Open House (TV series)
Encyclopedia
Open House is an American sitcom
that aired on Fox
from August 27, 1989 to July 21, 1990. The series was a spin-off
of the Fox series Duet
. Despite airing right after the Top 50 hit Married...with Children on Sundays, the series attracted low ratings, thus Fox canceled the show after 24 episodes.
as Linda Phillips, the former studio executive who brought the same zeal pushing costly houses for Juan Verde Real Estate as she did working at World Wide Studios. The show also starred Mary Page Keller
and Chris Lemmon
continuing their roles as Laura Kelly and Richard Phillips. Laura, newly separated from her writer husband Ben Coleman, also quit catering, and became an apprentice agent. Richard, Linda's husband, was a pianist at Jasper's, but left the hangout — and his wife — by mid-season. Among Linda's eccentric co-workers were Ted Nichols (Philip Charles MacKenzie
), her main rival; Scott Babylon (Danny Gans
), a talented impressionist; Margo Van Meter (a then-unknown Ellen DeGeneres
), the sassy, man-hungry secretary; and Roger McSwain (Nick Tate
), the manager of Juan Verde.
The premise of the series had originated in the series finale of Duet, in which Linda was introduced to Ted, whom brought her to Juan Verde to start her new career. LaPlaca and MacKenzie had been dating for several years by the time they worked opposite each other on Duet and Open House (in fact, they first worked together on a 1985 episode of MacKenzie's former series, Brothers
). In 1992, two years after the cancellation of Open House, LaPlaca and MacKenzie were married.
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
that aired on Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
from August 27, 1989 to July 21, 1990. The series was a spin-off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
of the Fox series Duet
Duet (TV series)
Duet is an American sitcom that aired on Fox from April 19, 1987 to August 20, 1989...
. Despite airing right after the Top 50 hit Married...with Children on Sundays, the series attracted low ratings, thus Fox canceled the show after 24 episodes.
Synopsis
Open House starred Alison LaPlacaAlison LaPlaca
Alison LaPlaca is an American actress best known for the role of acid-tongued yuppie Linda Phillips in the Fox sitcoms Duet and its spin-off Open House, both of which aired in the late 1980s....
as Linda Phillips, the former studio executive who brought the same zeal pushing costly houses for Juan Verde Real Estate as she did working at World Wide Studios. The show also starred Mary Page Keller
Mary Page Keller
Mary Page Keller is an American actress known for roles on both daytime and primetime television.-Career:On daytime, Keller played the role of Amanda Kirkland on Ryan's Hope and the role of Sally Frame on Another World...
and Chris Lemmon
Chris Lemmon
-History:Lemmon was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of actress Cynthia Stone and actor Jack Lemmon. With a natural talent for music, he was encouraged by his father to study piano. Lemmon considered playing piano professionally after having graduated from the California Institute of the...
continuing their roles as Laura Kelly and Richard Phillips. Laura, newly separated from her writer husband Ben Coleman, also quit catering, and became an apprentice agent. Richard, Linda's husband, was a pianist at Jasper's, but left the hangout — and his wife — by mid-season. Among Linda's eccentric co-workers were Ted Nichols (Philip Charles MacKenzie
Philip Charles MacKenzie
Philip Charles MacKenzie is an American actor and television director. He is best known for his role as Donald Maltby on Brothers, and as Ted Nichols on Open House, which he worked on with his current wife Alison LaPlaca.-Career:...
), her main rival; Scott Babylon (Danny Gans
Danny Gans
Daniel Davies Gans was an American singer and comedian who found regional success as a vocal impressionist.-Career:...
), a talented impressionist; Margo Van Meter (a then-unknown Ellen DeGeneres
Ellen DeGeneres
Ellen Lee DeGeneres is an American stand-up comedienne, television host and actress. She hosts the syndicated talk show The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and was also a judge on American Idol for one year, having joined the show in its ninth season....
