The Odd Couple (1968) - IMDb IMDb There was an error trying to load your rating for this title. Some parts of this page won't work property. Please reload or try later. X Beta I'm Watching This! Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. Error Two friends try sharing an apartment, but their ideas of housekeeping and lifestyles are as different as night and day. Director: Neil Simon (from the play by), Neil Simon (screenplay) Stars: From $2.99 (SD) on Amazon Video ON DISC Famous Directors: From Sundance to Prominence From Christopher Nolan to Quentin Tarantino and every Coen brother in between, many of today's most popular directors got their start at the Sundance Film Festival . Here's a list of some of the biggest names to go from Sundance to Hollywood prominence.

a list of 34 titles created 12 Oct 2010 a list of 23 titles created 09 Feb 2011 a list of 40 titles created 02 Apr 2012 a list of 47 titles created 21 Jan 2015 a list of 27 titles created 10 Aug 2015 Title: The Odd Couple (1968) 7.7/10 Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 7 nominations. See more awards » Photos Oscar and Felix take a road trip to their son and daughter's wedding. Director: Howard Deutch A lifelong feud between two neighbors since childhood only gets worse when a new female neighbor moves across the street. Director: Donald Petrie A crooked lawyer persuades his brother-in-law to feign a serious injury. Director: Billy Wilder A failed gambler, intent on meeting a rich widow, tricks his widowed brother-in-law into boarding a cruise ship as dance hosts.

Director: Martha Coolidge John and Max resolve to save their beloved bait shop from turning into an Italian restaurant, just as its new female owner catches Max's attention. Director: Howard Deutch Two men, a neat freak and a slob separated from their wives, have to live together despite their differences. Stars: Tony Randall, Jack Klugman, Al Molinaro An Ohio sales executive accepts a higher position within the company and travels to New York City with his wife for his job interview but things go wrong from the start. Director: Arthur Hiller As a tabloid newspaper editor tries to prevent his top reporter from retiring, an escaped death row convict shows up at the office trying to convey his innocence. Director: Billy Wilder Edit Storyline Felix Ungar has just broken up with his wife. Despondent, he goes to kill himself but is saved by his friend Oscar Madison. With nowhere else to go, Felix is urged by Oscar to move in with him, at least for a while. The only problem is that Felix is neat, tidy, and neurotic, whereas Oscar is slovenly and casual.

Written by Murray Chapman <muzzle@cs.uq.oz.au> See All (58) » Taglines: Even More Funny On The Screen... Than It Was As A Broadway And City-To-City Stage Smash! See more » Genres: 16 May 1968 (USA) See more » Also Known As: Final appearance of Joe Palma. See more » Goofs When searching for Felix in the patrol car, the driver's side mirror disappears in the shot where Vinnie climbs in. See more » Quotes See more » Crazy Credits When the credits for Cecily and Gwendolyn Pigeon are displayed, they are first in the wrong order (since Oscar also keeps mixing them up) and after a couple of seconds they shift to their correct positions. See more » Connections The Best Neil Simon Ever Achieved 12 July 2015 | by garthbarnes-11100 (United States) – See all my reviews Spoilers Ahead: I am not a Neil Simon fan. Most of his movies I simply cannot take; they are so staged and contrived. They have such an air of a play about them; a total lack of verisimilitude.

Please, watch Seems Like Old Times and tell me what the statistical probability of those occurrences would be: One in a billion? This movie is funny; the scene with Felix clearing his throat with those Moose calls is worth one showing alone. My other favorite is when one of the guys smells the cards,"He washed the cards, I can't believe it, He washed the cards, I'm getting out of here I can't take it anymore." Felix's anal retentive clean freak with Oscar's biggest slob on earth personalities generates lots of laughs. You will not suffer like you did in Barefoot In The Park with personalities around the couple that never have nor ever will live with you in an apartment building. The movie works because of the strength of the acting and the chemistry and comic timing of: Matthau and Lemmon. They work so well together. Walter was always so great with his facial expressions; often, the look he gets on his face is funnier than Simon's dialog. No movie can be perfect, this is no exception. The pigeon sisters are not funny they are annoying, in the extreme. The scene is painfully bad.

It drags on and on; when you read attacks on the movie here, trust me, this is what younger viewers are hating so badly. The scene was always too long and the writing with the two dumbest actresses they could have found lay waste to this part of the otherwise great movie. It is so phony, no women this stupid could possibly have functioned out in the world. The other part of the film, that drags, is after Oscar throws Felix out; this goes on and on pointlessly and without the slightest bit of humor. Simon always had dead spots in his writing; this movie is no exception. I, to be honest, get up during the Pidgeon sisters part, I come back ten minutes later. I usually turn the movie off after Oscar throws Felix out; the movie is over for all intents and purposes all that is left is unfunny resolution and boredom. Despite these flaws, which are minor compared to Biloxi Blues, Goodbye Girl or the dreadful Max Dugan Returns, the bulk of the movie is very hilarious. The best of all that Neil Simon ever wrote.

I agree with some of the above criticism; yet, it has some of the funniest scenes ever seen in a film and the two of them work together so well. A Very Good Comedy 5 of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes The Odd Couple's Oscar Madison, Everyman Sportswriter For All Time The Odd Couple's Oscar Madison, Everyman Sportswriter For All Time Advertisement Close your eyes and imagine a sportswriter. Now tell me that the image in your head isn't that of a schlubby, middle-aged white guy—someone who looks a lot like Oscar Madison from The Odd Couple. Oscar was, of course, played by Jack Klugman, RIP, who died on Christmas Eve at age 90. (The equally schlubby Walter Matthau held down the role in the Broadway play on which the TV show was based.) Advertisement The Odd Couple ended its network run in 1975, yet the archetype—the sportswriter as everyman—has survived, more or less frozen in time. For the sake of contrast, look at how the rest of Hollywood's metaphorical newsroom has changed.

Journalists have been portrayed as crusading heroes, unwitting dupes and deceitful schemers. They have taken the form of arrogant elitists and blue-collar populists, jaded journeymen and sexy, young idealists. They have been men; they have been women. They have brought down presidents, exonerated inmates and uncovered vast environmental conspiracies. They have been black and white. They have been Bruce Willis's wife. Non-sports journalists are flexible cultural figures that can be bent to embody whatever attitudes a writer or director wishes. But the fictional sportswriter is, almost irreducibly, the white, disheveled mess of an everyman. In short, Oscar Madison. Sponsored For those who weren't around for The Odd Couple's original run during the first half of the 1970s, or missed it later in syndication—I logged a lot of episodes during Yankee rain delays in the early 1980s—let's review some of Oscar's defining characteristics: Oscar dresses badly. Oscar eats badly. Oscar smokes cigars. Oscar bowls. Oscar gambles. Oscar has an ulcer. Oscar chases airline stewardesses. Oscar wears a dirty Mets cap. Backwards.

When he can find his typewriter beneath the heap of junk on his desk, Oscar covers sports for a fictional newspaper called the New York Herald. That is, when he isn't out of work and writing for anyone who will publish him, including a fictional girlie magazine called Harem. Advertisement Advertisement Now think of the different iterations of Oscar we've seen since the final, first-run episode of The Odd Couple (in which Oscar's roommate, the uptight photographer Felix Unger, remarries his ex-wife and moves out, leaving Oscar alone again). The first one that comes to mind is, of course, Ray—a classic everyman name!—of his namesake sitcom, Everybody Loves Raymond. Ray is the New York Yankees beat writer for Newsday, a job that he is somehow able to perform without ever leaving his Long Island home, unless he's going to meet his buddies for pizza at Nemo's. Ray may still be married, but it's sometimes hard to understand why. He doesn't cook. He doesn't clean. He can barely dress himself. He can't be trusted to shop for even the most basic household item. When he is unable to find a blank tape to record the Super Bowl, he uses his wedding video.

