{{Short description|1950s American sitcom}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}} {{Infobox television | image = This Is Alice title card.PNG | caption = | genre = Sitcom | creator = Sidney Salkow | writer = | director = Sidney Salkow | presenter = | starring = Patty Ann Gerrity<br>Phyllis Coates<br>Tommy Farrell<br>Kathy Garver | judges = | voices = | narrator = | theme_music_composer = William Loose<br>John Seely | open_theme = | composer = | country = United States | language = English | num_seasons = 1 | num_episodes = 39 | list_episodes = | executive_producer = | producer = Sidney Salkow | editor = | cinematography = | camera = | runtime = 25 mins. | company = Desilu Productions<br>National Telefilm Associates | channel = First-run syndication via the NTA Film Network | first_aired = {{start date|1958}} | last_aired = {{end date|1959}} | related = }} thumb|Patty Ann Gerrity as Alice Holliday. '''''This Is Alice''''' is an American television sitcom starring nine-year-old Patty Ann Gerrity. The program aired in first-run syndication from October 1958 to August 1959, distributed by the NTA Film Network.
==Synopsis== Alice Holliday is a precocious nine-year-old girl who lives in the fictional town of River Glen, Georgia (although some sources say the show was set in River Glen, New Jersey).<ref name=singleseason>{{Cite book|title=Single Season Sitcoms, 1948-1979: A Complete Guide|last=Leszczak|first=Bob|publisher=McFarland and Company, Inc.|year=2012|isbn=978-0786468126|location=Jefferson, NC|pages=183}}</ref><ref name=nostalgia>[https://nostalgiacentral.com/television/tv-by-decade/tv-shows-1950s/this-is-alice/ This Is Alice, Nostalgia Central Accessed 4 March 2022]</ref> Alice is bright and bubbly and she means well, but no matter how well-intentioned she is, her efforts always seem to backfire, leading to comic adventures and making her the female equivalent and precursor of ''Dennis the Menace''.<ref name=singleseason/><ref name=nostalgia/>
Alice's father, Chet Holliday, is a newspaperman. Her mother is Clarissa Mae Holliday, and her grandfather, a former Georgia peanut farmer, is known as "The Colonel."<ref name=singleseason/><ref name=nostalgia/> Alice attends River Glen Elementary School, where her best friend is Sally and she also is friends with "Soapy" Weaver — a frequent co-conspirator in her adventures — and Susan Gray.<ref name=singleseason/><ref name=nostalgia/>
==Cast== *Alice Holliday...Patty Ann Gerrity *Clarissa Mae Holliday...Phyllis Coates *Chester ‘Chet’ Holliday...Tommy Farrell *Sally...Kathy Garver *Clarence ‘Soapy’ Weaver...Stephen Wootton *The Colonel...Lucien Littlefield *Susan Gray...Nancy DeCarl
==Production== ''This Is Alice'' was produced by National Telefilm Associates and filmed at Desilu Productions.<ref name=singleseason/> Sidney Salkow created, produced, and directed the series.<ref name=singleseason/> Production of the series halted in mid-1959.<ref name=singleseason/>
Kathy Garver, who played Sally, later appeared on ''Family Affair''.<ref name=singleseason/>
==Broadcast history== Thirty-nine episodes were produced.<ref name=singleseason/> The series ran in first-run syndication from October 1958 to August 1959.<ref name=singleseason/> Previously broadcast episodes continued to air as late as July 1961.<ref name=singleseason/>
==Episode status== All 39 episodes are held by the UCLA Film and Television Archive.<ref name="UCLA">[http://cinema.library.ucla.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?Search_Arg=This+is+Alice&SL=None&Search_Code=FTIT&PID=Zp07k7O5pYnMVKxyTBoxtx1AW&SEQ=20090408234932&CNT=50&HIST=1 UCLA Film and Television Archive]</ref>
==Episodes== {{Episode table |background= |overall= |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |airdateT=Copyright date |episodes= {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=1 |Title=The Princess |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate= |ShortSummary=The pilot episode for the series, alternatively titled "Princess Pat." A local dressmaker and her daughter — who is a friend of Alice's — plan to move away when the dressmaker's business is unsuccessful, so Alice tries to drum up business for the dressmaker's shop to keep them from leaving. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=2 |Title=Alice Goes to Washington |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|7|2}} |ShortSummary=Alice agrees to behave if Chet takes Soapy and her with him to Washington, D.C., for a press conference. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=3 |Title=Alice Plays Detective |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|7|21}} |ShortSummary=When Alice discovers that a friend′s parents are planning to divorce, she tries to bring them back together. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=4 |Title=Big Louie Comes Through |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|9|3}} |ShortSummary=Alice meets a bookie named Big Louie, and the two of them become involved in a real estate deal after Alice convinces him to use his bad reputation and ready cash to help a needy family. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=5 |Title=American Beauty |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|10|7}} |ShortSummary=Alice tries to change the mind of a beauty contest entrant who has chosen her career over marriage. