The Courtship Of Eddie's Father S1 Ep5: The Computer

This is the final look back at The Courtship Of Eddie's Father as part of the bonus supplements to complement The Incredible Hulk entries here at Musings Of A Sci-Fi Fanatic, but maybe we'll do a general look back at some of the highlights from the series down the road featuring its many guest stars and smoking hot babes from its run 1969-1971.  It is fitting we should end our look back just prior to the posting of The Incredible Hulk, Season One, Episode 7, 747, guest-starring none other than Brandon Cruz himself.

The Courtship of Eddie's Father serial returns with another mostly fresh, new opening segment.  Those openers are always incredibly sweet.



The latest story also brings us a fresh, new idea in The Courtship Of Eddie's Father, Season One, Episode 5, The Computer.

Whilst Tom Corbett suffers from a nasty cold and receives a little nursing from Mrs. Livingston, Norman Tinker works on some computerized mate-matching for Tom.

Mrs. Livingston calls the idea an "arranged meeting" and that's nothing new at all when she considers how the process works in Japan.



Tinker brings a woman, Ms. Diane Kirby, to Tom's home. Unfortunately all of this plays out with one of the most bizarre, computer-infused scores I've ever heard. It's a little annoying or distracting at times even. Obviously, the music is meant to suggest the computerized theme of the match-making service in play for Tom, but it's just plain odd. Fortunately it stops after the first ten minutes.


So little Eddie, who really likes Ms. Kirby calls over to his friend's house, Billy Gerber, to tell him how his Dad has a new "machine lady" friend.



Meanwhile, Tom is just not feeling it for his machine-selected girlfriend. It simply isn't working and Mrs. Livingston makes the salient point to Tom that his first marriage must have been easy because it came from his "heart." She's right of course and Tom knows it. Despite what his heart is telling him, his head says to go along and give it a try for Eddie.



Mrs. Livingston notes that Tom is subconsciously looking for a mother for Eddie and perhaps the computer picks up on that as well, confusing what works for Tom. After all, the heart wants what it wants and Tom isn't looking for a companion for Tom.





Ms. Kirby discovers in a machine test that Eddie is matched up with Diane or rather Ms. Kirby. Ms. Kirby projected her maternal feelings and that by-passed those things required in the chemistry between a man and a woman. Ultimately, The Computer is an old-fashioned and outdated version of the match-making services that have cropped up over the years on the Internet.  While certainly progressive in its thinking here, the episode doesn't ultimately work because it comes off so damn strange. The moral of the story is one should always lead with his heart and not necessarily his head.  That computes sometimes, but this particular courtship story just doesn't.

The Computer. Writer: Rick Mittleman, Ken Pettus. Director: Leslie Martinson.

The Courtship Of Eddie's Father S1 Ep4: The Littlest Kidnapper

This is the first entry in The Courtship Of Eddie's Father series to recycle opening footage and thus the reason the theme is not included here.  Still, for those with an equally nostalgic fondness for the warmth and charm of Bill Bixby and the cast of the classic series I hope these little flashbacks to The Courtship Of Eddie's Father offer you a brief moment of solace in those complicated and busy lives as they do me.

In The Courtship Of Eddie's Father, Season One, Episode 4, The Littlest Kidnapper, Eddie is feeling particularly sad for Mrs. Livingston and feels she is all alone. Eddie, played by Brandon Cruz, has his father. Tom Corbett, played by Bill Bixby, has Eddie. Eddie suggests his father pollinate Mrs. Livingston like a bee does a flower, but it falls on deaf ears.  Thus, Eddie feels action is required.






On the way home from school, Eddie decides to bring an Asian boy home with him. He dubs the little boy, Frank, hoping he'll be Mrs. Livingston's son, and brings him home essentially kidnapping the boy so that Mrs. Livingston will no longer be alone.

Tom does everything to make sure Frank is returned to his parents since the unexpected abduction of Frank by Eddie.



Eddie discovers, through the arrival of Frank's divorced parents, that all is not perfect in Frank's world as his parents argue. Eddie soon discovers that the affections he has toward Mrs. Livingston and through her relationship with he and his father that she is perhaps not as alone as he originally believed. Life is pretty good.  As someone affected and surrounded directly and indirectly by the wake of divorced families in the 1970s, this is indeed a very poignant episode and spoke to many of us at a time when the D word seemed so relative, prevalent and damaging.

And speaking of survival, there was so much to love about the way things were once upon a time, such as driving in the front seat.  It may not have been politically correct and it may not have been as safe as driving is today for kids, because God knows we've learned a thing or two, but there was something pretty special about sitting next to your Mom or Dad in the front seat sometimes even leaning against the dashboard.  You have to love the retro look back at these simpler, but sometimes special times.