Popular on Bloomberg View: Billionaire Princelings Ruin a Chinese Vision Oscar can also be found beyond the world of the TV sitcom. Richard Ford's great Bascombe trilogy of novels—The Sportswriter, Independence Day and The Lay of the Land—is built around an Oscar, Frank Bascombe, a divorced, middle-aged man who lives in a New Jersey suburb and writes for a magazine that resembles Sports Illustrated. Advertisement Why has this archetype endured? Oscar could have been a lawyer or an accountant or a teacher. But he was a sportswriter. Oscar's profession allowed for plenty of cameos from such sports celebrities as Billie Jean King, Bobby Riggs and Deacon Jones, not to mention Howard Cosell. More to the point, though, it was an efficient way to distinguish Oscar from his fastidious, effeminate, codedly gay roommate. What could be "straighter" than a professionalized sports fan—someone who travels in a sweaty macho world without acquiring any of its glamour or sexiness or too much of its money?

After Oscar, "sportswriter" became shorthand in the grammar of television for "obviously not homosexual," a synonym for "stereotypical middle-class, white, heterosexual male." If the script called for an average, straight, white guy, an emblematic everyman, then the character was a sportswriter. Advertisement In September 2004, a sitcom called Listen Up! debuted on CBS. The main character, named Tony Kleinman, was loosely based on former Washington Post columnist and current ESPN gasbag Tony Kornheiser. Here, it seemed, was an effort to at least update the archetype, to transform the lowly sportswriter into a "sports-media personality." Unlike Ray, Tony actually went to work sometimes. At bottom, Tony—played by the short, fat and balding Jason Alexander—was really just another slovenly everyman wandering into a bewildered middle age, forever exasperating his wife and annoying his children. An Oscar—or an Oscar in the making, anyway. The show lasted only 22 episodes. That's OK. If nothing else, it proved that even in the age of ESPN, Oscar will always be able to find work.

Advertisement Willa Paskin Willa Paskin is Slate’s television critic. CBS presumably selected The Odd Couple as its Two and a Half Men heir apparent because it seems reliable. It’s a straightforward concept with a proven track record. (Forgetting the 1980s reboot of the series, in which Oscar and Felix were played by black actors , which only lasted one season.) Get two capable actors involved—in this case, Matthew Perry as Oscar and Thomas Lennon as Felix—and, wham bam, that seems like the ideal CBS sitcom: a multicamera workhorse. But despite plundering Simon’s original language and bits and pieces from each of the previous adaptations, the new The Odd Couple has no rhythm, mostly for fear of showing two men dancing together too well. The Odd Couple has always had a complicated relationship with both masculinity and homosexuality—subjects that are, respectively, the text and subtext of much of its humor. The central provocation of the show, right there in its title, is the unexpected closeness of two men. Oscar and Felix, heterosexual divorcés with diametrically opposed foibles and comportments, both confound and complement each other.

They couldn’t make it work with their wives but, somehow, seem to be making it work with one another. As homosexuality has become less stigmatized, one might imagine that The Odd Couple would get funnier, having more material to play with and more freedom to do so. Instead, it has only gotten more retro. To judge from the new series, in the 50 years since The Odd Couple debuted, the “right way” to be a straight man has seriously narrowed. Advertisement Homosexuality is not explicitly mentioned in the movie , which nonetheless milks much of its humor from Felix’s effete mannerisms. Felix, despondent and suicidal because his wife has left him, goes to live in his pal Oscar’s palatial, filthy Upper West Side apartment, where he promptly creates order and starts cranking out home-cooked meals. In one sequence, Oscar comes home late for a dinner Felix has been slaving over, a comedic set piece that revolves around Felix playing the part of the nagging wife and Oscar the part of the irresponsible husband—even as it stays safely in bounds because the meal Felix is preparing is for the guys’ two hot-to-trot female neighbors. Get Slate in your inbox.

But even as the movie wrings laughs from Felix’s “girly” hang-ups, the movie permits that Felix really is straight, overly concerned about the state of the meatloaf as he may be. Felix may play the part of the wife, but that’s only until later in the night, when he plays the part of the spoiler—cock-blocking Oscar like only someone with a cock can block. (Jack Lemmon made a specialty of playing unconventional heterosexuals, well-meaning and surprisingly pervy men other guys underestimated at their own expense.) The original The Odd Couple may assume heterosexuality is the default status of all men, but at least its understanding of masculinity is vast enough that Felix Unger can fit comfortably inside. The ’70s TV version , which took place after Stonewall, mentions homosexuality in its first scene. Klugman’s Oscar comes racing home to tell Randall’s Felix that he’s scored them a date with their neighbors. Felix thinks Oscar has been overly pushy about it. “Pushy is the way it’s done!” Oscar retorts. “It’s custom all over the world.

Man pursue woman, except on a few Polynesian islands and a couple bars in Greenwich Village.” If Klugman’s Oscar is overly eager to communicate to the audience that these two co-habiting bachelors are no more than that, at least Randall’s Felix—obsessed with vacuuming and placing one’s underwear on hangers—is also more sexual and smoother than in he is in film. (The show also took place after the sexual revolution.) Felix may not be as predatory as Oscar, but he’s got a way with women: He wins the neighbors over with shared interests that include laundry. By the early ’70s, being in touch with one’s feminine side might just get one laid. Sure, he says he’s emotionally distraught, but did you see how many TVs he has? In the new version of the show , Felix and Oscar are old college friends who haven’t seen much of each other lately. A newly dumped Felix shows up sobbing on Oscar’s dirty doorstep, where Oscar was just recently taping his sports radio show in his boxers and scamming on the hot downstairs neighbor (Leslie Bibb).

In short order, Felix insinuates himself into Oscar’s life, cleaning and cooking and ruining Oscar’s attempts to have casual sex. Ultimately, the two realize that they need each other: Felix needs to loosen up; Oscar needs to open up. Advertisement But the new The Odd Couple doesn’t really think Felix and Oscar are equally flawed. Oscar may be filthy, but he is living the platonic ideal of bachelordom—at least as that ideal is presented in beer commercials and certain sitcoms. (Not so long ago, CBS aired How to Be a Gentleman , a show that was essentially The Odd Couple, if Felix were in boot camp to be Oscar.) Oscar lives in a nice, characterless apartment that he keeps as messy as he likes, except for the one pristine corner full of televisions. In this man cave he drinks beer, plays poker, has meaningless sex, and watches sports all day. Sure, he says he’s emotionally distraught, but did you see how many TVs he has?

(As a poker buddy observes, longing in his voice: You either get the televisions, or you get the wife.) As a counterpoint, there is Felix, who, fine, is in touch with his feelings, but is also a mess of annoying tics and quirks, unable to hit on women or get over his allergies. For poker night, he decides to cook up gazpacho and vegan chicken tenders. Who cooks fake meat for real men? “He seems kind of gay,” one of Oscar’s friends observes. “He seems extremely gay,” Oscar counters. “But he’s not.” Top Comment The Odd Couple: Taking Breaths Away One Laugh at a Time — Utah Shakespeare Festival The Odd Couple: Taking Breaths Away One Laugh at a Time The Odd Couple: Taking Breaths Away One Laugh at a Time Ryan David Paul Art Carney, Martin Short, Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau, Tony Randall, and Jack Klugman: an impressive list of talent. Now, thanks to the Utah Shakespeare Festival, we can add two more names, David Ivers and Brian Vaughn. This fall, for the first time, one of Neil Simon’s most beloved plays makes an appearance on the Festival stage.

