Gomer Pyle: USMC (1964–1969) User Reviews (33)

fun show from the 60's

[graynt1 · 7/10 · 23 September 2006]

I ve always enjoyed "Gomer Pyle" Frank Sutton played Vince Carter so well..certainly one of the great supporting actors in television. Of course the situations Gomer got into were a bit unbelievable,but after all it was escapist TV in he 60's.

The first season of theshow will be released in December with commentaries and some extras including a clip from the Jim Nabors Hour,which also starred Ronnie Schell and Frank Sutton.

One of the reviewers mentioned Ronnie Schell was with the show the entire run. He was not in the 1967-68 season. He starred in a short lived sitcom with Joby Baker "Good Morning World" He did return in 1968 as a corporal for the remainder of the series.

One of TV's Most Successful Spinoffs

[hfan77 · 8/10 · 18 May 2012]

When Andy Griffith hired Jim Nabors to portray Gomer Pyle on his hit Mayberry sitcom, the Alabama born actor-singer played the part so well that a spin off was created for him. It turned out to be Gomer Pyle, USMC, putting his naive personality against the tough, no-nonsense Sergeant Carter, played by Frank Sutton. The show ended up becoming one of TV's most successful spinoffs, never falling out of the Nielsen Top 10 ratings.

I remember watching Gomer Pyle for many years and I thought it was a very funny show. A couple of episodes I remember was the one when Gomer and Sgt. Carter were in Washington and Gomer really wanted to say "Hey!" to the President. Recently, i saw the two episodes with Carol Burnett, including the one where Gomer and Sgt (promoted from Corporal) Carol Barnes sang a duet. It was one of several episodes that showcased Nabors' outstanding singing talent.

Also added to the hysteria were Ronnie Schell as Duke Slater and Allan Melvin as Sgt. Hacker.

After five years, Gomer Pyle ended its run, not because of low ratings, but because CBS offered Nabors a variety show and he decided to leave the sitcom and focus on the new show. But we'll always remember his stint as one of TV's funniest marines. Shazam!

Comedy at its best!

[MovieBuffMarine · 8/10 · 18 December 2017]

I grew up on the re-runs when local independent TV stations (known for mostly re-runs) were still common and later when TBS started showing the program. I got a lot of laughs from this show.

I went on to serve in the real Marine Corps for ten years. While this show has many many technical military errors, I still get a good laugh of the comedy of the show. It's a great way to lighten up!

The military aspect this show really gets right is the relationships between the sergeants and the junior enlisted men and/or the officers and the rest of the unit; for a funny show they kept that aspect believable of who was in charge and who was being led.

Jim Nabors in the title role gave us a departure from the quintessential portrayals of Marines from that era; instead of a hard-charging, squared away, by-the-book hero, we got someone from the other end of the spectrum whose heart is in the right place when it comes to the military, but serves in a bumbling way! If you didn't take this show too seriously or (if you were in the service) if you weren't too gung ho, this show brought you the laughs that it should.

While I echo some of the sentiments of the other reviewers like, "The Military Was Never this Funny" I also see that we have to step down and laugh a little too! Military service is serious business, hands down, but it don't mean we have to be mindless robots de-void of humor!

Also. . .yes, Gomer didn't go to Vietnam, nor was it ever mentioned as the war went on as the show did; I saw in a documentary (about the military) that TV shows of the time avoided including Vietnam in their shows for fear of low viewership and ratings as that was an unpopular war. That war may have helped in its cancellation as well even if it wasn't mentioned as the American public wanted no reminders.

No matter your view of the military, whether you served or not, this show provided many laughs so long as you didn't take it seriously.

Switch to color in 1965

[Fred-213 · 19 July 1999]

In 1965 the Gomer Pyle, USMC show was switched from black and white to color. It was necessary to film the color guard and opening and closing scenes for the show in color. This was done at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, in June, 1965. I was in the recruit platoon used for the filming and I am the young Marine marching directly behind Gomer in those scenes. During most of the brief scene Sgt. Carter is between me and the camera, however the angle changes just before the scene closes. We marched from 0730 until 1430 that day just to get those few seconds of film. The platoon was Plt. 130, 1st Recruit Btn. As a side note, during a break in the filming, Frank Sutton (Sgt. Carter) asked me if I ever smiled. Being the young, indoctrinated, Gung Ho recruit I was, my reply was, "Yes Sir. When my Drill Instructor tells me to, sir!" Frank Sutton Rolled his eyes and said to Jim Nabors, "I forgot where we were for a second". After my stint in the Marine Corps, I went into law enforcement and spent more time in front of a TV camera than I cared to. I'm now retired and enjoying life to the fullest.

