Customer Reviews

Father Knows Best: Season Three

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On June 9, 2009, "Shout! Factory" released the third season of one of the best sitcoms ever to come down South Maple Street in Springfield (or any other street in America) -- "Father Knows Best".

After watching the first three discs of this 5-Disc DVD set, I'd have to say that Season 3 is even better than the first two seasons of FKB. But Season 1 and Season 2 are darn good too (even if some of the first-year shows aren't "uncut").

I'm not an expert, but it seems to me as though the writing for the third year is a certain degree above the earlier seasons. I haven't noticed a misfire yet (through Disc 3, that is). These episodes are simply outstanding--every one of them--and I just felt like writing this review to say that.

But the thing that really prompted me to dash to the computer today to write these comments is one particular scene in the episode called "Swiss Family Anderson" (on Disc 3). That episode originally aired on network television over 50 years ago (on January 9, 1957), but it still seems fresh and relevant even today.

The scene in question occurs six minutes into the "Swiss" episode, just as the Anderson family is sitting down to dinner. Jim (Robert Young) begins to tell the rest of the family about how a work colleague of his wants him to take a look at an "island" property and size it up for a possible purchase (at the pretty good price of only $1,500).

What impressed me most about that dining-room scene is the way it was filmed and how it was "choreographed" (so to speak). The first 90 seconds of the scene were shot in one long, continuous take, without the camera moving one inch.

During that long, continuous shot, the family members are talking and filling their dinner plates by passing them around the table until everybody's got everything they need. It's like a ballet with the ham and potatoes.

After the camera cuts away from that long take, we get another fairly-lengthy unbroken take from the other side of the dining table, with Betty (Elinor Donahue) providing a very funny moment as she tries to convince "father" to add some more shower heads to the upstairs bathroom -- "Nowadays, everyone has two heads! Lots of people have THREE!" [LOL.]

(BTW, I guess perhaps I'm just old-fashioned or out of touch, but I have never seen a shower or bathtub that has had more than one shower head in it. And why in the world would anyone need two or three shower heads anyway? Does Betty plan on taking a shower with two additional people at the same time or something?) ~shrug~

Anyway, I suppose that scene really isn't anything super-special or unusual (there are probably similar scenes in other FKB episodes, and in other TV series too), but for some reason that scene I just described stood out for me when I watched it (and then rewatched it again right away, because I thought it was very good).

I think it's a good example of the high quality of this television series. The actors never miss a beat, the dialogue seems natural at all times (and the "shower head" banter was a truly hilarious moment), and the "plate dance" was a nice touch too. I just wonder if the aired version of that scene was Take #1? Or Take #21? :)

As for the other Season-Three episodes I've watched thus far, as I mentioned, I haven't seen a dud in the bunch yet, and this includes "Never In Twain", "Margaret Hires A Gardener", "The Great Guy", "The Family Goes To New York", and the very touching episode entitled "The Homing Pigeon".

In addition to the above episodes, this set also contains one of the very best (and surprisingly-exciting) episodes of any TV series I have ever seen. It's entitled "Short Wave", and after watching it for the first time, I found myself wanting to immediately watch this excellent, well-acted, and unusual episode again -- and I did.

I won't spoil the plot of "Short Wave", but if you've got this DVD collection and haven't yet watched that episode -- go watch it now. It's a winner.

The third-season DVD set also has several bonus features (some on each disc), including three complete episodes of the radio version of "Father Knows Best".

Plus, there are two full episodes of Robert Young's short-lived series "Window On Main Street", which premiered in 1961, shortly after FKB left the air.

These third-season episodes of "Father Knows Best" seem to be complete and unedited too (25+ minutes per show), with the word "uncut" appearing on the back cover of the DVD's outer slipcase, which is always a nice word to see in print on a TV/DVD package.

I don't recall having ever seen any of these Season-Three episodes in the past, except for a few minutes of "Man About Town", which just happened to be the episode that was airing on many ABC-TV affiliates between 1:30 and 2:00 PM on the afternoon of November 22, 1963, when news first broke about President Kennedy being shot by an assassin in Dallas, Texas.

Therefore, almost all of these episodes are brand-new to me. And I can hardly believe how really, really good these shows are. I've watched some of them two or three times already....and I haven't even gotten to Disc 4 yet. :)

But even without having seen the last two discs, I want to stamp the "Father Knows Best: Season Three" DVD set with the following two words:

Positively Recommended!

David Von Pein

June 2009

Father Knows Best Season 3 is the Season I have been waiting to receive for a long time. Season Three contains some really great uncut gems. The Andersons had situated themselves in America's Conscious and the stories of Season Three are brilliant, funny, touching, and heartwarming.

Some Highlights:

"Short Wave": Bud gets a shortwave radio set and picks up the distress call from a family (much like the Andersons) out on a boat during a terrible storm as their engines fail and take in water. The coast guard cannot hear the distress but due to skipping short waves the Andersons hear it all. This is an edge of the seat episode filled with tension. Will the Andersons come to the rescue of the family at sea?

"Brief Holiday": Margaret Anderson is the most stable force in the Anderson household. She is the hub around which everyone revolves. So why is Margaret feeling tired of being in a rut? What makes her go to Orleans Street (a sorta French Quarter of Springfield, who knew, lol) to buy a hat, eat French food and have her portrait drawn? Is she no longer satisfied with just being a devoted Mom and Wife?