The Odd Couple will reunite artistic directors Ivers and Vaughn, last seen together in Stones in His Pockets. In an unexpected twist, they will alternate between the lead characters, Oscar and Felix. Director J. R. Sullivan, who helmed last year’s production of Amadeus, calls The Odd Couple “a masterful work of situational comedy made especially strong by Simon's gift for character and quip. And this play, unquestionably one of his very best and that out of a full gallery of comedy gems, to my mind qualifies as one of the great comedies to come from the mid-twentieth century American stage. If tragedy dissects, comedy uncovers and corrects” (Director’s Notes, Utah Shakespeare Festival). There are many variations concerning the origins of the play; however, all of them coalesce around the observations of Neil Simon. At some point, the playwright, watching the experience of male friends living together after a separation from their spouses latched on to the humor of two very different men, living together and trying to adjust to this new world in which they find themselves.

In a recent episode of the popular Public Broadcasting program American Masters, Simon stated that he was writing a play in which the two main characters are “having the same fight with each other that they are having with their wives” (American Masters: Mike Nichols, Sullivan continues: “When The Odd Couple uncovers the ‘male animal’ and reveals his behavioral oddities in a prototypical setting, Oscar Madison's lair, something more than the hilarious happens (although hilarity indisputably reigns): survival for the better happens. And that is fitness enough, especially when crafted by the nimble Neil Simon. There isn't a better post-war comedy about the American male at the midlife crossroads” (Director’s Notes). In March of 1965, when The Odd Couple premiered on Broadway at the Plymouth Theatre, Neil Simon was already a popular playwright. His first two plays, Come Blow Your Horn and Barefoot in the Park had both been critical and popular hits. The Odd Couple, however, with its memorable pair of roommates, elevated Simon to the pinnacle of American theatrical culture and he soon became one of the most successful and prolific playwrights in the history of American theatre.

After nearly one thousand performances, and several cast changes, The Odd Couple closed on Broadway. However, the story of Oscar and Felix would soon make its way onto movie screens across the country in a very popular 1968 film, followed by a long running, although often threatened with cancellation, television series from 1970 to 1975. Sullivan sees the 1965 setting of the play as critical to understanding the underlying issues that cause friction between the two main characters, Oscar Madison, the “messy” one, and his suicidal friend Felix Unger, the “neat” one. Sullivan writes, “It is 1965. The New York Times costs a quarter, there are but three television networks, and you can get an eight-room apartment on Riverside Drive for around four hundred dollars. Everybody smokes, and no one has heard of cutting carbs, madras, or mini-skirts. There remains a predominantly middle class population living in Manhattan. But things are beginning to change in the American culture, perhaps especially in the manners and mores of urban social circles. And many women, including—perhaps especially—wives, are beginning to assert themselves. Identity is an issue.

Divorce rates are beginning to rise. So is male anxiety. Enter The Odd Couple” (Director’s Notes). Neil Simon took full advantage of the material he observed as he carefully crafted the dialogue, specifically in the exchanges between Oscar and Felix. Working with Director Mike Nichols, who had previously directed Simon’s Barefoot in the Park, Simon showed draft after draft to Nichols who helped shape some of the colourful dialogue, often with unexpected results. Nichols stated, “The biggest laugh in the whole play came with a rewrite and we did not even recognize it as a joke. It was FU” (American Masters: Mike Nichols, — Oscar Madison: “Everything you do irritates me. And when you’re not here the things I know you’re going to do when you come in irritate me. . . . You leave me little notes on my pillow. I told you a hundred times, I can’t stand little notes on my pillow. ‘We’re all out of Corn Flakes, F.U.’ . . . It took me three hours to figure out F.U. meant Felix Unger” (Neil Simon The Odd Couple Act 3, pg.

77; While Simon bases the premise of his play on his observations, it is obvious that his fictional creations, Oscar and Felix, as well as the other characters in the play, are representative of single, dominating traits—Felix, the uptight and compulsively orderly type, and Oscar, the devil-may-care and irresponsible type. Simon skilfully uses dialogue to deliberately construct the characteristics of each character to great effect. Simon, in an amazingly humorous way creates room for the exploration of the human condition. We experience the dichotomy between order and chaos. We understand that this living arrangement fails because these two men have such radically different personalities. Simon takes great care to not let the audience judge who is “right” and who is “wrong” but that living together was just not a good idea. Oscar and Felix are friends when they decide to live together, but only in the public sphere. Once they begin to share the “private” space they see how difficult this redefining of their condition can be. The Odd Couple, and specifically Oscar’s apartment, is a laboratory showing us that for relationships to survive, compromises must be made.

The Odd Couple illustrates for the audience that while some conflicts may be too great for compromise to occur, slight changes in personality and patience can bring understanding. The Odd Couple is first and foremost a comedy. You are meant to laugh, and laugh long and heartily. Just remember to breathe. × The Odd Couple (Theatre) - TV Tropes The Odd Couple You need to login to do this. Get Known if you don't have an account Share Jack Klugman as Oscar, Tony Randall as Felix. "No matter where they go, they are known as the couple... They're never seen alone, so they're known as the couple... As I've indicated They are never quite separated They are peas in a pod, don't you think that it's odd?..." The Odd Couple is a 1965 Broadway play by Neil Simon, which was later adapted into a 1968 movie, which itself was later adapted into a sitcom which ran from 1970-1975. All three are highly regarded.

The play also spawned a couple less highly regarded television adaptations: The Oddball Couple , a 1975 animated series (starring a cartoon dog and cat), and The New Odd Couple, a 1982 sitcom with black actors in the lead roles. A third live action series starring Matthew Perry and Thomas Lennon premiered on February 19, 2015. It has its own page here . Simon has rewritten his original play twice: first in 1981 as The Female Odd Couple, a Gender Flip version of the piece, and again in 2002 as Oscar and Felix: A New Look at the Odd Couple, which is basically the original play updated with more contemporary jokes and references. He also wrote and produced a sequel to the 1968 film, The Odd Couple II , in 1998.

The premise is simple: Neat Freak photographer Felix Ungarnote Unger in the 1970 and 2015 series (Art Carney on stage; Jack Lemmon in the film; Tony Randall, Ron Glass, and Thomas Lennon on TV) is kicked out by his wife, and with no place else to go, must move in with his friend, sports writer Oscar Madison ( Walter Matthau on stage and film, Jack Klugman on stage and TV, Demond Wilson and Matthew Perry on TV), a total slob . The TV show added a small supporting cast, including Murray, a dim-witted but lovable police officer. Tropes: 555 : Oscar's short-lived radio sports show's number is 555-8161. Accidental Bargaining Skills : Felix tries to give away an extra ticket, but the woman believes he's trying to sell it to her and offers him money. His stunned silence is interpreted as "holding out for more".

Acid Reflux Nightmare : The show crossed this over with Yet Another Christmas Carol , with Oscar, grouchy about Christmas, getting an Opinion-Changing Dream after refusing to participate in Felix's version of "A Christmas Carol." Actually Pretty Funny : In one episode, Felix is perturbed by Oscar's house guest Wild Willie Boggs (played by Roy Clark) who is prone to making crude practical jokes. He finally confronts him about it. Willie says "Felix, you don't like them because you've never tried them", adding, "Do you want to play a trick on Oscar?" Felix delivers the "about-face" line, says, "No. What?" Willie gives Felix a rubber hot dog to give to Oscar. With insane glee, Felix sets the trap and calls Oscar in for a snack - which of course Oscar just eats as if it were normal, saying, "The bun's a little stale." Adaptation Name Change : Felix's ex-wife is named Frances in the original play, both films, and The New Odd Couple, but is renamed Gloria for the 1970-75 series and its 1993 Reunion Show .

