''Empty Nest'' is an American television

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...

that aired for seven seasons on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

from October 8, 1988, to April 29, 1995. The series, which was created as a

spin-off Spin-off may refer to: *Spin-off (media), a media work derived from an existing work *Corporate spin-off, a type of corporate action that forms a new company or entity * Government spin-off, civilian goods which are the result of military or gov ...

of ''

The Golden Girls ''The Golden Girls'' is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris that aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning seven seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Bea Arthur, Betty Wh ...

'' by creator and producer Susan Harris, starred Richard Mulligan as recently widowed

pediatrician Pediatrics ( also spelled ''paediatrics'' or ''pædiatrics'') is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, paediatrics covers many of their youth until the ...

Dr. Harry Weston, whose two adult daughters return home to live with him. Produced by

Witt/Thomas/Harris Productions Witt/Thomas Productions is an American television and movie production company run by TV producers Paul Junger Witt and Tony Thomas. The company was consistently productive between its founding in 1973 and 1999, but is still active, producing an ...

in association with

Touchstone Television The second incarnation of Touchstone Television (formerly known as Fox 21 Television Studios) was an American television production company that is a subsidiary of Disney Media Networks' Walt Disney Television owned by The Walt Disney Company. It ...

History

An early version of the series initially appeared in the 1987 ''Golden Girls'' episode "Empty Nests" which was intended to act as a

backdoor pilot A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distri ...

for the spin-off, which was to begin during the fall 1987 TV season. In the episode, George and Renee Corliss (played by

Paul Dooley Paul Dooley (born Paul Brown; February 22, 1928) is an American character actor, writer and comedian. He is known for his roles in '' Breaking Away'', '' Sixteen Candles'', and ''Popeye''. Early life Dooley was born Paul Brown on February 22, ...

and

Rita Moreno Rita Moreno (born Rosa Dolores Alverío Marcano; December 11, 1931) is a Puerto Rican actress, dancer, and singer. Noted for her work across different areas of the entertainment industry, she has appeared in numerous film, television, and thea ...

), were introduced as the Girls' neighbors, a middle-aged couple suffering from empty nest syndrome. Their teenage daughter Jenny (Jane Harnick), who had left for college, and Renee's brother Chuck (

Geoffrey Lewis Geoffrey Lewis may refer to: * Geoffrey Lewis (actor) (1935–2015), American character actor * Geoffrey Lewis (scholar) (1920–2008), British professor of Turkish * Geoffrey Lewis (philatelist), Australian philatelist * Geoffrey W. Lewis (died ...

), also appeared. The Corlisses also had an annoying neighbor played by

David Leisure David Russell Leisure (born November 16, 1950) is an American actor. He played Charley Dietz in the sitcom ''Empty Nest'' from 1988 to 1995 and fictional automotive "pitch man" Joe Isuzu in a series of North American television commercials for ...

(although in this version his character was named Oliver). Rita Moreno later criticized the ''Empty Nest'' pilot, calling it a "very, very bad show." She explained that the script desperately needed rewrites from creator Susan Harris, but she was very sick the week of shooting so it was left to other writers to fix. According to Moreno, "every day they kept changing my character, to the extent that by the time we got to do it in front of an audience I couldn't remember Line 1 because the attitudes had changed so many times. That was the most embarrassing experience...we must have done, I would guess, about 15 takes in front of an audience." Ultimately, the series did not go ahead as planned and the premise was later extensively revamped with a new cast before ''Empty Nest'' debuted in 1988. The set of the Corlisses' house, however, was exactly the same as the one that later became the Weston residence.

Premise

The show revolved around middle-aged Miami

Dr. Harry Weston ( Richard Mulligan), whose life was turned upside down when his wife, Libby (

Judith-Marie Bergan Judith-Marie Bergan was an American film, television and stage actress, known for starring in the Joseph Zito films ''Abduction'' and ''Bloodrage''. She appeared in the television series, ''Brothers'', and had a recurring role in '' Soap'' and in ...

), died and two of his adult daughters moved back into the family home. Early episodes established that the ''Golden Girls'' characters were neighbors of the Westons.

Bea Arthur Beatrice Arthur (born Bernice Frankel; May 13, 1922 – April 25, 2009) was an American actress and comedian. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York City, Arthur began her career on stage in 1947, attracting critical acclaim before achieving ...

