Arnie

Arnie is a television sitcom that ran for two seasons on the CBS network. It stars Herschel Bernardi, Sue Ane Langdon, and Roger Bowen. Bernardi played the title character, Arnie Nuvo, a longtime blue collar employee at the fictitious Continental Flange Company, who overnight was promoted to an executive position. The storylines mainly focused on this fish out of water situation, and on Arnie's sometimes-problematic relationship with his well-meaning but wealthy and eccentric boss, Hamilton Majors Jr.. Because he still held his union card, Arnie could negotiate tricky management/labor situations that no one else could. Arnie's surname was presumably a pun on nouveau riche, and possibly also on Art Nouveau. In addition to Bernardi, Bowen, and Langdon, cast members included Del Russel and Stephanie Steele as Arnie's son and daughter, Richard and Andrea; Elaine Shore as Arnie's secretary, Felicia; and Herb Voland as sour-tempered executive Neil Ogilvie. In its first season, despite being the lead-in to The Mary Tyler Moore Show on Saturday nights and winning an Emmy nomination as best comedy series, Arnie received only fair Nielsen ratings. For its second season, in order to increase its viewership, CBS made a major cast change in the show's format. Charles Nelson Reilly joined the cast as Randy Robinson, a TV chef who called himself "The Giddyap Gourmet," apparently a reference to The Galloping Gourmet.

Comedy

Seasons

1. Arnie (Pilot Episode)

Air Date: 1970-09-19

2. Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

Air Date: 1970-10-26

Arnie's first executive paycheck brings a sinking stomach, thanks to a premature spending binge (TV Guide)

3. Change of a Lifetime

Air Date: 1970-10-03

New executive Arnie kindles resentment among his old blue-collar buddies (TV Guide)

4. Wife vs. Secretary

Air Date: 1970-11-04

Arnie's bragging about his secretary nets him a jealous wife (TV Guide)

5. The Friendship Gap

Air Date: 1970-10-10

Arnie chooses his replacement as loading foreman - from among his old buddies (TV Guide)

6. An Urge to Splurge

Air Date: 1970-10-17

Arnie helps an elderly couple face compulsory retirement (TV Guide)

7. Chance of a Lifetime

Air Date: 1970-10-03

Lil heads a picket line to fight pollution - at Arnie's company (TV Guide)

8. Swinging Sixties

Air Date: 1970-10-12

Arnie's been ordered to shave off his mustache (TV Guide)

9. Let Them Eat Cookies

Air Date: 1970-11-20

Arnie becomes involved in industrial espionage (TV Guide)

10. Trouble in the Air

Air Date: 1970-11-16

Boss Majors' latest pet project: on-the-job exercising for his executives (TV Guide)

11. One Strike and You're Out

Air Date: 1970-10-14

""Arnie has no heart for the task at hand: negotiating a new union contract with his loading dock buddies. The new executive is still a union man."" (TV Guide)

12. For Whom the Whistle Blows

Air Date: 1970-11-06

A swank San Francisco hotel sets the scene for Arnie's first major sales meeting (TV Guide)

13. Why Spy?

Air Date: 1970-10-30

Office protocol calls for Christmas gifts worth $100; the Nuvos are giving homemade cookies (TV Guide)

14. To Buy or Not to Buy?

Air Date: 1970-12-03

Boss Majors has a new housing development, and the Nuvos feel pressure to buy a home (TV Guide)

15. Second Honeymoon

Air Date: 1970-12-15

16. You Can't Lose for Winning

Air Date: 1970-12-20

Lady Luck visits Arnie in a poker game - the big loser is his boss Majors (TV Guide)

17. Hello, Holly

Air Date: 1971-01-07

The executive Arnie replaced is in town; rumor is he wants his old job back (TV Guide)

18. Father Meets Daughter

Air Date: 1971-01-13

Arnie tries to pay more attention to Andrea.

