8 Simple Rules
Category: Sitcom
Created By: Tracy Gamble
Stars: John Ritter (2002-2003), Katey Sagal, Kaley Cuoco, Amy Davidson, Martin Spanjers, James Garner (2003-2005), David Spade (2004-2005)
Number of Seasons: 3
Number of Episodes: 76
Original Channel: ABC
Original Run: September 17, 2002 to April 15, 2005
The show (originally known as 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter) is an American television sitcom that originally aired on ABC from September 17, 2002 to April 15, 2005. Loosely based on humor columnist W. Bruce Cameron's book of the same name, the show is most well known as the series John Ritter was starring in when he died.
Premise
8 Simple Rules is about a married couple with three children, set in a Detroit, Michigan suburb. The father, Paul Hennessy (John Ritter, Three's Company), is a sportswriter who is prompted by his wife Cate's (Katey Sagal, Married... with Children, Futurama) return to nursing to take a more active role in raising their two teenage daughters, Bridget (Kaley Cuoco)--(You're probably watching Big Bang Theory because of her and then liking the show because it's great), and Kerry (Amy Davidson), and their son Rory (Martin Spanjers).
He is soon overwhelmed by the responsibility of being the father of teenage daughters and misses being a sports writer. Paul begins writing a column from home about his struggles with his children and offers advice to people who are in his same position. His teenage daughters are dating, which sparks the use of the "8 rules". The show, created by veteran comedy writer Tracy Gamble, derives its name and some of its elements from W. Bruce Cameron's book 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter (ISBN 0-7611-2314-8).
8 Simple Rules The rules are:
Use your hands on my daughter and you'll lose them after.
You make her cry, I make you cry.
Safe sex is a myth. Anything you try will be hazardous to your health.
Bring her home late, there's no next date.
Only delivery men honk. Dates ring the doorbell. Once.
No complaining while you're waiting for her. If you're bored, change my oil.
If your pants hang off your hips, I'll gladly secure them with my staple gun.
Dates must be in crowded public places. You want romance? Read a book.
8 Simple Rules Characters
John Ritter: He is the husband of Cate and father of three kids, two girls and a boy. Three's company and I'm sure some movies. My family didn't watch it earlier because it was considered a bit risque back when it originally aired. We watch most of the episodes as a family more recently. I watch every episode I could and I'd like to watch all the episodes again many times. John Ritter played the part of Paul Hennessy, a former sports writer, who worked from home as a Lifestyle columnist. Paul used a double standard when dealing with people. He often embarrassed his children. John Ritter died suddenly in 2003 from an aortic dissection during rehearsal. His character Paul collapsed and died at the store while getting batteries.
Katy Sagal: She is Cate S. Egan-Hennessy, the wife of Paul Hennessy and mother of the two girls and one boy. We all remember her as Al's wife on Married with children. She was always horny and Al was too, but not as much for her. They did love each other though. On Eight Rules Katy Sagal is a wholesome mother of three and a nurse. On Married With Children she was a lazy stay at home mom who couldn't care less about anything responsible. On Eight Rules she is the example of responsibility. On Futurama she does the voice of Leela. In that role she is basically the responsible person who tries to keep the other characters out of trouble. She takes a nursing job at the kids' school so she can keep a similar schedule to the kids' schedule. When she starts dating the school Principal her kids don't take it well. They later accept it.
Kaley Cuoco: She plays the slutty daughter, Bridget. Bridget is the oldest child of Cate and Paul's three. She depicts a stereotypical blonde, popular, bombshell who is interested in her looks, teenage boys and little else. She has morals but mostly she does whatever it takes to keep her popularity intact. She is now the reason I started watching The Big Bang Theory. I have gotten to know the characters. I think the show is great but I hope it gets better. Kaley plays her role well. The role is similar to her role on Eight Rules. She is the popular girl that gets away with a lot. On Big Bang she isn't just relying on her looks. She works as a waitress. Bridget on Eight Rules wouldn't work---well she does work as a lifeguard later in the series. She likes the job because she can show off her body and look at cute guys. Oh and did I mention --- she sits for most of the shift. Bridget sees Kerry as a nerd. She is sarcastic, and constantly makes snide remarks about essentially everybody, though less to her mother. She is also very artistic and keeps a sketchbook. She is the smart child, but often shows naiveté.
Amy Davidson: She is Kerry, the youngest of two daughters. (At least her character is.) She's best known for her role in 8 Simple Rules. She has done all kinds of other work which you could look up. She is older than Kaley Cuoco but plays the younger sister. This is similar to the oldest character on The Golden Girls. Estelle Getty was younger than both Bea Arthur and Betty White. She had to go through three hours of make up to look as old as she did on that show.
Martin Spanjers: He is the son of Paul and Cate. He is an instigator but his conscience always gets the best of him. He is Rory. He almost got the starring role of Malcolm in Malcolm in the Middle. He did do a guest spot. Not getting the part of Malcolm freed him up for the role of Rory on 8 Simple Rules. Rory lets his sisters get in trouble then he rats them out. He gets into money making schemes with C. J. Rory is his father's favorite because he is "the boy".
James Garner: He is Grandpa Jim Egan, Cate's father on 8 Simple Rules. He joined 8 Simple Rules when John Ritter died in 2003. It was supposed to be a one time thing but he ended up staying until the series ended in 2005. The older and smarter people reading this will remember James Garner from Rockford Files and many movies. So you can claim to be older or smarter or both. If your smarter you will claim to be both older and smarter. Is that you Granny?...... Sorry I just had a mental fart. Can you smell it? Smells like burnt toast. Okay enough smelling salts. He is like a guardian for the family. He lives in Cate's basement. He once sent C. J. to Canada for acetylsalicylic acid for him. C. J. discovered that this is just Aspirin. He is proud of C. J. when he becomes a teacher.
