Family Matters (season 1)
The first season of the sitcom Family Matters originally aired on ABC from September 22, 1989 to April 27, 1990.
| Family Matters | |
|---|---|
| Season 1 | |
| Starring |
|
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of episodes | 22 |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Original release | September 22, 1989 – April 27, 1990 |
| Season chronology | |
Premise
In the first season, following the death of her husband, Robert, Rachel moves in to the Winslow household with her son, Richie. The house is occupied by Carl, Rachel's brother-in-law, Harriette, Rachel's sister, Estelle, Carl's mother, Edward (Eddie), Laura and Judy. The first appearance of Steve Urkel is in episode four (syndication only). In episode 12, it is revealed to the audience that he's in love with Laura.
Main cast
- Reginald VelJohnson as Carl Winslow
- Jo Marie Payton as Harriette Winslow
- Rosetta LeNoire as Estelle Winslow
- Darius McCrary as Eddie Winslow
- Kellie Shanygne Williams as Laura Winslow
- Valerie Jones (this pilot only) and Jaimee Foxworth as Judy Winslow
- Joseph and Julius Wright as Richie Crawford
- Telma Hopkins as Rachel Crawford
Recurring cast
Episodes
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "The Mama Who Came to Dinner" | Joel Zwick | William Bickley & Michael Warren | September 22, 1989[1] | 445230 |
| Chicago Chronicle elevator operator Harriette Winslow's sister Rachel Crawford and Rachel's baby son Richie move into the Winslow home, and so does Estelle "Mother Winslow" Winslow, the mother of Harriette's husband Carl, who is a cop. Carl and Harriette have two daughters named Laura and Judy, and a teenage son named Eddie. As soon as Mother Winslow moves in, she does exactly what Carl had been dreading—she tries to usurp his authority over the household, even allowing Eddie to go to a party that Carl didn't want him to go to. Mother Winslow later agrees to respect the fact that Carl is the man of the house, and she advises Carl to loosen up every once in a while. | ||||||
| 2 | 2 | "Two-Income Family" | James O'Keefe | Robert Blair | September 29, 1989[2] | 446002 |
| Because of automation, Harriette loses her job as the elevator operator at the Chicago Chronicle, and Carl stews over the family's debts. Harriette returns to the Chronicle to apply for a position as head of security, and she talks Mr. Seeger (Larry Block), her boss at the Chronicle, into giving her the job. Meanwhile, Eddie is interested in buying some new high tops but Carl says he has to earn his own money to buy them. | ||||||
| 3 | 3 | "Short Story" | Joel Zwick | William Bickley & Michael Warren | October 6, 1989[3] | 446001 |
| Rachel writes a successful short story—a story that's not exactly popular with the family. The story's characters seem all-too-familiar, and the story ignites a feud between Rachel and Harriette, because the story is insinuating that Rachel feels that Harriette has nothing better to do than to run Rachel's life. Laura and Judy help Harriette and Rachel work things out. Meanwhile, Carl is upset about the family's rising water bill, so he tries to save money by forcing the family to cut back on the water usage. Also, Eddie tries to ask a girl out after being inspired by Rachel's story. Unfortunately, in ignoring Laura's warning against it, Eddie ends up with a jealous boyfriend going after him. | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "Rachel's First Date" | John Bowab | Sally Lapiduss & Pamela Eells | October 13, 1989[4] | 446004 |
|
Alan (Peter Fitzsimmons), a member of the church choir, wants to date Rachel, who keeps refusing because she can't stop thinking about her late husband Robert Crawford, and it's getting in the way of Carl and Harriette's efforts to find a chance to spend some time alone together. Mother Winslow, who is also a widow, has a talk with Rachel, and encourages Rachel to date again. Note: The original cold opening for this episode was replaced for reruns and syndication with a new cold opening featuring Jaleel White as Steve Urkel (who would not debut until episode 1.12.)[5] | ||||||
| 5 | 5 | "Straight A's" | John Bowab | Geoff Gordon & Gordon Lewis | October 20, 1989[6] | 446007 |
| On report card day, Eddie is expecting the worst, and Laura is expecting nothing but the best—she's upset that one of her grades is a B. Carl might be expecting too much from Eddie when he sees straight A's on Eddie's report card. What Carl and Eddie don't know is that Eddie's friend Rodney Beckett got into the school records and made a fake report card to make Eddie look good. When they see the real report card, the one with B's and C's on it, Eddie thinks Carl is disappointed in him. Carl, realizing that Eddie's feeling hurt, admits that he's proud of Eddie. | ||||||
| 6 | 6 | "Basketball Blues" | James O'Keefe | Barry Gold | November 3, 1989[7] | 446003 |
