Oliver Wendell Douglas quits his job as a lawyer and moves from Park Avenue to Hooterville. He wants to get away from the "rat race" of the city. His beautiful wife Lisa doesn't exactly love the idea.
Oliver wants to start his farming, but Lisa demands he have their house redecorated first. Sam Drucker recommends a decorator from Pixley. Kate Bradley tries to tutor Lisa in the kitchen since she doesn't know the first thing about cooking. Kate starts by showing her how to make something easy: hotcakes. Adding to the chaos is Oliver's mother, who arrives to rescue Lisa from this nightmarish, rustic life.
Oliver is hoodwinked into renting a rooster from Mr. Haney. Of course he will need to rent a hen to make the rooster crow. It is the first of many things he will buy/rent from Mr. Haney.
Lisa is against buying neighboring property owned by the Watsons until she sees their farmhouse. Thinking it's part of the deal, Lisa sells the Watsons' furniture to Mr. Haney and has their things brought over. All of this happens while Oliver is in New York arranging the financing.
Oliver is allowed to join the Hooterville Volunteer Fire Department if he'll play an instrument in their marching band. As Chief Joe Carson explains, they have more parades than fires. Patriotic speeches follow as Oliver takes his new duties very seriously.
After Lisa lists Oliver in the new phone directory as an attorney, he fears he'll be flooded with calls wanting his legal advice. Instead, he turns cranky when his phone doesn't ring. Meanwhile, Lisa accepts the challenge of baking a cake. Oliver's first potential customer has the misfortune of facing Lisa's 20-pound pound cake.
While fixing the TV antenna, Oliver falls through the roof and sprains his ankle. Hooterville residents parade through his bedroom to give their regards. They all bring him food, but eat it themselves as they crowd him off his bed to watch "Frankenstein Meets Mary Poppins" on TV.
Oliver will make considerably more on his apple crop if he gets it to market first. He hires local high schoolers to pick the fruit and uses their old truck to haul them. As the rickety vehicle suffers numerous breakdowns, the apple prices begin to drop. Finally, Lisa's "hotscakes" come to the rescue.
Ralph Monroe is smitten with Hank Kimball, but discovers that he won't date a woman with a man's name. She asks Oliver to file court papers to have her name changed to something more feminine. While in court, Oliver learns that his license to practice law is not recognized by the state. This sends Oliver back to the books to study for the state's bar exam.
Lisa agreed to try out the farm for six months. Today's the day she decides whether to stay in Hooterville or return to New York. Everyone anxiously awaits her decision. In the meantime, Oliver flashes back to their first days on the farm, his physical mishaps around the house, and the lousy products Haney's tried to sell him.
Oliver is invited to New York to be the guest speaker at a Harvard alumni banquet but he arrives with an unexpected stowaway. Meanwhile, the Ziffels fear that they'll lose Arnold to Mr. Haney, who's trying to take the pig in lieu of a debt that he claims the Ziffels owe him.
Sam Drucker's going on a two-week vacation to visit his sister and leaves Oliver to take over his duties as deputy sheriff. Complications ensue when Oliver demonstrates how to use a pair of handcuffs to Lisa before discovering that he's lost the keys.
Tired of repairing the rickety generator that Haney sold him, Oliver checks on the status of his electricity. Learning that his application was never mailed, Oliver decides to deal with the power company in person. He finds that nothing in Hooterville is done simply--or correctly; he ends up with a meter that runs even when it's disconnected and another pole by the bedroom window.
Oliver wants to write a folk song about local legend Molly Turgiss, a woman so ugly she was run out of Hooterville. Facts are hard to come by, though, because the mere mention of her name causes bad to happen. Lisa feels sorry for Molly and offers to give her a make-over.
Lisa wants to surprise Oliver with a new tractor for his birthday. To keep it out of sight, she has it delivered to the Ziffels' farm. The old couple mistakes it for a gift from Mrs. Douglas, leading Doris to think that Fred and Lisa are having a torrid affair.
Eb's talent for curing sick animals leads the Douglases to send him to veterinarian school. Unfortunately, his college career is short-lived due to one small oversight.
Lisa believes that Oliver's beginning to crack under the pressure of running the farm. After he claims to have seen a spotted horse and a zebra, she calls Doc Stuart to give him a checkup. Lisa's attempt to slip Oliver a sedative backfires, resulting in her taking a very long nap.
A drought in Hooterville has crops wilting in the fields. Oliver is so desperate, he agrees to pay Haney $350 if he can bring some relief. That's when Haney presents dancing Chief Thundercloud. When the rains eventually arrive, Oliver refuses to pay. He claims the Chief's dancing is not what did the trick.
The "Every Other Wednesday Afternoon Discussion Club" decides to bring culture to the valley by starting the Hooterville Symphony Orchestra. Oliver calls the women "nuts" for considering such a ridiculous idea. Undeterred, Lisa calls her conductor friend Sir Geoffrey to come and conduct the orchestra. What he encounters is the Hooterville Volunteer Fire Department Marching Band playing the only song they know.
Oliver and Lisa's groovy nephew arrives in Hooterville on his motorcycle with long hair, hip lingo and no interest in work. However, Chuck is excellent with motors and proceeds to "soup up" all the vehicles in the valley. The easily influenced Eb is quick to decide he wants to be a hippie beatnik.