David Spade: He played the part of C. J. Barnes on 8 Simples Rules. You might recognize him from SNL and Just Shoot Me. He is currently starring as Russell Dunbar on the CBS sitcom Rules of Engagement. He was the star of the film Joe Dirt and is working on an animated version of that movie. In all his sitcom and movie parts he plays a weasel like. He was once in the Army. He doesn't have much success with women. He shares the basement with his Grandfather. He started living in the basement after his Grandfather accidentally burned his van to a crisp.
The third season took a creative turn, revolving more around Jim and C.J. than the Hennessy family, more specifically not revolving around the raising of the Hennessy girls. However this was little more than a phase in a way, and newly added characters joined the show as an ensemble, and shortly after their novelty wore off, the show found its roots once more.
Three's Company Spoof
In one episode a remake of some of the antics from Three's Company are used. Three's Company is the show where John Ritter became famous. Paul plays the part of Stanley Roper in the dream sequence. Don Knotts appears in a guest spot at the end of the episode. Knotts would be the last Three's Company co-star to work with Ritter before his death.
8 Simple Rules Production
John Ritter's Death
John Ritter died soon after an interview on the set of the Museum of Television & Radio. That was September 11, 2003. He suffered an aortic dissection. That means he bleed to death when the top part of his heart ripped open. He had some discomfort during a rehearsal that afternoon and crew members took Ritter to a nearby hospital. He died that night. The show went on hiatus and then continued. The death of Ritter's character was worked into the show. The three new episodes that Ritter completed were aired with Katey Sagal introducing them.
On November 4, 2003 8 Simple Rules returned with a one hour episode named "Goodbye." It was dedicated to Ritter's death. Later episodes explored the family's reaction to his death. The first four episodes after Ritter's death were shot without a live audience. Suzanne Pleshette and James Garner guest starred as Cate's parents. David Spade joined the cast later as Cate's unpredictable nephew C. J. Eventually Garner and Spade became regulars on the show until it's end.
8 Simple Rules Season 3 and Subsequent Cancellation
Rumors about the show ending were getting around after the third season finale. In the first season the show ranked 42nd in the Nielsen Ratings. More viewers tuned in after Ritter's death. At the end of the second season the show slipped to 50th. After the show moved to Friday night 8pm the show ranked 94th.
Some people could not get passed Ritter's death and were okay with the show ending. Other people were happy with the show continuing, almost in Ritter's honor. 8 Simple Rules was one of few shows that continued for nearly two full seasons beyond the death of its star. The Friday time slot did bring the show down. Katey Sagal's character is found to be dating the principal of the school she is a nurse at during the third season finale.
8 Simple Rules was officially cancelled on May 17, 2005.
8 Simple Rules Other Characters
Billy Aaron Brown played Kyle, Bridget’s dumb boyfriend. He later dated Kerry. He hangs out with Rory when not with either of the girls.
Adam Arkin played Ed Gibb, principal of the high school. He and Cate were high school friends and even dated. Their versions of their relationship differ.
Dan Cotese plays Coach Scott. Bridget had a crush on him. He like Cate. Cate liked him until she found out that Bridget had a crush on him.
Nikki Danielle Moore plays Jenna Sharpe. She is Paul’s boss’ daughter. She is one of Bridget’s enemies.
Jonathan Taylor Thomas (from Home Improvement with Tim Allen) plays Jeremy. He is Bridget’s tutor and later boyfriend. He was known to be a nerd as school and at first this discouraged Bridget from dating him.
Cybill Sheppard (from Moonlighting, with Bruce Willis) plays Maggie Egan Barnes. She is Cate’s sister and also C. J.’s mother. Maggie is like Kerry in personality.
8 Simple Rules Syndication
In it’s third season 8 Simple Rules had better rating than other Friday shows but ABC cancelled the show because it couldn’t sell it to syndication. John Ritter’s death prevented 8 Simple Rules could not show two show per day including episodes from varying seasons. It was thought that this would confuse and/or upset viewers. This does happen on Danish Channel TV3, the airing not the confusion. Now I’m confused. Did you know that she knew that you knew that she knew you knew? Yeah okay not that confusing.
On July 11, 2005 the 8 Simple Rules was officially cancelled. The WB television network said it would air all the 76 episodes back to back. On or about September 15, 2006 8 Simple Rules was replaced by Reba on the CW Daytimes, the show not the singer. Well she is a singer and she is the star of the show called Reba. A very good show. It is one of my favorites. On June 12, 2007 8 Simple Rules was back on the ABC Family line-up where they did air episodes with and without John Ritter back to back.
