What Might've Been: The Decorator (1965)

Bette Davis-----in a sitcom?!?!?

Yep, except that it never made it to series.

The Hollywood legend was recruited by no less than Aaron Spelling at Four Star to star in a sitcom he was developing, The Decorator. As it happens, Spelling's track record with sitcoms (i.e. The Smothers Brothers Show) was not that great, and he was nearing the end of the trail at Four Star. In fact, 1965 was not a good year. It was the year of Honey West, and the metamorphosis of Burke's Law into Amos Burke, Secret Agent, with both series on ABC. The Big Valley launched that year, but Spelling had nothing to do with it.

Mary Wickes (ex-Dennis The Menace) co-stars.



Bette Davis' film career would get back on track just a few years later, and I think this was the last time Spelling attempted a sitcom for Four Star. His bad luck continued two years later when, after linking up with Danny Thomas, he came up with the Western satire, Rango, with Tim Conway. Yep, that was a flop, too.

Rating: C.