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Mama's Family
Mama's Family title card
Format	Sitcom
Created by	Dick Clair Jenna McMahon
Starring	Vicki Lawrence Ken Berry Dorothy Lyman Rue McClanahan Eric Brown Karin Argoud Beverly Archer Allan Kayser Betty White
Theme music composer	Peter Matz
Opening theme	"Bless My Happy Home"
Country of origin	United States
No. of seasons	6
No. of episodes	130 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Joe Hamilton
Producer(s)	Joe Hamilton Productions
Running time	30 minutes per episode
Distributor	Lorimar-Telepictures (1986-1989) Warner Bros. Television (1989-1990)
Broadcast
Original channel	NBC (1983-1984) (Syndicated) (1986-1990)
Original run	January 22, 1983 – March 12, 1990
External links
IMDb profile
TV.com summary

Mama's Family is an American television sitcom that premiered on NBC on January 22, 1983. It ended its run on that network in May 1984 when it was cancelled, but NBC would continue to air reruns until September 1985. In 1986, Mama's Family returned in syndication, where it aired for an additional four seasons, ending on March 12, 1990. Mama's Family is a spinoff of a recurring series of comedy sketches called The Family, which appeared on The Carol Burnett Show in the 1970s.^[1] Image File history File links Question_book-3. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... A sitcom or situation comedy is a genre of comedy performance originally devised for radio but today typically found on television. ... Vicki Lawrence (born Vicki Ann Axelrad on March 26, 1949, in Inglewood, California, USA) is an Emmy Award-winning actress and also an American comedian and singer. ... Kenneth Ronald Ken Berry (born November 3, 1933, in Moline, Illinois) is an American dancer, and comedic actor. ... Dorothy Lyman (born April 18, 1947 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA) is an accomplished television actress, director and producer. ... Rue McClanahan (born Eddi Rue McClanahan on February 21, 1934 in Healdton, Oklahoma) is an Emmy Award-winning American actor, best known for her roles acting alongside Bea Arthur on the television sitcoms Maude and The Golden Girls. ... Eric Brown, (born December 17, 1964, in New York, New York, USA), is an American film and TV actor of the 1980s. ... Karin Arground is a american actress. ... Beverly Archer (born July 19, 1948 in Oak Park, Illinois, USA) is an actress that appeared on many shows during her career, the most famous being Mamas Family and Major Dad. ... Allan Kayser playing Bubba Higgins on Mamas Family. ... Betty White (born January 17, 1922) is an Emmy Award-winning American film and television actress with a career spanning sixty years, sometimes referred to as The First Lady of Television and Americas Sweetheart. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Below is a list of episodes of the 1980s television sitcom Mamas Family. ... Joseph Henry Hamilton (born January 6, 1929 in Los Angeles, California; died June 9, 1991 in Los Angeles) was an American television producer and actor. ... Lorimar-Telepictures was a television syndication firm established in 1986 with the merger of Lorimar and Telepictures. ... Warner Bros. ... This article is about the television network. ... In the television industry (as in radio), syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast programs to multiple stations, without going through a broadcast network. ... is the 22nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 71st day of the year (72nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar). ... This article is about a genre of comedy. ... is the 22nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... // February 8 - Minipops premieres on Channel 4 in the UK. Though a ratings success, it is canceled after the first series due to heavy media criticism. ... This is a list of television-related events in 1984. ... For other uses, see September (disambiguation). ... This is a list of television-related events in 1985. ... The year 1986 in television involved some significant events. ... In the television industry (as in radio), syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast programs to multiple stations, without going through a broadcast network. ... is the 71st day of the year (72nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The year 1990 in television involved some significant events. ... A spin-off (or spinoff) is a new organization or entity formed by a split from a larger one such as a new company formed from a university research group. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Mamas Family. ... The original cast in 1967. ...

Premise

The show, set in a fictional small town called Raytown, centered around a typical squabbling family, headed by Thelma Harper — a buxom, blue-haired, purse-lipped 65-year-old widow, who is loudmouthed and outspoken. Living with Thelma originally was only her uptight spinster sister Fran, a journalist for a local paper. Also Thelma's son, Vinton (whose wife, Mitzi, had left him to become a cocktail waitress in Las Vegas, Nevada) and his two children, Sonja and Buzz, moved in with her. The tone or style of this article or section may not be appropriate for Wikipedia. ... Old maid redirects here. ... For further information, see Las Vegas metropolitan area and Las Vegas Strip. ...

