The BEST episodes of The Phil Silvers Show season 1

Every episode of The Phil Silvers Show season 1, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of The Phil Silvers Show season 1!

Classic military comedy set on the fictional Army base of Fort Baxter in Kansas and starred Phil Silvers as Sgt. Ernest Bilko, a fast-talking sharpster who would do anything to make an extra buck. Paul Ford co-starred as Colonel Hall, Bilko's harried commanding officer who often found himself stuck in the middle of Bilko's schemes.

Last Updated: 9/19/2024Network: CBSStatus: Ended
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The Court Martial
star
8.16
43 votes

#1 - The Court Martial

Season 1 - Episode 25 - Aired 3/6/1956

When Zippo the ape is accidently inducted into the army the only way to get the army off the hook is to get Bilko as defense council and court martial the ape before anybody finds out

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Bivouac
star
8.16
44 votes

#2 - Bivouac

Season 1 - Episode 11 - Aired 11/29/1955

When maneuvers come round again the Colonel is interested in which illness Bilko has in order to miss out on the joys of marching through the countryside. In order to make him go the Colonel uses reverse psychology

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Hollywood
star
8.10
41 votes

#3 - Hollywood

Season 1 - Episode 16 - Aired 1/3/1956

Hollywood plans a film of the "Battle of Kabuchi" and they hire Bilko as the technical adviser, but after a couple of days he has taken over the whole production, and the film people want shot of him.

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The Transfer
star
8.08
39 votes

#4 - The Transfer

Season 1 - Episode 20 - Aired 1/31/1956

When the Colonel makes life difficult Bilko decides to bluff and puts in a transfer, but the Colonel calls the bluff and Bilko is on his way, but at his new camp life is to easy and Bilko hopes he can find a way to get back to Camp Baxter

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The Investigation
star
8.08
39 votes

#5 - The Investigation

Season 1 - Episode 17 - Aired 1/10/1956

A Congressional committee visit Fort Baxter to investigate waste and high living but Bilko has other ideas, he wants a pay rise instead

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The Reunion
star
8.07
41 votes

#6 - The Reunion

Season 1 - Episode 14 - Aired 12/20/1955

When Bilko meets up with his old army buddies, he thinks that they are going to be so short of money, that he is going to have to help them out , but it turns out that they have all been very successful.

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Mardi Gras
star
8.07
46 votes

#7 - Mardi Gras

Season 1 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/8/1955

When the platoon ask local socialite Miss Joy Landers to be their Mardi Gras queen she laughs and turns them down flat, so Bilko finds a way to change her mind.

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Bilko and the Beast
star
8.05
39 votes

#8 - Bilko and the Beast

Season 1 - Episode 28 - Aired 3/27/1956

When a new drill sergeant known as "The Beast" takes over at Fort Baxter Bilko and the platoon come up with a scheme to get rid of him

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Dinner at Sowici's
star
8.05
41 votes

#9 - Dinner at Sowici's

Season 1 - Episode 22 - Aired 2/14/1956

When Bilko thinks that Joan is trying to trap him into marriage, he takes her to dinner at Sgt Sowici's to see how bad marriage can be, but they are in for a surprise.

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The Rest Cure
star
8.02
40 votes

#10 - The Rest Cure

Season 1 - Episode 21 - Aired 2/7/1956

During a heat wave Bilko discovers that the army have a rest centre in the Rockies but the trick is trying to persuade the doctors and the Colonel to let him go there

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The Singing Contest
star
8.02
43 votes

#11 - The Singing Contest

Season 1 - Episode 12 - Aired 12/6/1955

Bilko hears of a singing contest in Miami and to get away from the bitterly cold weather he enters the platoon but on hearing them sing he puts a bet on for them to lose. While he is putting on the bet a new platoon member is found to have a beautiful singing voice

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The Eating Contest
star
8.02
44 votes

#12 - The Eating Contest

Season 1 - Episode 9 - Aired 11/15/1955

In an eating contest between the platoons Bilko puts his money on a new member of the platoon nicknamed 'The Stomach' only to find that he can only eat when he is depressed

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The Hoodlum
star
8.00
49 votes

#13 - The Hoodlum

Season 1 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/1/1955

After several transfers a young tough guy is moved to the motor pool platoon and it is left to the Bilko to cut him down to size. Meanwhile Bilko is after the "Soldier of the Month" competition. Little does he know that the tough guy will spring a surprise.

