Polly's Secret Life

[Hazel Anyday]

Today I watched POLLY'S SECRET LIFE (S.12.11) and I found several things interesting and the whole episode entertaining and fun. First, I was pleased to see in action what I described earlier as to Dodie and Charlie. I had said Dodie was sort of a kid version of Charlie, honest commenting and reactions to the mannerly straight family. Here Dodie and Charlie actually are acting as a team, they work together, talk together, walk together, Charlie likes her and they share the same attitudes. So my earlier comment on Dodie being a young Charlie was really obvious in today's episode, they're really a team. Charlie doesn't grouse or complain about Dodie they're together in their commenting. Neat to see.

Second, WOW, poor Katie and those out of control wild animals she's stuck with. They are everywhere, they don't listen, and Katie has to resort to fooling them, luckily they're really stupid, into behaving and getting out of her hair. Heaven forbid she should get out the strap and give those kids what they're asking for. In her room Ernie goes to Katie for advice on how to deal with an "older woman" he's in love with, she's just less than a year older and has moved on to college while Ernie's still stuck in school. First, is this something any teenager Ernie's age would do? I sure wouldn't have made myself look like an idiot in front of a girl Katie's age. Ernie could figure this one out for himself, and cornering Katie in her extremely small room with those 3 brats raging all around them was just too much to ask for for anyone to concentrate on a problem.

In this one Polly thinks she's inferior again, Boy, did she have a self-image problem! She was constantly putting words in Chip's mouth telling him that he thinks she walks like a monkey. He NEVER said that, Polly just kept repeating that that's what Chip thinks even though he constantly denies it. Weird, maybe she has a problem listening along with the wild animals. Then she goes on to tell Chip how inferior she is in so many of her imagined ways. Chip does little to assure though, more on the line of "You're not that terrible" is his idea of tender loving sweet nothings. It was kind of funny to see their interaction with each other, and how lame Chip's attempts were to make her feel better, it was all so wrong.

I did see that one of the chicks (I think it was the brown haired girl) that wanted Chip to "tutor" them was actually Chip's real life wife! Wow, they really did get married extremely young in real life too! Polly, of course, calls herself ugly in compared to the 2 hotties that dragged helpless Chip off to "help" them out. Ernie, who got his style of reassuring directly from Chip tells Polly something like "we can't all be good looking". Now that's what I call an ego builder! He and Polly were both commiserating on their unattractiveness. Chip & Ernie apparently learned nothing from the years their father gave them advice, seems their counseling ideas more came from Tramp than anyone else.

In the end Polly comes slinking in all vamped up, now with a hot little dress and a brand new hairstyle and makeup galore. She did look really nice, BUT I think she looked much better the way she was before. I liked her makeup less cute face and her natural straight hair. The family all kind of acted like Polly looked like a clown, but she didn't, she looked nice, just that she was better natural. Oh, Chip's reaction to the new Polly? "Man, Polly".

Well, no woe is me Katie was on hand, that was nice to see, as that brings down the show and Charlie and Dodie teaming up in their attitudes was great to see.

Yeah, I like this episode.

[biffbronson]

Polly's character right from the start seems to be quite lacking in confidence or self-assuredness, although she does determine immediately that the Douglas family is right for her -- and it seems it's a recurring theme: playing off as to whether she measures up, so to speak, in her mind. In her marriage, that comes to a head in the Season 11 episode where Chip contracts what they believe to be Ptomaine food poisoning. Polly becomes so distraught that she actually packs a suitcase and comes close to leaving him, blaming herself or more to the point her cooking.

Continuing into Season 12, whether it's the situation described by Hazel Anyday or others, like something as simple as her lack of sales resistance (door-to-door trouble), we see that Polly remains a very different character from Katie or Barbara. Mike, Rob, Steve, Chip, and even Fergus have all found a blonde lady who's a nice addition to the family, so to speak -- but I believe Polly's character by far is the most complex. And as a result she offers story ideas to be developed.

