As Kathy celebrates her birthday, we see in the early moments how she hides under the table and sees where Mother has hidden the birthday cake that was delivered from the bakery. The family is planning on having prime rib for supper and going to the circus that evening. But Bud answers the doorbell to tell Father that a man is there wanting to see him.
Jim starts drilling Bud on the details of the man's appearance, which was kind of funny, as Margaret slyly suggests he just go out and talk to the man. When Jim does go out, he finds a pleasant, bud odd man named Lyle (Parley Baer, known for being a neighbor and friend to Ozzie and Harriet Nelson, then later the second mayor of Mayberry on Andy Griffith) who Jim eventually learns isn't really a friend at all of Jim's old friend George, but simply a man who encountered George as a judge when he got a speeding ticket in another town.
Lyle seems intent on sitting and talking, essentially about nothing, while Jim cannot figure out how to get rid of him. When the children drop some not-so-subtle hints, the visitor invites himself to supper, and is delighted to "share" the birthday cake with Kathy, because it was his birthday yesterday.
Jim finally comes up with a way to trick him into leaving, and the Anderson's eat and rush to the circus to find out it is sold out. Then they encounter Lyle again and learn how being nice to someone can pay off in the long run, even though it sure didn't seem like it would.
I know it would have forced them to radically change the whole episode, but I was driven nuts by the fact that on getting acquainted with Lyle, Jim never said anything along the lines of "What brings you to town?" or "What business are you in?" It also seems unnatural for him to let this man interrupt a special day for the family once they learn he isn't in any way an actual friend of "Old George's." I couldn't help but draw parallels with the infamous episode of Leave It to Beaver when the boys special day at the fair was pretty much ruined by them being forced to stay almost all day for the visit from Aunt Martha and her friend. I have written on that board about how I hated that episode because June's dear relative didn't announce her arrival until after the boys and Ward had made plans for the special day—and being a "fair", like a carnival or the circus, was not something they could just do any ol' Saturday.
At least on LITB, the special day was hampered by a visiting relative. In this episode, it was a total stranger, who didn't even know anyone in the Anderson family who was allowed to just stay and talk and interfere with the family's special plans.
It would have been much more realistic to have had Jim, upon learning the man wasn't really any friend of his friend's, to have said, "Well Lyle, I have enjoyed meeting you and if you're going to be in town, I'd be happy to invite you out to lunch tomorrow, but I'm afraid you've come at a bad time because my family has special plans to celebrate my youngest daughter's birthday tonight, so I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave for now." Anything like that would have been good.
Jim starts drilling Bud on the details of the man's appearance, which was kind of funny, as Margaret slyly suggests he just go out and talk to the man. When Jim does go out, he finds a pleasant, bud odd man named Lyle (Parley Baer, known for being a neighbor and friend to Ozzie and Harriet Nelson, then later the second mayor of Mayberry on Andy Griffith) who Jim eventually learns isn't really a friend at all of Jim's old friend George, but simply a man who encountered George as a judge when he got a speeding ticket in another town.
Lyle seems intent on sitting and talking, essentially about nothing, while Jim cannot figure out how to get rid of him. When the children drop some not-so-subtle hints, the visitor invites himself to supper, and is delighted to "share" the birthday cake with Kathy, because it was his birthday yesterday.
Jim finally comes up with a way to trick him into leaving, and the Anderson's eat and rush to the circus to find out it is sold out. Then they encounter Lyle again and learn how being nice to someone can pay off in the long run, even though it sure didn't seem like it would.
I know it would have forced them to radically change the whole episode, but I was driven nuts by the fact that on getting acquainted with Lyle, Jim never said anything along the lines of "What brings you to town?" or "What business are you in?" It also seems unnatural for him to let this man interrupt a special day for the family once they learn he isn't in any way an actual friend of "Old George's." I couldn't help but draw parallels with the infamous episode of Leave It to Beaver when the boys special day at the fair was pretty much ruined by them being forced to stay almost all day for the visit from Aunt Martha and her friend. I have written on that board about how I hated that episode because June's dear relative didn't announce her arrival until after the boys and Ward had made plans for the special day—and being a "fair", like a carnival or the circus, was not something they could just do any ol' Saturday.
At least on LITB, the special day was hampered by a visiting relative. In this episode, it was a total stranger, who didn't even know anyone in the Anderson family who was allowed to just stay and talk and interfere with the family's special plans.
It would have been much more realistic to have had Jim, upon learning the man wasn't really any friend of his friend's, to have said, "Well Lyle, I have enjoyed meeting you and if you're going to be in town, I'd be happy to invite you out to lunch tomorrow, but I'm afraid you've come at a bad time because my family has special plans to celebrate my youngest daughter's birthday tonight, so I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave for now." Anything like that would have been good.