During the first season, Vinton forged a relationship with the Harper’s flirtatious next-door neighbor, Naomi Oates (whom Thelma had a distaste for), and soon married her. Also seen on a recurring basis were Thelma’s two daughters: the snobbish Ellen (Betty White), and the ornery Eunice (Carol Burnett). Harvey Korman, who directed many of the earlier episodes, made featured appearances as Eunice’s husband, Ed Higgins. He also appeared at the beginning of each episode as the stuffed shirt Alistair Quince, who would soberly introduce the program in the style of Masterpiece Theatre. These monologues were cut out of the later syndicated reruns and the subsequent DVD release of the first season. Betty White (born January 17, 1922) is an Emmy Award-winning American film and television actress with a career spanning sixty years, sometimes referred to as The First Lady of Television and Americas Sweetheart. ... Carol Creighton Burnett (born April 26, 1933 in San Antonio, Texas) is an Emmy Award-winning actress, comedian, singer, dancer, and writer. ... Actor Harvey Korman in the 1974 comedy Blazing Saddles. ... Masterpiece Theatre is a long-running anthology television series produced by WGBH which premiered on PBS on January 10, 1971. ...

The syndicated years

After Mama’s Family was cancelled by NBC in 1984, it was picked up by the CBS television network in 1986. CBS—in conjunction with Lorimar Telepictures and Warner Bros. Domestic Television—sold new episodes in national, first-run syndication. Major cast changes occurred during the convert, with only Vicki Lawrence (Thelma), Ken Berry (Vinton), and Dorothy Lyman (Naomi) returning as regulars from the NBC run. Eric Brown and Karin Argoud, who played Buzz and Sonja in seasons one and two, did not reprise their roles; their characters (though mentioned briefly in the first episode of the third season), subsequently, were never to be spoken of again. During Mama's Family’s' hiatus, Rue McClanahan (Aunt Fran) and Betty White (Ellen Jackson) had both gone on to star in the NBC sitcom The Golden Girls, rendering them unavailable to return, although White returned as Ellen for one episode in 1986. Carol Burnett and Harvey Korman, meanwhile, did not reprise their roles either—resulting in their characters, Eunice and Ed, being written to have moved to Florida. This article is about the broadcast network. ... Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ... Lorimar-Telepictures was a television syndication firm established in 1986 with the merger of Lorimar and Telepictures. ... Warner Bros. ... In the television industry (as in radio), syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast television programs to multiple television stations, without going through a broadcast network. ... Rue McClanahan (born Eddi Rue McClanahan on February 21, 1934 in Healdton, Oklahoma) is an Emmy Award-winning American actor, best known for her roles acting alongside Bea Arthur on the television sitcoms Maude and The Golden Girls. ... Betty White (born January 17, 1922) is an Emmy Award-winning American film and television actress with a career spanning sixty years, sometimes referred to as The First Lady of Television and Americas Sweetheart. ... This article is about the television network. ... For the Hong Kong film, see The Golden Girls (1995 film). ...

To fill the void, Allan Kayser was cast as Thelma’s delinquent teenaged grandson, Bubba Higgins (Ed and Eunice’s often mentioned, but never seen, young son from the “Family” sketches on The Carol Burnett Show)—who was ordered to stay with the Harpers after being released from Juvenile Hall, and placed on probation. Also added to the cast was Beverly Archer, who played the new character of Iola Boyland—the family’s prissy neighbor, who was known for her catchphrase: “Knock, Knock!” As the series continued, more new characters were sporadically brought in to evoke comedic situations. Allan Kayser playing Bubba Higgins on Mamas Family. ... Beverly Archer (born July 19, 1948 in Oak Park, Illinois, USA) is an actress that appeared on many shows during her career, the most famous being Mamas Family and Major Dad. ...

The syndication years saw far less bickering than the NBC years, and particularly The Family sketches. One reason for this is possibly due to the Naomi and Vinton characters becoming far less serious and more dimwitted. Rather, Mama was represented as more of the leader of the gang throughout the show's syndication years. A recurring theme throughout the third season of the show's syndicated years was Naomi’s desire to become a mother. Following through with this, the penultimate season concluded with Naomi’s announcement that she was pregnant. Preparation for the baby became a central theme of the final season. The series finale featured Naomi giving birth to a baby girl, who was named Tiffany Thelma. For the Paranoia Agent episode, see Final Episode. ...