From Mayberry to Camp Pendleton, Light Years Away!

[redryan64 · 7/10 · 31 May 2014]

BEING A Spin off from THE ANDY GRIFFITH show, even before anyone had even heard of a "spinoff"; GOMER PYLE, U.S.M.C. successfully walked a tight rope to sitcom immortality. Going on and staying on CBS for a full 5 years was no small accomplishment.

THE "TIGHTROPE" OF which we speak was that certain balance that the production team sought and managed to maintain throughout the series run. This balance was one of seeking a sort of middle of the road approach to Gomer's persona.

HAVING ORIGINATED AS a stock character hillbilly and employed as an assistant mechanic & grease monkey; the character Gomer's main function was to provide the show with some of its most obvious laughs. Hence, the other supporting characters, such Barney, Floyd, Otis and even Ernest T. Bass, would seem, at least comparatively, smarter.

NOW, WITH THE advent of the GOMER PYLE Series, the production team was presented with a problem of minor personality modification. This "surgery" was a necessary evil for the ultimate success of the show. If left as he appeared on ANDY GRIFFITH, his inherent stupidity would be an insurmountable obstacle to believability and success.

IN RE-INVENTING Gomer's personality (or at least in adjusting it), the writers made Pyle more of an innocent and literalistic (much like Andy Griffith's characterization of 'Will Stockdale' in NO TIME FOR SERGEANTS). Added to this, they emphasized a sort "Heart of Gold" tendency of our hero. This greatly enhanced their ability to make a premise last for the full half hour.

SPEAKING OF FAR-OUT characterizations, what about that of Sergeant Vince Carter. Being portrayed by an under-appreciated dramatic actor (Frank Sutton), it at first seems that this Sergeant is Gomer's eternal Drill Instructor (aka "D.I.") His involvement with the story lines, however, also required a toning down for the good Sergeant Carter's attitudes, personality and actions.

WITH THE OBVIOUS blessing of the United States Department of Defense, the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Marine Corps, those opening and closing sequences using hundreds of real marching Marines, that serve as a backdrop for Sgt. Carter's hard-boiled shouts and gesturing and Pyule's silly laugh-talking.

THIS SEEMED TO be an exercise in the unbelievable; as it was the era of the Vietnam War. We don't really know how to describe this; other than "Dicotomy" and "Paradox."

A chestnut from the golden age of TV sitcoms.

[AudioFileZ · 9/10 · 25 December 2006]

For those of us who were very young and just discovering the fun of watching TV comedies with our parents you couldn't ask for better shows than the Andy Griffith Show and it's spin-offs. Perhaps the best spin-off show was Gomer Pyle USMC. It's excellence is due primarily to the chemistry between Jim Nabors and Frank Sutton. The writing was good too, but these pros made that easier because they could carry the load so effectively.

Of course the show's formula was lifted wholesale from the already successful Andy Griffith's comedic career. That formula started, as far as I know, with Andy's routine called "What It Was Was Football" which I still think of when I see a "big orange" soda (Crush or similar ilk)! It was honed further by the movie "No Time For Seargeants" and then refined for sitcoms in The Andy Griffith Show. American loved the formula so as long as it was changed enough to camouflage the sameness...Success was almost guaranteed.

Oh yeah, the formula was basically exploiting, in a kind way, the innocence of someone who was naive and stripped of all pretension. It worked to the "nth-degree" with Jim Nabors as Gomer! He was so believable that it likely sabotaged him after his stint as Gomer. That can happen when a character is so fully inhabited by an actor who is both a great actor and is so well suited for a persona that you see this as the person's natural persona. In spite of this, I see his whole acting career as a qualified success due to the fact this show will continued to loved by millions more around the world...Especially now that it's out on DVD.

Simply put, "they don't make 'em like they used to" and this is truly a gem of a series.

50th Anniversary to one of the great spin-offs of The Andy Griffith Show starring Jim Nabors

[raysond · 10/10 · 15 November 2003]

"Gomer Pyle,USMC" ran for five seasons on CBS-TV from September 25, 1964 to May 2, 1969. In all 150 episodes were produced. The 26 black and white episodes for Season 1 ran from September 25,1964 until April 16,1965. The 124 Color episodes for Seasons 2 thru 5 aired from ran from September 17,1965 until May 2, 1969. "Gomer Pyle" aired on Friday nights for its first two seasons and later on the series was moved to Wednesday nights for Season 3 and for its last two seasons went back to Friday nights. Created by Aaron Ruben and produced by Sheldon Leonard, Edward S. Feldman along with Andy Griffith and Danny Thomas.

