The Quality of Mercy in The Dick Van Dyke Show

“Dear Mrs. Petrie, Your Husband is in Jail.” By Jerry Belson and Garry Marshall. Perf. Dick Van Dyke, Herkie Styles, and Jackie Joseph. Dir. Jerry Paris. The Dick Van Dyke Show. Season 3, episode 29. CBS. 15 April 1964. DVD. Allied Vaughn, 2023.

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Here, The Dick Van Dyke Show draws from a new Shakespeare play, putting Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet on the shelf for the time being.

The plot sends Rob Petrie off to catch an old friend's act at what I can only assume is an off-off-off-Broadway theatre. Once there, he gets drawn into the increasing chaos backstage. The performers are wandering in and out while an illegal game of craps is underway.

The title gives away the end—Rob ends up in jail. But, before he's arrested, he's approached by a performer who wants another chance to audition for The Alan Brady Show. And her big audition piece seems to be Portia's "The quality of mercy" speech from The Merchant of Venice—semi-sung to something of a dance number.

Here's the scene:

It's an odd direction to go, but I do appreciate the variety!

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Links: The Episode at IMDB.

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