About this season
Arnie is a television sitcom that ran for two seasons on the CBS network. It stars Herschel Bernardi, Sue Ane Langdon, and Roger Bowen. Bernardi played the title character, Arnie Nuvo, a longtime blue collar employee at the fictitious Continental Flange Company, who overnight was promoted to an executive position. The storylines mainly focused on this fish out of water situation, and on Arnie's sometimes-problematic relationship with his well-meaning but wealthy and eccentric boss, Hamilton Majors Jr.. Because he still held his union card, Arnie could negotiate tricky management/labor situations that no one else could. Arnie's surname was presumably a pun on nouveau riche, and possibly also on Art Nouveau. In addition to Bernardi, Bowen, and Langdon, cast members included Del Russel and Stephanie Steele as Arnie's son and daughter, Richard and Andrea; Elaine Shore as Arnie's secretary, Felicia; and Herb Voland as sour-tempered executive Neil Ogilvie. In its first season, despite being the lead-in to The Mary Tyler Moore Show on Saturday nights and winning an Emmy nomination as best comedy series, Arnie received only fair Nielsen ratings. For its second season, in order to increase its viewership, CBS made a major cast change in the show's format. Charles Nelson Reilly joined the cast as Randy Robinson, a TV chef who called himself "The Giddyap Gourmet," apparently a reference to The Galloping Gourmet.
Episodes (24)
1. Arnie (Pilot Episode)
Aired 19 September 1970
2. Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow
Aired 26 October 1970
Arnie's first executive paycheck brings a sinking stomach, thanks to a premature spending binge (TV Guide)
3. Change of a Lifetime
Aired 3 October 1970
New executive Arnie kindles resentment among his old blue-collar buddies (TV Guide)
4. Wife vs. Secretary
Aired 4 November 1970
Arnie's bragging about his secretary nets him a jealous wife (TV Guide)
5. The Friendship Gap
Aired 10 October 1970
Arnie chooses his replacement as loading foreman - from among his old buddies (TV Guide)
6. An Urge to Splurge
Aired 17 October 1970
Arnie helps an elderly couple face compulsory retirement (TV Guide)
7. Chance of a Lifetime
Aired 3 October 1970
Lil heads a picket line to fight pollution - at Arnie's company (TV Guide)
8. Swinging Sixties
Aired 12 October 1970
Arnie's been ordered to shave off his mustache (TV Guide)
9. Let Them Eat Cookies
Aired 20 November 1970
Arnie becomes involved in industrial espionage (TV Guide)
10. Trouble in the Air
Aired 16 November 1970
Boss Majors' latest pet project: on-the-job exercising for his executives (TV Guide)
11. One Strike and You're Out
Aired 14 October 1970
""Arnie has no heart for the task at hand: negotiating a new union contract with his loading dock buddies. The new executive is still a union man."" (TV Guide)
12. For Whom the Whistle Blows
Aired 6 November 1970
A swank San Francisco hotel sets the scene for Arnie's first major sales meeting (TV Guide)
13. Why Spy?
Aired 30 October 1970
Office protocol calls for Christmas gifts worth $100; the Nuvos are giving homemade cookies (TV Guide)
14. To Buy or Not to Buy?
Aired 3 December 1970
Boss Majors has a new housing development, and the Nuvos feel pressure to buy a home (TV Guide)
15. Second Honeymoon
Aired 15 December 1970
16. You Can't Lose for Winning
Aired 20 December 1970
Lady Luck visits Arnie in a poker game - the big loser is his boss Majors (TV Guide)
17. Hello, Holly
Aired 7 January 1971
The executive Arnie replaced is in town; rumor is he wants his old job back (TV Guide)
18. Father Meets Daughter
Aired 13 January 1971
Arnie tries to pay more attention to Andrea.
19. Citizen Pain
Aired 21 January 1971
Arnie must be in Nassau on the same day the Nuvos have planned a second wedding for Julius and his wife (TV Guide)
20. Stand Up for Julius
Aired 21 January 1971
Arnie gets symptoms of an ulcer on the eve of his bowling league semifinals (TV Guide)
21. Strangeness in the Night
Aired 9 February 1971
Arnie's involved in an office feud (TV Guide)
22. Feud for Thought
Aired 2 February 1971
Arnie's furtive behavior causes suspicion at the office (TV Guide)
23. My Sister's Keeper
Aired 19 February 1971
Arnie canvasses the company to find dates for his attractive sister (TV Guide)
24. No Harmony in Trying
Aired 19 February 1971
An audition for the fourth voice in the company's all-male quartet produces a winner who's a surprise to all (TV Guide)