Café Americain
| Café Americain | |
|---|---|
 Main cast | |
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Peter Noah |
| Starring | Valerie Bertinelli Lila Kaye Sofia Milos Maurice Godin Jodi Long Graham Beckel |
| Composer | Roger Bellon |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 18 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Jack Grossbart |
| Producers | Pamela Grant Peter Noah |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production companies | Peter Noah Productions Warner Bros. Television |
| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | September 18, 1993 – May 28, 1994 |
Café Americain is an American television sitcom starring Valerie Bertinelli that aired on NBC from September 18, 1993, to February 8, 1994, with two leftover episodes shown on May 28, 1994.[1] It was filmed at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California.
Overview
[edit]Bertinelli played a young American woman, Holly Aldridge, who finds a job working as a waitress in a small café in Paris. The cast consisted of an assortment of eccentric characters from around the world who regularly visited the café, interacting in many hilarious circumstances. Madame Ybarra, a former dictator's wife, was a thinly veiled spoof of Imelda Marcos. Fabiana Borelli, the tempestuous Italian model, and her perpetually jealous Italian lover Carlo, regularly sparred and reconciled, with Carlo declaring of any real or imagined rival, "I kill him! I kill him bad! I kill him two times!" Marcel's on and off relationship with Holly set the stage for comedic interference by several guest star suitors.
Cast
[edit]- Valerie Bertinelli as Holly Aldrige
- Lila Kaye as Margaret Hunt
- Sofia Milos as Fabiana Borelli
- Maurice Godin as Marcel
- Jodi Long as Madame Ybarra
- Graham Beckel as Steve Sullivan
Production and casting
[edit]Although Lila Kaye played the role of Margaret in the series pilot, the role was re-cast with Happy Days actress Marion Ross when the series was picked up. Within a month, Ross was gone and Kaye agreed to reprise the role.[2] The role of Margaret Hunt was also offered to Rue McClanahan, but she turned it down.[3]
At the time of filming, Valerie Bertinelli was married to guitarist Eddie Van Halen, who appeared in the 7th episode, "Home Alone," as a street musician that Bertinelli's character Holly Aldridge chases out of the cafe. Van Halen spoke one line, "Praat je tegen mij?" The line is Dutch for "Are you talking to me?" [4]
Episodes
[edit]| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Viewers (millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pilot" | James Burrows | Peter Noah | September 18, 1993 | N/A |
| 2 | "Le Confidence Game" | Robert Berlinger | Peter Noah | September 25, 1993 | 12.8[5] |
| 3 | "Weekend at Holly's" | James Burrows | Sarit Catz & Gloria Ketterer | October 2, 1993 | 10.8[6] |
| 4 | "The Language of Really Good Friends" | Robert Berlinger | Bruce Rasmussen | October 9, 1993 | 13.9[7] |
| 5 | "Happy Birthday to Moi" | James Burrows | Eric Cohen | October 16, 1993 | 12.1[8] |
| 6 | "Every Picture Tells a Story...Don't It?" | Robert Berlinger | Bill Barol | October 23, 1993 | 11.2[9] |
| 7 | "Home Alone" | Robert Berlinger | Bruce Rasmussen | November 6, 1993 | 11.3[10] |
| 8 | "There's No Business Like Show Business" | Robert Berlinger | Sarit Catz & Gloria Ketterer | November 13, 1993 | 10.0[11] |
| 9 | "...And Giblets for All" | Robert Berlinger | Bill Barol | November 20, 1993 | 10.0[12] |
| 10 | "Toast of the Town" | Robert Berlinger | Bruce Rasmussen | November 27, 1993 | 10.1[13] |
| 11 | "Mommy Dearest" | Robert Berlinger | Sarit Catz & Gloria Ketterer | December 11, 1993 | 9.0[14] |
| 12 | "Deck the Halls with Boughs of Holly" | Robert Berlinger | Eric Cohen | December 18, 1993 | 9.0[15] |
| 13 | "The Dating Game" | Robert Berlinger | Sarit Catz, David Silverman, Gloria Ketterer & Marcy Gray Rubin | January 4, 1994 | 9.8[16] |
| 14 | "Le Date" | Robert Berlinger | Peter Noah | January 11, 1994 | 8.3[17] |
| 15 | "All About Kelly" | Robert Berlinger | Sarit Catz & Gloria Ketterer | January 18, 1994 | 10.0[18] |
| 16 | "Love the One You're With" | Matthew Diamond | Bruce Rasmussen | February 8, 1994 | 9.0[19] |
| 17 | "Oh, Brother" | Pamela Fryman | Sarit Catz & Gloria Ketterer | May 28, 1994 | 6.6[20] |
| 18 | "The Fashion Show" | Robert Berlinger | Eric Cohen | May 28, 1994 | 6.8[20] |
References
[edit]- ^ The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present. Ballantine Books. 2003. p. 181. ISBN 0-345-45542-8.
- ^ Lowry, Brian (August 26, 1993). "Ross leaving NBC's 'Cafe'".
- ^ "Rue McClanahan Interview Part 5 of 5 - EMMYTVLEGENDS.ORG". Archived from the original on 2021-12-13 – via www.youtube.com.
- ^ "Eddie Van Halen on "Cafe Americain"". Archived from the original on 2021-12-13 – via www.youtube.com.
- ^ Gable, Donna (September 29, 1993). "'Dave's World,' 'Harts' help CBS to victory". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
- ^ "Nielsen ratings". Life. USA Today. October 6, 1993. p. 3D.
- ^ Gable, Donna (October 13, 1993). "New shows pick up steam in ABC win". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
- ^ Graham, Jefferson; Gable, Donna (October 20, 1993). "'Home Improvement' powers to No. 1". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
- ^ DeRosa, Robin (October 27, 1993). "World Series earns CBS a win". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
- ^ "Nielsen ratings". Life. USA Today. November 10, 1993. p. 3D.
- ^ DeRosa, Robin (November 17, 1993). "Walters gives ABC a special boost". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
- ^ DeRosa, Robin (November 24, 1993). "CBS sweeps back to top". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
- ^ DeRosa, Robin (December 1, 1993). "Thanksgiving week tie for NBC, CBS". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
- ^ DeRosa, Robin (December 15, 1993). "Midler's 'Gypsy' coming up roses for CBS". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
- ^ DeRosa, Robin (December 22, 1993). "ABC on top for 2nd week". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
- ^ DeRosa, Robin (January 12, 1994). "'Improvement' leads ABC charge". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
- ^ DeRosa, Robin (January 19, 1994). "'Columbo' on the case for ABC". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
- ^ "Nielsen ratings". Life. USA Today. January 26, 1994. p. 3D.
- ^ "Nielsen ratings". Life. USA Today. February 16, 1994. p. 3D.
- ^ a b DeRosa, Robin (June 1, 1994). "ABC's clean sweeps". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.