The Associates (American TV series)

*The Associates*
The Associates
Genre	Sitcom
Created by	James L. Brooks; Stan Daniels; Charlie Hauck; Ed. Weinberger;
Developed by	Michael Leeson
Directed by	Tony Mordente; James Burrows; Charlotte Brown; Tom Trbovich;
Starring	Wilfrid Hyde-White; Martin Short; Alley Mills; Joe Regalbuto; Shelley Smith; Tim Thomerson;
Theme music composer	Albert Brooks
Opening theme	"Wall Street Blues" ; performed by B.B. King
Composers	Albert Brooks; Craig Safan;
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	13 (4 unaired)
Production
Executive producers	James L. Brooks; Stan Daniels; Ed. Weinberger;
Producer	Michael Leeson
Production location	Paramount Studios
Cinematography	Leonard J. South
Editors	Douglas Hines; C. Cory M. McCrum-Abdo;
Running time	22 minutes
Production companies	John-Charles-Walters Productions; Paramount Television;
Original release
Network	ABC
Release	September 23, 1979 –; April 17, 1980

The Associates is an American sitcom television series that aired on ABC from September 23, 1979 to April 17, 1980. Based on the novel of the same name by John Jay Osborn Jr., the series stars Wilfrid Hyde-White, Martin Short, Alley Mills, Joe Regalbuto, Shelley Smith, and Tim Thomerson. Despite being cancelled after nine of its thirteen episodes aired, it was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and two Primetime Emmy Awards.

The Associates, from the producers of Taxi, was critically acclaimed in the fall of 1979. But, ABC-TV fell from its ratings perch that fall when they moved their schedule around. Mork & Mindy was moved to Sunday night to challenge CBS's most established night of the week. The Associates was scheduled to follow Mork as a promising new comedy series. Mork, however, was crushed by CBS's Archie Bunker's Place. ABC moved Mork back to Thursday, but it would never recover its ratings glory. One Day at a Time was the direct competition to The Associates. Meanwhile, The Associates was not given another chance and was canned by the network. The press heavily criticized ABC for not giving the show a chance in another time slot.

Synopsis

The show was the first bonafide starring vehicle for Short and centered on a small group of young novice lawyers who worked at a Wall Street law firm. One of the creators of the series was John Jay Osborn, Jr., author of The Paper Chase. Episode seven featured guest star John Houseman reprising his role as Professor Kingsfield.

Cast

Martin Short as Tucker Kerwin
Joe Regalbuto as Eliot Streeter
Tim Thomerson as Johnny Danko
Alley Mills as Leslie Dunn
Shelley Smith as Sara James
Wilfrid Hyde-White as Emerson Marshall

Episodes

Nº	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
1	"The First Day"	James Burrows	Story by : Charlie Hauck Teleplay by : Michael Leeson	September 23, 1979 (1979-09-23)
The associates learn the ropes on their first day at the firm while the founder decides between two attorneys seeking partnership.
2	"Is Romance Dead?"	Tony Mordente	David Lloyd	September 30, 1979 (1979-09-30)
Tucker uses tips from a book on romance to try and impress Sara.
3	"Tucker's Courtroom Coup"	Tony Mordente	David Lloyd	October 7, 1979 (1979-10-07)
Marshall asks Eliot to defend a client whose ex-lover is suing him.
4	"Mr. Marshall's Love Affair"	Tony Mordente	David Lloyd	October 14, 1979 (1979-10-14)
Marshall's intended helpmate flirts with Eliot.
5	"The Deadly Serve"	Tony Mordente	John Steven Owen	October 28, 1979 (1979-10-28)
Eliot accidentally kills a partner in a game of squash.
6	"Eliot's Revenge"	James Burrows	Story by : Rich Reinhart Teleplay by : David Lloyd	March 27, 1980 (1980-03-27)
Eliot argues with his former professor about a case.
7	"Danko's a Daddy"	James Burrows	David Lloyd	April 3, 1980 (1980-04-03)
Johnny tries to see his illegitimate son over the mother's objections.
8	"The Censors"	Tony Mordente	Stan Daniels & Ed. Weinberger	April 10, 1980 (1980-04-10)
Tucker defends a network censor being sued by a producer.
9	"The Party"	James Burrows	Earl Pomerantz	April 17, 1980 (1980-04-17)
Leslie falls for a teacher who despises conservative lawyers.
10	"A Date with Johnny"	Tony Mordente	Earl Pomerantz	N/A
Johnny goes on a date with a married co-worker.
11	"Tucker's Co-Op"	Charlotte Brown	David Lloyd	N/A
Tucker moves into the apartment below Marshall, who shows up unexpectedly.
12	"Inferno"	Charlotte Brown	David Lloyd	N/A
The lawyers try to find escape routes when a fire starts in the building.
13	"The Out of Town Trip"	Tom Trbovich	Rich Reinhart	N/A
The associates defend the head of a tire company accused of misusing funds, while Leslie quits the firm thinking it represents criminals.

Syndication

The series had a complete run on BBC Two in the UK in 1982. The series was rerun on A&E in 1988, followed by runs on Comedy Central and TV Land in the 1990s.

In Italy, the series aired on Rete 4 as I novellini (Newbies) in 1982.

Award nominations

Year	Award	Result	Category	Recipient
1980	Emmy Award	Nominated	Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series	Stan Daniels and Ed. Weinberger (for episode "The Censors")
	Emmy Award		Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series	Michael Leeson and Charlie Hauck (for episode "The First Day")
	Golden Globe Award		Best TV-Series - Musical/Comedy	-
	Golden Globe Award		Best TV Actor - Musical/Comedy	Wilfrid Hyde-White

External links

The Associates at IMDb
The Associates at epguides.com