Norm Liebmann		(2 episodes, 1963)
Frank Crow		(2 episodes, 1964)
Jack Sher		(2 episodes, 1966)

Series Produced by
Harry Ackerman	....	executive producer (69 episodes, 1961-1966)
James Fonda	....	producer (66 episodes, 1961-1966)
Peter Kortner	....	producer (32 episodes, 1963-1964)

Series Original Music by
Van Alexander		(4 episodes, 1964-1966)

Series Cinematography by
Frederick Gately		(34 episodes, 1961-1965)
Gert Andersen		(29 episodes, 1965-1966)

Series Film Editing by
Asa Boyd Clark		(35 episodes, 1961-1963)
Tom Biggart		(2 episodes, 1964-1965)

Series Art Direction by
Ross Bellah		(47 episodes, 1962-1966)
Malcolm C. Bert		(29 episodes, 1965-1966)
Walter Holscher		(19 episodes, 1961-1962)

Series Set Decoration by
Lyle B. Reifsnider		(29 episodes, 1965-1966)
Louis Diage		(26 episodes, 1961-1964)
Morris Hoffman		(5 episodes, 1961-1962)
James Crowe		(4 episodes, 1961)

Series Makeup Department
Ben Lane	....	makeup supervisor (65 episodes, 1961-1966)

Series Production Management
Seymour Friedman	....	production supervisor (65 episodes, 1961-1966)
Lawrence Werner	....	post-production supervisor (30 episodes, 1961-1964)

Series Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Harold Lewis	....	assistant director (32 episodes, 1961-1966)
Herb Wallerstein	....	assistant director (31 episodes, 1961-1963)

Series Sound Department
Jack Kirschner	....	sound effects editor / sound effects (35 episodes, 1961-1963)
Fred J. Brown	....	sound effects editor (29 episodes, 1965-1966)

Series Editorial Department
Lawrence Werner	....	supervising editor / editorial supervisor (7 episodes, 1961)

Series Music Department
Irving Friedman	....	music supervisor (36 episodes, 1961-1963)
Emil Cadkin	....	music editor (35 episodes, 1961-1962)
Jimmy Van Heusen	....	composer: theme music (34 episodes, 1961-1963)
Howard Greenfield	....	composer: theme music (4 episodes, 1964-1966)
Jack Keller	....	composer: theme music (4 episodes, 1964-1966)
Ed Forsyth	....	music supervisor (3 episodes, 1964-1966)
Sammy Cahn	....	composer: theme music (2 episodes, 1961-1963)

Series Other crew
Peggy Chantler Dick	....	script consultant / story consultant (16 episodes, 1961-1963)
William Cowley	....	script consultant / story consultant (16 episodes, 1961-1963)
Sue Mahoney	....	script supervisor (2 episodes, 1961)

Production Companies

• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1965-1966)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1961-1965)
• Screen Gems Television

Distributors

• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1961-1965) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1965-1966) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• Columbia TriStar Domestic Television (USA) (200)
• Katholieke Radio Omroep (KRO) (1964-1967) (Netherlands) (TV)
• Sony Pictures Television (2002-)

Other Companies

• Procter & Gamble  original sponsor (Safeguard soap, Crest toothpaste, Thrill dish detergent)

Runtime:

30 min (154 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color (Pathécolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Filming Locations:

Columbia/Sunset Gower Studios - 1438 N. Gower Street, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS)

Trivia:

Although the first season was in black and white, one episode was filmed in color: "Hazel: What'll We Watch Tonight? (#1.6)" (1961), in which the Baxter household gets the first color TV on the block. Reportedly, RCA Color TV was a sponsor, and this was a promotional gimmick. Later in 1964, Shirley Booth and Don DeFore appeared in a print ad for RCA Color TV in many magazines.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! (2006)

Soundtrack:

Hazel

Shirley Booth's the whole show

This series provided Shirley Booth with a suitable character with which she could apply her undeniable acting talent towards making HAZEL a truly believable version of the nosey, know-it-all but loveable maid. Based on the once nationally syndicated comic strip character by Ted Key, Booth won an Emmy for her portrayal which she added to her Oscar and Tony awards. In an interesting revelation discovered after Booth's death, for obvious reasons, she took a full decade off her birthdate, making her over 65 by the series cancellation in 1965! The supporting actors weren't exactly inspired: Don DeFore and Whitney Blake were rather wooden as George and Dorothy Baxter, and Bobby Buntrock was rather annoying as Harold, while the color looks cheap and faded. Performers such as Norma Varden, Cathy Lewis (as George's snotty shrike sister Deidre) and Maudie Prickett (as Rosie, Hazel's maid friend) came off marginally better. Mr. Griffin, anyone?