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28 Episodes 1968 - 1969
Episode 1
Tue, Sep 24, 196823 mins
It's Doris' birthday and the boys want to treat her to a dinner out. What's more they insist on paying for it themselves. Doris has some backup money just in case. When they arrive at the restaurant it's not quite what Doris was expecting...it's a smoke filled Road House. When the check comes the boys are short and her backup money didn't quite pan out.
Episode 2
Tue, Oct 1, 196823 mins
Billy's made pitcher of the baseball team and has a brand new uniform to prove it. Everyone is proud and Toby wants to show he can get a uniform too. He tries out for the school choir but isn't chosen to join. Toby can't let his mom and grandfather down by telling them he failed and he is desperate for a uniform that he constructs a web of lies to conceal the truth.
Episode 3
Tue, Oct 8, 196823 mins
Mr. Digby's been appointed faculty advisor for the school's milk fund drive and has arranged for Pritchart's dairy to donate 200 pints of milk a day for the school, but there's one condition.Pritchart wants to photograph the typical American farm family and use it in his advertising, and Doris is chosen.
Episode 4
Tue, Oct 22, 196823 mins
The annual father/son picnic leaves grandpa sore and tired and the boys disappointed in coming in last in all events. They think that if they help their mom meet someone new who's younger and faster they will do better next year. They try to fix their mom up with Deputy Sheriff Ubbie Puckum. Ubbie is quite conceited though and comes on way too strong. Doris, Buck and Aggie conspire together to scare Ubbie off.
Episode 5
Tue, Oct 29, 196823 mins
Leroy is convince there's fast & big money to be made writing lyrics to country songs. He writes a song and submits it to a record company and it is accepted. He is sent a letter asking for 4 or 5 more similar songs. Doris and Buck are perplexed because to them the song is not very good but it all becomes clear when they find out Leroy pays them $50 to put his lyrics to music.
Episode 6
Tue, Nov 12, 196823 mins
The boys sell an old table they thought no one wanted to two unscrupulous antique dealers. The table is an antique that Buck's grandmother brought with her when she came out west. Doris is upset with the boys for not respecting other people's property but when the ladies come back for an old stove they want she must come up with a plan to outsmart them and get the table back.
Episode 7
Tue, Nov 19, 196823 mins
Aggie and Doris are making fresh bread which causes them to reminisce about their first meeting with Leroy. Leroy's hiding in the barn while the boys are sneaking him food. He's alone and has no place to go. The boys think if Leroy can prove his worth around the farm Buck will ask him to stay on. But Buck isn't easy to impress especially when things begin to disappear around the house.
Episode 8
Tue, Nov 26, 196823 mins
Billy receives a letter and won't let anyone else know who sent it or what it says. The mystery deepens when he comes home from school with a black eye and won't tell who gave it to him. The only thing he does say is that he didn't fight back. Buck and Doris disagree on how to handle this...Buck wants Billy to fight back and Doris wants him to handle it his own way without resorting to violence.
Episode 9
Tue, Dec 3, 196823 mins
LeRoy is reluctant to do Doris the favor of returning library books for her when he is in town if only because the library is "foreign" territory for him. Upon his return, LeRoy is a changed man, he who got his own library card and checked out a dozen or so books on various subjects such as Greek philosophy and the reproduction of North American ducks. What's even more surprising is that he claims to have read all the books - or at least hit their high points - by the next morning, so as to return all the books to the library. Aggie surmises that LeRoy's odd behavior means he's either in trouble or in love. She's correct as the object of his adoration is the librarian, Winifred Proxmire. Taking LeRoy at face value, Winifred invites him to do a reading at her poetry club when he professes to be a fan of 19th century English poetry. He did so solely to compete for her affections against a professor, Dr. Travis Peabody. LeRoy has to figure out a way to show his true colors to Winifred while not losing either her admiration or her true friendship. Or can he truly become a 19th century English poetry expert by the time of the meeting?
