The Real McCoys: Complete Season 1

If you grew up with The Real McCoys (1957-63), then hearing the clang of the mealtime triangle that opens each episode here will instantly evoke a “come and get it” sense of nostalgia. This groundbreaking series not only ushered in the so-called “rural revolution” (opening the door for The Andy Griffith Show, The Beverly Hillbillies, and Petticoat Junction), but also brought venerable character actor and three-time Oscar-winner Walter Brennan into our homes on a weekly basis as Grandpa, “the oldest living real McCoy,” who joins his grandson Luke (Richard Crenna), Luke's new wife Kate (Kathy Nolan) and Luke's younger siblings, 11-year-old Little Luke (Michael Winkelman), and teenage Hassie (Lydia Reed), as they pull up stakes in West Virginia and head for the ranch they've inherited in California's San Fernando Valley. The 30 episodes compiled on this 1957-58 first season extra-less boxed set mine rich and well-written character-based comedy in the family's adjustment to their new lives. The children aren't used to separate bedrooms (“Ain't we a family no more?”). Grandpa butts heads with his neighbors (with most people, actually), and—initially—has no use for Kate, whom he dismisses as “a useless, skinny woman past twenty.” His attitudes about women and child discipline are decidedly un-PC (when's the last time you saw a child spanked on television?). But he is redeemed by his steadfast belief in the Golden Rule, which serves him well in one episode in which he considers cheating another man who wants to buy a piece of their land. Sticklers should be forewarned that the episodes here are apparently edited syndicated versions, but that shouldn't stop many viewers from wanting to be reunited with the McCoy clan. Recommended. (D. Liebenson)