1049 Park Avenue: An Odd Couple Podcast

Murray has a fight with his wife and moves in with Felix and Oscar in the season three finale The Murray Who Came For Dinner.  We discuss the fact this episode was the third filmed for the season but the last to air and speculate about why this was.  We also cover in-depth that the actress who plays Murray’s wife also played Oscar’s mother this season.  Other topics include: McGuffins vs red herri...

Felix buys new furniture for the apartment but his tastes and Oscar's are very different in S3E22.  We discuss the fantastic set design in this episode; the legendary character Charles Lane who makes an appearance; the terrible doormen in 1049 Park Avenue who let anyone up at anytime; the fact Miriam and Felix show mild affection here and the episode's great sight gags.

Felix finds Oscar a date who isn’t what she seems in order to make Oscar’s mother happy in S3E21 The Odyssey Couple.  We talk about: 1) how people used to call a phone number to get the exact time, speculate about why there is a new actress play Oscar’s mother, 2) the 70s references to Dom DeLuise, Liz & Dick, John and Yoko and Raquel Welch, 3) the endless dancing in this episode, 4) the connectio...

Monty Hall guest stars as Oscar burns Felix's custom mattress and tries to win a new one on Let's Make A Deal in S3E20.  We make a few corrections/additions from the prior week's episode about My Strife in Court, play a short clip from Gilmore Girls referencing The Odd Couple, discuss Monty Hall's bio and why he was on the show, and cover the origins of a quote misattributed to Abraham Lincoln.

Felix and Oscar go to court to defend themselves against a charge of ticket scalping with Felix serving as counsel in S3E19 My Strife In Court.  Topics covered include the great performance by Curt Conway who plays another judge, the resume of Oscar Homolka, the inconsistencies cited regarding when Murray met Oscar & Felix and of Felix serving in occupied France, and of course the origins of "you...

In this episode we discuss S3E18 “The Hustler” in which Felix’s opera club needs money and Oscar helps via gambling and pool.  Among the topics covered are: the signature credits of the multiple guest stars, the reasons this episode was likely inspired by the favorite real-life activities of its stars, the audience laughing too hard in some spots, the similarities to the movie The Hustler, and Gar...

Felix the impresario tries to jumpstart Mryna's lapsed/burgeoning tap dancing career in S3E17 "Myrna's Debut."  Before we get into the episode itself we mention an enjoyable interview with Odd Couple writer Lowell Ganz on the I Love The Odd Couple Facebook page and relate some new info to our prior episode about The Ides Of April.  We then discuss the rationale for this episode due to Penny Marsha...

This week our subject is S3E16 The Ides of April in which Felix is summoned to the IRS to resolve a discrepancy.  We talk about the similarities to a Honeymooners episode; Ted’s view that the character of the tax examiner is inconsistent; how other 70’s shows put women in places of power in the workplace as part of their storylines; and the inclusion of a recognizable character actor in the credit...

This week we discuss S3E15  “I Gotta Be Me” in which Felix and Oscar go to therapy and try role reversal. Topics include; pop psychology, some confusing dialogue that sets up the group therapy; the Hobo news; a music edit in the DVD and streaming version that ruins the tag; the fact that this is Ted’s favorite episode of the entire series and Garrett’s pet peeve.

Felix takes Oscar on a cruise for senior citizens to help his ulcer in S3E14.  Topics include 1) the credits of the veterans who play their fellow cruise passengers 2) the sloppy prop work in this episode 3) the 2nd appearance of Monroe, the super's son 4) and some favorite lines of ours.

Felix and Oscar fall for the same girl - with a mysterious past - in S3E13 "Don't Believe Roomers."  We discuss the history of the song "Buckle Down Winsocki, the impressive set design of the diner scene, the 2nd appearance of guest Star Marlyn Mason, and the more adult themes of this episode.

Felix tries to get Edna to like him by taking her to work and attending her baseball umpire debut in S3 E12 "The Odd Father".  We discuss the cringey-but-funny little people scene, the big problem with an address Felix gives Oscar, the change of actress who plays Edna, the similarities to other episodes and the many visual gags in this episode. 

