Episode
Petticoat Junction: For the Birds
Overview
The Cannonball has temporarily ceased operations. The reason is a bird has built a nest on top of the smokestack and has laid five eggs. Charley and Floyd refuse to move the train until the eggs have hatched. They figure it will be two weeks before they hatch. When Homer Bedloe hears of this news, he is all in support of what Charley and Floyd are doing, he even puts an article in the paper about it. But he has a reason why he wants to help the birds: If the train doesn't run for two weeks, he can shut it down permanently. Homer shows up at the hotel and Kate is suspicious of his motives. Billie Jo and Betty Jo overhear Homer's plan and tell Kate. Kate comes up with a plan to save both the Cannonball and the birds.
Details
- Series
- Petticoat Junction
- Season
- Season 2
- Episode
- Episode 20
- Air date
- 1965-02-23
- Runtime
- 25 min
Episode context
For the Birds is Episode 20 in Season 2 of Petticoat Junction. It aired on 1965-02-23. The runtime is 25 min.
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Episode 19: Hooterville Crime Wave
Convicts Barney Dawson and Max James have escaped from the state penitentiary. Meanwhile, Uncle Joe, a member of the CIA (Criminal Investigators' Alliance), accuses Sam of running a lax and inefficient post office. Joe believes that if Sam posted photos of some criminals, he could capture them for the reward money. Sgt. Horton from the state police comes by and tells them about Barney and Max being in the area. Joe asks if there's any reward for them and he is told no. Later that evening, Barney and Max show up at the hotel. Because of Dog, Sam and Sgt. Horton arrive and the convicts are caught.
Episode 21: Modern Merchandising
O'Donnel's, a new supermarket, has just opened in Pixley. Sam hasn't had a customer since it opened. Even Uncle Joe goes to O'Donnel's to check it out. While there, Joe manages to annoy Mr. O'Donnel. Kate and the girls are still loyal customers of Sam's. Sam starts to have anxiety attacks and doesn't recognize Kate and Betty Joe. Kate and Doc Stuart convince Sam to take a two week vacation. Kate and the girls agree to look after the store for him. They decide to reorganize the store. Kate briefly leaves Joe in charge of the store and he puts in an overly large grocery order. This could cause irreparable damage to both the store's financial health and Sam and Kate's sanity.
More episodes from this season
Episode 18: Kate Bradley, Girl Volunteer
Volunteer fire chief Uncle Joe has designed a new nighttime alarm system. When a valley resident sets off a skyrocket in the event of a fire, a volunteer will fire off a cannon. But there soon is opposition to Joe's plan because, even though the canon fires blanks, things still get damaged. A fire breaks out on the Cannonball. Because Joe has all the fire equipment at the Shady Rest, Sam has to call the Crabwell Corners Volunteer Fire Department. Joe challenges Bink Sharfells, Crabwell Corners Fire Chief, to see which volunteer fire department is the best. When none of Hooterville's firefighters want to accept the challenge, it looks like Joe will lose by default. Kate and the girls offer to help. The contest winds up a tie. Joe suggests a game of checkers to break the tie. Bink loses the game to Dog.
Episode 22: Visit From the Governor
The Governor announces that he will make a grassroots tour of the state. Uncle Joe is excited by the news, but no one else seems to care. The Governor has not announced his itinerary, but he is welcoming invitations from interested communities. Joe hopes to be able to advertise that the Governor slept at the Shady Rest. Joe says he sent an invitation and believes that the Governor is coming to Hooterville. Joe has a hard time organizing a welcoming as everyone is still not that excited. When the Cannonball arrives, there is no Governor. Turns out Joe forgot to mail the invite
Episode 17: A Matter of Communication
The girls are upset that they don't have a telephone at the hotel. They can't communicate with their friends and are social outcasts. Kate says it would cost $800 for the telephone company to install two miles of line just to get to the hotel. The girls have to get their calls at Drucker's Store and it's starting to disrupt his business. Sam refuses to take any more calls for them. Uncle Joe decides to start his own telephone company. He plans on using the barbed wire fencing surrounding all the local farms as the primary communication lines. He also plans to tap illegally into the Hooterville Telephone Company's line, but Sam doesn't let him. Joe comes up with a really complicated alternative. It's not long before the whole plan falls apart.
Episode 23: A Borderline Story
Uncle Joe sees some surveyors down by the railroad tracks next to the hotel. He mistakenly believes that a new road is going to be built there. Kate learns from surveyor Ralph Craig that the last survey done twenty-five years ago was incorrect. The new survey shows that the border between Hooterville County and Pixley County runs right through the Shady Rest. Joe and Kate find out there's money to be made from curiosity seekers. Mr. Travis, from the Pixley License Division, tells Kate there's a lot of red tape in operating a business in two counties. Licenses and fees required could cost her in the thousands. Mr. Lindley, from the Health Dept., also finds costly problems. Mr. Dixon, from the Pixley Building Dept., finds more issues. Kate comes up with a permanent solution with the help of the Cannonball.