The originally came for this series was during one of the episodes of "The Andy Griffith Show" titled "Gomer Joins The Marines",where Jim Nabors' character of Gomer Pyle was being intitated into the United States Marine Corps where Gomer comes face to face with his drill Sargent,Vincent Carter played by Frank Sutton. But how in the heck did Gomer Pyle,a backwoods lack of common sense individual from the sticks of Mayberry,North Carolina go from a gas station attendant at Wally's service station to the title of a United States Marine? That is anybody's guess,but Gomer was one of the least brightest,if not one of the most nicest Marines you'll ever meet. But if you notice he acted femimine sometimes too especially around the barracks and most of the time giving Sargeant Carter one heck of a time putting them into one predicament after another. And if you thought of couldn't get any worse here comes Gomer after the end of each episode to either say something stupid in front of his platoon Sargent or to goof things up. Nice but stupid. Carter was always giving Gomer a hard time,but somewhere down the line,especially with the Marines he got it right,but still Carter shouts at him anyway.

In some of the episodes,you would always find Gomer in a tight spot,but is always there to lend a helping hand,but there was episode I do recall where Gomer was messing around with a underage girl by taking her on a date. In this day and age,no servicemen in the Armed Forces wouldn't be caught dead messing around with an underage girl,and Gomer should know better. There was episodes were Gomer would occasionally goof-off but you still had his fellow recruits to help him and sometimes under the watchful eye of Sargeant Carter and also Colonel Gray who was on their case all the time. There was always a predicament in each of their escapades,but they sometimes before the end of the episode got it right.

Even after five seasons,and when the show went off the airwaves in 1969, all of the buddies that live in the barracks were promoted and moved on from Sargeant Carter,but Gomer? He was still a private in the Marines,after five seasons. The show was created by the talent team of Sheldon Leonard,Ronald Jacobs,and sometimes produced by Sheldon Leonard and Aaron Ruben and also by Andy Griffith himself,who was the show's executive producer. The black and white episodes from the first season(1964-1965) including the forgotten pilot episode were very hilarious with Gomer getting into all kinds of mischief on the barracks and off the base,but the color episodes(1965-1969)were funny during its first two seasons,but faded after the show's fifth and final season. As for the rest of his barrack buddies who was with Gomer during their five years of service consisted of regulars and guest stars that appear on the show.................It also provided a brilliant showcase for Jim Nabors as well,since he had a great singing voice and he got the chance to sing in some of the episodes. But the show was a smash hit too due to the comical timing of Frank Sutton and Jim Nabors as well.

Ted Bessell-played Pvt. Lombardi during the 1965-66 season. He went on to star opposite Marlo Thomas in "That Girl",also produced by Sheldon Leonard,Danny Thomas,and Ronald Jacobs.

Larry Hovis-played Pvt. Gotschalk during the show's first season. He went on to star in the WWII sitcom "Hogan's Heroes" with Bob Crane.

Allan Melvin- played Carter's buddy Sgt. Hacker and was a guest regular on "The Andy Griffith Show" and later on "All In The Family". Was also the voiceovers for several animated cartoons.

Ronnie Schell-played Gomer's best friend Pvt. Duke Slater and would stay on throughout the show's entire run.

Forrest Compton-played the head honco of the barracks-Colonel Gray.

The guest stars on the roster? Everyone from Lucille Ball to Carol Burnett and even Sammy Davis,Jr. was on this show.

After "Gomer Pyle,USMC" left the airwaves in 1969,CBS executives gave Jim Nabors has own hour-long variety series which lasted one season. Frank Sutton and even Don Knotts were guest regulars on the show.

And in these days and times,never ever called a Marine a "Gomer",especially if your on a Army base full of Marines.

Gomer never did go to Vietnam

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 26 August 2016]

For five seasons Gomer Pyle kept us all amused with his bumbling country boy antics to the distress of his sergeant Vince Carter. With the Vietnam War going on one does not have to speculate about why Pyle was kept stateside.

Although several other people flirted in and out of Gomer Pyle it was a two person show. Sweet lovable Gomer who managed to keep that innocent naivete through basic training with Frank Sutton and then later on when contrary to all realism Carter and Pyle stayed together even after basic training.

Jim Nabors who even got in a song or two over the run of the show with that operatic baritone was in the title role, carrying over from the Andy Griffith Show where he was a gas jockey. Sutton eventually got tired of training him and kind of took him under his wing. Still Pyle would get in and out of trouble each episode and Sgt. Carter's ulcer would grow.

