Oliver Wendell Douglas, a big New York lawyer, hates the "rat race" of the city. He would like to move away and buy a farm. His beautiful wife Lisa doesn't exactly love the idea. Even as a child, Oliver wanted to be a farmer, but his father forced him to be a lawyer. Oliver starts growing vegetables on the patio of his penthouse. Oliver tells Lisa he's going on a business trip, but actually flies to Hooterville. While there, he buys the old Haney farm. Lisa reluctantly agrees to move, but is stunned when she sees where she will now be living. Eleanor Audley as Mother Eunice Douglas. Willis Bouchey as Mr. Felton.

Back in New York, Mr. Peters is trying to sublet the Douglas apartment. Lisa gets her first look at their run down farmhouse and is horrified. Mr. Haney (Pat Buttram), who previously owned the farm, took everything with him, including the bathroom fixtures. Oliver keeps saying he can fix all the problems they find with the house. Uncle Joe runs a pool to see how long the Douglases will stay. Oliver buys back the fixtures from Haney. Eb (Tom Lester), one of Haney's workers, wants to work for Oliver and is eventually hired. Lisa wants to return to New York immediately, but after a talk with Kate Bradley, she decides to give farm life a try. Lyle Talbot as Horace Bennett. Iris Adrian as Mrs. Bennett.

Lisa still can't believe she's in Hooterville. Mother Douglas plans to fly out there and save Lisa. Kate Bradley tries to help Lisa in the kitchen as she doesn't know the first thing about cooking. Lisa threatens to leave unless Oliver starts to decorate the house. Sam sets Oliver up with Roland Wilson, a decorator from Pixley. Mother Douglas arrives and she is stunned by what Lisa has to live in. Roland comes by and it turns out he is a cake decorator.

Mr. Haney rents Bertram the rooster to Oliver to wake him up in the morning. Oliver meets his county farm agent, Hank Kimball (Alvy Moore), who takes some soil samples for analysis. Hank also has a hard time telling Oliver what he really thinks of the farm. Oliver then sets about getting a phone installed, the plumbing and roof fixed, and electricity hooked up. The next morning, Bertram doesn't crow. Ed Ferguson (Sid Melton), the plumber, shows up. Carl Flint (Phil Gordon) comes by to install the phone. But without electricity, things don't go as planned. John Harmon as Jack Parker.

Haney tries to sell Oliver some wallpaper and Oliver is trying to repair his tractor. After shipping the Douglases their furniture from New York, Oliver's mother Eunice attempts to visit them. Because of a mix-up, the furniture is delivered to Mr. Haney. Trying to get to Hooterville, Eunice is stuck with Uncle Joe on his handcar. Haney tries to sell Oliver and Lisa their own furniture, but winds up just charging them to deliver it. An excited Oliver shows Lisa the furniture in the house, but things are a little cramped and cluttered. Peter Leeds as Moving Man.

Oliver is repairing the porch rail. Mother Douglas still wants Lisa to return to New York. Hank tells Oliver that he needs to plow up his fields soon or miss planting season. Oliver runs into trouble with the equipment he bought from Mr. Haney. Sam can't get Oliver a new plow in time. Uncle Joe has a solution to the problem. He charges farmers one dollar each to enter a plowing contest at the Douglas farm. Joe also promises them free lunch and big prizes which Oliver will provide. This is all news to Oliver and he tells the farmers that Joe mislead them. The neighbors still plow his fields and with the help of some of the farmers wives, they get a free lunch. Barbara Pepper as Doris Ziffel.

Oliver hasn't received his soil sample analysis yet, so he starts planting anyway. Mother Eunice Douglas still is trying to get Lisa to leave Hooterville. Oliver learns that his first batch was destroyed in shipping, so he will race over some new soil samples. Uncle Joe calls on Eunice and invites her to a poker game at the Elks lodge. Seeing an opportunity to get Oliver to give up farming, Eunice spikes the new soil samples with items from her cosmetics bag. After learning that his soil was contaminated, Oliver decides to move back to New York. Oliver figures out that his mother was to blame for the soil after Hank tells him what was in it. Lisa has a scheme to make Oliver want to continue farming. Parley Baer as Mr. Webster. Jack Bannon as Student.

Oliver assigns every electrical device a number from one to seven in an effort to keep their rickety generator from blowing. Lisa has a hard time grasping the concept. Meanwhile, relying on statistics provided by the Department of Agriculture, Oliver wants to plant wheat. His neighbors, using Mrs. Ziffel's lumbago to predict a crop, plant corn. After hearing that the price of wheat had dropped, Oliver decides to plant corn. What follows is much confusion over what to plant, when everyone keeps changing their minds.

