The New Odd Couple
| The New Odd Couple | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Written by | Lowell Ganz Mark Rothman Millee Taggart Kurt Taylor |
| Directed by | Joel Zwick |
| Starring | Ron Glass Demond Wilson John Schuck Bart Braverman Jo Marie Payton Liz Torres |
| Theme music composer | Neal Hefti |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 18 (2 unaired) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Garry Marshall Anthony W. Marshall |
| Running time | 22–24 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC |
| Release | October 29, 1982 – May 26, 1983 |
| Related | |
| The Odd Couple | |
The New Odd Couple is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from 1982 to 83, and was an updated version of the 1970s television series The Odd Couple. The New Odd Couple was the second attempt to remake a series of one of Neil Simon's plays with a primarily African-American cast. The first was Barefoot in the Park (which also premiered on September 24, 1970, the same day the original Odd Couple series did).
Synopsis
In this series, Felix and Oscar were both African-American. Felix was portrayed by Ron Glass and Oscar was portrayed by Demond Wilson. The characterizations were still the same, as Felix was a prissy neatfreak and Oscar was a fun loving and sloppy character. John Schuck also appeared as Murray the Cop, who was kept Caucasian, as was the character of Roy, who was played by Bart Braverman.
The show ran for 16 episodes; eight of the episodes used recycled scripts from the original series. By the time the writers began producing new scripts, it was too late, as the show never found an audience. The series was cancelled in 1983.
Cast
- Ron Glass .... Felix Unger
- Demond Wilson .... Oscar Madison
- Sheila Anderson .... Cecily Pigeon
- Bart Braverman .... Roy
- Ronalda Douglas .... Gwendolyn Pigeon
- Jo Marie Payton .... Mona
- John Schuck .... Murray
- Liz Torres .... Maria
Production notes
The New Odd Couple was executive produced by Garry and Anthony W. Marshall, and distributed by Paramount Television. The theme music was still the same as the original series (composed by Neal Hefti), but it was played with a more urban arrangement.
Episodes
| Episode # | Episode title | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|
| 1-1 | "The Ides of April" | October 29, 1982 |
| 1-2 | "The Hustler" | November 5, 1982 |
| 1-3 | "Frances Moves In" | November 12, 1982 |
| 1-4 | "That Was No Lady" | November 19, 1982 |
| 1-5 | "Brother, Can You Spare a Job?" | November 26, 1982 |
| 1-6 | "The New Car" | December 3, 1982 |
| 1-7 | "The Cordon Bleus" | December 10, 1982 |
| 1-8 | "The Odd Triangle" | December 17, 1982 |
| 1-9 | "Opening Night" | December 31, 1982 |
| 1-10 | "Security" | January 7, 1983 |
| 1-11 | "Bachelor of the Year" | January 14, 1983 |
| 1-12 | "A Grave for Felix" | January 21, 1983 |
| 1-13 | "My Strife in Court" | January 28, 1983 |
| 1-14 | "Oscar Dates Felix's Frances" | February 18, 1983 |
| 1-15 | "Murray's Hot Date" | February 25, 1983 |
| 1-16 | "The Night Stalker" | May 26, 1983 |
| 1-17 | "The Perils of Pauline" | Never aired |
| 1-18 | "The Only Way to Fly" | Never aired |
Syndication
Reruns of the series aired on BET in the early 1990s. TV Land occasionally aired reruns when they were airing reruns of the original 1970s series.
External links
- 1982 television series debuts
- 1983 television series endings
- 1980s American television series
- American Broadcasting Company network shows
- American television sitcoms
- Black sitcoms
- English-language television series
- Television programs based on plays
- Television series by CBS Paramount Television
- Television shows set in New York City