''Café Americain'' 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 ...

starring

Valerie Bertinelli Valerie Anne Bertinelli (born April 23, 1960) is an American actress. She first achieved recognition as a child actress, portraying Barbara Cooper Royer on the sitcom '' One Day at a Time'' (1975–1984) for which she won two Golden Globe Award ...

that aired on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

from September 18, 1993, to February 8, 1994, with two leftover episodes shown on May 28, 1994. It was filmed at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank,

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

Overview

Bertinelli played a young American woman, Holly Aldrige, who finds a job working as a waitress in a small café in France. The cast consisted of an assortment of eccentric characters from around the world who regularly visited the café, interacting in many hilarious circumstances. Madame Ybarra, a former dictator's wife, was a thinly veiled spoof of

Imelda Marcos Imelda Romualdez Marcos (; born Imelda Remedios Visitacion Trinidad Romualdez; July 2, 1929) is a Filipino politician who served as the First Lady of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986, wielding significant political power during the dictato ...

. Fabiana Borelli, the tempestuous Italian model, and her perpetually jealous Italian lover Carlo, regularly sparred and reconciled, with Carlo declaring of any real or imagined rival, "I kill him! I kill him bad! I kill him ''two times''!" Marcel's on and off relationship with Holly set the stage for comedic interference by several guest star suitors.

Cast

as Holly Aldrige * Lila Kaye as Margaret Hunt *

Sofia Milos Sofia Milos (; gr, Σοφία Μίλος, born 27 September 1969) is a Swiss-born actress. She is best known for her role as Yelina Salas on ''CSI: Miami''. She has also had a role on ''The Sopranos'' as Camorra boss Annalisa Zucca, as well ...

as Fabiana Borelli * Maurice Godin as Marcel *

Jodi Long Jodi Long is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Madama on '' Cafe Americain'' (1993–1994), and Ok Cha on ''Sullivan and Son'' (2012–2014), and her role in ''Patty Hearst'' (1988). She won Best Supporting Actress at the Dayt ...

as Madama Ybarra *

Graham Beckel Graham Stuart Beckel (born December 22, 1949) is an American character actor. He is known for his guest appearances on television but has had roles in several major films as well. He is known for his roles as Franklin Ford in the drama film '' Th ...

as Steve Sullivan

Production and casting

Although Lila Kaye played the role of Margaret in the series pilot, the role was re-cast with ''

Happy Days ''Happy Days'' is an American television sitcom that aired first-run on the ABC network from January 15, 1974, to July 19, 1984, with a total of 255 half-hour episodes spanning 11 seasons. Created by Garry Marshall, it was one of the most su ...

'' actress

Marion Ross Marion Ross (born Marian Ellen Ross; October 25, 1928) is a American former actress. Her best-known role is that of Marion Cunningham on the ABC television sitcom '' Happy Days'', on which she starred from 1974 to 1984 and for which she recei ...

when the series was picked up. Within a month, Ross was gone and Kaye agreed to reprise the role. The role of Margaret Hunt was also offered to

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 ...

, but she turned it down. At the time of filming,

was married to guitarist Eddie Van Halen, who appeared in the 7th episode, "Home Alone," as a street musician that Bertinelli's character Holly Aldridge chases out of the cafe. Van Halen spoke one line, "Praat je tegen mij?" The line is Dutch for "Are you talking to me?"

Episodes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cafe Americain 1990s American sitcoms 1993 American television series debuts 1994 American television series endings English-language television shows NBC original programming Television series by Warner Bros. Television Studios Television shows set in Paris