In New York, Judson Carter Felton (Roland Winters) thinks that Oliver can win a legal case for him. He tries to call Hooterville and talk to Oliver, but has too many problems. Judson decides to travel to Hooterville instead. Meanwhile, Oliver asks Hank if he has any pull with the Hooterville Phone Company. The next morning, Oliver wakes up to a telephone pole outside his bedroom window with the phone up on top. Judson arrives and tries to talk Oliver into coming to New York to help with the case. Oliver won't leave but will discuss the case with Judson. Judson can't believe the way Oliver lives now. Jerry Hausner as Ed Ferguson.

Oliver wants to plant his entire 160 acres (0.65 km²) with wheat. George Wilkins (Jesse White) and Wally Jenkins (Sam Edwards), from the Conservation and Stabilization Committee (a local farm organization), come to the Douglas house. They inform Oliver that he can only plant 8 acres of wheat. If he plants more than that, there will be a penalty. Oliver holds a Wheat Penalty Protest Meeting. He then sends a petition to Washington D.C. Washington informs George and Wally that the wheat penalties were abolished in 1963. Howard Wendell as Bennington.

Guest Stars from Petticoat Junction: Frank Cady as Sam Drucker, Tom Fadden as Ben Miller, Kay E. Kuter as Newt Kiley, Walter Baldwin as Grandpappy Miller

Eleanor, the cow Oliver bought from Mr. Haney, is pregnant. Eb is afraid that if Mr. Haney finds out, he will claim that the calf belongs to him. Haney comes by and Oliver tries to keep him occupied while Eb hides Eleanor. Lisa, not knowing Oliver is keeping it a secret, lets slip about a pregnancy, but not who. Haney thinks it's Lisa that's due, and this rumor spreads through Hooterville and right to Oliver's mother in New York! Kate Bradley comes by to see how Lisa is doing and leaves quite confused. Mother Douglas arrives and has brought Dr. Fillmore from New York with her. With Dr. Fillmore's help, Eleanor has her calf.

It's the Douglases' wedding anniversary. Oliver remembers the date but cannot recall the exact number of years he and Lisa have been married. Lisa flashes back to last year's anniversary which landed them both in jail. The trouble started when a panicked Oliver found corn borers in his terrace garden. He refuses to go to the anniversary party at the Waldorf that his mother has set up. Mother Douglas comes by and when she learns that Oliver won't leave, she starts tossing his "crop" off the balcony. Because of the pots crashing onto the street below, the police come by and arrest Oliver and Lisa. Back in Hooterville, Oliver and Lisa decide to celebrate at the Shady Rest Hotel that night. But Eb tells Oliver that his wheat crop is threatened by sawflies. His angry call to the Agriculture Department lands him and Lisa in jail again. Dave Willock as George Bennington. Vinton Hayworth as Dr. Faber.

Eb teaches Oliver how to milk Eleanor the cow. Hank comes by and has a confusing conversation with Oliver about how to fertilize his crop. Lisa decides to bring a little culture and charm to Hooterville by means of a beauty parlor. She calls Oliver's mother and asks her to send a hairdresser. Eunice says she'll get Claude (James Millhollin) of the Ritz Plaza to come. Eunice blackmails him with one word: Scranton. He sets up shop on the Cannonball and gives the Hooterville women new hairdos. Now, they refuse to do any farm work because they are too "beautiful". This has all the farmers in the valley come to Lisa to complain. Lisa gets them to appreciate their wives. Elvia Allman as Cora Watson. Guy Wilkerson as Lud Watson. Dan White as Man.

After persistent pleas and an ultimatum from Lisa, Oliver agrees to have the bedroom enlarged. Oliver calls contractors Alf (Sid Melton) and Ralph Monroe (Mary Grace Canfield). While Oliver goes to get a building permit, Alf and Ralph rip the room apart and begin moving the walls. Buford Wilkins (Pat Buttram), Haney's cousin, comes by to inspect the work so far. Buford happens to be the father of Eb's girlfriend. When Oliver refuses to give Eb the keys to the car so he can take out his girlfriend, Buford disapproves the project and condemns the whole house. Oliver gives Eb the keys and Buford approves the permit. But Buford learns that the project is for a bedroom, and it gets disapproved again because Alf and Ralph are only licensed for hen houses and chicken coops. Oliver is left with an open-air bedroom without a roof and the pole with his phone is gone. Norman Leavitt as Telephone Man.

