Tammy (TV series)
Encyclopedia
Tammy is an American sitcom
, starring Debbie Watson
in the title role. Produced by Universal City Studios
, 26 color half-hour episodes were aired on ABC
from September 17, 1965 to March 11, 1966.
Tammy was loosely based on the three Tammy films; Tammy and the Bachelor
(1957) starring Debbie Reynolds
; Tammy Tell Me True (1961); and Tammy and the Doctor (1963) both starring Sandra Dee
. The films themselves were adaptations of novels by Cid Ricketts Sumner
. The series was also partially influenced by other rural themed TV sitcoms such as The Beverly Hillbillies
. In particular, there are similarities between Tammy's Cletus Tarleton and The Beverly Hillbillies Jethro Bodine
.
houseboat, and the wealthy Brents, who own a plantation and pancake business. Tammy is hired as a secretary by a powerful industrialist with a handsome young son. A high society dame who wants her own daughter to marry the son, repeatedly but unsuccessfully tries to smear Tammy’s reputation.
As with Gidget
, there are many differences between the series and films that inspired it. In the movies, Tammy's full name is Tambrey Tyree, shortened to Tammy. The Tyree was changed to Tarleton. Also, Tammy Tyree had no family other than her grandfather, who was occasionally picked up by revenuers for fabricating "corn-likker
".
Tammy lasted for one season (26 episodes), and was cancelled in 1966.
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
, starring Debbie Watson
Debbie Watson (actor)
Debbie Watson, is an American movie and television actress.-Career:Born in Culver City, Los Angeles County, California, Watson got her start on television, starring as the boy-struck teenage girl Karen Scott in the 1964 sitcom TV series Karen, the only portion of the largely unsuccessful "90...
in the title role. Produced by Universal City Studios
Universal Pictures
-1920:* White Youth* The Flaming Disc* Am I Dreaming?* The Dragon's Net* The Adorable Savage* Putting It Over* The Line Runners-1921:* The Fire Eater* A Battle of Wits* Dream Girl* The Millionaire...
, 26 color half-hour episodes were aired on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
from September 17, 1965 to March 11, 1966.
Tammy was loosely based on the three Tammy films; Tammy and the Bachelor
Tammy and the Bachelor
Tammy and the Bachelor is a 1957 romantic comedy film and is the first of the four Tammy films. It stars Debbie Reynolds as Tambrey "Tammy" Tyree, Walter Brennan as Grandpa Dinwitty and Leslie Nielsen as Peter Brent...
(1957) starring Debbie Reynolds
Debbie Reynolds
Debbie Reynolds is an American actress, singer, and dancer.She was initially signed at age 16 by Warner Bros., but her career got off to a slow start. When her contract was not renewed, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer gave her a small, but significant part in the film Three Little Words , then signed her to...
; Tammy Tell Me True (1961); and Tammy and the Doctor (1963) both starring Sandra Dee
Sandra Dee
Sandra Dee was an American actress. Dee began her career as a model and progressed to film. Best known for her portrayal of ingenues, Dee won a Golden Globe Award in 1959 as one of the year's most promising newcomers, and over several years her films were popular...
. The films themselves were adaptations of novels by Cid Ricketts Sumner
Cid Ricketts Sumner
Cid Ricketts Sumner was a novelist from the United States. She also taught English at a Jackson, Mississippi high school and French at Millsaps College....
. The series was also partially influenced by other rural themed TV sitcoms such as The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for nine seasons on CBS from 1962 to 1971, starring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer, Jr....
. In particular, there are similarities between Tammy's Cletus Tarleton and The Beverly Hillbillies Jethro Bodine
Max Baer, Jr.
Max Baer Jr is an American actor, screenwriter, producer, and director. He is best known for playing Jethro Bodine on The Beverly Hillbillies.-Early life:...
.
Synopsis
The premise of the program revolves around Tammy Tarleton, an 18-year-old country girl who moves back and forth between her country family, which lives on a bayouBayou
A bayou is an American term for a body of water typically found in flat, low-lying areas, and can refer either to an extremely slow-moving stream or river , or to a marshy lake or wetland. The name "bayou" can also refer to creeks that see level changes due to tides and hold brackish water which...
houseboat, and the wealthy Brents, who own a plantation and pancake business. Tammy is hired as a secretary by a powerful industrialist with a handsome young son. A high society dame who wants her own daughter to marry the son, repeatedly but unsuccessfully tries to smear Tammy’s reputation.
