The Famous Teddy Z
The Famous Teddy Z is an American sitcom that was broadcast on CBS during the fall of 1989. The series was created by Hugh Wilson and inspired by the true story of Jay Kantor, who was a mailroom clerk at MCA and later became Marlon Brando's agent.[1]
| The Famous Teddy Z | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Hugh Wilson |
| Written by | Richard Dubin Wayne Lemon Sid O. Smith Robert Wilcox Hugh Wilson |
| Directed by | Frank Bonner Richard Dubin Max Tash Hugh Wilson |
| Starring | Jon Cryer Alex Rocco Jane Sibbett Milton Selzer Josh Blake Erica Yohn |
| Theme music composer | Guy Moon Stephanie Tyrell Steve Tyrell |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 20 (5 unaired) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Hugh Wilson |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production companies | Hugh Wilson Productions Columbia Pictures Television |
| Distributor | Sony Pictures Television |
| Release | |
| Original network | CBS |
| Original release | September 18, 1989 – May 12, 1990 |
Synopsis
The series starred Jon Cryer as Theodore "Teddy" Zakalokis, a young man working in a Hollywood talent agency in order to avoid being stuck in his Greek-American family's bakery. When Hollywood star Harland Keyvo (a caricature of Marlon Brando) meets Teddy Z, he is so impressed by his honesty that he makes him his new agent. The humor is derived from Teddy's innocent approach to the business, contrasted with the snake-like behavior of his fellow agents. The cast also included Jane Sibbett, Alex Rocco, Milton Selzer, Josh Blake, and Erica Yohn.
Cast
- Jon Cryer as Theodore "Teddy" Zakalokis
- Alex Rocco as Albert "Al" T. Floss
- Josh Blake as Aristotle "Ari" Zakalokis
- Tom LaGrua as Richard "Richie" Herby
- Milton Selzer as Abe Werkfinder
- Jane Sibbett as Laurie Parr
- Erica Yohn as Deena Zakalokis
Guest Stars
- Dennis Lipscomb as Harland Keyvo
- Jack Armstrong as Marty Horn
- Barry Corbin as Zed Westhymer
Production
Music
The theme song was written by Guy Moon, Stephanie and Steve Tyrell and performed by Bill Champlin of the rock group Chicago.
Cross-over
Rocco's character, Al Floss, also made a crossover appearance on Murphy Brown, as the agent for several of that show's characters.
Episodes
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pilot" | Hugh Wilson | Hugh Wilson | September 18, 1989 |
| 2 | "What's an Agent to Do?" | Richard Dubin | Hugh Wilson | September 25, 1989 |
| 3 | "Bobby the Chimp" | Hugh Wilson | Hugh Wilson | October 2, 1989 |
| 4 | "A Day at the Beach" | Max Tash | Hugh Wilson | October 16, 1989 |
| 5 | "The Dark Closet" | Richard Dubin | Richard Dubin | October 23, 1989 |
| 6 | "Mr. Zakalokis Goes to Washington" | Max Tash | Story by : Chuck Ross Teleplay by : Bob Wilcox | October 30, 1989 |
| 7 | "Baking with Esther Luna" | Richard Dubin | Richard Dubin | November 13, 1989 |
| 8 | "Teddy Sells His House" | Max Tash | Hugh Wilson | November 20, 1989 |
| 9 | "A Case of Murder" | Frank Bonner | Wayne Lemon | November 27, 1989 |
| 10 | "Teddy Gets a House Guest" | Max Tash | Sid O. Smith | December 4, 1989 |
| 11 | "Season's Greetings from Al Floss" | Max Tash | Hugh Wilson & Bob Wilcox | December 11, 1989 |
| 12 | "Grandma Goes to Work" | Hugh Wilson | Craig Nelson | December 25, 1989 |
| 13 | "Engineer Bob" | Max Tash | Richard Sanders & Marilynn Marko-Sanders | January 8, 1990 |
| 14 | "Loyalty" | Ginger Grigg | Bob Wilcox | January 15, 1990 |
| 15 | "Agent of the Year" | Max Tash | Craig Nelson | May 12, 1990 |
| 16 | "Teddy Goes to the Awards" | Max Tash | Sid O. Smith | Unaired |
| 17 | "Pitching the Net" | Frank Bonner | Wayne Lemon | Unaired |
| 18 | "Al Tells the Truth" | Max Tash | Bob Wilcox | Unaired |
| 19 | "Teddy's Big Date" | Max Tash | Wayne Lemon | Unaired |
| 20 | "Teddy Gets a Guru" | Max Tash | Sid O. Smith | Unaired |
Reception
The series pilot was seen to be far stronger than subsequent episodes, but the series received two Primetime Emmy Award nominations, including one for the pilot, and for Alex Rocco, who won an Emmy as Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series,[2] but low ratings led CBS to drop it with five episodes unaired. It was later run in its entirety on Comedy Central in 1993 with episodes introduced by Rocco, and by Trio under the heading "Brilliant But Canceled."[3]
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Result | Category | Recipient |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Emmy Awards | Nominated | Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series | Hugh Wilson |
| Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series | Liz Torres | |||
| Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series | Hugh Wilson (For pilot episode) | |||
| Won | Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Alex Rocco |
References
- "Trio Launches "Brilliant But Canceled" Television Month in December". test.triotv.com. 2002-10-22. Retrieved 2008-11-09.
- "Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Comedy Series Nominees / Winners 1990". Television Academy.
- "Tuning In Shows The Networks Tuned Out". Cable World. 2002-10-28. Retrieved 2008-11-09.