''Veronica's Closet'' 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 created by David Crane and

Marta Kauffman Marta Fran Kauffman (born September 21, 1956) is an American television writer and producer. She is best known as the co-creator of the NBC sitcom ''Friends'' with her longtime friend, David Crane. Both Kauffman and Crane were also executive pr ...

, that aired 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 ...

for three seasons, from September 25, 1997, to December 7, 2000. The show stars

Kirstie Alley Kirstie Louise Alley (January 12, 1951 – December 5, 2022) was an American actress. Her breakout role was as Rebecca Howe in the NBC sitcom ''Cheers'' (1987–1993), for which she received an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe in 1991. From 1997 ...

as Veronica "Ronnie" Chase, the head of her own

lingerie Lingerie (, , ) is a category of primarily women's clothing including undergarments (mainly brassieres), sleepwear, and lightweight robes. The choice of the word is often motivated by an intention to imply that the garments are alluring, fash ...

company in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

Overview

Veronica 'Ronnie' Chase, played by Alley, has made a living being known as the "Queen of Romance". She is the owner of Veronica's Closet, a company that sells lingerie and other bedroom accessories. Her husband Bryce, played by

Christopher McDonald Christopher McDonald (born February 15, 1955) is an American film, television, theatre and voice actor. McDonald is best known for playing the villainous professional golfer Shooter McGavin in the 1996 comedy ''Happy Gilmore''. Other notable ...

, regularly cheats on her, though she always takes him back because of the image she has created. However, after another tryst, Veronica decides to leave him and begins her life as a single woman. She is championed by her best friend and Chief Financial Officer Olive Massery, played by

Kathy Najimy Kathy Ann Najimy ( ; ar, كاثي ان نجيمي ; born February 6, 1957) is an American actress and activist. She is best known for her roles in the films ''Soapdish'' (1991), ''Sister Act'' (1992), '' Hocus Pocus'' (1993), ''Hope Floats'' (1 ...

, and her father Pat Chase, played by

Robert Prosky Robert Prosky (born Robert Joseph Porzuczek, December 13, 1930 – December 8, 2008) was an American actor. He became a well-known supporting actor in the 1980s with his roles in '' Thief'' (1981), ''Christine'' (1983), ''The Natural'' (1984), an ...

, who is also her chauffeur. She also works with Perry Rollins, played by

Dan Cortese Daniel James Cortese (; born September 14, 1967) is an American actor and director. He played Perry Rollins on '' Veronica's Closet'' and Vic Meladeo on '' What I Like About You''. Early life and education Of Italian (Calabrese) descent, Cortes ...

, a former thong model who is her publicist; her assistant Josh Blair, played by

Wallace Langham James Wallace Langham II (born March 11, 1965) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the role of Phil the Head Writer on ''The Larry Sanders Show''. He has also played the roles of David Hodges on the crime drama television series '' ...

, and Leo Michaels, played by Darryl 'Chill' Mitchell. Later in the first season, she gets a silent partner in Millicent, played by

Holland Taylor Holland Virginia Taylor (born January 14, 1943) is an American actress. She won the 1999 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Judge Roberta Kittleson on ABC's ''The Practice'' (1998–2003). ...

. However, when Millicent dies, the company is taken over by Millicent's incompetent son. During the second season. Millicent's ex-husband, Alec Bilson, played by

Ron Silver Ronald Arthur Silver (July 2, 1946 – March 15, 2009) was an American actor/activist, director, producer, and radio host. As an actor, he portrayed Henry Kissinger, Alan Dershowitz and Angelo Dundee. He was awarded a Tony in 1988 for Best Acto ...

, takes the company from his former step-son and helps the company regain some financial ground. However, he and Ronnie get closer, romantically, as the season progresses. He dies between seasons two and three and is revealed to have married someone else. His widow, June Bilson, played by

Lorri Bagley Lorri Bagley (born August 5, 1973) is an American actress and model. Life and career Lorri Bagley became a model in Europe by the age of fourteen, working for the likes of Dior, Chanel, and Issey Miyake as well as notably modelling for Victoria's ...

, is a stereotypical dumb blonde who has some secret intelligence. She remodels the entire office and refuses to give up her share of the company until Olive buys her out in the series finale.