Continuity errors

Several continuity errors occurred during the run of the series; most notably the issue of the number of rooms the house had, and the order in which Thelma’s children were born.

The disappearing bedroom

During the first two seasons, there were three bedrooms upstairs: one for Thelma, one for Aunt Fran, and one for Sonja. Buzz, meanwhile, slept in the attic (also upstairs). In one episode, however, Buzz and Mama are seen cleaning out the attic—during which no indication of Buzz sleeping there is mentioned.

After Buzz and Sonja move out, and Aunt Fran dies, Bubba moved in and is given Aunt Fran’s bedroom. This upsets Vinton and Naomi, who had been forced to sleep in the basement and wanted the newly vacant room, but now couldn’t have it. Fans have since frequently wondered whatever happened to the bedroom Sonja had slept in…which had been mentioned to be Eunice and Ellen’s childhood bedroom, which posed another question of where Vinton had slept as a child.

The set used on the NBC phase had a larger living room, with windows behind the sofa between the stairway and the closet. In the set used on the syndicated series, these windows have disappeared making the room slightly smaller.

The number and order of Mama’s children

Another point of inconsistency within the show is the number, and order of birth, of Thelma’s children. The general consensus was that Ellen was the oldest, Eunice was the middle, and Vinton was the youngest. This is supported a number of times throughout the run of the series, as several episodes featured flashbacks of Thelma’s kids as children, where Vinton is seen noticeably younger than his sisters. In episode “Rashomama,” (a play on Rashamon) however, Thelma refers to Eunice as her third born. Some have presumed that this was an intentional plot device by writers, who perhaps wanted to leave open the possibility of Thelma having another child. To add to this confusion, in episode “Fran’s Dress,” Thelma claims that she once had “four kids” screaming around under her feet. Rashomon ) is a 1950 Japanese film directed by Akira Kurosawa, working in close collaboration with cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa. ...

These inconsistencies can usually be rationalized by the changing of the Harper family structure between their introduction on The Carol Burnett Show and their inception on Mama's Family.

On the original 'Carol Burnett Show' sketches we are introduced to four of Thelma's children: Ellen, Eunice (whom Ellen refers to as her "little sister" at one point), as well as younger sons Philip the Hollywood writer (who "calls" Thelma in one sketch and appears played by Roddy McDowell in another) and Larry the artist (played by a very young Alan Alda in a Christmas sketch). The two sons were far more sophistocated than their Harper relatives and certainly didn't fit in, so it's no surprise their characters were not considered for the spin-off series. No mention is made of Vinton on 'The Carol Burnett' show, but it seems four is the number.

Episodes

Main article: List of Mama's Family episodes

Altogether, Mama's Family had six seasons that consisted of 130 episodes. The NBC version consisted of thirty five episodes, making for two and a half seasons. The syndicated version consisted of eighty five episodes, making for four full seasons. Below is a list of episodes of the 1980s television sitcom Mamas Family. ...

Characters

Principal cast

The tone or style of this article or section may not be appropriate for Wikipedia. ... Vicki Lawrence (born Vicki Ann Axelrad on March 26, 1949, in Inglewood, California, USA) is an Emmy Award-winning actress and also an American comedian and singer. ... Vinton Harper is a fictional character from the sitcom Mamas Family. ... Kenneth Ronald Ken Berry (born November 3, 1933, in Moline, Illinois) is an American dancer, and comedic actor. ... Locksmithing is the science and art of making and defeating locks. ... Dorothy Lyman as Naomi Harper. ... Dorothy Lyman (born April 18, 1947 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA) is an accomplished television actress, director and producer. ... Vinton Buzz Harper, Jr. ... Eric Brown, (born December 17, 1964, in New York, New York, USA), is an American film and TV actor of the 1980s. ... Sonja Harper was a fictional character in the television sitcom Mamas Family. ... Karin Arground is a american actress. ... For the Paranoia Agent episode, see Final Episode. ... Ellen Harper is a fictional character in the sitcom Mamas Family. ... Betty White (born January 17, 1922) is an Emmy Award-winning American film and television actress with a career spanning sixty years, sometimes referred to as The First Lady of Television and Americas Sweetheart. ... Eunice Harper Higgins is a fictional character in the television series, Mamas Family. ... Carol Creighton Burnett (born April 26, 1933 in San Antonio, Texas) is an Emmy Award-winning actress, comedian, singer, dancer, and writer. ... Ed Higgins was a character in The Family sketches on The Carol Burnett Show and, to a lesser extent on the sitcom spinoff Mamas Family. ... Actor Harvey Korman in the 1974 comedy Blazing Saddles. ... Bubba Higgins is a fictional character in the television situation comedy, Mamas Family. ... Allan Kayser playing Bubba Higgins on Mamas Family. ... Rue McClanahan (born Eddi Rue McClanahan on February 21, 1934 in Healdton, Oklahoma) is an Emmy Award-winning American actor, best known for her roles acting alongside Bea Arthur on the television sitcoms Maude and The Golden Girls. ... Iola Lucille Boylan was a character on the television series, Mamas Family. ... Beverly Archer (born July 19, 1948 in Oak Park, Illinois, USA) is an actress that appeared on many shows during her career, the most famous being Mamas Family and Major Dad. ...

