At first, Jack Klugman wasn't interested in doing this show. But when he found out that Tony Randall had signed on, Jack changed his mind. I believe that they turned out to be the greatest comedy team in TV history.
There is so much about "The Odd Couple" that is wonderfully endearing-especially when you examine its history. It ran for five seasons(1970-75 )with 114 episodes. But the ratings were very marginal all through its original run on ABC.
Then, something happened when it went into syndication in the latter half of the 1970s. People tuned in to the show on local stations all across the country. "The Odd Couple" became a sensation. WPIX-TV in New York City was showing it four times a day, at one point !
The first season used the vertical set with the gate and canned laughter for the episodes. Tony and Jack went to executive producer Garry Marshall about this. If the show was picked up for a second season, they wanted a horizontal set and a live studio audience for the show. Marshall had seen the chemistry between this pair. Tony and Jack got what they wanted and more. They each received five percent ownership of the show ( quite rare for actors on any series ). This gave them both a dose of creative control. They 'punched up' many of the scripts, threw in some of their own ideas, and made the show even funnier.
Jack's "Oscar" took home two EMMYs for the show and Tony's "Felix" took home one of his own, as well.
There has been plenty of debate about the guest stars that came on the show. It was mostly opera stars & ballet dancers for Tony ; various sports figures for Jack. But it worked and could often be hilarious.
Of course, Felix was always the neat-freak and Oscar was always the slob. That's part of what made "The Odd Couple". Tony and Jack turned it into an American classic.
Just one question..."Can two divorced men share a DVD set- without driving each other crazy ?" I'm betting they can :-).
Jeffrey McAdam-Reed ( reven2skater@yahoo.com ) .
There is so much about "The Odd Couple" that is wonderfully endearing-especially when you examine its history. It ran for five seasons(1970-75 )with 114 episodes. But the ratings were very marginal all through its original run on ABC.
Then, something happened when it went into syndication in the latter half of the 1970s. People tuned in to the show on local stations all across the country. "The Odd Couple" became a sensation. WPIX-TV in New York City was showing it four times a day, at one point !
The first season used the vertical set with the gate and canned laughter for the episodes. Tony and Jack went to executive producer Garry Marshall about this. If the show was picked up for a second season, they wanted a horizontal set and a live studio audience for the show. Marshall had seen the chemistry between this pair. Tony and Jack got what they wanted and more. They each received five percent ownership of the show ( quite rare for actors on any series ). This gave them both a dose of creative control. They 'punched up' many of the scripts, threw in some of their own ideas, and made the show even funnier.
Jack's "Oscar" took home two EMMYs for the show and Tony's "Felix" took home one of his own, as well.
There has been plenty of debate about the guest stars that came on the show. It was mostly opera stars & ballet dancers for Tony ; various sports figures for Jack. But it worked and could often be hilarious.
Of course, Felix was always the neat-freak and Oscar was always the slob. That's part of what made "The Odd Couple". Tony and Jack turned it into an American classic.
Just one question..."Can two divorced men share a DVD set- without driving each other crazy ?" I'm betting they can :-).
Jeffrey McAdam-Reed ( reven2skater@yahoo.com ) .