The Ginger Rogers Show (1961 TV Movie) User Reviews (2)

Ouch...I can see why they didn't make more!

[planktonrules · 3/10 · 6 June 2020]

There was only one episode of "The Ginger Rogers Show", as it was a pilot episode and the network passed on more of the shows. Now you'd think that Ginger Rogers would be an easy sell. After all, she was a top actress...and Oscar-winner. But they passed...and after seeing it, I can understand why. The writing was the problem with this one.

They show begins with Margaret Harcourt (Ginger Rogers) being picked up at the airport by her uncle (Charlie Ruggles). He informs her that her identical sister, Liz, has come to visit. Margaret is shocked when she learns that Liz's boyfriend has just dumped her, as he is some sort of Italian playboy with no interest in marriage. So, to teach the boyfriend (Cesare Danova), Margaret decides to pretend to be her twin and break the boyfriend's heart. How? Because she knows he has a weakness...his ego won't let him give up on a girl if she isn't completely interested in him. So, after meeting with him and pretending to be blasé about the breakup, Margaret continues by going out with other men...and making sure he sees her with them! And, it works...he's now much more interested and wants to begin dating once again. Unfortunately, Liz sees Margaret with the old boyfriend...and wow is she angry. What's next?

While this was a comedy, it wasn't particularly funny. Much of the problem with it was the silly gimmick of having an identical twin...an overused trope from the 1960s. After all, "The Patty Duke Show" featured identical cousins and "Bewitched" and "I Dream of Jeanie" had the evil sisters/cousins...which you KNEW were evil because the evil one sported a brunet wig! With "The Ginger Rogers Show", however there is no brown-haired sister or cousin...just two blondes who are both played by Rogers. Several other shows used this plot device as well...and it really is tiresome as well as ridiculous. And, with such a tiresome and ridiculous script, no wonder the network passed on this one. Ginger deserved better, that's for sure.

By the way, although they looked like identical twins and they called themselves twins, one sister kept saying she was the older sister....which was a bit confusing.

Ladies in the dark.

[mark.waltz · 3/10 · 13 June 2022]

According to her autobiography, Ginger Rogers didn't drink, but for some reason is slurring her words to get laughs, especially as Margaret Harcourt, one of a set of twins in this pilot that didn't get picked up, and for good reason. A ridiculous set of helmut hairstyles for each of the twins, one scrunched down to show who's Margaret and who's Liz, sadly aging Ginger and making each of the women appear hard. Laughs do come for Charlie Ruggles, and he could get laughs just by opening his mouth.

The basic plot has sister Margaret vowing revenge on her sister's fiancee, Cesare Danova, for jilting Liz out of the blue. The fact that the sisters don't really get along makes no sense for one of the sisters to all of a sudden do something like this, and it also sets her up here to be very vindictive which is not a good setup for a sitcom. It's sad that one of the brightest comics of the 30's could not manage to find success in comedies later in her career, resulting in several box office disappointments. But even her huge fiasco that closed up RKO ("The First Traveling Saleslady") had a few snickers, while outside of Ruggles only has groans.