| When Carl learns that basketball tryouts are about to begin at school, he decides that he wants Eddie to be a star basketball player. Concerned over Carl's overzealousness, Harriette tries to convince him to let Eddie figure out what he wants to do. Basketball star Will "The Thrill" Morgan visits the house, and Carl hopes he can convince Eddie to play basketball, but Will's visit does the exact opposite. Carl apologizes to Eddie for his behavior, and admits that he wanted Eddie to fulfill his own dream of being a basketball star. Eddie promises to try out for the school's basketball team next year, providing that Carl eases up on him, and Carl agrees. Meanwhile, Rachel tries her hand at being a chef but soon finds that she's not cut out for being a chef when the rest of the Winslows grow tired of trying a disaster of a brioche. | ||||||
| 7 | 7 | "Body Damage" | James O'Keefe | Ken Kuta | November 10, 1989[8] | 446005 |
|
Carl plans to drive a vintage 1936 Ford police car in the Columbus Day parade, and he tells the family that no one is to even touch the car, let alone get in it. Rachel convinces Harriette for them to take a spin, but they come back with a damaged fender. Not wanting Carl to get angry, Harriette and Rachel go behind Carl's back and try to repair it, dragging Eddie, Laura, and Judy into the plan. Note: The original cold opening for this episode was replaced for reruns and syndication with a new cold opening featuring Jaleel White as Steve Urkel (who would not debut until episode 1.12.)[5] | ||||||
| 8 | 8 | "Mr. Badwrench" | John Bowab | Alan Eisenstock & Larry Mintz | November 17, 1989[9] | 446006 |
|
Self-proclaimed handyman Carl tries to install a shower in Mother Winslow's quarters while she's out of town, visiting Carl's brother, and he gets Eddie to help him, but it turns into one disaster after another. Finally, Carl and Harriette do what Harriette had been suggesting to Carl—they hire a contractor to do the job. Meanwhile, Rachel claims that she heard Richie say his first word: "Mama." She tries to prove it to everyone by recording it. Note: The original cold opening for this episode was replaced for reruns and syndication with a new cold opening featuring Jaleel White as Steve Urkel (who would not debut until episode 1.12.)[5] | ||||||
| 9 | 9 | "Stake-Out" | James O'Keefe | Sally Lapiduss & Pamela Eells | November 24, 1989[10] | 446010 |
| Harriette is jealous of Carl's new partner, an attractive cop named Vanessa. After Carl pulls an all-night stakeout with Vanessa, Harriette finds a room key to Louie's Love Grotto in Carl's coat pocket. As a result, with the help of Rachel and Mother Winslow, Harriette wrongfully believes that Carl is having an affair. Harriette pays the price for her jealousy when Jake and High Top, a pair of jewel thieves that Carl and Vanessa are trying to take down, take her and Rachel hostage. Mother Winslow saves them by taking down Jake and High Top with her jujutsu move, leading Harriette to apologize to Carl for her behavior. | ||||||
| 10 | 10 | "False Arrest" | Peter Baldwin | Barry Gold | December 1, 1989[11] | 446008 |
|
The Winslows are watching a sitcom starring their TV idol, Buddy Goodrich (Ron Glass). Later, while on duty, Carl notices Goodrich's car parked in a handicapped spot. Carl tries to get Goodrich to move his car out of the spot, but the egotistical Goodrich, who refuses to move the car, assaults him. Carl arrests Goodrich. Blinded by celebrity, the family is angry at Carl, but he maintains that he did the right thing. Goodrich wants to avoid bad publicity so he offers the family free tickets to the taping for an episode of his show, and tries to bribe Carl by offering him the position of "technical consultant" on the show, which would come with a $3,000 cash payment. However, Carl refuses to sell his integrity and recommends him to pay the fine for parking in the handicapped spot. The Winslows secretly overhear them & become disillusioned with Goodrich, who is later found guilty of assaulting Carl and forced pay a big fine, along with spending 100 hours picking trash up off the local interstate. Note: The original cold opening for this episode was replaced for reruns and syndication with a new cold opening featuring Jaleel White as Steve Urkel (who would not debut until episode 1.12.)[5] | ||||||
| 11 | 11 | "The Quilt" | Peter Baldwin | David Scott Richardson | December 8, 1989[12] | 446009 |
| During a garage sale in which Laura hopes to raise enough money to buy a VCR, Laura sells a quilt that she received a high offer on—not knowing that the quilt is 200 years old, and that it's the only Winslow family record that exists. When Laura is told what the quilt means to Mother Winslow, Laura feels guilty about selling it, so Laura and Carl set out to get the quilt back from Brooke Nash, the art dealer who bought it and is now reluctant to give it back. Laura makes an impassioned, tearful, all-out plea to get it back. Carl and Laura convince her to give the blanket back. Mother Winslow tells the family about the quilt's history, and since Mother Winslow never had any daughters, she decides to name Harriette to continue the Winslow legacy, as the quilt can be inherited only by the women in the family. Also, while going through the things being sold at the garage sale, Rachel finds her old saxophone and tries to learn to play it, despite the family's complaints. She soon realizes that she's simply not cut out to be a professional saxophone player. | ||||||