), the sassy, man-hungry secretary; and Roger McSwain (Nick Tate
Nick Tate
Nicholas John "Nick" Tate is an Australian actor best known for his role as Eagle pilot Alan Carter in both seasons of the 1970s science fiction television series Space: 1999, as well as for playing the role of Gordon Hamilton's errant brother James in the 1980's soap opera "Sons and...
), the manager of Juan Verde.
The premise of the series had originated in the series finale of Duet, in which Linda was introduced to Ted, whom brought her to Juan Verde to start her new career. LaPlaca and MacKenzie had been dating for several years by the time they worked opposite each other on Duet and Open House (in fact, they first worked together on a 1985 episode of MacKenzie's former series, Brothers
Brothers (TV series)
Brothers is an American television sitcom that originally aired on the cable network Showtime from July 13, 1984 to July 25, 1989, totaling 115 episodes. It was produced by Gary Nardino Productions, in association with two separate divisions of Paramount; first by the Paramount Video division and...
). In 1992, two years after the cancellation of Open House, LaPlaca and MacKenzie were married.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Alison LaPlaca | Linda Phillips |
| Mary Page Keller | Laura Kelly |
| Chris Lemmon | Richard Phillips |
| Philip Charles MacKenzie | Ted Nichols |
| Danny Gans | Scott Babylon |
| Ellen DeGeneres Ellen DeGeneres Ellen Lee DeGeneres is an American stand-up comedienne, television host and actress. She hosts the syndicated talk show The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and was also a judge on American Idol for one year, having joined the show in its ninth season.... |
Margo Van Meter |
| Nick Tate | Roger McSwain |
| Ginger Orsi | Amanda Phillips |
| Jon Cypher Jon Cypher -Biography:Born in New York City, Cypher graduated from Erasmus Hall High School in 1949 and Brooklyn College in 1953. He made his television debut as the Prince in the original 1957 production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella opposite Julie Andrews in the title role... |
John Green |
| Arleen Sorkin Arleen Sorkin Arleen Sorkin is an American actress, screenwriter, presenter and comedienne. Sorkin is known for portraying Calliope Jones on the NBC daytime serial Days of our Lives and for voicing Batman DC comic supervillainess Harley Quinn in Batman: The Animated Series and the many animated series and... |
Geneva |
Episode list
| № | Episode title | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Fish Out of Water" | 1989 August 27 |
| 2 | "Scenes from an Office Marriage" | 1989 September 3 |
| 3 | "Going for Broker" | 1989 September 10 |
| 4 | "Whodunnit?" | 1989 September 17 |
| 5 | "Second Honeymoon Anyone?" | 1989 September 24 |
| 6 | "Dome Sweet Dome" | 1989 October 1 |
| 7 | "Let's Get Physicals" | 1989 October 8 |
| 8 | "Married Without Children" | 1989 October 22 |
| 9 | "Torn Between Two Houses" | 1989 October 29 |
| 10 | "Murder, He Wrote" | 1989 November 5 |
| 11 | "In Vegas... with Showgirls! (Part 1)" | 1989 November 12 |
| 12 | "In Vegas... with Showgirls! (Part 2)" | 1989 November 19 |
| 13 | "Parade of Homes" | 1989 November 26 |
| 14 | "Bye, Bye Boris" | 1990 January 7 |
| 15 | "Who Framed Roger McSwain?" | 1990 January 14 |
| 16 | "An Unmarried Woman" | 1990 February 4 |
| 17 | "The Bad Seed" | 1990 February 11 |
| 18 | "Lost Weekend" | 1990 February 18 |
| 19 | "Dumbstruck" | 1990 February 25 |
| 20 | "Brother, Can You Spare a Grand?" | 1990 March 18 |
| 21 | "New Kid in Town" | 1990 April 1 |
| 22 | "The Real Estate Thing" | 1990 April 8 |
| 23 | "The Roast" | 1990 April 29 |
| 24 | "First Impression" | 1990 May 6 |