''The Closer'' is an American

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 ...

television series that aired on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

for 10 episodes from February 23 to May 4, 1998. The show starred

Tom Selleck Thomas William Selleck (; born January 29, 1945) is an American actor. His breakout role was playing private investigator Thomas Magnum in the television series ''Magnum, P.I.'' (1980–1988), for which he received five Emmy Award nominations ...

as a successful advertising agency executive.

Plot

Jack McLaren (

), a successful advertising executive, starts his own agency. The business, the employees in the agency, and his personal life provide the story lines. The characters include a creative director, Carl Dobson (

Ed Asner Eddie Asner (; November 15, 1929 – August 29, 2021) was an American actor and former president of the Screen Actors Guild. He is best remembered for portraying Lou Grant during the 1970s and early 1980s, on both ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' a ...

), an accountant, Erica Hewitt (

Penelope Ann Miller Penelope Ann Miller (born Penelope Andrea Miller; January 13, 1964), sometimes credited as Penelope Miller, is an American actress. She began her career on Broadway in the 1985 original production of ''Biloxi Blues'' and received a Tony Award no ...

), and a bored secretary, Beverly (

Suzy Nakamura Suzy Nakamura (born December 2, 1968) is an American actress and improv comedian. She is known for her many guest appearances on sitcoms such as ''According to Jim'', ''Half and Half'', ''8 Simple Rules'', ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'' and ''How I Me ...

); McLaren's estranged and eventually divorced wife, Claire McLaren (

Joanna Kerns Joanna Kerns (born February 12, 1953) is an American actress and director best known for her role as Maggie Seaver on the family situation comedy ''Growing Pains'' from 1985 to 1992. Early life Kerns was born Joanna Crussie DeVarona in San Franc ...

), and daughter Alex (

Hedy Burress Heather E. "Hedy" Burress (born October 3, 1973) is an American actress. She had a starring role in the film ''Foxfire'' as Maddy, and later landed roles in television shows ''Boston Common'' and '' E.R.'' In the video game world, she is best kn ...

Cast

as Jack McLaren *

as Alex McLaren *

as Carl "Dobbs" Dobson *

David Krumholtz David Krumholtz (born May 15, 1978) is an American actor and comedian. He played Mr. Universe in '' Serenity'', Charlie Eppes in the CBS drama series ''Numb3rs'', and starred in the '' Harold & Kumar'' and ''The Santa Clause'' film franchises. ...

as Bruno Verma *

as Beverly Andolini *

as Erica Hewitt

Production

The project was originally started off at

Paramount 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 name ...

with Barry Kemp at the helm. Eventually, it parted ways and moved to project to Warner Bros., and recruited Ed Decter and John J. Strauss as the new writer/producing/showrunning team.

Director and writers

The director for the series was Andrew D. Weyman. It had the following writers: * Tom Burkhard *

Howard Busgang Howard Busgang is a Canadian comedian and television producer."A comic with chutzpah: He opens a Montreal-style deli in B.C". ''Montreal Gazette'', August 25, 2018. Comedy career Originally from Montreal, Quebec, he studied political science at Mc ...

* Ed Decter * David Kidd * Laura Perkins-Brittain * Ron Burch

Producers

* Howard Busgang * Ed Decter * Penny Segal *

* John J. Strauss * Craig Wyrick-Solari

Episodes

Awards and nominations

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 ...

— Outstanding Music and Lyrics (for the song "You Don't Know Jack") (nominated)

References

External links

* * 1990s American sitcoms 1998 American television series debuts 1998 American television series endings Television shows set in Colorado CBS original programming English-language television shows Television series by CBS Studios Television series by Warner Bros. Television Studios {{US-comedy-tv-prog-stub