Benson (TV series)

Benson
Created by Susan Harris[1]
Starring Robert Guillaume
James Noble
Inga Swenson
Missy Gold
René Auberjonois (1980–1986)
Ethan Phillips (1980–1985)
Caroline McWilliams (1979–1981)
Didi Conn (1981–1985)
Lewis J. Stadlen (1979–1980)
Billie Bird (1984–1986)
Theme music composer George Tipton
Composer(s) George Aliceson Tipton
Country of origin United States
No. of seasons 7
No. of episodes 158 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s) Paul Junger Witt
Tony Thomas
Susan Harris
Running time 24–25 minutes
Production company(s) Witt/Thomas/Harris Productions
Distributor Columbia Pictures Television (1984–1987)
Columbia TriStar Television (1995–2002)
Sony Pictures Television (2002–present)
Release
Original network ABC
Original release September 13, 1979 (1979-09-13) – April 19, 1986 (1986-04-19)
Chronology
Preceded by Soap

Benson is an American sitcom that originally aired on ABC from September 13, 1979 to April 19, 1986. The series was a spin-off of Soap in which the character Benson, portrayed by Robert Guillaume, first appeared as the wise-cracking yet level-headed African-American butler for the highly dysfunctional Tate family. However, Benson eschewed the soap opera format of its parent series for a more conventional sitcom structure, and the lead character eventually moved from his service position to a role as lieutenant governor. The series was created by Susan Harris, and produced by Witt/Thomas/Harris Productions. In 1985, Guillaume won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for his role in the series.[2]

Plot

The main character was Benson DuBois (Robert Guillaume), who was hired to be the head of household affairs for scatterbrained and widowed Governor Eugene X. Gatling (James Noble) and his daughter Katie (Missy Gold). Governor Gatling was a cousin of sisters Jessica Tate (Katherine Helmond) and Mary Campbell (Cathryn Damon) from Soap. Although the state of which Gatling was governor remained unidentified throughout the series, Soap was situated in Connecticut, and the seal of the state of New York is visible when Benson wins the lieutenant governorship[3].

The series revolved around Benson's housekeeping dilemmas, his squabbles with German cook Gretchen Wilhemina Kraus (Inga Swenson, one of Guillaume's fellow alumni from Soap) and his interactions with John Taylor (David Hedison in the pilot episode, then Lewis J. Stadlen), who assisted Governor Gatling as chief of staff. After the first season, Taylor's job was filled by the pompous Clayton Endicott III (René Auberjonois). In spite of their adversarial relationship (during the early years, Kraus' trademark line was a loud "I hear you!" from off-stage), Benson and Kraus eventually became good friends. Benson also had good friendships with the governor's secretary, Marcy Hill (Caroline McWilliams) and her successor, Denise (Didi Conn). Marcy left after her second-season wedding. Jerry Seinfeld played a small role as Frankie, a delivery boy and unsuccessful comedian, for three episodes in 1980; he was asked to leave because of creative differences.[4]

Denise and Pete Downey (Ethan Phillips), the governor's press secretary (introduced in Season 2), met and later married, having a child in the show's fifth season. However, both were written out, with the reason given that Denise secured a job with NASA.

Benson worked his way up the ladder during the series, going from head of household affairs to state budget director (at which time his surname, DuBois, was revealed), and eventually was elevated to the position of lieutenant governor. During the final episodes of the 1985–86 season, Benson ran for governor against Gatling. Kraus (who had moved up to head of household affairs) proved to be Benson's strongest supporter, and he made her his personal assistant and campaign manager.

Series finale

The term-limited Governor Gatling ran for reelection as an independent candidate, with Benson securing the party nomination, setting the stage for the two to go head-to-head in the general election.

At the end of the series' final episode, Benson and Gatling, who had strained relations due to the race, made peace with each other and watched the tight election returns together on television. As the broadcaster began to announce that a winner was at last being projected, the episode ended on a freeze frame of Benson and Gatling, leaving the series with an unresolved cliffhanger. Coincidentally, Guillaume's previous series, and the one from which Benson spun off, Soap, was also canceled with unresolved cliffhangers, though Guillaume had moved on to Benson by that point.

