Season 1, Episode 1 – Aired: 10/15/1952
Pilot
A couple takes their fight over a fur coat to Brad's courtroom. This case causes Joan to flashback to the time when a fur caused problems in her marriage. She had purchased a Persian lamb coat and attempts to had it from Brad.
Season 1, Episode 2 – Aired: 10/22/1952
Career
Tired of being a housewife doing nothing but grueling household chores, Joan seeks her true calling as a great actress. In her first role, she's cast as a housewife who does nothing but scrub dirty floors.
Later, the judge is raising money for his political career and invites two arch rivals over for dinner and donations; he just didn't mean to have them both over on the same night. Joan and Brad try to keep the two apart AND serve a meal in two different rooms at the same time.
Season 1, Episode 3 – Aired: 10/29/1952
Ballet
Joan is burned out from her housework, so Brad signs her up in a ballet class.
Season 1, Episode 4 – Aired: 11/5/1952
Jitterbug
Judge Stevens faces Joan's wrath when she appears in his court with a $50 speeding ticket and he refuses to "fix" it for her. Her revenge is to charge Brad for each of his meals.
Season 1, Episode 5 – Aired: 11/12/1952
Crime Panel
The Judge and his wife are invited to talk about crime prevention on a TV discussion show. Not being an expert, Joan bones up by listening to a radio mystery show. Missing the ending, she keeps Brad up all night trying to solve the show's murder. The next day, she does first hand research by posing as a moll at the local pool hall.
Season 1, Episode 6 – Aired: 11/19/1952
Brad's Class Reunion
Joan does everything she can to keep Brad from attending his class reunion after discovering an essay he wrote about a girl in high school.
Season 1, Episode 7 – Aired: 11/26/1952
Hunting
Joan, claiming to be experienced with the great outdoors, horns in on Brad's hunting trip with the guys.
Season 1, Episode 8 – Aired: 12/3/1952
Joan's Curiosity
Despite warnings from Brad to leave his mail alone, curious Joan has to open a package addressed to her husband. What pops out, a huge inflatable lifeboat, has Joan frantically trying to get the air out of the evidence.
Season 1, Episode 9 – Aired: 12/10/1952
Birthday
To raise cash for Brad's birthday gift, Joan charges some dresses on her credit card and then sells them to her friends.
Season 1, Episode 10 – Aired: 12/17/1952
Bazaar Pie
Playing marriage broker, Joan tries to fire up a romance between a new neighbor and her aunt. Plus, Joan fears she's baked a $5000 ring into one of the pies she made for the local bazaar.
Season 1, Episode 11 – Aired: 12/24/1952
Dreams
A reunion with three old school friends has Joan feeling like a failure. Their successful careers leads Joan to daydream about what she would have accomplished had she never married Brad. She pictures herself as Lady Joan, head of the world's biggest cosmetics company, Babe Stevens, famous swimmer, and Dr. Joan Stevens, great diplomat.
Season 1, Episode 12 - Aired: 12/31/1952
Acrobats
Brad may be appointed to a federal judgeship if he makes a good impression on the decision maker, Mr. Gilmore. Before the important evening out, Joan goes to a shop to try on hats and gets into a slapstick fight with another woman--Mrs. Gilmore. Unable to squirm out of her wifely obligation, Joan meets them at a nightclub in disguise and gets pulled into an acrobatic floor show.
Season 1, Episode 13 – Aired: 1/7/1953
Bad Boy
Joan disrupts the Stevens household when she decides reform a juvenile delinquent in their home.
Season 1, Episode 14 – Aired: 1/14/1953
Circumstantial Evidence
Joan has taken interest in one of Brad's cases. She's convinced a man about to be sentenced is innocent because she likes his wife.
Season 1, Episode 15 – Aired: 1/21/1953
Uncle Edgar
Joan and Brad try to keep a visiting uncle entertained and out of trouble.
Season 1, Episode 16 – Aired: 1/28/1953
Moosehead
Joan's goal is to pick up a gift for one of Brad's friends at an auction. She comes back with a stuffed moosehead.