Adopted to the House : Oscar invites Felix to move in with him after his wife kicks him out, and soon comes to regret it. Adorkable : Specially on the TV series, Felix takes practically everything, from his habits to his pastimes to his relationships, to extremes, which is why he often finds himself being called a lunatic. In the end, though, his childlike enthusiasm and good heart win out over any annoyance he causes. Felix is especially adorkable when he's happy or excited. In "I'm Dying of Unger", he rolls on the bed like a little kid after tricking Oscar's agent into giving him three more days. Oscar's secretary Myrna has her moments too, especially when she just wants to be loyal and helpful to him. Alliterative Family : Oscar's secretary Myrna Turner (pronounced "Turna" with a thick New York accent), has a brother and sister named Werner ("Werna") and Verna respectively. Felix and Gloria Oscar and Blanche have their moments, too. And a Diet Coke : Oscar asks a visiting monk to make him a hamburger . On the burger, he asks for mustard, relish, pickles, hot sauce, peppers and chili.

The monk says, "No onions?" Oscar replies, "No, I've got an ulcer." Anachronism Stew : The flashbacks were mostly set during The '50s , but some wear afros and sideburns as well as some clothing clearly from The '70s . This was averted with Felix, who in these occasions usually wore a bowtie and a hat. Anger Born of Worry : In "Felix is Missing", when Felix comes home exhausted from his day snowbound somewhere, Oscar turns to Murray and tells him, "I'll give you $200 for that gun." Animals Hate Him : Averted with dogs but played straight with wild animals. During "I'm Dying of Unger", Felix gets bitten by three animals that we know of — a chipmunk, a rabbit, and a frog — and his bandaged fingers testify to other cases. However, this is only due to his status as the show's Butt Monkey and not for any lack of innocence on his part. In fact, he's shown to love the animals who attack him, so this could also be considered a subversion of Friend to All Living Things .

Ascended Extra : Felix was actually one of these, having originally been a minor offstage character in Neil Simon's first play, Come Blow Your Horn. Murray was originally listed as one of "The Poker Players" but he began to appear more frequently as the series progressed, and not only to play poker. Asian Speekee Engrish : A Chinese wrestler whom Oscar sponsors and Felix wants to photograph. Especially hilarious when he drops by their place the night before he returns to China, with bags of food in hand, to have dinner with them. Among some of the goodies he brings over are "rocks" and "cheese brintzes." Chuck: I rike Italian food! Aside Glance : In one of the opening credits sequences, there's a bit where Felix directs a long, pointed glance at the camera while Oscar dries his hands on Felix's shirt. Felix does this during several actual episodes as well, such as when Oscar draws a mustache on him with a marker in "You Saved My Life". Ballet Episode : Felix gets involved in a production of Swan Lake. He even forces Oscar into dancing one of the roles.

Be Careful What You Wish For : A double-whammy in "Shuffling Off to Buffalo." Felix's brother Floyd comes to visit him and Oscar; Floyd feels Felix isn't suited for city life, and wishes he would to come to work for him at his bubblegum factory. At the same time, Felix envies the life Floyd has: a successful business, a really nice house, a loving family with a wife and children, a lodge membership, and wishes he had a life like that. With a little persistent prodding, Floyd manages to talk Felix into accepting a managing position at this bubblegum factory, but after some time, comes to regret it as Felix drives everybody at the factory crazy with his new regulations; at the same time, Felix also regrets accepting the offer because he comes to miss New York City as well as his old apartment and Oscar too much. Bedmate Reveal : This happens to Felix. It's a long scene with no dialogue that begins with Felix coming home late from work, gargling, putting his PJ's and a sleep mask on and climbing into bed.

While on his back, a sleeping woman (who'd gotten Oscar to give her a place to crash) suddenly rolls over and throws her arm around him, while still asleep. He picks up her arm, takes off his mask, sits up, gets out of bed, looks down at her (still asleep) and delivers the only line in the scene: "It's not my birthday...". "Before" and "After" Pictures : Oscar (in a fat suit) was hired by Felix as a last-minute replacement for the before half of a before-and-after shoot, after "the fattest man in the world" refused to do it. Big Eater : Oscar is implied to be this on occasion. Oscar: Hey, you know somethin', Felix? Maybe that steak wasn't so good after all. My stomach's upset. Buxom Is Better : Felix's ex-wife Gloria. Calling Out For Not Calling : Felix complains when Oscar comes home late without calling, usually ranting about how hard he worked on the ruined or uneaten dinner. Camp Straight : Felix to an extent. He's not flamboyant or anything, but anyone that met him might think he wasn't exactly into the ladies, even though he pretty much was.

Lampshaded in the 2015 pilot: Roy: He [Felix] seems a little gay. Oscar: He seems incredibly gay. Even Felix himself brought this up in an unproduced script for the 1970 series, in which he finds an unfinished article in Oscar's typewriter about homosexuality in sports, which he mistakes for a confessional and remarks, "You'd think if it was either one of us it would be me." Canon Discontinuity : In "You Saved My Life", Felix comments that he's "never considered the possibility of Felix Unger dying", yet the earlier episode "A Grave for Felix" was about Felix losing a grave plot he'd been trying to buy. The Cat Came Back : Felix-as-Marley falls out the window but when Oscar-as-Scrooge turns around, he's back. Characterization Marches On : While the main facets of Felix and Oscar's respective personalities (Felix being a compulsive neat freak, and Oscar being a slob) have always remained intact, their demeanors have pretty much flip-flopped from the movie to the series.

To wit: instead of Felix being an uptight killjoy and Oscar being fun-loving and carefree, it's Felix who is more a bright-eyed and easygoing guy (for the most part), while Oscar is more of an irritable, quick-tempered grump (mainly because Felix gets on his nerves so much). Chaos Architecture : The sets were completely changed when they went from a single camera setup to a studio audience, without the characters moving to a different apartment. In a more subtle example, in one episode, the two windows in Felix and Oscar's living room are replaced with one large window. Chuck Cunningham Syndrome : Roy (one of the poker players) as well as Cecily and Gwendolyn (the Pigeon sisters) disappeared after the first season. Later it was the turn for Miriam and Nancy (Felix and Oscar's respective girlfriends). According to Garry Marshall , the Pigeon Sisters were written out of the show because the network wanted to establish more of a Girl of the Week (and more specifically, "hot American girls") dating situation for Felix and Oscar - which itself was more Executive Meddling to make sure they weren't coming across as a gay couple.

Clumsy Copyright Censorship : The series DVDs have quite a few scenes and jokes cut out due to the use of copyrighted music. Oscar and Felix are trying to get bumped up the waiting list for a space in a mid-town parking garage. Felix tries to "schmooze" the owner (played in a delightful guest shot by John Byner) by coyly displaying some currency: Felix: Will...um...this get us anything? Owner: (Glances at bill) Yeah — two fives. Once, trying to gain admittance into a Paul Williams concert to bring his wayward daughter back home, hapless Felix offered a quarter to the security guard outside. He scoffed, "What is this? Your allowance?" Compressed Vice : In one episode of the series, Felix's nervous tic is not his sinus honking, but his arms stiffening and locking into position to the point that Oscar has to physically manipulate them back into a relaxed position. Continuity Reboot : The New Odd Couple, Oscar and Felix, and the 2015 series. Control Freak : Felix, who has very precise ideas about things and frequently nags others into going along with them.

