Action Family is an episode of "The

Cinemax Comedy Experiment Cinemax Comedy Experiment is an anthology series broadcast on Cinemax throughout the mid-to-late 1980s. Every episode was written and directed by a different standup comedian. The series was known for giving full creative freedom to those comed ...

" anthology series written by and starring

Chris Elliott Christopher Nash Elliott (born May 31, 1960) is an American actor, comedian and writer known for his surreal sense of humor. He was a regular performer on ''Late Night with David Letterman'' while working as a writer there (1983–1988), created ...

as a

Private Investigator A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI; also known as a private detective, an inquiry agent or informally a wikt:private eye, private eye) is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. ...

named Chris Elliot who is juggling work and home life. The show's overarching theme is that it is in fact two shows in one, and has sudden dramatic tonal shifts that affect everything from the way the characters act to the type of cameras used. His home and family life are a parody of a late 1970s/early 1980s saccharine multicamera sitcom shot on cheap 3 walled sets with an audience that often loudly comments on the action. When he goes to work as a hard boiled PI, the show switches tones entirely to dark, gritty, and violent, the camera switches to film stock, and the audience laughter vanishes. Regardless of which tone the show is taking at the moment, the action and dialogue is all completely absurd, and everything that happens is heightened for comedic effect or to service a joke or gag. Though there is a thin murder mystery plot, it takes a back seat to the comedy, and is eventually brought to a completely nonsensical conclusion. The show ends with the family dressed as the

Partridge Family ''The Partridge Family'' is an American musical sitcom created by Bernard Slade, which was broadcast in the United States from September 1970 to March 1974 on ABC. After the final first-run telecast on ABC in March 1974, the show went into rerun ...

lip syncing to a Partridge Family song. The show includes cameo appearances by

David Letterman David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an American television host, comedian, writer, producer, and auto racing team owner. He hosted late-night television talk shows for 33 years, beginning with the February 1, 1982, debut of ''Late N ...

, whose show Elliott had been a writer and performer on for many years, and they engage in the exact same type of banter as on '' Late Night''. Bob Elliott, Chris Elliott's father, also makes a cameo as a hot dog salesman. Elliott followed up Action Family with another episode in 1987 of The Cinemax Comedy Experiment, called FDR: A One Man Show. This time Elliott played a fictional version of himself portraying

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

in a one-man stage show discussing mostly fictional events of his life before a mostly live audience of senior citizens and cardboard cut-outs. This concept had been discussed by Elliott on Late Night, when his "Guy Under the Seats" character emerged dressed in the FDR costume. Action Family and FDR: A One Man Show were eventually both packaged together and sold on VHS on October 6, 1995, but have never seen a DVD release.

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Cinemax original programming {{comedy-tv-episode-stub