Shark Bytes

I thought when James Whitmore was replaced by Paul Lynde they we're giving the show 'the kiss of death'.

This show was wonderful!!!! The best part was Cleavon Little; who I always felt was underrated and underappreciated. He would have made an excellent doctor. That goofy candy striper was priceless too. Never, ever jumped

After Paul Lynde joined the cast. Cleavon Little was great, and Joan Van Ark's "Annie" could have stuck with me a square rusty needle in the privates anytime.

TEMPERATURES RISING was a somewhat entertaining ABC sitcom that featured, if memory recalls, Cleavon Little, Joan Van Ark, and David Wayne and was set in some sort of hospital or clinic. It was rather clever but they weren't getting the ratings they wanted and I guess in an attempt to do so, they hired Paul Lynde to join the cast and that's when the show jumped. Once again, the show became centered around one actor/character which is the definitive shark warning for an alleged ensemble comedy.

This show was totally stupid and ridiculous during the first season. I mean, what hospital staff had the time or the inclination to prepare the stupid, foolish pranks that this staff came up with? For the second season, it made a reverse shark-jump, became better without the clowning around, with Cleavon Little's character Dr. Jerry Noland having apparently decided to grow up a little, and with Dr. Paul Mercy---played spectacularly by the very funny Paul Lynde---becoming the new, no-nonsense head doctor (not an administrator as one poster mistakenly stated. And it remained funny. The only trouble: they changed its title to "The New Temperatures Rising Show", which was a distasteful title. Fortunately, in the middle of the second season, they changed it back.

Temperatures Rising. Jumped at the beginning of season two. A bunch of mostly new people in this second season that we mostly didn't care about. BTW James Whitmore in season one played DR. CAMPANELLI. Actor Joseph Campanella never appeared on this show.

First season great. It wasn't just Paul Lynde signing on, it was the Cleavon Little character being replaced by his evil twin. I mean the guy had a perpetual sinister glare and scowl and was cruelly sarcastic after that...

I LOVE Cleavon Little, may he rest in peace. I thought this was a fairly harmless show--I only remember seeing a few episodes with Lynde (who I normally like), and, since I don't remember specifics, they must have SUCKED.

It wasn't a masterpiece to start with, but when Paul Lynde took over for James Whitmore, ouch! Especially when, in a Norman Lear-like effort to be topical, Lynde's character came down with VD. You could see co-star Cleavon Little forming two questions in his mind: "Was Lynde's partner male or female?" and "When is Mel Brooks going to come up with a sequel to 'Blazing Saddles' for me?"

Joseph Campenella was the Doctor in charge of the hospital for the first year. The second year he left and was replaced by Paul Lynde whose character was *not* a doctor just an administrator and everyone hated him. Especially the viewers

This never was a great show (how could it be, with such well-known comedic actors as Cleavon Little and Joan Van Ark?), but it *kissed* the shark when Paul Lynde joined the cast. They even had a "groundbreaking" episode where Paul Lynde's character got VD, and even that wasn't enough to shore up any interest in the show!