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The Twitch
star
8.00
49 votes

#14 - The Twitch

Season 1 - Episode 13 - Aired 12/13/1955

Colonel Hall tells Bilko to provide an audience for a lecture on music. He finds that nobody wants to come until they learn that the lecture will be given by a friend of the Colonel's wife and they can bet on the number of twitches that she will give during the lecture

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The Boxer
star
7.98
46 votes

#15 - The Boxer

Season 1 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/25/1955

Bilko discovers that one of the platoon Claude Dillingham is a boxing champ so Bilko enters him for the interplatoon championship only to learn that Dillingham refuses to fight

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The Centennial
star
7.98
43 votes

#16 - The Centennial

Season 1 - Episode 10 - Aired 11/22/1955

Bilko organises a pageant to celebrate 100 years of Camp Baxter but after some investigation finds that it does not show the camp in a very good light

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Army Memoirs
star
7.97
40 votes

#17 - Army Memoirs

Season 1 - Episode 23 - Aired 2/21/1956

When Sgt's Pendleton,Grover, and Sowici get Bilko busted to private, he gets his own back by pretending to write a book on his army life

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The Rich Kid
star
7.97
38 votes

#18 - The Rich Kid

Season 1 - Episode 15 - Aired 12/27/1955

Bilko gets an idea to buy the local bar and grill, but he is stumped for cash, until he learns that one of the platoon's new recruits, is heir to a steel fortune. So they play up to him in order to get him to invest in their scheme, but Bilko's conscience wins out in the end.

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Hair
star
7.95
44 votes

#19 - Hair

Season 1 - Episode 31 - Aired 4/24/1956

Bilko's head is constantly being used by his barber to find a cure for baldness. The other three sergeants know this and while Bilko is asleep decide to play a trick on him, but Bilko has the last laugh

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Bilko on Wall Street
star
7.95
43 votes

#20 - Bilko on Wall Street

Season 1 - Episode 34 - Aired 5/15/1956

Thinking his friend is a big man on Wall Street Bilko goes to stay but when he discovers that his friend is just a clerk, Bilko sets out to get him a better job.

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The Revolutionary War
star
7.95
41 votes

#21 - The Revolutionary War

Season 1 - Episode 19 - Aired 1/24/1956

Bilko's aunt sends him a diary showing him that his great uncle Joshua was on the staff of George Washington so Bilko applies to become an officer but on reading the diary he discovers that Joshua was a traitor so Bilko keeps quiet and withdraws his application

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The Big Uranium Strike
star
7.95
39 votes

#22 - The Big Uranium Strike

Season 1 - Episode 27 - Aired 3/20/1956

Bilko suspects that there are large deposits of uranium underneath Fort Baxter but he has to get rid of the Colonel before he can start digging

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The Con Men
star
7.93
44 votes

#23 - The Con Men

Season 1 - Episode 32 - Aired 5/1/1956

When Doberman gets a $500 windfall from an insurance policy, he loses it in a poker game with three con men. Bilko gets it back by conning the con men, but then Doberman loses it again by being conned into buying the hotel from another con man

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The Recruiting Sergeant
star
7.93
43 votes

#24 - The Recruiting Sergeant

Season 1 - Episode 30 - Aired 4/17/1956

When Bilko gets a tip on a horse from a jockey he persuades the Colonel to take him on a recruiting drive to Topeka so he can get to a bookie and get a bet on

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The Horse
star
7.90
52 votes

#25 - The Horse

Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 10/11/1955

Bilko loses the platoon welfare money on a horse only to find out that it is suffering from a minor leg injury, with the last of the platoon's money he buys the horse and has to keep it on the post until it is fit to run Then a visiting general comes on a surprise visit

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