What is your all-time favorite episode of My Three Sons and why?

The season 4 show where Steve is working on a secret project at home,and Bub discovers there is a secret of sorts Steve is working on.Bub asks Steve what it is,and Steve gives the description of a teleportation-device that he had gotten from Chip's,"Monster Horse From Outer Space,"comic book.That episode-and that comic title-has stayed with me all these years.

I Have a lot of Favorite M3S Episodes but The One That Is My Favorite is non other than Episode #255 Caged Fury Where Bub, Robbie and Chip Are Quarrantened because Lloyd One Of Robbies Wrestling Team Ends Up With Diptheria And Causes Bub To Miss Catching Ol Roy. I'm Still mad At T.V. Land For Taking Out M3S (Mike/Bub Years) and I still Plan To Write To T.V. Land about Reinstating I Know Cherie And Many Others Are Too So I'm Ready To Fight.

Another favorite episode of M3S That I Liked was #206 Mike in charge where Mike has to look after Robbie and Chip while Steve and Bub are away. and The Subsitute Teacher episode was a favorite also where Robbie and the guys in class pick on miss Tinsley with The Mickey Finn Gag and Calling her Rin tin Tinsley and also Where Chip Pops Robbie after Robbie Picking on him over a girl in Chips Class.

Certainly one of the show's funniest and uproarious moments showcasing the hilarity that ensues in the Douglas Family was the Season 8 episode, "The Heartbeat" written by Bernard Rothman. In it, one stormy night when Steve is in San Francisco, Katie is alone in the house while the rest of the family are attending a ballgame. Her tenseness builds as the dog Tramp becomes uneasy and the night noises make the house seem big and lonely. At 1:00am she hears a scary rythmic noise, and hysterically calls Steve to report that the boys haven't returned home and that she hears a heartbeat.
He comforts her, and soon the boys arrive home, explaining that they were stranded by high water at an intersection. She tells them all of the weird thumping noise and then goes to sleep. Chip and Ernie rig a falling net "ghost-catcher" outside the back door and the following night Chip and ernie are joined by Robbie and Uncle Charley in an attempt to locate the source of the sound.
Very funny!

My favorite episode is the one where Robbie needs a term paper and he goes up to the attic and grabs an old term paper of Steve's which shows he received an A way back when. Robbie copies it but receives an F. Steve learns of the F and that it was his paper, goes to see the teacher and learns that the contents of the paper were plagiarized word for word from a famous text. Steve eats humble pie and tells Robbie the truth why he got the F. Later that night Steve is troubled and cannot get to sleep. He goes up to the attic. Bub hears him rumbling and joins him. Steve gets out his old yearbook and learns that the teacher who graded the paper was the typing instructor. He had gotten an A for perfectly typing the text from the book. Bub is all for telling the boys about the mistake. But Steve stops him telling him that maybe it is a good thing for the boys to know their father is not infallible and can make mistakes. I just thought what courage and kindness it took for a father to eat crow have the ability to say Aha! I told you so but refrained in order to teach a lesson at his own expense. Few of us would be willing to do so including myself. Very touching story.

Definitely the one that Geoff mentioned - when they hear the sound of the sump pump and think it is a heart beat and they all blame Katie - who they find sleeping peacefully in her bed.


A runner up would be the episode where Barbara has to throw together a dinner within an hour's notice. They had a dinner planned only Steve cancelled out due to a important meeting in Washington - only to call up Barbara to tell her that the dinner party was back on when their flight was cancelled! And meanwhile the family had just devoured Barb's delicious meal. She of course magically throws it all together - with the help of the family of course!

I love the one where the Douglases meet their counterparts -- a single mother with three daughters who are cared for by their grandmother (called "Mub"!).

A few years ago CTS showed all 12 seasons of "My Three Sons" and I'm still waiting to see if they'll show up again. During that time, a number of episodes became favorites of mine, and I'd like to share them with you in 2 parts:

THE BLACK AND WHITE SEASONS (1960-65)



BROTHERLY LOVE (Oct. 27, 1960)

Guest Star: Beau Bridges

Mike and Robbie literally fight over the same girl.

THE WILEY METHOD (April 13, 1961)

Robbie tries to employ the teaching methods used by his favorite teacher to improve his personal life.

CHIP'S COMPOSITION (Nov. 30, 1961)

Chip uses Bub as the subject of his composition called "What My Mother Means To Me".

ROBBIE VALENTINO (Feb. 22, 1961)

Guest Star: Nancy Kulp ("The Beverly Hillbillies")

Robbie mistakes a routine teaching film for his big chance at movie stardom. His classic line: "Please pass the bunsen burner".

THE HIPPOPOTAMUS FOOT (May 31, 1962)

Guest Stars: Mike Minor ("Petticoat Junction") and Hank Patterson (Fred Ziffel from "Green Acres").

Mike is almost expelled from school after he takes part in a fraternity prank.

MY FRIEND ERNIE (Oct. 31, 1962)

The historic series debut of Barry Livingston as Ernie Thompson Douglas.

GUEST IN THE HOUSE (May 28, 1964---two days before my birthday!)

Guest star: Tony Dow ("Leave It To Beaver")

The family expects to play host to a juvenile delinquent and end up with someone who is a polar opposite, but no one realizes it! Watching Tony Dow in this episode play an un-Wally Cleaver-type character is absolutely priceless!

