Bachelor Father (American TV series)

Bachelor Father
	Noreen Corcoran and John Forsythe, 1961
Genre	Sitcom
Starring	John Forsythe; Noreen Corcoran; Sammee Tong; Jimmy Boyd
Theme music composer	Dave Kahn; (1957–1958); Melvyn Lenard Gordon; (1957–1958); Jeff Alexander; (1958–1959); Larry Ornstein; (1958–1959); Johnny Williams; (1959–1960); Conrad Salinger; (1960–62)
Opening theme	"Bachelor Father Serenade"; (1957–1958); "Bachelor Father Theme"; (1958–1959); "Bachelor Father Theme"; (1959–1960); "Bentley's Theme"; (1960–62)
Composer(s)	Stanley Wilson
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	5
No. of episodes	157
Production
Producer(s)	Harry Ackerman; (1957–1958); Everett Freeman ; (1958–1962); Robert Sparks
Camera setup	Single-camera
Running time	30 mins.
Production company(s)	Bachelor Productions; Revue Studios
Distributor	MCA TV; (1963-1965); NBCUniversal Television Distribution
Release
Original network	CBS (1957–1959); NBC (1959–1961); ABC (1961–1962)
Picture format	Black-and-white
Audio format	Monaural
Original release	September 15, 1957 –; September 25, 1962
Chronology
Related shows	General Electric Theater

Guest star Eddie "Rochester" Anderson and John Forsythe

Bachelor Father is an American sitcom starring John Forsythe, Noreen Corcoran and Sammee Tong. The series first premiered on CBS in September 1957 before moving to NBC for the third season in 1959; the series' fifth and final season aired on ABC for the rest of the show's run. A total of 157 episodes were aired; the series was based on "A New Girl in His Life," which aired on General Electric Theater on May 26, 1957.^[1]

Bachelor Father is the only primetime series ever to run in consecutive years on the three major television networks (ABC, CBS and NBC).^[2]

Overview[edit]

Bachelor Father follows the adventures of Bentley Gregg, a wealthy bachelor attorney living in Beverly Hills who assumes the responsibility of raising his niece, Kelly (Noreen Corcoran), after her parents died in an automobile accident.^[2] Other members of the cast included houseboy Peter Tong (Sammee Tong), teenage neighbor and Kelly's on and off boyfriend, Howard Meechum (Jimmy Boyd), Kelly's best friend, Ginger Farrell (Bernadette Withers) and Jasper, the dog.^[2] Withers appeared in 51 episodes from 1957-1962; Boyd in 37 from 1958-1962. Plots center on Bentley's adjustments to his new role as an adoptive parent, his search for the right woman to share his life,^[2] Kelly facing the usual problems of adolescence and young adulthood and her ritual of passage from high school to college and Peter's misadventures with his family, love life and financial schemes.

The program's final season storylines led to Kelly's impending marriage to Bentley's junior partner Warren Dawson (Aron Kincaid);^[3] the two met, became engaged, interacted with other couples and even met Dawson's parents (who flew in from New York on short notice), all in a span of three episodes. Without mention or explanation, Kincaid's character was dropped after four episodes and by the series finale, Kelly is seeing a different man with no marriage plans. Meechum (Boyd) appears in several Season 5 episodes, but he is never developed as a serious romantic interest for Kelly; as the series was canceled after 157 episodes, Bachelor Father did not have a formal series finale.

Primary cast[edit]

According to John Forsythe, the Bentley Gregg character was based on two well-known Beverly Hills bachelors at the time, he combined their names and used it for the character's in the program. Because of the implication in the program of Gregg's aversion to marriage, no serious thoughts were given to casting a 'regular' or steady woman for him. Instead, Gregg is forever dating different women with only a handful ever getting a 'second' date with him.

Forsythe noted that casting the main characters took considerable effort. Then actor (and future California governor and United States president) Ronald Reagan, who hosted General Electric Theater from 1954-1962, suggested Corcoran for the role, believing her to be a 'typical teenager' and closer to what a normal 13-year-old was like, which Forsythe agreed. Corcoran was already an experienced actress with movie and television roles to her credit, she was 18 years old when the program left the air and had virtually 'grown up' into a young woman during the show's run.

