User Reviews

Wow....definitely a stereotyped show. Gypsies in Bryant Park, wagons,horses,campfires and all. Then camp out with everything in a residential neighborhood? Enrolling Lazlo (the Gipsy son who's Ernie's age) in the public school with no permanent address, probably unvaccinated, etc.... But, don't forget, Gypsies are thieves. And they actually do steal (assumed) from the Douglas family. Even though they returned what was "stolen", Uncle Charlie is the bad guy for assuming they did by calling the police (I would have. ) and Steve is apologizing.

Doesn't make sense.

Remember the song by Cher? Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves? Describes this episode.

This episode "Help the Gypsies Are Coming" was very difficult to watch. How could any writers have thought this was a good story idea? It exploits stereotypes of "Gypsies" like nothing I have ever seen before. Don't get me wrong, I love the "My Three Sons" series, but this was as inappropriate as anything I have ever seen. I knew some "Roma" people around the time this show was made. No, they didn't live in a wagon pulled by a horse in the woods. They actually lived in a house. This episode was absurd.

One of the best comedy directors, James Sheldon, handled this goofy on steroids story. Sheldon took over the series when James V. Kern passed suddenly and kept it all going. He worked overtime, and it shows.

10 STARS.

A classic Ernie episode, just the right guy to get into this kind of mess. He meets a new classmate at school, Lazlo (played by 12 year old Rick Natoli), who is a gypsy. They become instant friends, Ernie extends a family invite -- and before you know it Lazlo's large gypsy family is camping out on the Douglas front yard?

Uncle Charley goes nuts!

Best of it are the actors. Veteran stage actor Kurt Kaszner plays Boris! Watch him. Kaszner would soon appear in THE LAND OF THE GIANTS. Polish actress Lili Valenty guest stars, who played everything from nuns to ballet teachers to madames. She was a one of a kind actress. Not to forget Rick Natoli who was also a popular child actor at the time.

This was written by Cynthia Lindsey, who wrote four episodes for the show. Lindsey had a long list of credits to her name, including being an actress, and one of the famous GOLD DIGGERS OF 1933. She should have written a book.

This MAY have been an outline for a pilot episode, sort of like a gypsy version of THE BEVERLY HILLBILLIES, only in a suburban setting, not Beverly Hills.

Without too much surprise, James Sheldon went on to direct LOVE, AMERICAN STYLE and THE LOVE BOAT.

A terrific episode, especially for the talent. Not to be missed. From SEASON 7 EPISODE 26 remastered color.

I thought this was quite an interesting episode. Nicely challenges stereotypes about Roma but fails to recognise that there has to be give-and-take on both sides and disappointedly ends with the implication that somehow the Douglas famiy are in the wrong.