It's hard to believe that it's been over thirty years since producer Norman Lear broke new TV ground again with the smash hit sitcom One Day at a Time. Having busted down the doors of TV censorship with shows like All in the Family and Maude, Lear moved on to detailing a social phenomenon that had been going on for years prior to One Day at a Time's 1975 debut, but which had largely been kept off the national airways: liberated, single moms bringing up their families without the an overriding, guiding male influence. Telling the story of newly divorced Ann Romano and her efforts to raise her two teenaged daughters, while navigating the choppy waters of the work force and the dating scene, One Day at a Time really hit home with 1970s viewers who were newly receptive to TV series - even comedies - being socially relevant. Seen today, it may be hard for new viewers to realize that this lively, energetic sitcom, even with all the silliness of macho man building superintendent Dwayne Schneider's one-liners, was quite a departure from the usual network TV comedy of motherhood and families, and went a long way towards changing the face of television for women.

This first season sets the stage by introducing us to Ann Romano (Bonnie Franklin), a slightly crazed, deeply passionate 34-year-old mother who's coming out of a 17 year marriage. As she states in the first episode, the first 17 years of her life, her father made all her decisions, followed by her controlling husband for the next 17 years. Determined to grow as a person, Ann packs up her two teenaged daughters and moves to an urban apartment building in Indianapolis, Indiana (a smart choice by the producers -- if it's happening in Indiana, it's happening all over the country). It's not going to be easy for her. Her 16-year-old daughter Julie (Mackenzie Phillips) is an emotional, high-strung, head-strong handful who constantly bickers and fights with Ann's 13-year-old daughter Barbara (Valerie Bertinelli), the "good" daughter who plays basketball and who often acts as a buffer between Ann and Julie.

Ann, who believes she must make it on her own in all ways, is in constant flux with her on-again, off-again boyfriend, David Kane (Richard Masur), her upstairs neighbor and the lawyer that handled her divorce. David, several years younger than Ann, deeply loves her, but his inability to understand that his smothering, protective love is exactly what made Ann leave her husband, is driving Ann away, as well. Ann, who keeps David at arms length for most of this season, finally admits that she loves David, but it's clear that the relationship is on her terms, not his. His efforts to pay her bills, buy food for her (inflation was a nasty truth in 1975), and his constant marriage proposals, meet with Ann's rejection at every turn. Or at least, she believes that they should. Part of the smart writing in this first season of One Day at a Time is that Ann is far from an ideological shrew. When David offers help talking to the girls about their troubles, she takes it - if her efforts have failed. If she needs David's legal expertise, as in the classic episode where Ann is accused of plotting against the President, she's not stupid; she asks for help. And when David, after chasing Ann for months, finds sexual release with a glamorous neighbor, Ann is quite hypocritically jealous - and she realizes it.

But as Bonnie Franklin rightly observes in a fun bonus feature on this DVD box set, Norman Lear was wise to keep the serious ideas firmly rooted in entertaining, comedic situations (something One Day at a Time wouldn't always do in later seasons during its long nine year run). And much of the comedy this first season would come from the show's breakout character, Dwayne F. Schneider (Pat Harrington, Jr.). Schneider, the lecherous, nosey building super, started off strictly as a supporting character who provided some big laughs peppered throughout each episode. But he quickly grew to a central, almost paternal character in later seasons (a development that some felt compromised, to some extent, the original intent of the series). The John Wayne-worshiping, tool belt and flared bell bottom-wearing super, with the pencil thin mustache and the pack of cigarettes rolled up in his t-shirt sleeve, became a dependable laugh getter with his patented shtick of letting himself into Ann's apartment with his pass key, unannounced, and diving right into the conversation of the stunned occupants.