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=6 |Title=Quiz Show |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|1|8}} |ShortSummary=Alice competes against Chet's boss on a quiz show. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=7 |Title=Mrs. U.S.A. |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|1|9}} |ShortSummary=When Chet decides to take Clarissa Mae on a second honeymoon, Alice tries to help her parents by entering Clarissa Mae in a "Mrs. U.S.A." contest in the hope that she will win a trip to Niagara Falls. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=8 |Title=Problem Child |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|1|8}} |ShortSummary=Alice neglects her schoolwork when she becomes interested in a local spacemen club, sparking an argument between Chet and Clarissa Mae about why Alice is failing in school. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=9 |Title=One in a Million |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|1|8}} |ShortSummary=When a millionaire who has been confined to his bed sneaks away, he meets Alice, who thinks he is a hobo and brings him home for a good meal. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=10 |Title=House Beautiful |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|7|3}} |ShortSummary=A beautiful blonde woman upsets the Holliday household by trying to redecorate the family home. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=11 |Title=Pie in the Sky |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|8|19}} |ShortSummary=Alice enlists the aid of a retired baker to help her bake a pie so she can win the school baking contest. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=12 |Title=When the Bow Breaks |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|7|2}} |ShortSummary=Alice helps a yacht captain win the affection of a beautiful heiress who is about to marry another man, and the heiress learns the man she is to marry is interested only in her money. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=13 |Title=No Place Like Home |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|8|22}} |ShortSummary=After a local citizen donates a trailer to a children's club, the Holliday family spends a vacation full of mishaps. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=14 |Title=Rock 'n' Roll |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|7|11}} |ShortSummary=The Holliday's house guest is a lovelorn Southern belle who is in love with a rock and roll singer, and when the singer refuses to answer her letters to him, Alice decides to help her. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=15 |Title=Dandy Donovan |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|7|25}} |ShortSummary=Alice and her friends take to horse racing after Alice inadvertently causes her friend's father to buy a racehorse at an auction. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=16 |Title=Two Yanks in Georgia |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|8|29}} |ShortSummary=Alice and Soapy go to Georgia to visit The Colonel's peanut plantation, where Alice meets two boys and their grandfather. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=17 |Title=Pig in a Poke |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|8|19}} |ShortSummary=Alice gets in trouble when she buys a pig from a hobo. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=18 |Title=Trial Balloon |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|9|3}} |ShortSummary=Alice makes a passenger-carrying balloon out of her baby brother's inflatable swimming pool and upsets her parents, the police, and the United States Coast Guard when she and Soapy launch it. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=19 |Title=Fortune Teller |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|8|22}} |ShortSummary=Alice sets up a fortune-telling booth at a local bazaar. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=20 |Title=Callahan |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|9|8}} |ShortSummary=Alice convinces a young man who has just arrived from Ireland and needs money to bring his girlfriend to the United States to box the local champion — but when his girlfriend arrives, he must choose between keeping her or winning the fight. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=21 |Title=Mail Order |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|9|2}} |ShortSummary=Alice meets a scientist on the verge of discovering a new furniture polish. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=22 |Title=Song for Sale |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|9|5}} |ShortSummary=The local Sunday school teacher is suspended after she is caught playing songs she had written during class. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=23 |Title=The Weight Lifter |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|8|28}} |ShortSummary=Alice turns diplomat when a visiting aunt has the Hollidays on a diet. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=24 |Title=The Prophet |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|9|22}} |ShortSummary=A mystic captivates the women of River Glen, but when one of the town's wealthy widows is about to sign over her property to him, Alice discovers a strange episode in his past. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=25 |Title=Christmas Story |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|9|30}} |ShortSummary=Alice sells Christmas trees to earn money so that she can buy a gift for a kindly old lady.. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=26 |Title=Hypnotist |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|9|16}} |ShortSummary=After seeing a demonstration of hypnotism on television, Alice uses The Colonel's watch to hypnotize Chet. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=27 |Title=Rag to Riches |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|9|4}} |ShortSummary=In need of money, Alice looks for a get-rich-quick scheme and tries to do a good turn for a millionaire, leading to many complications. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=28 |Title=Class Reunion |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|9|12}} |ShortSummary=Alice accompanies Chet to his college during alumni week, where she has the opportunity to put a young romance aright. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=29 |Title=Circus Time |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|9|22}} |ShortSummary=After Alice meets a child performer who is running away from the circus, she becomes involved in the loves and sorrows of the circus people. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=30 |Title=Man's Best Friend |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|10|2}} |ShortSummary=Alice learns the local butcher is in love with a socialite and tries to foster a romance between them. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=31 |Title=Rodeo |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1958|10|7}} |ShortSummary=After Alice finds a Brahma bull left as a present for her in the Hollidays' back yard, she is ordered to dispose of it, leading to the bull joining the rodeo, Chet taking on a new role, and Alice riding the bull in Times Square. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=32 |Title=Alice Plays Cupid |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate= |ShortSummary=When Alice's favorite teacher at River Glen Elementary School is forced to retire because of her age and has little to look forward to, Alice tries to help along a romance between the teacher and the school's janitor. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=33 |Title=Guest in the House |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate= |ShortSummary=After a sophisticated lecturer arrives in River Glen and displays a superior attitude toward the townspeople, he is unhappy when he is forced to stay in the town longer than he anticipated, so Alice shows him all the good things River Glen has to offer. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=34 |Title=Help Wanted |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate= |ShortSummary=After the Hollidays hire a part-time housekeeper, Alice befriends her, decides that an eligible, wealthy bachelor in River Glen would be a good match for her, and tries to kindle a romance between them. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=35 |Title=Paper Drive |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate= |ShortSummary=While collecting scrap paper for a school paper drive, Alice and her friends search an old mansion, where they discover a piece of paper which changes life for an old man who has befriended them. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=36 |Title=The Elephant |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate= |ShortSummary=Alice brings an elephant home as a pet. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=37 |Title=Freedom of the Press |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate= |ShortSummary=After Alice crashes her soapbox into a social tea party, a woman insists that she pay for the damages. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=38 |Title=Too Many Fathers |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate= |ShortSummary=Alice decides that she is adopted and that her parents are planning to get rid of her, so she sneaks off to Philadelphia to find a comedian she thinks is her real father. |LineColor= }} {{Episode list |EpisodeNumber=39 |Title=The Letter |DirectedBy =Sidney Salkow |WrittenBy = |OriginalAirDate= |ShortSummary=Alice helps an elderly couple who learn that their son will not be able to attend their 50th wedding anniversary because of business commitments with his advertising firm. |LineColor= }} }}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *{{IMDb title|id=0051321|title=This is Alice}} *[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1lZOvshKJg ''This Is Alice'' opening credits on YouTube]
{{DEFAULTSORT:This Is Alice}} Category:1958 American television series debuts Category:1959 American television series endings Category:1950s American sitcoms Category:Black-and-white American television shows Category:English-language American television shows Category:First-run syndicated sitcoms Category:Television series about children Category:Television series by CBS Studios Category:Television shows set in Georgia (U.S. state) Category:Television series by Desilu