Rue McClanahan Eddi-Rue McClanahan (February 21, 1934 – June 3, 2010) was an American actress and comedian best known for her roles on television as Vivian Harmon on '' Maude'' (1972–78), Aunt Fran Crowley on '' Mama's Family'' (1983–84), and Blanche ...

Betty White Betty Marion White (January 17, 1922December 31, 2021) was an American actress and comedian. A pioneer of Golden Age of Television, early television, with a television career spanning almost seven decades, White was noted for her vast work i ...

and Estelle Getty all guest-starred as their ''Golden Girls'' characters, and Mulligan appeared occasionally on ''The Golden Girls''. Eldest daughter Carol (

Dinah Manoff Dinah Beth Manoff (born January 25, 1956) is an American stage, film, and television actress and television director. She is best known for her roles as Elaine Lefkowitz on ''Soap'', Marty Maraschino in the film '' Grease'', Libby Tucker in both ...

) was a neurotic, high-strung recent divorcée, while middle daughter Barbara (

Kristy McNichol Christina Ann McNichol (born September 11, 1962) is an American former actress. She is known for such film roles as Angel in '' Little Darlings'', Polly in '' Only When I Laugh'', and Barbara Weston in the TV sitcom '' Empty Nest''. She won two Em ...

) was a tough undercover police officer. The two sisters frequently bickered and vied for the attention of their father, whom they called "Daddy." (Harry occasionally expressed regret at never having had a son.) The Westons' large dog Dreyfuss was also prominently featured. In 1992, McNichol left the show and the youngest Weston daughter, Emily ( Lisa Rieffel), joined the cast. Her character had not been seen before but had been mentioned as being away at college. Rieffel left after one season, and for the show's final two seasons only Carol remained of the Weston children. McNichol returned for the series finale in 1995. Another main character was the Westons' neighbor and best friend, Charley Dietz (

), a womanizing cruise ship employee who frequently barged into the house unannounced to borrow food or make sexist comments. Charley had a father-son relationship with Harry and a love-hate relationship with Carol. Harry's job was another major focus for the show. For the first five seasons he worked at a hospital, where he was assisted by wisecracking Southern nurse Laverne ( Park Overall). Laverne and Harry are good friends. The origin of Laverne and Harry becoming best friends was when they met in a sandwich shop and started an argument over who would get the last Samms Sammich. The “Samms Sammich” is a sandwich that consists of Turkey, Roast Beef, Salami, Pepperoni, Ham, Grilled Chicken, Veggie Patty, Tuna, Meatballs and Fake Crab Meat. The Samms Sammich became the number one selling sandwich in Tacoma after the airing of this episode. In season six Harry retired, eventually going to work for a struggling inner-city medical clinic run by the tough-talking Dr. Maxine Douglas (

Marsha Warfield Marsha Francine Warfield (born March 5, 1954) is an American actress and comedian. She grew up on Chicago's South Side, graduating from Calumet High School. She is best known for her 1986–92 role of Roz Russell on the Top 10 rated NBC sitcom ...

). Laverne, having been fired by Dr. Weston's replacement, came to work there as well. Other characters who later joined the cast were Carol's boyfriend, Patrick (

Paul Provenza Paul Provenza (born July 31, 1957) is a television presenter, actor, radio panelist, stand-up comedian, filmmaker, and skeptic based in Los Angeles. He has appeared on several podcasts and in recent years has interviewed other stand-up comedians. ...

), an artist who was almost as eccentric as she is. Patrick convinced the Westons to let him use their empty garage as his new painting studio and, when his relationship with Carol became serious, he eventually moved in altogether. Their romantic bliss was short-lived, as they broke up at the beginning of season six. However, this was not before Carol became pregnant with Patrick's child; their son, Scotty, was born in November 1993, and Carol chose to raise the baby on her own. Estelle Getty reprised her ''Golden Girls'' character

Sophia Petrillo Sophia Petrillo is a character from the sitcom television series '' The Golden Girls'' and its spin-offs '' The Golden Palace and'' '' Empty Nest.'' She also appeared in episodes of the series ''Blossom'' and '' Nurses''. Her character was playe ...

during ''Empty Nest''s final two seasons (after the cancellation of ''

The Golden Palace ''The Golden Palace'' is an American sitcom television series produced as a sequel to ''The Golden Girls,'' a continuation without Bea Arthur (though she did guest star in a double episode) that originally aired on CBS from September 1992 to M ...

