Thanks for the memories!

Excellent, Without a doubt!!

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Without missing a beat, Neil Simon's The Odd Couple went from successful movie to successful TV series. After seeing the antics of Felix Unger and Oscar Madison on the big screen, we had them in our living room once a week for five seasons.Two very big film names, Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau weren't about to be had for a weekly TV series. But Tony Randall as the fussy Felix and Jack Klugman as Oscar whose room at their apartment was designed by the brothers Collier were a perfect fit for The Odd Couple.Tony Randall as Felix was the last word in anal retentive. No wonder he drove his wife Gloria played on the series by Janis Hansen in occasional appearances crazy and she threw him out. Still she loved the fuss budget and as the series ended they were going to give marriage a try.When that happened Oscar could go back to living like a pig. If I let it slide I would be as sloppy as Oscar. But that's why I have someone cleaning up for me. I always thought it was that Jack Klugman thought a maid was a luxury he could not afford. That was the job of the wife in this case his then real wife Brett Somers playing Blanche.Somers appearances were few and were gold. Her scenes with Klugman reminded me of the famous Bickersons from radio's golden era. Could those two scrap and Klugman and Somers were just great. I'm not sure some of that wasn't adlibbed.In the film version it begins with Felix coming over to Oscar's place and interrupting a weekly poker game. Those pasteboard parts from the film became real characters. We got to know Murray the cop played by Al Molinaro and Speed played by Garry Walberg and the others.This was a great series, a real New York slice of life courtesy of Neil Simon.

I saw 'The Odd Couple' television series before the movie. I took to it straight away. Tony Randall played 'Felix Unger' a man so fussy about his personal habits ( he insists on washing playing cards before they're used in poker ) that one day his wife decides she can take no more, and throws him out. So he moves in with friend 'Oscar Madison', a slobbish sports commentator. Naturally, their personalities clash, but they remain friends despite their constant bickering. Randall and Klugman were perfectly cast, and thanks to some top-notch scripts ( some by Garry Marshall and Jerry Belson ) were able to successfully develop the characters. Monica Evans and Carole Shelley reprised their movie roles as the cuckoo 'Pigeon Sisters' - Cecily and Gwendolyn. My favourite episode was the one where Oscar tells the Pigeons the story of how he and Felix met for the first time - they were doing jury service, and after being trapped in an elevator with Felix for some hours the accused made a full confession!

I'm about the only person I know who prefers the first season (shot in cinematic style with a single camera) to later seasons, but even after they switched to the multiple-camera technique and live audience (with the accompanying broadening of the humor), it was still better than 90% of TV sitcoms ever (unlike, say, *Happy Days*, on which quality plummeted when they made a similar change).The only thing that really interferes with my enjoyment of *TOC* is the horrible, horrible celebrity cameos.I mean, Rodney Allen Rippy?

I remember this series from as far back as seeing it in reruns when I was a small child and it has always very easily been one of my all time favorites. I can't help but laugh out loud when Felix and Oscar argue because of how completely opposite they are but it's also very refreshing to see how they always stay friends in the end despite their differences. I very highly recommend it to anyone who is in need of a good laugh.