Check out my comedy site www.zanesmall.com
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Monday, August 29, 2011
3rd Rock From The Sun -- In case your wondering ... that's the Earth
3rd Rock from the Sun
Format: Situation comedy
Created by: Bonnie Turner and Terry Turner
Starring: John Lithgow, Kristen Johnston, French Stewart, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Simbi Khali, Elmarie Wendel, Wayne Knight, and Jane Curtin
3rd Rock Country of origin: United States
No. of seasons: 6
No. of episodes: 139 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s): Marcy Carsey, Caryn Mandabach, Bonnie Turner, Tom Werner, Terry Turner, Bill Martin, Mike Schiff, Linwood Boomer (executive producer), Bob Kushell, Christine Zander, David Sacks, Danny Smith, Joe Fisch (co-executive producer) Producer(s): Patrick Kienlen, David Goetsch, Jason Venokur, David Israel, Jim O'Doherty, Andrew Orenstein, Michael Glouberman Gregg Mettler (producer), Tim Ryder, Aron Abrams, Gregory Thompson (co-producer)
Location(s): Studio City, Los Angeles, California, USA[1]
Running time: 22 minutes (per episode)
Distributor USA: Carsey-Werner Distribution, NBC, Anchor Bay Entertainment
Original run: January 9, 1996 – May 22, 2001
3rd Rock from the Sun is an Emmy Award-winning American sitcom that ran from 1996 until 2001 on NBC. The show is about a group of extraterrestrial scientists on an expedition of what they consider to be the least important planet, Earth (the "3rd Rock" from the Sun), whilst posing as a human "family" of four to observe human beings.
3rd Rock
Overview
Basic premise
Four aliens come to Earth to learn what they can about and life on Earth. Dick is the High Commander. The military officer is Sally. The intelligence specialist is Tommy. Harry came with them to take the extra seat.
They are trying to live as "normal" human beings. What human is normal. Are you normal. Do you know where the perfect orange is? My name is Zane and I'm an alcoholic......not!!!
They become so used to their "human" life that they don't pay as much attention to their mission.
3rd Rock
Dick Solomon (John Lithgow) is the High Commander of the team. He takes a teaching job at Pendelton State University. Tommy (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is given the role and body of a teenager. He is the information officer. Sally (Kristen Johnston) is the security officer. Harry (French Stewart) is the communications officer. He hangs out at home and goes from one job to another.
The family communicates with their boss, know as "The Big Giant Head". William Shatner is "The Big Giant Head". He sends remote messages through Harry. Harry goes into a trance and poses as if he an antenna as he relays the messages.
3rd Rock
Sources of humor
A lot of the humor comes from the mismatch between the teams appearance and their actual internal nature. For example Tommy appears to be a typical teenager but he is the team's information officer. He is responsible for educating the team on the way things are for humans and the earth. Dick is the father figure in the team but he is just really arrogant and self-absorbed. He gets into trouble. He is basically a child in the body of an adult. Sally looks like a promiscuous woman but she is actually a soldier who handles security for the team. Harry is the only one who seems to have a look that matches his actual self.
3rd Rock
Typical episode themes
Most of the episodes deal with the team having trouble with understanding how things work on Earth. They interpret human customs incorrectly, mostly because most of their intelligence comes from media, especially television. (Television is all knowing and we should bow to it on a daily basis. We need to give our first born to it. Have you seen some kids? I think the parents would get the better of the deal. Television is everything. ..... Do I take the blue pill or the red pill or both? Just kidding.)
3rd Rock
The teams former lives were actually similar to the Borg on Star Trek because their lives basically involved them interacting with each other but not many others.
Many episodes were based on story ideas from TV and films. For example when Harry finds out he is a transmitter he portrays a character like Jim in Rebel Without a Cause and plays chicken with a tough guy in a bar. They also did some scenes similar to that from Twilight Zone and Apocalypse Now, as well as others.
3rd Rock
Common mythology
The characters get in trouble because they aren't familiar with the normal behaviors of humans but their alien skills come to the rescue, kinda. (I always fry eggs on the sidewalk or the hood of my car. I also roast a chicken on the engine of the car. I save a lot of money by eating roadkill......what.....really......if a full pizza box flies out of a car I will fight the idiots who through the box out for it, at least a slice. I wouldn't hurt a fly, if it's awake. Okay so this probably isn't normal behavior but the voices in my head says it is, no it isn't, yes it is.)
Tommy, the son, understands physics better than Dick, the father, but Dick's knowledge still outshines the society's knowledge of physics. In one bit Dick reads from Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time and gets a huge laugh from it. The other three often question Dick's right to command, especially when he gets into trouble when others might have recognized a tricky situation. Sally is often only depicted as being attractive; her great physical strength and abilities are not shown. There is the odd mention of her exploits.
3rd Rock
Tommy has an encyclopedic knowledge about Earth society. It doesn't help him when situations require street smarts. He does maintain straight As.
Harry is almost psychotic in his behavior, even for a Solomon. It is implied that the chip in his brain that allows him to communicate with the home planet makes him that way. He is extremely horny and he's the only Solomon who has artistic talent.
Dick is jealous of Harry's talents and can't understand how a fool like Harry can outdo him in artistic endeavors.
3rd Rock
Relationships with humans
All four aliens get into relationships with humans. Dick's relationship with anthropology professor, Mary Albright (Jane Curtain) is the most focused on relationship. Mary is insecure and suffers many neuroses. A lifetime of studying the human condition as well as a messy relationship with her parents was probably the cause of it. She is attracted to Dick's lack of understanding of the human condition.
Sally hooks up with Don Leslie Orville (Wayne Knight-- you know Newman...... from Seinfeld). Isn't it interesting when you see all the different places actors show up. I might just have to make a page with a diagram. I saw that is a magazine somewhere. I read at least one article....really I did. I remember there was a nice looking girl in one picture. The caption said something about a car. I couldn't see it. Okay back to the facts of 3rd Rock.... I almost said 30 Rock. I should do a page on that. I'll have to watch more shows before I can write about it.
Don is attracted to Sally after meeting her several times when he confronts or arrests the Solomons for various crimes. They speak to each other is an old 1930s crime drama.
3rd Rock
Tommy dates August Leffler (Shay Astar), a reserved teenager. Later he dates Alissa Strudwick (Larisa Oleynik).