Pat Morita [Happy Days] guests as Frank's father.
The Littlest Kidnapper.  Writer: Carl Kleinschmitt. Director: James Komack.

The Courtship Of Eddie's Father S1 Ep3: And Eddie Makes Three

"The Courtship Of Eddie's Father was originally thought to be a very 'soft' show, the sort that no one would be interested in. Funny thing, it lasted for three years, and has never been off the air in this country since we stopped shooting. It must have been important to a lot of people, and we treated the show honestly and fairly." -Bill Bixby from a rare interview in The Hulk #10 magazine [August 1978]-

Eddie: "Hi Ms. Bardman." Ms. Bardman: "Hi Eddie, I didn't think you'd remember me." Eddie: "I remember all of Dad's girls."

I'm not entirely certain, but The Courtship Of Eddie's Father may be my earliest introduction to loving all things Japanese whether it be Japanese culture, anime, kaiji eiga or a fondness for the beautiful women of Japan. It's quite possible my affection for that country may have started here with Mrs. Livingston when I stop and think about it. If I stop and chronologically place my influences in the 1970s, it could easily be The Courtship of Eddie's Father in syndication, Toho's kaiju eiga via Creature Double Feature, Battle Of The Planets and a deal sealer with Starblazers to name those that instantly come to mind.

While The Courtship Of Eddie's Father was only flavored with a touch of Japanese it was Mrs. Livingston who definitely got my attention along with Bill Bixby. There was something I always loved about Mrs. Livingston's nurturing kindness and cultural reflections that put the Corbett's own situations in perspective.

I actually knew a librarian in college named Mrs. Thomas, an equally delightful Japanese woman, as sweet as they come, who eventually retired back to Japan following the passing of her husband. I always enjoyed visiting Mrs. Thomas at the college library and sharing pleasantries with her. She knew of my love and affection for music and always greeted me at the door with the weekly edition of Billboard Magazine. When I wasn't studying or working in a computer lab, I would grab a stall and spend a good hour pouring over the latest industry talk and releases. That, and I always got to say hello to Mrs. Thomas.

To further make the point she actually went back to Japan one summer and when we returned to school in the fall she brought me back a manga book and a pop CD by a popular Japanese artist because she thought I might like it. It was just that kind of an affection toward one another and it reminded me of The Courtship Of Eddie's Father and Eddie's relationship with Mrs. Livingston - a genuine mutual fondness.

I actually wrote Mrs. Thomas after obtaining an address for her and she wrote back. She was living with her sister in Japan. That's the last I heard from her. One day, when I visit Japan, I hope to say hello again.

For now, welcome to Star Trek: The Original Series... rather, The Courtship Of Eddie's Father, Season One, Episode 3, And Eddie Makes Three.

Oops! Sorry, the confusion comes from the arrival of none other than the lovely Diana Muldaur as Ms. Lynn Bardman. Muldaur, as many know, featured in a number of genre TV shows*.

As the story opens, Tom Corbett has apparently been seeing Ms. Bardman for a time.

As it turns out Eddie is not a big fan of Bardman in much the same way some fans really weren't a big fan of Muldaur on ST:TNG. Eddie's dad begins serious consideration of Lynn as Eddie's potential new mom.

The bad news for Eddie is that Lynn's arrival might potentially supplant the need for the always fantastic Mrs. Livingston. Eddie begins putting two and two together and begins contemplating a world without Mrs. Livingston. A world without Mrs. Livingston is no world at all.

Later, Lynn is summoned in a pinch to help Tom. Eddie is sick. Mrs. Livingston is also sick and can't make it over as a result of the "American flu." Lynn agrees to help Tom with Eddie so he can go to work.

There's one amusing moment where Lynn tells Eddie to roll over so she can take his temperature with a glass thermometer. I mean I about died. Suddenly I had flashbacks to my childhood. If you were one of the unlucky ones back in the day, temperatures were taken by sticking the glass stick into your rear end. Up the shoot it went. Oh the horror of it is absolutely true, but that's how they did it. Can you imagine that glass stick breaking in your rectum? Anyway, nowadays, these things aren't nearly as primitive. But good grief the things generations had to undergo to get where we are today. The fact is, The Courtship Of Eddie's Father, as you might well imagine, like any good show of its time, is like a delightful little time capsule.

Needless to say, as kind and affectionate as Eddie is to Lynn, she is overcome by the efforts required to be a mother and breaks things off with Tom. Yes, it's back to the drawing board for Tom... and Eddie. The Courtship Of Eddie's Father continues to delight as family fare goes. At the very least, we deliver another dose of your Bill Bixby fix.

And Eddie Makes Three: B. Writer: Stan Cutler & Martin Donovan. Director: Hal Cooper.