And that's it for this first season of One Day at a Time. It's a clean, neatly executed start to a series that over its long run, would get increasingly messy with myriad supporting players (a lot of boyfriends for Ann and the girls). I think most fans of the show would agree that these first few seasons were the best, because the focus stayed firmly on this tight family unit. And it was a new type of family unit for the Nielsen ratings. It may have not been the first show to feature a divorced woman, but it was definitely the most successful show to feature a divorced mother raising children that had no dominant male influence in the family dynamic. Quite often, the producers and writers of this first season of One Day at a Time cleverly play on the audience's expectations that Ann's troubles will be solved by David, or Dwayne, or even her ex-husband, who shows up in the season's final two episodes, only to have those audience expectations nicely tweaked by Ann reasserting her desire to run her own life, her way. This kind of mother just wasn't seen on TV before (Maude was liberated to be sure, but she was married, and she sat when Walter told her to - something Ann Romano would never have done for any man).

Certainly, the success of this first season lies within the terrific chemistry between the cast members. Bertinelli, given a marginal presence this season, doesn't need to do much to be believable as a relatively normal young teenager. Her only big plotline this season involves her getting drunk at a high school party, and she handles it well. Masur has a difficult role in David Kane. He has to be charming and intelligent enough for you to believe that Ann would be interested in him, but not overwhelming so as break Ann's resolve immediately. Masur knows his way around a one-liner, and he's a good match for Franklin's peripatetic mannerisms. Phillips confirms the promise she showed in George Lucas' American Graffiti, making Julie more than just an emotionally hair-triggered teenager, but a real teenaged girl with confusing emotions that seem to tear her apart at every turn. She's an excellent comedienne, too; her stint as a waitress in a crummy greasy spoon shows off her almost-ad-libs quite well. Harrington, of course, is an old pro, and he effortlessly makes Schneider, who could have come off as an obnoxious pervert (he even sneaks in once to go through Ann's mail!), a sympathetic, personable comedic relief - while scoring the show's biggest laughs.

As for Franklin, a Tony Award-nominated stage actress, I think she's an acquired taste. At first, her exaggerated mannerisms and spunkiness-to-the-point-of-nausea can be grating, with a self-satisfied intensity that can be a little much. But after the first couple of episodes, she grows on you, because regardless of whether or not you particularly like the way she approaches the character, Franklin is 100% there in the moment. Often, a scene will play out, and the audience thinks it's ahead of the game, when suddenly, the camera cuts to Franklin who's really in tears, caught up in the scene. It can be a rather startling emotional moment - it can even make you a little uncomfortable - and that's when you realize that regardless of what silliness she may have just engaged in with Schneider, she's totally immersed in the character, and giving it 100%. She's not coasting; she's really living this part, playing it for smarts and for emotion. And for what many saw as just another TV comedy, that's quite an accomplishment for the enormously talented Franklin. You can understand why David and Schneider and all the other men she meets would be so besotted with her.

There are problems with One Day at a Time, though. Chief among them is perhaps the most annoying laugh track ever slapped on a TV sitcom. As I've written before, I'm not arbitrarily against a sitcom using a laugh track; used judiciously and wisely, I don't find it offensive. But with One Day at a Time, and other shows like it that were coming up during the mid-70s, the laugh track became a bludgeon to slam every single rim-shot punchline home to the audience, overwhelming the experience with a painfully obvious, artificial device. Every line in One Day at a Time is treated as a raucous laugh-riot, with an assortment of "woooooos!" and "yeahs!" and validating applause breaking out at the drop of a hat. If Schneider says even the most remotely annoying line to Ann, out comes the "uh ohs!" from the laugh track. It's horrible, and it seriously detracts from the writing and acting of the show.

This first 15 episode run, which premiered as a mid-season replacement in December 1975, proved so popular that it qualified One Day at a Time for the Nielsen's twelfth most popular series for the entire 1975-1976 season, a pretty amazing feat for a mid-season replacement sporting a premise that was essentially untried before on network TV. It would stay within the Nielsen Top Twenty every single year, except for its last season in 1983-1984, during its nine year run - another outstanding achievement. That's viewer loyalty (especially when you consider it was moved ten times during its run), and a testament to audiences who identified with this groundbreaking American television family.

