Series Description:

The People's Choice TV show was a 30 minute comedy series on NBC about a city Councilman (Socrates "Sock" Miller) who cared very much about helping the people in his district. Unfortunately, Mayor John Peoples wanted him to "go along" with his agenda and be a "good politician". That attitude was typically in conflict with the communitie's best interests and caused conflict between the Councilman and the Mayor. To make matters worse, Sock was dating Mayor People's daughter without the blessings of the Mayor! The funniest part of the series was when Sock's pet Basset Hound, "Cleo" would have thoughts about the predicaments that Sock got into and the audience could hear those thoughts!

Broadcast History:

1st Season - Thursdays at 8:30 PM (eastern) on NBC
2nd & 3rd Season - Thursdays at 9:00 PM (eastern) on NBC

The People's Choice Cast:

Jackie Cooper ............ Socrates "Sock" Miller
Pat Breslin .............. Amanda "Mandy" Peoples Miller
Margaret Irving .......... Aunt Gus
Paul Maxey ............... Mayor John Peoples
John Stephenson .......... Roger Crutcher (1955-57)
Leonid Kinskey ........... Pierre (1955-56)
Dick Wesson .............. Rollo (1956-58) 
Bernadette ............... Cleopatra "Cleo" - The Basset Hound
Mary Jane Croft .......... Cleo's Voice

The People's Choice Trivia:

The People's Choice was created by Irving Brecher. Irving also created another popular TV show called, "The Life of Riley".

Besides being a councilman, Sock Miller was an ornithologist with the Bureau of Fish and Wildlife. An ornithologist is a person who studies birds.

The city where Sock was a Councilman was Barkerville, California.

In episode #13, "An Adventure of Sock", audiences learned that Sock got Cleo, his Basset Hound by winning her in a poker game while serving in the Army in Korea as a Corporal.

Jackie Cooper also starred in another popular comedy series titled, "Hennesey". Long before that, in the 1930s, Jackie was a top box office movie star as one of the legendary "Little Rascals". He played the role of "Jim Hawkins" in the 1934 classic film, "Treasure Island". Jackie was also one of only four actors to appear in all four Superman movies from the 1970s and 80s. He played the role of "Perry White" in those films. Only Christopher Reeve (Clark Kent/Superman), Margot Kidder (Lois Lane), and Marc McClure (Jimmy Olsen) joined Jackie on all four films.

On February 9th and November 23rd of 1957; Jackie Cooper (as Sock), Bernadette (as Cleo), and Mary Jane Croft (as Cleo's Voice) appeared on "The Perry Como Show" to do a charity promo for the March of Dimes.

While most sources say that The People's Choice didn't win any awards or even get any nominations, that's not altogether true. Bernadette (as Cleo) won a PATSY Award in 1958. PATSY is an acronym for "Picture Animals Top Star of the Year).

Sock and Mandy got married at the end of the second season. They did it secretly because the Mayor (Mandy's father) didn't approve of them even dating. In the final season after Sock graduated from law school, they finally told everyone about their marriage.

If you would like to share your thoughts about the People's Choice TV show with other fans or just see what others are saying, you're welcome to join in at our People's Choice Forum!