Corpsing : Jack Klugman seems to have been particularly prone to this, based not only on the outtakes, but on several episodes in which his slips were concealed or controlled quickly enough that they didn't ruin the scene and were left in (e.g. "Murray the Fink", "Two Men on a Hoarse"). Some versions of the opening credits have a scene in which Oscar dries his hands on Felix's shirt (after Felix yells at him not to do it on the curtains), causing Tony Randall to slowly turn to the camera as if testing himself to see if he won't break. Costumer : The episode where Felix tells the story of how his and Oscar's fathers knew each other in The Roaring '20s . The Couch : There was always a living room couch in the series, but in the first season, which was shot single-camera, it's not terribly prominent. When the show went to three-camera the set was redesigned and the couch, placed squarely facing the fourth wall, finally came into its own.

Courtroom Episode : The time when Felix wouldn't submit a nude picture of Gloria to Playboy, when Murray busted the weekly poker game, when Felix stole a dog that was being mistreated by its handler, and when Felix was accused of scalping a theatre ticket. *Crack!* "Oh, My Back!" : In the film, Felix is hiding in Oscar's bathroom after being kicked out by his wife. Terrified that he's going to attempt suicide, Oscar and the other poker players break into the bathroom, hitting Felix with the door, who proceeds to moan about his back throughout the rest of the scene. Crazy Jealous Guy : Felix in regards to his ex-wife Gloria. He goes into a jealous rage whenever she shows - or he imagines she shows - any interest in another man. He once pointed out his jealousy was one of the reasons Gloria dumped him. Creator Cameo : Neil Simon himself makes a brief cameo in "Two on the Aisle".

Reportedly Simon hated the first season of the TV series, but not because of its content (he hadn't actually seen it) — it was because his name was listed in the title of the series during the first season (Neil Simon's The Odd Couple), which he objected to on account of him having nothing to do with the series itself. Once he actually watched the first and second seasons, he grew to like the series. Producer Garry Marshall appears in season one's "I Do, I Don't" as a moviegoer who yells at Oscar for talking during the movie, as well as in Myrna's last episode (Myrna being played by his sister Penny). Dartboard of Hate : In the episode "Two on the Aisle", Oscar makes one out of the blowup of Felix's face with the cartoon bubble "Thanks" that he received from a grateful Felix in " You Saved My Life ." Dating Service Disaster : Before the internet - before PC's even - there was computer dating, believe it or not. In a third season episode, Oscar signs up with a computer dating service and embellishes his bio. He winds up matched with Felix's ex-wife.

In The Stinger , Oscar tries again, and winds up matched with his OWN ex-wife. Demoted to Extra : Two of the poker buddies, Vinnie and "Speed", appeared in less and less episodes in later seasons. Disney Death : In "It's All over Now, Baby Bird", Felix's pet parrot, Albert, turns out to not be dead, but rather, in a coma. He wakes up at his own funeral! Felix is over joyed . Distaff Counterpart : The Female Odd Couple, featuring Olive Madison and Florence Unger. Divorce Is Temporary : For Felix Unger in the TV adaptation. The final episode of the series, "Felix Remarries" (aired March 7, 1975), sees him make one final, desperate attempt to win back Gloria, the wife he loved but who couldn't stand him due to his finicky nature. Felix realizes that, while it is good to be clean and organized, he also needs to relax. Gloria accepts that Felix has changed ... and the two are wed (for a second time) in the apartment.

The Door Slams You : Oscar slams the door on Felix multiple times when he is hanging in a sling to relax his back. Dork Horse Candidate : Subverted. A late episode has Felix making Oscar run for municipal office. Early Installment Weirdness : Because the first season of the series was filmed single camera with only a Laugh Track , almost the entire season doesn't really stand out, and seems to resemble any generic, fluffy sitcom of The '60s ; it can also be a little jarring at how radically different (and cramped) Felix and Oscar's apartment looks that season as well. Elevator Failure : This happened at the end of the Rogue Juror episode. Unfortunately, the defendant got stuck in the elevator with Felix. End of Episode Silliness : Both Randall and Klugman reportedly hated doing the last little tag scene, feeling that its only reason for existence was to make viewers sit through one more commercial following the announcement "The Odd Couple will be back after these messages.". Epic Fail : Guest star Bobby Riggs challenges Oscar to type his name in ten seconds. Oscar does it in three seconds, but writes "Oscar Madisoy". Bobby then gives him another opportunity.

Unfortunately Oscar now types his name as "Oscar Madisox". Extreme Omnivore : Oscar, who (as detailed in Actually Pretty Funny ) once ate a plastic hot dog. Mistaken for Gay : In "The Subway Story", when the train stops abruptly, Oscar ends up in the lap of the man sitting next to him. Said man turns to him and asks, "What are you, one of the glitter people?" In an episode where Felix has talked Oscar into being in a production of Carmen, Felix tells Oscar to stand confidently with his hand on his hip. Oscar does this in a less than manly way, and Felix chastises him, saying, "Not like that! You look like a...(trails off)" Moment Killer : Felix would sometimes arrive home early "not feeling well" and disrupt the romantic mood, much to Oscar's consternation. At the end of "Felix Gets Sick", Oscar pretends he's ill to return the favor but finds that Felix is too nice about the disruption for revenge to be sweet. Neat Freak : Felix.

When he was married, his wife would clean the house and a maid would come in once a week to clean some more, but he still felt compelled to get up in the middle of the night and clean everything all over again. Never Say "Die" : In "Felix is Missing", Murray is reluctant to come out and ask Oscar to come down and identify what he thinks is Felix's body. When pressed for what's going on, he says, "He's in the morgue!" One of Felix's trademark traits. Oscar would step into this territory when exasperated... specially by Felix himself. The Nose Knows : When Oscar smuggles deli food into a fat farm, Felix can smell and identify every item.... as well as a can opener. Odd Couple : The Trope Namer, of course. Old Friend : The premise of the series. The series also offers at least three different stories about how they met: once it says they're childhood friends, later it claims they met when both were on jury duty, and a later episode says they met not long before Felix met Gloria. Your Favorite : For Oscar - lasagna and french fries, cookies and ketchup, salami and jelly on rye.

The final episode reveals that Oscar is also partial to Goop Melange. We're never really told what it is, only that it contains food Felix hates, and that athletes train on it. Athletes like Man O' War, Citation, Whirlaway... Oscar's favorite breakfast is Jumbled Cluck (Aka Scrambled Eggs for those not versed in Password speak.). In the first Howard Cosell episode, Oscar mentions his favorite dessert is Boston Cream Pie. In one of his attempts to win Gloria back, Felix cooks a romantic dinner, listing all the dishes and labeling them as her favorites. Oscar notes that they are actually Felix's favorite dishes, not Gloria's, to which Felix says she'll learn to love them too. You're Insane! : In the play, after Oscar snatches the plate of linguini and senselessly throws it against the kitchen wall: Felix: You are crazy! I'm a neurotic nut but you are crazy! Oscar: I'm crazy, heh? That's really funny coming from a fruitcake like you. Your Mom : Felix lets loose with "Your mother wears army boots!" when critic John Simon criticizes the theatre reviews Felix ghost wrote for Oscar.