)''. It was explained that Sophia had moved back into the nearby Shady Pines retirement home.

Cast

* Richard Mulligan as Dr. Harry Weston *

as Carol Weston *

as Barbara Weston (1988–1992, 1995) *

as Charley Dietz * Park Overall as Laverne Todd * Estelle Getty as

(1993–1995) *

as Patrick Arcola (1992–1993) * Lisa Rieffel as Emily Weston (1993) *

as Dr. Maxine Douglas (1993–1995) * Bear the Dog as Dreyfuss the St. Bernard Golden Retriever mix

Notable guest stars

Don Adams Donald James Yarmy (April 13, 1923 – September 25, 2005), known professionally as Don Adams, was an American actor. In his five decades on television, he was best known as Maxwell Smart (Agent 86) in the television situation comedy '' G ...

Diana Muldaur Diana Muldaur (born August 19, 1938) is an American film and television actress. Muldaur's television roles include Rosalind Shays on '' L.A. Law'' and Dr. Katherine Pulaski in the second season of '' Star Trek: The Next Generation''. She als ...

Loni Anderson Loni Kaye Anderson (born August 5, 1945) is an American actress who played receptionist Jennifer Marlowe on the CBS sitcom ''WKRP in Cincinnati'' (1978–1982), which earned her three Golden Globe Awards and two Emmy Award nominations. Early ...

* Mayim Bialik *

Eddie Bracken Edward Vincent Bracken (February 7, 1915 – November 14, 2002) was an American actor. Bracken became a Hollywood comedy legend with lead performances in the films '' Hail the Conquering Hero'' and '' The Miracle of Morgan's Creek'' both from ...

Garth Brooks Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American country music singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him popularity, particularly in the United States with success on the co ...

* Patricia Crowley *

Angie Dickinson Angeline Dickinson (née Brown; born September 30, 1931) is an American actress. She began her career on television, appearing in many anthology series during the 1950s, before gaining her breakthrough role in ''Gun the Man Down'' (1956) wit ...

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Zsa Zsa Gabor Zsa Zsa Gabor (, ; born Sári Gábor ; February 6, 1917 – December 18, 2016) was a Hungarian-American socialite and actress. Her sisters were actresses Eva and Magda Gabor. Gabor competed in the 1933 Miss Hungary pageant, where she ...

Marla Gibbs Marla Gibbs (born Margaret Theresa Bradley; June 14, 1931) is an American actress, singer, comedian, writer and television producer, whose career spans six decades. Gibbs is known for her role as George Jefferson's maid, Florence Johnston, in th ...

Trevor Goddard Trevor Joseph Goddard (14 October 1962 – 7 June 2003) was an English actor. He was best known for playing Kano in the martial arts film ''Mortal Kombat'', Lieutenant Commander Mic Brumby in the television series '' JAG'' and main villain ...

Bobcat Goldthwait Robert Francis "Bobcat" Goldthwait (born May 26, 1962) is an American actor, comedian, director and screenwriter, known for his black comedy stand-up act, delivered through an energetic stage persona with an unusual raspy and high-pitched voice. ...

Lee Grant Lee Grant (born Lyova Haskell Rosenthal; October 31, during the mid-1920s) is an American actress, documentarian, and director. She made her film debut in 1951 as a young shoplifter in William Wyler's '' Detective Story'', co-starring Kirk Doug ...

Harold Gould Harold Vernon Goldstein (December 10, 1923 – September 11, 2010), better known as Harold Gould, was an American character actor. He appeared as Martin Morgenstern on the sitcom ''Rhoda'' (1974–78) and Miles Webber on the sitcom ''The Golden ...

* Pat Harrington *

Phil Hartman Philip Edward Hartman (; September 24, 1948 – May 28, 1998) was a Canadian-American actor, comedian, screenwriter and graphic designer. Hartman was born in Brantford, Ontario, Canada, and his family moved to the United States w ...

* Earl Holliman *

Shirley Jones Shirley Mae Jones (born March 31, 1934) is an American actress and singer. In her six decades in show business, she has starred as wholesome characters in a number of musical films, such as '' Oklahoma!'' (1955), ''Carousel'' (1956), and ''The M ...