Episode 10
Tue, Dec 10, 196823 mins
Buck is heading off on a camping trip with his old friend Joe Whitecloud, their past camping trips which have always been marred by an on-going argument between the two, primarily about the special skills Joe purportedly possesses on living off the land solely because he's native American. But Buck vows to behave himself on this trip as he is taking Billy and Toby along as well - the boys' first ever camping trip - and wants to set a good example. But this trip disintegrates much like the others have before and much for the same reasons. Doris, who is as dismayed for the boys for missing their first ever camping experience as she is about the boys having to watch a petty argument between two grown men, tries, with Aggie and LeRoy's help, to figure out a way to resolve both issues.
Episode 11
Tue, Dec 17, 196823 mins
Doris receives a surprise telegram from Maggie Wells, her ex-employer from New York City, she the editor of Ladies World magazine. She wants Doris for a four day job to work on a story about charity fraud as it was a story on which she did research before she left. Doris gratefully declines, not wanting to leave Buck or the boys. But when Maggie personally makes a visit to ask again, Doris, after seeing that Buck and the boys seem to be able to do without her for a few days, agrees. After those four days are done, Doris is not surprised that Maggie asks her to return permanently - this move which was always Maggie's longer term goal - but Doris, who has no intention of returning, is surprised that she doesn't immediately say no. Maggie believes she has to do some behind the scenes maneuvering to get what she wants.
Episode 12
Tue, Dec 24, 196823 mins
The gossip among the men of the area is that Bernie, the barber, has hired a manicurist by the name of Verna McIntosh. Both Buck and Doc Carpenter, the veterinarian, who have been friends for forty years, both believe getting a haircut is a good excuse to check out Verna. After meeting and spending time with her, both Buck and Doc start to fall for her, and she seemingly for them. Buck and Doc don't know about the other in Verna's life until they both start to talk about getting married and who their respective intended is. This knowledge threatens to end their forty year friendship. Doris believes that Verna has no idea their true and deep feeling for her, but Doris and eventually Verna have to figure out a way to bring the two old friends back together while Verna has to decide what to do about her two suitors.
Episode 13
Tue, Dec 31, 196824 mins
Everyone in the family knows how accident prone LeRoy is, or more precisely the accidents he causes for others, in large part because of his simplemindedness. This trait is taken to an extreme as Buck, LeRoy and the boys prepare for a weekend camping trip, and as Doris and Juanita prepare to start their weekend job of painting and wallpapering much of the house. As soon as Buck, LeRoy and the boys are gone, three of LeRoy's cousins, Edgar, Albert, and Edgar Simpson, stop by unexpectedly. Although the three don't plan to stay, Doris' invitation to at least have breakfast leads to the three deciding that they would like to stick around and help around the house, mostly with the painting and wallpapering. Doris and Juanita soon discover that Edgar, Albert and Herman are ten times more simpleminded and thus ten times more destructive than LeRoy, especially the eldest and self-appointed leader Edgar, who sees himself as a sophisticate. Doris has to figure out a way to get them to leave without hurting their feelings before they destroy the house.
Episode 14
Tue, Jan 7, 196923 mins
Buck and the boys are in bed with colds. Still, they can't help but get out of bed when Billy wants to tend to what looks like an injured duck, which Buck confirms when he finds some buckshot embedded in the duck itself. As it is outside of hunting season, this shooting is considered poaching, especially as it would have been done on their property. LeRoy witnessed who is the culprit of the poaching: Tyrone Lovey. As Buck is in no condition to handle the matter, Doris, with LeRoy's help (what little of it he can provide), takes it upon herself to stop Lovey. But Doris will find that confronting Lovey and actually proving that he did anything illegal, or at least getting him to promise never to shoot anything on their property ever again, are two totally different matters.
