Today's WGN episode "How to Become a Genie in 10 Easy Lessons" - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Rezny@gmail.com · 10-18-2010, 06:36 PM

Was a good one,and kind of a companion piece to the great,memorable first season black and white episode "The Richest Astronaut in the Whole Wide World".This time,as in "The Richest Astronaut in the Whole Wide World",it centers around Roger,not Tony,who once again,tries to get control of Jeannie,and become HER master.But it is funny at the end of this one,when Jeannie and Tony work together to get even with Roger.

CAJeannieFan57 · 10-18-2010, 10:24 PM

This is one of my favorite episodes. It's a good one for seeing that Roger has an apartment, and that he does things besides be an astronaut and chase women....he plays string bass!

TV Knowledge Fan · 10-19-2010, 02:08 AM

...as I've previously said, only HE seemed to understand what the series was all about. It touches on Jeannie and "Master"'s relationship (he doesn't mind having her around the house, but he does mind when she screws up when trying to "please" him too much), Roger's so-called "greed" (he wants Jeannie to do things for him that Tony prudishly won't, and will sometimes attempt deceit in order to "use" her), and Dr. Bellows' obsessiveness with all the weird things he sees whenever he's near Tony- only in this case, he still has his "I give up" attitude; he's not going to tell General Peterson about the iron door in front of Tony's bedroom because he knows what's going to happen to him if he DOES {"General, I..."/"Before you say anything, let me warn you, Doctor- have you ever considered how angry I might get if I'm bothered with trivial matters? Especially if it has anything to do with Major Nelson?"/ {meekly} "Yes, sir."/"Now, what did you want to see me about?"/"Oh, er, nothing, General....absolutely nothing."/"It had better be nothing...I'm not very fond of signing medical discharges for chief psychaitrists who think they're reporting something that just isn't there."/"I'll...remember that, General..."}.

Obviously, the edition of "The Arabian Nights" Tony brings home for Jeannie to "study" is one very different from the ones most people are familiar with. There have been many versions of the book over the years- some feature different translations, some have different stories from various sources (it's never the same)...unfortunately, the one Tony brings home- that he never BOTHERED to read himself- features an extended tale where it's explained to djinni the various methods of torturing their masters. Naturally, Roger tries to capitalize on both Tony and Jeannie's ignorance of what each is doing to the other by insisting that he's doing the right thing, and that Jeannie has "run amuck" [and that Tony has "run amuck", to her]. Of course, once they realize that Roger has manipulated both of them, they give him exactly what he deserves...

billdailyfanct · 10-19-2010, 07:59 AM

Also loved this episode and nice to see yeah that Roger had an apartment and glad to see he plays string bass. But very well done episode and also one of my favorites as well.

TV Knowledge Fan · 10-21-2010, 03:07 AM

...was in the episode "Where'd You Go-Go?" [12/4/65], which was also the first episode where Bill finally earned the right to be a "co-star", and featured in every episode for the rest of the season [Roger finally meets Jeannie, and supposedly has several dates with her over the course of the next few episodes before finding out what she really is in "The Richest Astronaut in the Whole Wide World"].

10-18-2010, 06:36 PM	#1
Rezny@gmail.com Member Senior Member Join Date: Jul 20, 2007 Location: Nebraska Posts: 2,675	Today's WGN episode "How to Become a Genie in 10 Easy Lessons" Was a good one,and kind of a companion piece to the great,memorable first season black and white episode "The Richest Astronaut in the Whole Wide World".This time,as in "The Richest Astronaut in the Whole Wide World",it centers around Roger,not Tony,who once again,tries to get control of Jeannie,and become HER master.But it is funny at the end of this one,when Jeannie and Tony work together to get even with Roger.

10-18-2010, 10:24 PM	#2
CAJeannieFan57 Member Forum Regular Join Date: May 01, 2005 Location: Central Missouri Posts: 871	This is one of my favorite episodes. It's a good one for seeing that Roger has an apartment, and that he does things besides be an astronaut and chase women....he plays string bass!
	__________________ Donna

10-19-2010, 02:08 AM	#3
TV Knowledge Fan Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 29, 2006 Location: Long Branch, N.J. Posts: 2,577	This was one of Sidney Sheldon's best episodes... ...as I've previously said, only HE seemed to understand what the series was all about. It touches on Jeannie and "Master"'s relationship (he doesn't mind having her around the house, but he does mind when she screws up when trying to "please" him too much), Roger's so-called "greed" (he wants Jeannie to do things for him that Tony prudishly won't, and will sometimes attempt deceit in order to "use" her), and Dr. Bellows' obsessiveness with all the weird things he sees whenever he's near Tony- only in this case, he still has his "I give up" attitude; he's not going to tell General Peterson about the iron door in front of Tony's bedroom because he knows what's going to happen to him if he DOES {"General, I..."/"Before you say anything, let me warn you, Doctor- have you ever considered how angry I might get if I'm bothered with trivial matters? Especially if it has anything to do with Major Nelson?"/ {meekly} "Yes, sir."/"Now, what did you want to see me about?"/"Oh, er, nothing, General....absolutely nothing."/"It had better be nothing...I'm not very fond of signing medical discharges for chief psychaitrists who think they're reporting something that just isn't there."/"I'll...remember that, General..."}. Obviously, the edition of "The Arabian Nights" Tony brings home for Jeannie to "study" is one very different from the ones most people are familiar with. There have been many versions of the book over the years- some feature different translations, some have different stories from various sources (it's never the same)...unfortunately, the one Tony brings home- that he never BOTHERED to read himself- features an extended tale where it's explained to djinni the various methods of torturing their masters. Naturally, Roger tries to capitalize on both Tony and Jeannie's ignorance of what each is doing to the other by insisting that he's doing the right thing, and that Jeannie has "run amuck" [and that Tony has "run amuck", to her]. Of course, once they realize that Roger has manipulated both of them, they give him exactly what he deserves...

10-21-2010, 03:07 AM	#5
TV Knowledge Fan Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 29, 2006 Location: Long Branch, N.J. Posts: 2,577	The very first time Roger's apartment was seen... ...was in the episode "Where'd You Go-Go?" [12/4/65], which was also the first episode where Bill finally earned the right to be a "co-star", and featured in every episode for the rest of the season [Roger finally meets Jeannie, and supposedly has several dates with her over the course of the next few episodes before finding out what she really is in "The Richest Astronaut in the Whole Wide World"].

10-19-2010, 07:59 AM	#4
billdailyfanct Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Sep 24, 2010 Location: Connecticut Posts: 60	Also loved this episode and nice to see yeah that Roger had an apartment and glad to see he plays string bass. But very well done episode and also one of my favorites as well.