Episode 16: Billie Jo's First Job
Billie Jo wins a contest at secretarial school and is offered her first job. She will be private secretary to author Oliver Fenton. World traveling Fenton is coming to Hooterville because his next book is based in a small town. He has rented one of the houses in town. Selma tells Kate that Fenton writes "those kind of books". After reading one of Fenton's books, Kate tells Billie Jo that she can't work for him. Uncle Joe tells Kate she has to trust Billie Jo. When Billie Jo meets Fenton, she finds him to be a graying old man. She now knows that her mother's worries are ill-founded. After Kate sends some spies to check on her, Billie Jo decides to have a little fun and test just how much her mother does truly trust her. Kate goes to confront Fenton and realizes Billie Jo was playing games with her.
Episode 24: The Shady Rest Hotel Corporation
Uncle Joe mentions investing in the stock market and Kate reminds him about the bad stock he had her invest in once before. Meanwhile, the hot water heater in the hotel springs a leak. They'll need to buy a new one. Joe suggests selling stock in the Shady Rest Hotel Corporation to pay for it. Sam is willing to sell Kate a heater at cost for $97.50. Kate doesn't have that much. She also gets turned down for a loan at the Pixley Bank. Joe sells stock to Sam, Charley and Floyd to cover the cost of the water heater. They do this because they know Kate wouldn't accept a loan from them. Kate is not happy and still considers it charity. She comes up with a plan to teach Joe a lesson. Mr. Guerney, from the bank, brings Kate some good news.
Episode 15: There's No Flame Like an Old Flame
Uncle Joe has been receiving and sending what appears to be love letters. Kate eventually learns that Joe is writing to Mary Alice Perkins. Kate is upset because Mary Alice stood Joe up at the altar several years ago and ran off with his best man, George Perkins. Joe tells Kate that George has passed away. He also admits he never loved anyone but her, and that he has now forgiven her. It seems she is coming to the Shady Rest to marry Joe. When Mary Alice arrives, Kate is put off by her snobbish ways and meddling. Boo Boo Webster, Mary Alice's lawyer, shows up to give the bride away. As the wedding starts, Dog brings Joe a letter that says Mary Alice has run off with Boo Boo. Everyone is kind of relieved, including Joe.
Episode 25: A Tale of Two Dogs
Crabwell Corners is suing the Town of Hooterville for possession of a Spanish-American War cannon. Crabwell Corners feels it is rightly theirs. Meanwhile, Tad Winslow of Crabwell Corners challenges his lazy dog, a blood hound named Speedy, against Betty Jo's dog in an obedience contest. If Tad wins, Betty Jo has to get Billie Jo to go with him to the upcoming Pioneer Dance. Betty Jo finds out that Billie Jo already has a date with her steady, Henry Brewster. Kate and Uncle Joe want to speak to the Winslows to call off the bet. But things intensify, with now the winner getting either the Crabwell Corners' fire engine or the Spanish-American War cannon. To make matters worse, Kate and Joe find out that Speedy isn't Tad's dog after all. Tad has a well trained German Shepherd. The day of the contest arrives. The score is close, but Dog pulls a trick of his own and wins.
Episode 14: The Curse of Chester W. Farnsworth
Mr. Richardson is a guest at the hotel. Uncle Joe tells him about the curse of Chester W. Farnsworth, a guest at the hotel fifty years ago. He was a traveling drummer and notorious hotel towel thief. Since then, Chester has been haunting all the hotels that he stole towels from. He has to return them all before he can end up in his final resting place. Joe figures it won't be long before Chester visits the Shady Rest. After Joe tells the story, strange events start to occur. Kate finds out that a bunch of salesmen who were supposed to be guests won't be returning until the curse has been lifted. When more strange things occur, Kate decides to talk to Doc Stuart. He recommends speaking with Dr. Melman, a psychiatrist and an expert is paranormal events. Something happens to make everyone believe that Chester arrived and the curse has been lifted. But did he actually show up?
Episode 26: The Black Box
Kate's spring cleaning coincides with the US Air Force doing maneuvers over the valley. Part of those maneuvers includes testing out a new high powered camera. It looks like an ordinary black box with wires coming out of it and is set to explode twelve hours after any unauthorized removal from the plane. Colonel Millbank, who is flying the aircraft, accidentally loses the camera. It winds up landing on the Shady Rest property. Joe finds it and thinking it might be valuable, brings to the hotel. But as often as Kate and the girls try to get rid of it, Dog keeps bringing it back. General Elmer Loomis and Millbank make it to Hooterville. With little time to spare, they get to the hotel and start searching for the box. Dog brings them the box with no time left. However, the box winds up being a dud and doesn't explode