Watch the television series The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet: Season 1 and 2 as four-DVD sets from MPI Media Group. The collections contain 39 episodes, representing the complete first two seasons, 78 episodes.
The TV series was a long-running sitcom ranked high on some of the top lists of television. MPI Media Group has restored the entire library of The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet from the original 35mm picture and sound elements in association with the UCLA Film & Television Archive, which preserves the aspects on behalf of the Nelson family.
The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet lasted 14 record-breaking seasons, totaling 435 episodes. It aired on ABC-TV from 1952 through 1966 as a positive, wholesome series epitomizing an idyllic American 1950s lifestyle.
Its gentle humor came to the screen through the real-life Nelson family, which included Ozzie and his wife Harriet with their sons, David and Rick. They portrayed themselves in a trendsetting blend of fact-meets-fiction comedy decades before semi-reality-based shows like Seinfeld.
The series humorously chronicled the daily lives of the Nelsons as David and Ricky grew up before millions of weekly viewers. Besides Ozzie Nelson being a real-life bandleader and Harriet Nelson, a singer, the series would help launch the musical career of their younger son, Ricky, who would become a teen idol with such enduring hits as “Travelin’ Man” and “Hello Mary Lou.”
The longest-running live-action sitcom in U.S. television history until It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia surpassed it on December 1, 2021, when the FXX series debuted its 15th season.
Still, Ozzie and Harriet hold the record for most episodes produced, totaling 435. Among its Emmy nominations and many other accolades, TV Guide placed Ozzie Nelson at number 21 on its list of “50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time.” Others on the list include Andy Taylor, Ben Cartwright and Steve Douglas.
And now, for the very first time, in association with the Nelson family, the entire series arrives digitally restored for its 70th Anniversary with complete episodes from the original film negatives for superior picture quality.
Viewing these restored episodes, I am amazed by the picture and sound quality.
I watched season one, which contains all 39 complete, fun-filled episodes on four DVDs, starting with the premiere show and other rare adventures not seen on television in decades. The humor seems dated, but it’s clean and trouble-free.
I saw Don DeFore (Hazel) as Ozzie’s neighbor, pal Thorny. Others included guest stars from classic television and films, including Hal Smith (The Andy Griffith Show), Ellen Corby (The Waltons), Janet Waldo (The Jetsons), Joseph Kearns (Dennis the Menace), Frank Nelson (I Love Lucy) and other familiar faces.
Season two also contains 39 episodes — with more lost moments appearing for the first time since broadcast initially — on four discs and features such guest stars as Frank Cady (Petticoat Junction), John Carradine (The Munsters) and Lurene Tuttle (Psycho).
It’s hard to believe Ozzie and Harriet started visiting us on television in 1952, making this vintage series binge-worthy