ARISTOPHANES!

Felix’s attempts to throw Oscar a surprise party is the plot of “Oscar’s Birthday” (S3E10) which is the topic of this week’s episode.  We get into such details as: 1) Why the production started to use a building other than the real 1049 Park Avenue for exterior shots 2) the first of two appearances of Monroe - the super’s son and the actor who played him 3) speculation that Felix and Miriam seemed...

The birth of Felix’s daughter Edna is the topic of S3E9 "The First Baby”. Enjoy as we get a bit lost trying to connect all the consistencies, inconsistencies and references in this episode to other episodes - but we eventually figure it all out.  These include: which other episodes featured Oscar’s stuffed gorilla? when else was Lolita mentioned?; the fact Gloria was originally Oscars’ date; and w...

Deacon Jones guest stars in S3E8 as Felix gets to direct a shaving commercial.  We discuss Jones' NFL career, the appearances of Herbie Faye as the 1049 super, the real-life Press Box Steakhouse and the fact Felix should have had a career directing TV ads after this episode. 

Oscar's mother comes to visit but she doesn't know Oscar is divorced in S3E7 "The Odd Couples".  We cover such topics as: Eddie and Debbie (and Tammy); the fact that the actress who played Oscar's mother later played Murray's wife along with some of her odd performance choices; and the inconsistencies in how long Oscar has been divorced and where exactly Blanche lives.  

Felix and Oscar go to Murray's cabin so Oscar can work on his book in our analysis of S3E6 "I'm Dying of Unger".  We discuss Dorothy Parker and her quotes, Garry Marshall's notes on this episode from his memoir, and another instance where Tony Randall singing was edited out of the DVD for rights purposes.

“The Odd Monks”, S3E5, is our topic for this episode of 1049 Park Avenue.  Felix and Oscar go to a monastery to escape work pressures but end up in trouble with the monks.  We quote from Garry Marshall and Jack Klugman who both discuss this episode in their memoirs – in fact Gary Marshall says it is his favorite.  We also discuss the terrible hair of Brother Lou, reading before bed, the speed at w...

While “The Pen Is Mightier Than The Pencil” is the next episode that we would cover sequentially on 1049 Park Avenue, it was the one we covered in our first podcast because we wanted to start with a mutual favorite.  We are reposting our first episode here for you fellow obsessive compulsives who need things in order with a special bonus segment in which we discuss an interview with Elinor Donahue...

This week we analyze S3E3 "The Princess" in which Oscar falls in love with royalty.  We discuss the resume of guest star Jean Simmons (who is not Gene Simmons), the lushness of this episode, the drama of this episode and the fact another TV series based on a Neil Simon play was on the ABC Fall schedule during The Odd Couple's first season.

Howard Cosell joins the boys for S2E2 "Big Mouth".  Cosell plays himself of course and he is a pitchman for an ad campaign Felix is working on but Oscar insults him and then Felix insults him.  They have to apologize so Felix can keep his job.  We discuss Cosell's rise to fame, the odd addition of a boy scout character, the random little lines that dot this episode and the hilarious "play-by-play"...

We start a new year with a new season of The Odd Couple - S3E1 “Gloria Hallelujah”.  Among the topics we cover are the history of computer dating, Elinor Donahue’s resume, the odd dynamic of the Felix / Miriam relationship and the perfectly-crafted scene when Oscar is filling out his dating form.

In this extra long episode we analyze the 19 out of 24 S1 episodes that we can watch on streaming and address the 5 we could not watch (we don't own the DVD of S1 because we don't like S1).  Each episode gets 2-7 minutes of our attention as some are too painful to discuss while others have some noteworthy moments.  

We have come to the end of S2 with our coverage of "Psychic, Shmychic", the second season finale.  Our topics include the careers of The Amazing Criswelll and Bernie Kopell, and the popularity of ESP in 1972.