Episode
Petticoat Junction: Birthplace of a Future President
Overview
Betty Jo's due date is fast approaching. Everyone is excited that another baby will being born in the valley and be delivered by Doc Stuart. Steve throws everyone for a loop when he announces that he wants the baby to be born in a fancy hospital that's far away. While Betty Jo would rather stay in Hooterville, she knows that Steve only wants what's best for her. The townsfolk see Betty Jo leaving as a slight on the valley and as such they decide to snub Betty Jo and Steve. Steve reconsiders when he sees Doc Stuart in action. Meanwhile, Wendell Gibbs, the new engineer of the Cannonball, is hoping people will start calling him "Cannonball".
Details
- Series
- Petticoat Junction
- Season
- Season 6
- Episode
- Episode 1
- Air date
- 1968-09-28
- Runtime
- 25 min
Episode context
Birthplace of a Future President is Episode 1 in Season 6 of Petticoat Junction. It aired on 1968-09-28. The runtime is 25 min.
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More episodes from this season
Episode 3: Only a Husband
Steve feels like he's playing second fiddle to his yet unborn child and that he is not needed. That feeling is fostered by Betty Jo focusing on issues around the baby instead of focusing on his needs. It doesn't help that others in the valley want to solely deal with Betty Jo in anything having to do with the baby. To get Steve out of feeling this way, Uncle Joe comes up with a plan for himself and Steve to "disappear". This is supposed to result in Betty Jo and the rest of the family being worried to death about where they are. But things don't go quite as planned.
Episode 4: The Valley Has a Baby
Betty Jo and Steve's baby is due anytime now. Steve thinks it's a good idea if they move back to the Shady Rest until the baby comes. Wendell has been on around the clock watch for the last week keeping the train engine stoked. But it's taking a toll on his body. Betty Jo is trying to hold off the baby's arrival as Billie Jo and Kate are out of town. When Betty Jo finally goes into labor, they can't wake Wendell up, so Betty Jo must work the Cannonball herself. Betty Jo has a baby girl and Billie Jo and Kate do make it back in time.
Episode 5: Granny, the Baby Expert
Betty Jo and the baby are coming home from the hospital. They'll be staying at the Shady Rest temporarily. Hearing that a doctor is coming from Beverly Hills, Billie Jo and Bobbie Jo are hoping that the doctor is a young, handsome, eligible bachelor. The doctor ends up being Granny, who is not what one would consider a traditional doctor. After losing her glasses, nearsighted Granny mistakes Dog for the baby. Granny prescribes a powerful homemade medicine to transform a dog-like baby into a baby-like baby. Steve gives the medicine to Dog. Granny gets her glasses back and when she is shown the baby, she believes she cured her.
Note: This episode concludes a crossover with The Beverly Hillbillies that began on "Granny Goes to Hooterville".
Episode 6: Wings
Gus Huffle, the owner of the Pixley Bijou movie theater, has decided to close due to lack of business. Sam says that a big part of the problem is that Richard Arlen and Charles 'Buddy' Rogers, who were supposed to come to the Bijou for the world premiere of their Academy Award-winning Wings (1927 film), decided instead to attend a premiere at the Roxy in New York City. Joe decides to write a nasty letter to Arlen and Rogers. After receiving the letter, Arlen and Rogers think that attending a world premiere of the movie at the Pixley Bijou - despite being forty years late - would be good publicity. When they arrive in Hooterville, the community pulls out all the stops, including a parade and musical performances.
Episode 7: The Lady Doctor
Doc Stuart surprises the people of the valley by announcing that he is going into semi-retirement. He will work part-time and is hiring a new associate. Doc Stuart is as surprised as anyone when Dr. Janet Craig arrives. Janet is as aware that it will be an uphill battle winning acceptance in this rural area. Indeed, those in the older generation are against a female doctor for several reasons. Joe comes up with a plan to get rid of Dr. Craig. But his plan isn't going to stop Janet from staying
Episode 8: The Sneaky Ways of a Woman Who is Both Beautiful and Smart
Joe continues his campaign to get Dr. Janet Craig to leave the valley. He concocts a plan with Sam and Wendell to give her the "old freeze". But Janet, who has every intention of staying, has ways of thawing the old freeze. Sam and Wendell quickly melt under Janet's charms. Joe, on the surface, is a slightly more difficult case. But Janet knows how to get to Joe and that way is through his stomach.
Episode 9: The Strange Case of Joseph P. Carson
Joe's campaign to get rid of Dr. Janet Craig continues when she opens her office just off the lobby of the Shady Rest. She and Doc Stuart are splitting up the patients in the valley based on location. This means that Joe will have to go to her if he gets sick. Uncle Joe fakes a strange illness, something that she can't diagnose, hoping no one will have any confidence in her. What Joe doesn't count on is that doctors talk to each other and Doc Stuart tells Janet that Joe is probably faking. But when Joe actually does gets sick, it's Dr. Craig to the rescue.
Episode 10: Bye, Bye, Doctor
Dennis Roberts, a friend of Janet's, arrives in the valley. Janet seems happy to see him, but is somewhat nervous about his visit. She knows he is there to ask her to marry him, and she is not sure how she'll answer him. If she says yes, it means she will be leaving the valley. No one wants to see Janet leave and they try to come up with a plan to make her stay. In the end, they decide to just tell her how they feel.
Episode 11: First Night Out
Steve wants to take Betty Jo out on the town, but Betty Jo doesn't want to leave the baby with sitters. Dr. Craig says that she, Uncle Joe and Bobbie Jo can look after Kathy Jo at the hotel. Betty Jo reluctantly agrees but all night all she can think of is Kathy Jo. Meanwhile back at the hotel, Bobbie Jo is the first to leave on a date she forgot about. Then Janet has to go on a medical emergency, leaving Uncle Joe alone to look after the baby. Trouble starts when a friendly poker game, Brisbane Snead, the editor of the Pixley newspaper, and the Pixley Sheriff are thrown into the mix. Janet finds a way to get Joe and the baby out of jail before Steve and Betty Jo get home.
Episode 12: A Cake from Granny
The Cannonball's arch enemy, Homer Bedloe, has arrived in the valley. All he seems to be doing is riding the train. Sam and Joe learn that Bedloe is watching Wendell's performance to use as an excuse to scrap the Cannonball in favor of a bus service for the valley. That would put the Shady Rest out of business as there is no road that goes by the hotel. Janet comes up with the idea to use kindness in dealing with Bedloe's mean ways. They decide to throw Bedloe a birthday party. A cake sent from Granny to the Elliotts ends up playing a part in Janet's plan. Charles Lane's final appearance as Homer Bedloe ends on a happy note, with him finally giving up his quest to shut down the Cannonball.