The Monroe brothers come by the Douglas house to continue with the remodeling. Oliver learns about the Hooterville Volunteer Fire Department. He discovers the only requirement to join is that he must play a musical instrument in their marching band. Chief Joe Carson says the reason is that they have more parades than fires. Oliver is accepted and put on sky watch duty. When he sees a signal, Oliver races off to what he thinks is a fire. It turns to be an emergency band rehearsal. Joe takes away Oliver's helmet when he arrives without his guitar.

Oliver is annoyed when Lisa puts a listing in the new phone book: "Oliver Douglas, Attorney at Law". He's afraid he'll be flooded with calls wanting his legal advice and he won't have time for farming. Meanwhile, Lisa is trying to bake a cake. Oliver wants his money back from Haney for the broken down tractor he bought from him. After a while, Oliver becomes depressed when nobody calls for his legal services. Oliver is excited when he finally gets a call from potential customer Harry Bleedwell (Hal Smith). Turns out Harry only wants Oliver to put an add in a pageant bulletin. Harry then threatens to sue when he trips over Lisa's 20-pound pound cake.

Oliver and Lisa are sleeping in the barn until their bedroom is done. Alf and Ralph claim to have finished the bedroom, but Oliver is not happy with the results. Oliver falls through the roof and sprains his ankle while putting up a TV antenna. Dr. Barton Stuart (Regis Toomey) says Oliver should stay off he feet for a few days. While Lisa takes care of him, several people from Hooterville stop by to unintentionally annoy him. They all come with food, but eat it themselves as they crowd Oliver off his bed to watch "Frankenstein Meets Mary Poppins" on TV. Oliver winds up out in the barn. Donald Curtis as Curly Robins.

Oliver's apple crop is ready to be harvested. He will make more on his apple crop if he gets it to market first. Oliver needs a truck but the Pixley farmers reserved all the delivery trucks. He hires some high school kids to pick the fruit and uses their old truck to transport the apples. While the truck has several breakdowns, the price of apples begins to drop. When the truck needs a head gasket, Lisa's "hotscakes" come to the rescue. Jack Bannon as Police Officer. Vince Barnett as Gus. Note: The police officer who pulls Oliver over is Hank Kimball's cousin. He rambles just like Hank, and his voice has been dubbed by Alvy Moore.

Ralph, the lady carpenter, becomes enamored with Hank Kimball, the county agent. Hank comes by to talk to Oliver about irrigating his corn. Ralph can't get Hank to notice her. Lisa talks to Hank about Ralph and Hank says he couldn't go out with a woman with a man's name. Lisa asks Oliver to file court papers to have Ralph's name changed to Sophia. Judge Murdock (Howard Smith) tells Oliver that he is not licensed to practice law in this state. Oliver speaks to Carl Hinkley (Richard Hale) of the State Bar Association in Pixley. Oliver has a week to study for the exam and winds up passing. Ralph says she given up on Hank and isn't changing her name. She also is dating a guy named Evelyn Bets.

Lisa agreed to try out the farm for six months. She must decide whether she and Oliver will remain on the farm or go back to New York. Oliver flashes back to the first days on the farm and him talking Lisa into going. Everyone anxiously awaits her decision. Lisa flashes back to when she first saw the kitchen. Uncle Joe recalls trying to sell Oliver some lousy land. Oliver remembers the lousy products Haney sold him. Lisa decides she wants to go back to the city and Oliver angrily prepares to leave. People come by to say goodbye. But Lisa reverses her decision after learning what happens to the animals after they're gone, so Oliver keeps his farm.

Sam Drucker's going on a two-week vacation to visit his sister. He's having a hard time finding someone to take over his duties as deputy sheriff. Sam gets Oliver to fill in. Oliver tries to give Haney a ticket for not having a license plate. Oliver winds up getting a ticket from Haney's police officer nephew, Heston Haney (Joe Conley), for having out of state plates. A problem arises when Oliver shows Lisa how to use a pair of handcuffs before discovering that he's lost the keys. They look around for the keys, even going back to where Oliver got the ticket from Heston. They ask Hank for help and are almost run over by a train. Oliver sends Eb to the Sheriff to see if he has the keys, but he doesn't. Eb suggests a hair pin. While Oliver is saying that's a stupid idea, Lisa frees herself. But Oliver then gets the open handcuff stuck on the table.