:: Indexes :: Goodbye Oscar Madison - A Hollywood Republican A Hollywood Republican You are here: Home 2013 January Goodbye Oscar Madison Goodbye Oscar Madison Posted on January 2, 2013 by Frank DeMartini | 1 Comment Jack Klugman 1922-2012 Oscar Madison, in my opinion, is one the greatest fictional characters ever created. And, for those of you that don’t know, The Odd Couple is one of my favorite TV shows of all time. So, to put it mildly, my Christmas was a little bit off this year, because on Christmas Eve, the world lost Oscar Madison when the gifted actor, Jack Klugman passed away at the age of 90. I know this is not a political column, but sometimes I can do what I want on my web site. Some of my earliest memories of TV were watching The Odd Couple on Friday nights in the early 70s during it’s original run. And, then it continued to humor me ad infinitum in reruns. I had the pleasure of meeting Jack a few times in the past twenty years and each time he was a gentleman. He was also always ready to talk about Tony.

Klugman’s career spanned more than six decades with award-winning performances in theatre, television and film, but it was his portrayal of the ‘every-slob’ Oscar Madison, opposite the uber-sanitary Felix Unger (portrayed by his closest friend Tony Randall) in the classic television series The Odd Couple for which he is instantly remembered. [vsw id=”jS6IfPVBk6g” source=”youtube” width=”425″ height=”344″ autoplay=”no”] Klugman was born Jacob Joachim Klugman on April 27,1922 in Philadelphia, PA. He began his career on the New York stage and made his Broadway debut in Clifford Odets’ Golden Boy in 1952. He would go on to appear in numerous stage productions, and was nominated for a Tony Award for his role as Herbie, opposite Ethel Merman in Gypsy. In the ‘60’s he got his first opportunity to step into the sneakers of Oscar Madison, as he replaced Walter Matthau in the original Broadway production of The Odd Couple.

During the Golden Age of Television, many production utilized talent from the New York stage in their casts, and Klugman was no exception. He found work on such television shows as Actor’s Studio and The Philco Television Playhouse. It was in a 1955 episode of Appointment with Adventure, produced by David Susskind, where Klugman first appeared and acted opposite the man with whom he would later be inextricably linked—Tony Randall. Klugman was awarded for his first Emmy for his performance on the series The Defenders in 1964. He appeared in countless series including the classic episode of The Twilight Zone in which he played a game of pool with Jonathan Winters with the stakes being life and death. [vsw id=”0tXiQc2B-JU” source=”youtube” width=”425″ height=”344″ autoplay=”no”] For his role as the slovenly sportswriter, Oscar Madison, in The Odd Couple, he received two Emmys and millions of laughs in the show’s five-season run. Even though his starring role as medical examiner Quincy lasted for eight seasons, Klugman would first and forever be thought of as Oscar, Oscar, Oscar.

His partnership with Randall continued far beyond the series, as the two performed their iconic characters on stage in Neil Simon’s original play, as well as other stage productions including The Sunshine Boys. Klugman’s well-publicized treatment for throat cancer did not deter the actor from pursuing his craft, and at the urging of Tony Randall, they incorporated his recovery from the disease into his familiar persona of Oscar Madison for the television movie The Odd Couple: Together Again. After Randall’s death, Klugman turned author with [amazon_link id=”0976830302″ target=”_blank” ]Tony and Me: A Story of Friendship[/amazon_link], a book that recounted the details of their friendship that spanned over 50 years. Klugman married Brett Somers in 1953, and although the two separated in 1974, neither ever filed for divorce. Somers would also become a part of The Odd Couple series, portraying Madison’s ex-wife Blanche on a number of episodes. In 2008, a year after Somers’ passing, he married his longtime girlfriend Peggy Crosby.

He admitted on more than one occasion that he wasn’t really like Oscar Madison in real life (although they did share a proclivity for billiards, the ponies and cigars), but what is not generally known about Klugman is that he used his continuing celebrity from the Quincy series to play an integral role in passing critical healthcare legislation in the early 1980’s: I would like to thank Michael Klastorin for contributing the majority of this article as he is another lover of Oscar Madison as well and I have been too busy to give this the proper amount of time. Goodbye and goodnight Oscar, the world is a sadder place without you. [amazon_enhanced asin=”B001DHXT48″ /] The Odd Couple TV Show The Odd Couple Trivia The Odd Couple TV show was based upon a hit Broadway play written by Neil Simon. There was also an Odd Couple theatrical movie in 1968 which starred Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon. In the first season the Odd Couple was produced in the same apartment that was used in the movie. It was shot with just one camera and incorporated a laugh track.

That all changed in season two when the filming moved to a studio with the standard three cameras and a live audience providing the laughs. For the first few episodes, the series title was "Neil Simon's The Odd Couple". Neil was upset about that because it erroneously gave the impression that he was the script writer for the TV series. The title was shortened to "The Odd Couple" but Neil continued to receive credit as the writer of the play. After a couple of seasons, Neil came to like the TV version and even appeared as himself on one episode! Monty Hall who is perhaps best known as the host of the hit game show, "Let's Make A Deal", appeared on the Odd Couple. While he played himself, his appearance was explained by the writers having him be the old college roommate of Oscar Madison. Felix's father was an optometrist and one of his patients was Oscar's father. Felix's kids on the show were neame Edna and Leonard. Tony Randall's real-life sister was named Edna and Tony's real first name was Leonard. Blanche Madison was Oscar's ex-wife and was played by Brett Somers who was Jack Klugman's wife in real life!

Unfortunately, real life followed fantasy because Jack and Brett broke up during the Odd Couple's time on the air! Oscar was a sports writer for the "New York Herald". There had once been a real newspaper titled the "New York Herald-Tribune" but it went out of business several years before the Odd Couple TV show hit the air. Oscar Madison had a real hate relationship going on with TV sports personality Howard Cosell who played himself on a couple of the Odd Couple episodes. Both Oscar Madison's fictional abrasive personality and Howard Cosell's real-life harsh character made for some very entertaining arguments! Those two episodes substantially increased the show's ratings and Howard Cosell found himself guest-starring on many other TV series! Tony Randall won an Emmy Award for his role as Felix Unger after the Odd Couple had ended. Perhaps he was experiencing being "typecast" as many actors do after a long-run TV series. As he was accepting the Emmy he said that he wished he had a job! Typecasting certainly didn't seem to hurt Jack Klugman's career! Within nineteen months after the final episode of the Odd Couple aired, Jack appeared in a TV movie as a medical examiner named "Doctor Quincy".

After three more TV movies, the " Quincy, M.E. " became its own weekly TV series that aired for another 144 episodes! Jack also starred in a two season series titled, "You Again?" just a few years after Quincy, M.E. ended. The Odd Couple writers just couldn't get it straight when trying to explain how Felix and Oscar had met. The opening narration stated that they were friends as kids. Then, on several episodes, it was said that they met in the Army! One of the episodes inferred that they had served on a jury together for a sensationalized murder trial! That was a reference to the 1957 film, "12 Angry Men" where Jack Klugman played the role as a juror. So take your pick as to how they met. At least they did remove the reference to meeting as kids from the opening narrative in the third season. In another goof, on one episode Felix and Oscar's address is mentioned as "74th Street and Central Park West". Then on another episode, it's stated as "1049 Park Avenue"! There were two actors who made the transition from the 1968 movie to the TV series.

Monica Evans and Carole Shelley played the "Pigeon Sisters" in both but only stayed for the first season of the TV show. The Odd Couple's time slot was changed five times during its five season run. It was fortunate in that it didn't find itself competing with any real hit series on the other networks until its final season when CBS aired " The Waltons " in its slot! Episodes List With Original Air Dates Season 1 The Fight of the Felix (10/1/1970) Felix Gets Sick (10/8/1970) I Do, I Don't (11/5/1970) Oscar the Model (11/12/1970) It's All Over Now, Baby Bird (12/3/1970) Felix is Missing (12/10/1970) Scrooge Gets an Oscar (12/17/1970) The Blackout (12/24/1970) They Use Horseradish, Don't They?

