The Donna Reed Show: SEASON 4 (2 Viewers)

[Tory]

I found Season 1 real cheap and I'm loving it. Now I want them all. It had been a long time. I thin this is my favourite family sitcom of the era.

 

[Tory]

Wow Greg, great article. I didn't now a lot of this stuff. Now the rest of Donna Reed has moved up my priority list of purchases.

 

[Gary OS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rmw650 /t/298785/the-donna-reed-show-season-4/330#post_3966615
Gary...question for you...on the CBS Syndication Bible, it stated an update taking place on 8/21/2012 but when you click on it, it still contains info from back on 6/25/2012...can we expect newer shows from their library to be released anytime soon?

I noticed the update as well last week and looked at a few series I'm interested in to see if I could figure out what the latest update was all about. I couldn't find anything that corresponded with it. Sorry.


Gary "I'm not aware of anything coming in the next 6 months that would really shock or surprise anyone" O.

 

[Greg2356]

In case any of you have missed my new thread on this forum entitled, THE DONNA REED SHOW: SEASON 5, It was announced just recently by Mary Owen on the "We Love The Donna Reed Show" page that 'Season 5' of this great series will be coming out on December 4, 2012!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!!!! Can't Wait!!!!!!!! I can see a lot of holiday shopping bags being filled with gifts of 'Season 5' DVD Sets!!!!
In all fairness to Mary Owen, she did say after she made this announcement: ("Let's hope the date sticks!")

 

[Greg2356]

Thanks for keeping this thread updated, Mark.  I hope we can see the next Season (Five) by the midway point of next year.  I know it's likely to the last one released as well, unless Sony does something very unexpected.  While the completionist in me would absolutely love to see all 8 seasons out on dvd, I'll be very happy if we can at least get the primary Shelley years completed (which S5 would, of course, do).
Gary "great b/w show that I hope we see more of" O.

Sorry for my response delay: You are quite WELCOME, GARY!!!!! I was very happy to see it announced on the "We Love The Donna Reed Show" page that "The Donna Reed Show" 'Season 5' will be coming out this year on December 4, 2012. I would love for Seasons 6 through 8 to be released!!! We will just have to wait and see what happens!

 

[Ron Lee Green]

Did Nick at Nite air the 4th season? I just watched the episode, "Mouse at Play," where Donna dyes her hair, and I get the feeling I've seen it before, but this is supposed to be the lost season not aired in 30 years. I even remembered that Cloris Leachman and John Astin were the guests. Any ideas?

 

[Greg2356]

Yes, you are very correct Ron! Nick at Nite had only aired two episodes from 'Season 4' which were "A Rose is a Rose" and "Mouse at Play" They had also aired one episode from 'Season 6' which was entitled, "What Are Friends For?" Nick at Nite did not air any episodes from 'Season 7' in regards to "The Donna Reed Show."

 

[BobO'Link]

In case any of you have missed my new thread on this forum entitled, THE DONNA REED SHOW: SEASON 5, It was announced just recently on the "We Love The Donna Reed Show" page that 'Season 5' of this great series will be coming out on December 4, 2012!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!!!! I can see a lot of holiday shopping bags being filled with gifts of 'Season 5' DVD Sets!!!!

Sweet! Thanks for the update! Yes, that one will be on my Santa list for sure!

 

[Ron Lee Green]

Cool. Thanks for letting me know. Glad I'm not imagining things!
By the way, I noticed the end credits for that episode included the sponsor products.
Also, the picture quality during the credits was a little rougher than the rest of the episode.
This must have been one of the cases that Mary Owen talked about where some film elements were missing credits, and they had to use different sources to make them complete.
It doesn't bother me, though. I'm glad they went to great lengths to make the episodes complete.

 

[Greg2356]

You're 'Quite Welcome' Ron!! I am glad they put 'Season 4' all together again too!! In fact, I am very grateful of this fact and the efforts that were made to bring us this elusive 'Season 4." It's something that I have been waiting to see for many years!!!!!

 

[jej2252]

Sorry if this has already been posted somewhere else but I have just seen this on Amazon Uk.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Donna-Reed-Show-Milestones/dp/081433508X/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1346453694&sr=8-2

 

[Greg2356]

Thanks for posting the link, Jerome- Very Interesting!!!

 

[mrmike898]

On the publisher's site, there's some info as to what this book entails.
Wayne State University Press

 

[Ron Lee Green]

Originally Posted by mrmike898 /t/298785/the-donna-reed-show-season-4/360#post_3969217
On the publisher's site, there's some info as to what this book entails.
Wayne State University Press

I have the book they did on Bewitched.
It is very academic analysis of the show, and is written like a college thesis.
I imagine the Donna Reed show book will be similar in nature.

 

[Greg2356]

On the publisher's site, there's some info as to what this book entails.
Wayne State University Press

Thanks Michael!!! I am looking forward to purchasing and receiving this book!!

 

[samsonsnakeroot]

I had the first 3 or 4 seasons. I enjoyed them very much and gave them to a relative. Am I correct in thinking that all the episodes weren't aired in the order they were made? Did anyone else notice the change in decor and front door window glass? Did anyone else notice the wrong credits at the end of at least one episode? I don't remember which episode(s). Did I buy the DVDs from the wrong place? I am eagerly awaiting the DVD releases of seasons 5 through 8.

