Working Stiffs is an American sitcom that starred James Belushi and Michael Keaton as brothers Ernie and Mike O'Rourke. The pair were janitors who aspired to work their way up in the field of business. The brothers worked in an office building owned by their Uncle Harry. Ernie and Mike also were roommates in an apartment over a cafe where they befriended the owner Mitch and waitress Nikki. Each episode featured slapstick and physical comedy. Penny Marshall directed the pilot.
| Working Stiffs | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Arthur Silver Bob Brunner[1] Marc Sotkin Harry Colomby |
| Developed by | David W. Duclon |
| Directed by | Penny Marshall Norman Abbott Greg Antonacci |
| Starring | James Belushi Michael Keaton |
| Composer | John Cacavas |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 9 (5 unaired) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Bob Brunner[1] Arthur Silver |
| Running time | 30 min. (per episode; with commercials) |
| Production companies | Frog Productions Huk, Inc. Paramount Television |
| Original release | |
| Network | CBS |
| Release | September 15 – October 20, 1979 |
The series aired on CBS. It competed against the highly-rated shows NBC's CHiPs and ABC's The Ropers in its timeslot. Nine episodes were produced but after four episodes aired, the series was canceled. After Belushi and Keaton became film stars in the 1980s, six episodes of the show were released on home video. Reruns have also aired on A&E Network, Comedy Central and TV Land. The syndication package included the previously unaired episodes.
Cast
edit- James Belushi as Ernie O'Rourke
- Michael Keaton as Mike O'Rourke
- Val Bisoglio as Al Steckler
- Allan Arbus as Mitch Hannigan
- Lorna Patterson as Nikki Evashevsky
Recurring
edit- Phil Rubenstein as Frank Falzone
Episode list
edit| Nº | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Preview Presentation" | Penny Marshall | Marc Sotkin | September 15, 1979 |
| 2 | "Looking for Mr. Goodwrench" | Norman Abbott | E. Jack Kaplan | September 22, 1979 |
| 3 | "The Bank Robbery" | Norman Abbott | Alan Aidekman | September 29, 1979 |
| 4 | "My Boys Are Having a Baby" | Arthur Silver | Gail Honigberg | October 6, 1979 |
| 5 | "The Bosses" | Greg Antonacci | David W. Duclon | N/A |
| 6 | "Pal Joey" | Dennis Steinmetz | E. Jack Kaplan | N/A |
| 7 | "The Old Man in the Building" | TBD | TBD | N/A |
| 8 | "Trading Up" | TBD | TBD | N/A |
| 9 | "Sagebrush Estates" | TBD | TBD | N/A |
References
edit- ^ a b "Bob Brunner, 'Happy Days' writer, dies". Variety. 2012-11-08. Retrieved 2012-11-27.
Brooks, Tim; Earl Marsh (2003). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows. Ballantine Books. ISBN 0-345-45542-8.