Oliver's generator breaks down and he decides to check on the status of his electricity request. It's been 7 months since he applied, so he asks Sam what the hold up is. It turns out that Sam forgot to mail in his application. Oliver decides to deal with the power company in person. Larry Lawlor (Dave Willock) comes by to install the electrical meter. Oliver notices that the meter is running even though the lines have not been put in yet. He calls the power company to have it replaced. Meanwhile, Oliver winds up having to buy various electrical appliances from Haney because a power line pole has to go on Haney's land. Nothing seems to go right as now Oliver has a power pole by the bedroom window. Plus the lines can't be connected to the house because they have to wait 6 months for another meter. Jonathan Hole as Mr. Powers.

Oliver overhears Eb signing a folk song and tells him that he collected and wrote folk songs while he was in college. Eb says that Oliver should write a song about local legend Molly Turgiss (Renie Riano). The mere mention of her name causes bad things to happen. The Ziffels are invited over to the Douglas home for dinner. Fred doesn't want to go because he's worried Oliver will ask about Molly. When Oliver does bring her up, the Ziffels leave. Oliver starts to write a song about Molly and he sees her vision in a mirror. Hank tells Oliver and Lisa about Molly and how ugly she was. People would always avoid her. She left town but said she'd come back one day and haunt anyone that mentioned her name. Lisa feels sorry for Molly and talks to her in the mirror. Lisa offers to give her a make-over if she promises to not do bad things anymore. Oliver sings The Ballad of Molly Turgiss.

Lisa meets Amy Collins (Dianne Foster), a lovely young female farmer. Amy would like to speak to Oliver about some legal work involving her farm. Oliver meets Amy and agrees to come over to her farm and help her. Amy is apparently a very knowledgeable farmer and a good cook. Lisa becomes jealous of the time the two spent together. Oliver invites Amy over for dinner to discuss farming. Lisa asks Hank to teach her about farming. At dinner, Lisa has a little too much champagne. Lisa overhears Mrs. Ziffel describe the plot on her favorite soap opera to Sadie Prentiss. Lisa now believes that Oliver and Amy are going to run off to South America together. Oliver speaks to Mrs. Ziffel, figures out the misunderstanding and explains it to Lisa.

Eb sees Betty Jo Bradley at Druckers store and is suddenly smitten with her. Thinking of Oliver as a father, Eb asks him for some advice on romance. Oliver recalls the first time he asked Lisa for a date. They were aboard a ship, where Oliver was playing in the band. Eb asks Betty Jo for a date on Saturday night and she says yes. Eb doesn't know where to take her. Oliver recalls letting Lisa pick a restaurant and it wound up costing him a fortune. Eb follows Oliver's advice, incorrectly, and Betty Jo cancels their date. Oliver goes to explain things to Betty Jo. The date is back on and they're to go to a dance. Eb says he can't dance and needs Oliver to teach him. What Oliver thinks is a nice gesture, winds up ruining Eb's date. Maurice Marsac as Headwaiter. Joyce Nizzari as Cigarette Girl.

It's the first day of spring in Hooterville. Everyone, except Oliver, is overcome with spring fever. Lisa and Oliver go to Sam's store and Sam has on his spring toupee. Oliver tries to order some seed, but Sam is busy telling Lisa about the spring festival the town used to have. Lisa volunteers to organize the festival. Eb frustrates Oliver when they try to plant the seeds Oliver bought. Haney wants Oliver to pay him for driving Lisa around the valley trying to get support for the festival. Lisa wants Oliver to dress up as a robin and Hank brings some paint and feathers. Alf and Ralph are building a float for the parade. It's going to be a nest for Oliver to ride in. Oliver says he won't do it. Further plans for the festival are ruined when it rains.

The Hooterville Barn and Repertory Company will present a production of "Who". The marquee wasn't big enough for "Who Killed Jock Robin?". Arnold the pig's performance as a British police dog turns him into an overnight star. Lisa has an old friend named Boris Fedor (Oscar Beregi Jr.) who is a Hollywood producer. Lisa calls Boris and, not knowing that Arnold is a pig, Boris agrees to see him. The Chamber of Commerce stage a telethon to raise money for the trip, but Lisa winds up donating the most money. Now Lisa has to talk Oliver into taking Arnold to Hollywood. Patience Cleveland as Miss Hanson. Trudi Ames as High school Girl.

Oliver and Lisa chaperon Arnold to Hollywood to meet producer Boris Fedor. Oliver still believes that once Boris sees Arnold is a pig, they'll be on the next flight home. Boris has a horse actor that is causing him problems as the horse wants more money. Boris isn't interested in Arnold, but his assistant Ted Sweitzer (Peter Leeds) comes up with a plan to use the pig to pressure the greedy horse to come back to work. When the horse's agent still wants more money, the publicity machine starts promoting Arnold as the studio's next big star. The horse has a talk with Arnold and Arnold feels sorry for the horse. Arnold gets himself fired so the horse can get the part back. Jonathan Hole as Clerk. Phil Gordon as Assistant Director.

