''The Lot'' is an American

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

series that aired for two seasons and 17 episodes on the

AMC AMC may refer to: Film and television * AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain * AMC Networks, an American entertainment company ** AMC (TV channel) ** AMC+, streaming service ** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company *** A ...

from 1999 to 2001. It profiled the fictional studio Sylver Screen Pictures during the 1930s and the pursuits of its classic stars (such as

Barbara Stanwyck Barbara Stanwyck (; born Ruby Catherine Stevens; July 16, 1907 – January 20, 1990) was an American actress, model and dancer. A stage, film, and television star, during her 60-year professional career she was known for her strong, realistic sc ...

, Greta Garbo and

Shirley Temple Shirley Temple Black (born Shirley Jane Temple;While Temple occasionally used "Jane" as a middle name, her birth certificate reads "Shirley Temple". Her birth certificate was altered to prolong her babyhood shortly after she signed with Fox in ...

). The show was met with neither popular nor critical success but

Jeffrey Tambor Jeffrey Michael Tambor (born July 8, 1944) is an American actor. He is known for his television roles such as Jeffrey Brookes, the uptight neighbor of Stanley and Helen Roper in the television sitcom '' The Ropers'' (1979–1980), as Hank King ...

Rue McClanahan Eddi-Rue McClanahan (February 21, 1934 – June 3, 2010) was an American actress and comedian best known for her roles on television as Vivian Harmon on '' Maude'' (1972–78), Aunt Fran Crowley on ''Mama's Family'' (1983–84), and Blanche D ...

Linda Cardellini Linda Edna Cardellini (born June 25, 1975) is an American actress. In television, she is known for her leading roles in the teen drama ''Freaks and Geeks'' (1999–2000), the medical drama '' ER'' (2003–09), the drama thriller ''Bloodline'' (2 ...

and Michael York all had notable recurring roles. The two seasons had two different plotlines. The first season (four episodes) detailed the rise and fall of young starlet June Parker (

). Cardellini left to star in ''

Freaks and Geeks ''Freaks and Geeks'' is an American teen comedy-drama television series created by Paul Feig and executive-produced by Judd Apatow that aired on NBC during the 1999–2000 television season. The show is set in a suburban high school near Det ...

'', forcing a premature end to the first season. The second season (thirteen episodes) revolved around a new main character.

Cast

* Sara Botsford as Norma St. Claire *

Allen Garfield Allen Garfield (born Allen Goorwitz; November 22, 1939 – April 7, 2020) was an American film and television actor. Early life Garfield was born in Newark, New Jersey, to a Jewish family, the son of Alice (née Lavroff) and Philip Goorwitz. He ...

as Harry Sylver (season 1) *

as June Parker (season 1) *Steven Petrarca as Charlie Patterson *

Stephanie Faracy Stephanie Faracy (born January 1, 1952) is an American actress. She is known for playing supporting roles in films include '' Heaven Can Wait'' (1978), ''Scavenger Hunt'' (1979), ''Blind Date'' (1987), '' The Great Outdoors'' (1988), '' Hocus Pocu ...

as Mary Parker *Francois Giroday as Fabian *

Holland Taylor Holland Virginia Taylor (born January 14, 1943) is an American actress. She won the 1999 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Judge Roberta Kittleson on ABC's ''The Practice'' (1998–2003). ...

as Letitia DeVine * Perry Stephens as Jack Sweeney * Jonathan Frakes as Roland White

Episodes

Season 1 (1999)

Season 2 (2001)

Historical references

The characters of Priscilla Tremaine (

) and Letitia DeVine (

) were based on gossip columnists Hedda Hopper and Louella Parsons, respectively. A running end-credits gag had Letitia DeVine reporting ironic news items about period stars on her radio show, then insulting them ''sotto voce'' when the broadcast was over. Roland White ( Jonathan Frakes) is based on millionaire

aeronautical engineer Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is si ...

and movie mogul Howard Hughes, who was known for his relationships with pretty redheaded Hollywood starlets. A movie being made by Sylver Studios refers to '' The Moon Is Blue'', a movie famously censored for having

Maggie McNamara Marguerite "Maggie" McNamara (June 18, 1928 – February 18, 1978) was a stage, film, and television actress and model from the United States.Obituary ''Variety'', March 22, 1978, page 46. McNamara began her career as a teenage fashion model. Sh ...

say the word "virgin" in one of her lines. Sylver Studios was a stand-in for Samuel Goldwyn Productions. The title ''The Lot'' also refers to the famed Pickford-Fairbanks Studios lot in

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...

, which rented out production space to multiple film studios.

Awards and nominations

Casting Society of America The Casting Society, formerly known as Casting Society of America (CSA), was founded in Los Angeles, California, in 1982 as a professional society of about 1,200 casting directors and associate casting directors for film, television, theatre, and ...

: Nominated: Best Casting for TV, Comedy Episodic: Deborah Barylski, Pat McCorkle * Costume Designers Guild Awards: Nominated: Excellence in Costume Design for Television - Period/Fantasy: Jean Pierre Dorléac *Emmy Awards: 2001: Won: Outstanding Costumes for a Series: Gilberto Mello, Jean-Pierre Dorléac for episode "Mob Scene" Nominated: Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series: Michael York for episode "Daddy Dearest" and "Stiffed" Nominated: Outstanding Hairstyling for a Series: Cheri Ruff, Carl Bailey, Stephen Elsbree for episode "Daddy Dearest" 2000: Nominated: Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series:

for playing Letitia Devine.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lot, The 1999 American television series debuts 2001 American television series endings English-language television shows 1990s American comedy-drama television series 2000s American comedy-drama television series AMC (TV channel) original programming Television series set in the 1930s Television shows set in Los Angeles