Home > Comedy TV Show > My World and Welcome to It

My World and Welcome to It

1969

Seasons & Episodes

  • 1

EP1 Man Against the World (Pilot) Sep 15, 1969

When Lydia complains to her father about the dullness of her history lesson at school, John tells her his own version of the story of Generals Grant and Lee at Appomattox, a version that plays fast and loose with the facts. After Lydia repeats John's fanciful take on the story in class, her beautiful teacher pays John a visit at home.

EP2 The Disenchanted Sep 22, 1969

When the noise from the freight elevator beside his office becomes intolerable, John decides to try working at home, only to be confronted by Lydia, who is unhappy with her seat at school. She decides to run away into Manhattan to stay with her bohemian Aunt Kate--accompanied by her worried father.

EP3 Little Girls Are Sugar & Spice - And Not Always Nice! Sep 29, 1969

In order to get closer to her father, with whom she seems to share little in common, Lydia learns how to play chess from her mother and begins seriously beating John at the game. He enlists the help of Oscar, a chess expert who works at The Manhattanite, to beat her, but to no avail. So John imagines the results of three increasingly bizarre plans to win out over his daughter.

EP4 Christabel Oct 06, 1969

John has dog problems with just about everyone: Greeley, over a magazine piece about his childhood family pet who bit people; Ellen, who makes him sleep on the couch after an argument about animals' eyes; and Lydia, who wants a new puppy. Then Christabel, the family's ancient poodle, becomes ill, and everyone seems to hold John at fault.

EP5 The Night the House Caught Fire Oct 13, 1969

When Lydia comes down with a bad cold, John takes the opportunity to try to show her that people with vivid imaginations are better off than those who approach life from a more ""realistic"" point of view. The story of ""The Unicorn in the Garden"" doesn't seem to work, so John relates the story of his great-grandfather, who not only was a prolific storyteller but managed to get the fire department called out when he was trying to attend to young John's sniffles.

EP6 The Ghost and Mr. Monroe Oct 20, 1969

After Greeley once again fails to understand the humor in one of John's cartoons, John quits his job with The Manhattanite and returns home, where he begins to wonder what he'll do for money now. He settles on playing the stock market and fantasizes about a meeting with J.P. Morgan.

EP7 Nobody Ever Kills Dragons Anymore Oct 27, 1969

John, finding himself bothered by the ordinariness of his life, fantasizes about being involved in a tale of espionage involving pickle forks and a malevolent dragon.

EP8 Seal in the Bedroom Nov 03, 1969

Greeley rejects yet another of John's cartoons which he doesn't understand, one involving a seal in the bedroom of a married couple. Ellen and Lydia agree with Greeley, and when John tells Phil about his problem, Phil suggests the seal might represent John's mother who is visiting the Monroes. Naturally this provokes a fantasy in which John's mother, who showed up at the house wearing a sealskin coat, actually becomes a seal.

EP9 The Saga of Dimity Ann Nov 10, 1969

After being bitten by the family cat, Dimity Ann, John takes her away and leaves her in a new housing developement. Lydia believes the cat ran away because of a dislike for her, while Ellen's suspicions come nearer the truth. John fantasizes about being on trial before a real judge for his ""crime.""

EP10 A Friend of the Earth Nov 17, 1969

The Monroe's new neighbor, Paul Morton, who is also a cartoonist, challenges John's more sophisticated humor by pitting him against the town's answer to Will Rogers, Zeph Leggin. To John's distress, Ellen and Lydia are taken with Zeph's more rustic humor, and even in his fantasy world John has trouble winning out.

EP11 Maid in Connecticut Nov 24, 1969

The Monroes have a new maid who for some reason has a phobia about modern appliances, and Ellen tells John to be kind to her and keep up appearances while she's away. But the maid finds John, who is working in the attic, as distracting as the appliances.

EP12 Native Wit Dec 01, 1969

John finally manages to get his revenge on Zeph Leggin by studying old jokes and using them to defeat the local humorist in a battle of wit. So Zeph decides it's time to move away from the Connecticut village, and a guilty John feels compelled to convince him to remain.

