Who's the Boss?
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Who's The Boss | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 23 minutes |
| Creator(s) | Martin Cohan Blake Hunter |
| Starring | Tony Danza Judith Light Alyssa Milano Danny Pintauro Katherine Helmond |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| Original channel | ABC |
| Original run | September 20, 1984–April 25, 1992 |
| No. of episodes | 196 |
| Official website | |
| IMDb profile | |
| TV.com summary | |
Who's the Boss? was a television sitcom starring Tony Danza that aired for eight seasons on ABC from 1984 to 1992.
The premise of the show was that a widowed Tony Micelli (Danza), a former second baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals who was forced to retire due to a shoulder injury, wanted to move out of Brooklyn to find a better life for his daughter, Samantha (Alyssa Milano). He ended up taking a job in upscale Fairfield County, Connecticut as a live-in housekeeper for advertising executive Angela Bower (Judith Light). The two moved into the house shared by Bower and her son Jonathan (Danny Pintauro). Also starring was Katherine Helmond as Mona Robinson, Angela's feisty mother. The title of the show refers to the clear role reversal of the two lead actors, where a woman was the house breadwinner, while a man stayed at home and took care of the house, thus the question of who the "boss" of the house really was.
The show's theme song is Brand New Life by Larry Carlton, Robert Craft, Martin Cohan and Blake Hunter and was sung by Steve Wariner.
Tony Micelli's background as a major league baseball player and his decision to move from Brooklyn to Connecticut (to find a better life for his daughter) challenged media stereotypes of Italian-Americans as wholly ignorant of life outside of urban working-class neighborhoods.
Several versions of Who's the Boss? have been produced for foreign television markets. In 1990, a British version of Who's The Boss? started its run in the UK. This adapted version was called The Upper Hand, airing alongside the original. A Spanish language version, produced in Mexico by TV Azteca and Columbia TriStar International Television, debuted in 1998 under the title Una familia con Ángel starring Laura Luz and Daniel Martínez, and was broadcast in the U.S. on the Telemundo network. Also, in 2005, the Argentine network Telefé also made its own local version, called ¿Quién es el jefe?, a direct translation of the original American title. Country singer Steve Wariner sang the opening sequence to the show.
Contents |
[edit] DVD Releases
The first season, consisting of 22 uncut episodes, was released in June 2004 on Region 1 DVD from Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment. Due to low DVD sales for the first season, it's highly unlikely that more season DVD sets will be released unless Sony (the company that owns Who's the Boss) sells the rights to another company.[1]
[edit] Syndication History and Current Airings
Who's the Boss? aired on TBS Superstation in the 1990s after it was cancelled, and was also added to the ABC Family Channel line-up in the late 1990s/early 2000s. The show aired at midnight and 12:30 AM for most of its time there, until it was moved to 9:30 am for its last few months on the line-up in 2003. In June 2004, Nick at Nite added the show to its daily line-up and launched a special Who's the Boss week-long marathon to celebration the show's addition to the network. The show aired at 10 PM and 3 AM eastern time. Eventually, the timeslots would move to 1 AM/1:30 AM, then 2 AM, then 3 AM, and eventually 4 AM, where it would finally be removed off the Nick at Nite line up in the spring 2006. The show is not currently airing on any cable TV channels, but it is in syndication and can be found on several local networks across the country.
[edit] Spin-Offs
Who's the Boss? spawned two short lived spin-offs. One of which was a show called Charmed Lives, about 2 women up for a job. It only lasted 3 episodes and was immediately taken off the air. The second spin-off was Living Dolls. Premiering and ending in 1989, the show starred Leah Remini, Michael Learned and Halle Berry. The show featured Remini, who had been in only two actual Boss episodes as a friend of Samantha's, as a homeless model taken under the wing of agent Michael Learned. The show lasted less than one season.
[edit] Ratings
Who's the Boss? received high ratings throughout its 8-year run. The first season's ratings were in the high 20s, decent for a new show. Decent ratings and reviews led to a second season. The breakdown of ratings for all eight seasons were as follows:
- 1984-1985: #25
- 1985-1986: #10
- 1986-1987: #10
- 1987-1988: #6
- 1988-1989: #8
- 1989-1990: #12
- 1990-1991: #17
- 1991-1992: #32
[edit] ABC Broadcast History
- September 1984 - September 1985: Tuesdays, 8:30 PM
- September 1985 - September 1991: Tuesdays, 8:00 PM
- September 1991 - January 1992: Saturdays, 8:00 PM
- January- May 1992: Thursdays, 8:00 PM
[edit] Episodes Aired in Syndication Only
There were three episodes of Who's the Boss? that did not originally air in the show's ABC run. The first one was "Charmed Lives" in Season 2, the pilot for the short lived series "Charmed Lives". The second was Season 3's "Mona", a pilot for a spin-off about Mona that never happened. The third one was "Life's a Ditch" in Season 6, originally a Living Dolls episode.