Fire Chief Joe Carson mentions to Sam about the Annual Convention of Fire Chiefs in Miami, Florida. Joe doesn't have the money to go and hopes that some of the locals will chip in. Joe appoints Oliver deputy fire chief, assuming he'll pay for his trip. Oliver says that the Hooterville Fire Department needs a lot of help. Sam sets up a meeting to pick a new fire chief. During the meeting, Haney keeps trying to sell stuff. Oliver is made the fire chief. Hank tells Lisa that people think Oliver stabbed Joe in the back and took his job. Lisa is mad because she thinks Oliver will go to the convention to look at the girls on the beach. Oliver doesn't want the job. Because of something Eb says, Oliver thinks he has a way to get fired. Oliver goes around the valley fining everyone for fire code violations. Sam holds another meeting. They fire Oliver and Joe gets his job back.

The Hooterville centennial celebration is this Saturday. Oliver rehearses with the Volunteer Fireman Band and Joe tells of the plans for the celebration. Oliver refuses to sing a song written about town founder Horace Hooter. After everyone complains about Joe's plans, he quits. Oliver is put in charge and holds a meeting. He suggests staging a re-enactment of the town's founding starring himself and Lisa as Horace and Doris Hooter. In the play, saloon girl Doris causes the money that Horace was going to buy a farm with being taken away. Horace briefly takes a job laying railroad track. Doris wants to get married, but Horace says not until he gets the money to buy a farm. Thanks to her skills as a card shark, Doris gets Horace's money back. Horace and Doris get married. After speaking with Larry and Harry Monroe and storekeeper Ben Drucker, they decide to call their community Hooterville. The members of the meeting aren't sure about the play. Oliver learns that the centennial is actually a year from Saturday.

Oliver's life is still turned upside down with Lisa's Mother around. After two weeks there isn't much for Mother to do and she thinks it might be time to go. Meanwhile, Kyoto makes a great breakfast for everyone else but serves Oliver Lisa's hotcakes. Eb tells Haney and Uncle Joe that Mother will be leaving soon. Eb also mentions how wealthy she is. Now Haney and Joe are interested in courting Mother. Haney comes by and invites Mother to the Hooterville Fire Department Mardi Gras. Despite already being packed, Mother agrees to stay. Mother is watching TV with Haney and Joe shows up. Joe and Haney start fighting over Mother and Oliver kicks them out. Mother doesn't want to cause problems and says she'll leave in the morning.

Oliver takes a night course in organic farming at the state college. Lisa takes a psychology class because it falls on the same nights as Oliver's classes. Amazingly, Lisa reads through many psychology books and starts to give out advice. Soon everyone in Hooterville is coming to "Doctor Lisa" to analyze their problems, including Arnold the Pig. Even though her advice is helping people, Oliver wants her to stop before she gets in trouble. William Lanteau as Registrar. William Sylvester as Dr. Hoffman.

Lisa cons Oliver into taking a fifth honeymoon together, this time to the Moana Rexford Hotel in Hawaii. Hotel owner Bob Carter (Don Porter) discusses business with his daughter Pamela (Pamela Franklin). Pamela's friends, Richard and Lily, are to be married and Pamela sets them up in the honeymoon suite at the hotel. When Lisa and Oliver arrive, and not knowing what Pam did, Bob shows them the honeymoon suite. Since the suite has two bedrooms, at first the two couples don't run into each other. After they do meet, Pamela explains what happened. Oliver says Richard and Lily can stay. Pat Morita as Charlie Lee. William Sylvester as Pilot. Shirley Mitchell as Marla Grayson. John Wheeler as Justice Of The Peace. Jane Connell as Woman On The Plane.

Oliver contacts Carol Rush (Elaine Joyce), his one-time secretary in New York, to find out where she'd had his father's watch repaired years earlier. Carol now works for Mr. Oglethorpe (Richard Deacon), a domineering California realtor. Carol is a bit of a scatterbrain. Oglethorpe hopes to get in on a big land deal with Lawrence David (Larry D. Mann) and gives him a check. After speaking with Oliver again, Carol believes that Oglethorpe is dealing with a crook and needs to get his check back. In the end, she prevents her boss from being conned by a man that Oliver had tried to indict back in New York. Emmaline Henry as Lillian Grant. Cliff Norton as Harry Grant. Anthony Caruso as Studs. Joe E. Tata as Bellboy. George Furth as Mark Allan.