''Flying Blind'' is an American sitcom that aired on Fox from September 1992 to May 1993. The series stars Corey Parker and Téa Leoni.

Synopsis

The series revolves around awkward post-collegian Neil Barash (Parker) who, by serendipity, meets beautiful

libertine A libertine is a person devoid of most moral principles, a sense of responsibility, or sexual restraints, which they see as unnecessary or undesirable, and is especially someone who ignores or even spurns accepted morals and forms of behaviour o ...

Alicia (Leoni) and begins a relationship with her. The show explores the difficulties faced by self-conscious and repressed Neil in dealing with the erotic antics of Alicia and her eccentric roommates, Jordan (Robert Bauer) and Megan (

Clea Lewis Clea Lewis (born July 19, 1965) is an American actress, best known for her television role as Ellen's annoying friend, Audrey Penney in Ellen DeGeneres' sitcom '' Ellen''. Personal life Lewis was born in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, to a write ...

). Veteran comedy actor

Peter Boyle Peter Lawrence Boyle (October 18, 1935 – December 12, 2006) was an American actor. Known as a character actor, he played Frank Barone on the CBS sitcom '' Everybody Loves Raymond'' and the comical monster in Mel Brooks' film spoof '' Young ...

guest starred as Alicia's father, a former spy, and

Charles Rocket Charles Adams Claverie (August 28, 1949 – October 7, 2005), known by stage names Charlie Hamburger, Charlie Kennedy and Charles Rocket, was an American actor, comedian, musician, and television news reporter. He was a cast member on ''Saturda ...

had a recurring role as movie maker Dennis Lake.

Thomas Haden Church Thomas Haden Church (born Thomas Richard McMillen; June 17, 1960) is an American actor. After starring in the 1990s sitcom ''Wings'' and playing the lead for two seasons in ''Ned & Stacey'' (1995–1997)'','' Church became known for his film work, ...

, acting full-time on '' Wings,'' also served in a recurring role as Jonathan. In addition to Leoni, an assortment of stars had guest spots or cameos in the series before they became famous, including Diedrich Bader,

Jill Hennessy Jillian Noel Hennessy (born November 25, 1968) is a Canadian actress and singer. She is most known for her roles on the American television series ''Law & Order'', on which she played prosecutor Claire Kincaid for three seasons, and ''Crossing ...

, Greg Grunberg,

Lisa Kudrow Lisa Valerie Kudrow ( ; born July 30, 1963) is an American actress, producer, and screenwriter. She rose to fame for her role as Phoebe Buffay in the sitcom ''Friends'' (1994–2004), which has since been named one of the greatest television cha ...

Adam Ferrara Adam Ferrara is an American actor and comedian known for playing the role of Chief "Needles" Nelson on the FX series '' Rescue Me''. He was a co-host on the U.S. version of ''Top Gear'' and played NYPD Sgt. Frank Verelli opposite Edie Falco on ...

, Andy Dick,

Willie Garson William Garson Paszamant (February 20, 1964September 21, 2021) was an American actor. He appeared in over 75 films and more than 300 TV episodes. He was known for playing Stanford Blatch on the HBO series ''Sex and the City'', in the related f ...

and Noah Emmerich.

Cast

* Corey Parker as Neil Barash * Téa Leoni as Alicia *

Cristine Rose Cristine Sue Rose (born January 31, 1951), sometimes credited as Christine Rose, is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Angela Petrelli on the hit NBC science fiction drama ''Heroes''. Early life Rose was born in Lynwood, ...

as Ellen Barash *

Robert Bauer Robert F. Bauer (born February 22, 1952) is an American attorney who served as White House Counsel under President Barack Obama. Early life and education Born in New York City into a Jewish family, Bauer graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy ...

as Jordan *

as Megan *

Marcus Giamatti Marcus Bartlett Giamatti (born October 3, 1961) is an American actor. He is best known for being a regular member of the cast of the CBS drama series ''Judging Amy''. Early life Giamatti was born on October 3, 1961, in New Haven, Connecticut, and ...

as Ted Sharperson *

Michael Tucci Michael Tucci (born April 15, 1946) is an American actor and retired high school teacher. He played Pete Schumaker in '' It's Garry Shandling's Show'' (1986-1990), and Sonny LaTierri in the 1978 film '' Grease''. Personal life Tucci was born in ...

