After NBC canceled the series because of its low ratings, it was aired by CBS for its fourth and final season.

[2] In the pilot, an incompetent Hollywood "public relations man" named Joey Mason (Bishop) forgets to make proper accommodations for an exhausted Danny Williams (Thomas) after he arrives in Los Angeles to play a show.

Joey is then forced to put Danny up in the home he shares with his colorful parents, Mr. and Mrs. Mason (played by Billy Gilbert and Madge Blake) and two unmarried sisters, Betty (Virginia Vincent) and aspiring actress Stella (Marlo Thomas).

Two additional characters were added; a younger brother named Larry (Warren Berlinger), and brother-in-law Frank (Joe Flynn), the husband of Joey's older sister Betty.

The series' first incarnation features Joey, a well-intending but hapless and trouble-prone young man, who works for the Hollywood public relations firm, Willoughby, Cleary and Jones.

Joey lives with and supports his widowed mother, Mrs. Barnes and younger siblings, aspiring actress Stella and medical student Larry.

[2] Storylines during the first season typically revolve around Joey's misadventures concerning his job and problems with his colorful family.

In addition to the format changing, The Joey Bishop Show began filming in front of a live studio audience.

Joe Besser portrayed Mr. Jillson, no longer Joey's assistant but now the building's goofy and henpecked superintendent.

Towards the end of the season, Allan Melvin appears in several episodes as Art Miller, a policeman who becomes a friend of the family.

Meader rose to fame in the early 1960s for his comedic impersonation of then-President John F. Kennedy featured on the popular comedy album The First Family.

President Kennedy's death promptly ended Meader's career; his club bookings and television appearances were quickly canceled and his albums were pulled from stores.

To compensate for Thomas' absence, CBS immediately picked up The Joey Bishop Show for the 1964–65 television season.

In an effort to save the series, CBS moved it to Tuesday nights opposite the second half of ABC's Combat!

Antenna TV announced in October 2016 it would begin airing the series the following January, including the rarely seen first season.

[18] In September 2004, Questar Entertainment released the complete second season of The Joey Bishop Show on Region 1 DVD in the United States.

[19] On March 13, 2018, SFM Entertainment (distributed by Allied Vaughn) released all four seasons plus a "Complete Series" set on DVD in Region 1 via Amazon.com's CreateSpace program.