Casting Bentley Gregg's houseboy was difficult as well. Sammee Tong was cast based primarily on his experience as a stand-up comedian. Forsythe believed much of the program's success resulted from the interaction between Tong and himself and that Tong had great comic timing, he also stated that Tong's character was unique for the time and that he was not the "typical" Asian house servant. Forsythe insisted on Tong being a major character on the program. Several of the program plots center around Tong, many dealing with his attempts to improve his position in life. Although none ever pan out (much like Bentley or Kelly) he does develop as a character through the life of the program.

Guest stars[edit]

Among the series guest stars were Edgar Bergen, Bill Bixby, Billy Gray, Ryan O'Neal, Frankie Laine, Mary Tyler Moore and singer Patti Page. Eddie Anderson, who portrayed "Rochester" on The Jack Benny Show, reprised his role in the Season 5 episode, "Pinch That Penny." Besides the 'Benny' link, the series had connections to The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show as Harry Von Zell appeared in five season three episodes as Bentley Gregg's friend and next-door neighbor. The Burns' son, Ronnie Burns, appeared on two episodes, as well. Fifteen-year-old Linda Evans also appeared in a guest spot on the series as one of Kelly's friends. Evans and Forsythe later starred in the primetime soap opera Dynasty together.^[4]

Other guest stars include:

Broadcast history[edit]

The series' pilot episode, "A New Girl in His Life", originally aired on General Electric Theater on May 26, 1957;^[1] the series was first telecast on CBS on September 15, 1957.^[2] It originally aired on Sunday evenings on alternating weeks with The Jack Benny Program (Benny guest starred on one episode) opposite NBC's Sally and ABC's Maverick.^[5] The show moved to NBC as a weekly series on Thursday nights in June 1959 (the Summer 1959 run on NBC were reruns of previous CBS episodes) and concluded its run on that network in September 1961;^[6] the series then moved on to ABC on Tuesday nights in 1961 for its final season. The last "first run" episode (the 157th unique episode) aired on June 26, 1962, with the remainder of the summer being reruns.^[2]

Bachelor Father is the only series to ever run in consecutive seasons on all three major TV networks of the time (ABC, CBS and NBC).

Episodes[edit]

Season 1 (1957–58)[edit]

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
1	1	"Bentley and the P.T.A."	Jerry Hopper	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	September 15, 1957 (1957-09-15)
2	2	"Bentley Versus the Girl Scouts"	Jerry Hopper	Jerry Davis & Howard Leeds	September 29, 1957 (1957-09-29)
3	3	"Uncle Bentley and the Lady Doctor"	Jerry Hopper	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	October 13, 1957 (1957-10-13)
4	4	"A Date with Kelly"	Jerry Hopper	Jerry Davis & Howard Leeds	October 27, 1957 (1957-10-27)
5	5	"Uncle Bentley and the Aunts"	Jerry Hopper	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	November 10, 1957 (1957-11-10)
6	6	"Bentley and the Revolving Housekeepers"	Jerry Hopper	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	November 24, 1957 (1957-11-24)
7	7	"Uncle Bentley Keeps His Promise"	Jerry Hopper	Don Nelson & John Forsythe	December 8, 1957 (1957-12-08)
8	8	"Bentley and the Baby Sitter"	Jerry Hopper	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	December 22, 1957 (1957-12-22)
9	9	"Bentley and the Talent Contest"	Jerry Hopper	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	January 5, 1958 (1958-01-05)
10	10	"Bentley, the Homemaker"	Jerry Hopper	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	January 19, 1958 (1958-01-19)
11	11	"Bentley and His Junior Image"	Jerry Hopper	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	February 2, 1958 (1958-02-02)
12	12	"Uncle Bentley Loans Out Peter"	Jerry Hopper	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	February 16, 1958 (1958-02-16)
13	13	"Bentley and the Social Worker"	Jerry Hopper	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	March 2, 1958 (1958-03-02)
14	14	"A Sister for Kelly"	Andrew McCullough	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	March 16, 1958 (1958-03-16)
15	15	"Waiting Up for Kelly"	Jerry Hopper	Phil Leslie	March 30, 1958 (1958-03-30)
16	16	"Woman of the House"	Andrew McCullough	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	April 13, 1958 (1958-04-13)
17	17	"Peter Falls in Love"	Don Taylor	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	April 27, 1958 (1958-04-27)
18	18	"Bentley's Prospective Son-In-Law"	John Newland	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	May 11, 1958 (1958-05-11)
19	19	"Bentley's Clubhouse"	David Butler	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	May 25, 1958 (1958-05-25)
20	20	"Uncle Bentley and the Matchmaker"	Jerry Hopper	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	June 8, 1958 (1958-06-08)

