# Occasional Wife

Occasional Wife is an American sitcom that aired on NBC from September 13, 1966 until August 29, 1967.

## Plot

Peter Christopher is a New York bachelor who enjoys the single life but is blocked in his professional advancement without a wife. Peter's boss, baby-food manufacturer Max Brahms, is a strong believer in marriage and family. Peter asks young hat check girl Greta Patterson to pose as his wife at company functions. In return, Peter rents Greta an apartment in his building. Greta uses the fire escape to slip into Peter's apartment whenever his boss visits unexpectedly. A man who lives on the floor between Peter's and Greta's apartments bemusedly watches them as they pass.

## Cast

* Michael Callan as Peter Christopher
* Patricia Harty as Greta Patterson
* Jack Collins as Max Brahms
* Stuart Margolin as Bernie
* Chris Noel as Marilyn
* Bryan O'Byrne as Man-in-the-Middle
* Jack Riley as Wally Frick
* Sara Seegar as Mrs. Christopher
* Susan Silo as Vera
* Joan Tompkins as Mrs. Brahms
* Vin Scully as Narrator (uncredited)
Callan and Harty married in 1968.

## Episodes

| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
| 1 | "Pilot" | Ernest Pintoff | Lawrence J. Cohen & Fred Freeman | September 13, 1966 (1966-09-13) |
| Peter, a young executive, finds his road to success blocked by the lack of a wife, so he begins a platonic relationship with Greta, who poses as his wife. |||||
| 2 | "Occasional Trouble" | Richard Kinon | Robert Riley Crutcher | September 20, 1966 (1966-09-20) |
| Peter's mother sees Greta kissing her boyfriend and thinks her son's wife is being unfaithful. |||||
| 3 | "The Rivalry" | Bob Claver | Lawrence J. Cohen & Fred Freeman | September 27, 1966 (1966-09-27) |
| Spending the weekend at the home of a wealthy client becomes a contest as Peter and his rival vie for favor. |||||
| 4 | "He Who Burns Bridges" | Richard Kinon | Stan Cutler & Martin Donovan | October 4, 1966 (1966-10-04) |
| Peter must retrieve his letter of resignation from his boss' office before it is read. |||||
| 5 | "I Do, We Don't" | Bob Claver | Lawrence J. Cohen & Fred Freeman | October 11, 1966 (1966-10-11) |
| Peter's mother insists that he and Greta repeat their marriage vows since she missed the original "marriage ceremony." |||||
| 6 | "The Promotion" | Bob Claver | Peggy Chantler Dick | October 18, 1966 (1966-10-18) |
| Peter jeopardizes his potential raise and promotion by chasing after a beautiful blonde. |||||
| 7 | "No Cookie for Dessert" | Jerry Bernstein | Stan Cutler & Martin Donovan | October 25, 1966 (1966-10-25) |
| A sharp-eyed girl figures out Peter's phony marital setup and threatens to tell his boss. |||||
| 8 | "Danger! Woman at Work" | Richard Kinon | William Davenport | November 1, 1966 (1966-11-01) |
| Greta fraternizes with her new boss, upsetting both Peter's business and social life. |||||
| 9 | "A Friend of the Family" | Bob Claver | Stan Cutler & Martin Donovan | November 15, 1966 (1966-11-15) |
| Mr. Brahms jumps to an erroneous conclusion when Greta is hospitalized with a virus. |||||
| 10 | "Marriage Counselor" | Richard Kinon | Richard Baer | November 22, 1966 (1966-11-22) |
| Mr. Brahms sees Greta at a discothèque with a strange man and tells Peter about it. |||||
| 11 | "No Talent Scouts" | Bob Claver | Richard Baer | November 29, 1966 (1966-11-29) |
| Peter is given the uncomfortable task of finding a Broadway role for the untalented daughter (Sally Field) of a client. |||||
| 12 | "That's How They Got Capone" | Richard Kinon | Peggy Chantler Dick | December 6, 1966 (1966-12-06) |
| Peter and Greta do their best to avoid signing a joint tax return. |||||
| 13 | "GP Loves UU" | Bob Claver | Stan Cutler & Martin Donovan | December 13, 1966 (1966-12-13) |
| An Italian Count searches for an American girl who will adore and support him. |||||
| 14 | "Miss Greta Regrets" | Richard Kinon | Peggy Chantler Dick | December 20, 1966 (1966-12-20) |
| Peter and Greta play musical chairs in a restaurant while trying to date simultaneously in two rooms. |||||
| 15 | "Peter by Moonlight" | Richard Kinon | Stan Cutler & Martin Donovan | December 27, 1966 (1966-12-27) |