In 2007, Benson showrunner Bob Fraser said that the season ended on a cliffhanger at the request of the network. The show was canceled after the cliffhanger had aired. Fraser indicated that, had the show continued, Gatling would have won the election and Benson would have become a United States senator.[5]

According to Gary Brown, who directed the finale and 20 other episodes of Benson, three outcomes were filmed, with Benson winning, Gatling winning, and a tie. The intent was to decide over summer break which outcome to use. Brown also stated that, regardless of the outcome, the long-term intent for the next season was for Benson to become the governor.[6]

Cast and characters

  • Robert Guillaume as Benson DuBois, the main character, hired as head of household affairs for Governor Gatling and his daughter Katie. Quick-witted and quick-thinking, Benson has helped the governor on several issues, bailing him out of tight political and public situations.
  • James Noble as Eugene X. Gatling, the widowed and scatterbrained (but well-meaning) governor. Gatling had a penchant for telling off-the-wall stories, which Benson (and everyone else in the household) dreaded.
  • Missy Gold as Katie Gatling, the governor's pre-teen daughter.
  • Inga Swenson as Gretchen Kraus, the governor's chef. A fiercely proud German immigrant, she is often at odds with Benson and trades insults with him. A running gag in the series was whenever she would walk out of the room, Under his breath, Benson would cast one last barb toward Kraus, to which she shouted from off-stage, "I He-e-e-ear You-u-u-u!". Despite their rivalry, Benson and Kraus become close friends. She later became Benson's strongest supporter when he ran for governor against Gatling.
  • Lewis J. Stadlen as John Taylor, Governor Gatling's chief of staff (season 1 only).
  • Caroline McWilliams as Marcy Hill, the governor's personal secretary (seasons 1 and 2). Frequently unlucky in love, Marcy eventually married toward the end of season 2.
  • Didi Conn as Denise Stevens, Marcy's replacement (seasons 3 through 5)
  • Ethan Phillips as Pete Downey, Gatling's press secretary. (seasons 2 through 5)
  • René Auberjonois as Clayton Endicott III; he replaced Taylor as Gatling's chief of staff beginning in season 2. Clayton is very snobbish and high-handed; he is also a hypochondriac.
  • Billie Bird as Rose Cassidy; she becomes Gatling's chef in season 6 when Kraus is promoted to Benson's administrative assistant.

Episodes

SeasonEpisodesOriginally airedNielsen ratings[7]
First airedLast airedRankRating
124September 13, 1979 (1979-09-13)May 8, 1980 (1980-05-08)2320.6
(Tied with The Love Boat)
222October 31, 1980 (1980-10-31)May 22, 1981 (1981-05-22)N/AN/A
322November 6, 1981 (1981-11-06)May 14, 1982 (1982-05-14)63[8]N/A
422October 22, 1982 (1982-10-22)March 31, 1983 (1983-03-31)43[9]N/A
522September 16, 1983 (1983-09-16)May 4, 1984 (1984-05-04)39[10]16.3[11]
624September 21, 1984 (1984-09-21)April 5, 1985 (1985-04-05)33[12]15.5[13]
722October 4, 1985 (1985-10-04)April 19, 1986 (1986-04-19)74[14]10.0 (Tied with Stir Crazy)[15]

Broadcast history[16]

  • September 1979 – July 1980, ABC Thursday 8:30–9:00
  • August 1980 – March 1983, ABC Friday 8:00–8:30
  • March 1983 – April 1983, ABC Thursday 8:00–8:30
  • May 1983 – March 1985, ABC Friday 8:00–8:30
  • March 1985 – September 1985, ABC Friday 9:00–9:30
  • October 1985 – June 1986, ABC Friday 9:30–10:00
  • June 1986 – August 1986, ABC Saturday 8:30–9:00

Broadcast history

SeasonTime slot
1 (1979–1980)Thursdays at 8:30–9:00 pm ET on ABC
2 (1980–1981)Fridays at 8:00–8:30 pm ET on ABC
3 (1981–1982)
4 (1982–1983)Fridays at 8:00–8:30 pm ET on ABC (October 22, 1982 – March 18, 1983)
Thursday, March 31, 1983 at 8:00–8:30 pm ET on ABC
5 (1983–1984)Fridays at 8:00–8:30 pm ET on ABC
6 (1984–1985)Fridays at 8:00–8:30 pm ET on ABC (September 21, 1984 – February 22, 1985)
Fridays at 9:00–9:30 pm ET on ABC (March 15 – April 5, 1985)
7 (1985–1986)Fridays at 9:30–10:00 pm ET on ABC (October 4, 1985 – January 3, 1986)
Saturdays at 8:30–9:30 pm ET on ABC (January 18 – April 19, 1986)

Home media

On July 24, 2007, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment released Season 1 of Benson on DVD in Region 1 for the first time. The DVDs contain the episodes as they originally aired, including the longer opening sequence, which was significantly edited for syndication.