Season 1, Episode 17 – Aired: 2/4/1953
Fireman
To help a neighbor end a family argument, Joan the peacemaker visits the husband at the firehouse. Unexpectedly, she's volunteered and teaching the firemen suprising ways to put out a fire.
Season 1, Episode 18 – Aired: 2/11/1953
Memory
Joan's poor memory results in three spaghetti dinners in the same evening.
Season 1, Episode 19 – Aired: 2/18/1953
Draftboard
Brad receives a letter from the draft board, leading Joan to think he's being called up for duty. Figuring they won't need the house, she rents their house to new tenants.
Season 1, Episode 20 – Aired: 2/25/1953
The Opera
The women's club stages an opera as a charity fundraiser, leading Joan to declare she's "through with singers". She takes her words back when Bing Crosby shows up at her door.
Season 1, Episode 21 – Aired: 3/4/1953
Shopping
No summary available.
Season 1, Episode 22 – Aired: 3/11/1953
The Stamp
Joan mails a letter using a Mozambique stamp that Brad just purchased for $350. Her husband blows his top, leading Joan to dream she's on trial for being a "goof" with Brad as judge and prosecutor. He's singing a different tune when the stamp turns out to be counterfeit and the check comes back in the mail.
Season 1, Episode 23 – Aired: 3/18/1953
Little Girl
Joan plays matchmaker for a teenaged girl who's visiting for the week. She arranges a date for the shy 16-year-old with a boy who's just as withdrawn. The kids don't stand a chance with Brad and Joan coaching them.
Season 1, Episode 24 – Aired: 3/25/1953
Diet
Joan is trying to stick to a diet, but her club friends offer her nothing but temptations.
Season 1, Episode 25 – Aired: 4/1/1953
Model
After a showdown with her husband, Joan goes in search of a job to prove her worth. She's hired as a lowly stock girl at Armand's Gowns, but tells Brad she's a dress designer. Brad comes by the salon to ask her return to being a homemaker, but she doesn't want him to discover that she's not. With the help of a co-worker, she ties up Armand and takes his place, designing dresses "on the fly" with only a bolt of cloth.
Season 1, Episode 26 – Aired: 4/8/1953
Lateness
Brad is infuriated by Joan's tardiness when she arrives at the theater just in time for the final curtain. The late Joan Stevens fears oversleeping for a dinner date, so she buys extra time by turning back the clocks.
Season 1, Episode 27 – Aired: 4/15/1953
Eviction
The noise made by Joan's Woman's Welfare League meetings is irritating the neighbors. The group finds it needs some welfare when Judge Stevens evicts them from their clubhouse.
Season 1, Episode 28 – Aired: 4/22/1953
The Recipe
Joan takes a job in Alfonse's restaurant to steal their recipe to oxtail soup, Brad's favorite. In the process, she competes against a woman she distains to win a soup-making contest.
Season 1, Episode 29 – Aired: 4/29/1953
Repairs
Joan sees a small crack in the living room ceiling and decides to fix it herself. In the process of unintentionally enlarging the hole, she manages to get stuck in a harp.
Season 1, Episode 30 – Aired: 5/6/1953
Secrets
When Joan's loose tongue almost costs Brad a federal judgeship, he warns her that failing to keep a secret can have serious consequences. She has to learn this lesson the hard way.
Season 1, Episode 31 – Aired: 5/13/1953
The Artist Show
To help Brad get an appointment as a Federal judge, Joan takes an art class to impress an influential Senator's wife. Things go awry when Joan accidentally pulls off the Senator's hairpiece.
Season 1, Episode 32 – Aired: 5/20/1953
The Threat
A man Bradley had sentenced to jail is about to get out. Joan's obsession with gangster movies has her worried about her husband's safety.
Season 1, Episode 33 – Aired: 5/27/1953
Country Club
The Stevenses join a country club to help Brad's career advance. However, Joan's golf lessons are having the opposite effect.
Season 1, Episode 34 – Aired: 6/3/1953
Theatrical Can-Can
The Ladies Welfare League is putting on the play The Colonel's Daughter but they've run up a huge debt. To pay off the bills, Joan tries to get Brad to book their play for a lawyer's meeting, but the men want chorus girls--until the mayor decides to attend. Brad realizes at the last minute a "respectable" play would be better and books the ladies group, but in her haste, Joan sends the cast to the wrong location. The show must go on, with Joan playing all the roles.
