mrs.johnson dodges a bullet.

[michael c]

i've been watching the early barnabas episodes.

there is a scene in which elizabeth agrees to barnabas' odd request to live in the old house.

remarking on it's present uninhabitability liz "generously" offers to have mrs.johnson come down and prepare it for him.

now mrs.j. huffs and puffs when she has to do so much as hang up a coat.can you imagine her reaction when she's asked to clean and ready for occupation a derelict,dilapidated,falling down mansion that has sat empty for nearly two hundred years?this doesn't really seem like a fair request on liz's part.

thankfully barnabas turns down liz's offer saying he's already made "other arrangements"(enter willie loomis)and dear mrs.johnson is spared a most disagreeable undertaking.

[Brandon Collins]

I daresay Mrs. J would've huffed, and she would've puffed, and she would've blooowwwnnnn that house down!

[Gothick]

Mrs. J is  seen in, I think, one of the early Quentin episodes (from early 1969) scrubbing tiles in front of a hearth in one of the bedrooms.  It was shortly after this that Dr. Julia Hoffman informed another resident of the Great House that Mrs J was "a neurotic hysteric" (I think that was the deathless phrase).

Mrs J also [spoiler]inadvertently caused Eric Lang's death by bursting in on Cassandra who was busy with a voodoo doll and a needle.  Cassandra had left a note for the redoubtable housekeeper asking if she and Roger could have breakfast later than the crack-of-dawn hours set for the rest of the household.  I also remember that Mrs J barked at Cassandra "I only have two arms and two hands!"  I always thought it would be fun if Cassandra smiled beguilingly and murmured, "We could change that, my dear--but not as you might have wished!"[/spoiler]

As we've discussed several times in the past, during the original broadcast I barely noticed Mrs J, but watching the show as an adult, Clarice Blackburn's performance in the role is one of the great delights of the series!

G.

[BuzzH]

Mrs. J is  seen in, I think, one of the early Quentin episodes (from early 1969) scrubbing tiles in front of a hearth in one of the bedrooms. 

Actually, she wasn't cleaning a hearth in the OH, she was cleaning in the cottage before Chris moved in and [spoiler]that's when Quentin appeared and gave her a big scare.[/spoiler]

[IluvBarnabas]

Mrs. J is  seen in, I think, one of the early Quentin episodes (from early 1969) scrubbing tiles in front of a hearth in one of the bedrooms.  It was shortly after this that Dr. Julia Hoffman informed another resident of the Great House that Mrs J was "a neurotic hysteric" (I think that was the deathless phrase).

As we've discussed several times in the past, during the original broadcast I barely noticed Mrs J, but watching the show as an adult, Clarice Blackburn's performance in the role is one of the great delights of the series!

Actually it was "repressed hysteric" that Julia refers about Mrs. Johnson and her seeing a strange man in the cottage. I always found this line amusing considering this was coming from a woman who tried to cure a vampire and was at this point trying to cure a werewolf and has talked with ghosts herself!

I always loved Mrs. Johnson.....she had a good heart, but took no guff from anyone.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

[spoiler]I also remember that Mrs J barked at Cassandra "I only have two arms and two hands!"  I always thought it would be fun if Cassandra smiled beguilingly and murmured, "We could change that, my dear--but not as you might have wished!"[/spoiler]

   And what a hoot it might have been had Cass actually done it. I mean, it's not like Mrs. J could have simply hidden the result with a bandage like Cass herself did when Nicholas turned [spoiler]her hand into bone.  [/spoiler]Or maybe Cass would have been clever enough to cast a spell so that no one else would notice. 

As we've discussed several times in the past, during the original broadcast I barely noticed Mrs J, but watching the show as an adult, Clarice Blackburn's performance in the role is one of the great delights of the series!

Agreed. So much of the show was lost on DS' younger audience. It really is quite richly textured in ways that only adults can honestly appreciate.

