This month we are looking at sitcoms dealing with careers in our “Work It Out” series. Today I also am learning a lot about a show that I thought was okay but had a big following and was quite popular for seven seasons: Empty Nest.
This show was produced by Witt/Thomas/Harris Productions, the same team that produced Benson which we learned about last week. It was a spin-off of The Golden Girls which also was produced by the group. However, it is a stretch to connect the original episode and this series. In 1987 George (Paul Dooley) and Renee (Rita Moreno) were a couple who lived next to the Girls. They were suffering from Empty Nest Syndrome after their daughter (Jane Hamick) left for college and their son (Geoffrey Lewis) lived on his own. They had a neighbor Oliver (David Leisure).
Rita did not think the show was very well written. She said Susan Harris was ill at the time. The Corliss house and neighbor was about the only thing that was included in the new show.
On Empty Nest, Dr. Harry Weston (Richard Mulligan) is a widowed pediatrician. His two adult daughters Barbara (Kristy McNichol) and Carol (Dinah Manoff) move back in with him. Rounding out the cast was neighbor Charley (David Leisure) and Weston’s nurse Laverne (Park Overall). Carol is the oldest and had gone through a bad divorce. Barbara was the middle child and was a tough, undercover cop. Their youngest sister Emily was off at college and never seen in the first three seasons. When McNichol left the show early in the fifth season, Emily (Lisa Rieffel) moved back home but she left after that year, and for the final two seasons, only Carol remained at home, although McNichol did return for the finale. Charley bonded with Harry and considered him a surrogate father figure. Their dog Dreyfuss (Bear) also lived with the crew.
Bear’s father was a Golden Retriever mix and his mother was a St. Bernard. Bear’s entire family was in show business. His father was in Father Murphy and Summer Rental with John Candy. His brother was in both Steel Magnolias and The Bodyguard. His children continued the tradition taking roles in several movies including Homeward Bound II. Mulligan and Bear were close. Richard would greet him every morning and give him a treat.
The cast was well aware of each other before working together. McNichol had worked with Manoff who played her friend on Family earlier in the 80s. Mulligan had played Manoff’s father on Soap. Mulligan and McNichol worked together on The Love Boat. And, McNichol and Leisure were in the movie You Can’t Hurry Love in 1988.
The reason this show is considered in this month’s blog is that a lot of the show revolved around Harry’s medical practice. He worked at a hospital for the first five seasons with his nurse Laverne. The two are good friends. For the final two seasons, Harry retires and then decides to help out an inner city clinic run by Dr. Maxine Douglas (Marsha Warfield). When Laverne is fired by Harry’s replacement, he hires her at the clinic.
Some notable guest stars who showed up along the way included Don Adams, Diana Muldaur, Loni Anderson, Mayim Bialik, Angie Dickinson, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Shirley Jones, Audrey Meadows, and Doris Roberts.
The theme song was “Life Goes On,” written by John Bettis and George Tipton; it was performed by Billy Vera.
Critics liked the show. In 1988, TV Guide said “it’s a simple premise, but it’s vintage Harris and like everything else she does, Empty Nest has been meticulously thought out and superbly cast. Each of the regulars is carefully drawn, consistently realized . . . as for Empty Nest, it’s warm and entertaining comedy . . if you like the humor in Golden Girls, you’ll enjoy Empty Nest. And even if you don’t like Golden Girls, sample Empty Nest anyway. Trust us.” In 1992, TV Guide still liked the show and said, “Harry Weston is delicious and Dreyfuss the dog is delightful. Empty Nest is home to an experienced ensemble that knows its way around a sitcom.”
Mulligan was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy in 1989, 1990, and 1991, winning in 1989. He was beat out by Ted Danson for Cheers in 1990 and Burt Reynolds for Evening Shade in 1991.
Most viewers loved the show the first four seasons, but after McNichol left and Harry retired, the quality seemed to wane. The show was in the top for seasons one through three. However, after that, it slowly declined, coming in #23 for season four, #45 for season five, #62 for season six, and #118 for season seven, so there was no surprise when it was canceled.
Grace Zabriskie appeared in the very first and very last episode of the series. In episode one, she was a woman who dated Harry, and in the finale, she played Laverne’s mother.
One of the typical plots that a lot of people mentioned as one of their favorites was episode 22 from season 1 where we watch Dr. Weston visit five different patients during one episode. At the end of the show, we realize that we have been following Billy from a newborn to 18 years of age, and we understand how much influence a family doctor can have on one patient.
Rue McClanahan talked about how Park Overall would spend her breaks roller skating in the parking lot. However, during season five, she broke her leg doing so and had to miss several episodes and spend several more with crutches in a cast.
I have read a few times in the past few years doing research that Bea Arthur could be very difficult to work with. She was not the favorite on The Golden Girls set and, apparently, she caused an issue on Empty Nest as well. She despised gum chewing and would make the crew spit out their gum. When she guest starred on Empty Nest, she saw Manoff chewing gum and told her to get rid of it. When Manoff declined, Arthur stormed off the set. Speaking of Manoff, she was able to direct seven episodes of the series during the last three seasons. She directed five other shows including an episode of Sabrina, the Teen-Aged Witch. She was also credited with writing two of the Empty Nest episodes.
I do remember watching the early seasons of this show and thinking it was a decent show. I did not remember that McNichol had to leave for mental health reasons, so I’m guessing I stopped watching it before she quit. However, being in the top ten for three years is, or at least was at the time, a good indication of quality and then you add in TV Guide liking the show and Mulligan’s nominations for Emmy awards, and it presents good evidence of a well-rounded show. I did read that Overall could be a bit difficult on the set, and one of those comments came directly from her.
Marty Pollio, guest starred in season six when things weren’t so great and still had good things to say about the cast. He said that “it was an honor to be doing scenes with Richard Mulligan, he was talented beyond belief, and a great guy too. I never realized what a good actress Dinah Manoff was until I watched her work on this particular episode . . . nice person as well. The set was pretty relaxed and friendly. . . I had a really good time on this one.” It would probably have been better for the quality of the show to be a four-season show than a seven-season show.
I agree with TV Guide. If you were a fan of Golden Girls, you definitely should check out the first three seasons of Empty Nest. And even if you are in that small group of people who did not like Golden Girls, you should watch a few episodes and see what you think. However, that is easier said than done. There is no official DVD set; however, there are bootlegs on several places. I also could not find any streaming channels showing it. YouTube does have at least the first episode. Perhaps with all the classic tv channels out there, this show will make a comeback.
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