Season 1, Episode 35 – Aired: 6/10/1953
Neighbors
The Stevens' are delighted to learn that their neighbors, who regularly have parties til 4 A.M., are moving. Joan has friends find a quiet, peaceful couple to buy the house. They are--except for their show dogs that bark all night.
Season 1, Episode 36 – Aired: 6/17/1953
Talent Scout
Joan falls for the pitch of a pair of dishonest talent scouts who have her lined up to work with a monkey. Judge Bradley is working on that racket so he uses Joan as bait to catch them in the act.
Season 1, Episode 37 – Aired: 6/24/1953
Honeymoon
The judge plays marriage counselor to a couple by telling them about the horrible honeymoon he spent locked in their hotel room's closet. He also brags to the husband that he's tricked Joan into doing housework by promising her a diamond bracelet. When Joan learns it was just a scam, she does some really "impressive" housework.
Season 1, Episode 38 – Aired: 7/1/1953
Business Executive
A couple of rich law school pals who've gotten rich in business makes Brad feel he's cheated Joan out of the high life. He decides to become a business executive with a chicken soup company, despite Joan's warnings that he's cut out for that work. In Joan's nightmare, the job has changed Brad into a cantankerous, bald man who cares only about money. Wanting happiness over money, Joan refuses to allow Brad to buy her a mink, so he physically drags her to the fur shop.
Season 1, Episode 39 – Aired: 7/8/1953
Brad's Broken Toe
Joan thinks Brad's exaggerating the pain when he slips on a banana peel at the zoo. When he's actually hospitalized with three broken toes, she feels horrible and is determined to apologize. To get past the night nurse, Joan pretends to be incredibly sick, and her acting almost costs her a gall bladder.
Season 2, Episode 1 – Aired: 10/14/1953
Brad's Moustache
Joan feels that Brad will look more dignified, and more likely to be promoted to the Superior Court, if he grows a moustache.
Season 2, Episode 2 – Aired: 10/21/1953
First Lie
Joan tries to pull a fast one over on Brad by passing off her new dress as one she's had for years. She hadn't planned on a visit from a friend with a lie detector machine.
Season 2, Episode 3 – Aired: 10/28/1953
Furniture Quick Changes
Unsatisfied with the living room's appearance, Joan keeps re-arranging the furniture while Brad sleeps. He wakes up thinking the furniture has somehow moved itself so he sees a psychiatrist--a beautiful blonde one.
Season 2, Episode 4 – Aired: 11/4/1953
Sister Pat
Brad reluctantly agrees to let Joan's younger sister Beverly stay with them while she attends college. He's soon in a tizzy because the teenager has taken over his home. To get even, Brad invites a crowd of his "cousins" to stay with them but then can't get rid of the phonies.
Season 2, Episode 5 – Aired: 11/11/1953
Tropical Fish
Joan helps Brad in his new hobby, raising tropical fish, by adding to his collection. Unfortunately, her surprise addition turns out to be a cannibal and digests the rest of its tankmates.
Season 2, Episode 6 – Aired: 11/18/1953
Culinary Nightmare
Brad's last-minute decision to bring home some friends for dinner leads to chaos in the kitchen for Joan. She attempts to make good on the non-meal by treating the group to a picnic lunch the next day. Again, no one eats, except for the neighbor's dog who gets into the picnic basket.
Season 2, Episode 7 – Aired: 11/25/1953
Initiation
Joan's sister is off to college and pledges to a sorority. The future sorority sisters become confused and target Joan for all of her sister's hazing.
Season 2, Episode 8 – Aired: 12/2/1953
Bev's Boyfriend
Joan's little sister Beverly is smitten with a guy who's more interested in his hot rod than her. Attempting to play Cupid, Joan misfires and gets the young man interested in her.
Season 2, Episode 9 – Aired: 12/9/1953
Lost Check
Judge Stevens needs a secretary and Joan volunteers to fill the position. Her career is short-lived when she manages to lose a $10,000 check.
Season 2, Episode 10 – Aired: 12/16/1953
The Shotgun
Joan lends Brads golf clubs to a friend and in exchange gains a shotgun and an arrest record.