Cast

Main

Recurring

Mary Lynn Rajskub Mary Lynn Rajskub (; born June 22, 1971) is an American actress and comedian who is best known for portraying Chloe O'Brian in the action thriller series ''24 (TV series), 24'', and the character Gail the Snail in ''It's Always Sunny in Philadel ...

as Chloe (15 episodes) * Cynthia Mann as Virginia/Receptionist (14 episodes) *

as Bryce Anderson (9 episodes), Ronnie's ex-husband *

Ever Carradine Ever Dawn Carradine is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Tiffany Porter and Kelly Ludlow on the ABC television series ''Once and Again'' and '' Commander in Chief'', respectively and as Naomi Putnam and Janet Stein on the Hulu ...

as Pepper (8 episodes) * Tamala Jones as Tina (8 episodes) * Alan F. Smith as Brian (7 episodes) *

David Starzyk David Starzyk (born July 14, 1961) is an American actor. Career Starzyk has guest-starred in a number of notable television series, including '' Home Improvement'', '' Felicity'', ''Sabrina the Teenage Witch'' '' Pacific Blue'', '' NYPD Blue'', ...

as Pete (5 episodes) *

Lupe Ontiveros Guadalupe Ontiveros ( Moreno; September 17, 1942 – July 26, 2012) was an American actress best known for portraying Rosalita in ''The Goonies'', and Yolanda Saldívar in the film ''Selena''. She acted in numerous films and television shows, ...

as Louisa (4 episodes) * James Wilder as Hunter (3 episodes) * Erica Shaffer as Waitress/Assistant (3 episodes) * Mark Harelik as Paul Byrne (3 episodes) * John Schneider as Tom (3 episodes) * John Mariano as Chris (3 episodes) *

as Millicent (2 episodes) *

Jay Leno James Douglas Muir Leno (; born April 28, 1950) is an American television host, comedian, writer, and actor. After doing stand-up comedy for years, he became the host of NBC's '' The Tonight Show'' from 1992 to 2009. Beginning in September 20 ...

as Himself (2 episodes) *

Scott Baio Scott Vincent James Baio (; born September 22, 1960) is an American actor. He is known for playing Chachi Arcola on the sitcom ''Happy Days'' (1977–1984) and its spin-off ''Joanie Loves Chachi'' (1982–1983), the title character on t ...

as Kevin (2 episodes)

Guest stars

Eric McCormack Eric James McCormack (born April 18, 1963) is a Canadian-American actor and singer, known for his roles as Will Truman in the NBC sitcom ''Will & Grace'', Grant MacLaren in Netflix's ''Travelers'' and Dr. Daniel Pierce in the TNT crime drama ...

as Griffin *

Ted Danson Edward Bridge "Ted" Danson III (born December 29, 1947) is an American actor. He achieved stardom playing the lead character Sam Malone on the NBC sitcom ''Cheers'', for which he received two Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards. ...

as Nick Vanover * Michael Jeter as Edwin Murloff *

Conan O'Brien Conan Christopher O'Brien (born April 18, 1963) is an American television host, comedian, writer, and producer. He is best known for having hosted late-night talk shows for almost 28 years, beginning with '' Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' ( ...

as himself *

Portia de Rossi Portia Lee James DeGeneres (born Amanda Lee Rogers; 31 January 1973), known professionally as Portia de Rossi, is an Australian-American former actress. She played Nelle Porter on the American drama series '' Ally McBeal'' (1998–2002), for w ...

as Carolyn *

Leeza Gibbons Leeza Kim Gibbons (born March 26, 1957) is an American talk show host. She is best known as a correspondent and co-host for ''Entertainment Tonight'' (1984–2000) as well as for having her own syndicated daytime talk show, ''Leeza'' (1993–20 ...

as herself *

Ingo Rademacher Ingo Rademacher (born 22 April 1971) is a German-Australian television actor best known for his role of Jasper "Jax" Jacks on the American daytime soap opera ''General Hospital'', which he played almost continuously from 1996 to 2021. In 2012, ...

as Reg *

Zooey Deschanel Zooey Claire Deschanel (; born January 17, 1980) is an American actress, singer, and songwriter. She made her film debut in '' Mumford'' (1999) and had a supporting role in Cameron Crowe's film '' Almost Famous'' (2000). Deschanel is known for h ...