Gordon Jump Alexander Gordon Jump (April 1, 1932 – September 22, 2003) was an American actor best known as the clueless, yet occasionally wise, radio station manager Arthur "Big Guy" Carlson in the TV series ''WKRP in Cincinnati'' and the incompetent Ch ...

Carol Kane Carolyn Laurie Kane (born June 18, 1952) is an American actress. She became known in the 1970s and 1980s in films such as '' Hester Street'' (for which she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress), '' Dog Day Afternoon'', ''Annie ...

Joey Lawrence Joseph Lawrence Mignogna Jr. (born April 20, 1976) is an American actor, musician, singer-songwriter, record producer, and game show host. He got his start as a child star in the early 1980s and is best known for his role as Joey Russo in '' Bl ...

Mark Linn-Baker Mark Linn-Baker (born June 17, 1954) is an American actor and director who played Benjy Stone in the film ''My Favorite Year'' and Larry Appleton in the television sitcom '' Perfect Strangers''. Early life and education Mark Linn-Baker was bo ...

Jane Lynch Jane Marie Lynch (born July 14, 1960) is an American actress, comedian and author. She is known for starring as Sue Sylvester in the musical comedy series '' Glee'' (2009–2015), which earned her a Primetime Emmy Award. Lynch also gained recog ...

Wendie Malick Wendie Malick (born December 13, 1950) is an American actress and former fashion model, known for her roles in various television comedies. She starred as Judith Tupper Stone in the HBO sitcom '' Dream On'', and as Nina Van Horn in the NBC si ...

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Edie McClurg Edith Marie McClurg (born July 23, 1945) is an American actress and comedian. She has played supporting roles in the films ''Carrie'' (1976), ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off'' (1986), and ''Elvira: Mistress of the Dark'' (1988), and bit parts in ' ...

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(also appeared on ''Soap'' as Dutch) *

Geraldo Rivera Geraldo Rivera (born Gerald Riviera; July 4, 1943) is an American journalist, attorney, author, political commentator, and former television host. He hosted the tabloid talk show '' Geraldo'' from 1987 to 1998. He gained publicity with the liv ...

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* Debra Jo Rupp * Jennifer Salt (also appeared on ''Soap'' as Eunice) *

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* Grace Zabriskie *

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Episodes

Production notes

In 1991, ''Empty Nest'' spawned its own spinoff, ''

Nurses Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health c ...

'', a sitcom about a group of nurses working in the same hospital as Dr. Weston. The three series (''Empty Nest'', ''The Golden Girls'' and ''Nurses'') represented one of the few times in American television history that three shows from the same producer, all taking place in the same city and explicitly set up with the characters knowing each other from the very beginning, aired on the same network in one night. On at least two occasions, Harris wrote storylines which carried through all three series as

fictional crossover A crossover is the placement of two or more otherwise discrete fictional characters, settings, or universes into the context of a single story. They can arise from legal agreements between the relevant copyright holders, unofficial efforts by ...

s. Mulligan and Manoff had previously appeared as father-in-law and daughter-in-law respectively, in the show ''

Soap Soap is a salt of a fatty acid used in a variety of cleansing and lubricating products. In a domestic setting, soaps are surfactants usually used for washing, bathing, and other types of housekeeping. In industrial settings, soaps are us ...

'', created by the same production team as ''Empty Nest''. Jay Johnson, who had appeared on ''Soap'' as Mulligan's son, also made a guest appearance.

Theme song

The show's theme song was "Life Goes On", written by

John Bettis John Gregory Bettis (born October 24, 1946) is an American lyricist. He was originally part of the band Spectrum, which also featured Richard and Karen Carpenter. He wrote the lyrics for " Top of the World", a hit for both Lynn Anderson and Th ...

and

George Tipton George Aliceson Tipton (January 23, 1932 – February 12, 2016) was an American composer, musical arranger, and conductor, who is well known for his work in television and for his collaborations with singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson. Among Tip ...

and performed by

Billy Vera Billy Vera (born William Patrick McCord; May 28, 1944) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, author, and music historian. He has been a singer and songwriter since the 1960s, his most successful record being " At This Moment", a US number 1 ...

