Grindl

Grindl
Publicity photo of Imogene Coca and Billy Booth in the final episode, "Aunt Grindl" (1964)
Genre	Sitcom
Created by	David Swift
Written by	William Davenport Bud Grossman Ed Jurist Lee Loeb John McGreevey Bob Nye Gerald O'Hanlon Jay Sommers Ray Singer Burt Styler David Swift
Directed by	Charles Barton
Starring	Imogene Coca James Millhollin
Theme music composer	Frank De Vol
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	32
Production
Executive producer(s)	David Swift
Producer(s)	Harry Ackerman Winston O´Keefe
Camera setup	Multi-camera
Running time	30 mins. (22–24 mins. with commercials)
Production company(s)	David Swift Productions
Distributor	Screen Gems Sony Pictures Television (current)
Release
Original network	NBC
Picture format	Black-and-white
Audio format	Monaural
Original release	September 15, 1963 – May 3, 1964

Grindl is an American situation comedy that began in the fall of 1963 on NBC, originally sponsored by Procter & Gamble. The show, starring Imogene Coca in the title role, lasted for one season.

Synopsis

Grindl (Coca) worked for Foster's Temporary Employment service and was employed doing domestic work. The show revolved around the different humorous situations she would get into with each new job she was assigned to each week.

The first show featured guest star Telly Savalas, who would later star as Kojak. Other guest stars included George Kennedy, Paul Lynde, Robert Q. Lewis, Jack Albertson, Robert Karnes, Darryl Richard, and Leif Erickson.

Grindl was scheduled on Sunday nights at 8:30 P.M. in September 1963, sandwiched between Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color and Bonanza, both major hits. The series was pitted against the second half of The Ed Sullivan Show on CBS which greatly contributed to its low ratings. It was canceled in the spring of 1964, after completing a full season of 32 episodes.

Cast

• Imogene Coca...Grindl
• James Millhollin...Anson Foster, Grindl's boss

Episodes

Episode #	Production Code	Episode Title	Original Airdate	Plot
1	3041	"The Gruesome Basement"	September 15, 1963	Grindl confuses the police in attempting to explain disappearance of her employer's wife.
2	-	"Grindl, Counterspy"	September 22, 1963	Foreign spies covet a secret rocket formula which is stored in the house where Grindl works.
3	4908	"Grindl, She-Wolf of Wall Street"	September 29, 1963	Grindl startles Wall Street with her unconventional approach to high finance by the use of numerology.
4	4923	"The Ghastly Honeymoon"	October 6, 1963	The owners of a Lonely Hearts Club introduces Grindl to Antoine D'Beauville, a Frenchman who begins a whirlwind courtship.
5	4921	"Grindl and the Counterfeiters"	October 13, 1963	Grindl innocently passes bogus money, then learns that the crooks plan to kill her so that the phony currency can't be traced.
6	4922	"Grindl: Femme Fatale"	October 20, 1963	Grindl becomes involved in a murder case when she is employed as a personal maid to a Broadway actress.
7	4927	"One Angry Grindl"	October 27, 1963	Grindl stalemates a murder trial jury on which she is serving because she believes that the accused man is innocent.
8	4909	"Grindl, Witness for the Defense"	November 3, 1963	Grindl thinks a miracle has happened when her wheelchair-bound employer, Mr. Crow, stands up to accept an insurance settlement check.
9	4929	"Lady Grindl"	November 10, 1963	Grindl fancies that she's inherited a title, castle and land from a British uncle.
10	4903	"The Great Bank Robbery"	November 17, 1963	Grindl is able to outwit some bandits scheming to rob the bank where she is working.
11	4911	"Grindl, the Meddler"	December 8, 1963	Grindl causes an uproar when she decides to involve herself in the family problems of her employer.
12	-	"The Great Schultz"	December 15, 1963	Grindl tries to convince police that her employer, Prof. Schultz, has turned his wife Hilda into a rabbit with his invention, the cosmic regenerator.
13	-	"'Twas the Week Before Christmas"	December 22, 1963	While working as a department store Santa Claus, Grindl helps expose a robbery plot.
14	4913	"Grindl, Impractical Nurse"	December 29, 1963	Grindl decides she is destined to be another Florence Nightingale, but while applying for a job as a nurse's aid, she is mistaken for a patient.
15	4935	"The Lucky Piece"	January 5, 1964	Grindl helps a government agent trap a notorious gambler for income tax evasion.
16	-	"Grindl, the Private Eye"	January 12, 1964	Grindl forsakes the humdrum existence as a maid and decides to emulate the life of a detective.
17	4916	"Grindl's Day Off"	January 19, 1964	Grindl takes the day off and runs into difficulties at the beauty shop, movie theater and restaurant.
18	-	"The Mad Bomber (a.k.a.) Grindl, the Mad Bomber"	January 26, 1964	Grindl unwittingly helps the police arrest a confused inventor.
19	4918	"Grindl and the Boodle"	February 2, 1964	Grindl impersonates a gun moll in order to help investigators recover millions hidden after a hold-up.
20	-	"Dial G For Grindl"	February 9, 1964	Grindl is hired by the wife of a man who hires a gang leader to kill his spouse, but Grindl turns a murder plot into a comedy of errors.
21	-	"Taming of a Tyrant"	February 16, 1964	Grindl spearheads a household strike against an autocratic butler.
22	-	"It's in the Bag"	February 23, 1964	Grindl is in for a surprise when she checks the vacuum cleaner for mothballs and discovers stolen pearls instead.
23	-	"Grindl, Part-time Wife"	March 1, 1964	Grindl helps Herman Krumplefelder get a butler's job by posing as his wife, but then realizes that her "husband" is a kleptomaniac.
24	-	"Active Retirement"	March 8, 1964	Grindl helps save a former railroad engineer from a lonely old age by helping him find the perfect job.
25	-	"Grindl, Girl Wac"	March 15, 1964	Grindl recalls her days as a WAC when she captured two German officers.
26	-	"The Big Deception"	March 22, 1964	Grindl helps a young couple impress the wife's parents by "borrowing" a model home in which to entertain them.
27	4948	"Grindl Goes West"	March 29, 1964	Grindl heads West to hunt for gold and learns that surveyors made a big mistake when she decides to camp on her Las Vegas property.
28	-	"The Moon Killer"	April 5, 1964	As Grindl prepares for a lonely birthday celebration, an uninvited stranger enters her apartment through an unlocked window and changes her plans.
29	-	"There's No Such Thing as a Bad Barracuda"	April 12, 1964	A teenage gang learns discipline when they win Grindl's services as first prize at a police benefit raffle.
30	4949	"Everything's Coming Up Roses"	April 19, 1964	Grindl discovers a horticulturist's bizarre secret for growing prize blooms.
31	4947	"Some Dogs Have the Biggest Mouths"	April 26, 1964	Grindl baffles police with a dog that communicates only with her and identifies a murderer for her.
32	4945	"Aunt Grindl"	May 3, 1964	Grindl believes that she has inherited a fortune, but discovers instead that her "legacy" is an ill-mannered 11-year-old boy (Billy Booth).

Trivia

A character similar to Grindl, named Dorcas, appears in the 1963 movie Under The Yum Yum Tree, and is also played by Coca.

The episode, "Grindl's Day Off," was originally scheduled to be broadcast on November 24, 1963, but was preempted by coverage of the John F. Kennedy assassination.

External links

• Grindl at the Internet Movie Database
• Grindl at TV.com