as Elena *

Tia Carrere Althea Rae Duhinio Janairo (born January 2, 1967), known professionally as Tia Carrere (), is an American actress, singer and former model who got her first big break as a regular on the daytime soap opera '' General Hospital''. Carrere played C ...

as Kim *

Tom Arnold Tom Arnold may refer to: * Tom Arnold (actor) (born 1959), American actor * Tom Arnold (economist) (born 1948), Irish CEO of Concern Worldwide * Tom Arnold (footballer) (1878–?), English footballer * Tom Arnold (literary scholar) (1823–1900), B ...

as Chris * John Ritter as Tim *

RuPaul RuPaul Andre Charles (born November 17, 1960; stylized as RuPaul) is an American drag queen, television personality, actor, musician, and model. Best known for producing, hosting, and judging the reality competition series '' RuPaul's Drag Race ...

as Brett *

Anna Nicole Smith Anna Nicole Smith (born Vickie Lynn Hogan; November 28, 1967 – February 8, 2007) was an American model, actress, and television personality. Smith started her career as a ''Playboy'' magazine centerfold in May 1992 and won the title of 1993 ...

as Donna

History

The series premiered on September 25, 1997, after ''

Seinfeld ''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. It aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, over nine seasons and 180 episodes. It stars Seinfeld as a fictionalized version of himself and ...

'', to 35 million viewers. Its title was derived from the “real life” lingerie company,

Victoria's Secret Victoria's Secret is an American lingerie, clothing, and beauty retailer known for high visibility marketing and branding, starting with a popular catalog and followed by an annual fashion show with supermodels dubbed Angels. As the largest ...

. Hammocked between ''Seinfeld'' and '' ER'' within the Must See TV lineup, the show was a top 10 hit, although the initial ratings died down later in the first season. The sitcom spent the first two seasons on Thursdays at 9:30 (after ''Seinfeld'' in season 1 and after ''

Frasier ''Frasier'' () is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons. It premiered on September 16, 1993, and ended on May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee (as Grub ...

'' in season 2). NBC moved the show out of Must See TV to a new time slot, following ''

Suddenly Susan ''Suddenly Susan'' is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from September 19, 1996, to December 26, 2000. The series was created by Clyde Phillips and starred Brooke Shields in her first regular series. Shields played Susan Keane, ...

'' (another NBC sitcom centered around a professional single woman), on Mondays for the 1999–2000 season. Ratings fell more than 50 percent, and NBC put both shows on hiatus. The show returned on Tuesdays at 9:30 (after ''

Will & Grace ''Will & Grace'' is an American television sitcom created by Max Mutchnick and David Kohan. Set in New York City, the show focuses on the friendship between best friends Will Truman ( Eric McCormack), a gay lawyer, and Grace Adler ( Debra Messi ...

'') with only a slight boost in ratings. NBC canceled the series in 2000, along with ''Suddenly Susan'', due to low ratings. Reruns were shown on

USA Network USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madi ...

from 2000 to early 2003 and on

TV Guide Network The American cable and satellite television network Pop was originally launched in 1981 as a barker channel service providing a display of localized channel and program listings for cable television providers. Later on, the service, branded Prev ...

from 2011 to 2012. The show was taped Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California, on soundstage 25.

Episodes

Series overview

Season 1 (1997–1998)

Season 2 (1998–1999)

Season 3 (1999–2000)

Broadcast and ratings history

Accolades

The series received recognition from the

Hollywood Foreign Press Association The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) is a nonprofit organization of journalists and photographers who report on the entertainment industry activity and interests in the United States for media (newspaper, magazine and book publication ...

, the

Academy of Television Arts & Sciences The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), also colloquially known as the Television Academy, is a professional honorary organization dedicated to the advancement of the television industry in the United States. It is a 501(c)(6) non-prof ...

, and the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Arts among other associations.

References

External links

* *
Jump The Shark - Veronica's Closet
{{People's Choice Award for Favorite New TV Comedy NBC original programming 1990s American sitcoms 1990s American workplace comedy television series 1997 American television series debuts 2000 American television series endings 2000s American sitcoms 2000s American workplace comedy television series English-language television shows Fashion-themed television series Television series by Warner Bros. Television Studios Television series created by David Crane (producer) Television series created by Marta Kauffman Television shows set in New York City