Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice

Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice was of necessity somewhat different from the R-rated movie upon which it was based. The film involved sexual liberation, and featured the (short-lived) desire of the two title couples to engage in extramarital affairs, mate-swapping and group sex, all of which would have been unacceptable on U.S. broadcast television in 1973 under the network's Division of Standards and Practices. However, the TV series depicted skinny dipping, premarital sex, and unmarried couples cohabiting, which were still thought by many to be racy topics for network television at the time. As with the film, Ted and Alice Henderson were more conservative than the "liberated" Bob and Carol Sanders. No members of the original film cast reprised their roles in the series.