 

[Greg2356]

I felt that fans of "The Donna Reed Show" would most likely be interested in the following article:
Classic Hollywood: 'The Donna Reed Show'
Shelley Fabares and Paul Petersen recall their strong-willed TV mom and 'second mother.'
December 26, 2011|By Susan King, Los Angeles Times
Donna Reed was more than just a TV mom to actress Shelley Fabares.
Fabares played Reed's teenage daughter, Mary Stone, on the well-loved 1958-66 ABC family sitcom "The Donna Reed Show," which revolved around Donna Stone (Reed), the wife of handsome pediatrician Dr. Alex Stone (Carl Betz), and mother to Mary and energetic younger son Jeff (Paul Petersen)
"She definitely became my second mother," said Fabares, 67, who left the series in 1963. "She was a role model and remains so to this day. I still periodically hear her voice in my head when I am making a decision about doing something, I hear her urging me on to make the stronger decision of the two. I just adored her. "
Petersen echoes her sentiments. "Donna and Carl were very much aware of the difficulties on other family shows," said Petersen, 66, whose organization, A Minor Consideration, supports child actors and enforces labor laws. "They made a commitment to Shelley and me as surrogate parents to be on our side and be with us for the long haul. They kept that commitment up to their deaths. Donna's last few words [were] to make sure Shelley's birthday present was wrapped and ready for delivery. That is true!"
A native of Denison, Iowa, Reed began her career as an ingenue at MGM in the early 1940s. In her film career, she is best known as George Bailey's wife, Mary, in Frank Capra's 1946 Christmas perennial, "It's a Wonderful Life," and for her Oscar-winning turn as Lorene, a prostitute who becomes Montgomery Clift's character's mistress in the 1953 Academy Award-winning epic "From Here to Eternity."
Reed's husband, Tony Owen, produced "The Donna Reed Show." During the 1961-62 season, Owen decided to follow in the footsteps of another family series, "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet," which found its ratings jump when youngest son Ricky Nelson performed his pop hits on the series. Owen told Petersen and Fabares they would record pop tunes to perform on the series.
These fourth-season episodes have been out of circulation for years and were never released on DVD. Earlier this month, MPI released the entire 39 episodes on DVD so you can relive Fabares' No. 1 hit "Johnny Angel" and Petersen's chart toppers "She Can't Find Her Keys" and "My Dad," which hit No. 6 will be among the Fifth-season episodes being released soon.
Petersen jumped at the chance to record. "I was friends with Ricky Nelson," he said. "He was having fun. The girls were screaming. He drove a fast car. I was like, give me some of that. I have never been shy about singing. That is how I became an original Mouseketeer."
Fabares wasn't convinced this was good for her. "I remember saying, 'Mr. Owen, Paul can do it. He can do anything.' Maybe a month later, he came up to me one day and said, 'Hey, kid. Do you like being on the show? Do you want to be on next year?' Not seeing the train heading directly toward me, I said, 'Oh, yes, Mr. Owen. I do.' Then he said, 'Sing.'"
Reed, who died in 1986, was the mother of four children. Mary Owen, her youngest, was only a year old when her mother began the series. Her mother, she said, was an early feminist who wasn't afraid to speak her mind. She points out that her mother and father hired blacklisted writers for the series. Her mother also gave Barbara Avedon ("Cagney & Lacey") the opportunity to not only write for the series but also direct, which was unheard of at the time.
"She was very involved in the war effort during World War II," Owen said. "I think that experience affected her when it came to the war in Vietnam. My brothers were of draft age, but she had seen what had happened during World War II. She co-chaired Another Mother for Peace.
"I have fond memories — I would go with her to this kind of funky warehouse they rented."
It irks Fabares that feminists and critics dismissed Reed personally as well as her character. "It makes me angry. She was very much in the foreground of women being in charge. She did a lot of things moms on TV didn't do at that time — she ran for things. She bucked Alex on certain issues."
Despite her fame, Reed "was a real Iowa girl," noted Fabares. "There is a bedrock decency to people in the Midwest. They are thoughtful and ready to help you if something needs to be done. She never lost that Midwest girl."
[email protected]

 

[Ron Lee Green]

Thanks for posting the article, Mark! I like reading anything Shelly and Paul have to say about working on the series.
BTW, did you get the Donna Reed book from Wayne State University Press, yet?
I haven't, but I'm anxious to read some reviews.

 

[Greg2356]

Thanks for posting the article, Mark! I like reading anything Shelly and Paul have to say about working on the series.
BTW, did you get the Donna Reed book from Wayne State University Press, yet?
I haven't, but I'm anxious to read some reviews.
 

You're very welcome Ron! I am glad you enjoyed the article, so did I! Imagine Donna's last few words being, to make sure Shelley's birthday present was wrapped and ready for delivery. I guess that I shouldn't be surprised though, because that was Donna Reed for you, with always thinking of what is the right thing to do and being very responsible in carrying things out which needed to be taken care of no matter what... Even Donna being on the very verge of death didn't stop her from wanting things to be done properly and thinking about other people before herself.
And no, I haven't ordered the book from Wayne State University Press as yet, I guess I've had way to many things on my mind to say the very least! I do want this book and plan to write something about it after I've gotten a chance to read it.
Here is wishing you Ron: A Wonderful Holiday Season!!!

 

[Ron Lee Green]

Happy Holidays to you, too, Mark!
P.S. Don't eat too much fruitcake!