Few mutant TV series changed as frequently or as radically as The Doris Day Show, which began in 1968 as a sitcom about an urbane, widowed mother of two trying to make a go of it back at her family’s Northern California ranch. At the start of season two, while still living on the ranch, Day’s character began driving into San Francisco to work as a secretary at a hip magazine. For season three, she and her kids moved to the city (above an Italian restaurant), and Day became a part-time journalist. And in the show’s final two seasons, the emphasis was on Day as a single career gal trying to find romance. Kids? What kids? Ranch? What ranch?

http://www.avclub.com/articles/the-clown-show-has-been-put-on-hiatus-for-retoolin,25099/

I haven't seen the show in years, but I did wonder the same thing. The boys vanishing had me curious. Still, I did enjoy watching the show. I see the older boy, Billy, in commercials sometimes. Don't know whatever happened to the other one.

I always thought that the series with the kids was more "Lucy-ish" and single girl without kids was more"MTM-ish". Once her five year contract was up her obligation to the show was over.

Keep in mind that Martin Melcher, Doris' husband, had signed her to do the series before he died in 1967--and before she realized he had dribbled all her movie money away in some really bad investments. (You may recall she did some really bad movies after "The Thrill of It All" in 1963, and Melcher was also responsible for those as well.)

The '68-'69 season was the format probably closest to Melcher's dream for the series...a former singer retiring to life on the farm in Mill Valley, California to take care of her sons and ride herd on the farm help. Sort of an old-fashioned, innocuous. sweet sitcom character, kinda like the image Melcher had maintained for her in all those '60's movies.

Doris didn't really like that concept, so she began tinkering with it...hence the job offer in San Francisco. She was trying to steer the show toward a working-girl story, although the kids and farm were still, shall we say, hindrances to that.

By 1970-71, Mary Tyler Moore's groundbreaking show was on the air, and Doris got rid of the kids and farm as fast as practical so she could focus on her new, glamorous career at Today's World magazine. The Italian restaurant characters introduced this year were a transition from old to new.

By the last two seasons, the only difference between Doris Day and Mary Tyler Moore was that Doris was blonde and Mary was a brunette. (Oh, and Doris didn't throw her cap in the air in downtown San Francisco, either.)

If you were a steady viewer, you were probably left more in a "daze" by Doris Day's format changes. I know "the future's not ours to see," but I don't think even she knew what she wanted her future to be!

Few mutant TV series changed as frequently or as radically as The Doris Day Show, which began in 1968 as a sitcom about an urbane, widowed mother of two trying to make a go of it back at her family’s Northern California ranch. At the start of season two, while still living on the ranch, Day’s character began driving into San Francisco to work as a secretary at a hip magazine. For season three, she and her kids moved to the city (above an Italian restaurant), and Day became a part-time journalist. And in the show’s final two seasons, the emphasis was on Day as a single career gal trying to find romance. Kids? What kids? Ranch? What ranch?

http://www.avclub.com/articles/the-clown-show-has-been-put-on-hiatus-for-retoolin,25099/
it's been YEARS since I saw the show, but I seem to recall an episode in the last 2 seasons which featured one of her sons.

I spent a weekend in March DVRing the series on Decades channel and the film quality was awful. I felt I was watching the show through wax paper. Thank goodness, I didn't do all the episodes for I would be blind. I was wondering if the quality was due to the station or the film?

I spent a weekend in March DVRing the series on Decades channel and the film quality was awful. I felt I was watching the show through wax paper. Thank goodness, I didn't do all the episodes for I would be blind. I was wondering if the quality was due to the station or the film?

Are you talking about Doris's closeups, which were shot in soft focus to erase lines on her face, or the entirety of the episodes?


it's been YEARS since I saw the show, but I seem to recall an episode in the last 2 seasons which featured one of her sons.

Nope, that didn't happen. The sons were never seen or mentioned again in those last two seasons. I watched every episode of the last two years looking for an explanation of their absence, but it wasn't provided. No mention of them at all. In fact, Mrs. Doris Martin was suddenly Miss Doris Martin, as if she had never even been married. And in one episode, there is a reference to her widowed mother, making it clear that her mother is still alive, but her father is deceased, which means the character Buck -- her widowed father from the first three seasons -- must have been a figment of her imagination. They were really exercising artistic license on this show.

Little Ricky, I was somewhat noticing the whole episode as muddy/grainy but when close ups of Doris were shown it was more pronounced. It is odd for some of the older shows of the 1950's say Leave to Beaver or I love Lucy the quality is so much sharper. I just wondered whether it is filmed, videotape, or other type film. All in the Family is a bit grainy too. I know that was filmed or videotape in front of audience. I do tend to think black and white shows hold up better in film quality.

Few mutant TV series changed as frequently or as radically as The Doris Day Show, which began in 1968 as a sitcom about an urbane, widowed mother of two trying to make a go of it back at her family’s Northern California ranch. At the start of season two, while still living on the ranch, Day’s character began driving into San Francisco to work as a secretary at a hip magazine. For season three, she and her kids moved to the city (above an Italian restaurant), and Day became a part-time journalist. And in the show’s final two seasons, the emphasis was on Day as a single career gal trying to find romance. Kids? What kids? Ranch? What ranch?

http://www.avclub.com/articles/the-clown-show-has-been-put-on-hiatus-for-retoolin,25099/

Okay, then I started with season three this morning.

Mill Valley is just mentioned, and Buck travels to San Francisco to visit in both episodes.

The show's overall Nielsen rankings were good: 30, 10, 20, 23, 37, but the early years were the type of show that were being cancelled as part of the Rural Purge despite strong ratings. Doris couldn't be purged, though, because she was locked in for five years.

On the other hand, one thing the networks were trying at that time was urban shows built around real movie stars, and people as diverse as Shirley MacLaine and Anthony Quinn were signing up to headline series. So in addition to the Mary Tyler Moore precedent, Doris on the loose in San Francisco fit into this category pretty well.

The show's overall Nielsen rankings were good: 30, 10, 20, 23, 37, but the early years were the type of show that were being cancelled as part of the Rural Purge despite strong ratings. Doris couldn't be purged, though, because she was locked in for five years.

On the other hand, one thing the networks were trying at that time was urban shows built around real movie stars, and people as diverse as Shirley MacLaine and Anthony Quinn were signing up to headline series. So in addition to the Mary Tyler Moore precedent, Doris on the loose in San Francisco fit into this category pretty well.

So the Doria Day Show was sort of caught in the middle.