Television viewing at the Douglas household has dropped to zero because Uncle Charley, annoyed with the boys' quarreling about choice of channels, has withdrawn all TV privileges for a week. Robbie, a member of a new program committee, eagerly joins his co-ed girlfriend in her plan to bring true drama to the people. However, after viewing the show, the family isn't sure their attempt at 'realism' is really real.

Uncle Charley puts down a deposit on a vacation lot at beautiful Whispering Pines, only to learn he's been hoodwinked in a high pressure real-estate operation. The family discover that it is located at the bottom of a steep canyon. It is next to a tumbledown shack, occupied by a slovenly family who prove themselves completely undesirable as prospective neighbours.