[horizonbeach11]

I love how the writers gave the Polly character so much relatable depth. Instead of just writing her as a cute blonde with no personality that Chip meets and runs off and elopes with, we find a sensitive, emotionally fragile girl who has been deeply affected by experiences that occurred earlier in her life that continue to affect her marriage years later. Instead of portraying her father as just a grouchy for laughs old guy who quickly gets over her youthful elopement and falls in love with the whole Douglas family in 22 minutes, much like it would have been written in "The Brady Bunch", they stretched his reaction out over several episodes to give the viewers some background on Polly's somewhat dysfunctional family dynamics, something they didn't even do for Katie. Because we were thoroughly introduced to Polly's father and his own fears and insecurities during these earlier episodes, it doesn't come as a "Huh? " moment when she says in this episode that it was her dad who always told her that she walked like a monkey and we get it immediately. How many people can relate to having a super critical yet clingy parent like Tom Williams? +1 for the writers, that was good intuitive writing about realistic family dynamics and part of what made M3S such a stand out classic show.

Now, as far as this episode, maybe it's because I am a woman, but it REALLY annoys me how oblivious Chip is to Polly's feelings of insecurity and how it so obviously affects her when he is so chummy with those other girls. Not saying that he couldn't be friendly, but when the first girl approaches him and says she will be watching for him around campus and he says something like "Ok, me too" right in front of Polly, especially after the girl calls Polly, who is already feeling insecure, by the wrong name with a little smirk right after being introduced to her, I just want to smack him. And then when the two "wow" girls (per Ernie) approach him and ask him to tutor them, I think he should have told them he really didn't have time now that he was a married man, or some such thing. He didn't have to tutor them, he was a whiz at chemistry (per his IRL wife) so it's not like it benefitted him to study with them and it was tacky, especially when they came by the apartment later and he left with them while Polly cleaned up the dinner dishes. Boo, Chip!

And speaking of dishes, it also irks me how critical Chip is of Polly's cooking/sandwich making all the time. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Polly also a full-time college student with a full plate? Why the heck can't Chip pack his own lunch once in a while to help out? Better yet, why can't he take turns packing a lunch for both of them? This just galls me. Barbara and Katie do domestic duty as well, but they also stay home full-time except for on the rare occasion that Katie picks up a side job for about five minutes or Barbara does a day of subbing at a local school, plus they have Uncle Charley to help with all things domestic. Chip can be so obtuse and chauvinistic!

A few last things:

Ernie was a double Debbie downer with Polly, great job trying to cheer her up with insult after insult...NOT!

I really enjoy Beverly Garland's acting, not just in this episode but in everything I've seen her in. She was a very warm, talented actress and so natural in front of the camera. What a treasure this lady was!

I totally agree about the Uncle Charley/Dodie connection in this episode, it was adorable and such a pleasant change for Uncle Charley. They really were a cute little team in this one. BTW, is it me or did Dawn Lyn grow up fast between seasons 10 and 12? She seems older than her years in these season 12 episodes to me for some reason, almost like a little 'tween, even though she was only supposed to be in the third grade by the end of the show.

I thought Polly was a knockout at the end with her new look. She looked 100% better than the girls who Chip studied with, she was much more of a natural beauty than either of them and her sweetness and vulnerability mader her even prettier. Go Polly!

I also liked this episode.

ETA: LOL at Ernie commenting on Katie's "great psychology" when she finally resorts to sending the three rugrats into the bedroom closet so that she can have 30 seconds of peace. Perhaps this is the kind of "psychology" the entire Douglas family had been wishing for for the past three years. I notice that Katie also doesn't discipline the boys when they bite each other, she simply asks, "Why would you bite your brother?" Punish those brats, Katie! Or do you want to find yourself saying someday, "Why would you steal Uncle Chip's car?"