[michael c]

it always amazes me that(according to the d.s. almanac)clarice blackburn only appeared in 79 episodes during the show's five year run...and only 57 as mrs.johnson.

for me she's a much bigger presence than those numbers would suggest.i always get such a kick out of her scenes...even as the loathsome abigail collins.

sadly after 1897 the writers seemed to lose interest in the character or perhaps ms.blackburn became unavailable because she only appears in a few episodes.

however her appearence during the 1995 segment was memorable.

[BuzzH]

i always get such a kick out of her scenes

I just adore Mrs. J!  She's too damn funny!  All her grumbling about having to clean/pick-up after the family when she's their freakin' maid, LOL!    She's my second favorite 'minor' character after Buzz.
 

[Brandon Collins]

I, too, enjoy Mrs. J's appearances, and agree with mscbryk that she seemed to be in many more episode than she actually was. Perhaps that's because most times when she appeared it was memorable.

And speaking of her cleaning.....

I've been noticing here lately (for a long while now, actually) at just HOW dirty Collinwood really is. I mean, when the front door opens the leaves blow all up in there. But the thing that gets me THE MOST, is that God-awfully filthy fireplace in the Collinwood drawing room. Geez Louise! Get somebody to scrub that soot off of that sucker! It's a wonder that the ENTIRE WALL isn't black, given that it's been burning nonstop for over 200 years!

[Sunny_Collins]

I have to agree with everyone, Mrs. Johnson was a delightful character to watch, it's a pity they didn't have any major plot lines involving her, that would have been great! 

[BuzzH]

it's a pity they didn't have any major plot lines involving her, that would have been great!

The closet they came to her having a major plotline was [spoiler]when she was spying on the family for Burke in the pre-Barnabas episodes.[/spoiler]

[Sunny_Collins]

The closet they came to her having a major plotline was [spoiler]when she was spying on the family for Burke in the pre-Barnabas episodes.[/spoiler]

Ah, that would explain it then, as I have not yet seen the pre-Barnabas episodes. 

[Alondra]

i've been watching the early barnabas episodes.

there is a scene in which elizabeth agrees to barnabas' odd request to live in the old house.

remarking on it's present uninhabitability liz "generously" offers to have mrs.johnson come down and prepare it for him.

now mrs.j. huffs and puffs when she has to do so much as hang up a coat.can you imagine her reaction when she's asked to clean and ready for occupation a derelict,dilapidated,falling down mansion that has sat empty for nearly two hundred years?this doesn't really seem like a fair request on liz's part.

thankfully barnabas turns down liz's offer saying he's already made "other arrangements"(enter willie loomis)and dear mrs.johnson is spared a most disagreeable undertaking.

We are watching these episodes now and I commented the same thing. I couldn't believe Liz actually offered Mrs. Johnson to come over and clean that house. Both Liz and Roger were shocked that Barnabas wanted to live in that delapidated old house and knew what a major undertaking it would be to clean it up enough to live in and she's offering Mrs. Johnson to do all that work. I felt sorry enough for Willie and he was a strong young man (handsome too, I know that has nothing to do with his ability to clean but I thought I'd throw that in

Imagine Barnabas had accepted her offer. If I were Mrs. Johnson I'd say, "Good grief, Mrs. Stoddard but my job is to be the housekeeper here at Collinwood, I did not sign on for the Old House too! Don't you think I have enough to do with keeping this place clean all by myself, cooking the meals and everything?"

I agree with everyone that Clarice was a great actress and Mrs. Johnson should have been in more episodes. She was great [spoiler]in the dream curse. I was glad to see her get a turn at having the dream.[/spoiler]

Alondra[/b]

[Midnite]

Imagine Barnabas had accepted her offer. If I were Mrs. Johnson I'd say, "Good grief, Mrs. Stoddard but my job is to be the housekeeper here at Collinwood, I did not sign on for the Old House too! Don't you think I have enough to do with keeping this place clean all by myself, cooking the meals and everything?"

At least Mrs. Johnson never had to clean any toilets.