Season 2 (1958–59)[edit]

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
21	1	"Bentley and the Finishing School"	John Newland	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	September 14, 1958 (1958-09-14)
22	2	"Parent's Night"	John Newland	Jerry Davis & Alfred Lewis Levitt*	September 28, 1958 (1958-09-28)
23	3	"Bentley Leads a Dog's Life"	John Newland	Arthur Alsberg (s/t) & Nate Monaster (s) & Ben Starr (t)	October 12, 1958 (1958-10-12)
24	4	"Bentley and the Teenage Siren"	John Newland	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	October 26, 1958 (1958-10-26)
25	5	"Bentley & Peter's Teacher"	Sidney Lanfield	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	November 9, 1958 (1958-11-09)
26	6	"Bentley and the Wedding Bells"	Sidney Miller	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	November 23, 1958 (1958-11-23)
27	7	"Kelly's Mad Crush"	John Newland	Arthur Alsberg & Ben Starr	December 7, 1958 (1958-12-07)
28	8	"Bentley's Big Case"	John Newland	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	December 21, 1958 (1958-12-21)
29	9	"Bentley's Economy Wave"	John Newland	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	January 4, 1959 (1959-01-04)
30	10	"Decisions, Decisions"	John Newland	Jerry Davis & Alfred Lewis Levitt* (t) Bill Freedman & Larry Rhine (s)	January 18, 1959 (1959-01-18)
31	11	"Bentley and the Kleptomaniac"	John Newland	Laurence Marks & Milton Pascal	February 1, 1959 (1959-02-01)
32	12	"A Phone for Kelly"	Bretaigne Windust	Arthur Alsberg & Ben Starr	February 15, 1959 (1959-02-15)
33	13	"Bentley, the Star Maker"	John Newland	Arthur Alsberg & Nate Monaster	March 1, 1959 (1959-03-01)
34	14	"Bentley the Proud Father"	Earl Bellamy	Arthur Alsberg & Ben Starr	March 15, 1959 (1959-03-15)
35	15	"Bentley's Aunt Caroline"	John Newland	Arthur Alsberg & Ben Starr	March 29, 1959 (1959-03-29)
36	16	"Bentley, Man of Steel"	Earl Bellamy	Jerry Davis & Alfred Lewis Levitt*	April 12, 1959 (1959-04-12)
37	17	"Bentley and the Motorcycle"	Don Taylor	Arthur Alsberg & Ben Starr	April 26, 1959 (1959-04-26)
38	18	"Bentley, the Organizer"	Don Taylor	Arthur Alsberg & Ben Starr	May 10, 1959 (1959-05-10)
39	19	"Bentley and the Beauty Contest"	Bretaigne Windust	Arthur Alsberg & Ben Starr (s) Jerry Davis (t)	May 24, 1959 (1959-05-24)
40	20	"Bentley, the Hero"	Don Taylor	Arthur Alsberg & Ben Starr	June 7, 1959 (1959-06-07)

* Because of the Hollywood Blacklist, Alfred Lewis Levitt was credited at "Tom August."

