I've been watching lots of episodes of The Dick Van Dyke Show, and I'm really loving it. One thing that has stood out is how terrible Jerry is. With this episode in particular, it seemed really strange to see a person on a show act like such a complete jerk.
This made me think about something my dad would tell me. He would occasionally mention how I (and I suppose all of his children) was so much more socially skilled than he was. I think his schooling was run in a much more regimented way, and there was less of a focus on learning to work together. It also could just be his memory playing tricks on him. But this made me wonder... was the character of Jerry an accurate representation of what some adults were like at that time? I'm sure it still happens nowadays, but it seems really strange that a professional (a dentist) who has managed to get married and have a son, somehow has made it this far without learning that he can't be this kind of a jerk.
In a modern show, Jerry would be portrayed as just mean, and that he does these things intentionally. In this show, he's aware that he's being a jerk, but thinks it's funny.
