This is a television sitcom, but basically on Jimmy Stewart’s terms. A sitcom that really side steps the live laugh track, “The Jimmy Stewart Show” is a pastiche of Stewart’s old fashioned sensibilities, with a touch of new world mentality that creates a unique and quaint culture clash. Stewart doesn’t mind breaking the illusion every now and then, opening the series with two introductions, narrating the early episodes to help establish characters, and in one instance Stewart’s wife (Julie Adams) asks “Why can’t we get along like those families on TV?” To which Stewart quickly glances at the camera with a smirk. “The Jimmy Stewart Show” won’t be for everyone, but it’s definitely not a terrible series, either.
If you’re accustomed to the old fashioned family fare with bickering kids, and scrambling adults like “Eight is Enough” and “The Waltons,” this show will fit you like a pair of slippers. Stewart doesn’t cling to complicated or very complex narratives, thus every episode is built around the family he’s built. Stewart as Professor James K. Howard, is an anthropology professor who is hard on his students, and is prone to bouts of forgetfulness. He tends to have a hard time understanding the modern generation, and at least tries his best to meet the younger people he’s surrounded by halfway. Things get even more difficult, when his son’s house burns down, prompting him, his daughter in law, and his grandson to move in with them.
Stewart is a fan of the small town suburban aesthetic, so he’s a quirky individual with his own method for confronting obstacles. He rides a bike instead of a car, he dons a trusty cowboy hat, and plays an accordion proudly. The supporting cast really helps the series movie along, with Julie Adams playing his loving wife, along with a slew of supporting players completing his unusual family. For a series that arrived at the beginning of the more challenging era of television, it’s not hard to understand why “The Jimmy Stewart Show” was cancelled and forgotten for a long time. It’s not a reflection on the inherent talent on display, but this is a decade filled with series like “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” “All in the Family,” and “Three’s Company,” a trio that openly and fearlessly discussed sexuality, race, and gender dynamics.
When compared to this series garnering loyal house wives, and rambunctious children, it’s sad to see that Stewart was perhaps five years much too late. That said, there is an audience that didn’t love the more controversial raunchy humor of the decade, so “The Jimmy Stewart Show” works as an delightful anecdote, and pleasant comfort food. The series gets much better as it progresses, and the show moves at a brisk pace, offering an entertaining look in the great Jimmy Stewart’s admirable attempt to launch a hit sitcom. Once obscure and forgotten, the series is now available from Warner Archives, restored, and in order. It’s a really good addition to any Jimmy Stewart collection.