Marie (1980 TV series)
| Marie | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Variety show |
| Directed by | Jeff Margulis |
| Presented by | Marie Osmond |
| Starring | Marie Osmond |
| Music by |
Bob Rozario D'Vaughn Pershing |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 7 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
Alan Osmond Jay Osmond Jerry McPhie |
| Producer(s) |
Neal Israel Pat Proft |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Osmond Productions |
| Release | |
| Original network | NBC |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | December 12, 1980 – September 26, 1981 |
Marie is an American comedy-variety show hosted by and starring singer-actress Marie Osmond that aired on NBC from December 12, 1980 to September 26, 1981 with a total of seven episodes produced over half a season.
Overview
Fred Silverman, then the President of NBC, had attempted to replicate the success of the 1976–79 variety show Donny & Marie (which Silverman had commissioned while at ABC) when he commissioned Pink Lady and Jeff earlier in 1980.[1] That show proved to be an all-around disaster and was canceled after only five episodes.
The Osmond family was in a lull in their career in the late 1970s after the cancellation of Donny & Marie; their most recent album failed to chart, and their first attempt at a television production after the variety show, a sitcom also entitled Marie, failed to make it to series. In need of work, and with Silverman in need of an established hit, Marie Osmond returned to variety television in December 1980 and headlined her own show on NBC in an attempt to repeat the success of her earlier variety series.
The new show showcased Osmond's singing, acting and comedic talents in the same format of a traditional variety series (similar to Donny & Marie) which featured musical numbers, comedy sketches and various guest stars each week. Guest stars included TV personalities and musical artists such as Gavin MacLeod, Jeff Conaway, Tony Orlando, The Pointer Sisters, Andy Williams, Scott Baio, Sally Struthers, David Copperfield, Nell Carter, Bob Hope, The Commodores and Andy Gibb. Noticeably absent on-camera were Marie's brothers; of them, only Jimmy Osmond appeared on the show as a guest in one episode. (Alan and Jay were listed as executive producers.)
Episode list
Cancellation
NBC aired the program somewhat sporadically: for its first season, it ran for four consecutive weeks. It then did not return until several months later, again airing weekly for only three weeks before being canceled. (NBC as a whole was mired in a programming rut following a number of poor programming decisions under Silverman.) The series was produced by the Osmond family's production company, Osmond Productions.
References
- Brooks, Tim and Marsh, Earle, The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946–Present
- Notes