As with Gidget
Gidget
Gidget is a fictional character created by author Frederick Kohner in his 1957 novel, Gidget, the Little Girl with Big Ideas. The novel follows the adventures of a teenage girl and her surfing friends on the beach at Malibu. The name Gidget is a portmanteau of "girl and midget"...
, there are many differences between the series and films that inspired it. In the movies, Tammy's full name is Tambrey Tyree, shortened to Tammy. The Tyree was changed to Tarleton. Also, Tammy Tyree had no family other than her grandfather, who was occasionally picked up by revenuers for fabricating "corn-likker
Moonshine
Moonshine is an illegally produced distilled beverage...
".
Tammy lasted for one season (26 episodes), and was cancelled in 1966.
Main cast
- Tammy Tarleton — Debbie WatsonDebbie Watson (actor)Debbie Watson, is an American movie and television actress.-Career:Born in Culver City, Los Angeles County, California, Watson got her start on television, starring as the boy-struck teenage girl Karen Scott in the 1964 sitcom TV series Karen, the only portion of the largely unsuccessful "90...
- Grandpa Lancelot Tarleton — Denver PyleDenver PyleDenver Dell Pyle was an American film and television actor. He is best remembered for playing Uncle Jesse in The Dukes of Hazzard .-Early life:...
- Uncle Lucius — Frank McGrathFrank McGrathFrank McGrath was an American television actor who played the comical and optimistic cook, "Charlie Wooster", on the Western television series Wagon Train on, first, NBC and then ABC...
- John Brent — Donald WoodsDonald Woods (actor)Donald Woods was a Canadian-born American film and television actor whose career spanned six decades....
- Steven Brent — Jay SheffieldJay SheffieldJay Sheffield was an American actor, who appeared in the film The Three Stooges Go Around the World in a Daze. Sheffield played Phileas Fogg III, the great grandson of Phileas Fogg.-External links:...
- Dwayne Whitt — George FurthGeorge FurthGeorge Furth was an American librettist, playwright, and actor.-Biography:Furth was born George Schweinfurth in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Evelyn and George Schweinfurth...
- Cousin Cletus Tarleton — Dennis Robertson
- Lavinia Tate — Dorothy Green
- Gloria Tate — Linda Marshall
- Peter Tate — David MacklinDavid MacklinDavid Thurman Macklin is an American football cornerback who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the third round of the 2000 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State....
- Mrs. Brent — Doris PackerDoris PackerDoris Packer was an American actress, possibly best known as Mrs. Cornelia Rayburn, Theodore Cleaver's principal in Leave It to Beaver....
Episodes
- Tammy Leaves Home (9/17/1965) - pilot episode
- The Aristocratic Tates (9/24/1965)
- Tammy Plays Cupid (10/1/1965)
- The Poker Game (10/8/1965)
- The Tarleton Land Grant (10/15/1965)
- Prophet And Loss (10/22/1965)
- Will The Real Dwayne Whitt Please Stand Up? (10/29/1965)
- Still Waters (11/5/1965)
- Mind Your Manners (11/12/1965)
- Grandpa's Old Flame (11/19/1965)
- The Riverfyin' Of Billy Joe Morgan (11/26/1965)
- Grandpa's Secret Love (12/3/1965)
- Cletus Comes Callin' (12/10/1965)
- The Enoch Bowl (12/17/1965)
- A Severe Case Of Matrimony (12/24/1965)
- T' Know Me Is T' Love Me (12/31/1965)
- The Law And Mr. Tarleton (1/7/1966)
- Lavinia's Wedding Day (1/14/1966)
- Two For Tee Pee (1/21/1966)
- Blue Nose, Wet Nose (1/28/1966)
- The Monster From Catfish Bend (2/4/1966)
- Larnin' Works Wonders (2/11/1966)
- Tammy Goes To Paris (2/18/1966)
- The Cinemazation Of Tammy Parker (2/25/1966)
- Uncle Lucius Returns (3/4/1966)
- Uncle Lucius, The Business Man (3/11/1966)