THE IN-LAW WHAMMY (Dec. 17, 1964)

Guest Star: Sebastian Cabot ("Family Affair")

A nervous Mike uncharacteristally turns into a hopeless klutz at the prospect of meeting his future father-in-law. You would too if you knew that it was going to be Mr French!


----THE COLOUR EPISODES (1965-72)


BROTHER ERNIE (Sept. 30, 1965)

After going through a lot of red tape, the Douglases finally adopt Ernie.

THERE'S A WHAT IN THE ATTIC? (Oct. 21, 1965)

A lion somehow finds its way inside the Douglas home.

ROBBIE'S DOUBLE LIFE (March 10, 1966)
ERNIE THE BLUEBEARD (Nov. 11, 1967)

First Robbie, and then Ernie, run into the age-old sitcom dilemma of having two dates at the same time.

ERNIE AND ZSA ZSA (Jan. 27, 1968)

Guest Star: Zsa Zsa Gabor

Ernie accidentally falls in Zsa Zsa Gabor's swimming pool.

DODIE'S DILEMMA (March 21, 1970)

Dodie looks to her brothers to help her against bullies at her school.

LOVE THY NEIGHBOR (March 28, 1970)

Guest Star: Jerry Mathers ("Leave It To Beaver")

Robbie and Katie make a new friend at their apartment, or so they think. This episode offers absolute proof that 'the Beaver' did eventually grow up!

FIRST ANNIVERSARY (Sept. 19, 1970)

Steve and Barbara celebrate their first wedding anniversary, made even more memorable by a special gift from Dodie, which made me cry when I saw it!

THE CAT BURGLARS (Oct. 31, 1970)

In a truly hilarious episode, which fittingly first aired on Halloween night, the Douglases are locked out of their home and almost end up in jail while wearing cat costumes!

The Polly episodes:

THE ONCE-OVER (Sept 26, 1970)
THE NON-PROPOSAL (Oct. 10, 1970)
POLLY WANTS A DOUGLAS (Oct. 17, 1970)
THE ELOPEMENT (Nov. 7, 1970)

These episodes detail the long courtship and subsequent marriage of Chip and Polly, made a lot more difficult by Polly's overprotective father. I didn't care. I adored Polly almost as much as Chip did!



Note: If, like myself, you want to see these great episodes, and the rest of the series, back on CTS, you can contact CTS program director Lorne Freed directly at:

lfreed@cts.com

Good luck! I tried and went nowhere.

I remember one I somewhat thought was good. Katie thinks Uncle Charley doesn't like her. She tells Robbie that she feels hurt. He suggests to Charley that Katie would like a social tea. Meanwhile Chip is stuck being involved with all girl club. Chip mentioned to the girls his sister in law is having a tea and he has to buy donuts and party hats. The girls go the Chip's house to buff up the party with food, tea and sandwiches, cakes and the like. Katie is thrilled and her dislike for Charley disappears .
THe episode was a tad corny for how many high school girls would help a boy with a party but I thought it had good points. .

I like the episode where Steve wishes he had girls instead of boys. His car breaks down in front of a house that looks like their house. The people wh live there are a mother with three daughters named Mike, Bobbie and Kitt. There is also a grandma named Mub and a female dog that looks like Tramp.

I do wish the black and white episodes were seen more. I remember seeing the color episodes when the show was in production. THe black and whites I heard were more 3 boys and 2 father feeling.

Note: If, like myself, you want to see these great episodes, and the rest of the series, back on CTS, you can contact CTS program director Lorne Freed directly at:

Please forgive my ignorance, but what network is "CTS"? Is it outside of the USA?

Dear Charlie,

It's in Canada!


"My Three Sons" is currently being shown on TV Land Canada, which is a digital channel that costs extra to buy and I can't afford it!

Thanks Sal! I've heard that Canada offers some unique programming that is not available in the States. Then again, I'm sure Canadians could say the same thing. :)

I have two favourites I cannot decide between.

The first is "Monday Morning Countdown". The writing here is brilliant, especially in the way the morning routine at the Douglas household is parallelled with the rocket shot at Cape Canaveral. It's a bit topical, in the sense that it contributes to the episode if one can remember, or knows, that in those days, most of our rocket efforts exploded on the pad or shortly after airbourne. It was that sense of drama which accounted for why Chip was so interested in the countdown.

And the ending is marvellous--and like most marvellous endings, is brilliant in its simplicity.

The other is "There's a What in the Attic?" This is the sixth-season episode where an escaped lion wanders loose through the Douglas home. The dialogue and reactions of the members of the household, especially by Steve, are genuinely funny. I've seen it a half-dozen times and laugh each time like it's my first.

While this is one of the most hilarious episodes of the show, it also has one of the most poignant moments. Newly adopted Ernie, feeling he is not being accepted as a full member of the family, is suffering bouts of anxiety. Steve gently corrects him by pointing out that for the longest time, in the holder over the bathroom sink, there had been four toothbrushes--his, Mike's, Robbie's, and Chip's--but Mike, of course, had taken his with him, when he married Sally and moved away. Seeing only three toothbrushes in the holder, Steve explained, had given him a feeling of emptiness, that his family wasn't complete; and now, that there were four toothbrushes in the holder again, he felt all was right with his family again. (Geoff was considerate enough to include this comment from me on his website, under his remarks for this episode.)


Commander Benson