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Religion on classic sitcoms/dramas

A board called "radio discussions" and no one has mentioned "Big Guy" Arthur Carlson (Gordon Jump) from WKRP in Cincinnati?

In real life, Gordon Jump was a member of the LDS church. Multiple episodes reference Carlson's faith life, perhaps the most obvious being "Johnny Talks to God" and "Clean Up Radio Everywhere." Prayer is a key component to the resolution of "Circumstantial Evidence," where Venus Fly Trap (Tim Reid) is framed for the robbery of a jewelry store.

Tim Reid's 1987 "Frank's Place" had a regular character, the perpetually conflicted Reverend Tyrone Deal. Deal was always looking for his next Church to pastor. The episode "The Reverend Gets a Flock" is arguably one of the funniest in the short lived series.

And sadly most everyone has forgotten the early 1990s series "Brooklyn Bridge." The main character was 14 year old Alan Silver, growing up in Brooklyn with a life that revolved around family, the Brooklyn Dodgers and his Jewish faith. A few of the best episodes involved his family struggling to understand Alan's inter-faith romance with a Catholic girl.
 
Oscar Madison said:
Dragnet's second* Christmas episode depicted the search of a missing "Baby Jesus" from a Catholic Church's nativity scene. This episode was re-shot for Dragnet's second series in the late 60's.
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Not sure about the original from the 1950s, but I always found interesting how Friday refers to the statue throughout the 60s remake episode...always calling it a "statue of the Child Jesus."

There's another episode in the second series where Bill Gannon takes Friday to a LAPD prayer breakfast. When long time cop Joe Friday admits that he never knew that LAPD had a Chaplain, Gannon jokingly replies that he's always known that Joe "was a heathen."
 
Corky Marlowe said:
The only Jewish service I can remember was Buddy's Bar Mitzvah on "The Dick Van Dyke Show".
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It may have been simply Hollywood PR, but it was always said that while the Van Dyke series was in production, Dick regularly taught Sunday School at a Presbyterian church in So. California.

A great Van Dyke series episode was the one where Rob discovers his new golf partner is a former boy friend of Laura. Inviting him to dinner, they discover that the former boy friend is now a Catholic Priest. The episode kicker is Laura realizing that the un-named subject of a series of poems the former boyfriend / now Priest wrote and gave her was God, not her as she'd always assumed.
 
KayJayJay said:
A board called "radio discussions" and no one has mentioned "Big Guy" Arthur Carlson (Gordon Jump) from WKRP in Cincinnati?

In real life, Gordon Jump was a member of the LDS church. Multiple episodes reference Carlson's faith life, perhaps the most obvious being "Johnny Talks to God" and "Clean Up Radio Everywhere." Prayer is a key component to the resolution of "Circumstantial Evidence," where Venus Fly Trap (Tim Reid) is framed for the robbery of a jewelry store.
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I do recall that Carlson's religious beliefs were brought up in some episodes, although he was another one where no particular denomination was mentioned.

More on MASH: Frank Burns was supposed to be a Christian, but no denomination was ever mentioned, and with the way his character was played, he didn't live out his faith very well to put it mildly. Also Klinger experimented with voodoo in an episode, but it was definitely where he was trying to get a section 8.

On Seinfeld it was implied that Jerry and his family were Jewish, but there wasn't much religious practice shown. And in one episode it Elaine found out her boyfriend Puddy (and also George) liked Christian rock, although it didn't translate to any serious Christian faith in either of them. (Side note: The episode implied that Puddy's car radio was filled with Christian rock or CCM stations, but there really aren't more than one or two CCM stations in NYC.)

And of course George and his dad celebrated Festivus, so what religion was that? :rolleyes:
 
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Seinfeld had a lot of good examples.

George converting to Latvian Orthodox (a church that really exists, it seems....though the writers
had no idea until after the episode had aired).

Jerry being selected as Godfather at a Bris (until Shakey the Mohel slices his finger)

Elaine being regarded as a Shiksa ("with every able-bodied Israelite driving pretty strong for the hoop!)

