There is no greater Tim Conway fan than I am. But this was for the birds. Conway plays himself. Dick talks his way into attending a regular poker game which Conway is a part of. It turns out he is cheap and avaricious. At one point he steals Dick's car. This was beyond cheap and not funny. Why anyone would hang out with this character is well beyond me. There is also some action back at the Inn involving Miss Goddard and a guy from the gas station. That isn't funny either. I don't find her character to be the least bit refreshing. The series just died in the last season. There were a couple moments here and there but it is really weak.
3 Reviews
Tim Conway guest stars
Jimmy_the_Gent410 August 2018
George and Michael claim that Tim Conway plays poker with them.
An amusing episode. Tim Conway plays himself but acts like a real cheapskate. He gets insulted when Dick raises a quarter in a poker game. He later follows Tim to a diner to apologize. The waitress there is played by Audrie Neenan (she played one of the gang of psychos in the Dirty Harry film "Sudden Impact"). There is also a subplot about Miss Goddard turning 25 (Stephanie doesn't believe it) and not having a date. Joanna offers her an invitation to drink champagne, eat cake and have "girl talk".
An amusing episode. Tim Conway plays himself but acts like a real cheapskate. He gets insulted when Dick raises a quarter in a poker game. He later follows Tim to a diner to apologize. The waitress there is played by Audrie Neenan (she played one of the gang of psychos in the Dirty Harry film "Sudden Impact"). There is also a subplot about Miss Goddard turning 25 (Stephanie doesn't believe it) and not having a date. Joanna offers her an invitation to drink champagne, eat cake and have "girl talk".
Not Particularly Funny
aramis-112-8048804 September 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Bob Newhart's show "Newhart" was wonderful. When it was aired first run (in my 20s) a friend who lived in another city and I would race each other to the telephone to see who'd be the first to call, to discuss the episode. That's when phones were all fixed in place.
After a shaky start (anyone remember Leslie or Kirk?), every year "Newhart" seemed to get funnier. And wackier. It was known ahead of time when the last season started, so the writers went a little mad. Even more so than in prior seasons when the Darryls were shown playing the theme from "Exodus" on dual pianos, or when Larry says Johnny Carson pays his gas bill or when we learn Darryl had a short but lucrative career as a male model.
In the last season they threw all caution to the wind (it was a popular show and was about to end; they weren't afraid of being cancelled). And, of course, the final episode is still generally considered a classic of its genre (that is, series finale episodes).
But every series that ever lived has produced bum episodes every now and then. And this episode was a misfire. It turned out George, Larry, Darryl, Darryl and Michael play cards every week with famous comic Tim Conway, but they've had to keep it under wraps to keep Dick (Newhart) from finding out about it and ruining it.
It's a good concept, one fraught with funny situations. Conway is portrayed as a real cheapskate. But he actually goes too far with his penny-pinching, to the point of simply appearing nasty. I don't know if he was one of Newhart's good friends, but they set off no sparks and showed no on-screen chemistry. And while Conway's antics are supposed to be funny, I suppose, they come off as merely mean. Not even the usually reliable Larry, Darryl and Darryl can save this turkey. And as for Michael, while he still gets some laughs this season (especially in the hilarious "Born to be Mild," becoming a husband and father (and being institutionalized in the prior season after his great moment of playing a mime who loses his mind), has all left him kind of blah.
Nothing in this promising episode works, and it's more embarrassing than funny. Did they really think Tim Conway leaving an aluminum can as a tip for a waitress was laugh-provoking, when even in 2021 money they recycle for five cents a pound?
Conway's a funny man, but he works best without a script. Compare his work on "McHale's Navy" with his spur-of-the-moment antics on "The Carol Burnett Show." But here he falls down and goes boom. Skipable, except for people like me who have to see everything featuring Larry and the Darryls.
After a shaky start (anyone remember Leslie or Kirk?), every year "Newhart" seemed to get funnier. And wackier. It was known ahead of time when the last season started, so the writers went a little mad. Even more so than in prior seasons when the Darryls were shown playing the theme from "Exodus" on dual pianos, or when Larry says Johnny Carson pays his gas bill or when we learn Darryl had a short but lucrative career as a male model.
In the last season they threw all caution to the wind (it was a popular show and was about to end; they weren't afraid of being cancelled). And, of course, the final episode is still generally considered a classic of its genre (that is, series finale episodes).
But every series that ever lived has produced bum episodes every now and then. And this episode was a misfire. It turned out George, Larry, Darryl, Darryl and Michael play cards every week with famous comic Tim Conway, but they've had to keep it under wraps to keep Dick (Newhart) from finding out about it and ruining it.
It's a good concept, one fraught with funny situations. Conway is portrayed as a real cheapskate. But he actually goes too far with his penny-pinching, to the point of simply appearing nasty. I don't know if he was one of Newhart's good friends, but they set off no sparks and showed no on-screen chemistry. And while Conway's antics are supposed to be funny, I suppose, they come off as merely mean. Not even the usually reliable Larry, Darryl and Darryl can save this turkey. And as for Michael, while he still gets some laughs this season (especially in the hilarious "Born to be Mild," becoming a husband and father (and being institutionalized in the prior season after his great moment of playing a mime who loses his mind), has all left him kind of blah.
Nothing in this promising episode works, and it's more embarrassing than funny. Did they really think Tim Conway leaving an aluminum can as a tip for a waitress was laugh-provoking, when even in 2021 money they recycle for five cents a pound?
Conway's a funny man, but he works best without a script. Compare his work on "McHale's Navy" with his spur-of-the-moment antics on "The Carol Burnett Show." But here he falls down and goes boom. Skipable, except for people like me who have to see everything featuring Larry and the Darryls.
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