Harry has a relationship with his landlord, Mrs. Dubcek's daughter (played by Jan Hooks). I think she's the one from SNL. Yeah, she is who I was thinking about. She was on SNL from 1986 to 1991. More on her if it comes up.
A neat episode finds Harry foiling a plot by Cindy Crawford to dissolve the Earth. Harry seduced Cindy Crawford to do it, even though he's not that great at picking up women.
There is sharing of partners. Mary and Tommy are briefly attracted to each other when they discover they both like social sciences. Tommy steps aside to let Dick pursue Mary. Ninaa (Simbi Khali), Dick's assistant has a fling with Harry. Mrs. dubcek (Elmarie Wendel) has a fling with Harry too.
3rd Rock
Plot twists
References to the aliens actual nature and home world also claimed that their original bodies were "gelatinous purple tubes" without sex organs. Sally asked why she had to be the woman. Dick said she lost the draw. Supposedly individuals in their species are almost completely identical. This was the reason the Solomons were unaware of the concept of race or ethnicity. They eventually decided that they were Jewish because of their surname, which they had taken from a trucking company.
3rd Rock
The four adventurers often meet up with or think they've met up with other aliens. Jell-O was one such a thing. They thought it was an enemy alien. When they saw it they would try to destroy it. We never are told what the home planet is; it simply referred to as "The Home Planet."
3rd Rock
Cast
Three of the four characters lasted out all six seasons appearing on every episode. Tommy was the exception. There were many characters added and subtracted over the 6 seasons.
3rd Rock Main characters
Dick Solomon character is played by John Lithgow. He is the High commander. He is the most childish of the four characters. He was actually the youngest of the four (in alien years and nature). His appearance only made him the oldest. Dick is the source of most of the problems the family has.
Sally Solomon is played by Kristen Johnston. She is the Lieutenant, the Security Officer, and second in command. She is sometimes called Dick's sister and at other times Tommy's sister. On one occasion she claimed to be Tommy's mother. She is never seen as Dick's daughter or spouse. Sally had a harder time dealing with being a woman than the others had dealing with being a man. She did file a request to be made male but changed her mind later as she began to like being a woman.
Harry Solomon is played by French Stewart. He wasn't originally part of the mission but came along because there was a spare seat. When the topic of position comes up Dick tells Harry "Well, eh, you're, uh... you're Harry!". Harry's reply to this is "Oh, sure, I get the fancy title!". The group later found out that Harry had a chip in his head that allowed them to communicate with the home planet. He was then known as the Communicator or Transmitter. Occasionally, he will get a message from their leader, the Big Giant Head, shaking violently in the middle of a sentence and squats down, with his arms at 90 degree angles, declaring "Incoming message from the Big Giant Head!", before going through the motions of delivering the message. He posed as Dick and Sally's brother and Tommy's uncle.
Tommy Solomon is played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Just a side note by I saw him on that show where the spy has been put on burn notice. Joseph Gordon-Levitt came to kill the main character. I've only seen the show a couple times but it is pretty good. Comedy is my first love so I'll deal with that show later. Okay while I was working on this I did some research. The show is called Burn Notice. I'd recommend it to people over 18. If you have bad parents and you're under 18 you decide.
Okay back to Tommy Solomon on 3rd Rock From the Sun. He is the Information Officer and second in command. He has a teenager's appearance so he plays the role of Dick's adolescent son. Tommy is actually the oldest and smartest of all the aliens. He constantly reminds the others of this fact. He left the series (after the fifth season concluded) as a primary character. He came back in about half the episodes of sixth season.
3rd Rock
Dr. Mary Albright is played by Jane Curtain (remember her on SNL and Kate and Ally?). She works with Dick and dates him on and off. She thought Dick was an idiot but was attracted to his child-like behavior. She is insecure because her bad upbringing. Before Dick was in the picture she was know for sleeping around and given the nickname "Dr. Slutbunny".
Nina Campbell is played by Simbi Khali. She is Dick and Mary's administrative assistant. She thinks Dick is an idiot, chauvanist, and a jerk.
Mrs. Mamie Dubcek is played by Elmarie Wendel. She is the Solomon's landlady. She is loose, clueless, and carefree. She is very promiscuous. She has a friend-like relationship with the Solomon's.
Officer Don Leslie Orville is played by Wayne Knight. You might remember his as "Newman" on Seinfeld. His character on 3rd Rock is similar in some ways to his character on Seinfeld. He does devious things to get his way. He works for the Rutherford, Ohio's police department. He is an incompetent police officer. Sally is his on-off girlfriend. In the last episode we find out that Don only joined the force because he felt that he would be safe with all the other police around him.
3rd Rock
Minor characters
Some of Dick's Students
Bug Pollone is played by David DeLuise.
Leon is played by Ian Lithgow.
Caryn is played by Danielle Nicolet
Aubrey Pitman is played by Chris Hogan
Others
Vicky Dubcek is played by Jan Hooks. She is Ms. Dubcek's daughter and Harry's Girlfriend.
Dr. Judith Draper is played by Iileen Getz. She is a professor at Pendelton and colleague of Mary August Leffler, played by Shay Astar. She was Tommy's first girlfriend during seasons 1-4.
Alissa Strudwick is played by Larisa Oleynik. She was Tommy's second girlfriend during seasons 4-6.
Dr. Vincent Strudwick is played by Ron West who is Alissa's father and Dick's rival during seasons 2-6.
The Big Giant Head/Stone Phillips is played by William Shatner. He is the aliens' boss (season 4 and 5).
Dr. Liam Neesam is played by John Cleese who is a professor who has a brief relationship with Mary. He is later found to be an evil alien who wants to change humans into chimps (seasons 3 and 6).
