The Man on the Second Floor - Production & Contact Info (original) (raw)

This one features Howie, (Michael Burns), as he gets caught up in a tug of war between Mr. Stott (Harry Hervey Sr.) who runs the gas station and Mr. Lowell (Charles P. Thompson, who is memorable as the elderly bank guard on The Andy ...See moreThis one features Howie, (Michael Burns), as he gets caught up in a tug of war between Mr. Stott (Harry Hervey Sr.) who runs the gas station and Mr. Lowell (Charles P. Thompson, who is memorable as the elderly bank guard on The Andy Griffith Show), a insurance agent, both of whom want him to work for them. The climax is a moving evocation of the difficulty of men facing retirement and marginalization. There's also some nice horseplay between Wes, Tom-Tom and Vern at the end. It's a fine episode, but it probably highlights another reason the series didn't succeed. When the series shifts away from the three older leads to Howie, it changes tone dramatically. Certainly Howie is a part of the dramatic mix, but if the series had simply been about the three, older leads, it might have had a better chance at success. Written by The Mystic Hedgehog See less