"Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C." (1964) TV series 1964-1969

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Creator:

Aaron Ruben

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

Release Date:

25 September 1964 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

The misadventures of a bumbling Marine named Gomer Pyle.

Plot Keywords:

Mayberry | U.S. Marine Corps | Marine Corps US | Spin Off | Cult TV

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Jim Nabors	...	Pvt. Gomer Pyle (150 episodes, 1964-1969)
Frank Sutton	...	Sgt. Vince Carter (150 episodes, 1964-1969)

Also Known As:

Gomer Pyle (Australia)
Gomer Pyle - USMC (USA) (alternative spelling)

Runtime:

30 min (150 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:G

Filming Locations:

Desilu Studios - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Andy Griffith Enterprises

Trivia:

Sergeant Carter grew up in Wichita, Kansas.

Goofs:

Factual errors: When wearing uniforms with ribbons, Carter often wears an Army Good Conduct Medal ribbon. Unless he served at least 3 years, (or one year in combat), he would not be eligible for that award since the Marine Corps also awards a Good Conduct Medal.

Quotes:

[repeated line]
Gomer Pyle: Surprise, surprise, surprise!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Horror of Party Beach (#9.17)" (1997)

Transition Appreciation

It is true that everyone has the opportunity to voice an opinion on a show, especially a true classic like Gomer Pyle USMC. This is mostly in reference to the switch from black and white to color. Somehow this is the decision of the expenses at the time, not the writers, which I heard was a debate over "I Dream Of Jeannie" in the similar situation when they did the same thing. I can appreciate the older times of black and white and whether or not they're funnier than color is always to one's own evaluation. In my case, the color ones were more enjoyable to watch, to see technology advance at that time so everything was more distinct. And just in passing, two things..I happened to have VCR'd the episode where Gomer accompanies a girl to a party, and she isn't junior high but a 16-year old who has a crush on him - typical teenage crush on an older man in this case, and it wasn't necessarily just for looks. True, in this day and age that would indeed be a big problem, but by the show's standards, it was handled tastefully. And secondly, if I'm not mistaken, the ratings of both shows steadily increased as time went on, and "Andy Griffith" reached #1 in 1967 - a color season, so obviously the feelings of the show "going downhill when it went to color" are a small amount. When I had the chance, I got as many of "Andy Griffith" color episodes videotaped as I could since they were shown so rarely a few years ago. TV Land didn't keep Gomer Pyle on long enough for me to get those, so I'm very ready for the DVD's to be released - have been checking for months.