Simply A Masterpiece

A Masterpiece!

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

To be honest, it's been so long since I watched this show that I have no idea if it was actually any good, but I remember liking it as a kid.I also remember this show as one of a number of very short-lived sitcoms, from that same decade, which caught my attention as a youth, but which didn't survive past the first season: Besides "Camp Runamuck" (about a summer camp), there was also "Hank" (about a young guy trying to be a "drop-in" at college, rather than a drop- out), "I'm Dickens, He's Fenster" (about two carpenters, one of them Marty Ingles), "It's About Time" (about two astronauts who end up back in the caveman days), and "McKeever & the Colonel" (about the antics of a young cadet at a military school (which had a "Leave it To Beaver" feel to it).I'm not sure why these shows stuck in my head as a unit, but if I happen to recall one of them, the other four always come to mind.

My brother and I loved both this show and HANK, but hardly anyone else watched them. We didn't understand this, because CAMP RUNAMUCK was wacky and hilarious! It was always the girls against the guys, but I don't recall one single child actor, if there were any it's news to me now. This show was about the adults! Arch Johnson was the head counselor and his staff always seemed to be unprepared and hung over, while each morning the over-achieving girls' camp across the lake would wake up the boys' camp singing "Good morning, to you, good morning, to you!!!" Alice Nunn was a formidable adversary for the men, and every time she'd get that look of revenge in her eye, Nina Wayne would breathily say "Ohhh, Mahala May!" Ketchum and Madden were a riot, and yes, every time Madden saw Nina Wayne (or any dishy woman), he'd shake, rattle and discombobulate, and Kethcum (or some one) would actually smack him and Madden would say "Thanks, I needed that!" Man, it sure sounds silly, but it was fast-paced and I think we kids thought all the lousy adult behavior was the funniest thing on earth, well every Friday night, that is, until they canceled it, which was pretty quickly. Would love to see this again!

I remember Dave Ketchum as one of the counselors. There was an episode when the whole staff had to go on a diet. Hungry, they broke into the commissary through the roof. Dave was hung upside down with a rope to spray whipped cream into the burglar alarm and ended up spraying himself in the face. Somehow I cannot get that memory out of my mind.The show's theme song was whistled, similar style as "Bridge over the River Kwai."I remember this show being on just before "Hank," about the young man working his food wagon to get through college.CR was a hilarious show!

Poor show....no comments???? I remember waiting for Friday nights to catch Camp Rumamuck. It was basically a boys camp against the girls camp type of show, with the adults worse than the children. The 2 characters that stay in my mind to this day are the lover-ly Nina Wayne and Dave Madden. Dave's character was so taken with Nina (or maybe any "hot" female) that he was reduced to shaking with the sounds of rattling bones in the background. He needed to be shaken out of it and brought back to his senses. I was quite young and since the show is invisible in re-runs I must assume it's charm doesn't translate and may be much too dated for current audiences....BUT STILL, I'D LOVE TO SEE IT AGAIN........