''Muddling Through'' is an American television

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

that aired on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

from July 9, 1994, to September 7, 1994. The series starred Stephanie Hodge as an ex-convict trying to turn her life around, but is now perhaps better remembered for being the series which

Jennifer Aniston Jennifer Joanna Aniston (born February 11, 1969) is an American actress and film producer. She is the recipient of various accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. Since her career ...

(playing the daughter of Hodge's character) completed just before her star-making role on ''

Friends ''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting ten seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa ...

'' began. ''Friends'' debuted just two weeks after ''Muddling Through'' aired its final episode, with one episode remaining left unaired. According to NBC program executive Preston Beckman ("The Masked Scheduler"), Aniston was in second slot but the first choice to play

Rachel Green Rachel Karen Green is a fictional character, one of the six main characters who appeared in the American sitcom ''Friends''. Portrayed by Jennifer Aniston, the character was created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, and appeared in all of t ...

in ''Friends''. Warren Littlefield, then NBC entertainment chief, ordered the show to be ‘killed’ so that Aniston would be freed up to take on the role of Rachel, leading to NBC to schedule strong programming against it to hurt its ratings.

Plot

Connie Drego is an ex-con, paroled after serving three years in prison for shooting her cheating husband, Sonny, in the buttocks. Connie returns home to work at Drego's Oasis, the family's diner/motel in rural

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. Other characters include Madeline, Connie's oldest daughter who is married to Duane Cooper, the cop who arrested Connie and whose testimony led to her conviction, and Kerri, Connie's youngest daughter.

Cast

Starring

* Stephanie Hodge as Connie Drego (10 episodes) *D. David Morin as Sonny Drego (10 episodes) *

as Madeline Drego Cooper (10 episodes) *

Aimee Brooks Aimee Brooks (born November 19, 1974) is an American former actress. She is mostly known for her roles in horror movies, including the lead protagonist in ''Critters 3''. Her most recent film is '' Closed for the Season'' in 2010. Aimee Brooks a ...

as Kerri Drego (10 episodes) *

Scott Waara Scott Waara (born June 5, 1957) is an American actor. He made his Broadway debut as a member of the ensemble for the musical ''Wind in the Willows'', and performed in '' Welcome to the Club'' and '' City of Angels''. He won the Best Featured Ac ...

as Duane Cooper (10 episodes)

Recurring

Hal Landon Jr. Hal Landon Jr. is an actor most notable for portraying Ted's Dad in the ''Bill & Ted'' franchise. In 1986, he appeared in Highway to Heaven. Life He was a member of the South Coast Repertory in Orange County, California, most notably playing th ...

as Gidney (7 episodes) * Hank Underwood as Lyle (7 episodes) * Forry Smith as Zane Whitman (2 episodes)

Guest starring

Sara Suzanne Brown Sara Suzanne Brown is an American actress who is best known for her appearances in softcore erotic films between 1991 and 1995. She made her film debut in a small role as a background dancer in ''The Last Boy Scout ''The Last Boy Scout'' is a ...

as Miss Lagermeister *

Blake Clark Blake Clark (born February 2, 1946) is an American actor and stand-up comedian. He is best known as Chet Hunter on ''Boy Meets World'' and Harry "The Hardware Store Guy" on ''Home Improvement''. Clark has voiced Slinky Dog in the ''Toy Story'' f ...

as Ralph * Pamela Dunlap as Estelle *

Donald Gibb Donald Richard Gibb (born August 4, 1954) is an American actor, best known for his roles as the hulking, dimwitted fraternity brother Ogre in several installments of the ''Revenge of the Nerds'' film series, as Kumite fighter Ray Jackson in ''Blo ...

as Bub *

Linda Hart Linda Hart (born July 5, 1950) is an American singer, musician, and actress, mainly appearing in musical theatre. Life and career Hart was born in Dallas, Texas, United States. As a child, Hart sang in her church choir; at age seven, she joine ...

as Fanny *

Andy Kindler Andy Kindler (born October 16, 1956) is an American comedian and actor from Queens, New York. He played the character "Andy", a fellow sportswriter and friend of sportswriter "Ray Barone" (Ray Romano) on the TV show ''Everybody Loves Raymond'', w ...

as Beer Distributor *

Don McManus Don McManus (born November 8, 1959) (sometimes credited as Don R. McManus) is an American character actor of film and television. He became better known after his performance as Duncan in the '' Seinfeld'' episode “The Race”. Born in San Die ...

as Nick *

Barbara Sharma Barbara Sharma (born September 14, 1938, Dallas) is an American actress and dancer of the night clubs, stage, television, and film. She began dancing at age 4 and professionally at age 9, dancing in nightclubs in Miami and Havana, Cuba. As a dance ...

as Mrs. Cooper * Lisa Sundstedt as Attractive Woman *

Richard Venture Richard Venture (born Richard Charles Venturella; November 12, 1923 – December 19, 2017) was an American actor. He performed in more than eighty films from 1964 to 2001. His television guest-credits include ''The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd' ...

as Mr. Spivey

Series overview

Episodes

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, 0108869, Muddling Through CBS original programming 1994 American television series debuts 1994 American television series endings 1990s American sitcoms English-language television shows Television shows set in Michigan Television series by CBS Studios Television series by Sony Pictures Television