MovieChat Forums > Rhoda (1974) Discussion > What Was Wrong with Sally Gallagher

What Was Wrong with Sally Gallagher

posted 6 years ago by [email protected] (5926)
4 replies | jump to latest

I always like Anne Meara. I enjoyed her comedy routines with her husband Jerry Stiller. So I couldn't remember why I didn't like her as Rhoda's friend Sally Gallagher.

Well, I just bought season three and I watched the episodes with Sally. She was TOO much like Rhoda. Both women were street smart and cynical. Both had failed marriages. Both women loved to joke their way through their pain. Ever other quip was a wisecrack.

Rhoda needed someone more like Mary as a best friend. The writers were probably reticent about creating a Mary Richards clone. But Rhoda had undeniable chemistry with Mary, yet they were so different.

I think Rhoda needed someone different to play off of. Sally and Rhoda together seemed like a wisecracking marathon.

Too bad they dropped Rhoda's friend Susie (the perpetually pregnant one!). They could have mined a lot more comedy out of that relationship.

[–] ProductionNow (1072) 6 years ago

Could not stand Susie (as played by Beverly Sanders, a good actress, otherwise). There was always the wisecrack with her too,: "the poor housewife who gets pregnant"; "the husband who doesn't notice", etc. Barbra Sharma was the best/funniest of all the potential ones--maybe too funny.

[–] [email protected] (5926) 6 years ago

I liked Beverly Sanders in a lot of the shows that she was in. She played a waitress in an episode of The MTM show. I completely forgot that she was in a later episode (when Rhoda moves to the smaller apartment). Rhoda, Susie and Brenda had a slumber party. In that episode she stopped at her OB-GYN for a pregnancy test on her way to Rhoda's place. Turned out she was expecting number 7.
As far as Arthur being "the husband who doesn't notice". he must've noticed her once in a while. lol But now that you mention it, Barbara Sharma was very funny. I also liked Joe's partner Justin. But when Rhoda and Joe separated and Rhoda gave up her business, the writers got rid of those characters.

I recently watched the episode when Rhoda and Joe called off "in love" and didn't go into work. Justin and Myra get tired of carrying the workload and come by to "guilt" the lovebirds into getting back to their jobs. It's a very funny scene. Do you remember it?

Barbara Sharma also had a very funny turn as a waitress in an MTM episode. She's totally inept and Mary accidentally gets her fired. Feeling guilty, Mary gets her a job in the newsroom and she is just as inept there.

[–] ProductionNow (1072) 6 years ago

It was Sander's character that I didn't like, rather a one-tone character as I recall due to the writing, and her sing-song line delivery to be funny (or maybe I did not see Sander's best scenes.)

With Barbara Sharma, I thought she was a scene-stealer on the MTM waitress episode--but Moore was not yet at her prime with her comedic talent. Sharma (originally on Laugh-In) should had been the "One Day at a Time" lead.

I don't recall the episode when Rhoda and Joe called off "in love" and didn't go into work, though I wasn't that fond of the entire series to watch every week. For me, the characters just didn't have the appeal (or vulnerability) that the MTM show had, with exceptions. Ironically, the episodes I liked the best were the ones with guest-stars--like Mary Tyler Moore, herself.

Just as important, I think it was that they didn't give them time to grow on you. Some of the MTM show characters had to grow on me before I looked forward to watching them.

[–] bistritapcv (1850) 4 years ago

Her husband on the show (the pilot) was her real husband btw. I think he was also on Seinfeld later.