After 5 seasons Gomer Pyle came to an end. I suspect with a lot of real Marines coming home in body bags, the antics of a lovable bumbling Marine just weren't cutting it.

In real life Pyle would have washed out in two weeks.

I liked the show

[colin-parry · 10/10 · 7 August 2008]

So for all of those out there who said that Gomer Pyle went downhill, I recently enlisted in the Marines and my parents got me the show as a joke.

I actually enjoyed it, both in black and white and in color, and I went and got the rest of the seasons.

And I grew up in the time of color television and laugh tracks and super special effects. Though the daytime sky at 3 in the morning was always a little odd.

And no I don't expect boot to be like this.

Poolee Parry USMC

Surprise, Surprise, Surprise, SHUT UP!

[MeTVFan1234 · 1/10 · 27 July 2022]

Gomer Pyle: USMC may be one of the worst things I have ever seen. I like The Andy Griffith Show, and I don't mind Gomer Pyle on there, but this show is awful. I hate it. Did Gomer really need to get a show? And HOW is HE IN THE MARINES?? Sgt. Carter is annoying too.

The Original Fish Out of Water

[Sargebri · 1 December 2003]

This was one of the funniest shows of the 1960's. This took the premise of putting the very innocent and naive Gomer Pyle from the Andy Griffith show and putting him into the the greatest killing machine ever. The thing that made this show great was not only his interaction with Sergeant Carter, but with other people as well. The situations that Gomer would get into as a result of his naive nature helped to make this show the classic that it was. Also, Frank Sutton created one of the classic characters in the history of television in Sergeant Carter. Not only could Carter be easily exasperated, but in a lot of instances he also could be seen as more of a big brother to Gomer as he bumbled his way through his hitch in the marines.

An underrated classic sitcom!

[mandoyle · 10/10 · 25 June 2021]

Funny humor, likable characters, and a few heartwarming moments is sometimes what all a show needs...

Should have kept Gomer on The Andy Griffith Show

[LukeCoolHand · 2/10 · 22 June 2022]

As a teen I enjoyed this series. As an adult not so much. Mr. Ed the talking horse was funny when Mr Ed was smarter than Wilbur. But having that one note loud Sgt. Carter being dumber and sillier than Gomer Pyle was not funny. The show got started as a pilot on the Andy Griffith Show and Sgt Carter acted more like a real Marine drill sergeant I think it would have been more tolerable if they had kept it that way. How it lasted 5 seasons is a head scratcher to me. Also, everyone was wondering how Gomer could sing so good and talk so whiny and goofy. I'll tell you how . Just like Festus on Gunsmoke their voices they talked with on their TV shows were FAKE, Neither one really talked like that. Sometimes on the Andy Griffith Show Gomer let his normal voice slip out.

Would like to have all 150 episodes on DVD

[msannie60 · 10/10 · 12 June 2005]

I enjoyed this show as a youngster and have not seen Gomer Plye USMC in years.

My new husband happens to be a retired Marine, Gunnery Sgt and he loved this show as well, being the "DI" he was.

This would make a wonderful father's day, birthday or a whatever gift to have all the episodes for him.

Hopefully it will happen!

Is it possible to have this collection on DVD???

So to all of you Gomer Pyle USMC fans, Get out there and vote for this wonderfully, funny, all time classic.

Beware--One of the Worst Shows Ever

[yocsmotel · 1/10 · 15 May 2011]

There were two major reasons -- no, three, this cornball show succeeded.

1. Like Gilligan's Island, it allowed the brain to switch off completely. 1/2 hour of this was equal to at least two hours of deep sleep.

2. While the Vietnam War raged, these "Marines" focused on something that looked like an endless slow-paced boot camp, marching in formation and policing the area, doing field training ad nauseum, and shouting "GOLL-LY." It just made you feel good about how calm and placid things really were as American boys were getting their heads blown off by Charlie snipers.

3. All the old Grandmas loved their boy Jim Nabors--oh his beautiful untrained operatic voice, his boyish grin, on and on. Even if they were a little secretly bothered that they heard something about Rock Hudson.

Criminally Underrated!!

[inenutshell · 10/10 · 22 August 2021]

This show was just great, I loved the chemistry between Jim and Frank Sutton in general, and the plots and comedy were hilarious. Why does this show just get a 7.0? This show deserves a 10!

Gomer Pyle: Hallmark of the era

[ptaddw · 10/10 · 8 January 2007]

Inspired by the storyline of Andy Griffith's hit motion picture "No Time For Sergeants" and fueled by the popularity of the "Andy Griffith Show's" delightfully naive gas station attendant, Gomer Pyle, it was a natural turn of events, having this erstwhile hayseed enter the United States Marine Corps -- at the Corps' (chuckle) peril.