| 12 | 12 | "Laura's First Date" | Richard Correll | William Bickley & Michael Warren | December 15, 1989[13] | 446012 |
| Laura needs a date for an upcoming school dance, so well-meaning Carl and Eddie try to help her. Laura does find a date...but only after Eddie also finds her a date, and Carl gets Steve Urkel (a decision he will later live to regret), who has had a crush on Laura since first grade, to agree to be Laura's date. Laura finally gets the courage to ask a guy named Mark to the dance, and she confronts Carl and Eddie about their actions. | ||||||
| 13 | 13 | "Man's Best Friend" | Richard Correll | Robert Blair | January 5, 1990[14] | 446013 |
| Carl has a rule that he intends to enforce—no pets in the house...until he meets a big, playful puppy who followed the kids home from school. The family decides to find a good home for the dog. | ||||||
| 14 | 14 | "Baker's Dozen" | James O'Keefe | Ken Kuta | January 12, 1990[15] | 446014 |
| Rachel persuades Carl to sell his secret recipe for lemon tarts, which were a big hit at a local restaurant. Harriette warns against it, believing that it's a bad idea and the family will regret it. The family then gets a huge order for the treats (12,000 tarts) and less than 48 hours to fulfill the order, and they're not helped by Steve Urkel's unwelcome visit. It results in a huge food fight in which Harriette manages to diffuse, and she sends Steve home. Carl and the others realizes that Harriette's advice against selling the family secret lemon tarts recipe was best heeded. The family only makes $24 in profits. | ||||||
| 15 | 15 | "The Big Reunion" | Richard Correll | Alan Eisenstock & Larry Mintz | January 19, 1990[16] | 446011 |
| A nervous Carl decides to lose weight, and Harriette tries to help him. Carl's deadline is the night of his high-school reunion, where he and his band from high school are scheduled to perform. To keep Carl true on Rachel's diet plans, Harriette gets Eddie, Laura, and Judy involved to keep him away from his favorite foods. Carl finds that losing weight is easier said than done. When he comes to the reunion, he is relieved to find that his friends have gained some weight as well. The Darnells are surprised and believe that Carl is fit. | ||||||
| 16 | 16 | "The Party" | Richard Correll | Ken Kuta | February 2, 1990[17] | 446016 |
| Carl tells Eddie about the "No Friends Allowed" rule that he, Laura and Judy must follow while the adults are away for the weekend to attend the 40th birthday party of Carl's brother, Darryl. However, after dinner is ruined, Rodney Beckett comes over and saves them from eating burned meatloaf by bringing pizza. Afterwards, Rodney reveals that he invited some friends, which results in a huge party. Eddie and Laura try to stop the kids from damaging the house, and Judy takes pictures as evidence of the party. Meanwhile, Carl cannot figure out directions to Darryl's 40th birthday party, and gets a citation by a sheriff. He, Harriette, Rachel and Mother Winslow head home just in time to see the party. They prove to be more effective in chasing out the other teenagers than Eddie and Laura. Carl and Harriette later discipline Eddie and Laura after Judy snitches on them, with the photos to back up her claims. | ||||||
| 17 | 17 | "The Big Fix" | Richard Correll | Sally Lapiduss & Pamela Eells | February 9, 1990[18] | 446017 |
| Steve agrees to tutor Eddie in algebra, under one condition—he wants Eddie to set him up on a date with Laura. He holds Eddie's Prince concert tickets as collateral to ensure that his wish will come true. But Steve's date with Laura turns out to be a disaster. Also, Carl makes a horrible attempt to fix a wobbly chair, and Harriette insists that he buy a new chair. Also Rachel and Mother Winslow help Judy with a school diorama project. | ||||||
| 18 | 18 | "Sitting Pretty" | Richard Correll | Ken Kuta | February 23, 1990[19] | 446018 |
| Laura starts a babysitting service with Judy as her assistant ...and they end up with a house full of kids on the night when Carl's boss, Captain Davenport, is scheduled to come over for dinner. Carl is relieved to discover that Captain Davenport loves kids, but is still angry at Laura. Meanwhile, Rachel ponders whether to tell her new boyfriend Jeff (Tim Russ) that she's a mother after failed results with her previous dates. | ||||||
| 19 | 19 | "In a Jam" | Richard Correll | Alan Eisenstock & Larry Mintz | March 16, 1990[20] | 446019 |
