Dave is in charge of his club's initiation committee, and Thorny's son Will is among the pledges that must undergo the process.

The Initiation

Ozzie Nelson

Harriet Nelson

David Nelson

Ricky Nelson

Ricky's Lost Letter

Old Fashioned Remedy

Confusion reigns when the local department store delivers two new chairs to the wrong Nelson family and then drops off additional chairs or takes back the wrong pieces of Nelson's furniture.

New Chairs

Ricky and David are upset about not being invited to Will Thornberry's party. Later, they discover it’s a misunderstanding. But then, Ozzie finds out he wasn’t invited by “Thorny” (Will’s father) to a party occurring that same evening, and he becomes irritated with his best friend— unwilling to take the same advice he gave his kids and talk it over with him.

The Party

The boys just got a newspaper route, but it's Ozzie who winds up having to make the rounds on their first morning.

The Boys' Paper Route

Ozzie is falling behind on his list of chores around the house, so the rest of the family pitches in and helps out.

The Window Pane

An old friend of the family mails a monogrammed pipe to David, not realizing he isn't even college age, yet.

David's Pipe

It's David's 17th birthday, and he's trying to do anything he can to look older because he has a crush on Sally Patterson, a girl who is only interested in older men.

David's Birthday

Herb Dunkle talks to Ozzie about a new organization in town, "The National Anti-Noise Society". But is this new club ready for Ozzie & Thorny to join?

No Noise

Ricky intends to make extra money selling a spot remover. He's very successful but when things go wrong to entire family pitches in to help.

The Hustler

David and Will Thornberry's school essays give them both a chance to be mayor for the day during "Civic Day". Now if only Ozzie and Thorny will quit arguing about which son is going to be the honorable mayor.

Young City Officials

The Nelsons decide to start using a suggestion box for family matters.

The Suggestion Box

Ozzie and Thorny get themselves marooned on a roof without a ladder.

The Ladder

David wants to start weightlifting and working out early in the morning, while Ricky wants to start staying up late and watching movies on the late show. Ozzie decides to let the boys have their way.

Parental Guidance

Harriet loses a gold pin Ozzie had given her. It was insured, and they collect on it. The check comes made out to both of them, and they disagree on who should endorse it over to the other person and what the money should be spent on.

The Insurance Policy

Thorny needs a reference about his fiscal worthiness and asks Ozzie to write one for him. Ozzie as a joke writes a negative one but goes into a panic when he thinks Ricky mailed it.

The Credit Reference

Ozzie tells his family a story from his childhood of when he wished for a white Christmas.

The Miracle

Ozzie takes steps to get out of going hunting with Thorny.

The Hunter

The wife and kids give Ozzie the night off from helping them with their chores and homework, so with mixed feelings, he tries to amuse himself by spending a night out on the town.

Ozzie's Night Out

Ozzie buys cameras for everyone in the family. It doesn't take long for him to get caught in a compromising position on film.

The Camera Show

Ozzie takes the courageous step of gathering enough nerve to return some of Harriet's lingerie.

Courage

After promising to double whatever money his youngest son has left over at the end of the week, Ricky's collection of old pop bottles may cost Ozzie a pretty penny.

The Incentive

The Nelsons wind up with a houseful of kids on a sleepover.

Too Many Children

David's been spending time at Thompson's Garage. Ozzie thinks David may want to become a mechanic when he gets out of school. This is a great idea, until Ozzie talks to Thorny about what his son Will wants to do when he graduates.

David's Career

Harriet decides to give a party but runs into problems when she learns her friend hs already planned a dinner party and the Thornberry's are not invited.

Harriet Gives a Party

Ozzie treats a cold the way his mother used to do - with booze.

Ricky wants to send a letter to a cute girl who wrote to him, but Ozzie has accidentally destroyed the envelope containing her return address.

Both Dave and Ricky want Ozzie to partner with them for the Father And Son Table Tennis Tournament. The dilemma is that he can only play with one son.

Father and Son Tournament

The school's Backward Dance is tonight. The girls invite the boys to this event. Fearing that David doesn't have a date to the dance, Ozzie meddles in his son's affairs.

Gentleman David

David has a school assignment to write an article for the school paper. Unable to think of a subject to write about. Ozzie suggests writing an article about the school's baseball team's latest slump.

David Writes a Column

Ozzie and Harriet anguish over whether or not to allow 13-year-old Ricky to take a 150-mile train trip on his own.

Overprotection

It looks like Ozzie's going to be late to a luncheon where he's scheduled to deliver a speech on the importance of being on time.

Be On Time

Ozzie and Thorny stage their version of "Hamlet" in the Nelson's living room.

An Evening with Hamlet

After meeting his new neighbor at the bank, Ozzie beliefs he's a thief and stole his penknife. When hinting to his new neighbor didn't solve the problem, Ozzie decided he needed to warn Thorny and put his valuables in the bank.

The New Neighbor

Ozzie needs to have the roof gutter repaired before the next rain, but a bird's nest is holding up the works.

The Bird's Nest

Harriet writes to 'Aunt Martha', who gives advice through her 'A Friend of the Family' column in the local newspaper.

A Friend of the Family

David has a formal school dance coming up and needs a tux.

A Tuxedo for David

The family gives the den a makeover. Meanwhile, Ozzie has his eyes on a new set of golf clubs, hoping they’ll give him an edge in a golf tournament.

The Painter

After giving David a lecture on saving his money, Ozzie and Thorny indulge in some impulsive buying at the local sporting goods store.

Economical Ozzie

Everyone in the neighborhood wants to use Ozzie's new backyard pool. The trouble is - it hasn't been built, yet.

The Swimming Pool

The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet is an American sitcom, airing on ABC from October 3, 1952 through March 26, 1966, starring the real life Nelson family. After a long run on radio, the show was brought to television where it continued its success, running on both radio and television for a few years. The series stars Ozzie Nelson and his wife, singer Harriet Nelson, and their young sons, David and Eric "Ricky" Nelson. Don DeFore had a recurring role as the Nelsons' friendly neighbor "Thorny".

The Initiation

Seasons14

Season 2 Episodes39

Cast4

Discussion

Episode Summary