Season 2, Episode 11 – Aired: 12/23/1953
The Musical
Brad finally agrees to appear in Joan's Womens Club vaudeville show but he's furious to learn he will be performing in drag. At the dress rehearsal, Joan impersonates Groucho Marx with Brad as a cheating wife in a drawing room sketch. At showtime, Bev and Tom are nowhere to be found, forcing lovely Brad and "Groucho" to fill in doing their song and dance number.
Season 2, Episode 12 – Aired: 12/30/1953
Double Wedding
To celebrate their tenth wedding anniversary, Brad and Joan plan to repeat their vows with the couple that was married with them. A close examination of the Stevens' marriage license reveals a startling surprise.
Season 2, Episode 13 – Aired: 1/6/1954
Superstition
Joan becomes frantic when she loses her good luck locket.
Season 2, Episode 14 – Aired: 1/13/1954
Barbecue
Determined to keep up with the neighbors, Joan builds her own backyard barbecue and invites friends over for a meal. Unfortunately, the monstrosity she constructed does not work.
Season 2, Episode 15 – Aired: 1/20/1954
Mothers-in-Law
Too many mothers-in-law can spoil a day. Brad and Joan are talking about visiting their mothers-in-law when they both drop in unannounced.
Season 2, Episode 16 – Aired: 1/27/1954
Mabel's Dress
Charlie buys Mabel a glamorous gown for her birthday and Brad hides the present in a closet at their home. Joan finds it, believes it's a gift for her, and tries it on. She breaks out the scissors and makes some major alterations before learning it doesn't belong to her.
Season 2, Episode 17 – Aired: 2/3/1954
Monkeyshines
Brad must decided who gets custody of a well-to-do chaimanzee. While he's weighing the options, he brings the simian home with him.
Season 2, Episode 18 – Aired: 2/10/1954
Bev's Mistaken Marriage
A little evavesdropping leads Joan to believe her sister Bev is eloping with her boyfriend. Actually, she's just helping a friend with her ceremony. The ever-helpful Joan complicates matters by turning her home into a honeymoon hotel.
Season 2, Episode 19 – Aired: 2/17/1954
Missing Witnesses
Joan is talked into being a decoy to lure a gangster out of hiding.
Season 2, Episode 20 – Aired: 2/24/1954
Anniversary Memo
Joan misreads a note Brad wrote to remind himself to get a gift and flowers for "Ann". Not realizing it stands for "anniversary", she jumps to conclusions and assumes he has a woman on the side. Upset that Joan would think that, Brad decides to teach her a lesson and enlists the help of a redhead and a lawyer.
Season 2, Episode 21 – Aired: 3/3/1954
Dented Fender
Brad and Joan have a fight over who's responsible for the dent in their car's fender.
Season 2, Episode 22 – Aired: 3/10/1954
Mountain Lodge
An overdrawn checking account leads to trouble when Brad tries to write a $1000 check for a charming mountain cabin. It seems Joan already spent the $1000 for a boat.
Season 2, Episode 23 – Aired: 3/17/1954
Home of the Week
Joan is determined to have the Stevens' home selected "Home of the Week", so she borrows several priceless works of art and puts them on display. When a gossip columnist reports that a local judge has his home filled with stolen artwork, Brad is chosen by the bar association to inspect the home.
Season 2, Episode 24 – Aired: 3/24/1954
Pop Retires
The Stevens agree to suggest to Brad's father that he move to sunny California to enjoy his retirement. Joan gets mixed up and sends the letter to her own father instead.
Season 2, Episode 25 – Aired: 3/31/1954
Changing Houses
Mabel raves about the Stevens's early American home and Joan loves the Hendersons' modern decor. Before they redecorate, the couples trade houses for a week to give the designs a test drive. The Stevenses have nothing but trouble with the modern gadgets, including disappearing beds, and Joan stains the white rug in their living room.
Season 2, Episode 26 – Aired: 4/7/1954
Jealousy
Joan wants to see how strong Brad's love for her is so he pretends to be attracted to another man.
