| The Donna Reed Show | |
|---|---|
 First season title screen | |
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Starring | Donna Reed Carl Betz Shelley Fabares Paul Petersen Patty Petersen |
| Theme music composer | John Seely |
| Opening theme | "Happy Days" |
| Composers | Irving Friedman William Loose Stu Phillips Hans J. Salter |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 8 |
| No. of episodes | 275(list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Producers | Tony Owen William S. Roberts |
| Cinematography | Gert Andersen |
| Editors | Richard Fantl Robert B. Hoover |
| Camera setup | Single-camera |
| Running time | 22–24 minutes |
| Production companies | Todon of California (1958–1963) Briskin Productions (1958–1959) Screen Gems |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC |
| Release | September 24, 1958 (1958-09-24) – March 19, 1966 (1966-03-19) |
The Donna Reed Show is an Americansitcom starringDonna Reed as the middle-class housewife Donna Stone.Carl Betz co-starred as her husband,pediatrician Dr. Alex Stone, withShelley Fabares andPaul Petersen as their teenage children, Mary and Jeff. The show originally aired on ABC from September 24, 1958, to March 19, 1966.[1]
The series was sponsored byCampbell Soup Company, withJohnson & Johnson as the principal alternate sponsor (succeeded in the fall of 1963 by theSinger Company).[2]
The Donna Reed Show was the first television family sitcom to place the mother at the center of the story. Reed's character, Donna Stone, is a loving mother and wife, but also a strong woman, an active participant in her community, a woman with feelings and a sense of humor. According to many of Reed's friends and family, she closely resembled the character she portrayed on screen, suggesting that Donna Stone was modeled directly on Reed herself.
In a 2008 interview,Paul Petersen (Jeff Stone) stated,
[The Donna Reed Show] depicts a better time and place. It has a sort of level of intelligence and professionalism that is sadly lacking in current entertainment products. The messages it sent out were positive and uplifting. The folks you saw were likable, the family was fun, the situations were familiar to people. It provided 22-and-a-half-minutes of moral instructions and advice on how to deal with the little dilemmas of life. Jeff and Mary and their friends had all the same problems that real kids in high school did.[3]
Petersen continued,
That's what the show was really about, the importance of family. That's where life's lessons are transmitted, generation to generation. There's a certain way in which these are transmitted, with love and affection.[3]
In season 5 (1963), Mary departed for college, reducing Fabares's appearances, something which continued yearly with her role becoming a minor character. Fabares left the full-time cast to pursue opportunities in films. She eventually returned seven times for guest appearances (Season 6 episodes 8, 11, 14; Season 7 episodes 5, 15, 30; Season 8 episode 13). Following Fabares's departure, Petersen's real-life sisterPatty Petersen joined the show as Trisha, a runaway orphan eventually adopted by the Stones.[4] The program achieved its highest Nielsen ratings in Season 6, reaching #16 after Fabares' departure. A possible reason for higher ratings was the addition of new characters,Ann McCrea and disc jockey-turned actorBob Crane as the Stones' neighbors, Midge and Dave Kelsey. This not only provided both Donna and Alex with best friends, but co-conspirators, as well. So popular were their roles that by the fall of 1964, both McCrea and Crane began receiving billing in the opening credits of the program. Crane left the series in 1965 to star in the CBS sitcomHogan's Heroes. As a result, he was written out of the show although his character continued to be referred to and McCrea's character remained with the program. Also, towards the end of the series, actorDarryl Richard was regularly featured as Jeff Stone's best friend, Morton "Smitty" Smith. Richard first appeared in 1962 and "Smitty" became a major character after Season 6.Janet Landgard was a series regular from 1963 to 1965 as Karen Holmby.[5]
The Donna Reed Show featured several celebrity guest stars appearing as themselves during its eight-year run. Baseball playerDon Drysdale appeared in four episodes whileWillie Mays appeared in three episodes andLeo Durocher once. MusicianHarry James and singersTony Martin andLesley Gore appeared as themselves. Gore was featured in the series' finale, "By-Line—Jeff Stone", on March 19, 1966.Lassie and film directorGeorge Sidney appear as themselves in the 1961 episode "The Stones Go To Hollywood". The episode plugged Sidney's then current feature film,Pepe, in which Reed made a cameo appearance. Teen heartthrobJames Darren guest starred as a pop singer with the measles. Iconic silent comedianBuster Keaton appeared in "A Very Merry Christmas." as a hospital janitor December 24, 1958.