Season 3 (1959–60)[edit]

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
41	1	"Peter Meets His Match"	Sidney Lanfield	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	September 17, 1959 (1959-09-17)
42	2	"Bentley and the Dog Trainer"	Bretaigne Windust	Everett Freeman & William Raynor	September 24, 1959 (1959-09-24)
43	3	"The Case Against Gisele"	Sidney Lanfield	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	October 1, 1959 (1959-10-01)
44	4	"Bentley and the Gullible Guitarist"	Sidney Lanfield	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	October 8, 1959 (1959-10-08)
45	5	"Kelly's Idol"	Bretaigne Windust	Laurence Marks & William Raynor	October 15, 1959 (1959-10-15)
46	6	"East Meets West"	Sidney Lanfield	Jerry Davis & David R. Schwartz	October 22, 1959 (1959-10-22)
47	7	"Bentley and Grandpa Ling"	Sidney Lanfield	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	October 29, 1959 (1959-10-29)
48	8	"Kelly: The Golddigger"	Norman Abbott	Mel Diamond & John Kohn	November 5, 1959 (1959-11-05)
49	9	"The Rescue of Rufus"	Sidney Lanfield	Cynthia Lindsay & Leo Townsend	November 12, 1959 (1959-11-12)
50	10	"A Key for Kelly"	Sidney Lanfield	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	November 19, 1959 (1959-11-19)
51	11	"Bentley's Double Play"	Sidney Lanfield	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	November 26, 1959 (1959-11-26)
52	12	"Bentley and the Brainy Beauty"	Sidney Lanfield	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	December 3, 1959 (1959-12-03)
53	13	"Bentley Plays Cupid"	Sidney Lanfield	Jerry Davis & Howard Leeds	December 10, 1959 (1959-12-10)
54	14	"Kelly's Secret"	Bretaigne Windust	Martin Ragaway	December 17, 1959 (1959-12-17)
55	15	"Bentley Goes to Washington"	Bretaigne Windust	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	December 24, 1959 (1959-12-24)
56	16	"Kelly, the Politician"	Bretaigne Windust	Henry Sharp	December 31, 1959 (1959-12-31)
57	17	"Bentley: The Gentleman Farmer"	Bretaigne Windust	Arthur Alsberg & William Raynor	January 7, 1960 (1960-01-07)
58	18	"Bentley and the Combo"	Sidney Miller	Phil Davis, Laurence Marks & William Raynor	January 14, 1960 (1960-01-14)
59	19	"Bentley and the Bartered Bride"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher, James Hong, Alan Lipscott & Eleanor Middleton (s)	January 21, 1960 (1960-01-21)
60	20	"The Blonde Issue"	Sidney Miller	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	January 28, 1960 (1960-01-28)
61	21	"Bentley and the Majorette"	Sidney Miller	Keith Fowler (t) & David R. Schwartz (s/t)	February 4, 1960 (1960-02-04)
62	22	"Bentley, the Model Citizen"	Sidney Miller	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	February 18, 1960 (1960-02-18)
63	23	"The Fishing Trip"	Richard Kinon	Arthur Alsberg & Mel Diamond	February 25, 1960 (1960-02-25)
64	24	"The Fortune Cookie Caper"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	March 3, 1960 (1960-03-03)
65	25	"Kelly and the College Man"	Ezra Stone	Arthur Alsberg & Mel Diamond	March 10, 1960 (1960-03-10)
66	26	"Kelly: The Career Woman"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	March 17, 1960 (1960-03-17)
67	27	"Bentley's New House"	Bretaigne Windust	Arthur Alsberg & Joseph Quillan	March 24, 1960 (1960-03-24)
68	28	"Bentley, the Stage Mother"	Norman Abbott	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	April 7, 1960 (1960-04-07)
69	29	"The Woman's Angle"	Earl Bellamy	Arthur Alsberg, Keith Fowler & Joseph Quillan	April 14, 1960 (1960-04-14)
70	30	"Bentley Meets the Perfect Woman"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	April 21, 1960 (1960-04-21)
71	31	"Bentley and the Travel Agent"	Earl Bellamy	Arthur Alsberg & Mel Diamond	April 28, 1960 (1960-04-28)
72	32	"The Very Friendly Witness"	Norman Abbott	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	May 5, 1960 (1960-05-05)
73	33	"Bentley and the Blood Bank"	Earl Bellamy	Arthur Alsberg, Mel Diamond & Joseph Quillan	May 12, 1960 (1960-05-12)
74	34	"A Man of Importance"	Earl Bellamy	Arthur Alsberg & Mel Diamond	May 19, 1960 (1960-05-19)
75	35	"Bentley and the Beach Bum"	Earl Bellamy	Arthur Alsberg & Mel Diamond	May 26, 1960 (1960-05-26)
76	36	"Where There's a Will"	Bretaigne Windust	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	June 2, 1960 (1960-06-02)
77	37	"Bentley's Birthday Gift"	Earl Bellamy	Everett Freeman & Sam Locke	June 9, 1960 (1960-06-09)