Harper family tree

• Magenta = Crowleys
• Orange = Harpers
• Blue = Harper children
• Red = Harper in-laws
• Green = Harper grandchildren

*Note: Thelma's mother was shown on two occasions on the show (once in a flashback and once as a ghost, played both times by Vicki Lawrence), but her name was never revealed. Thelma mentions in ''Pomp and Consequences'' of having an older brother, Clyde.

Recurring characters

• Aunt Effie Harper, Thelma’s sister-in-law. Played by Dorothy Van. Note: that Effie is originally named Effie Crowley. In later episodes it is mentioned that she is Thelma’s sister-in-law (which would make her Carl's sister). In some earlier episodes, however, she was referred to as “Cousin Effie.” She lives in Ceciltown on a farm.

• Reverend Lloyd Meechum, the Harper’s henpecked minister. Played by Earl Boen.

• Alberta Meechum, Reverend Meechum’s stuck-up, catty wife and a perennial thorn in the side of Thelma Harper. Played by Anne Haney.

• Mayor Alvin Tutweiler, the mayor of Raytown and Ellen's boyfriend. Played by Alan Oppenheimer.

• Louanne Fayette, Naomi Harper’s flamboyant and flirtatious best friend. Played by Jennifer Richards. More spoken of than ever seen.

• Mr. and Mrs. Boylan, Iola's elderly, unseen parents with whom she lives across the street from Thelma. Not much is mentioned of her father, while her mother is supposed to be a grotesquely huge, temperamental, T.V.-watching invalid.

• Roselle Huflander, an unseen obese associate of Thelma and Iola. On rare occasions, Thelma has spoken to her over the phone. But more often, she is gossiped about by Thelma and Iola. Once, at a church fair, she gave Vint a black eye when he suggested that she weighed 309 pounds at the "Guess Your Weight" booth he was running.

• Dwayne and T-Boy, Bubba’s best friends. Played by Beau Bishop and Grant Heslov respectively. More spoken of than ever seen.

• Mr. Alan Hanson, an intelligent, laid-back night-school teacher of Thelma and Bubba, and love interest of Thelma Harper. Played by Joseph Campanella.

• Amy Johnson, girlfriend of Bubba Higgins. Played by Amy Benedict.

• Lolly Purdue, member and later president (succeeding Thelma) of the Church Ladies League. Revealed to be illiterate. Played first by Doris Hess, then Marge Redmond.

• Officer Sneed, an extremely youthful-looking, strange police officer. Played by Allan David Fox

• Claude Cainmaker, Vint’s seedy friend, who is always thinking up schemes. Played by Geoffrey Lewis

• Grandma Crowley, Thelma’s departed mother (in flashback sequences). Her first appearance was in a flashback in the NBC version of the show, grumpily talking to Mama over the phone. In her 2nd appearance in the CBS version, she was skinnier and appeared as a ghost, haunting mama. She was excessively critical, grim, and tried to control Mama throughout the episode. It was said that it was something Mama had to deal with, growing up as well. Grandma Crowley had apparently acted the same way when Thelma was being brought up by her. Played by Vicki Lawrence.

• Church Ladies League, also known as CLL. Their motto is: We are helpers kind and good and First Lady Alberta Meechum served as the first president. Members includes Thelma Harper, Lolly Purdue, Iola Boylan, Inez and Florence. The association was first mentioned in "Where's There's Smoke", when Mama was nominated for president of the Church Ladies League. It was mentioned later in "Reading the Riot Act", "Ladies Choice" and "Mama's Medicine Show". Their award, interestingly, bears the name "Church Ladies League Woman of the Year".

