S1 • E1
Frazzled lawyer Paul Simms comes home to his wife and martinis to find his college girl daughter Barbara has come home- with a husband in tow. The husband is Howie Dickerson, a sort of idiot-savant who unerringly picks high yielding stocks but never invests a penny and only can find work as a caddie. Simms is asked to see an X-rated film to break the lease of the tenant, who never mentioned what kind of movies he was going to show. The lease looks like it can easily be voided, bringing Simms a bonus from his boss, who is the landlord. That is, until Howie runs into the tenant and assures him he has the right to run porn if he wants to.
S1 • E2
Paul's son-in-law Howie, who has an encyclopedic knowledge, is selected for a game show. But things don't work out well and a physical altercation takes place with the sponsor.
S1 • E3
After Howie and Barbara move into the cellar Paul looks for a way to evict them. A visit by by Howie's parent lead to an invite to live with them but they expect Paul to help out financially.
S1 • E4
Howie is cast in a play where the performers will be totally nude. Paul is worried about public embarrassment and tries to get the production shut down.
S1 • E5
After a series of mishaps involving Paul's expensive new briefcase, he demands that Barbara and Howie leave. The two move to a "share-all" commune, but discover that it involves the commune sharing all of the stuff they brought with them. Paul arrives and begs them to return so Martha will speak to him again.
S1 • E6
Paul, to motivate Howie, tells his son-in-law that he has been fired from his job. But Howie decides to put the household on a strict budget rather then look for work.
S1 • E7
Paul brings home a client not knowing his house is headquarters for those demonstrating against the man's company.
S1 • E8
Paul learns that the marriage of his daughter to Howie is invalid due to a technicality.
S1 • E9
When Paul forbids Sally from seeing a boy she likes, she runs away from home.
S1 • E10
Paul 's hopes for a gorgeous girl as vacation replacement for his secretary fade when son-in-law Howie applies for the job.
S1 • E11
Paul hopes his break is coming when he entertains Mr.Tamura, a Japanese tycoon. But he is unable to get in any business discussion when Tamura finds himself fascinated by Paul's visiting sister Charlotte.
S1 • E12
Jo Anne Worley plays a woman who arrives at the Simms home at 2 a.m. after leaving her husband and asks Paul to handle her divorce.
S1 • E13
Martha works on a political campaign in the house driving Paul crazy.
S1 • E14
Howie and Barbara go on an errand for Martha. While shopping, a mugger attempts to rob Barbara. Feeling that the criminal is a victim of society, Howie and Barbara choose to not involve the police and attempt to rehabilitate him on their own. They bring the mugger home to Paul's chagrin.
S1 • E15
Paul's doctor is worried about his mental state and tells him to avoid any excitement. Paul decides to follow the advice beginning with being nice to his son-in-law Howie. He finds it to be extremely difficult.
S1 • E16
Paul's campaign for presidency of the city's bar association on a public decency platform is imperiled when a bar owner buys a nude portrait of his daughter, Barbara.
S1 • E17
Howie inherits $10,000 and Paul is ecstatic because now his daughter and son-in-law can afford to move out, but when it's learned that the money came from a company that was a major pollutant, Howie refuses it. Stiller and Meara play Howie's parents.
S1 • E18
Paul Simms vents his hostility toward a senior law partner by writing a letter which he does not intend to mail -- but the dry cleaner does.
S1 • E19
Paul loses a big job representing a congressional committee when Howie changes a Congressman's son into a hippie.
S1 • E20
Paul's neighbors plan to install a swimming pool. After having their property surveyed, it is discovered that Paul's fence extends one foot over the property line. Paul attempts to remedy the problem without spending too much money.
S1 • E21
A visit from Paul's mother-in-law Mabel stirs up trouble in the Sims household. Mabel convinces her daughter Martha that Paul and his gorgeous assistant Judy are involved.
S1 • E22
Paul meets a psychiatrist (Alan Hale) at a bat who advises him to send out positive vibes to his mother-in-law who has been recovering from a fall in his home.
S1 • E23
Paul tries every way imaginable to avoid taking his wife Martha to a dance held for a charity.
S1 • E24
Grace has a fight with Barney leaving to a change in sleeping arrangements and Paul ends up on the sofa. Paul works to reconcile the bickering in-laws so he can get his bed back.
S1 • E25
Paul's attempt to have a family day becomes a disaster instead of his hoped-for plot to promote togetherness.
S1 • E26
The Simms invite the Cunningham family, their new neighbors, to their home to welcome them to the neighborhood. When their 18 year-old daughter takes an interest in Paul, Martha becomes concerned.
Paul Simms
Martha Simms
Howie Dickerson
Barbara Simms Dickerson
Sally Simms
J.J. McNish
George
Barney Dickerson
Grace Dickerson
Alice