At 62, the Cousins Are Back and as BOOMERS They're Filing Online for Social Security Benefits
Patty Duke has resurrected her dual role of lookalike cousins Cathy and Patty Lane in a featured spot for the Social Security Administration. Aging baby boomers will remember ABC’s sitcom The Patty Duke Show that aired from September 18, 1963 until May 4, 1966. A total of 104 episodes were produced, mostly written by the famed Sidney Sheldon, featuring the antic’s of two teenaged girls who were so different but looked so much alike fooling everyone when it was advantageous to do so.
Capitalizing on this memorable show that attracted baby boomers nationwide, Commissioner of Social Security Michael J. Astrue and Patty Duke in January unveiled Social Security's new Retire Online campaign to encourage the use of online services.
“To meet the needs of Patty and 80 million of her fellow boomers, who are becoming eligible for retirement at a rate of 10,000 a day for the next 20 years, Social Security is developing a wide range of online and automated services,” Commissioner Astrue said. “Social Security's new online retirement application can be completed in as little as 15 minutes from the comfort of your home or office. Filing online means there's no need to drive to a local Social Security office or wait for an appointment with a Social Security representative.”
To see a demonstration of Social Security's online retirement application and to view the new public service announcements featuring Patty Duke as the cousins, go to www.socialsecurity.gov/pattyduke.
Patty Duke as Cathy (left) and Patty Lane (right) promoting Retire Online.
Remembering The Patty Duke Show
Boomers will recall The Patty Duke Show centered around Patty's father, Martin (William Schallert), who was the managing editor of a fictitious newspaper, the New York Chronicle; Cathy's father (Martin Lane) also worked for the Chronicle as a foreign correspondent.
Cathy's father wanted her to complete her secondary schooling in the United States before being allowed to return to Scotland. Cathy was more worldly than Patty, who was a typical Brooklyn Heights teenager interested in boys, ice cream and music. The two girls' very different personalities set the tone for much of the sitcom.