Susan Harris Movies

The girls try to help their friend and neighbor Renee Corliss (Rita Moreno), who is down in the dumps of late. It seems that all of Renee's children have moved out of the house, and her doctor husband, George (Paul Dooley), is too busy with his practice to pay her any attention. This final episode of The Golden Girls' 1986-1987 season is also the pilot episode of the TV sitcom Empty Nest -- which would not debut until 1988, and then with an entirely different cast (with the exception of actor David Leisure). ~ All Movie Guide

Season two of The Golden Girls gets under way as an apprehensive Blanche (Rue McClanahan) takes a pregnancy test which comes up positive. Can it be that our fiftysomething heroine is going to have a baby? No, it so happens that Blanche is in the first stages of menopause -- and she's mighty miserable when she finds out. Meanwhile, Dorothy (Bea Arthur), Rose (Betty White), and Sophia (Estelle Getty) try to raise extra cash by breeding minks; unfortunately, the little devils steadfastly refuse to procreate. Amazingly, it turns out that the episode's two subplots have a great deal in common! ~ All Movie Guide

Sheree North guest stars as Virginia Hollingsworth, the younger sister of Blanche Devereaux (Rue McClanahan). Throughout her life, Virginia has always managed to "win" everything that Blanche has ever held dear. Now, Virginia hopes once again to take something away from Blanche -- namely, one of her kidneys. Meanwhile, Rose (Betty White) and Dorothy (Bea Arthur) baby-sit for a hospitalized friend. ~ All Movie Guide

Defying the TV-industry "rules" that A) no viewer is interested in watching a situation comedy with an all-female cast and B) no viewer wants to see anybody over the age of 34, The Golden Girls was one of the few sitcoms in which all of the regulars were women, and none was under the age of 50 -- and it turned out be NBC's biggest hit of the 1985-1986 season. Set in a small Miami neighborhood, the series starred Bea Arthur as divorced substitute teacher Dorothy Zbornak; Betty White as naïve, impressionable, ingenuous widowed grief counselor Rose Nylund; Rue McClanahan as museum worker Blanche Devereaux, another widow, but hardly naïve -- in fact, sex was the foremost thought in her mind at all times; and Estelle Getty as Dorothy's octogenarian mother, Sophia Petrillo, who had lost all her "tact cells" after a stroke and thus spoke her mind at all times, much to everyone's embarrassment. Blanche owned the house that she shared with Rose and Dorothy, with Sophia moving in on the trio after her retirement home burned down (a conflagration which, it was revealed late in the series, she had a hand in!). From time to time, the four roommates were visited by various relatives and offspring, none of whom could be called regulars (in fact, few of these peripheral characters were ever played by the same actors more than once). Seen on a more frequent basis were Dorothy's ne'er-do-well former husband, Stan (Herb Edelman), who, even though he'd dumped her for a much younger woman, constantly appeared on Dorothy's doorstep to cry on her shoulder or try to get her involved in his latest get-rich-quick scheme; and Rose's erstwhile boyfriend Miles Webber (Harold Gould), a well-meaning nebbish who turned out to be a former Mob accountant living in the Witness Relocation Program! The series ended with a hour-long episode in which Dorothy married Blanche's uncle Lucas (Leslie Nielsen), obliging the roommates to seek out new domiciles. Created by Susan Harris of Soap fame, The Golden Girls debuted September 14, 1985, and ended its NBC run on May 9, 1992; the Emmy-winning series ranked among America's ten most popular programs in every season but its last. Golden Girls also spawned two spin-offs: Empty Nest and The Golden Palace. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The girls panic when Dorothy's mother, Sophia (Estelle Getty), shows symptoms of a heart attack -- or as she puts it, it feels like "Pavarotti is sitting on my chest." Paramedics are summoned, but a severe storm delays their arrival. Certain that her life is ebbing away, Sophia murmurs a few heartfelt last words to Dorothy (Bea Arthur), who tearfully reciprocates. But as the episode draws to a close, it appears as if there's more "gravy" than "grave" in Sophia's condition. ~ All Movie Guide