EP13 The Shrike and the Chipmunks Dec 08, 1969

When Greeley decides to dedicate an entire issue of The Manhattanite to children's book author George Lindsay Lockhart, John, who despises people who write for children, is outraged--even more when he discovers that Greeley will be staying in his house as they collaborate. John's ire is raised even more when Ellen and Lydia take a liking to Lockhart. But when the two men start working together, John discovers Lockhart isn't quite the saccharine, optimistic soul he had expected.

EP14 Rally Round the Flag Dec 15, 1969

Frustrated while trying to buy a Christmas present for Lydia, John makes the unfortunate choice of an American flag as her gift. Lydia is not pleased, and when the people in the neighborhood learn of John's inappropriate gift, a group of them show up at the Monroe's accusing him of having his holidays confused.

EP15 The War Between Men and Women Dec 22, 1969

During a sixteenth anniversary party for the Jensens at the Monroe's house, Phil loses his temper when his wife Ruth interrupts one of his stories, and when he accidentally spills a martini on her, war is declared. After a skirmish in the grocery store, battle lines are drawn and Ruth throws Phil out of their house, which causes the men, including Hamilton Greeley and a fellow writer named J.J. Howard, to gather at a bar and decide how to prevail.

EP16 The Mating Dance Dec 29, 1969

Lydia is supposed to go to a dance with a boy named Elbert, but when a bully beats him up and insists that Lydia go to the dance with him, John takes the side of the underdog and tries to talk Elbert into retaliating.

EP17 Darn that Dream Jan 05, 1970

Lydia is concerned about nightmares, so John tells stories about his family during his childhood in Columbus, Ohio. He recalls several eccentric relatives, including his Aunt Hester, who was so afraid of burglers that she put her household good outside her bedroom door every night so no one would break in to steal them.

EP18 The Human Being and the Dinosaur Jan 12, 1970

When a neighborhood boy tries to tell Lydia about the facts of life, she responds by punching him in the mouth. While Ellen is mostly concerned that Lydia has given the boy a loose tooth, John attempts to discuss the concepts of inferiority and superiority with his daughter

EP19 Dear Is a Four-Letter Word Jan 19, 1970

When both Ellen and Lydia's teacher Miss Skidmore agree that John's cartoons are causing his daughter acute embarrassment, John goes to the school and ends up in the office of the principal, who John imagines as a Nazi out of a World War II melodrama.

EP20 The Middle Years Jan 26, 1970

When Ellen and Lydia go on an overnight trip, leaving John home alone, he finds himself interrupted in his work by a pair of movers and goes into a fantasy concerning him and his beautiful new neighbor.

EP21 Rules for a Happy Marriage Feb 02, 1970

John suggests The Manhattanite use marriage as the theme of its anniversary issue, and he has his own ideas on the subject. After he elaborates on his thoughts on marriage, including the tendency of wives to tardiness, he ends up being late for a lunch date with Ellen.

EP22 The Wooing of Mr. Monroe Feb 09, 1970

When John begins collaborating on a book with a female writer, Ellen suspects he may really be having an affair instead.

EP23 The Mea Culpit Bit Feb 16, 1970

John is suffering from cartoonist's block, making him irritable at work and then later at home. In his frustration he chases Lydia out of his study, causing her to fall and accidentally break her arm. Everyone seems to want to take the blame for Lydia's injury, and Ellen thinks she has a solution, at least to John's feelings of guilt.

EP24 The Fourth Estate Feb 23, 1970

John once again has to deal with rejection, not only by Greeley, who can't find the humor in one of John's cartoons, but by the young editor of Lydia's sixth-grade school newspaper. John is upset by this double rejection, but his attempts to plead his case don't go the way he wants.

EP25 Monroe the Mysogynist Mar 02, 1970

After both Ellen and Greeley accuse John of hating women, John becomes unable to think of any other kinds of cartoons to meet his deadline than ones which back up their accusations.