Lloyd Meechum was a fictional character on the television sitcom, Mamas Family. ... Earl Boen (born November 7, 1945 in New York City) is an American actor. ... Alberta Meechum was a fictional character on the television sitcom, Mamas Family. ... Anne Haney as Rishon Uxbridge in Star Trek: The Next Generation Anne Haney (b. ... | This article is about the fictional. ... Alan Oppenheimer (born April 23, 1930 in New York City, New York) is an American voice-actor who has had an active career in cartoons since the 1940s. ... Look up disability in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Grant Heslov (born May 15, 1963 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is an American actor and Academy Award-nominated film producer and screenwriter. ... Joseph Campanella (born November 21, 1933 in New York, New York) is an American actor who has appeared in over 200 TV and film roles since 1955, including a recurring role on the soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful from 1997 to 2003. ... Literacy is the ability to use text to communicate across space and time. ... Marge Redmond is an American Actress, born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1930. ... Geoffrey Lewis (born July 31, 1935) is an American character actor who has been popular since the early 1970s, often featured in offbeat roles. ... Vicki Lawrence (born Vicki Ann Axelrad on March 26, 1949, in Inglewood, California, USA) is an Emmy Award-winning actress and also an American comedian and singer. ... Alberta Meechum was a fictional character on the television sitcom, Mamas Family. ... The tone or style of this article or section may not be appropriate for Wikipedia. ... Iola Lucille Boylan was a character on the television series, Mamas Family. ...

DVD Release

On September 26, 2006, Warner Bros. Television released Season 1 of Mama's Family on DVD. While the feedback from fans has generally been positive, some were disappointed to learn that the DVD release features the syndicated versions of the episodes, which edits roughly three minutes from what originally aired. In response, Warner Bros. claimed to only own the rights to the syndicated form.^[2] is the 269th day of the year (270th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... is the 269th day of the year (270th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Warner Bros. ... DVD (also known as Digital Versatile Disc or Digital Video Disc) is a popular optical disc storage media format. ...

Since the release of season one, Warner Bros. announced they would only release subsequent seasons if there is enough fan support for the syndicated episodes. In response, fans of the series have started an online petition to support the release of season two.^[3] An Internet petition is a form of petition posted on a website. ...

Syndicated Reruns

After the series finale in 1990, Mama's Family ran on TBS from 1997 until August of 2006.^[4] The year 1990 in television involved some significant events. ... TBS also stands for Tokyo Broadcasting System, a Japanese television network. ... This is a list of television-related events in 1997. ... For other uses, see August (disambiguation). ... The year 2006 in television involved some significant events. ...

WGNO-TV aired the program from the late 80s until 2002. It was the number one program in the Greater New Orleans area during the 10:30pm timeslot, Monday thru Fridays, trumping both Jay Leno and David Letterman. That is until WGNO became the ABC affiliate in 1996. WGNO, WGNO, ABC26 is the ABC affiliate for the greater New Orleans, Louisiana area. ... James Douglas Muir Jay Leno (April 28, 1950) is an Emmy Award-winning American comedian and television host, who succeeded Johnny Carson as host of The Tonight Show in 1992. ... David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947, in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.) is an award-winning American comedian, late night talk show host, television producer, philanthropist, and IRL IndyCar Series car owner. ...

That same month, ION Television (formerly the PAX network) began airing reruns of the series. The show is currently aired Monday through Thursday at 8:00 to 9:00 pm. ET.^[4] ION Television is a broadcast and cable television network first broadcast on August 31, 1998 under the name PAX TV (early on in its development, it was called PaxNet). ... Eastern Standard Time redirects here. ...

In 2007, CMT began airing the series infrequently, eventually dropping it from its lineup. The year 2007 in television involves some significant events. ... Country Music Television, or CMT as it usually called, is an American country music oriented cable television channel. ...

References

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 291st day of the year (292nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

Mama's Family

• Mama's Family at the Internet Movie Database
• Mama's Family at TV.com
• The Mama's Family Site
• Mama's Family Episode Guides
• Mama's Family Season 2 Online Petition

Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Wikiquote is one of a family of wiki-based projects run by the Wikimedia Foundation, running on MediaWiki software. ... The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about movies, actors, television shows, production crew personnel, and video games. ...