Unhappily Ever After
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Unhappily Ever After | |
|---|---|
 Unhappily Ever After opening sequence |
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| Format | Sitcom |
| Created by | Ron Leavitt Arthur Silver |
| Starring | Nikki Cox Kevin Connolly Stephanie Hodge Justin Berfield Geoffrey Pierson Bob Goldthwait |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| No. of episodes | 100 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 30 minutes (per episode) |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | The WB |
| Original run | January 11, 1995 – May 23, 1999 |
| External links | |
| IMDb profile | |
| TV.com summary | |
Unhappily Ever After (often shortened to Unhappily... in promotional advertisements) was an American sitcom that aired for 100 episodes on The WB network from January 11, 1995 to May 23, 1999, for a total of four and a half seasons.
"Hit the Road Jack" by Ray Charles was the show's theme song.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
The show was about Jack Malloy and his dysfunctional family.
- Jack Malloy (Geoff Pierson): A schizophrenic father overstressed from his miserable job as a used car salesman.
- Jennie Malloy (Stephanie Hodge): Jack's shrewish, sex-crazed wife who kicked him out of the house, but then later allowed him to move back into the basement. She was later killed off and miraculously brought back to life; she subsequently abandoned her family and runs off, leaving the kids in Jack's care.
- Ryan Malloy (Kevin Connolly): Jack and Jennie's eldest child, a perpetually optimistic, happy-go-lucky idiot.
- Tiffany Malloy (Nikki Cox): Jack and Jennie's skimpy-dressing, statuesque teenage daughter. Despite her extremely provocative wardrobe, Tiffany is a virgin ... although she thoroughly enjoys the effect her spectacular, gravity-defying physique has on men. Smart, focused and determined, Tiffany enjoys an extended clapping sequence every time she enters a room.
- Ross Malloy (Justin Berfield): The youngest child, and of resolutely average intelligence. Ross is usually ignored by his parents, and craves attention.
also:
- Mr. Floppy (voice of Bobcat Goldthwait, puppeteer Allan Trautman): A smoking, drinking, and perverted gray stuffed bunny who lives in the Malloy basement. Only Jack can hear Mr. Floppy -- most likely as a result of Jack's schizophrenia. A main part of the show is Jack consulting Mr. Floppy for advice; in almost every episode, there are two lengthy sequences between Jack and Mr. Floppy, discussing the problems encountered by Jack or other Malloys.
[edit] Season 1
In the beginning, the show was actually developed as a starring vehicle for Stephanie Hodge, whose character of Jennie was the focus of the first few episodes. However, the series concept was soon re-worked. The character of Jack (who had been kicked out of the house and was living in an apartment) was brought back home, and began living in the basement. Soon, Geoff Pierson's weary, mentally-unbalanced but straight-talking character of Jack was clearly the star of the show, along with Mr. Floppy. Also in Season 1, Joyce Van Patten played Jennie's mother, Maureen Slattery, who despised Jack.
[edit] Season 3 and onward
By the show's third season it became apparent that Tiffany (Nikki Cox) was becoming a breakout character and the de facto co-star of the show along with Pierson. Stories began focusing on Tiffany and Ryan's high school (and later community college) escapades, and the producers attempted to kill off the increasingly unnecessary character of Jennie.
After doing so, however, they quickly reversed their decision due to negative audience reaction. On the show, the character was brought "back to life" in a deliberately bizarre sequence where a network executive wandered on to the set and announced Jennie's character was no longer dead.
Nevertheless, Jennie was soon gone again, as several episodes later, the character abandoned her family and was never seen again.
[edit] Final season
Nikki Cox was already signed to star in a new series for the WB when Unhappily... ended, and the final season focused more than ever on her character of Tiffany, who dressed extremely provocatively but was in fact an honor student and a virgin --though not exactly innocent. Added to the cast was Wendy Benson, who played Tiffany's equally short-skirted rival Barbara Caufield.
The series wrapped up with a final episode in which Jack finally made enough money to send Tiffany to Harvard.
[edit] Married...with Children connection
Unhappily... is sometimes called an imitation of the FOX network's hit Married... with Children, because the characters and their relationships to each other were very similar. Even the sets of the two shows looked extremely similar. However Married... with Children was usually much more extreme in sexual themes and humor. Both shows were co-created by writer Ron Leavitt, and several writers worked on both shows. Additionally, Geoffrey Pierson appeared as Roland Squab in the episode "Just Married... with Children" where Al and Peg (playing as Steve and Marcy Rhoades) trade zingers on a game show.
[edit] Syndication and DVDs
The show was sold into syndication for the 1999-2000 and the 2000-01 seasons, but was not re-offered the following fall due to lackluster clearance rates and low ratings. It has been off the air in America ever since, though it was shown on the UK channel ABC1 between 2004 and 2005. In Canada, it was seen in syndication on OMNI Television during the 2006/2007 season.
In Germany, the show first aired on RTL Television in November 1997, was since rerun on RTL II and presently (as of June 2007) airs on Comedy Central on a daily basis. It is titled "Auf schlimmer und ewig" ("For the worse and ever"), a pun on the phrase "Auf immer und ewig" ("For always and ever"), which is the German equivalent of the English final phrase in fairy tales ("Happily ever after").
As of October 2007, it airs on the TV3 network in Estonia as "Armastuseta sinu" (Yours Without Love).
As of September 26, 2007 there are currently no plans to release DVDs of the series, and no site currently offers online viewing.
[edit] Cast
- Geoff Pierson as Jack Malloy
- Stephanie Hodge as Jennie Malloy (1995-1998)
- Wendy Benson as Barbara Caufield (1998-1999)
- Kevin Connolly as Ryan Malloy
- Nikki Cox as Tiffany Malloy
- Justin Berfield as Ross Malloy
- Joyce Van Patten as Maureen (Season 1)
- Bobcat Goldthwait as Mr. Floppy (voice)
- Allan Trautman as Mr. Floppy (puppeteer)
