Spencer, later titled Under One Roof, is an American sitcom television series created by Sy Rosen, that was broadcast on NBC for one season from December 1, 1984 until May 11, 1985.
| Spencer | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Under One Roof |
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Sy Rosen |
| Starring | Chad Lowe (episodes 1–6) Ross Harris (episodes 7–13) |
| Composer | Barry Goldberg |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Producer | Mort Lachman[1] |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production companies | Mort Lachman and Associates Alan Landsburg Productions |
| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | December 1, 1984 – May 11, 1985 |
History and description
editThe show originally starred Chad Lowe as high school student Spencer Winger, Mimi Kennedy as his mother Doris Winger, and Ronny Cox as his father George Winger.[2]
Lowe left the series[3] in 1985 after six episodes and was replaced by Ross Harris, who assumed the role of Spencer.[4] At that time the show's title was changed from Spencer[5][6] to Under One Roof;[7][8] the first episode with the new title aired March 23, 1985. Cox also left the show during the retooling, his character written off as having left the family for a 23-year-old woman. Harold Gould and Frances Sternhagen were added to the cast as Spencer's maternal grandparents.[1][2] Richard Sanders played the high school guidance counselor in the series.[1] Each episode would open with Spencer making some wisecrack in class, causing the teacher to send him to his guidance counselor.
Cast
edit- Chad Lowe as Spencer Winger (1984)
- Ross Harris as Spencer Winger (1985)
- Mimi Kennedy as Doris Winger
- Ronny Cox as George Winger
- Amy Locane as Andrea Winger
- Grant Heslov as Wayne
- David Greenlee as (Herbie) Bailey (pilot episode)
- Dean Cameron as Bailey (episode 2 on)
- Frances Sternhagen as Millie Sprague
- Harold Gould as Ben Sprague
- Richard Sanders as Benjamin Beanley
- Beverly Archer as Miss Spier
Episodes
edit| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pilot" | Bill Persky | Sy Rosen | December 1, 1984 | |
|
Spencer Winger, the typical American teenager constantly getting into trouble, decides to free the school's laboratory mice. | |||||
| 2 | "The Divorcee" | Unknown | Unknown | December 8, 1984 | |
|
Spencer – for once being pursued by a female – is more nervous than delighted, since his admirer is a divorced friend of his mother's. | |||||
| 3 | "Spencer Joins the Army" | John Tracy | Chet Dowling, Sandy Krinski | December 15, 1984 | |
|
When Spencer, Wayne and Bailey are expelled for cheating, they try to enlist in the Army. | |||||
| 4 | "Fast Times" | Unknown | Unknown | December 22, 1984 | |
|
Spencer seeks a date with Marsha (Olivia Barash), a girl with a certain reputation, in hopes of losing his virginity. | |||||
| 5 | "The World's Worst Date" | Lila Garrett | Shelly Zellman | December 29, 1984 | |
|
On New Year's Eve, Spencer has a blind date with a pretty but comically tall girl (Terry Farrell). Meanwhile, Wayne and Bailey find themselves locked in at the high school after their dates stand them up. | |||||
| 6 | "The Drive-In" | Lila Garrett | Chet Dowling, Sandy Krinski, Judy Merl | January 12, 1985 | |
|
Spencer feels a bit uptight when his best friend Wayne asks his little sister out on a date. | |||||
| 7 | "The Grandparents Move In" | John Tracy | Chet Dowling, Sandy Krinski | March 23, 1985 | |
| 8 | "Millie's Affair" | John Tracy | Sybil Adelman, Martin Sage | March 30, 1985 | |
|
Millie renews her acquaintance with an old flame (Philip Sterling), while Doris tries to keep the truth from Ben. | |||||
| 9 | "Voices in the Hall" | John Tracy | Jerry Ross | April 6, 1985 | |
| 10 | "Doris and the Tutor" | John Tracy | Neil Rosen, George Tricker | April 13, 1985 | |
| 11 | "Crazy Girl" | Lila Garrett | James Berg, Stan Zimmerman | April 20, 1985 | |
| 12 | "Wayne's Nose Job" | Lila Garrett | Bob Bendetson, Howard Bendetson | May 4, 1985 | |
|
On his birthday, Wayne decides to get a nose job to make himself more attractive to girls. | |||||
| 13 | "Grandpa the Lover" | Lila Garrett | Pamela Chais | May 11, 1985 | |
References
edit- ^ a b c "TV World". The Bryan Times. March 19, 1985. p. 7. Retrieved April 6, 2011.
- ^ a b Buck, Jerry (March 23, 1985). "'Spencer' Is Now 'Under One Roof'". Ocala Star-Banner. p. 7. Retrieved April 6, 2011.
- ^ Romano, Nick (April 7, 2021). "Chad Lowe recalls the fallout from walking off his hit show Spencer at 15 years old". Entertainment Weekly.
- ^ Mansfield, Stephanie (March 23, 1985). "Sagging 'Roof'". The Washington Post.
- ^ Leszczak, Bob (May 16, 2016). Single Season Sitcoms of the 1980s: A Complete Guide. McFarland. p. 154. ISBN 9781476623849.
- ^ Brooks, Marsh, Tim, Earle F. (June 24, 2009). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present. Random House Publishing. p. 1282. ISBN 9780307483201.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Gendel, Morgan (April 1, 1985). "LIFE AND DEATH ALTER COURSE OF 5 TV SERIES". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ "NEW HOPE'S REDBONE SINGS 'BELVEDERE' SHOW THEME INSIDE TELEVISION". The Morning Call. March 28, 1985.