Episode 15
Tue, Jan 21, 196923 mins
Billy and Toby take over their friend, Arthur's egg route, but Doris who soon realises the egg business isn't 'all it's cracked up to be'. Arthur Nader, who is only slightly older than Billy, is going to let Billy and Toby take over his egg route when he will be away for two weeks. Doris reluctantly lets them do it, despite she thinking them too young. As such, she can't help but try to make sure Billy and Toby do the job to her exacting motherly standards, much to Buck's consternation, he who believes the boys should succeed or fail on their own. On their first four o'clock morning to complete the deliveries by the six o'clock deadline, the boys are up and raring to go, all set to do the work on their own, including making their own breakfast. But when they see their mother and Juanita out in the chicken house doing the work they are supposed to be doing, the boys decide they need to teach their mother a lesson in parenting young boys. The boys' plan takes some unexpected turns with help from various people throughout the neighborhood.
Episode 16
Tue, Jan 28, 196923 mins
Doris is dead tired after being up for two straight days in helping their cow, Alma, deliver a calf. In the midst of the delivery, Doris totally forgets that she needs to complete a financial report for her community committee by three o'clock the following afternoon. What causes Doris problems in getting the much needed sleep she needs to wake up refreshed to do the report is a gift from LeRoy for Doris' newly purchased antique highboy: an antique chiming clock. Although she's always wanted one, more now as it fits on an empty spot on the highboy, she changes her mind at this specific time when, trying to get that much needed sleep, she doesn't know how to turn off the top of the hour very loud chimes, which sound more like gongs. As he can see the clock is negatively affecting Doris' health - beyond the issue of the report - Buck tries to get rid of the clock for Doris to get some sleep, this action without Doris finding out what he did or without hurting LeRoy's feelings. The opportunistic neighborhood junk/antiques dealer, Tyrone Lovey, factors into the scheme, much to Buck's chagrin.
Episode 17
Tue, Feb 4, 196923 mins
Despite Juanita being away, Doris, after Buck half jokingly states that the men can take care of themselves, decides to head to Phoenix for an unspecified amount of time to visit with her pregnant friend Louise, who needs some company since she has not yet made any friends there. Doris' absence does wreak havoc at the house as the men can't do the domestic chores on their own. That's only one reason why Buck is so happy to receive an unexpected visit from Emma Flood, a colleague and old girlfriend from the Marines. She is two days retired and stopped by on her way east. Seeing the state of the house, Emma unilateral makes the decision to stay to take care of the men. However, LeRoy, Billy, Toby and even Buck end up preferring the way things were before Emma arrived as she runs the house like she is still a Marine, as that is the only life she has ever known. Buck decides to ask Emma to leave, but changes his mind when he learns that she really has no place to go. Doris, upon her arrival home, believes she has a graceful way for Emma to want to leave without having to kick her out.
Episode 18
Tue, Feb 11, 196923 mins
The Air Force has been conducting aerial maneuvers which has caused some problems for Buck because of the noise, he who complains. The Air Force sends a Colonel Andy Carson to discuss the issue with him. Carson's rushed attitude of giving Buck the needed paperwork then leaving changes when he gets sight of Doris. He does whatever he can to get in Doris' good favors, which Doris can see right through. Carson's colleagues know all about Doris's reputation as being a loner, so womanizing Carson bets them that he will be the person to buck the trend by being able to get a specific romantic date with her. Although Doris' initial reaction to Carson is that he is a nice enough man, she may have a different opinion about him and take what she considers appropriate action if she finds out about the bet.
Episode 19
Tue, Feb 18, 196923 mins
Buck and Doc Carpenter are confident that they will win this year's horseshoe pitching tournament. Their hopes are dashed, at least for this year, when Doc gets into a LeRoy caused accident that affects Doc's pitching hand. Although both Buck and Doc are not averse to Buck getting a new partner for the tournament, Buck is unwilling to settle for just anyone, as he and Doc were not going to settle for anything but first place. Doris, her eighth grade pitching champion, volunteers, but she finds her pitching arm isn't what it used to be. But Doris finds a hidden pitching talent in LeRoy, despite his unconventional pitching style. Despite still being mad at LeRoy for what he did to Doc, Buck softens once he sees LeRoy pitch one ringer after another. But the pressure that LeRoy feels, especially in not wanting to let Buck down, may get the better of him.