(1/7/1971) The Hideaway (1/14/1971) Lovers Don't Make House Calls (1/29/1971) Engrave Trouble (2/5/1971) Bunny is Missing Down by the Lake (2/12/1971) You've Come a Long Way, Baby (2/19/1971) A Taste of Money (2/26/1971) Oscar's New Life (3/5/1971) What Makes Felix Run (3/12/1971) What Does a Naked Lady Say to You? (3/19/1971) Trapped (3/26/1971) A Grave for Felix (10/15/1971) Murray the Fink (10/29/1971) Does Your Mother Know You're Out, Rigoletto?

(11/5/1971) The Fat Farm (11/12/1971) The Odd Couple Meet Their Host (11/19/1971) Win One for Felix (12/3/1971) Being Divorced is Never Having to Say I Do (12/10/1971) Surprise, Surprise! (12/17/1971) Felix the Calypso Singer (12/24/1971) And Leave the Greyhound to Us?

(12/31/1971) Security Arms (1/7/1972) You Saved My Life (1/21/1972) Where's Grandpa (1/28/1972) A Night to Dismember (2/18/1972) Oscar's Promotion (2/25/1972) The Pen is Mightier Than the Pencil (10/6/1972) The Odd Monks (10/13/1972) I'm Dying of Unger (10/20/1972) The Odd Couples (10/27/1972) Don't Believe in Roomers (12/22/1972) Sometimes a Great Ocean (1/5/1973) I Gotta Be Me (1/12/1973) The Ides of April (1/19/1973) Myrna's Debut (2/2/1973) My Strife in Court (2/16/1973) Let's Make a Deal (

2/23/1973) The Odyssey Couple (3/2/1973) Take My Furniture, Please (3/9/1973) The Murray Who Came to Dinner (3/23/1973) Season 4 Last Tango in Newark (9/21/1973) The Odd Decathalon (9/28/1973) That Was No Lady (10/5/1973) The Odd Holiday (10/12/1973) That is the Army Mrs.

Madison (10/26/1973) The Songwriter (11/2/1973) The Pig Who Came to Dinner (11/16/1973) Maid for Each Other (11/23/1973) The Exorcists (12/7/1973) Cleanliness is Next to Impossible (1/11/1974) The Flying Felix (1/18/1974) Vocal Girl Makes Good (1/25/1974) Shuffling Off to Buffalo (2/8/1974) A Different Drummer (2/22/1974) One for the Bunny (3/22/1974) Season 5 The Rain in Spain (9/12/1974) To Bowl or Not to Bowl (9/19/1974) The Frog (9/26/1974) Strike Up the Band or Else (10/17/1974) The Odd Candidate (10/24/1974) The Paul Williams Show (11

/7/1974) Our Fathers (11/21/1974) The Bigger They Are (12/14/1974) Two on the Aisle (12/19/1974) Your Mother Wears Army Boots (1/16/1975) Felix the Horse Player (1/23/1975) The Rent Strike (1/31/1975) Two Men on a Hoarse (2/7/1975) The Roy Clark Show (2/14/1975) Old Flames Never Die (2/21/1975) Laugh, Clown, Laugh (2/28/1975) The Odd Couple (TV Series 1970–1975) - IMDb IMDb 7 January 2017 5:00 AM, UTC NEWS There was an error trying to load your rating for this title.

Some parts of this page won't work property. Please reload or try later. X Beta I'm Watching This! Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. Error Two men, a neat freak and a slob separated from their wives, have to live together despite their differences. Creators: Oscar and Felix appear together on Password and Felix is sure that they can win. 8.7 Oscar, on the advice from girlfriend Nancy, tries being nicer to Felix. In trying too hard to be so, it causes him to sleepwalk and hit Felix on the head with a rolled up newspaper every night. 8.7 Felix and Oscar appear on Let's Make a Deal to get a new bed for Felix after Oscar set his on fire. 8.6 2017 Golden Globes Nominees Back After 20 Years Golden Globes are feeling nostalgic! Find out which Golden Globe winners from more than 20 years ago snagged nominations yet again for their performances this past year. Don't miss our live coverage of the Golden Globes beginning at 4 p.m. PST on Jan. 8 in our Golden Globes section.

a list of 23 titles created 14 Jun 2011 a list of 49 titles created 10 Jul 2011 a list of 27 titles created 09 Mar 2013 a list of 33 titles created 09 Mar 2015 a list of 25 titles created 9 months ago Title: The Odd Couple (1970–1975) 8/10 Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Won 1 Golden Globe. Another 5 wins & 14 nominations. See more awards » Photos The professional and personal misadventures of a psychologist and his family, patients, friends and colleagues. Stars: Bob Newhart, Suzanne Pleshette, Bill Daily A compassionate teacher returns to his inner city high school of his youth to teach a new generation of trouble making kids. Stars: Gabe Kaplan, Ron Palillo, John Travolta The lives and trials of a young single woman and her friends, both at work and at home.

Stars: Mary Tyler Moore, Edward Asner, Gavin MacLeod The misadventures of an author turned innkeeper in rural Vermont and his friends. Stars: Bob Newhart, Mary Frann, Tom Poston The staff of a struggling radio station have a chance at success after the new programming director changes the format to rock music Stars: Gary Sandy, Gordon Jump, Loni Anderson The staff of a New York City taxicab company go about their job while they dream of greater things. Stars: Judd Hirsch, Jeff Conaway, Danny DeVito This sitcom follows recently divorced mother (Ann Romano) and her two teenage daughters (Barbara and Julie) as they start a new life together in Indianapolis, They are befriended by the ... See full summary » Stars: Bonnie Franklin, Valerie Bertinelli, Pat Harrington Jr. A greasy-spoon diner in Phoenix, Arizona is the setting for this long-running series. The title character, Alice Hyatt, is an aspiring singer who arrives in Phoenix with her teenaged son, ... See full summary » Stars: Linda Lavin, Beth Howland, Vic Tayback An eccentric fun-loving judge presides over an urban night court and all the silliness going on there.

Stars: Harry Anderson, John Larroquette, Richard Moll The misadventures of a cantankerous junk dealer and his frustrated son. Stars: Redd Foxx, Demond Wilson, LaWanda Page A nouveau riche, African-American family who move into a luxury apartment building develop close, if occasionally fractious, relationships with other tenants. Stars: Isabel Sanford, Sherman Hemsley, Marla Gibbs A working class bigot constantly squabbles with his family over the important issues of the day. Stars: Carroll O'Connor, Jean Stapleton, Rob Reiner Edit Storyline Felix and Oscar are an extremely odd couple: Felix is anal-retentive, neurotic, precise, and fastidiously clean. Oscar, on the other hand, is the exact opposite: sloppy and casual. They are sharing an apartment together, and their differing lifestyles inevitably lead to some conflicts and laughs. Written by Murray Chapman <muzzle@cs.uq.oz.au> 24 September 1970 (USA) See more » Also Known As: La extraña pareja See more » Filming Locations: Did You Know?

Trivia The original Broadway production of "The Odd Couple" by Neil Simon opened at the Plymouth Theater on March 10, 1965, ran for 966 performances and was nominated for the 1965 Tony Award as Best Play. See more » Goofs In the opening credits for the entire series, the type of luggage Felix is carrying changes. When he is indoors (leaving his apartment or arriving at Oscar's) he is carrying a white suitcase. But when he is walking outside he is not carrying the white suitcase. See more » Quotes (Claremont,USA) – See all my reviews Great comedic concept from Neil Simonthe slob and the neat freak, two divorced men living together in a small Manhattan apartment. But it's really Klugman and Randall that make the premise work so welltheir chemistry is simply superb. Klugman seems a natural for Oscar the slob, with his sour expression and grouchy manner. Then there's Randall as Felix, with his no-fat body and absurdly picky manner. You just know he never played with mud pies or put on dirty socks.