[stevea]

I also enjoyed how they handled the whole Polly/Chip story arc...and developed it over 10 or so episodes (over 2 months for the original viewer, of course). In (I think) the first episode Chip asks her if she's afraid of her father and she says no. A couple of episodes later, they're parked, and she volunteers that she thinks she is afraid of him. You begin to see a very intelligent, yet insecure, girl who's been very negatively impacted by her overbearing father. Yet he's also complex in ways, and in true sitcom style, comes around and mends fences with his daughter.

I haven't seen the subject episode in awhile, and am looking forward to it.

[TV Guy]

I found the Chip/Polly story arc interesting, and in retrospect, a bit disturbing. Here is a young girl trying to escape her father and uses a reluctant Chip and the Douglases to do it. She was far too immature to get married, and Chip didn’t seem like he was in love with her.

It doesn’t surprise me that Steve Douglas didn’t do much to stop the marriage, because he was such a passive father to begin with. I am a little surprised that Barbara didn’t do more, but then again, she was Chip’s stepmother and had only been so for a short time.

In real life, I would guess a marriage that occurred under similar circumstances wouldn’t last.

[stevea]

Chip asked Steve for his permission without Barbara being there, and Steve didn't tell Barbara about it until later. Even then, she guessed it by his expression as she commented about age and permission--he probably was going to keep it from her.

The more amazing thing is that Margaret would give Polly permission behind Tom's back. I'd think she would fear what he might do if he found out (which he obviously would). It was smart of her to 'fess up when they were with Steve and Barbara. Maybe giving Polly permission was her way of getting back at him for hiring the detective without telling her. about it.

[Hazel Anyday]

Monday I watched the next episode, "Sound of Music" S.12 ep. 12, now unless I've seen an unedited version I don't pay attention too much to the editing. Unless it's really bad, well, this one I noticed it, at one point Barbara is talking to Dodie in her bedroom next thing you know Dodie and the mother are now talking to each other in the living room!! What the? How'd they pop down there, maybe they have Samantha's powers.

Dodie also gave a funny look into the camera rolling her eyes in another Charlie type reaction to the goings on. Charlie was funny in this one too talking to the kids totally un-pc, I love it. Just like in the episode when Bub had to supervise kids in the scouts for Chip or when Chips mean friends bullied him Bub treated those kids in the same rough manner Charlie used though Charlie didn't shove anyone's face in a cake. Charlie had to act as substitute teacher in a music/band class with kids. The mothers all complained about Charlie's gruffness, just like in the Bub episode, then at the end when the kids really performed in the band great the parents took back their complaints and admitted Charlie did a great job. Also just like in the Bub episode when Bub's gruffness was paid off in the end with the kids doing great.

[stevea]

Edits--you're preaching to the choir. In The Recital, ep. 11-20, first Barbara is in the hall with Ernie, then cut, she is in the living room with Dodie and the piano lady, in a different outfit. Then she's going into the bedroom, with Steve, and I think she's in yet another outfit. Then, she's back in the living room with Dodie, and next in the kitchen with Ernie and Neil (Jon Walmsley from the Waltons, with the long hair) and probably yet another outfit.

Then in Return of Terrible Tom, 11-23, they play the opening credits, and you can almost see that they cut some stuff out, and after Barbara gets off the phone, Charley's girlfriend shows up. She asks Charley if she was expected, and Barbara says he forgot she was coming. We obviously missed some call she made or some explanation she made to somebody, but the whole thing made no sense.

In fact, the whole episode made no sense. Tom supposedly steals Charley's girl--so he moves out because of that? Doesn't seem like something he would do. Eventually, Chip talks some sense into him, and he runs back and is about to knock Tom's block off. Now, that's what I would have expected in the first place!

[biffbronson]

Today's episode seemed a little choppy, likely some bad edits. Anyway it was great to see Mike Minor (post Petticoat Junction) make an appearance, and also Sherry Alberoni (Family Affair was about done).

[stevea]

Yeah, today's was another chopped-up episode. These are old, old Viacom edited versions.

Even the Me versions that originate from less-edited episodes (like "Debbie", "Dodie Goes Downtown", "Ernie Drives", "New V.P.") are still kind of choppy, but better.

