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(More customer reviews)Season three boasts 28 episodes (the episode not listed in jon sieruga's excellent review/episode guide to this season is the 14th episode of this season, FAMMILY PLAN, where Uncle Bill breaks his leg during a skiing accident) and one truly sensational bonus feature. The special feature is a 30 minute "Family Affair Reunion Special" featuring Kathy Garver (who played Sissy), Sherry Alberoni (who played Sissy's bets friend and upstairs neighbor, Sharon), producer John Stephens and husband and wife writers Austin "Rocky" Kalish and Irma Kalish. The five sit in a semi-circle and chat for 30 minutes, offering lots of fascinating background information about the cast members (Irma remembers Brian Keith as never speaking to her on the set and Stephens remembers his prickly personality; Kathy adored him), the show's legacy and the interesting way the show was shot.
Each season the show got Brian Keith for just 65 days to shoot all his scenes for a season's worth of episodes. (The series was shot this way to give Keith time to keep filming motion pictures.) This meant that all the episodes had to be written before the season began and in most cases the episodes were filmed ahead of time, missing only the scenes that required Brian Keith. Producer Stephens remembers that when they were filmingw ith Keith, they would often work on 4 or 5 episodes in one day! He called its "organized chaos" and credits director Charles Barton, who filmed every episode.
We learn about Anissa Jones not being happy to still be dragging around her Mrs Beasley doll by season four when she was 12 (she was 9 years old in the first season when the twins were suposed to be 6) and both Stephens and Mr Kalish don't have positive things to say about her mother. On a more humorous note, we hear about Sebastian Cabot measuring the length of Keith's trailer to make sure it wasn't larger than his. We also find out that Cabot had broken his wrist during season one (which explains the bandages on his one hand in season one) and it required surgury, which is why John Williams replaced him in a handful of episodes that season. We also find out that the 3-part episode LOST IN SPAIN was totally filmed on the network's backlot, using sets from the TV series "From Rome With Love."
This is a wonderful, chatty and informative feature. Its too bad that no one could convince Johnny Whittaker ("Jody") to participate. It would be great to get a few commentary tracks with him and Garver in the fourth or fifth season.
This show is thought of as a sitcom, but its really much more of a drama-dy. You better have some tissues near when watching "Christmas Came A Little Early" where Buffy befriends a young homebound classmate (played by BRADY BUNCH's Eve Plumb) who has leukemia. And you have to admire the restraint and power of some of the more dramatic episodes of this season, especially "The Latch Key Kid" where Buffy's new friend, Lana, seems to live a very enviable life as a latch key kid who makes her own dinner and stays up as late as she wishes or "Albertine" where the twins try to get close to a new black student who's real life may be very different than what she presents.
This is a show that has been long out of syndication. Thanks to MPI, we have uncut episodes to treasure. (One small complaint, I wish the episodes had chapter breaks.) Well worth purchasing!
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Family Affair - Season 3 (1966)Family Affair was a popular situation comedy and a regular top 20 hit show produced by Don Fedderson Productions for CBS-TV during its five-year run from 1966-71. Brian Keith stars as bachelor Bill Davis, a highly-paid engineering consultant who lives in a posh Manhattan apartment with his proper English manservant, Mr. Giles French (Sebastian Cabot). Davis’ carefree existence is turned upside down when his brother and sister-in-law die suddenly in a tragic plane accident, leaving their three children orphaned. Davis becomes an instant father figure to six year-old twins, Buffy and Jody (Anissa Jones, Johnnie Whitaker) and their big sister, Cissy (Kathy Garver).In Season 3, Jody accepts a dare to clip Mr. French’s beard to get into an exclusive club, Buffy brings an early Christmas to a sick little girl, Cissy yearns to become a hippie, Mr. French is cast in a movie about Henry the VIII and Uncle Bill considers marriage to a beautiful (but child-hating) Italian girl.John Williams joins the family for 9 episodes, as Mr. French’s equally unflappable butler brother. Guest stars include Butch Patrick, Eve Plumb, Joe Flynn and Jamie Farr. Family Affair Season 3 contains 28 episodes on 5 discs, including the three-part "Lost In Spain" and never-before-seen bonus features.
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