Home Free (1993 TV series)
Home Free is an American sitcom starring Matthew Perry, Marian Mercer and Diana Canova that aired on ABC from March 31, 1993 to July 2, 1993. The series was created by Tim O'Donnell and Richard Gurman.
| Home Free | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by |
|
| Written by |
|
| Directed by | James Widdoes |
| Starring | |
| Opening theme | "Home Free" performed by Christopher Cross |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 (2 unaired) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Tim O'Donnell |
| Producer | Julie Tsutsui |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production companies |
|
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Original release | March 31 – July 2, 1993 |
Synopsis
Matt Bailey (Perry) is a free-spirited, if somewhat lazy, 22-year-old freelance journalist enjoying the good life at home with his indulgent mom Grace (Mercer). He wasn't so concerned about completing his ascent into full-fledged adulthood, nor was he ever in a hurry to get out on his own, until his older, recently divorced sister Vanessa (Canova) returned home with her two kids, so they could pick up the pieces and start their lives over. The unexpected arrangements forced Matt to take some crash courses in responsibility, to not only help out around the house, but to provide a good role model for his 13-year-old niece Abby (Anndi McAfee) and nephew Lucas (Scott McAfee), with whom he had a particularly close bond. Matt's struggle to maintain his wild, free-living lifestyle while facing his new realities were the focus of most episodes. His other world was the newspaper where he worked as a cub reporter, inhabited by co-worker and best friend Walter Peters (Dan Schneider), foxy photographer Laura (Brooke Theiss), to whom Matt was especially attracted; and their gruff editor, Ben Brookstone (Alan Oppenheimer).
Cast
- Matthew Perry as Matt Bailey
- Marian Mercer as Grace Bailey
- Diana Canova as Vanessa Bailey
- Anndi McAfee as Abby Bailey
- Scott McAfee as Lucas Bailey
- Dan Schneider as Walter Peters
- Brooke Theiss as Laura
- Alan Oppenheimer as Ben Brookstone
Production
Theme song
The theme song for Home Free was a soft-rock ballad performed by Christopher Cross.
Episodes
| No. | Title [1] | Directed by [1] | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code [1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pilot" | James Widdoes | Tim O'Donnell & Richard Gurman | March 31, 1993 | 68501 |
| Matt Bailey's sister moves back to his mother's house with her kids. | |||||
| 2 | "Family Ties" | James Widdoes | Rick Newberger | April 7, 1993 | 68508 |
| 3 | "Front Page" | Tim O'Donnell | Tim O'Donnell & Richard Gurman | April 14, 1993 | 68506 |
| 4 | "Prime Time" | James Widdoes | Rick Newberger | April 21, 1993 | 68513 |
| 5 | "Pair O'Guys Lost" | James Widdoes | Rick Newberger & Nick LeRose | April 21, 1993 | 68511 |
| 6 | "Shuttle Diplomacy" | James Widdoes | Carolyn Omine | May 28, 1993 | 68507 |
| 7 | "The Abbysitter" | James Widdoes | Rick Newberger | June 4, 1993 | 68502 |
| 8 | "The Groundlings" | James Widdoes | Sheryl Anderson | June 11, 1993 | 68503 |
| 9 | "Can't Start a Fire Without a Spark" | James Widdoes | Lissa Levin | June 18, 1993 | 68512 |
| 10 | "Nature of Things" | James Widdoes | Nick LeRose | June 25, 1993 | 68509 |
| 11 | "Great Expectations" | James Widdoes | Sheryl Anderson & Carolyn Omine | July 2, 1993 | 68510 |
| 12 | "Party Down" | James Widdoes | Jim Pond & Bill Fuller | Unaired | 68504 |
| 13 | "Secrets of Matt's Success" | James Widdoes | Nick LeRose | Unaired | 68505 |
Reception
Home Free premiered in a cushy time slot of Wednesdays at 8:30/7:30c, between The Wonder Years (which was about to end its run) and Home Improvement. After only five episodes, due to low ratings, the show was put on a five-week hiatus, which spared it from airing as a part of the important May sweeps month. The series was cancelled during May upfronts, but returned to the schedule on May 28 in the 9:30/8:30c timeslot of ABC's TGIF. Original episodes continued to air in the TGIF slot through July 2, 1993. The last two episodes of the 13-episode order were unaired.
References
- From the United States Copyright Office catalog: "Public Catalog - Copyright Catalog (1978 to present) - Basic Search [search: "Home Free : no."]"". United States Copyright Office. Retrieved 2017-06-20.