Ritchie: Cute or Annoying??? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

hawaii five-o · 05-06-2004, 02:43 PM

Do you think Ritchie Petrie is a cute kid or an annoying little brat. I usually like him, but on the episode where Rob brings home the baby ducks, Ritchie is very whiney.

Lolac · 05-06-2004, 10:41 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by hawaii five-o
Do you think Ritchie Petrie is a cute kid or an annoying little brat. I usually like him, but on the episode where Rob brings home the baby ducks, Ritchie is very whiney.

He is like every other normal kid: cute AND annoying!

Lolac (mother of 3)

SawgrassSteve · 05-06-2004, 10:45 PM

H5-0,
I suspect many people would agree with you. If you play episode #124, "Baby Fat," with Garry Marshall's comentary on, you'll hear him say that Richie was the character that no writer wanted to write to. That probably explains his somewhat lack of developement. In fact, had Marshall and Belson not written to him regularly, he would be even more obscure.

Steve

krstofer · 05-12-2004, 10:06 AM

I go with cute.

One of my favorite lines was when Rob asks Richie if a little girl likes him (forgot her name) richie replies:

"No,"
Pause
"She loves me,"
Pause
"She wants to marry me"

I think it is soo cute.

Krs

pilotguy · 05-12-2004, 10:18 AM

In defense of Richie, he was really quite an innovative "kid" character. Most of the children on 1950's and 60's TV sitcoms were cute-as-a-button, "perfect" children....however, Richie seemed more like a real-life kid. He tended to be on the chubby side (not really FAT, but it was obvious that he COULD be if Laura hadn't doled out the goodies in small doses), and he wasn't perfectly behaved. He didn't run out to greet his father like the "perfect" kids of "Father Knows Best" did....Greedy little Richie would run into the living room and ask Rob, "What'd ya bring me, Daddy?".

Sure, Richie may have been annoying at times...but THAT'S what made him such a realistic, true-to-life character instead of just a prim and proper, well-behaved "perfect" sitcom child!

hawaii five-o · 05-12-2004, 12:01 PM

It was pretty funny when Ritchie would ask Rob what he brought him, because it was usually a rubber band or a paper clip and Ritchie was always satisfied because it was from his dad.

pilotguy · 05-12-2004, 12:06 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by hawaii five-o
It was pretty funny when Ritchie would ask Rob what he brought him, because it was usually a rubber band or a paper clip and Ritchie was always satisfied because it was from his dad.

That WAS funny! Rob would him a paper clip and the kid would take it and go to his room admiring the gift, like it was a real toy!

Carrie · 05-12-2004, 01:10 PM

I think he was cute. All kids have their annoying moments though. I also thought it was cute the way he would ask Rob for something as soon as he got home. My favorite was the Crumby Buttons...Yechhh!

Lolac · 05-12-2004, 04:03 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Carrie
I think he was cute. All kids have their annoying moments though. I also thought it was cute the way he would ask Rob for something as soon as he got home. My favorite was the Crumby Buttons...Yechhh!

One of my favorite Ritchie lines: "How come I got a sissy name like Rosebud!"

Lolac

ScottD · 05-12-2004, 05:51 PM

I defintely go with "cute" too. I've always really liked Ritchie and, like mentioned above, have always felt he seemed much more like a real kid than most other sitcoms kids.

cemetery kid · 05-13-2004, 10:30 AM

It's a proven fact that most 60's sitcoms were required to have at least one annoying child. IMHO, the Richie character was about as likeable as Donald Rumsfeld.

I always considered it peculiar how Richie seemed to spend a lot of his time in the kitchen cabinet during the first season or two. It didn't take them very long to eliminate that bit of strange behavior though did it?

ScottD · 05-13-2004, 05:23 PM

I always thought it was cute when he'd hide in the kitchen cabinet. Didn't he usually do it when he thought he was in trouble or something? I guess I never realized how many people really don't like Ritchie! There's almost as much Ritchie bashing as there is for Carrie on Little House On The Prairie on some boards I've visited for that show. Personally, my favorite tv show kid is Tabitha from Bewitched, although I do really like "the beav" on Leave It To Beaver and Opie from The Andy Griffith Show!

Stephenie2015 · 12-26-2016, 04:18 AM

I agree with the first comment. He was very whiny and more annoying than usual in the duck episode which is why I'm here...too see if anybody else thought that he was an annoying character as well. In that episode he really aggravated and irritated me a lot. On other episodes, I can usually look past him being a bratty, loud and obnoxious (among other thing) little boy because I love the show overall so much. I do try to keep in mind that he IS a little boy though.

PhoenixAcres · 12-26-2016, 12:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hawaii five-o

Do you think Ritchie Petrie is a cute kid or an annoying little brat. I usually like him, but on the episode where Rob brings home the baby ducks, Ritchie is very whiney.

Ritchie is both, IMO, and that's not a bad thing. When they were casting the part the producers wanted someone with zero acting experience, just a real-life kid. The writers then wrote the character accordingly, striving for realism, and most kids in real life alternate between cute and annoying because that's how kids are.

mets82 · 12-26-2016, 01:39 PM

Annoying with a capital A.