Episode 20
Tue, Mar 4, 196923 mins
The tractor used on the ranch is acting up again, which to Doris means they should buy a new one, but Buck wants to put off getting a new one until the new year since he is cash poor. Going over the books for the ranch, Doris understands why as Buck is owed money by five people, some I.O.U.'s over twenty years old, with Buck not wanting to seem pushy to those neighbors who do owe him money. Doris, on the other hand, would rather see Buck being able to do his work without killing himself, and if it causes bad blood with some of the the neighbors because of these money issues, so be it. Doris helps Buck collect some of those outstanding I.O.U.'s, Doris who plans to collect from the Tugwells - father Zeno, and his grown son Stonewall - a stereotypical hillbilly family that live in the hills, they who she has never met. While Doris vows not to let any I.O.U. go uncollected, Zeno has other thoughts with regard to Doris that include having her be a permanent part of the family solely so that they can get out from paying on that debt. The Tugwells go to extreme measures to achieve this goal.
Episode 21
Tue, Mar 11, 196923 mins
Architect and city slicker Roger B. Flanders is coming to Cotina to pitch the idea of building a multipurpose community/convention center, since there seems to be demand for events to be held in Cotina by outside organizations as witnessed by the number of letters the town receives for such, but no where to hold them. Doris chairs a committee that will evaluate the idea. On first glance she loves the proposed facility, the issue being if it is the best use for limited community funds. To get over the difference in what the town has financially and what it would require, Flanders suggests a building fund drive, he who will manage the fund-raising himself. Once the committee agrees wholeheartedly to Flanders' proposal and the fund-raising begins, Doris accidentally learns that Roger Flanders, although truly an architect, is also a con man, he the person who sent all those requests to the town to hold events there. He probably has no intention of seeing the project through once he gets some money. Doris' initial reaction is to call the sheriff and have him arrested, but Buck convinces her that they could use him to get what they really want for the good of the town. The question is if Doris can in turn convince Flanders.
Episode 22
Tue, Mar 18, 196923 mins
Buck returns from a school board meeting with lots of news, the most important being that the school is putting on a musical show as a fundraiser for the library. Doris wishes she didn't say that since it's a good cause she would love to help out in any way, because Buck already volunteered her to head the production without asking her. She truly is happy to help. With no money in the budget, Doris decides to work backward, seeing what she can scrounge up and get for free - such as Buck and LeRoy's labor - before she decides what the show will be all about. But once she has that idea, she decides to make it a closed set - even to Principal Eric Ekstrom, who trusts Doris to produce a tasteful, family-oriented show - so that everyone can be equally mesmerized on opening night. But once Principal Ekstrom gets sight of one excerpt of the show, he and Doris get into an argument about removing what he considers an offending routine or else the show doesn't go on. Doris has to figure out a way to save the show, both for the children and library's sakes, without compromising her values of what's right and wrong.
Episode 23
Tue, Mar 25, 196923 mins
With Buck and the boys out bowling for the evening, Doris is enjoying the peace and quiet at home, that solitude which is suddenly shattered when neighbor, Dorothy Benson, telephones, stating that she is going into labor with child number 5, and she requires Doris' help since her husband, Hal, can't get their own car started to drive her to the hospital. Doris sits with the four Benson children, while Hal takes Doris' car to drive Dorothy to the hospital. Doris later learns that the baby isn't expected until morning, meaning that Doris has to stay with the Benson children overnight. It will be a long night for Doris, as the Benson children's reputation for being a rambunctious lot precedes them.
Episode 24
23 mins
Doris discovers that two nice old ladies have their own still and use it to make "white lightning". In order that they not get arrested for making illegal liquor, she takes their "product" from them, but winds up getting arrested and thrown in jail herself for transporting moonshine.