as Jeremy Barash

Production

The series was created by Richard Rosenstock, who later went on to write for Fox's '' Arrested Development''. The theme song for the show was "A Million Miles Away", written and performed by

David Byrne David Byrne (; born 14 May 1952) is a Scottish-American singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, writer, music theorist, visual artist and filmmaker. He was a founding member and the principal songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist of ...

which appeared on his spring 1992 album release '' Uh-Oh''. The production companies were Sweetum Productions, and

Paramount Network Television The original incarnation of Paramount Television was the name of the television production division of the American film studio Paramount Pictures, that was responsible for the production of Viacom television programs, until it changed its na ...

in association with (eventual corporate sibling)

Viacom Productions Viacom Productions (formerly Viacom Enterprises) was a television production arm of Viacom International. The division was active from 1974 until 2004, when the company was folded into Paramount Network Television 10 years following Viacom's a ...

. The series later became owned by

CBS Media Ventures CBS Media Ventures, Inc. (formerly CBS Television Distribution, Inc. and CBS Paramount Domestic Television, Inc.) is an American television distribution company owned by CBS Studios, part of CBS Entertainment Group, a division of Paramount Glob ...

Episodes

Reception

The series got generally favourable notices upon its debut.

Ken Tucker Kenneth Tucker is an American arts, music and television critic, magazine editor, and non-fiction book writer. Early life and education Tucker was born in Manhattan, New York City, New York, and raised in Stamford, Connecticut. He earned a ...

gave the show a B+ in ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular ...

'', "Flying Blind's pilot episode is so well written, so zippily sexy, that it immediately stands out among Fox's usual run of self-consciously crude comedies. But even if it soon crashes and burns, this pilot for Flying Blind is easily one of the best debut shows of the year." ''

People A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of prope ...

'' also graded the pilot a B+ and stated "The show may never again attain the sustained comic brilliance of last week's pilot. But this is a rarity for Fox: a sophisticated and clever sitcom."

Howard Rosenberg Howard Anthony Rosenberg (born June 10, 1942) is an American television critic. He worked at ''The Louisville Times'' from 1968 through 1978 and then worked at the ''Los Angeles Times'' for 25 years where he won a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.

of the

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...

wrote "It's not only the episode's sharp writing but also its eroticism and its balance between the naivete and predictability of Neil and the spontaneity and instability of Alicia that give "Flying Blind" its uniqueness. What a nice beginning." Mike Duffy of the ''

Detroit Free Press The ''Detroit Free Press'' is the largest daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, US. The Sunday edition is titled the ''Sunday Free Press''. It is sometimes referred to as the Freep (reflected in the paper's web address, www.freep.com). It primar ...

'' wrote, "Rosenstock has a terrific sense of irreverent non-sexist humor, the sort of contemporary, self-deprecating wit that makes Neil and the outlandishly attractive Alicia most enjoyable. Plus, Flying Blind stars Parker and Leoni share a very nifty comic chemistry in this hip, fast-talking and contemporary romance." The show only lasted one year and has never been released on DVD. Joel Keller of

The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

remarked "I'm not sure why the show only lasted one year, given the talent both in front of and behind the camera (

James Burrows James Edward Burrows (born December 30, 1940), sometimes known as Jim "Jimmy" Burrows, is an American television director who has been working in television since the 1970s.Stated in interview on '' Inside the Actors Studio'' Burrows has dire ...

directed some episodes, and

Linwood Boomer Linwood Boomer (born October 9, 1955) is a Canadian-American television producer, writer, and former actor. He is known for playing the role of Adam Kendall on the drama '' Little House on the Prairie'', and for creating the Fox sitcom ''Malc ...

was one of the writers). But when it was on the air, it was mostly an enjoyable show to watch."

References

External links

* *{{epguides, FlyingBlind, Flying Blind 1990s American sitcoms 1992 American television series debuts 1993 American television series endings Fox Broadcasting Company original programming Television series about Jews and Judaism Television series by CBS Studios Television shows set in New York City English-language television shows Comedy television theme songs