Child actorCharles Herbert also had a recurring guest role in four episodes as David Barker, a runaway child whom the Stones assist. In the 1960 crossover episode "Donna Decorates",Jay North appeared with hisDennis the Menace co-star,Joseph Kearns as Mr. George Wilson. Esther Williams guest starred as Molly, a fashion designer and friend of Donna's who is herself about to marry a doctor in "The Career Woman" (1960). In real life, Williams and Reed had been close friends since the early 1940s, when they were risingMGM contract stars.
Several actors guest starred numerous times in different roles includingRichard Deacon,Gale Gordon,Harvey Korman,Miyoshi Umeki,Doodles Weaver, andDick Wilson.
As Fabares co-starred in the Mickey Mouse Club serialAnnette before the Donna Reed Show, four other Annette co-stars (Deacon,Cheryl Holdridge,Doreen Tracey &Mary Wickes) would also make respective guest appearances on this show. Paul Petersen was also on the Mickey Mouse Club.
Other notable guest stars include:
| Season | Episodes | Originally released | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First released | Last released | |||
| 1 | 37 | September 24, 1958 (1958-09-24) | June 3, 1959 (1959-06-03) | |
| 2 | 38 | September 24, 1959 (1959-09-24) | June 16, 1960 (1960-06-16) | |
| 3 | 38 | September 15, 1960 (1960-09-15) | June 8, 1961 (1961-06-08) | |
| 4 | 39 | September 14, 1961 (1961-09-14) | June 14, 1962 (1962-06-14) | |
| 5 | 34 | September 20, 1962 (1962-09-20) | May 9, 1963 (1963-05-09) | |
| 6 | 32 | September 19, 1963 (1963-09-19) | April 23, 1964 (1964-04-23) | |
| 7 | 30 | September 17, 1964 (1964-09-17) | April 8, 1965 (1965-04-08) | |
| 8 | 27 | September 16, 1965 (1965-09-16) | March 19, 1966 (1966-03-19) | |
For a limited time in 2004,General Mills offered a DVD of two episodes inside boxes of "Total" cereal andOatmeal Crisp.[6] Virgil Films and Entertainment (under license from the estates of Donna Reed and Tony Owen) released the first three seasons of the show on DVD inRegion 1. Virgil also released a four-episode "best of" DVD on April 13, 2010.[7]
On December 17, 2010, it was announced thatMPI Home Video had acquired the rights to release seasons 4 and 5 ofThe Donna Reed Show.[8] Season 4 was subsequently released on December 20, 2011, and Season 5 was released on December 4, 2012.[9]
On September 30, 2014, MPI Home Video re-released the first season on DVD.[10] Season 2 was re-released on March 24, 2015.[11] Season 3 was re-released on June 30, 2015.[12]
As of 2025[update], the show's sixth, seventh, and eighth (the final) seasons have yet to be released on DVD.
| Season | Ep # | Release date |
|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 37 | October 28, 2008 September 30, 2014 (re-release) |
| Season 2 | 38 | July 28, 2009 March 24, 2015 (re-release) |
| Season 3 | 38 | December 1, 2009 June 30, 2015 (re-release) |
| Season 4 | 39 | December 20, 2011 |
| Season 5 | 34 | December 4, 2012 |
| Year | Award | Category | Recipient | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Best Actress in a Leading Role (Continuing Character) in a Comedy Series | Donna Reed | Nominated |
| 1960 | Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Series (Lead or Support) | Nominated | ||
| 1961 | Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Series (Lead) | Nominated | ||
| 1962 | Outstanding Continued Performance by an Actress in a Series (Lead) | Nominated | ||
| 1963 | Golden Globe Awards | Best TV Star – Female | Won | |
| 1994 | Young Artist Awards | Former Child Star Lifetime Achievement Award | Shelley Fabares | Won |
| 1996 | Best Performance by a Young Actor – Voiceover Role | Chris M. Allport | Nominated | |
| 1997 | Former Child Star Lifetime Achievement Award | Paul Petersen | Won | |
| 2004 | TV Land Awards | Favorite Teen Dream – Female | Shelley Fabares | Nominated |
InGilmore Girls season 1 episode 14 "That Damn Donna Reed", Rory and her boyfriend Dean have a disagreement about women's roles after watching an episode of the show. The episode involved Reed's character making a lot of food. Later, Rory dresses up in a dress like Donna Reed and serves Dean a steak dinner.
In the filmMajor Payne, the theme song to the show plays as Payne fantasizes about an idyllic family life with Emily and Tiger.
A snippet of the show's theme song can also be heard in the filmPleasantville as the scene transitions from a view of the main characters' modern-day suburban neighborhood to David watching the fictional "Pleasantville" show on their TV.
