Private Secretary (TV series)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Private Secretary | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover of Private Secretary |
|
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Starring | Ann Sothern Don Porter Ann Tyrrell Jesse White Joan Banks |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 5 |
| No. of episodes | 103 |
| Production | |
| Associate producer(s) |
Arthur Hoffe |
| Running time | 30 mins. |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | CBS |
| Original run | February 1, 1953 – September 10, 1957 |
| External links | |
| IMDb profile | |
| TV.com summary | |
Private Secretary (also known as Susie) is an American comedy television series that aired for 103 episodes from February 1, 1953 to September 10, 1957 on CBS. The series starred Ann Sothern as Susie McNamara, devoted secretary to handsome talent agent Peter Sands played by Don Porter.
Contents |
[edit] Overview
Susie McNamara (Sothern) was a former stage actress who worked as the private secretary for theatrical agent Peter Sands (Porter) at the fictional New York theatrical agency, International Artists Inc. Susie's honest, good-natured attempts to help Mr. Sands, especially in romantic matters, led to comedic complications. Susie was usually assisted by her best friend, Violet "Vi" Praskins (Ann Tyrrell), who was also the office's nervous and bumbling receptionist. Jesse White played Mickey "Cagey" Calhoun, a chief competitor and loudmouthed agent business rival to Susie's boss.
In an unusual move, Private Secretary also had two brief runs on another network. During the summers of 1953 and 1954, reruns from the recent season were shown on NBC, with the series resuming new shows on CBS each fall.[1]
[edit] Series end
The series was renewed for a fifth season, but Sothern walked out in a contact dispute with producer Jack Chertok, ending the series' run.[2]
Sothern, along with the rest of the cast, went on to star in another weekly series, The Ann Sothern Show, from 1957 to 1961.[3]
[edit] Syndication & DVD release
Before Private Secretary went into syndication, the opening title sequence and series name were changed. The series, which was sponsored by American Tobacco for Lucky Strike cigarettes during its original run[4], featured the companies sponsor I.D. in the opening title sequence which could not be aired in syndication. An animated title sequence was made featuring a cartoon "Susie". The series' name was changed when producer Jack Chertok withheld the rights to the show's original title in hopes of replacing Sothern with another actress in the title role. Chertok released Susie into syndication in the fall of 1957. The original title sequence has not been viewed since Private Secretary's original run.
In 2006, two video distributors, Critics' Choice and Alpha Video Distributors, released one volume of the series. Both releases were identical with the exception of the artwork. Both companies also released three more identical volumes. The latest, volume four, was released in April of 2007. Each volume contains four episodes of the series from varying seasons.
To date, there are no plans to release a complete series collection of Private Secretary.
[edit] Awards and nominations
- Nominated: Best Actress Starring in a Regular Series, Ann Sothern (1955)
- Nominated: Best Situation Comedy Series (1955)
- Nominated: Best Cinematography for Television, Robert Pittack (1956)
- Nominated: Best Actress - Continuing Performance, Ann Sothern (1956)
- Nominated: Best Continuing Performance by a Comedienne in a Series, Ann Sothern (1957)
[edit] References
- ^ Hawes, William (2002). Filmed Television Drama, 1952-1958. McFarland, 95. ISBN 0-786-41132-5.
- ^ Steven Sanders, Coyne; Gilbert, Thomas W. (1993). Desilu: The Story of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. HarperCollins, 133. ISBN 0-688-13514-5.
- ^ Karol, Michael (2006). Sitcom Queens: Divas of the Small Screen. iUniverse, 30. ISBN 0-595-40251-8.
- ^ Terrace, Vincent (1979). The Complete Encyclopedia of Television Programs, 1947-1979. A. S. Barnes, 809. ISBN 0-498-02177-7.
