Marsh McCall Movies
- 2006
Unlike many of the other sitcoms of the 2006-2007 series which catered to the under-30 crowd, Twenty Good Years was carefully calculated to appeal to the "oldsters" in the audience--that is, anyone over 30. Seasoned comedy pros John Lithgow and Jeffrey Tambor were cast respectively as pompous surgeon John Mason and widowed judge Jeffrey Pyne, best friends despite the fact that they were polar opposites. At age 60, Mason was forcibly retired; at the same age, Pyne was being pressured by his current sweetheart to get married again. Hoping to escape the exigencies of their lives and to prove that they were still young and heart, Mason and Pyne vowed to have a grand old time with the time they had left, and to do all the things they'd never dared to do before, from participating in extreme sports to appearing at the beach wearing speedos! Outside of the stars, the only other actors with roles of any consequence were Heather Burns as Mason's pregnant daughter Stella and Jake Sandvig as Pyne's gormless son Hugh. Twenty Good Years launched its NBC run on October 11, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Lithgow, Jeffrey Tambor, (more)
- 2006
A rare situation comedy from the Jerry Bruckheimer factory, the WB series Modern Men concerned a trio of lifelong pals in search of lasting romance with the opposite sex. Tim (Josh Braaten) had had many girlfriends, but no enduring relationships; Kyle (Max Greenfield) was a one-night stand specialist; and Doug (Eric Lively) was still reeling from an unpleasant marital breakup. Our heroes engage the services of a "life coach" named Dr. Victoria Stangel (Jane Seymour), who offered sage and often harsh advice in manners of the heart. Somehow or other, each episode explored the common theme of "Men are jerks and women are always right." Another of the "jerks" in the series was Tim's thickeared dad, Tug, played by former Cheers regular George Wendt. Originally bearing such titles as Men Behaving Better and The Evolution of Man, Modern Men made its initial network appearance on March 17, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Josh Braaten, Max Greenfield, (more)
- 2003
- Add My Big Fat Greek Life [TV Series] to QueueAdd My Big Fat Greek Life [TV Series] to top of Queue
It was all but inevitable that the most successful independently produced film of all time, 2002's My Big Fat Greek Wedding, would spawn a weekly, half-hour TV sitcom. What was not inevitable, and indeed a bit surprising, was that the CBS series My Big Fat Greek Life would feature virtually the entire cast of the original film -- with one noteworthy exception. Nia Vardalos, who created the movie and served as a co-executive producer for the TV version, reprised her screen role as Nia (originally Toula) Portokalos Miller, the new Greek-American bride of non-Greek teacher Ian Miller. The two lovebirds did their best to assert their independence, despite the well-meaning omnipresence and interference of Nia's colorful -- and bombastic -- Greek family. In addition to Vardalos, the series featured a number of carryovers from the film, among them Michael Constantine as Nia's domineering restauranteur father, Gus; Lainie Kazan as her eternally freeting mother, Maria; Louis Mandylor as her macho-man brother, Nick; Andrea Martin as advice-dispensing Aunt Voula; and Gia Carides as garrulous cousin Nikki. Conspicuous by his absence on the series was John Corbett, the original Ian Miller; his role was taken over by Steven Eckholdt. My Big Fat Greek Life first aired on February 24, 2003. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nia Vardalos, Steven Eckholdt, (more)