Season 2, Episode 27 – Aired: 4/14/1954
Get Rich Quick
Joan gets suckered into buying stock in a shady uranium deal. By the time Bradley and the district attory arrive, Joan has already become the head of the company.
Season 2, Episode 28 – Aired: 4/21/1954
Masquerade
A masquerade party backfires on Joan. Her stubborn husband, the judge, refuses to wear a silly costume, so she sets out to wear him down. Soon, it's a community project.
Season 2, Episode 29 – Aired: 4/28/1954
The Milkman Cometh
Joan is mistaken in her belief that Mabel and Charles have had a nasty falling out. She takes it upon herself to play marriage counselor and patch up their differences.
Season 2, Episode 30 – Aired: 5/19/1954
Predictions
Brad find out that Joan could have married a millionaire rather than him.
Season 2, Episode 31 – Aired: 6/9/1954
Brad's Initiation
Brad's efforts to join a lodge comes with an unusual initiation. The process leads Joan to believe that Brad is being blackmailed by spies and she decides to break up the undercover ring.
Season 2, Episode 32 – Aired: 6/23/1954
Confidence
Brad doesn't have the confidence to fun for a city council position. Joan goes about building his self-esteem. She does such a good job that he believes he should run for mayor, an office he doesn't stand a chance of winning.
Season 2, Episode 33 – Aired: 7/7/1954
Joan's Haircut
Joan gets her hair done for her upcoming college reunion and, due to a mix-up, is given a hideous new hairdo called the "panda cut". Her husband falls asleep in the barber's chair and wakes up with a military butch cut. Brad gets used to his new look but Joan is so embarrassed she refuses to go to the reunion. She goes so far as to tell Brad he's been in a coma and attended three weeks earlier.
Season 3, Episode 1 – Aired: 9/29/1954
New House
Brad and Joan move into their new house. Right behind them comes another couple lays claim to the house. While the two husbands share a breakfast table, each works the kitchen cooking a different meal for their respective spouse.
Season 3, Episode 2 – Aired: 10/6/1954
Party Line
Joan and her neighbor, Mrs. Tobin, share a party line. The party's over quickly when the two stop sharing and start fighting over phone time.
Season 3, Episode 3 – Aired: 10/13/1954
Wall Safe
Joan's curiosity gets the best of her when she finds a hidden wall safe. The safe-cracker she hires opens the vault and finds a map of their property. This sends Joan on a crazed treasure hunt.
Season 3, Episode 4 – Aired: 10/20/1954
Alienation of Affections
Giving an old boyfriend an innocent kiss lands Joan in hot water at home and the third party in a love triangle. The man's jealous wife includes Joan in her divorce suit.
Season 3, Episode 5 – Aired: 10/27/1954
Bombay Duck
Brad asks Joan to prepare a fancy meal to impress Judge Cushing. Since she just entered secretarial school her time is limited so she takes a duck with her to school to do the prep work at her desk.
Season 3, Episode 6 – Aired: 11/3/1954
Clothes Budget
Joan claims she spends much less than the average American woman on her yearly wardrobe. Brad is sure she spends more, so he writes her a check for $600 and says that's all she gets for the whole year. Her whole budget is blown after one encounter with an intimidating saleswoman.
Season 3, Episode 7 – Aired: 11/10/1954
Dancing Lessons
Joan wants Bradley to take mambo lessons with her, but it's a fight to get him to the dance studio. He changes his tune once he meets the beautiful instructor, Carlotta.
Season 3, Episode 8 – Aired: 11/17/1954
Two Saint Bernards
Joan reserves a Chihuahua at the pet store, but Brad says no to a dog. She goes to cancel the order but instead is talked into buying a St. Bernard. Brad checks the pet store to see if she followed through and he walks out with a St. Bernard of his own.
Season 3, Episode 9 – Aired: 11/24/1954
Manhole Cover
Joan's complains about a noisy manhole cover falls on deaf ears, so he takes the matter to the city government. Red tape and Joan do not mix well.
Season 3, Episode 10 – Aired: 12/1/1954
The Farm
Theres a dispute on how to spend their week in the country. Joan wants to lounge at the Fairchilds' estate while Brad wants to dirty his hands with farm work.