Actress footnote: Diana Muldaur [1938-present]. Muldaur is probably best known for her work within the Star Trek universe. She guest-starred on ST:TOS, Season Two, Episode 20, Return To Tomorrow [1968] and Season Three, Episode 5, Is There In Truth No Beauty? [1968]. She also featured as a regular cats member on Star Trek: The Next Generation [1988-1989] for Season Two as a not so welcome replacement, to some, for Gates McFadden as the good Doctor Katherine Pulaski of the Enterprise-D.

Muldaur also figured prominently on L.A. Law [1989-1991] for two season as Rosalind Shays. Fans of Bill Bixby's The Incredible Hulk will remember she played the part of Helen Banner in Season Three, Episode 8, Homecoming [1979] and in a different role for Season Five, Episode 4, Sanctuary [1981].

The Courtship Of Eddie's Father S1 Ep2: Teacher's Pet

Signs of mutual respect were always abound in the Corbett house whether it was Tom's respectful call to Mrs. Livingston or Mrs. Livingston's always endearing and respectful reference to Tom Corbett as "Mr. Eddie's Father." She was ever so sweet.

As I stand back and reflect a little over my life so far, I find it oddly fascinating, this, my longstanding love affair with Japanese pop culture. Whether through the kaiju films of Toho, the wonderful worlds of anime in film and television, or the appearance of some of the most beautiful Japanese actors and actresses in pop culture, I've always been drawn to that world, lost in translation as it were. The influence of the beautiful Myoshi Umeki on me as a child was and is no exception. Umeki could conceivably be the earliest influence of Japan's pop exports on my mind's inclination for all things Japanese.

As noted in the series premiere of The Courtship Of Eddie's Father, each entry opened with an affectionate and thoughtful exchange of parent and child. The Courtship Of Eddie's Father, Season One, Episode 2, Teacher's Pet, brings us the latest as Eddie, as always, innocently inquires about that most taboo of childhood subjects - SEX! "I don't understand sex Dad. What's it all about?"

In fact, The Courtship Of Eddie's Father openings had a special quality to them, a real originality as openings went with a special attention toward editing that raw footage to be married to the dialogue. Space:1999 comes to mind. That show had truly impressive openers for each episode because of the use of footage unique to each episode. The Courtship Of Eddie's Father always had an opening that built upon character and the relationship between father and son that was central to the show's themes. This delightfully seguewayed into that impressive Nilsson track, Best Friend, played over the raw footage, as noted above, that was often, but not always, original to the episode in question.

Please know, that while I may be covering The Courtship Of Eddie's Father here on the normally genre-specific Musings Of A Sci-Fi Fanatic, and while it is not of the genre, rest assured there are plenty of sci-fi connections forthcoming not least of which is star Bill Bixby [My Favorite Martian, The Incredible Hulk].

Eddie's father determines that Eddie is playing "doctor" in class and must visit his teacher as a result of his son's actions. Tom meets Eddie's teacher. It was astonishing to me just how flirtatious the two adults were with one another given today's more restrained political climate. There was a good deal of innuendo with the sugestion of intellectual "stimulation" meaning something so much more. It's fascinating to see the juxtaposition of what morays were acceptable in the 1960s versus what kinds of behavior is considered politically correct or acceptable in today's climate between men and women. The idea of Mars versus Venus is really something to behold while viewing with your own children. On the one hand some things have changed dramatically in forty years, but on the other, some thing remain quite the same. Right and wrong is still right and wrong most of the time and the social conflicts that existed forty years ago are still generally the same on the schoolyard playground, in the office and at home. But one thing that is different is how we hold people accountable. The barometer needle has certainly moved to the left on that one. Taking repsonsibility and being held accountable today is incredibly different. It would appear excuses are the rule of today's parents and society generally speaking. Still, there is a mighty percentage out there fighting the good fight.

Tom asks Kerry to dinner smitten with the fact she doesn't look "80 years old" like the teachers from his hey day.

Eddie begins informing his friends that his father is dating Miss Ellen, which leads to him being bullied, teased and beat up as the "teacher's pet."

Tom visits Kerry to determine what course of action would be best for their respective son and student. While the relationship remains sort of open-ended in the final outcome, I don't believe Tom Corbett ever dates the teacher again. So would end the courtship after all. The final moments capture Eddie and his father on rocks by the sea as Eddie asks if his mother knows they are having a good time together. His father assures him that she knows as the show alludes to the mother for a second time. The final note on The Courtship Of Eddie's Father is a reflection of the simple, undeniable fact that children blossom under the umbrella of assurance and security.

Teacher's Pet: B-. Writer: Carl Kleinschmitt. Director: James Komack.