It's amazing the writers get so many hilarious variations on the same themeFelix carrying on with his finicky obsessions to an annoying degree. He just can't seem to help himself. At the same time, we can't help sympathizing with poor Oscar who retaliates by turning his bedroom into a city dump. Actually actor Randall pulls off a really difficult trick: he manages to make Felix annoying without being dislikable. Any hint of the latter and the show would have fallen flat. And who can forget the superb supporting cast, especially hawk-nosed Al Molinaro as Murray, the New York City policeMAN. He fits amiably right in with whatever the shenanigans might be, maybe too amiably for a cop. Then there're the rest of the poker playing characters, plus the girls led by Klugman's real life wife Brett and Father Knows Best's Elinor Donahue. Since nearly all the hijinks occur in the small apartment, the writers have their work cut out for them, and rise to the occasion they do, with only an occasional misfire.

My favorite parts are when some poor put-upon old lady gets enough of Felix's extremes and swats him with her pursehe always looks so surprised, like he can't figure out why. Anyway, it's one of the best character-based comedies of the 70's or any TV decade. 2 of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes The Odd Couple - Classic TV Database The Odd Couple Added to the database on September 17, 2008 Rate Cast & Characters | Broadcast History | Theme Song | DVDs | Watch Episodes | Photos | Trivia | Comments The Odd Couple is a sitcom that aired on ABC from 1970 until 1975 that starred Tony Randall as Felix Unger and Jack Klugman as Oscar Madison, based upon the play of the same name, which was written by Neil Simon. Felix and Oscar are two divorced men. Felix is a neat freak while Oscar is sloppy and casual. They share a Manhattan apartment, and their different lifestyles inevitably lead to conflicts and laughs.

Jack Klugman and Tony Randall give an advanced course in chemistry in the auspicious first season of The Odd Couple, which would only get better as the veteran character actors made themselves at home in their signature roles and the series switched from a laugh track to a live audience. In these first episodes, The Odd Couple hews pretty much to the voice and spirit of Neil Simon's play about mismatched roommates, sloppy sportswriter Oscar Madison and "miserable, picky, irritating" photographer Felix Unger ("That was the point," defends series executive producer and writer Garry Marshall, who provides lively audio introductions for each episode and commentary for the pilot). Playing pivotal roles this first season are Felix and Oscar's poker playing buddies, Murray the cop (Al Molinaro), Vinnie, Roy, and Speed, the fabulous Pigeon sisters (Monica Evans and Carole Shelley reprising their Broadway and film roles), and, of course, Neil Hefti's jaunty, jazzy theme, which was introduced in the 1968 film. As with M*A*S*H, the series would establish its own identity and supplant previous incarnations in the public's consciousness.

The Odd Couple was never a ratings smash before it became a syndication staple. Cast and aharacters Tony Randell as Felix Unger Jack Klugman as Oscar Madison Al Molinaro as Murray Greshner Garry Walberg as Speed (1970-1974) Larry Gelman as Vinnie Archie Hahn as Roger (1973-1974) Brett Somers as Blanche Madison Ryan McDonald as Roy (1970-1971) Joan Hotchkis as Dr.

Nancy Cunningham (1970-1972) Janis Hansen as Gloris Ulger (1971-1975) First Telecast: September 24, 1970 Last Telecast: Mar 7, 1975 Original Network: September 1970- January 1971, ABC, Thursday 9:30-10:00pm Janruary 1971- June 1973, ABC, Friday 9:30-10:00pm June 1973- January 1974, ABC, Friday 8:30-9:00pm January 1974- September 1974, ABC, Friday 9:30-10:00pm September 1974- January 1975, ABC, Thursday 8:00-8:30pm January 1975- March 1975, ABC, Friday 9:30-10:00pm Listen to theme song: {mp3}TheOddCouple{/mp3} Purchase theme

 song from Amazon.com: Purchase theme on The Odd Couple Trivia The Odd Couple TV show was based upon a hit Broadway play written by Neil Simon.

There was also an Odd Couple theatrical movie in 1968 which starred Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon. In the first season the Odd Couple was produced in the same apartment that was used in the movie. It was shot with just one camera and incorporated a laugh track. That all changed in season two when the filming moved to a studio with the standard three cameras and a live audience providing the laughs. For the first few episodes, the series title was "Neil Simon's The Odd Couple". Neil was upset about that because it erroneously gave the impression that he was the script writer for the TV series. The title was shortened to "The Odd Couple" but Neil continued to receive credit as the writer of the play. After a couple of seasons, Neil came to like the TV version and even appeared as himself on one episode! Monty Hall who is perhaps best known as the host of the hit game show, "Let's Make A Deal", appeared on the Odd Couple. While he played himself, his appearance was explained by the writers having him be the old college roommate of Oscar Madison. Felix's father was an optometrist and one of his patients was Oscar's father. Felix's kids on the show were neame Edna and Leonard.

Tony Randall's real-life sister was named Edna and Tony's real first name was Leonard. Blanche Madison was Oscar's ex-wife and was played by Brett Somers who was Jack Klugman's wife in real life! Unfortunately, real life followed fantasy because Jack and Brett broke up during the Odd Couple's time on the air! Oscar was a sports writer for the "New York Herald". There had once been a real newspaper titled the "New York Herald-Tribune" but it went out of business several years before the Odd Couple TV show hit the air. Oscar Madison had a real hate relationship going on with TV sports personality Howard Cosell who played himself on a couple of the Odd Couple episodes. Both Oscar Madison's fictional abrasive personality and Howard Cosell's real-life harsh character made for some very entertaining arguments! Those two episodes substantially increased the show's ratings and Howard Cosell found himself guest-starring on many other TV series! Tony Randall won an Emmy Award for his role as Felix Unger after the Odd Couple had ended. Perhaps he was experiencing being "typecast" as many actors do after a long-run TV series. As he was accepting the Emmy he said that he wished he had a job!

Typecasting certainly didn't seem to hurt Jack Klugman's career! Within nineteen months after the final episode of the Odd Couple aired, Jack appeared in a TV movie as a medical examiner named "Doctor Quincy". After three more TV movies, the "Quincy, M.E." became its own weekly TV series that aired for another 144 episodes! Jack also starred in a two season series titled, "You Again?" just a few years after Quincy, M.E. ended. The Odd Couple writers just couldn't get it straight when trying to explain how Felix and Oscar had met. The opening narration stated that they were friends as kids. Then, on several episodes, it was said that they met in the Army! One of the episodes inferred that they had served on a jury together for a sensationalized murder trial! That was a reference to the 1957 film, "12 Angry Men" where Jack Klugman played the role as a juror. So take your pick as to how they met. At least they did remove the reference to meeting as kids from the opening narrative in the third season. In another goof, on one episode Felix and Oscar's address is mentioned as "74th Street and Central Park West".

Then on another episode, it's stated as "1049 Park Avenue"! There were two actors who made the transition from the 1968 movie to the TV series. Monica Evans and Carole Shelley played the "Pigeon Sisters" in both but only stayed for the first season of the TV show. The Odd Couple's time slot was changed five times during its five season run. It was fortunate in that it didn't find itself competing with any real hit series on the other networks until its final season when CBS aired "The Waltons" in its slot! Tagged under:

Question: Oscar Madison and Felix Unger are better known as which fictional Neil Simon characters?
Answer: The Odd Couple