The Love Boat
Black Sheep / Hometown Doc / Clothes Make the Girl
TV Flash files “Black Sheep / Hometown Doc / Clothes Make the Girl” as hour 101 of 245 in the TV Flash guide — The Love Boat (1977–1986) on ABC, season 4, episode 21, aired 1981-02-28, 60 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S04E21: listed hour 101 of 245 in the The Love Boat guide, hour 21 of 28 in season 4. It aired 1981-02-28 (60 min). The listed hour before it is “The Nudist from Sunshine Gardens / Eye of the Beholder / Quiet, My Wife's Listening” (S04E20). Next is “I Love You Too, Smith / Mama and Me / Sally's Paradise” (S04E22).
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
Isaac is embarrassed when his crooked uncle boards the ship; Doc is deeply concerned about the decision a young doctor and his bride-to-be have made regarding their future; A clothes-conscious mother gets a surprise when she meets the object of her daughter's affection.
Viewer FAQ
Where does Black Sheep / Hometown Doc / Clothes Make the Girl sit in the The Love Boat guide?
S04E21 is listed hour 101 of 245 — hour 21 of 28 in season 4, season 4 episode 21.
When did The Love Boat S04E21 air?
Black Sheep / Hometown Doc / Clothes Make the Girl aired 1981-02-28 and is listed at 60 minutes.
Do I watch in order?
No. It is a multi-story guest-star anthology with a regular crew. Sample any cruise; Stubing's ship is the constant.
In the series
Why this series still plays
Gavin MacLeod's Captain Stubing hosts three guest-star storylines a week while Julie, Doc, Gopher, and Isaac keep the Pacific Princess meddling. Aaron Spelling cruise-ship anthology as comfort franchise: formula as feature, theme as furniture. Bon voyage, subtlety — the cameo sport still photographs.
The first image is white: uniforms, rails, Pacific soft-focus, and Gavin MacLeod's Captain Merrill Stubing hosting three guest-star storylines before the dessert cart. ABC's The Love Boat (1977–1986) turned cruise vacation into Aaron Spelling's floating hit factory — nine seasons, 245 episodes, formula as feature. Lauren Tewes's Julie McCoy, Ted Lange's Isaac, Bernie Kopell's Doc, and Fred Grandy's Gopher never age out of meddling. Jeraldine Saunders' nonfiction about cruise life inspired the premise; Wilford…
Filed against
- Gavin MacLeod as Capt. Merrill Stubing
Gavin MacLeod's Capt. Merrill Stubing hosted three guest-star storylines a week on The Love Boat while Julie, Doc, Gopher, and Isaac kept the Pacific Princess meddling. Aaron Spelling cruise-ship anthology as comfort franchise: formula as…
- Bernie Kopell as Dr. Adam Bricker
Bernie Kopell’s Dr. Adam Bricker kept The Love Boat meddling — Gavin MacLeod’s Captain Stubing, three guest-star storylines a week, Julie, Gopher, Isaac, Aaron Spelling cruise-ship anthology as comfort franchise. Formula as feature, theme…
- Fred Grandy as Burl 'Gopher' Smith
Fred Grandy kept the Pacific Princess meddling as Burl 'Gopher' Smith on The Love Boat — three guest-star storylines a week, Aaron Spelling cruise-ship anthology as comfort franchise, formula as feature. Bon voyage, subtlety. TV Flash…
- Ted Lange as Isaac Washington
Ted Lange poured The Love Boat as Isaac Washington — bartender as Greek chorus, three guest-star storylines a week, Aaron Spelling cruise-ship anthology as comfort franchise. Formula as feature, theme as furniture. TV Flash files him as…
- Lauren Tewes as Julie McCoy
Lauren Tewes's Julie McCoy kept The Love Boat meddling on schedule — Gavin MacLeod's Captain Stubing, three guest-star storylines a week, Aaron Spelling cruise-ship anthology as comfort franchise. Formula as feature, theme as furniture.…
Also in season 4
- S04E01 Friends and Lovers / Sergeant Bull / Miss Mother
- S04E02 The Promoter / The Judges / The Family Plan / Forever Engaged / May the Best Man Win (1)
- S04E03 The Promoter / The Judges / The Family Plan / Forever Engaged / May the Best Man Win (2)
- S04E04 Target Gopher / The Major's Wife / Strange Honeymoon / The Oilman Cometh
- S04E05 The Mallory Quest / The Offer / Julie, the Vamp (1)
- S04E06 The Mallory Quest / The Offer / Julie, the Vamp (2)