Season 4 (1960–61)[edit]

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
78	1	"Jasper the Second"	Earl Bellamy	Everett Freeman	September 15, 1960 (1960-09-15)
79	2	"Kelly Learns to Drive"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	September 22, 1960 (1960-09-22)
80	3	"Trial Separation"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	September 29, 1960 (1960-09-29)
81	4	"Mystery Witness"	Earl Bellamy	Lou Derman	October 6, 1960 (1960-10-06)
82	5	"A Crush on Bentley"	Earl Bellamy	Everett Freeman	October 13, 1960 (1960-10-13)
83	6	"Peter Gets Jury Notice"	Earl Bellamy	Everett Freeman & Danny Simon	October 20, 1960 (1960-10-20)
84	7	"Hilda the Jewel"	Earl Bellamy	Lou Derman & Mel Diamond	October 27, 1960 (1960-10-27)
85	8	"It Happens in November"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose (t) Helen Mandel (s)	November 3, 1960 (1960-11-03)
86	9	"How to Catch a Man"	Earl Bellamy	Mel Diamond & Mel Tolkin	November 10, 1960 (1960-11-10)
87	10	"Kelly, the Matchmaker"	Earl Bellamy	Arthur Alsberg & Mel Diamond	November 17, 1960 (1960-11-17)
88	11	"Bentley Cracks the Whip"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	November 24, 1960 (1960-11-24)
89	12	"Bentley and the Big Board"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	December 1, 1960 (1960-12-01)
90	13	"Dear Bentley"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	December 15, 1960 (1960-12-15)
91	14	"Bentley and the Lost Chord"	Earl Bellamy	Danny Simon	December 22, 1960 (1960-12-22)
92	15	"Ginger's Big Romance"	Earl Bellamy	Keith Fowler & Ralph Goodman	December 29, 1960 (1960-12-29)
93	16	"Bentley the Angel"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	January 5, 1961 (1961-01-05)
94	17	"Bentley and the Woodpecker"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	January 12, 1961 (1961-01-12)
95	18	"Bentley Goes to Europe"	Earl Bellamy	Keith Fowler & Everett Freeman	January 19, 1961 (1961-01-19)
96	19	"The Greggs in Rome"	Earl Bellamy	Keith Fowler & Everett Freeman	January 26, 1961 (1961-01-26)
97	20	"The Greggs in London"	Earl Bellamy	William Raynor & Myles Wilder	February 2, 1961 (1961-02-02)
98	21	"The Greggs in Paris"	Earl Bellamy	Howard Leeds	February 16, 1961 (1961-02-16)
99	22	"Encore in Paris"	Earl Bellamy	Robert Pirosh	February 23, 1961 (1961-02-23)
100	23	"There's No Place Like Home"	Earl Bellamy	William Raynor & Myles Wilder	March 2, 1961 (1961-03-02)
101	24	"Bentley Swims Upstream"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	March 9, 1961 (1961-03-09)
102	25	"A Man Among Men"	Earl Bellamy	William Raynor & Myles Wilder	March 16, 1961 (1961-03-16)
103	26	"Peter's China Doll"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	March 23, 1961 (1961-03-23)
104	27	"Bentley and the Counterspy"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	March 30, 1961 (1961-03-30)
105	28	"Peter Plays Cupid"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	April 6, 1961 (1961-04-06)
106	29	"Bentley and the Great Debate"	Earl Bellamy	Charles R. Marion	April 13, 1961 (1961-04-13)
107	30	"Bentley and the Nature Girl"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	April 20, 1961 (1961-04-20)
108	31	"Bentley's Mad Friends"	Earl Bellamy	Keith Fowler & Everett Freeman	April 27, 1961 (1961-04-27)
109	32	"Hilda Rides Again"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	May 4, 1961 (1961-05-04)
110	33	"Kelly's Charge Account"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	May 11, 1961 (1961-05-11)
111	34	"Bentley Builds a Pool"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	May 18, 1961 (1961-05-18)
112	35	"Bentley Slays a Dragon"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	May 25, 1961 (1961-05-25)
113	36	"A Favor for Bentley"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	June 1, 1961 (1961-06-01)
114	37	"Kelly Gets a Job"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	June 8, 1961 (1961-06-08)
115	28	"Kelly's Tangled Web"	Earl Bellamy	John Elliotte (s/t) & Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott (t)	June 15, 1961 (1961-06-15)
116	29	"Bentley's Barbecue"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	June 22, 1961 (1961-06-22)
117	30	"Drop That Calorie"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	July 6, 1961 (1961-07-06)