. For the first three seasons, the song was presented in a slower, more melancholy yet comical arrangement. The original opening titles sequence showed Harry Weston taking Dreyfuss for a walk around town, with still images of the other regular cast members shown as they were credited. When the third season began, a new opening sequence debuted, made up of footage from the series' episodes showing each of the regular cast members. For the final four seasons the theme song was presented in a higher, more upbeat arrangement with female backup singers and the title sequence introduced in the third season.

Crossovers

The following is a list of ''Empty Nest'' episodes featuring characters from ''

'' or ''

''. ;Season One * Episode 4: "Fatal Attraction" –

Blanche Devereaux Blanche Devereaux is a character from the sitcom television series '' The Golden Girls'', and its spin-off ''The Golden Palace''. Blanche was portrayed by Rue McClanahan for 8 years and 204 episodes across the two series. The charac ...

from ''The Golden Girls'' * Episode 10: "Libby's Gift" –

from ''The Golden Girls'' * Episode 14: "Strange Bedfellows" –

Rose Nylund Rose Nylund is a character from the sitcom television series ''The Golden Girls'' and its spin-off, '' The Golden Palace''. She was portrayed by Betty White for 8 years, totalling 204 episodes. Rose was supposed to be played by Rue McClanahan, ...

from ''The Golden Girls'' * Episode 17: "Dumped" –

Dorothy Zbornak Dorothy Zbornak is a character from the sitcom television series ''The Golden Girls'', portrayed by Bea Arthur. Sarcastic, introspective, compassionate, and fiercely protective of those she considers family, she is introduced as a substitute teach ...

from ''The Golden Girls'' ;Season Two * Episode 6: "Rambo of Neiman Marcus" –

from ''The Golden Girls'' ;Season Four * Episode 8: "Windy" –

from ''The Golden Girls'' * Episode 20: "Dr. Weston and Mr. Hyde" –

from ''The Golden Girls'' ;Season Five * Episode 20: "Love and Marriage" – Jack Trenton from ''Nurses'' ;Season Six * Episode 2: "Bye-Bye, Baby... Hello: Part 1" – Casey MacAfee from ''Nurses'' * Episode 7: "Mother Dearest" – Casey MacAfee from ''Nurses''

Syndication

The series was unsuccessful when it was first syndicated, running in local

syndication Syndication may refer to: * Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system * Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips * Web syndication, ...

from September 1993 to September 2000, shortly before the death of star Richard Mulligan. During this time, ''Empty Nest'' aired on TBS from September 16 to December 6, 1996, and on WGN from September 16, 1996 to March 26, 1999, with both stations airing the series as part of the regular syndication run (both TBS and WGN were

superstation ''Superstation'' (alternatively rendered as "super station" or informally as "SuperStation") is a term in North American broadcasting that has several meanings. Commonly, a "superstation" is a form of distant signal, a broadcast television sign ...

s).''TV Guide'' – March 20–26, 1999. In the subsequent decade, the series did not air on American television.

Hallmark Channel The Hallmark Channel is an American television channel owned by Crown Media Holdings, Inc., which in turn is owned by Hallmark Cards, Inc. The channel's programming is primarily targeted at families, and features a mix of television movies a ...

, which also owns the rights to ''The Golden Girls'', picked up the rights to the show in early 2011 and aired it from February 26 to June 26 of that year, but eventually removed it altogether. Upon its launch on April 15, 2015, the new digital sub channel

Laff Laff (legal name: Laff Media, LLC) is an American digital multicast television network headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia and is owned by the Katz Broadcasting subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company. The network specializes in comedy program ...

began airing the series, and continued until March 30, 2018. In Canada, the series was rerun on

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French- ...

during the 1990s. In Italy, the series aired on Rai Uno (or Rai 1) under the name '' il Cane di Papà'' (''Daddy's Dog'') during the 1990s.

Awards

In 1989, Richard Mulligan won both the

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

and the

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...

for Best Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. The series received a number of other Emmy and Golden Globe Award nominations over the years, especially for Mulligan and for Park Overall, who was nominated three times for a Golden Globe Award.

References

External links

* * {{Golden Girls 1980s American sitcoms 1988 American television series debuts 1990s American sitcoms 1995 American television series endings American television spin-offs English-language television shows NBC original programming Television series about families Television series about sisters Television series about widowhood Television shows set in Miami Television series by ABC Studios The Golden Girls