| Peter underwrites a small garment business. |||||
| 16 | "Alias Peter Patterson" | Bob Claver | Stan Cutler & Martin Donovan | January 3, 1967 (1967-01-03) |
| Peter becomes the object of affection of a shy, unattractive girl. |||||
| 17 | "Fair Play for Gypsies" | John Erman | Richard Baer | January 17, 1967 (1967-01-17) |
| Mr. Brahms has a gypsy fortune teller fired after she says that Greta is single. |||||
| 18 | "A Couple of Home-Cooked Meals" | Gary Nelson | Lila Garrett & Bernie Kahn | January 24, 1967 (1967-01-24) |
| Peter and Greta complicate matters by making separate dinner plans. |||||
| 19 | "One Plus One Equals Too Many" | Russ Mayberry | Gene Thompson | January 31, 1967 (1967-01-31) |
| Peter gets a new job and fires Greta. |||||
| 20 | "Kangaroo Kandidates" | Gene Reynolds | Stan Cutler & Martin Donovan | February 7, 1967 (1967-02-07) |
| Mr. Brahms gets Peter and Wally into competition to join his exclusive club. |||||
| 21 | "The New Secretary" | Jerry Bernstein | Peggy Chantler Dick | February 14, 1967 (1967-02-14) |
| An important customer sees Peter at lunch with his new secretary. |||||
| 22 | "The Business Trip" | Jerry Bernstein | Peggy Chantler Dick | February 21, 1967 (1967-02-21) |
| Greta agrees to accompany Peter on a business trip to her hometown. |||||
| 23 | "Engagement, Christopher Style" | Gene Reynolds | Stan Cutler & Martin Donovan | February 28, 1967 (1967-02-28) |
| Peter tries to break an engagement to a madcap heiress without losing his job. |||||
| 24 | "Instant Fatherhood" | Danny Dayton | Martin A. Ragaway | March 21, 1967 (1967-03-21) |
| A young woman that Peter sponsored as an immigrant arrives from Italy with marriage on her mind. |||||
| 25 | "The Soft Spot" | Bob Claver | Stan Cutler & Martin Donovan | March 28, 1967 (1967-03-28) |
| Peter's job catches the eyes of efficiency experts brought in by the company. |||||
| 26 | "The Secret Powdered Milk Affair" | Bob Claver | Stan Cutler & Martin Donovan | April 4, 1967 (1967-04-04) |
| Government agents run a security check on Brahms employees and discover all is not what it appears in Peter's marriage. |||||
| 27 | "My Occasional Brother's Keeper" | Jerry Bernstein | Gene Thompson | April 11, 1967 (1967-04-11) |
| One fib leads to another and Peter soon finds himself playing host to a stranger. |||||
| 28 | "An Affair to Forget" | Paul Junger Witt | Lawrence J. Cohen & Fred Freeman | April 18, 1967 (1967-04-18) |
| Suspicions arise that make it seem that Greta is having an affair with Mr. Brahms. |||||
| 29 | "Oil Be Seeing You" | Bob Claver | Stan Cutler & Martin Donovan | April 25, 1967 (1967-04-25) |
| Greta attempts to rescue Peter from a terrible financial investment. |||||
| 30 | "So Little Time" | Richard Kinon | Stan Cutler & Martin Donovan | May 9, 1967 (1967-05-09) |
| Peter and Greta are hard pressed to prevent his mother from discovering the truth. |||||

## Production

Fred Freeman and Lawrence J. Cohen created the show. Ernst Pintoff was the director. Harry Ackerman was the executive producer for the series, which was produced by Screen Gems in association with NBC. Thirty episodes were filmed in color with a laugh track. Lever Brothers and Brown & Williamson were among the sponsors.
The series was broadcast from 8:30 to 9 p.m. Eastern Time on Tuesdays. It first experienced good ratings, tying at #18 with The Man from U.N.C.L.E. in the Nielsen ratings. The series then fell to #64 in the ratings after having to compete against ABC's popular series The Invaders and the CBS staple The Red Skelton Show. Occasional Wife was canceled after one season.

## Critical response

Jack Gould, writing in The New York Times, highlighted Harty's work, saying "she made a viewer more aware of what was right than wrong" with the show. Noting that the story line was a "well-worn gambit", he complimented the creators and the director for dealing with it in a "warmly understated" way. He added that Callan should become a "worthy foil" for Harty. Gould ended his review by urging the ending of "stop-action camera nonsense, wherein an offstage narrator tries to be coyly amusing between scenes".