19. Citizen Pain

Air Date: 1971-01-21

Arnie must be in Nassau on the same day the Nuvos have planned a second wedding for Julius and his wife (TV Guide)

20. Stand Up for Julius

Air Date: 1971-01-21

Arnie gets symptoms of an ulcer on the eve of his bowling league semifinals (TV Guide)

21. Strangeness in the Night

Air Date: 1971-02-09

Arnie's involved in an office feud (TV Guide)

22. Feud for Thought

Air Date: 1971-02-02

Arnie's furtive behavior causes suspicion at the office (TV Guide)

23. My Sister's Keeper

Air Date: 1971-02-19

Arnie canvasses the company to find dates for his attractive sister (TV Guide)

24. No Harmony in Trying

Air Date: 1971-02-19

An audition for the fourth voice in the company's all-male quartet produces a winner who's a surprise to all (TV Guide)

1. Honey, I'm Sorry But...

Air Date: 1971-09-13

Arnie endangers his position, by giving a share of company stock to his son.

2. Nuvo Riche

Air Date: 1971-09-07

Charles Nelson Reilly joins the cast as Arnie's new neighbor, a gourmet chef.

3. Well There Goes the Neighborhood

Air Date: 1971-09-14

Lil is tired of waiting for her late hubby and she comes up with a solution.

4. Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blew

Air Date: 1971-09-22

Reta Shaw plays a maid who takes over the Nuvo home - lock, stock, and barrel (TV Guide)

5. Boom or Bust

Air Date: 1971-10-13

Snobbery is the target as Arnie tries to join his boss' polo club (TV Guide)

6. Pushing Pinky Out of the Treehouse

Air Date: 1971-10-19

Arnie tries to make Majors' wedding perfect (TV Guide)

7. The Maid

Air Date: 1971-09-29

Arnie anonymously sends a poem to Felicia.

8. A Poem for Guess Who

Air Date: 1971-10-19

9. Welcome to the Club

Air Date: 1971-10-12

Arnie wins an award Majors wanted.

10. The Return of Fingers Ferguson

Air Date: 1971-10-27

11. Et tu Arnie

Air Date: 1971-11-08

12. This Land is My Land

Air Date: 1971-11-18

13. Let Ham Put You in the Driver's Seat

Air Date: 1971-11-30

14. The Gift of the Majors

Air Date: 1971-12-02

The no-bra look leads Arnie into a research project to save a faltering company (TV Guide)

15. The Only Way to Go

Air Date: 1971-12-31

Choosing a final resting place can be a downer. Majors wants the Nuvos as roommates in his Taj Mahal-like mausoleum.

16. Guess Who's Coming to Our House?

Air Date: 1972-01-07

Arnie's boss stays at his house.

17. What's Up Doc?

Air Date: 1972-01-17

Arnie is in trouble when he persuades boss Majors to hire a drunken doctor.

18. The Truth, the Whole Truth, and Nothing But the Truth

Air Date: 1972-01-21

Attorney Melvin Belli plays a flamboyant lawyer defending Majors for a speeding ticket (TV Guide)

19. Room at the Top

Air Date: 1972-01-31

A toupee for Arnie, as the corporation tries to impress a mod young executive (TV Guide)

20. Surprise, Surprise!

Air Date: 1972-02-12

Boss Majors wants Arnie to arrange a surprise party for him.

21. Uncle Nikko

Air Date: 1972-02-11

Arnie's uncle may upset Majors' dinner party.

22. Wilson Tastes Good Like a Candidate Should

Air Date: 1972-02-21

Local politics create a dilemma for Arnie.

23. Now You Take Teddy Roosevelt

Air Date: 1972-02-28

Majors tries to prove that he is as good a salesman as his employees.

24. Star Trekking

Air Date: 1972-03-06

A story about Arnie's frustrating attempt to get the comic for an awards ceremony.

Select an episode to start watching

Rating

3.0/10

Release Date

1970-09-19

Episodes

48 (2 seasons)

Status

Ended

Cast