Episodes List With Original Air Dates

The First Season

The People's Choice (10/6/1955)
How Sock Met Mandy (10/13/1955)
The Unseating of Councilman Sock (10/20/1955)
Sock Plays Cupid (10/27/1955)
Sock vs. Crutcher (11/3/1955)
Sock's New Secretary (11/10/1955)
Nature Study (11/17/1955)
Sock Hires Mandy (11/24/1955)
The Parting of Sock and Mandy (12/1/1955)
Sock and the Beauty Contest (12/8/1955)
Sock's Teenage Trouble (12/15/1955)
The Christmas Story (12/22/1955)
An Adventure of Sock (12/29/1955)
Aunt Gus Leaves Sock (1/5/1956)
Sock and Augie (1/12/1956)
Sock, the Marriage Broker (1/19/1956)
Sock, the Dedicated Councilman (1/26/1956)
Sock Proposes to Mandy (2/2/1956)
Sock, the Businessman (2/9/1956)
The Domestic Relations (2/16/1956)
Sock, the City Father (2/23/1956)
Sock, the Escort (3/1/1956)
Sock Strikes It Rich (3/8/1956)
Sock and the Mayor's Romance (3/15/1956)
Sock and the Syrene (3/22/1956)
Sock and the Movie Offer (3/29/1956)
Sock vs. Stone Kenyon (4/5/1956)
Wedding Bells (4/12/1956)
Sock and Captain Turner (4/19/1956)
Sock and the Proxy Marriage (4/26/1956)
Sock, the Budget Balancer (5/3/1956)
Sock, the Fund Raiser (5/10/1956)
Sock and the Lonely Hearts Club (5/17/1956)
Sock and Mandy's Career (5/24/1956)
Sock and the Mayor's Election (5/31/1956)
Sock and the Peoples' Pageant (6/7/1956)
Sock and Pierre's Job (6/14/1956)

The Second Season

Sock Loses A Bet (10/4/1956)
The Mayor Proposes (10/18/1956)
The Wedding Plans (11/1/1956)
The Bachelor Party (11/8/1956)
Sock Gives Gus Away (11/15/1956)
Sock, The Acting Mayor (11/22/1956)
Sock Takes A Boarder (11/29/1956)
Sock and the Law (12/6/1956)
Sock Takes the Plunge (12/13/1956)
Mandy's Male Animal (12/20/1956)
Sock, the Greek God (12/27/1956)
Sock and the Hex (1/3/1957)
How Sock Met Rollo (1/10/1957)
Sock's Secret Honeymoon (1/17/1957)
Sock's Bivouac (1/24/1957)
Sock's Master Plan (1/31/1957)
Sock Gets the Works (2/7/1957)
Aunt Gus Tells All (2/14/1957)
Sock's Tight Squeeze (2/21/1957)
Almost A Father (2/28/1957)
The Patsy (3/7/1957)
The Domestics (3/14/1957)
Sock's Out-of-Town Job (3/21/1957)
One-Ring Circus (3/28/1957)
Sock Goes for the Dough (4/4/1957)
The Ink Blots (4/11/1957)
Sock and Mandy, Paperhangers (4/18/1957)
The Late Husband (4/25/1957)
The Queen and Me (5/2/1957)
Boomerang (5/16/1957)
The Hot Certificate (5/23/1957)
The Sophisticates (5/30/1957)
Sock, The Matchmaker (6/6/1957)

The Third Season

The Nickel Pickle (10/3/1957)
The Giveaway (10/10/1957)
The Caveman (10/17/1957)
The Retiring Mayor (10/24/1957)
The Reluctant House Guest (10/31/1957)
The Legal Eagle (11/7/1957)
Barkerville (11/14/1957)
The Model House (11/21/1957)
Movies are Badder than Ever (11/28/1957)
The Runaway Dog (12/5/1957)
The Good Provider (12/12/1957)
The Helpmate (12/19/1957)
Sock's Old Flame (12/26/1957)
The Cookie Jar (1/2/1958)
The Wrong Indians (1/9/1958)
The Sheriff (1/16/1958)
The Salted Cellar (1/23/1958)
Sleeping Beauty (1/30/1958)
Distaff Stuff (2/13/1958)
The Male Ego (2/20/1958)
The Family Way (2/27/1958)
The Veteran (3/6/1958)
Cleo, Secret Dog (3/13/1958)
The Practical Joker (3/20/1958)
Little White Lies (3/27/1958)
The Tycoon (4/3/1958)
Sock's Lifesaver (4/10/1958)
Uncle Willie (4/17/1958)
Ladies' Aide (4/24/1958)
Rollo Makes Good (5/1/1958)
The First Anniversary (5/8/1958)
Rollo's Wedding (5/15/1958)
Missing Moolah (5/22/1958)
Daisies Won't Tell (5/29/1958)