"The Angel's Sweater": Aunt Neva is visiting the Andersons at Christmastime. Neva hates children and yells at Kathy over something minor. Kathy hears a story about Christmas that transports the audience back to a Dickenesque Christmas. Will Neva be transformed by the true meaning of Christmas?

"Betty and Jet Pilot": Bud discovers the helmet of a Jet Pilot in a parking lot and returns it to the pilot with his family. After being treated to a jet ride, the Pilot becomes enamoured of Betty. The story builds to the prospect of marriage right before a decision is made by the Air Force whether or not to send the pilot to Alaska. Will Betty's pilot stay and marry her or will there be a bittersweet ending?

Other gems include: "The Spelling Bee" (Kathy's beief that a lucky coin enables her to spell hard words), "Safety First" (Bud gets a traffic ticket while his dad is Chairman of the Safe Driving Committee), "The Old Days" (where Bud and Betty become their parents and Jim and Margaret become Bud and Betty, for a dance). As usual with the releases there are 2 episodes of the "Window on Main Street Show" (a short lived show starring Robert Young after FKB). Also included are three FKB radio programs.

When TV LAND came to being FKB was one of the shows on their network. Now that TV LAND has left the era of the old Black&White sitcoms of the 50s and 60s for the sitcoms of the 70s,80s, and 90s... DVD is the only realm you will find such a great old family program such as Father Knows Best!

I'm very glad to see that Season 3 of Father Knows Best will be coming fairly soon. Like the Donna Reed Show, Father Knows Best is a very entertaining family comedy, and I hope they continue with the remaining seasons in short order!

By this point in the series FATHER KNOWS BEST had really hit its stride, and was a bona fide hit.

For season three, NBC and Screen Gems obviously poured a lot more money into the show because many of these episodes feature terrific on-location shooting -- no longer confined to the Anderson house, this season shows the family at college ("Betty Goes to College"), at a dude ranch ("Never in Twain"), at an Air Force base (the classic "Betty and the Jet Pilot") and even a desert island ("Swiss Family Anderson"). New director Peter Tewksbury continues the fine tradition already established by season one/two director William D. Russell, and elicits wonderful performances from all five leads.

Here you get 37 UNCUT episodes (can you imagine any show doing that many episodes in a season today?), with very decent video and audio quality.

Hope sales for this are brisk so we see seasons four through six soon!

I played a bit with the old and well worn motto "The Third Time Is The Charm" for the title of this review but the point translates well. With Set 3 featuring 37 UNCUT episodes that made up season 3 Shout Factory once again received the assitance of Robert Young's grandson and Eugene Rodney's estate and Sony's assistance in securing the uncut prints we all wanted! As I stated before Sony is not getting any money from these sets yet they are digging through their vaults for the uncut shows. We all need to continue to support the series sets to ensure the DVD releases will continue until the entire series is available!

Go over to shoutfactory.com and take their survey on what sets and series you want to see continue - we all need to support this wonderful series!

Not long ago I read an interview that Billy Gray (Bud) gave about "Father Knows Best" (FKB). He said that the program did a disservice to children because life wasn't that ideal. It was really because of that interview that I bought season 3, because I remembered FKB very warmly. I enjoyed every one of these shows, and they were clearly done with loving care in terms of the writing and the performances. And they weren't corny (like most of the situation comedies were back then). In fact, I'm not really sure that -- despite a laugh track and warm humor -- that FKB is indeed a comedy. I'd say it was more a family drama with humorous overtones. And, Bud was wrong. For many of us who were the age of the Anderson kids, life was much like what is depicted in the series. My childhood was every bit as idyllic (although my teen years were much more troublesome due to changes in my family, including my gradfather's developing alcoholism). Yet, with virtually every episode in this season's series, I could identify with guest characters or the plot as being somewhat similar to things that happened in my family or the other kids in my neighborhood.

Several of my favorite and most remembered episodes are in this set, including:

"The Angel's Sweater": I remember this Christmas story so well...seemingly mean old Aunt Neva visiting and ruining Kathy's Christmas, and the heartwarming change of heart.

"Margaret Hires A Gardener": Or as I remembered it, the story of "Fronk"! :-)

Although they pale in comparison, the bonus episodes of "Window On Main Street" were very welcome, because I vaguely remembered the ill-fated series, and it was nice to see what that program was really like.

How good was this set? Halfway through the episodes, I went out and ordered season 4!

Yes, this was America in the 1950s. Too bad Bud's real life wasn't what many of us experienced. Perhaps that's why such a talented young man became just another ex-child actor.

It seems odd that such an old show would take so long to produce DVD's for sale. I want all seasons and I would like them now!

This season was the most enjoyable to date and I love to watch them and recall how much of life was for a lot of us in middle America.

Buy this and you will only be disappointed that season 4 is not yet released.

Thoroughly enjoyed the 2 volumes so far - anxiously awaiting #3.

This show really made me long for the old days, when life was a whole lot simpler and easy. For those that love the'50's TV shows, this is definitely one you shouldn't miss.

There are certain television shows from years ago that never seem to disappoint and Father Knows Best (Season Three) is definitely one of them. I would highly recommend this CD as it provides hours of delightful entertainment.

We have purchased the entire Father Knows Best Series from Amazon.com, and are enjoying the clean, light, refreshing fun in every single episode. It is so nice to be able to pop in a DVD of a decent, fun, show that encourages honesty, family values, and community support, as opposed to killing, raping, and murder on every other channel. If you want some good, old-fashioned, quality viewing, purchase this set!!

R.& W. Palmer