Television has served many purposes over the many decades since it took over its central spot in our living rooms many decades ago. It has taught us, informed us of many historical events and entertained us. Some of that entertaining was grippingly dramatic while others made us laugh. Some has even been derided as out right silly. While we frequently dismiss the silly programs as fluff causing us to refer to the TV as the ‘boob tube’ some of these programs have rendered an important function in out lives. When the world is pressing in all around you sometimes the perfect remedy is a silly show. Instead of ridiculing such a series we should be grateful it was around when we needed some foolishness the most. One such show was ‘Gomer Pyle: U.S.M.C.’ It was first aired in 1964 and lasted for five years. The premise of the show was a young small town man, Gomer (Jim Nabors) left home to serve his country in the military. He was a simple sort of guy; not the brightest around or best educated by any means. His redeeming quality was he had a heart as big as the proverbial great outdoors. When considering a series like this it has to be properly placed in its historical context. The five years that it ran were some of the most turbulent in modern American history. As it entered the scene Lyndon Johnson took office as the President of the United States. He escalated the war in Vietnam and raised the quotas for the military draft. During the time on the air for this show there were two major assassinations; Robert Kennedy Jr. and Dr. Martin Luther King. The news was filled with scenes from the war, protests against the government and riots in the streets. If ever there was a need for some comic relief in the population it was then. A silly little show was required just to help break the constant tensions of the day. Many protests where targeted on those who served in the military. This series had a humanizing effect of these men. The fifth and final season is now on DVD released by CBS Paramount. Now all the fans of the series can have all of the episodes of this series to add to your collection. Considering how the state of the world is once again in dismal shape perhaps we all need a little dose of Gomer Pyle again.

Even though the times were highly political this series deftly avoided any hot topics. It was not there to preach or to take sides in any such conflict. It was a comedy and all it set out to do was give you a few laughs. This was a spin off of the highly successful family series ‘The Andy Griffith Show’ better know to all simply by the name of the small North Carolina town, Mayberry. Gomer had been the local auto mechanic and ran the town’s gas station. He decided too serve his country and see some more of the world and so he joined the Marines. The premise departed a bit from any real situation since Gomer would stay with the same platoon for most of his enlistment. This was, of course, necessary to allow the writers to have some degree of continuity with the characters and situations. The show was episodic with very few exceptions. There were some running gags such as Gomer’s drill instructor, Sergeant Vince Carter (Frank Sutton) always trying to get the bumbling Gomer out of his command. This was one of the best comic teams on television. There was a stark contrast between the gruff Carter and the goofy Gomer. Carter always seemed on the very verge of having a stroke as he would get up in Gomer’s face screaming at the top of his lungs. Gomer would stand there with his trademark grin and puppy dog eyes and take the abuse without filching. While soldiers were being called killers in the real world protest Gomer wouldn’t hurt a fly. All of this obviously worked as demonstrated by the ratings. The show dipped to its lowest, ten, in the third season but by this final year was back up to number two. Several episodes each season would feature the incredibly rich baritone voice of Nabors. The audience was always delighted when Gomer would drop the hick accent as he started to sing.

There was something so unbelievably innocent about the character of Gomer that the audiences instantly felt drawn to him. He was like the slow but likeable kid that always hung around with you and your friends back in the old neighborhood. He came across as gullible to most of the others in the platoon. One friend of his was Duke Slater (Ronnie Schell). He was the perennial con man always looking to put one over on the sergeant and frequently trying to trick Gomer into some scam or another. At the start of this season Duke finally gets promoted to the rank of corporal. Gomer did find love during his time in the marines. His girlfriend for the duration of the series was Lou-Ann Poovie (Elizabeth MacRae). She also came from North Carolina looking to make it big as a singer. Carter also had a girlfriend who popped up every so often, Bunny Wilson (Barbara Stuart). She usually felt that Carter was too rough on the lamentable Gomer. Frequently Carter would be provoked by his arch nemesis, Staff Sergeant Charley Hacker (Allan Melvin). He ran the mess hall and had a long standing feud with Carter. In one episode this season Hacker bets Carter he can’t go 24 hours without losing his temper. Naturally Hacker makes sure Gomer is always around annoying Carter as much as possible. Many of the story lines are typical sit-com faire. There is the backfired joke when Gomer gets a temporary tattoo to fool Lou-Ann but it turns out that she likes it. In another Carter saves Gomer’s life and Pyle is overly persistent with his gratitude. There was even a little glimpse into the future when one story centered on a computer dating service. There was another episode where an actress first tries to get Gomer to marry her and when that fails goes after Carter. She is not out for love but a green card to stay in this country. Carter does stay true to Bunny which is reinforced when a South American general falls for her and wants to take her away. In the last episode Gomer is transferred out of Carter’s command providing some closure to the legion of fans.

This is just good old fashion gentle comedy. There is nothing groundbreaking here but for many of us it was one of the good memories of the mid to late sixties. CBS Paramount has just about the greatest collection of new and classic television series around. If you enjoy TV you are bound to have many of their DVD collections on your shelves.