James Earl Jones did the narration for the first season's opening titles.
3rd Rock
Guest stars
Martha Stewart - (season 1) playing herself when Harry fantasises about appearing on her show.
Phil Hartman - (seasons 1 & 3) playing a camp cosmetics store worker and later Vicky's jilted ex-lover Randy John Mahoney - (season 1) a rude, sexist professor for whom a faculty party is thrown.
Dennis Rodman - (season 2) playing himself. It is revealed that he is actually another alien George Takai - (season 2) playing himself at a sci-fi convention.
Mike Ditka - (season 2) as Coach Mafferty. He is the coach for the Pendelton Badgers football team.
Mark Hamill - (season 2) playing himself. Sally achieves a degree of fame after she attacks him.
Randy Newman - (season 2) playing himself. He appears in Harry's dream.
Roseanne Barr - (season 3) playing Dick's forced-wife Janet Elaine Stritch - (seasons 3 & 6).
Martha Albright, Mary's mother Cindy Crawford - (season 3) Mascha, a Venusian woman who falls for Harry John Cleese - (seasons 3 &6) Professor Liam Neesam, an evil alien in disguise as a biology professor Laurie Metcalf - (season 4).
Jennifer Ravelli, a teacher of comparitive literature that Dick has a fling with.
Kathy Bates - (season 4) Charlotte Everley, an alien hunter who discovers the truth about Dick and tries to disect him.
William Shatner - (seasons 4 & 5) The Big Giant Head (a.k.a Stone Philips), the aliens' overlord.
Billy Connolly - (season 5) An actor playing the part of a Scotland Yard inspector in a murder mystery the Solomons take part in.
David Hasselhoff - (season 5) A plastic surgeon that Dick visits when considering a facelift.
Alan Cummings - (season 5) Angus 'The Hole' McDuff, a hole expert hired to get Dick and Harry out of a hole.
Enrico Colantoni - (season 5) Frank, a gay friend of Mary's that Dick mistakes for an alien Megan Mullaly - (season 6).
Renata Albright, Mary's rich sister
Phew......that's a lot of people. If you want to add comments or information to this page email me at zany1968@sympatico.ca
Format: Situation comedy
Created by: Bonnie Turner and Terry Turner
Starring: John Lithgow, Kristen Johnston, French Stewart, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Simbi Khali, Elmarie Wendel, Wayne Knight, and Jane Curtin
3rd Rock Country of origin: United States
No. of seasons: 6
No. of episodes: 139 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s): Marcy Carsey, Caryn Mandabach, Bonnie Turner, Tom Werner, Terry Turner, Bill Martin, Mike Schiff, Linwood Boomer (executive producer), Bob Kushell, Christine Zander, David Sacks, Danny Smith, Joe Fisch (co-executive producer) Producer(s): Patrick Kienlen, David Goetsch, Jason Venokur, David Israel, Jim O'Doherty, Andrew Orenstein, Michael Glouberman Gregg Mettler (producer), Tim Ryder, Aron Abrams, Gregory Thompson (co-producer)
Location(s): Studio City, Los Angeles, California, USA[1]
Running time: 22 minutes (per episode)
Distributor USA: Carsey-Werner Distribution, NBC, Anchor Bay Entertainment
Original run: January 9, 1996 – May 22, 2001
3rd Rock from the Sun is an Emmy Award-winning American sitcom that ran from 1996 until 2001 on NBC. The show is about a group of extraterrestrial scientists on an expedition of what they consider to be the least important planet, Earth (the "3rd Rock" from the Sun), whilst posing as a human "family" of four to observe human beings.
3rd Rock
Overview
Basic premise
Four aliens come to Earth to learn what they can about and life on Earth. Dick is the High Commander. The military officer is Sally. The intelligence specialist is Tommy. Harry came with them to take the extra seat.
They are trying to live as "normal" human beings. What human is normal. Are you normal. Do you know where the perfect orange is? My name is Zane and I'm an alcoholic......not!!!
They become so used to their "human" life that they don't pay as much attention to their mission.
3rd Rock
Dick Solomon (John Lithgow) is the High Commander of the team. He takes a teaching job at Pendelton State University. Tommy (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is given the role and body of a teenager. He is the information officer. Sally (Kristen Johnston) is the security officer. Harry (French Stewart) is the communications officer. He hangs out at home and goes from one job to another.
The family communicates with their boss, know as "The Big Giant Head". William Shatner is "The Big Giant Head". He sends remote messages through Harry. Harry goes into a trance and poses as if he an antenna as he relays the messages.
3rd Rock
Sources of humor
A lot of the humor comes from the mismatch between the teams appearance and their actual internal nature. For example Tommy appears to be a typical teenager but he is the team's information officer. He is responsible for educating the team on the way things are for humans and the earth. Dick is the father figure in the team but he is just really arrogant and self-absorbed. He gets into trouble. He is basically a child in the body of an adult. Sally looks like a promiscuous woman but she is actually a soldier who handles security for the team. Harry is the only one who seems to have a look that matches his actual self.
3rd Rock
Typical episode themes
Most of the episodes deal with the team having trouble with understanding how things work on Earth. They interpret human customs incorrectly, mostly because most of their intelligence comes from media, especially television. (Television is all knowing and we should bow to it on a daily basis. We need to give our first born to it. Have you seen some kids? I think the parents would get the better of the deal. Television is everything. ..... Do I take the blue pill or the red pill or both? Just kidding.)
3rd Rock
The teams former lives were actually similar to the Borg on Star Trek because their lives basically involved them interacting with each other but not many others.