DISC ONE:

Ann's Decision
Newly divorced Ann Romano has to make her first major decision as a single mom when Julie wants to go backpacking with friends, including teenage boys.

Chicago Rendezvous
Julie and Barbara lecture their mother after she is "picked up" in a restaurant by a handsome airline pilot who sends her a plane ticket to join him in Chicago.

Jealousy
Ann is jealous when her daughters are crazy about her ex-husband's gorgeous new model girlfriend. It doesn't help that David and Schneider like her, too!

How to Succeed Without Trying
David gets Ann a job interview with an executive at a PR firm, but her prospective employer suggests they continue their interview at night.

David Loves Ann
David is convinced he is in love with Ann and proposes marriage. He gives her a week to decide, so she turns to Julie, Barbara and even Schneider for advice.

Julie's Best Friend
Ann thinks Julie only wants to go to private school in order to impress her new, rich friend. She also feels threatened when David offers to pay for it.

Super Blues
Schneider's feelings are hurt when he thinks he has been invited to Ann's party and then realizes she asked him over to fix the garbage disposal.

DISC TWO:

All the Way
The moment Ann has been dreading has finally arrived. Julie tells her that her boyfriend Chuck wants to go "all the way."

Fighting City Hall
When Ann writes a letter of complaint to the President about her problems with the phone company, she gets a response: a visit from two Secret Service men!

David Plus Two
Even though their relationship is platonic, Ann has to re-examine her feelings when she catches David in a lie. It turns out he has been seeing the sexy neighbor upstairs.

Julie's Job
When Julie gets a job at a truck stop diner in order to buy a car, Ann worries about the late hours and decides to check up on her.

The College Man
Julie has a blind date with a handsome young man, but when he arrives at the apartment, he falls for Ann instead.

Father David
David volunteers to chaperone the party Barbara and Julie are throwing for the basketball team, but he soon regrets it when the party gets out of control.

Dad Comes Back -- Part 1
Elated that a PR firm has hired her, Ann's bubble bursts when her ex-husband Ed visits and announces he's getting married.

Dad Comes Back -- Part 2
Barbara is convinced that her parents must be reconciling since her father spent the night at their apartment. Meanwhile, lovesick David can't control his jealousy.

The DVD:

The Video:
One Day at a Time was always a fairly ugly show to look at, with that horrible Norman Lear cheap video look that spelled quick, fast, and spontaneous shooting. Still, the full frame video image for One Day at a Time: The Complete First Season looks better than you've ever probably seen it. As well, the run time of the episodes would seem to indicate that these shows are uncut (some ragged editing in the first few shows is obviously vintage) and not time compressed.

The Audio:
The Dolby Digital English mono soundtrack accurately reflects the original broadcast presentation. Close-captioning is available.

The Extras:
Although strangely not advertised anywhere on the DVD box, there's a delightful bonus feature, the One Day at a Time Reunion special that aired on CBS in February 2005, included here. Franklin, Phillips, Bertinelli, and Harrington, Jr. sit down for an extended chat about the show, with some frank talk about Phillips' illness during the show's run. Other supporting actors, including Masur, provide brief filmed comments. It's great to see the cast together again.

Final Thoughts:
Norman Lear hit ratings paydirt again by mining the changing social fabric of the 1970s, and providing network TV with its first substantial hit show based on a liberated, divorced mother raising a family on her own. One Day at a Time: The Complete First Season is first and foremost an entertaining, fast-paced comedy (with special mention going out to Pat Harrington, Jr. as macho goofball Dwayne Schneider), that benefitted from amazing cast chemistry, and the dedication of its lead, Bonnie Franklin, in making Ann Romano a real character, and not just a sitcom mother. This was groundbreaking stuff in 1975, and I highly recommend One Day at a Time: The Complete First Season.

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