Classic Televison - Prime Time

Arnie

Original channel

CBS

Original run

September 19, 1970 – March 6, 1972

Starring

Herschel Bernardi

Sue Ane Langdon

Roger Bowen

Charles Nelson Reilly

Arnie is a television sitcom that ran for two seasons (1970–72) on the CBS network. It stars Herschel Bernardi, Sue Ane Langdon, and Roger Bowen.

Bernardi played the title character, Arnie Nuvo, a longtime blue collar employee at the fictitious Continental Flange Company, who overnight was promoted to an executive position. The storylines mainly focused on this fish out of water situation, and on Arnie's sometimes-problematic relationship with his well-meaning but wealthy and eccentric boss, Hamilton Majors Jr. (Bowen). Because he still held his union card, Arnie could negotiate tricky management/labor situations that no one else could. Arnie's surname was presumably a pun on nouveau riche (which his promotion effectively made him), and possibly also on Art Nouveau.

In addition to Bernardi, Bowen, and Langdon (as Arnie's wife Lilian), cast members included Del Russel and Stephanie Steele as Arnie's son and daughter, Richard and Andrea; Elaine Shore as Arnie's secretary, Felicia; and Herb Voland as sour-tempered executive Neil Ogilvie.

In its first season, despite being the lead-in to The Mary Tyler Moore Show on Saturday nights and winning an Emmy nomination as best comedy series, Arnie received only fair Nielsen ratings. For its second season, in order to increase its viewership, CBS made a major cast change in the show's format. Charles Nelson Reilly joined the cast as Randy Robinson, a TV chef who called himself "The Giddyap Gourmet," apparently a reference to The Galloping Gourmet.

Also, the network decided to move the show to Monday nights at 10:00 P.M. followed at 10:30 P.M. by a new sitcom that had debuted in January, 1971 on Tuesday nights to mediocre ratings, All In The Family. At the last minute, a switch was made and My Three Sons left its comfortable Saturday night time slot and took over the 10:00 P.M. slot on Mondays with Arnie slotted at 10:30 P.M. Both shows sank in the ratings. All In The Family was moved to Saturday nights at 8:00 P.M. where it became the number one show for five consecutive years. At mid-season, My Three Sons was moved to Thursday nights and Arnie returned to the Saturday night prime-time schedule. The changes did not help. Both shows were canceled at the end of the 1971-1972 season.