And of course Tim Whatley converting to Judaism for the JOKES!
 
FreddyE1977 said:
Seinfeld had a lot of good examples.

George converting to Latvian Orthodox (a church that really exists, it seems....though the writers
had no idea until after the episode had aired).
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You could probably go to any Middle Eastern or Eastern European country and they would have a "____ (Fill in the country) Orhtodox Church." But then in Western Europe there are a lot of countries with the "Church of ____ (Fill in the country)."


Oscar Madison said:
Also on "Cheers," Woody was Lutheran Church Missouri Synod (LCMS) and Kelly was Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the conflict almost broke up their marriage.
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That sounds like the differences between Southern Baptists and Independent Baptists. The independents think the Southern Baptists are too "lib'ral". :rolleyes:
 
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QUOTE***And of course Tim Whatley converting to Judaism for the JOKES!***QUOTE

There was also the episode of "Family Guy" where Peter wanted to become Jewish because he thought it would make him smart.
 
KayJayJay said:
It may have been simply Hollywood PR, but it was always said that while the Van Dyke series was in production, Dick regularly taught Sunday School at a Presbyterian church in So. California.

A great Van Dyke series episode was the one where Rob discovers his new golf partner is a former boy friend of Laura. Inviting him to dinner, they discover that the former boy friend is now a Catholic Priest. The episode kicker is Laura realizing that the un-named subject of a series of poems the former boyfriend / now Priest wrote and gave her was God, not her as she'd always assumed.
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I think Laura may have been Catholic, or at least some of her family were. In the episode where her cousin gets married in Albany, Rob forgot the name of the church with the same name as some famous kid actor (St. Bartholomew).

Bronx
 
Bronx said:
I think Laura may have been Catholic, or at least some of her family were. In the episode where her cousin gets married in Albany, Rob forgot the name of the church with the same name as some famous kid actor (St. Bartholomew).
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Not necessarily. There are Episcopalian, Orthodox, Lutheran, Methodist and other churches named St. Bartholomew.
 
On Happy Days, Al's brother was a priest. Fonzie got baptized by him in an episode.
I don't remember the Cunningham's religion ever being brought up.
 
On "The Simpsons", anyone guess what stream the First Church of Springfield is from (Baptist, etc.)?

And what religions are the various voice actors on "The Simpsons" from?

ixnay

P.S. I never cared much for Ned Flanders' metrosexuality or the shapes of Rev. and Mrs. Lovejoy's eyes.
 
I think Rev. Lovejoy's church is a generic mainstream church, but likely not the kind of church a real Ned Flanders would attend.


ixnay said:
On "The Simpsons", anyone guess what stream the First Church of Springfield is from (Baptist, etc.)?

And what religions are the various voice actors on "The Simpsons" from?

ixnay

P.S. I never cared much for Ned Flanders' metrosexuality or the shapes of Rev. and Mrs. Lovejoy's eyes.
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Another one from "M*A*S*H": On the Captain Tuttle episode, when Hawkeye and Trapper were creating Tuttle's personnel file, they made him a Reform Druid (he could pray to bushes).
 
Oscar Madison said:
Not necessarily. There are Episcopalian, Orthodox, Lutheran, Methodist and other churches named St. Bartholomew.
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Point well taken, Oscar. Thanks!

On an Easter-themed episode of St. Elsewhere, Fiscus said he was Jewish and Erlich proclaimed he was a pagan.

Bronx
 
Corky Marlowe said:
Another one from "M*A*S*H": On the Captain Tuttle episode, when Hawkeye and Trapper were creating Tuttle's personnel file, they made him a Reform Druid (he could pray to bushes).
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That episode was on Sundance yesterday morning, and in the discussion of what to make Tuttle's religion Trapper suggested atheist, but Hawkeye said "I don't believe in atheism", although in later episodes he would say he was an agnostic. (Yes I do know there's a difference. Atheists don't believe any god at all, and agnostics aren't sure.)
 
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