Season 5 (1961–62)[edit]

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
118	1	"Kelly's Graduation"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	September 21, 1961 (1961-09-21)
119	2	"The King's English"	Earl Bellamy	Dan Beaumont	October 3, 1961 (1961-10-03)
120	3	"Rush Week"	Greg Garrison	Jess Carneol & Kay Lenard	October 10, 1961 (1961-10-10)
121	4	"Kelly and the Freethinker"	John Newland	Sheridan Gibney	October 17, 1961 (1961-10-17)
122	5	"A Party for Peter"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	October 24, 1961 (1961-10-24)
123	6	"Never Steal an Owl"	Earl Bellamy	George Carleton Brown & Frank Gill Jr.	October 31, 1961 (1961-10-31)
124	7	"Bentley's Catered Affair"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	November 7, 1961 (1961-11-07)
125	8	"The House at Smuggler's Cove"	Earl Bellamy	Calvin Clements Sr. (t) Dick Conway & Roland MacLane (s/t)	November 14, 1961 (1961-11-14)
126	9	"Peter's Punctured Wedding"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	November 21, 1961 (1961-11-21)
127	10	"Star Light, Star Not So Bright"	Earl Bellamy	Jim Allen & R.S. Allen	November 28, 1961 (1961-11-28)
128	11	"Bentley and the Timeclock"	Earl Bellamy	Jim Allen & R.S. Allen (t) Elroy Schwartz (s/t) & Glenn Wheaton (s/t)	December 5, 1961 (1961-12-05)
129	12	"Birth of a Song"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	December 12, 1961 (1961-12-12)
130	13	"Deck the Halls"	Stanley Z. Cherry	Jim Allen & R.S. Allen	December 19, 1961 (1961-12-19)
131	14	"The Law and Kelly Gregg"	Stanley Z. Cherry	Jim Allen & R.S. Allen	December 26, 1961 (1961-12-26)
132	15	"How to Throw Your Voice"	Earl Bellamy	Shirley Gordon	January 2, 1962 (1962-01-02)
133	16	"Kelly the Yes Man"	Stanley Z. Cherry	Dan Beaumont & Ben Starr	January 9, 1962 (1962-01-09)
134	17	"Gold in Them Hills"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	January 16, 1962 (1962-01-16)
135	18	"How Howard Won His C"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	January 23, 1962 (1962-01-23)
136	19	"Pinch That Penny"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	January 30, 1962 (1962-01-30)
137	20	"Blossom Comes to Visit"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	February 6, 1962 (1962-02-06)
138	21	"Bentley and the Homebody"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	February 13, 1962 (1962-02-13)
139	22	"Summer Romance"	Earl Bellamy	Sheridan Gibney	February 20, 1962 (1962-02-20)
140	23	"The Hong Kong Suit"	Earl Bellamy	Hannibal Coons & Charles R. Marion	February 27, 1962 (1962-02-27)
141	24	"Will Success Spoil Jasper?"	Hollingsworth Morse	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	March 6, 1962 (1962-03-06)
142	25	"Strictly Business"	Earl Bellamy	Dan Beaumont, Larry Williams & Maggie Williams	March 13, 1962 (1962-03-13)
143	26	"On the Old Camp Ground"	Abby Berlin	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	March 20, 1962 (1962-03-20)
144	27	"A Visit to the Bergens"	Earl Bellamy	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	March 27, 1962 (1962-03-27)
145	28	"The Richest Cat"	Earl Bellamy	Sloan Nibley	April 3, 1962 (1962-04-03)
146	29	"The Twain Shall Meet"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	April 10, 1962 (1962-04-10)
147	30	"Bentley Goes to Bat"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	April 17, 1962 (1962-04-17)
148	31	"Kelly's Engagement"	Earl Bellamy	William Raynor & Myles Wilder	April 24, 1962 (1962-04-24)
149	32	"Kelly, the Home Executive"	Earl Bellamy	Jim Allen, R.S. Allen & Mel Diamond	May 1, 1962 (1962-05-01)
150	33	"Blossom Time at the Greggs"	Hollingsworth Morse	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	May 8, 1962 (1962-05-08)
151	34	"What Men Don't Know"	Hollingsworth Morse	George Carleton Brown & Frank Gill Jr.	May 15, 1962 (1962-05-15)
152	35	"Marry Thy Neighbor"	Hollingsworth Morse	Seaman Jacobs & Si Rose	May 22, 1962 (1962-05-22)
153	36	"Bentley Takes It Easy"	Earl Bellamy	Mel Diamond (t) & Seaman Jacobs (s/t) & Si Rose (s/t)	May 29, 1962 (1962-05-29)
154	37	"Boys Will Be"	Earl Bellamy	Jess Carneol (s/t) & Kay Lenard (s/t) & Larry Rhine (t)	June 5, 1962 (1962-06-05)
155	38	"Divided House"	Earl Bellamy	Mel Diamond	June 12, 1962 (1962-06-12)
156	39	"Peter, the Medicine Man"	Earl Bellamy	Everett Freeman & Larry Rhine	June 19, 1962 (1962-06-19)
157	40	"Curfew Shall Not Ring Tonight"	Earl Bellamy	Bob Fisher & Alan Lipscott	June 26, 1962 (1962-06-26)

