''Those She Left Behind'' is a 1989 American

made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made fo ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by

Waris Hussein Waris Hussein (''né'' Habibullah; born 9 December 1938) is a British-Indian television and film director. At the beginning of his career he was employed by the BBC as its youngest drama director. He directed early episodes of ''Doctor Who'', inc ...

and starring

Gary Cole Gary Michael Cole (born September 20, 1956) is an American television, film and voice actor. Cole began his professional acting career on stage at Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre Company in 1985. On television, he has had starring roles in the ...

Joanna Kerns Joanna Kerns (born February 12, 1953) is an American actress and director best known for her role as Maggie Seaver on the family situation comedy ''Growing Pains'' from 1985 to 1992. Early life Kerns was born Joanna Crussie DeVarona in San Franc ...

, and

Mary Page Keller Mary Page Keller (born March 3, 1961) is an American actress known for roles on television. Keller began her career on the daytime soap operas ''Ryan's Hope'' (1982–1983) and '' Another World'' (1983–1985) and later starred in a number of tel ...

. Its plot concerns a father forced to raise his newborn daughter alone after the unexpected death of his wife of an extremely rare condition during childbirth. It was inspired by the sitcom ''

Full House ''Full House'' is an American television Situation comedy, sitcom created by Jeff Franklin for American Broadcasting Company, ABC. The show is about widowed father Danny Tanner who enlists his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis and childhood best ...

'' and enjoyed some of the sitcom's success due to some shared themes as well as similar casting. Co-star Colleen Dewhurst won a 1989 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress - Miniseries or a Movie.

Plot

stars as Scott Grimes, a man who owns a rising realty business. His wife Sue, played by

, is pregnant with their first child. So it would seem Scott has everything a man could ever want. Unfortunately, when Sue is giving birth, she ends up passing away due to a pregnancy complication. Their daughter, Katie, is saved. Now Scott is left to shoulder the burden of losing his wife so suddenly, along with being a single father. He hires a few nannies to care for her with no success. He even brings her to work with him to care for her. The stress is overwhelming, but he is dealing with it. However, the breaking point comes when Katie is crying and screaming almost nonstop for about two days. Scott can't figure out why, going as far as walking out of the room on her saying, "I don't know what you want!" He takes her into the hospital the next day to find out she had been suffering from a

hernia A hernia is the abnormal exit of tissue or an organ, such as the bowel, through the wall of the cavity in which it normally resides. Various types of hernias can occur, most commonly involving the abdomen, and specifically the groin. Groin herni ...

. After being probed by the doctor on why she wasn't brought in sooner, he confessed he didn't know what to do. Scott went so far as to saying he thought she was just being fussy. The doctor then asked him if he realizes what could've happened to her, had he ignored her one more day. A look of fear comes over his face as realization sets in. Afterwards, he considers giving Katie up for adoption. Instead, Sue's parents offer to watch her until he gets himself straightened out. Eventually, he accepts his role as a father, gets his daughter back, and carries on.

Cast

... Scott Grimes *

... Diane Pappas *

... Sue Grimes *

George Coe George Coe (born George Julian Cohen; May 10, 1929 – July 18, 2015) was an American actor. He was a cast member for the first season of ''Saturday Night Live'' and voiced the character of Woodhouse in ''Archer''. Early life Coe was born in ...

... Bill Page *

Maryedith Burrell Maryedith Ann Burrell (née Smith; born May 20, 1952) is an American actress, comedian, film and television producer, writer and documentarian best known for starring roles on the television series '' Fridays'', ''Throb'', Ron Howard's '' Parenth ...

... Ann Hobson * Colleen Dewhurst ... Margaret Page *

Joel Polis Joel Polis (born October 3, 1951) is an American television, film and stage actor. Polis has appeared in over one hundred television programs and films during his career. Career Polis' first film role was the character Fuchs in the 1982 scienc ...

... Kerns * Saachiko ... Dr. Yamura *

Judyann Elder Judyann Elder (born Judith Ann Johnson) is an American actress, director, and writer. Elder played Nadine Waters on the FOX sitcom ''Martin''. She also played Harriette Winslow on CBS ''Family Matters'' for the remaining eight episodes of its n ...

... Counselor * Paul Mendoza ... Acosta * David Selburg ... Dr. Razzar *

Lupe Ontiveros Guadalupe Ontiveros ( Moreno; September 17, 1942 – July 26, 2012) was an American actress best known for portraying Rosalita in ''The Goonies'', and Yolanda Saldívar in the film ''Selena''. She acted in numerous films and television shows, ...

... Rosa * Harry Stephens ... Dr. Paul Spencer * James Edgcomb ... Poker player (as Jim Edgecomb) * Folkert Schmidt ... Eric

References

External links

* 1989 films 1989 television films 1989 drama films American drama television films Films scored by Mark Snow Films directed by Waris Hussein NBC original films NBC Productions films Works about parenting 1980s English-language films 1980s American films English-language drama films {{US-tv-drama-film-stub