| Steve is being harassed by a bully named Bull, who intimidates Steve into handing over his lunch money. When Steve asks Eddie for assistance, he thinks Steve's merely seeking attention, until Rodney sees Bull threaten to beat Steve up when he declines to give him any more money. Eddie goes to Carl for advice on how to deal with the situation, and Eddie decides to stick up for Steve. Meanwhile, after Carl stops a bank robbery, he gets an opportunity at a part-time job as a traffic reporter. Rachel convinces Carl to incorporate some jokes into his first report. However, Harriette doesn't think it's a good idea, believing that Rachel's jokes aren't funny, and she insists that Carl should be himself in giving out the traffic reports. She is proven right when Carl realizes that Rachel's jokes are flat, and that he needs to be himself while giving the reports. Carl does and he ends up getting the job, making his family proud. | ||||||
| 20 | 20 | "The Candidate" | James O'Keefe | Barry Gold | March 23, 1990[21] | 446015 |
| Eddie is persuaded to run for Freshman Class president against Margie Flagman. Rodney's work as Eddie's campaign manager goes nowhere, so Laura convinces Eddie to make her his campaign manager. Laura's hopes to keep Eddie out of the spotlight and avoid large crowds gets derailed when Rodney organizes a debate against Margie, in front of the whole school. On the day of the debate, Eddie and Margie square off. Rodney, encouraged by Laura, does everything he can to sabotage Margie's chances. Eddie realizes that what Laura and Rodney are doing is wrong. Rachel writes a successful article about the importance of recycling, and goes overboard in opening up a recycling center in the Winslow's kitchen, since there is none in town. Harriette tells her that while they support her, recycling centers belong in a parking lot, and not in their own home. Rachel realizes that she went overboard. | ||||||
| 21 | 21 | "Bowl Me Over" | Richard Correll | Robert Blair | April 20, 1990[22] | 446021 |
| After Laura beats Eddie in Space Invaders, Carl decides to take the family out bowling on a Friday night. But when Steve comes with them, it gets competitive, and when Harriette admits that she let Carl win, it turns into a bowling brawl: Carl, Eddie, and a surprisingly good Steve vs. Laura, Rachel, and Harriette. Carl's philosophy about gracefully accepting defeat ends up in the gutter when Harriette's team becomes a serious threat to win, until there is a blackout. After the family comes home, they continue arguing until Mother Winslow comes out of her room and stops it. She calls the family out for their behavior, and tells them that it was God who called them to their senses with the blackout, believing that they were getting out of hand with their rivalry. | ||||||
| 22 | 22 | "Rock Video" | Richard Correll | Geoff Gordon & Gordon Lewis | April 27, 1990[23] | 446020 |
| Eddie's ego runs amok when he tries to enter a music video in a contest, with Steve as the cameraman. Steve tells the rest of the band that Eddie had him focus only on Eddie in the video. Eddie's ego disgusts his band mates as the video only focuses on him, leaving them out. They desert him and cause his family to call him out for it. Wanting to salvage his hopes for winning the contest, Eddie calls on Steve and his family to make a friendly rap video, "We Are Family," with Mother Winslow as the DJ. Meanwhile, Carl tries to settle the family's taxes, to no avail. Carl regrets refusing to take Harriette's advice to let his brother, Calvin, help with the taxes. | ||||||
See also
References
- "TV Listings for - September 22, 1989 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - September 29, 1989 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - October 6, 1989 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - October 13, 1989 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "Family Matters - The Complete First Season DVD Review". Sitcomsonline.com. Retrieved 2 October 2018.
- "TV Listings for - October 20, 1989 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - November 3, 1989 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - November 10, 1989 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - November 17, 1989 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - November 24, 1989 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - December 1, 1989 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - December 8, 1989 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - December 15, 1989 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - January 5, 1990 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - January 12, 1990 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - January 19, 1990 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - February 2, 1990 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - February 9, 1990 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - February 23, 1990 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - March 16, 1990 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - March 23, 1990 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - April 20, 1990 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- "TV Listings for - April 27, 1990 – TV Tango". TV Tango. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
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