Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman

1976 - 1977

This cult classic soap opera spoof follows Mary Hartman, a housewife who lives in a small town called Fernwood, where lots of weird and creepy shit happens to her and her family, friends, and neighbors.

Stars: Louise Lasser, Greg Mullavey, Mary Kay Place, Graham Jarvis, Dody Goodman, Debralee Scott, Victor Killian, Claudia Lamb, Philip Bruns, Dabney Coleman, Marian Mercer, Bruce Solomon, Dennis Berkley, Susan Browning, Sid Haig, David Byrd, Martin Mull, Salome Jens, Oliver Clark, Howard Hesseman
Created by: Norman Lear, Jerry Adelman, Daniel Gregory Browne, Ann Marcus, Gail Parent
Tags: dramcom, spoof

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Episode Tropes

Season 1

Limp Willy: Episode 1 (1976). Mary and Tom haven't made love in five weeks because Tom refuses. Later, he reveals that it's because "little Tom" isn't working like he used to.
See You in Court: Episode 23 (1976). Grandpa goes on trial for being the infamous "Fernwood Flasher," and with the help of Martha, his social worker/girlfriend, Roberta, talks the judge into releasing him into her custody.
Clip Show: Episode 36 (1976). The local garbage collector goes through the Hartmans' trash and reminisces about the previous 35 episodes.
Milwaukee: Episode 45 (1976). Despite Martha's protests, George goes to the union convention in Milwaukee, and Martha's worst fears come true. A strange woman comes to George's hotel room and seduces him. Then a man comes in and takes a photo of them in bed together so he can blackmail George into backing out of the election for union president.
Mi Casa Es Su Casa: Episode 60 (1976). Charlie's ex-wife, Muriel, is in town, and Charlie can't stand her, but Loretta is fooled by her phony nice act and insists she stay in their house instead of a hotel.
Sexual Surrogate : Episode 61 (1976). Mary meets a woman named Mona, who calls herself a "sex therapist," and she asks her for help with her and Tom's sex life. Things are going well until Mona tells Mary she's a surrogate. Mary looks up "surrogate" in the dictionary and is alarmed when realizes Mona might be planning to have sex with Tom.
Hot for Teacher: Episode 65 (1976). Mary finds a love note Heather wrote to her social studies teacher in Heather's coat pocket, and when she asks Heather about it, Heather gets so made that she tells Mary she hates her, and before she cans stop herself, Mary slaps Heather, which prompts Heather to ask Martha if she can live with her.
Going My Way : Episode 101 (1976). After Cathy finally realizes that Dennis is in love with Mary, she decides to try to swear off men again by becoming a nun. She visits a priest to ask where the nearest convent is, but the priest ends up talking her out of it, and Cathy being Cathy, she actually falls for the priest.
Surprise, You're Adopted!: Episode 107 (1976). When Martha suggests Mary and Tom have another kid to solve their wedding problems (yeah), Grandpa tells her about when he and her mother were having problems, they wanted another child, but her mother had had a hysterectomy, so they adopted Martha, which was news to her.
Going Your Way: Episode 128 (1976). Father DeMarco Confesses to Cathy that he's in love with her and wants to leave the priesthood and marry her, even though he turned her down before.
Waldorf Hysteria: Episode 130 (1976). Season 1 ends with Mary having a nervous breakdown on live television and Tom committing her to an asylum.

Season 2

Limp Willy: Episode 4 (1976). When Charlie accidentally gets shot while wrestling over a gun with Merle, he ends up in the hospital with one missing testicle, and for some reason, this causes erectile dysfunction, which means he "temporlarily" (as Loretta would say) can't participate in his and Loretta's favorite hobby.
False Arrest: Episode 41 (1976). Charlie travels to New Jersey for an operation he believes will fix his problem, but he discovers his new body part will come from a dog, and before he can even process that, he and the doctor get arrested for "animal cruelty." Of course, Charlie had nothing to do with it, but he doesn't have a chance of getting out of jail until he meets a man named Sue, who has connections in town and gets both of them out.
Weird Wedding Venue: Episode 55 (1976). Mary insists that Wanda and Merle get married in her house for some reason. She wants to have the wedding in the kitchen, but Wanda insists on the living room. I guess it's fancier.
Sure, I'll Join Your Cult: Episode 62 (1976). After disappearing while walking around the car to open the door for Martha, George finally returns as a member of a cult called the "Boga Zidi," and he's planning to move away to their compound. Desperate not to lose him again, Martha consults Reverend Standfast, who refers her to a deprogrammer.
Amnesia: Episode 64 (1976). While Loretta is in a bar, waiting for a bus to Dayton to record an album, a local creep starts harassing her, and another patron comes to her defense. The bartender joins in, and in the chaos, Loretta gets hit with a chair and knocked out. When she comes to, she doesn't remember who she is.
I Won't Go: Episode 79 (1977). The Shumways are flat broke and can't afford the balloon payment on their house, but George won't give it up without a fight. The cops surround them, and George brandishes a shotgun, pointing it at cops, reporters, and even newly-elected Mayor Jeeter.
Weird Wedding Venue: Episode 86 (1977). Amnesiac, Loretta—calling herself Lulu— agrees to marry Mac, and they hold the ceremony at Lou's Diner (because of course they do) with all the drunken locals as guests.
Going My Way: Episode 101 (1977). A pair of nuns come to the Hartman home looking for Mary. They show her a letter they received, purportedly from her, asking if Heather can join their convent. Mary quickly realizes that after her new boyfriend, Phillip Gimble, was sent back to military school, Heather decided to become a nun and forged Mary's signature on the letter.
Desperate Telethon: Episode 130 (1977). Wanda and Merle convince Vernon to create a GGG political party with him as their first candidate for president. To raise money for his campaign, the gang has a telethon with everyone participating: Cathy is twirling batons, Charlie's doing bird calls while yo-yo-ing, and even Tom's juggling. To motivate people to donate, they plan to donate 10 cents from every dollar towards curing a disease, but they can't decide which disease to use, so they decide to donate to all 112 diseases represented in Fernwood.
What a Dummy: Episode 131 (1977). As part of the GGG telethon, Mac performs a sad ventriloquist act where he moves his mouth when the dummy speaks and laughs at his own jokes.
The Magician: Episode 131 (1977). As part of the GGG telethon, George and Martha put on a magic act called "The Magic Shumways," but Martha's so nervous about George sawing her in half that she stops the act halfway through.
Ashes to Ashes: Episode 139 (1977). Martha orders a new urn for Howie's remains and attempts to transfer them. While she's struggling to open his current receptacle, she accidentally spills it all over the floor and has to vacuum Howie up.
False Arrest: Episode 141 (1977). Tom tries to stop Tex from murdering Dewey, and Vernon knocks him out with a flashlight. While Tom's unconscious, Vernon and Tex frame him for the murder and have Detective Trask arrest him.

Character Tropes

Sweet Summer Child: Martha Shumway - Played by Dody Goodman.
Hopeless Romantic: Cathy Shumway - Played by Debralee Scott.
Backwoods Bumpkins: Vassar & Merle - Played by Robert Gooden & Henry Olek in season 1, episode 23 (1976).