Debbie Reynolds portrayed Debbie Thompson, a housewife married to Jim, a successful
sportswriter for the
Los Angeles Sun. Jim was portrayed by actor
Don Chastain; his boss and brother-in-law was played by longtime television actor
Tom Bosley. Reynolds' attempts to amuse herself were regarded as being reminiscent of those of
Lucille Ball on ''
Here's Lucy''. Creator/producer
Jess Oppenheimer was the original producer and co-creator of
I Love Lucy. The show also employed
Bob Carroll Jr., and
Madelyn Davis, two longtime
Lucy writers. NBC was selling advertising time for cigarette commercials against Reynolds' wishes (even though she was assured no cigarette ads would be seen during the program). After Reynolds threatened to quit the show, American Brands (formerly known as American Tobacco) withdrew sponsorship. To make up for NBC's lost ad revenue, Reynolds agreed to give back to the network their guarantee of a second year of airing the program, as well as an NBC-backed film, ''
What's the Matter with Helen?'', in which she starred, and her ownership in a subsequent NBC-produced series. ==Cast==