EP26 Child's Play Mar 06, 1970

When Phil gives in to his son's wishes because of feelings of guilt, John chastises him for being weak, but when John himself misses a picnic he'd planned to take with Lydia, he imagines the negative consequences of his forgetfulness by conjuring up three possible Lydias of the future, none of them better off for his neglect.
8.5| 0h30m| NR| en
Synopsis

My World and Welcome to It is an American half-hour television sitcom based on the humor and cartoons of James Thurber. It starred William Windom as John Monroe, a Thurber-like writer and cartoonist who works for a magazine closely resembling The New Yorker called The Manhattanite. Wry, fanciful and curmudgeonly, Monroe observes and comments on life, to the bemusement of his rather sensible wife Ellen and intelligent, questioning daughter Lydia. Monroe's frequent daydreams and fantasies are usually based on Thurber material. My World — And Welcome To It is the name of a book of illustrated stories and essays, also by James Thurber. The series ran one season on NBC 1969-1970. It was created by Mel Shavelson, who wrote and directed the pilot episode and was one of the show's principal writers. Sheldon Leonard was executive producer. The show's producer, Danny Arnold, co-wrote or directed numerous episodes, and even appeared as Santa Claus in "Rally Round the Flag."

Director

Producted By

Sheldon Leonard Productions

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Trailers & Clips

Also starring Joan Hotchkis

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My World and Welcome to It
My World and Welcome to It

Reviews

Moustroll Good movie but grossly overrated
Pacionsbo Absolutely Fantastic
AshUnow This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.
Freeman This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.
markkurtz This show has been in the back of my mind for years.... 35 years I guess. I was in high school when it aired and it is one of the few shows that I remember so well considering it aired for such a short time. It truly was not what the average American TV watcher could appreciate and so is really no surprise that it didn't last. It's short run is a sad, all be it realistic commentary on American taste in art.It was my introduction to James Thurber (some good things do come from television) and William Windom. His brilliance as an actor was at its zenith with this show. It's the kind of stuff that William Windom was supposed to do. Many times over the years I have found myself, when someone comments on the odd circumstance that I've somehow found myself in, uttering the phrase "my world... and welcome to it".I would give anything to see one of those shows again - PBS would be the perfect place for it. Todd Victor Leone's description and commentary is absolutely right on and brought back so many memories and reminded me of details I had long forgotten - thank you!
vccannon82 "My World and Welcome to It" was the title of a piece that James Thurber wrote for the New Yorker and the title of a collection of some of his humor pieces. It included one of his most famous short stories, "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty," which was made into a film starring Danny Kaye. The TV show, My World and... took this Walter Mitty idea and applied it to the main character, a writer and cartoonist. I remember that they used Thurber's own very distinctive drawings in the show. I don't know to what extent they used his writing...It is hard to imagine how famous Thurber was from the late thirties through the fifties (he died in 1961). There was a Broadway review of his work (The Thurber Carnival), at least one movie, several best sellers, and kudos from some of the world's most famous artists. His drawings were as instantly recognizable as Charles Schultz's were in the sixties and seventies.Sadly, by the time the TV show aired, only adults knew who he was and the show tanked pretty quickly. I still read Thurber and laugh out loud. James Thurber, although no longer famous, has a place beside Twain, Benchley, and Heller as one of America's finest humorous men of letters. Check him out.
LadyDorHawkelle I was only 3 when I watched this according to the air date...wow! I remember it fondly and for a long time wondered if it was a product of my imagination. Mostly I remembered William Windom and the interspersed drawn segments, then the girl who played his daughter (I think....memory is funny that way, and I was only 3). Can anyone tell me if this show is available on DVD or anything? I would LOVE to see it again.I really hope it is. So rarely these days do I remember a show so fondly. From what I do remember, this is/was a definite one of a kind show. William Windom was also an excellent actor in this show too, he has to have been...since he was burned into my memory at such a young age. Thankfully it was his appearance as Woody on a rerun of Mama's Family that jogged my mind and made me rush to IMDb to see if he was listed. Thanks to this wonderful site I now know I didn't make it all up...and my memory isn't THAT bad.
sgoering I, like Joe, was very young when this show was on (5), but it stuck in my mind too. It was an "introduction" to Thurber before I even knew who Thurber was. Seeing William Windom, Lisa Geritsen (in "Phyllis"), or any Thurber cartoon reminded me of the show for years afterward.Kudos to IMDB for providing so many trips down memory lane.

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