On April 3, 2012, Sony released season 2 on DVD under the Choice Collection label. This is a manufacture-on-demand (MOD) release. The Complete Second Season DVD also includes two episodes from season three: "Benson's Appointment" and "The Grass Ain't Greener." Like the DVD of the previous season, this season DVD also contains the originally-aired uncut openings for each episode.

On August 27, 2013, it was announced that Mill Creek Entertainment had acquired the rights to various television series from the Sony Pictures library including Benson.[17] They re-released the first and second seasons on DVD on September 2, 2014.[18]

DVD name Ep # Release date
The Complete First Season 24 July 24, 2007
The Complete Second Season 22 April 3, 2012

Setting

The exterior shots of the "governor's mansion" are actually of a private home located at 1365 South Oakland Avenue in Pasadena, California.[19] The same house was seen in the movie The Beverly Hillbillies (1993), in a 2006 U.S. television commercial for the RE/MAX real estate company, and the Columbo episode "Etude in Black".

The home has some Palladian and Neoclassical features.

References

  1. ↑ "Golden Girls' Creator Adds Shows". LA Times. September 10, 1991. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  2. ↑ "37th Emmy Awards Nominees and Winners". Retrieved 2016-04-19.
  3. ↑ Slotnik, Daniel. "Robert Guillaume, Emmy-Winning Star of 'Benson,' Dies at 89".
  4. ↑ "MSN Money". msn.com. Archived from the original on May 27, 2014. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  5. ↑ "Canceled TV shows HQ – TV Series Finale". canceled TV shows – TV Series Finale. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  6. ↑ Daniel D'Addario. "Surprise! "Benson" filmed three endings — find out which one was most likely". salon.com. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  7. ↑ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle (2007). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present (Ninth Edition). Ballantine Books. p. 1689. ISBN 978-0-345-49773-4.
  8. ↑ ugene X. Gatling ([[James Noblehttp://www.tvratingsguide.com/2017/07/1981-82-top-30-primetime-is-awash-in.html
  9. ↑ squabbles with German cook Grethttp://www.tvratingsguide.com/2017/07/1982-83-top-30-soap-bubbles-rise.html
  10. ↑ econd-season wedding. [[Jerry Shttp://www.tvratingsguide.com/2017/09/1983-84-ratings-history-networks-are.html
  11. ↑ in 1980; he was asked to leave http://www.tvratingsguide.com/2017/09/1983-84-ratings-history-networks-are.html
  12. ↑ r married, having a child in thhttp://www.tvratingsguide.com/2017/06/1984-85-season-nielsens-nbc-breaks-its.html
  13. ↑ th [[NASA]]. Benson worked hishttp://www.tvratingsguide.com/2017/06/1984-85-season-nielsens-nbc-breaks-its.html
  14. ↑ ion as an independent candidatehttp://www.tvratingsguide.com/2017/06/1985-86-nielsens-nbc-bubbles-to-new.html
  15. ↑ Gatling, who had strained relahttp://www.tvratingsguide.com/2017/06/1985-86-nielsens-nbc-bubbles-to-new.html
  16. ↑ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle (2007). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946–Present (Ninth Edition). Ballantine Books. p. 124. ISBN 978-0-345-49773-4.
  17. ↑ "Site News DVD news: Mill Creek Licenses 52 TV Shows from Sony for Low-Cost DVD Release - TVShowsOnDVD.com". tvshowsondvd.com. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  18. ↑ "Benson DVD news: Announcement for Benson - The Complete Seasons 1 & 2 - TVShowsOnDVD.com". tvshowsondvd.com. Archived from the original on 22 September 2015. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  19. ↑ James Dean Died Here – The Locations of America's Pop Culture Landmarks (By Chris Epting), pg. 263
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