Episode 25
Tue, Apr 8, 196923 mins
Doris convenes a household meeting, minus one person: LeRoy. The reason?: it's LeRoy's one year anniversary as a member of the "family", and Doris wants to throw him a surprise party to celebrate the milestone. Doris issues a reconnaissance mission: for them to find out what LeRoy would really like as a gift, without telling him about the anniversary, the party or the fact of the plan to buy him a gift. Their reconnaissance uncovers that LeRoy is not into material possessions. But a letter LeRoy receives from his grandmother makes Doris realize the perfect gift would be to give LeRoy a week off, and bus fare so that he can visit his grandmother. Buck doesn't like the idea as he is concerned about them not being able to do all LeRoy's chores while he's gone above their own work. So Doris, Billy and Toby decide to do a trial run in preparation for LeRoy's absence, with interesting results, especially on LeRoy's psyche.
Episode 26
Tue, Apr 15, 196923 mins
Much to Doris and the family's surprise and shock, a tiger manages to follow Doris home from her outing to run errands. After their initial concern about a tiger being in their midst, they discover that it is completely tame, and wouldn't hurt a soul. Doris still needs to call in the authorities to find out to who the tiger belongs. Before Doris discovers who the owner is, LeRoy, not knowing anything about the tiger when he sees it, lets it escape. As Sheriff Anders doesn't want to take any chances concerning a tiger running loose in the area, he and his posse are out to locate it, with an aim to shoot to kill. This action by LeRoy may be the final straw for Buck, who in the past has always "fired" LeRoy in a fit of anger, but who has never meant it until now. LeRoy may only be able to save his job if he can bring the tiger, of which he is still scared, back in one piece.
Episode 27
Tue, Apr 22, 196923 mins
As Doris heads off for a romantic evening while Juanita stays at home on her night off doing housework, Doris believes Juanita needs a little push in getting romance back into her life. Doris thinks the perfect person for Juanita to become involved with is Frank Gorian, an outdoors store owner who is one of Buck's oldest and dearest friends. While Buck also thinks Juanita needs romance in her life, he is not about to stick his nose in what he believes is Frank and Juanita's business, especially as Frank and Juanita do know each other already. Doris is direct in her approach to Frank, who agrees to take Juanita out despite "going out" not being something he normally does. Going into the date a nervous wreck, Juanita comes home from the date in a romantic giddy and with a Saturday night invitation out to a dance, which to Buck and Doris implies wedding bells in the near future. However, when Buck questions Frank directly, all he sees in himself and Juanita are two friends having a good time. The question then becomes how Juanita and Frank are going to bridge this divide, if there is indeed a divide. Doris decides to use a little underhanded maneuvering to get the outcome she would like to see, at least for the immediate future.
Episode 28
Tue, Apr 29, 196923 mins
Billy and his friend Alfred Loomis are working together on a pig raising contest for the fair, each boy responsible for an adult pig. Coming home from fishing, Billy runs into Alfred's mother at a roadside stand, she who is all flustered as she rushes off, this state seemingly the norm for her as she is self-obsessed, not really spending much time with Alfred. After her departure, Billy notices that she dropped her wallet. He decides to take the wallet home to his mother, so that Mrs. Loomis can pick it up from their house at her leisure. A grateful Mrs. Loomis, who doesn't really know the Martins, is ready to give Billy a reward for his efforts, that is until she notices that a $5 bill is missing from her wallet. She accuses Billy of taking the money, Doris who defends her son. This standoff affects Billy's project with Alfred. But Doris questions her judgment when Billy comes into a $5 windfall of an unknown nature... that change of judgment only temporary as she and Billy have never lied to each other. Doris thinks she's figured out what happened to Mrs. Loomis' $5, which places her in a potentially even more precarious position with her already volatile neighbor, that is if she approaches her directly with the accusation.