05-06-2004, 10:45 PM	#3
SawgrassSteve Loyal Worshipper Senior Member Join Date: Mar 04, 2002 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 1,423	H5-0, I suspect many people would agree with you. If you play episode #124, "Baby Fat," with Garry Marshall's comentary on, you'll hear him say that Richie was the character that no writer wanted to write to. That probably explains his somewhat lack of developement. In fact, had Marshall and Belson not written to him regularly, he would be even more obscure. Steve
	__________________ The Cult Of Laura

12-26-2016, 01:39 PM	#15
mets82 Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Mar 14, 2011 Location: Connecticut Posts: 5,058	Annoying with a capital A.
	__________________ http://www.superbowlgreatness.blogspot.com/ Please check out my blog. I vent on all things. TV, sports etc. you name it. Its also a work in progress. Check out and see what you think.

05-06-2004, 02:43 PM	#1
hawaii five-o Book 'Em, Dano Senior Member Join Date: Jun 27, 2003 Location: At home, eating cereal straight out of the box Posts: 1,406	Ritchie: Cute or Annoying??? Do you think Ritchie Petrie is a cute kid or an annoying little brat. I usually like him, but on the episode where Rob brings home the baby ducks, Ritchie is very whiney.

05-12-2004, 10:06 AM	#4
krstofer Member Forum Hawk Join Date: May 12, 2004 Posts: 3	I go with cute. One of my favorite lines was when Rob asks Richie if a little girl likes him (forgot her name) richie replies: "No," Pause "She loves me," Pause "She wants to marry me" I think it is soo cute. Krs

05-12-2004, 10:18 AM	#5
pilotguy Member Senior Member Join Date: Apr 09, 2003 Posts: 1,305	In defense of Richie, he was really quite an innovative "kid" character. Most of the children on 1950's and 60's TV sitcoms were cute-as-a-button, "perfect" children....however, Richie seemed more like a real-life kid. He tended to be on the chubby side (not really FAT, but it was obvious that he COULD be if Laura hadn't doled out the goodies in small doses), and he wasn't perfectly behaved. He didn't run out to greet his father like the "perfect" kids of "Father Knows Best" did....Greedy little Richie would run into the living room and ask Rob, "What'd ya bring me, Daddy?". Sure, Richie may have been annoying at times...but THAT'S what made him such a realistic, true-to-life character instead of just a prim and proper, well-behaved "perfect" sitcom child!

05-12-2004, 12:01 PM	#6
hawaii five-o Book 'Em, Dano Senior Member Join Date: Jun 27, 2003 Location: At home, eating cereal straight out of the box Posts: 1,406	It was pretty funny when Ritchie would ask Rob what he brought him, because it was usually a rubber band or a paper clip and Ritchie was always satisfied because it was from his dad.

05-12-2004, 01:10 PM	#8
Carrie Dreamin' of Jeannie Senior Member Join Date: Mar 09, 2004 Location: Cocoa Beach Posts: 1,768	I think he was cute. All kids have their annoying moments though. I also thought it was cute the way he would ask Rob for something as soon as he got home. My favorite was the Crumby Buttons...Yechhh!

05-12-2004, 05:51 PM	#10
ScottD Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Oct 22, 2003 Location: the Upper Peninsula of Michigan Posts: 71	I defintely go with "cute" too. I've always really liked Ritchie and, like mentioned above, have always felt he seemed much more like a real kid than most other sitcoms kids.

05-13-2004, 10:30 AM	#11
cemetery kid Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Dec 28, 2003 Posts: 7	It's a proven fact that most 60's sitcoms were required to have at least one annoying child. IMHO, the Richie character was about as likeable as Donald Rumsfeld. I always considered it peculiar how Richie seemed to spend a lot of his time in the kitchen cabinet during the first season or two. It didn't take them very long to eliminate that bit of strange behavior though did it?

05-13-2004, 05:23 PM	#12
ScottD Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Oct 22, 2003 Location: the Upper Peninsula of Michigan Posts: 71	I always thought it was cute when he'd hide in the kitchen cabinet. Didn't he usually do it when he thought he was in trouble or something? I guess I never realized how many people really don't like Ritchie! There's almost as much Ritchie bashing as there is for Carrie on Little House On The Prairie on some boards I've visited for that show. Personally, my favorite tv show kid is Tabitha from Bewitched, although I do really like "the beav" on Leave It To Beaver and Opie from The Andy Griffith Show!

12-26-2016, 04:18 AM	#13
Stephenie2015 Member First Time Poster Join Date: Dec 26, 2016 Posts: 1	I agree with the first comment. He was very whiny and more annoying than usual in the duck episode which is why I'm here...too see if anybody else thought that he was an annoying character as well. In that episode he really aggravated and irritated me a lot. On other episodes, I can usually look past him being a bratty, loud and obnoxious (among other thing) little boy because I love the show overall so much. I do try to keep in mind that he IS a little boy though.