10. Jackie 9. Klug 8. Klugger 7. The Klugmeister 6. Oscar/Quincy 5. Buzz 4. Cowboy 3. Spud 2. Dink 1. Cap'n
#7 ia my favorite. I had the pleasure of seeing him at the Kennedy Center in DC for a play titled Mr. President. What a thrill, after all that time watching Quincy.
THE ODD COUPLE (1970 - 1975) is my favorite sitcom. I even liked all the reboots, albeit short-lived. It's a shame that the Klugman/Randall series was cancelled after the 5th season. From what I've read, it never got anything more than passable ratings in its original run on ABC, so I suppose we're lucky it lasted as long as it did. I remember watching the last few seasons first run, and perhaps saw it from the beginning. (I was 5 when it started.) A year and a half after the final episode first aired, it became a smash hit in syndication. I remember at one point in the late 70s, as many as 3 episodes a night were aired by WPIX Channel 11 in NYC. That's when I became a fanatic about the show. I think it's a minor miracle that it survived at all after its first season, which was its weakest. Filmed with one-camera and with an added laughtrack, most episodes were horrible. You really need to hand-pick the good ones. Thankfully, Gary Marshall convinced the powers-that-be to film in front of a live audience for seasons 2 through 5. It became a completely different show. And it was not just the actors performing better live; the writing improved tremendously. By the 5th season, in an attempt to get better ratings, they started having many more guest stars. Most of these episodes worked well, with only a few clinkers. Even though they were cancelled, it was good that the producers found out before the last episode was filmed. At least the series received a proper finale. As far as Jack Klugman goes, he is definitely one of my all-time favorite actors. He was great in an early role in 12 ANGRY MEN with Henry Fonda. I love THE TWILIGHT ZONE episodes that he was in. And of course, he was great in QUINCY. I remember watching it off and on during its original run, but I don't think I ever became a regular viewer.
The 2 biggest crimes in sitcom history were canceling THE ODD COUPLE and TAXI after only 5 seasons. What were they thinking? What were the people who weren't watching, causing the ratings to sink, thinking?