Production notes[edit]

Bachelor Father was filmed at Revue Studios, it was primarily sponsored by American Tobacco (Tareyton cigarettes) and American Home Products Corporation (Anacin, Dristan and Chef Boyardee) throughout its original run.^[6] The series was produced by Forsythe's "Bachelor Productions" in association with MCA's Revue Studios.^[7] Bachelor Father pilot and broadcast season were produced by Harry Ackerman, who left Revue/MCA after the first season to produce other sitcoms like Hazel, Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie for Screen Gems/Columbia, he was later replaced by Everett Freeman for the rest of the show's run.^[8]

Syndication[edit]

Reruns of Bachelor Father were syndicated on the Retro Television Network until October 2011; the show then began airing on Antenna TV where it remained on the schedule until January 2015.

References[edit]

^ ^a ^b McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television: The Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present (4 ed.). Penguin Books. p. 70. ISBN 0-140-24916-8.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Terrace, Vincent (1980). Complete Encyclopedia of Television Programs (1947 - 1979). Cranbury, New Jersey: A. S. Barnes and Co. pp. 39–40. ISBN 0-498-02488-1.
^ "On 'Bachelor Father' Kelly Gains TV Fiancee". The Tuscaloosa News. Tuscaloosa, Alabama. April 22, 1962. p. 16. Retrieved March 19, 2015.
^ Buck, Jerry (August 3, 1981). "'Dynasty' Surprises Linda Evans". The Hour. Norwalk, Connecticut. p. 16. Retrieved March 19, 2015.
^ "'Bachelor Father' Gains Niche Among TV's Top 20 Shows". The Tuscaloosa News. Tuscaloosa, Alabama. April 17, 1960. p. 16. Retrieved March 19, 2015.
^ ^a ^b Robinson, Johnny (March 20, 1959). "Video Version". Lewiston Evening Journal. Lewiston, Maine. p. 12. Retrieved March 19, 2015.
^ Balio, Tino, ed. (2013). Hollywood in the Age of Television. Routledge. p. 34. ISBN 1-317-92915-2.
^ Heldenfels, R D (October 2, 1986). "Albany-Born Producer Ackerman Is Well-Placed On Television Dial". Schenectady Gazette. Schenectady, New York. p. 23. Retrieved March 19, 2015.