''Marblehead Manor'' is an American

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 ...

that originally aired in

first-run syndication Broadcast syndication is the practice of leasing the right to broadcasting television shows and radio programs to multiple television stations and radio stations, without going through a broadcast network. It is common in the United States wher ...

from September 19, 1987 to May 28, 1988. It starred Paxton Whitehead, Phil Morris, Linda Thorson, Bob Fraser and

Michael Richards Michael Anthony Richards (born July 24, 1949) is an American actor, writer, television producer, and comedian best known for playing Cosmo Kramer on the television sitcom ''Seinfeld''. He began his career as a stand-up comedian, first enterin ...

. The series was a Dames-Fraser Production in association with

Paramount Television The original incarnation of Paramount Television was the name of the television production division of the American film studio Paramount Pictures, that was responsible for the production of Viacom television programs, until it changed its name ...

Premise

The series concerned the goings on at the estate of the wealthy, eccentric Randolf Stonehill, heir to a corn oil fortune, and involved long-suffering butler and head of the household staff Albert, who'd known Randolf when they were children; groundskeeper Rick who had eyes for maid Lupe; chauffeur Jerry; handyman Dwayne; and Randolf's materialistic, yet good-hearted wife Hillary. Rounding out the cast was Lupe's mischievous son Elvis.

Cast

* Paxton Whitehead as Albert Dudley * Linda Thorson as Hillary Stonehill * Phil Morris as Jerry Stockton * Rodney Scott Hudson as Dwayne Stockton * Bob Fraser as Randolf Stonehill * Dyana Ortelli as Lupe * Humberto Ortiz as Elvis *

as Rick

Episodes

Broadcast

This show was part of NBC's " Prime Time Begins at 7:30" campaign, in which the network's owned-and-operated stations would run first-run sitcoms in the 7:30–8:00 pm time slot to counter program competing stations' game shows, sitcom reruns and other offerings. The experiment turned out to be a largely unsuccessful one, as only one of the series was a hit while three of the remaining four were canceled after their only season. ''Marblehead Manor'' was one of the three that failed to make it to a second season.

Stations

In popular culture

*The show is referenced in season 3, episode 4 of ''

The Golden Girls ''The Golden Girls'' is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris that aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning seven seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Bea Arthur, Betty Wh ...

'', "Blanche's Little Girl". In one scene, Rose Nylund asks if

Blanche Devereaux Blanche Devereaux is a character from the sitcom television series '' The Golden Girls'', and its spin-off ''The Golden Palace''. Blanche was portrayed by Rue McClanahan for 8 years and 204 episodes across the two series. The charac ...

is upset because of a fight she had with her daughter.

Dorothy Zbornak Dorothy Zbornak is a character from the sitcom television series ''The Golden Girls'', portrayed by Bea Arthur. Sarcastic, introspective, compassionate, and fiercely protective of those she considers family, she is introduced as a substitute teach ...

sarcastically responds, "No, Rose, she's upset because ''Marblehead Manor'' is only on once a week." *In the season 8 '' Newhart'' episode “Cupcake in a Cage”, Larry notes that “Timing is everything in a farce, hence the failure of ''Marblehead Manor''.”

References

External links

* {{NBC's "Prime Time Begins at 7:30" 1987 American television series debuts 1988 American television series endings 1980s American sitcoms Television series by CBS Studios English-language television shows First-run syndicated television programs in the United States