"Gomer Pyle USMC" is one of the symbols of an era which took pride in its military and enjoyed the good natured innocence and honesty of the show's main character. I have no doubt there are many of us who wish that state of mind could still exist in the twenty-first century, unburdened by the threat of terrorism on the American home front.

I just love this show

[reaness46 · 26 May 2003]

I been a fan of this show ever since it's debut in 1964, I was ten years old. I sure did laugh at all the things that Gomer got into and even though Sergent Carter yell at Gomer alot, I knew that deep down inside he really like the country boy from Mayberry North Carolina

Very over rated ... but had its pluses

[mloessel · 4/10 · 30 November 2021]

It lasted 5 years? Pyle wouldn't have made it through basic. His naivete would've been his undoing. The only saving grace was his amazing baritone voice. And Frank Sutton's portrayal of Gunnery Sergeant Carter got annoying quick. Why did i watch it? Because it was so goofy and Pyle had a way of making things right. He had goodness and honesty wrapped up in that goofy persona. This TV show is a good of how goofiness can have a long run with the right actors and good creative writing. Carter thought he was a Marine's Marine but he was anything but. He was a sucker for a pretty girl's smile and fancied himself a ladies man. Then we have Pyle who always came out a winner no matter how goofy he appeared in any situation.

Transition Appreciation

[Mark81961 · 10/10 · 9 June 2006]

It is true that everyone has the opportunity to voice an opinion on a show, especially a true classic like Gomer Pyle USMC. This is mostly in reference to the switch from black and white to color. Somehow this is the decision of the expenses at the time, not the writers, which I heard was a debate over "I Dream Of Jeannie" in the similar situation when they did the same thing. I can appreciate the older times of black and white and whether or not they're funnier than color is always to one's own evaluation. In my case, the color ones were more enjoyable to watch, to see technology advance at that time so everything was more distinct. And just in passing, two things..I happened to have VCR'd the episode where Gomer accompanies a girl to a party, and she isn't junior high but a 16-year old who has a crush on him - typical teenage crush on an older man in this case, and it wasn't necessarily just for looks. True, in this day and age that would indeed be a big problem, but by the show's standards, it was handled tastefully. And secondly, if I'm not mistaken, the ratings of both shows steadily increased as time went on, and "Andy Griffith" reached #1 in 1967 - a color season, so obviously the feelings of the show "going downhill when it went to color" are a small amount. When I had the chance, I got as many of "Andy Griffith" color episodes videotaped as I could since they were shown so rarely a few years ago. TV Land didn't keep Gomer Pyle on long enough for me to get those, so I'm very ready for the DVD's to be released - have been checking for months.

TAGS Gomer -Yes This Gomer-No

[pmike-11312 · 3/10 · 6 January 2023]

The Gomer Pyle character on The Andy Griffith Show was dumb, goofy, well-meaning, and FUNNY. As a support character, he was a great counter to Andy and Barney and provided a lot of plot situations and humor to the show. But, as the lead character (at least as executed), Gomer became annoying, stupid, pathetic, and frankly a downright bore. As the show went on, he evolved into a whiney, helpless pile of backboneless mush. Some of the secondary characters helped (at least for a while) - Carter, Duke, Hacker, etc. - but they weren't enough.

MeTV has been showing this in primetime for a couple of years and is now THANKFULLY replacing it with The Beverly Hillbillies. Can't wait!

this show was great

[trekbross · 17 November 2003]

i'm in the service also and the last person was wrong on his commits. after seeing the stuff i've seen in the navy and marine corp (no offence to the marines ) i would totally believe that show the other person was talking about even sergant bilko is more believeable now. if you know anything about gomer pyle they made the show funny but it did have some real points to it the did not intend to make fun of the marines they intended to have fun with the marines.i wish this show would of lasted well into the 70's and possible the 80's 4 star in my book.

A genuinely funny show.

[wdont-48117 · 10/10 · 27 November 2021]

This show is one of the best I have ever seen. It has splendid comedy and many memorable moments in it! This show is very underrated and deserves a lot more love! I personally think it's even better than The Andy Griffith Show, although I love both!

Absolutely hilarious, especially in the earlier seasons.

[braydenpoole · 10/10 · 3 January 2022]

I don't even know where to begin this show was just very funny! The first three seasons in particular had great chemistry between Frank Sutton and Jim Nabors that it was very hard not to crack up at their interactions with each other. Splendid cinematography and an amazing yet chill atmosphere, watch this show!