Many episodes were based on story ideas from TV and films. For example when Harry finds out he is a transmitter he portrays a character like Jim in Rebel Without a Cause and plays chicken with a tough guy in a bar. They also did some scenes similar to that from Twilight Zone and Apocalypse Now, as well as others.
3rd Rock
Common mythology
The characters get in trouble because they aren't familiar with the normal behaviors of humans but their alien skills come to the rescue, kinda. (I always fry eggs on the sidewalk or the hood of my car. I also roast a chicken on the engine of the car. I save a lot of money by eating roadkill......what.....really......if a full pizza box flies out of a car I will fight the idiots who through the box out for it, at least a slice. I wouldn't hurt a fly, if it's awake. Okay so this probably isn't normal behavior but the voices in my head says it is, no it isn't, yes it is.)
Tommy, the son, understands physics better than Dick, the father, but Dick's knowledge still outshines the society's knowledge of physics. In one bit Dick reads from Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time and gets a huge laugh from it. The other three often question Dick's right to command, especially when he gets into trouble when others might have recognized a tricky situation. Sally is often only depicted as being attractive; her great physical strength and abilities are not shown. There is the odd mention of her exploits.
3rd Rock
Tommy has an encyclopedic knowledge about Earth society. It doesn't help him when situations require street smarts. He does maintain straight As.
Harry is almost psychotic in his behavior, even for a Solomon. It is implied that the chip in his brain that allows him to communicate with the home planet makes him that way. He is extremely horny and he's the only Solomon who has artistic talent.
Dick is jealous of Harry's talents and can't understand how a fool like Harry can outdo him in artistic endeavors.
3rd Rock
Relationships with humans
All four aliens get into relationships with humans. Dick's relationship with anthropology professor, Mary Albright (Jane Curtain) is the most focused on relationship. Mary is insecure and suffers many neuroses. A lifetime of studying the human condition as well as a messy relationship with her parents was probably the cause of it. She is attracted to Dick's lack of understanding of the human condition.
Sally hooks up with Don Leslie Orville (Wayne Knight-- you know Newman...... from Seinfeld). Isn't it interesting when you see all the different places actors show up. I might just have to make a page with a diagram. I saw that is a magazine somewhere. I read at least one article....really I did. I remember there was a nice looking girl in one picture. The caption said something about a car. I couldn't see it. Okay back to the facts of 3rd Rock.... I almost said 30 Rock. I should do a page on that. I'll have to watch more shows before I can write about it.
Don is attracted to Sally after meeting her several times when he confronts or arrests the Solomons for various crimes. They speak to each other is an old 1930s crime drama.
3rd Rock
Tommy dates August Leffler (Shay Astar), a reserved teenager. Later he dates Alissa Strudwick (Larisa Oleynik).
Harry has a relationship with his landlord, Mrs. Dubcek's daughter (played by Jan Hooks). I think she's the one from SNL. Yeah, she is who I was thinking about. She was on SNL from 1986 to 1991. More on her if it comes up.
A neat episode finds Harry foiling a plot by Cindy Crawford to dissolve the Earth. Harry seduced Cindy Crawford to do it, even though he's not that great at picking up women.
There is sharing of partners. Mary and Tommy are briefly attracted to each other when they discover they both like social sciences. Tommy steps aside to let Dick pursue Mary. Ninaa (Simbi Khali), Dick's assistant has a fling with Harry. Mrs. dubcek (Elmarie Wendel) has a fling with Harry too.
3rd Rock
Plot twists
References to the aliens actual nature and home world also claimed that their original bodies were "gelatinous purple tubes" without sex organs. Sally asked why she had to be the woman. Dick said she lost the draw. Supposedly individuals in their species are almost completely identical. This was the reason the Solomons were unaware of the concept of race or ethnicity. They eventually decided that they were Jewish because of their surname, which they had taken from a trucking company.
3rd Rock
The four adventurers often meet up with or think they've met up with other aliens. Jell-O was one such a thing. They thought it was an enemy alien. When they saw it they would try to destroy it. We never are told what the home planet is; it simply referred to as "The Home Planet."
3rd Rock
Cast
Three of the four characters lasted out all six seasons appearing on every episode. Tommy was the exception. There were many characters added and subtracted over the 6 seasons.
3rd Rock Main characters
Dick Solomon character is played by John Lithgow. He is the High commander. He is the most childish of the four characters. He was actually the youngest of the four (in alien years and nature). His appearance only made him the oldest. Dick is the source of most of the problems the family has.
Sally Solomon is played by Kristen Johnston. She is the Lieutenant, the Security Officer, and second in command. She is sometimes called Dick's sister and at other times Tommy's sister. On one occasion she claimed to be Tommy's mother. She is never seen as Dick's daughter or spouse. Sally had a harder time dealing with being a woman than the others had dealing with being a man. She did file a request to be made male but changed her mind later as she began to like being a woman.
Harry Solomon is played by French Stewart. He wasn't originally part of the mission but came along because there was a spare seat. When the topic of position comes up Dick tells Harry "Well, eh, you're, uh... you're Harry!". Harry's reply to this is "Oh, sure, I get the fancy title!". The group later found out that Harry had a chip in his head that allowed them to communicate with the home planet. He was then known as the Communicator or Transmitter. Occasionally, he will get a message from their leader, the Big Giant Head, shaking violently in the middle of a sentence and squats down, with his arms at 90 degree angles, declaring "Incoming message from the Big Giant Head!", before going through the motions of delivering the message. He posed as Dick and Sally's brother and Tommy's uncle.
