Madame's Place
Madame's Place is an American sitcom that featured the misadventures of Madame, a puppet in the form of a bawdy old movie star with a naughty sense of humor. Madame's Place aired for one first-run season[1] from September 20, 1982 until February 25, 1983, although the actual number of episodes produced is disputed (some references say 75, some say[1] 150). Bob Leszczak’s book Single Season Sitcoms of the 80s: a Complete Guide notes the fifty-one episodes were not titled but merely given numbers.[2] The show was unusual for a sitcom in that it was produced for first-run syndication to air five days a week.
Madame's Place | |
---|---|
Genre | Sitcom |
Directed by | Don Barnhart Paul Miller |
Starring | Wayland Flowers Susan Tolsky Johnny Haymer Judy Landers Corey Feldman |
Music by | Michael K. Miller Monica Riordan |
Opening theme | "Madame's Place" performed by Denise De Caro |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 1 |
No. of episodes | 51 |
Production | |
Executive producer | Brad Lachman |
Producers | Don Van Atta Bob Sand |
Editors | Joe Bella Ken Denisoff |
Camera setup | Multi-camera |
Running time | 22–24 minutes |
Production companies | Brad Lachman Productions Madame, Inc. Paramount Television Domestic Distribution |
Distributor | Paramount Television Domestic Distribution |
Release | |
Original network | Syndication |
Audio format | Monaural |
Original release | September 20, 1982 – February 23, 1983 |
Premise
The series centers around the puppet Madame, who had gained a following in the 1970s and 1980s with American puppeteer Wayland Flowers as her creator.Madame is an "outrageous old broad" who entertains with double entendres and witty comebacks. Bedecked in fabulous eveningwear and summer diamonds ("Some are diamonds; some are not"), Madame's look is based on movie stars such as Gloria Swanson.
The show's premise had Madame living in a plush mansion in Hollywood with her butler, ex-boxer Pinkerton (Johnny Haymer); their community included nerdy day planner Bernadette (Susan Tolsky), as well as Madame's beautiful, IQ-challenged, southern-belle niece Sara Joy Pitts (Judy Landers), and nosy kid neighbor Buzzy (Corey Feldman). Within the series, Madame hosted a talk show (also called Madame's Place) featuring real-life celebrity guests; at the beginning of the series, her show had been in reruns for several years until Madame successfully negotiates to revive the show from her home studio.
The theme song for the show was composed by Michael Miller, with lyrics by Monica Riordan.
Characters
- Madame (Wayland Flowers)
- Walter "Pinky" Pinkerton (Johnny Haymer)
- Bernadette (Susan Tolsky)
- Sara Joy Pitts (Judy Landers)
- Buzzy (Corey Feldman)
- Barney (Ty Henderson)
References
- Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle (2007), The Complete Directory To Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present, 9th ed., Random House, Inc., p. 831, ISBN 978-0-345-49773-4
- Leszczak, Bob (2016-05-16). Single Season Sitcoms of the 1980s: A Complete Guide. McFarland. ISBN 978-1-4766-2384-9.