Dalbert Pringle Let me tell ya - If I ever happen to encounter a girl who even comes close to being like "that" girl - I will run, run, run away in "that" opposite direction - Like - Pronto! I really will.My overall summary of "That Girl" goes like this - It was an irksome, ill-conceived TV show all about a dumb, clueless, annoying blond who just happened to be a brunette. End of story.As far as the Ann Marie character being a "struggling actress" goes - With a super-low IQ like hers - It's no wonder she was struggling - 'Cause - (Let's face it) - Real-life actress, Marlo Thomas (who played that girl) couldn't act her way out of a wet, paper bag. (No. Not even if her life depended on it)Anyway - I cannot believe that this dreary, painfully predictable TV show was such a big, comedy hit way back in the mid-1960s ('cause it actually endured for 5 unbelievably awful seasons).

Amy Adler Ann Marie (Marlo Thomas, Danny Thomas' daughter in case you've never heard) is a single lady living in Manhattan. Her ambition is to make it as an actress on Broadway but between small gigs on children's television, commercials and experimental theater, she must work other jobs. These include news stand salesclerk (where she meets someone special), waitress, door-to-door shoe hawker, and more. On one of her first days in NYC, she meets Don Hollinger (Ted Bessell) and its an auspicious beginning. They both want to buy the same rolltop desk for sale in the same building and Don interrupts a commercial Ann is shooting after hours. But, in short order, they go to dinner. Pretty soon, they are stepping out steadily and, after a disastrous picnic, meet Ann's folks. While Ann's mother (Rosemary DeCamp) is loving and kind, Ann's father, Lew (Lew Parker, hilarious) is a prickly restaurateur. He, Ann, and Don often clash on many topics. Also, Ann is on very friendly terms with the couple across the hall, Judy and Leon, and Don's co-workers include Bernie (Bernie Kopell) before he went to the Love Boat. By the fifth season, will Ann and Don finally tie the knot? This will always be one of my favorite shows from childhood. First, it was and is very funny, with Thomas exhibiting very comedic talents as zany Ann. Bessell is a perfect foil and Parker is a delight, too. Secondly, Ann was a single lady decorating her own apartment, pursuing her own dreams, choosing her own friends and more. Yes, most gals like me wanted to get married AT SOME POINT but, first, we wanted to live the good life by our own merits! Naturally, Ann's costumes are terrific, her hairstyle was one we tried to copy, and her tastes became our tastes. Dear Marlo Thomas, as Ann's alter ego, YOU WILL ALWAYS BE A HEROINE TO ME. After all, you were one of the first to show women everywhere that women's goals and ambitions MATTERED!

flackjacket It has been said: "The decision to leave the couple engaged at the end of the run was largely the idea of Thomas herself. She did not want to send a message to young women that marriage was the ultimate goal for them and she was worried that it would have defeated the somewhat feminist message of the show."And also: "The final episode was originally going to have Ann and Donald getting married but Marlo Thomas (who was an executive producer of the show as well as the star) refused, claiming that it sent the message to young girls that a woman's main goal in life was to be married."And yet, for five years, she portrayed her independent feminist character as a paranoid, eternally confused, insecure woman (with a sore throat) who constantly needed the help of her father and boyfriend in almost every episode. But God forbid she send the wrong message by getting married.Feminist message? I think not. But rather, pure hypocrisy masked in the largest false eyelashes known to mankind.

catwoman10301963 I love this light hearted comedy. Marlo Thomas is so sweet. Her wardrobe was very hip! She wore the coolest clothes. The show had many guest stars like her dad Danny Thomas, Ethel Merman, Milton Berle,and Sid Caesar. Ted Bessell was the perfect choice to play Ann Marie's boyfriend. They had a wonderful chemistry on screen and remained close friends till his death in 1997. Season 1 & 2 are available on DVD now. So go and buy them and enjoy! The show took our minds off of what was really going on in the world. The Vietnam war was raging, the civil rights movement was tearing the nation apart, and Dr. Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy were murdered during the shows run from 1966-1971.