''Carlton Your Doorman'' is a 1980 American

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

for an

animated Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby image, still images are manipulated to create Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on cel, transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and e ...

spin-off of the live-action sitcom '' Rhoda'' (1974–1978) that was never picked up as a series. It originally aired as a " CBS Special Presentation" on May 21, 1980, and has never been rebroadcast.

Synopsis

Carlton is a

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

doorman and a misfit who seeks to better himself and his position in society. In the pilot episode, Carlton seeks a replacement for his boss's wife's dog, Punkin, who died while in his care. He tries everything to replace the dog so his boss does not find out. It was revealed in this episode that Carlton was a relatively young man, with shoulder-length blond hair and mustache. He also has a gray cat named Gringo.

Production

The episode relates the adventures of Carlton, the Doorman (voiced by Lorenzo Music), the previously off-screen character from ''Rhoda'' who was heard via the intercom but almost never seen (except only his arm would occasionally appear from doors and he was once shown dancing while wearing a gorilla mask). It was produced by

MTM Enterprises MTM Enterprises (also known as MTM Productions) was an American independent production company established in 1969 by Mary Tyler Moore and her then-husband Grant Tinker to produce ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' for CBS. The name for the produc ...

and was the only animated production from MTM, although '' The Duck Factory'' – a sitcom set in an animation production company – included cartoon segments, and the closing credits of many MTM series included animated clothing and accessories superimposed on Mimsie the Cat. It is also one of the last animated pilots to use a

laugh track A laugh track (or laughter track) is an audio recording consisting of laughter (and other audience reactions) usually used as a separate soundtrack for comedy productions. The laugh track may contain live audience reactions or artificial laught ...

, which was a common practice in the 1960s and 1970s.

Voice cast

* Lorenzo Music as Carlton, the Doorman * Jack Somack as Charles Shaftman, Carlton's boss * Lucille Meredith as Mrs. Shaftman, Charles' wife *

Lurene Tuttle Lurene Tuttle (August 29, 1907 – May 28, 1986) was an American actress and acting coach, who made the transition from vaudeville to radio, and later to films and television. Her most enduring impact was as one of network radio's more versatil ...

as Carlton's mother * Kay Cole as Darlene, Carlton's girlfriend

Home media

Shout! Factory Shout! Factory, LLC, doing business as Shout! Studios (formerly doing business as Shout! Factory, its current legal name), is an American home video and music distributor founded in 2002 as Retropolis Entertainment. Its video releases, issued i ...

released this episode as a bonus feature on ''Rhoda – Season Five: The Final Season'' DVD set on October 17, 2017.

Accolades

Primetime Emmy Awards The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Owned and operated by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the P ...

* 1980: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program – ''Carlton Your Doorman''BCDB.com
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References

External links

* * {{EmmyAward AnimationLessThanHour 1979-2000 1980 American television episodes 1980 television specials 1980s American television specials American animated television spinoffs Television pilots not picked up as a series Television series by MTM Enterprises Emmy Award–winning programs