Dobie, dobie-doo

Now that I've defended the new (see below) I'll recall a little of the old on a slow holiday weekend. Happened to catch a couple Match Game episodes today with Dwayne Hickman of Dobie Gillis fame. For you young'uns out there, Dobie Gillis was a 1959-63 sitcom that anticipated some of today's dramedy efforts.

Dobie was a bemused teenager who, in Wikipedia's words, "aspired to have popularity, money, and the attention of beautiful and unattainable girls." Of course, these dreams were usually frustrated, and Dobie shared his grief with beatnik Maynard G. Krebs, played by real-life beatnik (right down to the drug busts) Bob Denver.

Hickman wasn't the best guest player on Match Game, but he managed a good line now and then. On one of today's eps he fired off "learner's permit" for something you wouldn't want to see in an airline pilot's pocket. After Dobie folded, Hickman's acting career stagnated. He eventually moved behind the camera as a director and a CBS programming exec.