Tommy Solomon is played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Just a side note by I saw him on that show where the spy has been put on burn notice. Joseph Gordon-Levitt came to kill the main character. I've only seen the show a couple times but it is pretty good. Comedy is my first love so I'll deal with that show later. Okay while I was working on this I did some research. The show is called Burn Notice. I'd recommend it to people over 18. If you have bad parents and you're under 18 you decide.
Okay back to Tommy Solomon on 3rd Rock From the Sun. He is the Information Officer and second in command. He has a teenager's appearance so he plays the role of Dick's adolescent son. Tommy is actually the oldest and smartest of all the aliens. He constantly reminds the others of this fact. He left the series (after the fifth season concluded) as a primary character. He came back in about half the episodes of sixth season.
3rd Rock
Dr. Mary Albright is played by Jane Curtain (remember her on SNL and Kate and Ally?). She works with Dick and dates him on and off. She thought Dick was an idiot but was attracted to his child-like behavior. She is insecure because her bad upbringing. Before Dick was in the picture she was know for sleeping around and given the nickname "Dr. Slutbunny".
Nina Campbell is played by Simbi Khali. She is Dick and Mary's administrative assistant. She thinks Dick is an idiot, chauvanist, and a jerk.
Mrs. Mamie Dubcek is played by Elmarie Wendel. She is the Solomon's landlady. She is loose, clueless, and carefree. She is very promiscuous. She has a friend-like relationship with the Solomon's.
Officer Don Leslie Orville is played by Wayne Knight. You might remember his as "Newman" on Seinfeld. His character on 3rd Rock is similar in some ways to his character on Seinfeld. He does devious things to get his way. He works for the Rutherford, Ohio's police department. He is an incompetent police officer. Sally is his on-off girlfriend. In the last episode we find out that Don only joined the force because he felt that he would be safe with all the other police around him.
3rd Rock
Minor characters
Some of Dick's Students
Bug Pollone is played by David DeLuise.
Leon is played by Ian Lithgow.
Caryn is played by Danielle Nicolet
Aubrey Pitman is played by Chris Hogan
Others
Vicky Dubcek is played by Jan Hooks. She is Ms. Dubcek's daughter and Harry's Girlfriend.
Dr. Judith Draper is played by Iileen Getz. She is a professor at Pendelton and colleague of Mary August Leffler, played by Shay Astar. She was Tommy's first girlfriend during seasons 1-4.
Alissa Strudwick is played by Larisa Oleynik. She was Tommy's second girlfriend during seasons 4-6.
Dr. Vincent Strudwick is played by Ron West who is Alissa's father and Dick's rival during seasons 2-6.
The Big Giant Head/Stone Phillips is played by William Shatner. He is the aliens' boss (season 4 and 5).
Dr. Liam Neesam is played by John Cleese who is a professor who has a brief relationship with Mary. He is later found to be an evil alien who wants to change humans into chimps (seasons 3 and 6).
James Earl Jones did the narration for the first season's opening titles.
3rd Rock
Guest stars
Martha Stewart - (season 1) playing herself when Harry fantasises about appearing on her show.
Phil Hartman - (seasons 1 & 3) playing a camp cosmetics store worker and later Vicky's jilted ex-lover Randy John Mahoney - (season 1) a rude, sexist professor for whom a faculty party is thrown.
Dennis Rodman - (season 2) playing himself. It is revealed that he is actually another alien George Takai - (season 2) playing himself at a sci-fi convention.
Mike Ditka - (season 2) as Coach Mafferty. He is the coach for the Pendelton Badgers football team.
Mark Hamill - (season 2) playing himself. Sally achieves a degree of fame after she attacks him.
Randy Newman - (season 2) playing himself. He appears in Harry's dream.
Roseanne Barr - (season 3) playing Dick's forced-wife Janet Elaine Stritch - (seasons 3 & 6).
Martha Albright, Mary's mother Cindy Crawford - (season 3) Mascha, a Venusian woman who falls for Harry John Cleese - (seasons 3 &6) Professor Liam Neesam, an evil alien in disguise as a biology professor Laurie Metcalf - (season 4).
Jennifer Ravelli, a teacher of comparitive literature that Dick has a fling with.
Kathy Bates - (season 4) Charlotte Everley, an alien hunter who discovers the truth about Dick and tries to disect him.
William Shatner - (seasons 4 & 5) The Big Giant Head (a.k.a Stone Philips), the aliens' overlord.
Billy Connolly - (season 5) An actor playing the part of a Scotland Yard inspector in a murder mystery the Solomons take part in.
David Hasselhoff - (season 5) A plastic surgeon that Dick visits when considering a facelift.
Alan Cummings - (season 5) Angus 'The Hole' McDuff, a hole expert hired to get Dick and Harry out of a hole.
Enrico Colantoni - (season 5) Frank, a gay friend of Mary's that Dick mistakes for an alien Megan Mullaly - (season 6).
Renata Albright, Mary's rich sister
Phew......that's a lot of people. If you want to add comments or information to this page email me at zany1968@sympatico.ca
227 Sitcom -- Television -- One of the funniest addresses on Earth
Sanford and Son, The Jeffersons, The Cosby Show, and many more shows allowed African-Americans to share what used to be a mainly "white" entertainment medium. Shows that had African-Americans on them usually had them playing supporting or "extra" parts.
George Lopez is doing a similar thing by giving Mexicans a more than supporting or "extra" part in sitcoms. George Lopez performed stand up comedy before he got his chance to run his sitcom (with the help of his good friend Sandra Bullock). He also has his own late night talk show.