Season 3, Episode 11 – Aired: 12/8/1954
Home Movies
Arriving home from two weeks in Hawaii, the Stevens are greeted by Joan's overlooked chores: she'd forgotten to lock the door, turn off the radio, cancel milk delivery, and mail a legal opinion. Brad storms out in a huff but returns after learning he could be promoted--if he can prove he's happily married. The feuding pair put on a show of affection for a retiring judge and the girls coming over to watch their home movies.
Season 3, Episode 12 – Aired: 12/15/1954
Big Louie's Parole
Joan is concerned about Brad's safety after a series of threatening phone calls. The judge has to decide about approving mobster Big Louie's parole, and his gang has made it clear he should.
Season 3, Episode 13 – Aired: 12/22/1954
Crazy Toes Smith
Joan's high school alma mater is about to lose its star kicker because of his failing grades. With money riding on the big game, Joan she decides to tutor the athlete. She rewards him with rich pastries that fatten him up so much, he's kicked off the team for being overweight. The next stop for Joan and the kicker is the gym.
Season 3, Episode 14 – Aired: 12/29/1954
Joan Plays Cupid
Joan tries to help a couple of friends rekindle their long-dormant romance, but her meddling almost ruins their chances for good.
Season 3, Episode 15 – Aired: 1/5/1955
The Wedding
After reuniting a couple of friends following a seven year breakup, Joan volunteers the Stevens home for their wedding. When the judge accidentally marries the couple during the rehearsal, Joan and Brad are stuck with a huge wedding with the bride and groom are already on their honeymoon.
Season 3, Episode 16 – Aired: 1/12/1955
The Maid
On Brad's urging, Joan hires a maid. Unfortunately, for the two of them, she's a star-struck and cranky woman. To keep her entertained, Joan arranges for a movie actor to endlessly pursue her. Plus, Brad does his celebrity impressions.
Season 3, Episode 17 – Aired: 1/19/1955
Money in the Shotgun
Without Brad's knowledge, Joan has sold a prized piece of his furniture for $600. She hides the cash in the barrel of his shotgun which he promptly carries off on a duck hunting trip. She tags along, trying desperately to get the money out of the gun before Brad either discovers it or blows it to bits.
Season 3, Episode 18 – Aired: 1/26/1955
Eye Glasses
During a visit to the eye doctor, Joan is given the incorrect eyedrops. This leads to some unusual stunts in her visit to a bowling alley.
Season 3, Episode 19 – Aired: 2/2/1955
The Allergy
Brad's running for Superior Court and needs Joan with him to show how happily married they are. Unfortunately, she's allergic to something about him and can't stop sneezing when he's anywhere near. The two of them are forced together for a TV interview where his opponent points out how miserable Joan looks to be by his side.
Season 3, Episode 20 – Aired: 2/9/1955
Lieutenant General
Not to be upstaged by her friend Helen, Joan brags about being married to an Army general.
Season 3, Episode 21 – Aired: 2/16/1955
The Letter
When Joan mistakenly opens a letter sent to a neighbor, she can't simply admit the mistake. Instead, she hatches a plot to remail it.
Season 3, Episode 22 – Aired: 2/23/1955
Ladies Prison
Hoping to help her judge husband, Joan pretends to be a convict in a women's prison to observe conditions.
Season 3, Episode 23 – Aired: 3/2/1955
The Lady and the Prizefighter
After losing a bet on a boxing match, Joan decides to stage a charity fight for her women's club. She pits her weaking pal Wally against a professional boxer and Wally accidentally knocks the guy out. This demands a re-match.
Season 3, Episode 24 – Aired: 3/9/1955
How to Win Friends
Joan overhears friends planning a testimonial luncheon in her honor, but mistakenly shows up at a meeting of the Loyal Order of Brotherly Broncos. Thinking she's been played as a fool, she enrolls in a popularity course. At the real banquet, she is so agreeable and pleasant, the other ladies think she's making fun of them.
Season 3, Episode 25 – Aired: 3/16/1955
The Cowboy
After the judge finds a case in favor of one-time cowboy movie star Bucko Bob Brady, Brad and Joan decide he needs to make a comeback.
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Featured are series guides, theme songs, DVDs, trivia, and more from the last 6 decades of primetime.