Sorry to be repetitive, but CBS Television Distribution needs to open up the coffers a bit, and find better versions of these episodes, and remaster them for syndication, particularly if they are going to continue to be available to cable and/or digital networks. The "deplorable condition" label applies to seasons 3 thru 5, the last half of season 11, and all of season 12. If they don't want to dig deep for the original films, then they should go to the Library of Congress and remaster from the videotapes of the episodes. SOMETHING needs to be done!

Or, even better, remaster the later episodes and offer them on DVDs as manufacture on demand sets.

[stevea]

Originally Posted by Hazel Anyday

Today I watched POLLY'S SECRET LIFE (S.12.11) and I found several things interesting and the whole episode entertaining and fun. First, I was pleased to see in action what I described earlier as to Dodie and Charlie. I had said Dodie was sort of a kid version of Charlie, honest commenting and reactions to the mannerly straight family. Here Dodie and Charlie actually are acting as a team, they work together, talk together, walk together, Charlie likes her and they share the same attitudes. So my earlier comment on Dodie being a young Charlie was really obvious in today's episode, they're really a team. Charlie doesn't grouse or complain about Dodie they're together in their commenting. Neat to see.

I'm looking forward to seeing this Dodie...a miniature version of Charley!

[Hazel Anyday]

In my Monday watching of My 3 Sons, today I watched 12.13, "TV Triplets" and it all started with a perfect scene of Charlie and Dodie thinking and talking alike. Dodie comes into the kitchen & tells Charlie the triplets are kidnapped, Charlie then throws on a party hat and celebrates, no, that didn't really happen, Charlie takes Dodie seriously and they both head into the living room together and both tell Steve how the triplets have been kidnapped. Steve then straightens them both out, Charlie blames the wrong story on Dodie, he turns to Dodie who says, "I'm just a kid". It was funny seeing these 2 act in harmony and doing a little comedy banter.

This episode however was really a shining example of what total brats Katie was raising. Talk about an out of control moronic herd of cats Katie was trying to keep charge of!! Those kids really did need a 3 way leash as Katie will use in future episodes. It was good to see Carpenter (from McHale's Navy) in this episode, he never changes.

[horizonbeach11]

I've said it before, but the strangest thing about those triplets, besides their basically terrible and unbridled behavior, is the way that they always do everything in unison, even down to the words that they say. In real life, three three year olds would be three unique little people. One might be looking at a book while one is sleeping and the other one is playing with his toys. But not these kids, they are like one wild, crazy, three headed kid everywhere they go. "Mama, Mama, Mama" they say, all at the same time, over and over, as they all run in the same direction and destroy the same lamp.

No wonder Katie does so well with being the mother of triplets, they are really just like having one kid with three heads.

[stevea]

I think producers don't know what to do with kids, especially toddlers who are really too young to act, when they are just "there."

In the intro. to the earliest Everybody Laves Raymond shows, Ray Romano is introducing his TV family. He mentions the kids he has as a TV dad, but says, It really isn't about the kids. So what did they do with those kids? Occasionally send the thru the living room, screaming.

So, really those Todd triplets on M3S were too young to act, and were just "there". At the end of the Liberty Bell episode, as Rob was getting ready to leave on the trip with Jim Bell, what was one of them doing? Looking off in the background, probably at all the set equipment and lights.

I can imagine the director generally saying, just have them run into the room, make noise, and maybe break something.

[biffbronson]

Some of my favorite Everybody Loves Raymond eps were ones that focused on the kids -- one of the boys seems to be falling behind in school; the daughter is collecting Pokémon-type cards; one boy has torn the head off of a stuffed giraffe. Maybe those stood out since the great majority of the series' plotlines focused on the adults instead.

With the M3S triplets, I've found the adults' reactions to the triplets more memorable than the boys themselves -- like early on, Rob being concerned with so much attention from acquaintances and others that it's like a sideshow, or in S11 Lorraine trying to handle them.