I would look at the characters played by Marla Gibbs (Mary Jenkins) and Jackee Harry as kind of a Betty and Veronica characters, except they are not fighting over a guy. Mary is like Betty and gets things done by the rules and only gets in trouble because Jackee gets her into it. Mary is homely (generally) while Jackee is a major flirt.
I will admit that I didn't watch this show much either because I was relatively young compared to who I imagine watched the show during its original airing or I might have been told not to watch it because the Jackee character was seen as very immoral by one of the people who raised me. Some people still think I must have been raised by wolves by the way I act. Awoooooooooooo!!!!!! Kibbles and Bits, Kibbles and Bits...... sorry.
227 was a great show that, like many good shows, ended with a moral lesson.
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Following are more details so you can get more familiar with the show
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227 was a popular American situation comedy that aired on NBC from September 14, 1985 until May 6, 1990. The series starred Emmy Award-nominated television actress Marla Gibbs, who shot to fame in 1977 on The Jeffersons as sassy maid Florence Johnston. 227 was produced by Embassy Television from 1985 until 1988, then ELP Communications produced the series in its final two seasons (1988-1990).
Origins
The show is based on a play written by Christine Houston about the lives of women in a predominantly black apartment building in 1950s Chicago.
Synopsis
Emmy Award-nominee Marla Gibbs portrayed the lead role, Mary Jenkins, a housewife who lives in Washington, D.C. with her husband, Lester Jenkins, a construction worker, played by Hal Williams, and their studious 14-year-old daughter, Brenda, played by Regina King in her first significant acting role.
Jackée Harry, another Emmy-winning actress played a flirty resident of 227. Every building has a Mrs. Cravitz and this building had Pearl Shay. She was always snooping and getting into everyone's business. Funny stuff happens. You can watch clips on YouTube until they are removed. If you really are a good human being you'll buy the dvds or digital downloads.
Do you remember Olivia from Sesame Street? Well on 227 she was everybody's friend Rose. She also became the landlord. You have to watch the show in whatever way you can to find out the weird way she became the landlord.
Jackée's spin off Sandra didn't make it past the pilot.
227 ended in the spring of 1990.
227 Theme Song
The theme song for 227 was written by television songwriter Ray Colcord and sung by series star Marla Gibbs entitled "There's No Place Like Home".
George Lopez is doing a similar thing by giving Mexicans a more than supporting or "extra" part in sitcoms. George Lopez performed stand up comedy before he got his chance to run his sitcom (with the help of his good friend Sandra Bullock). He also has his own late night talk show.
I would look at the characters played by Marla Gibbs (Mary Jenkins) and Jackee Harry as kind of a Betty and Veronica characters, except they are not fighting over a guy. Mary is like Betty and gets things done by the rules and only gets in trouble because Jackee gets her into it. Mary is homely (generally) while Jackee is a major flirt.
I will admit that I didn't watch this show much either because I was relatively young compared to who I imagine watched the show during its original airing or I might have been told not to watch it because the Jackee character was seen as very immoral by one of the people who raised me. Some people still think I must have been raised by wolves by the way I act. Awoooooooooooo!!!!!! Kibbles and Bits, Kibbles and Bits...... sorry.
227 was a great show that, like many good shows, ended with a moral lesson.
**************************
Following are more details so you can get more familiar with the show
**************************
227 was a popular American situation comedy that aired on NBC from September 14, 1985 until May 6, 1990. The series starred Emmy Award-nominated television actress Marla Gibbs, who shot to fame in 1977 on The Jeffersons as sassy maid Florence Johnston. 227 was produced by Embassy Television from 1985 until 1988, then ELP Communications produced the series in its final two seasons (1988-1990).
Origins
The show is based on a play written by Christine Houston about the lives of women in a predominantly black apartment building in 1950s Chicago.
Synopsis
Emmy Award-nominee Marla Gibbs portrayed the lead role, Mary Jenkins, a housewife who lives in Washington, D.C. with her husband, Lester Jenkins, a construction worker, played by Hal Williams, and their studious 14-year-old daughter, Brenda, played by Regina King in her first significant acting role.
Jackée Harry, another Emmy-winning actress played a flirty resident of 227. Every building has a Mrs. Cravitz and this building had Pearl Shay. She was always snooping and getting into everyone's business. Funny stuff happens. You can watch clips on YouTube until they are removed. If you really are a good human being you'll buy the dvds or digital downloads.
Do you remember Olivia from Sesame Street? Well on 227 she was everybody's friend Rose. She also became the landlord. You have to watch the show in whatever way you can to find out the weird way she became the landlord.
Jackée's spin off Sandra didn't make it past the pilot.
227 ended in the spring of 1990.
227 Theme Song
The theme song for 227 was written by television songwriter Ray Colcord and sung by series star Marla Gibbs entitled "There's No Place Like Home".
Saturday, August 27, 2011
glee and george lopez in a movie
The mean lady from glee and George Lopez were in a movie on YTV yesterday.
It was pretty good. I'm typng on a weird keyboard so I'm done for now.
It was pretty good. I'm typng on a weird keyboard so I'm done for now.
Friday, August 26, 2011
London is preggers with Cyrus child
I hope the title isn't offensive.
I just heard that Wendy Song from Zack and Cody is pregnant with the child of Mylie Cyrus' brother.
I didn't know Mylie had a real brother but I'm not shocked.
I didn't look into the story. Share your thoughts.
I just heard that Wendy Song from Zack and Cody is pregnant with the child of Mylie Cyrus' brother.
I didn't know Mylie had a real brother but I'm not shocked.
I didn't look into the story. Share your thoughts.