In this concluding episode of a two-part story, a "killer rabbit" -- actually a murderer dressed in a bunny suit -- lies in wait in the Jefferson apartment. The homicidal hare intends to bump off Louise Jefferson (Isabel Sanford), the only witness to his crime. Unfortunately for the villain, his deadly mission is continually thwarted by a multitude of unexpected interruptions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Once the syndicated series Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman had created a market for satirical soap operas, the networks rushed to the post with comical continuing "dramas" of their own. The most successful product of this genre -- and one of the most controversial -- was the weekly, half-hour ABC series Soap, which debuted September 13, 1977. Put simply, Soap was the sexy saga of two families, the wealthy Tates and the not-so-wealthy Campbells. Ditzy Jessica Tate (Katherine Helmond), the wife of philandering businessman Chester Tate (Robert Mandan), is the sister of Mary Dallas Campbell, who lived with her second husband, blue-collar worker Burt Campbell (Richard Mulligan). Jessica and Chester's children included the sexy, libidinous Corrine (Diana Canova), who ended up marrying defrocked priest Father Timothy Flotsky (Sal Viscusco); strait-laced Eunice (Jennifer Salt), later the wife of convicted murderer Dutch (Donnelly Rhodes), who had escaped from prison with Chester after the latter had confessed to the murder of Jessica's paramour, tennis pro Peter (Robert Urich) (who happened to be the son of Burt Campbell!); and young son Billy Tate (Jimmy Baio), a typical hormone-driven teenager who would "mature" to the extent that he was stalked by a scorned lover.

The Campbell children included Mary's sons by her first marriage: Danny Dallas (Ted Wass), a young mobster, and Jodie Dallas (Billy Crystal), a homosexual who nonetheless enjoyed several heterosexual relationships, one of which produced a daughter. Among the many other characters were Jessica Tate's father, "The Major" (Arthur Pierson), a senile, shell-shocked WW2 veteran; the Tates' snide, sneering butler Benson (Robert Guillaume, who later starred as this character in his own sitcom); Detective Donahue (John Byner), who fell in love with Jessica while searching for the fugitive Chester; Mafia daughter Elaine Lefkowitz (Dinah Manoff), who, before being kidnapped and bumped off, forced Danny into a romantic relationship; Carol David (Rebecca Balding), the conniving mother of Jodie's baby; and "El Puerco" (Gregory Sierra), a South American revolutionary who became enamored of Jessica. The various and sundry plots and subplots wending their way through Soap's four seasons are far too multitudinous and complex to explain here. Suffice to say that the storylines incorporated false murder charges, amnesia, suicidal lesbians, interracial marriage, religious cults (in this case a group called the "Sunnies"), UFO abductions, extraterrestrial clones, satanic possessions, and banana-republic firing squads. In other words, Soap was just your average, typical soap opera, but with a laugh track. Even before the series debuted, Soap was under attack from a vast array of "clean up TV" brigades, religious organizations, and self-styled social arbiters. On the other hand, the series had scores of high-profile defenders who recognized Soap for what it truly was: A pungent lampoon of modern manners and mores, served up in a humorous and exaggerated fashion with no malice intended. The series ended on April 20, 1981, with its traditional season-ending "cliffhanger" -- which in this instance would not be resolved the following season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Burt Mustin makes his first series appearance in the role of feisty octogenarian Justin Quigley (a character that, at age 82, was seven years younger than Mustin!). Running away from a restrictive nursing home, Justin accepts Edith's invitation to temporarily move in with the Bunkers, which elicits the anticipated reaction from Archie. Ruth McDevitt likewise makes her first appearance as Justin's geriatric sweetheart, Josephine "Jo" Nelson. Scripted by Michael Ross and Bernie West from a story by Susan Harris, "Edith Finds an Old Man" was originally telecast on September 29, 1973. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Archie's blind faith in the infallibility of the United States receives another blow when he finds himself under the scrutiny of the FBI. At first, the Feds seem more interested in one of Archie's closest friends, but then the investigation hits closer to home. Though Archie survives with his confidence in the Red, White, and Blue intact, the ultimate price he pays is a painful one. Also in the cast are future Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman co-stars Graham Jarvis as Larry Grundy, and Jon Korkes as Bradford. Uncompromisingly written by Michael Ross, Bernie West, and Susan Harris, "Archie and the FBI" was first telecast on January 15, 1972. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Just because All in the Family specialized in cutting-edge humor didn't mean that the producers were above using tried-and-true sitcom plot lines now and then. In this one, Edith Bunker serves on a jury -- and, of course, is the sole holdout when everyone else enters a "guilty" verdict. As a bonus, Archie airs his somewhat skewered opinions on capital punishment. Though basically a showcase for Jean Stapleton, this episode also draws excellent performances from the rest of the regular cast, as well as guest stars Hollis Irving (as Clara Weidemeyer) and Doris Singleton (as Mrs. Stonehurst). Scripted by Susan Harris, Don Nicholl, and Bryan Joseph from a story by Harris, "Edith Has Jury Duty" first aired on March 9, 1971. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide