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The Nanny (TV series)
Encyclopedia
The Nanny is an American television sitcom co-produced by Sternin & Fraser Ink, Inc., and Fran Drescher
in association with TriStar Television
for the CBS
network. It first aired from November 3, 1993, to May 12, 1999, and starred Fran Drescher
as Fran Fine, a Jewish Queens
native who casually becomes the nanny of three children from the New York/British upper class.
Created and executive produced by Drescher and her then-husband Peter Marc Jacobson
, The Nanny took much of its inspiration from Drescher's personal life growing up in Queens, involving names and characteristics based on her relatives and friends. The show earned a Rose d'Or
and one Emmy Award
, out of a total of thirteen nominations, and Drescher was twice nominated for a Golden Globe as well as for an Emmy. Since the early 2000s the sitcom has also spawned several foreign adaptations, loosely inspired by the original scripts.
) peddling cosmetics, and quickly stumbles upon the opportunity to become the nanny for his three children. Soon Fran, with her off-beat nurturing and no-nonsense honesty, touches the whole family as she gives the prim-and-proper Maxwell and his children a dose of 'Queens logic,' helping them to become a healthy, happy family; a family that she later fully joins when she becomes engaged and then married to Maxwell. She then adds to this family of five when she and Maxwell have fraternal twins.
Other characters include sardonic butler Niles (Daniel Davis
), and Maxwell's socialite business partner C.C. Babcock (Lauren Lane
), who views Fran with jealousy and skepticism.
, keeping the same set of characters for its entire six-season run. Numerous secondary characters and love interests for these characters appeared intermittently to complement storylines that generally revolved around this core group.
as Fran's paternal aunt Freida Fine, Steve Lawrence
as Fran's never before seen father Morty Fine, Pamela Anderson
as Fran's nemesis Heather Biblow, Ray Charles
as Yetta's fiancé Sammy, Spalding Gray
as Dr. Jack Miller, Fred Stoller
as the frequently featured pharmacist Fred, and Andrew Levitas
as Maggie's boyfriend.
Some celebrities guested as characters in single episodes, such as John Astin
, Roseanne as Fran's cousin Sheila, and Joan Collins
as Maxwell's stepmother, Robert Vaughn
as Maxwell's father. Others appeared as themselves, primarily in connection with Maxwell's business relations, such as Bob Barker
, Chevy Chase
, Billy Ray Cyrus
, Lesley-Anne Down
, Erik Estrada
, Dan Aykroyd
, Joe Lando
, Richard Kline
, Bette Midler
and Eydie Gorme
, Jane Seymour
, Cloris Leachman
, Elizabeth Taylor
, Elton John
, Jason Alexander
, Lamb Chop
and Shari Lewis
, Andrew Dice Clay
, Lynn Redgrave
, Hugh Grant
, Margaret Cho
, Jeanne Cooper
, Melody Thomas Scott
, Eric Braeden
, Shemar Moore
, Joshua Morrow
and Hunter Tylo
; media personalities Roger Clinton, Jr.
, Alicia Machado
, Rita Moreno
(who would later play Fran's mother, Dori, on her later series, Happily Divorced
, Jay Leno
, David Letterman
, and Donald Trump
; and musicians Lisa Loeb
, Eartha Kitt
, Brian Setzer
, Celine Dion
. Rapper Coolio
, Whoopi Goldberg
, Steve Lawrence
and Rosie O'Donnell
guest starred as both characters and themselves in different episodes. Two-time "Survivor
" Jonathan Penner
appeared as Fran's former fiance, Danny Imperialli. James Marsden
appeared as Maggie's boyfriend, Eddie, and Telma Hopkins
appeared as Fran's "mother" in the episode Fran's Roots. Scott Baio
made an appearance as a rookie doctor who was a former schoolmate of Fran's (Fran was his first patient...ever). Jon Stewart
portrayed a Jewish love interest of Fran's until it was discovered at a family wedding that the two were cousins; on the June 29, 2011 airing of The Daily Show, Stewart stated he agreed to make an appearance after receiving a personal call from Fran Drescher.
Marvin Hamlisch
appeared as Fran's former high school music teacher, a Marvin Hamlisch look-alike.
Fran Drescher also reprised her role of Bobbi Fleckman from the 1984 film This Is Spinal Tap
and made a cameo appearance
as actor "Fran Drescher" in the third to last episode. Charles Shaughnessy had a double role as a foreign sultan in one episode. Drescher's real-life parents, Morty and Sylvia, initially appeared as a couple in the waiting room of Grace's therapist and made subsequent appearances as Fran's Uncle Stanley and Aunt Rose; her Pomeranian
Chester
appeared as C.C.'s pet in more than a dozen episodes. Renée Taylor's husband, actor Joseph Bologna
, and their son Gabriel Bologna, had minor roles as doctors on the show. Ray Romano
appeared as Fran's former high school classmate Ray Barone, linking The Nanny with his comedy Everybody Loves Raymond
. Tom Bergeron
appeared as himself, the host of Hollywood Squares
, in an episode in which Maxwell appeared as a star on the show's board as a replacement for Andrew Lloyd Webber
. Tyne Daly
appeared as a fellow nanny facing forced retirement. David Letterman
made an uncredited appearance during a fantasy sequence, where Fran describes how she exaggerated her fame to impress a pen pal.
", performed by Gwen Verdon
from the 1966 Broadway musical Sweet Charity
, but this theme was scrapped after the pilot episode, and it was only heard in the pilot episode in the original CBS run (all syndicated airings of the episode replaced the theme, and removed any mention of it in the closing credits).
The second theme song, "The Nanny Named Fran", which was written and performed by Ann Hampton Callaway
and her sister Liz Callaway
, would be the theme song for the remainder of the series (and would replace the former theme in syndicated reruns of the pilot episode). Two instrumental versions of the theme song were used in the closing credits, one that is a direct instrumental version of the theme (used only in a few season one episodes), and another that sounds slightly different from the theme song (although the end of the closing theme features an instrumental portion taken almost directly from the main title theme).
Along with the change of the theme song from "If My Friends Could See Me Now" to "The Nanny Named Fran" came the change of the opening sequence, which like the theme, describes (with the main characters in animated form) the story of how Fran Fine went from being fired from the bridal shop by Danny Imperiali to becoming the nanny of the Sheffield children. The opening sequence remained the same even though Renée Taylor, Ann Guilbert and Rachel Chagall began to be credited as "starring" in the in-show credits beginning in season five. The only change to the sequence was in season six when producer Kathy Landsberg was promoted to co-executive producer of the series as her producer credit was moved to the in-show credits, while the creator credits of Drescher and Jacobson, and the developer credits of Sternin and Fraser were added in its place.
The animated opening sequence begins with Fran Fine walking into the bridal shop, only to be kicked out by Danny Imperalli. Then, she hitches a ride in a cab, crosses the bridge from Queens
, New York to Manhattan
and arrives at the Sheffield mansion. Maxwell Sheffield opens the door and observes Fran. Then, he pulls her inside and she falls into the flower pot. Niles dusts her off and puts a cap on her head that reads Nanny. Fran whistles for Maggie, Brighton and Gracie and the four of them form a conga line. C. C. arrives at the door and Fran bumps the door with her hip to close it in her face. Finally, the Sheffields, Niles and Fran gather on the couch for a group picture similar to the old One Day at a Time
series opening.
and her family in London, England, that the pair came up with early drafts for The Nanny. Inspired by a culture-clash shopping tour with Lawson's teenage daughter which saw Drescher actually functioning in a less parental but "humorous [...] kind of Queens logic, self-serving advice" mode, she convinced her husband starting work of what she called "doing a spin on [the 1965 film] The Sound of Music
." However, it was not until a transatlantic flight to Paris that Drescher persuaded fellow passenger Jeff Sagansky, at the time president of CBS Corporation
, for whom she and Lawson had starred in the short-lived TV series Princesses
, to meet with her and Jacobson when Drescher returned to Los Angeles.
Back in Los Angeles, the pair pitched their idea to Tim Flack and Joe Voci, both in comedy development at CBS. Sagansky brought in experienced producers Robert Sternin and Prudence Fraser, another husband-and-wife team with whom Drescher had worked before while guesting on Who's the Boss?
in 1985 and 1986. Interested, both couples teamed up to write the script for the pilot together, creating a character with the intention to build off Drescher's image. "Our business strategy was to create a show that was going to complement our writing, complement me as a talent," Drescher said in a 1997 interview with the Hollywood Reporter. As a result, the characters draw deeply on the Drescher family, including Fran Fine's parents, Sylvia and Morty, and grandmother Yetta, who all were named after their real-life counterparts.
generally on Friday nights. During later seasons the taping was no longer performed before an audience due to the complexities of the fantasy
sequences, costume changes, etc. On Mondays, the cast went through the script as a table read. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, they rehearsed before the series' producers and execuitives. And, on Thursdays and Fridays, the series was shot using a multi-camera set up in front of a live studio audience.
Nearly 100 crew members were involved in the shooting of a single episode. Although Drescher, Fraser, Jacobson and Sternin, the show's only executive producers for the first four seasons, coordinated "pretty much everything" at the beginning, according to Sternin, they eventually found their niche and in the following years, Drescher and Sternin decided to focus on writing story outlines, while Jacobson presided over the writing team, and Fraser observed the run-throughs. The four of them were later joined by Frank Lombardi, Caryn Lucas and Diane Wilk, who served as the series' executive producer throughout the fifth and sixth season respectively.
s, which contributed heavily to the success of the series. Much of this formula was character-based, with all major characters possessing a specific trait or quirks that provided a source of parody for other characters. The conflicting elements of each character's own comedy were often played off against one another (Fran and Maxwell, Niles and C.C., Maggie and Brighton). Occasionally the characters would break the fourth wall
and comment on the situations themselves, or Fran would comment to the audience or look into the camera. Other running gags are the many references to Beatles songs and the musicals Fiddler On The Roof
and My Fair Lady
. Most of the humor Fran uses is aimed toward a Jewish audience. She makes references to Yiddish words and teaches the Sheffield children to be stereotypical Jews (to never pay retail price, to go after men like doctors, etc.) Most of this humor stems from scenes including her mother Sylvia.
At times, they would also make fun of the star's previous careers or real life off-screen time. This was noticeable when Yetta saw her reflection in the mirror and thought she was seeing Millie Helper from The Dick Van Dyke Show
(the role that Guilbert played on that long-running show), Maxwell remembering how he wanted to hire a former cast member from Days of Our Lives
but thought he wasn't "British" enough (a reference to Charles Shaughnessy's former series), C.C. using props to hide Lauren Lane's real-life pregnancy at the time, and Fran meeting her idol—Fran Drescher—who gave her a hint on what she (the TV Fran) was going to do in the next scene in the second-to-last episode in the last season.
More running gags include Fran's frequent references to classic TV sitcoms (Such as Gilligan's Island
and Bewitched
) and her many eccentric family members (some never shown, most of them dying); Fran lying about her age—especially to men; Maxwell fighting through his rivalry with actual Broadway producer Andrew Lloyd Webber
; Sylvia loving food in excess; Niles delivering sharp one-liners, often aimed at C.C.; C.C. cold-heartedly reacting to situations that are usually sentimental to others (i.e. the death of Bambi
's mother); Gracie psychologically analyzing various situations; Niles getting fired because he embarrasses Maxwell or gives Fran ideas that Maxwell extremely dislikes (like the time when Niles suggested that Max, C.C. and Fran go to the Streisand house); Fran and Val lacking intelligence and obsessing over material possessions (i.e. clothes); Yetta making disconnected comments revealing her senility; Fran criticizing Maxwell's and Niles' reserved and inhibited British nature; Brighton morphing into a hopeless dork; Fran's attraction to Jewish males; Maxwell passing up the incredibly popular musical, Cats
, then becoming upset when such an idiotic idea became a success; Niles' last name never being revealed; C.C. covering her long-unrevealed name (finally given as Chastity Claire in the series finale); C.C. failing to remember the names of the Sheffield children (even convinced by Niles in one episode that there was another child Sydney; note: she didn't have trouble remembering in the early seasons); Sylvia constantly nagging Fran to get married; Fran finding solace in food when she's depressed; Fran's dad, Morty often featured in the series but never actually seen (until portrayed by Steve Lawrence
in a few later episodes); Morty's only physical trait being the fact that he is bald, in which he is always comically losing his wig, and has several head mannequins to hold different wigs; Niles offering obvious hints to Maxwell and Fran about them realizing they should be together and hints from each other; C.C. pining over her unrequited romantic interest in Maxwell; and Fran obsessing with Barbra Streisand
. There was also the occasional tryst between Niles and C.C., contrasting with their typical open disdain for each other, which was actually love. Season 4 featured a running gag where both Fran and Maxwell kept secret from the other household members "The Thing" (the fact that in the season 3 finale Maxwell tells Fran he loves her, but then in the Season 4 premiere he takes it back). It's also following "The Thing" that whenever Maxwell makes comments denying he has feelings for Fran, she is temporary "paralyzed" (she can't feel her arm, her entire left side shuts down, etc.).
In addition, there is also a great deal of physical comedy
in The Nanny including exaggerated falls and chases. Drescher's facial expressions, when shocked or surprised, can also be seen as reminiscent of Lucille Ball
's portrayals of Lucy Ricardo and Lucy Carmichael. The parallels were suggested in a few episodes, where an exasperated Mr. Sheffield refers to Fran as "Mrs Carmichael," and asks in another: "Mr. Mooney fire you from the bank again?" Another Lucy reference (in which the family travels to Hollywood) is when he alludes to Fran and "Ethel" stealing John Wayne's footprints, and again when Maxwell says "Miss Fine, you got' some 'splaining to do!" like Ricky Ricardo often said to Lucy Ricardo. The episode that featured a visit from Elizabeth Taylor began with Maxwell and Niles trying to hide the visit from Fran ("Boys, boys, boys. Now do you think my mother gave birth to a dummy 25 years ago?") followed by her gripe "You never introduce me to any of the stars that you know; I've got a good mind to take Little Ricky and... oh. Never mind." Also, there was a reference from the episode of I Love Lucy
called "Ricky has Labor Pains" where, Lucy and Ethel dress up like men and go to Ricky's daddy shower. In an episode of The Nanny, Fran sees a man watching I Love Lucy
on TV and the theme song plays and she gets a sneaky look on her face and she goes to Mr. Sheffield's mens only club dressed as a man. Viewers for Quality Television
calls The Nanny "the 90s version of I Love Lucy
. It was well written and entertaining".
Although soon emerging as a favorite among the company, sponsors questioned whether the writers had ventured too far in terms of ethnicity and Drescher acted too obviously Jewish. The actress, however, declined to change Fran Fine into an Italian American: "On TV, you have to work fast, and the most real, the most rooted in reality to me is Jewish. I wanted to do it closest to what I knew." By contrast, the producers came to the conclusion that to oppose her should be a family of British origin, so "she wouldn't come across as Jewish so much as the American you were rooting for," Sternin explained. "The idea was to make her the American girl who happens to be Jewish rather than the Jewish girl working for the WASP
s."
Note: Ratings for the first four seasons are for household ratings, not viewership figures.
(now Sony Pictures Television
) on various broadcast television networks in the U.S. The show had aired on Lifetime Television from 2000 until 2008. The show can be seen currently on Nick at Nite
in the United States, The Hallmark Channel in the Philippines, Super RTL
and VOX in Germany, and Go!
and TV1
in Australia. On February 8, 2010, Fran Drescher hosted a week-long marathon of The Nanny, titled "Valentine Schmalentine", on Nick at Nite. The success of the stunt led to Fran hosting "Falling for Fran," a similar week-long Valentine's Day marathon in February 2011.
On August 2, 2010, The Nanny began airing on TV Land
, commencing with a week-long marathon. On January 1, 2011, The Nanny began airing on Antenna TV
, a new digital broadcast network. On August 16, 2011, "The Nanny" began airing on Logo (TV channel)
.
In France, the show was broadcast and rebroadcast the same multi-and was a huge success on the channel M6
. The French title is "Une Nounou d'enfer" (A Nanny from hell/wonderful). The character of Fran Fine is very famous in France.
Other countries where The Nanny airs include the following:
{|class="messagebox large-talk collapsible collapsed"
|-
!align="left"| International syndication
|-
|{|
|-
! Country / Region
! Name
! Television Network
! Dubbing
/ Subtitles
|-
|
Austria
| Die Nanny (English: "The Nanny")
| ORF1
(2005), ATV
(2006–2010)
| German
|-
|
Australia
| The Nanny
| Network Ten
(1995–1999), Nine Network
(2008), Go!
(2009–present), GEM
(2010–present), TV1
| None
|-
|
Belgium
| The Nanny
| Eén
, Vt4
, vijftv
| Dutch subtitles
|-
|
Brazil
| Nanny
| Rede Record
, Rede 21
, SET
| Portuguese dubbing
|-
|
Catalonia
| La Tata (English: "The Nanny")
| TV3
| Catalan dubbing
|-
|
Independent State of Croatia
| Dadilja (English: "Nanny")
| RTL Televizija
| Croatian
subtitles
|-
|
Czech Republic
| Chůva k pohledání (English: "Nanny")
| TV Prima
| Czech dubbing
|-
|
Denmark
| Alletiders barnepige (English: "Full time nanny")
| TV3
| Danish subtitles
|-
|
Estonia
| Nanny
| TV3
| Estonian
subtitles
|-
|
Finland
| Nanny
| Nelonen
| Finnish subtitles
|-
|
Early Modern France
| Une nounou d'enfer (English: "A Wonderful Nanny")
| M6,
| French
|-
|
Germany
| Die Nanny (English: "The Nanny")
| VOX (2002–2010), Super RTL
(2007–present), RTL
(1995–2002), FOX Germany
(2010)
| German dubbing
|-
|
Greece
| Ntanta amesou draseos (English: "Urgent nanny")
| Mega
, Alpha
, Macedonia TV
| Greek subtitles
|-
|
Hungary
| A dadus (English: "The Nanny")
| TV2
, RTL Klub
, Cool TV
|Hungarian
|-
|
Israel
| Nanny
| Channel 3
| Hebrew subtitles
|-
|
Italy
| La tata (English: "The Nanny")
| Canale 5
(1995), Italia 1
(1996–2000)
| Italian dubbing
|-
|
Lithuania
| Auklė (English: "Nanny")
| TV3
| Lithuanian dubbing
|-
|
Malaysia
| The Nanny
| TV2
, Astro
| Bahasa Malaysia
subtitles
|-
|
Netherlands
| The Nanny
| RTL 5
| Dutch subtitles
|-
|
Poland
| Pomoc domowa (English: "House helper")
| TV Puls
, Polsat
, TVN7
| Polish
|-
|
Portugal
| Competente e Descarada (English: "Competent and shameless")
| TVI
| ?
|-
|
Kingdom of Romania
| Dădaca (English: "Nanny")
| Pro TV
, Pro Cinema
| ?
|-
|
Russia
| Няня (English: "Nanny")
| Domashny
, ДТВ
| Russian dubbing
|-
|
Sweden
| Nanny
| TV3
| Swedish subtitles
|-
|
Switzerland
| Die Nanny (English: "The Nanny")
| SF2 (2006–2008)
| German
|-
|
Thailand
| The Nanny
| Hallamrk
, TrueVisions
| Thai
|-
|
United Kingdom
| The Nanny
| Living TV
| None
|-
|
Canada
| The Nanny
| TVTropolis
| None
|-
|}
has released seasons 1, 2 & 3 of The Nanny on DVD in regions 1, 2 & 4. Season 3 was released on March 17, 2009 in Region 1, almost 3 years after the release of season 2. http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Nanny-Season-3-News/11096
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|rowspan="2" bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|||rowspan="2" bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|||colspan="3" bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|||rowspan="2" bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|
|-
|bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|||bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|||bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|
|-
| The Complete 1st Season || align="center"|22 || July 12, 2005 || August 9, 2005 || July 13, 2005 ||
|-
| The Complete 2nd Season || align="center"|26 || May 2, 2006 || June 8, 2006 || May 10, 2006 ||
|-
| The Complete 3rd Season || align="center"|27 || March 17, 2009 || March 5, 2009 || March 11, 2009 ||
|-
| The Complete 4th Season || align="center"|26 || TBA || TBA || TBA ||
|-
| The Complete 5th Season || align="center"|23 || TBA || TBA || TBA ||
|-
| The Complete 6th Season || align="center"|22 || TBA || TBA || TBA ||
|}
|- bgcolor="#B0C4DE" align="center"
! style="background-color: #BCBCBC"|Year
! style="background-color: #BCBCBC"|Award
! style="background-color: #BCBCBC"|Category
! style="background-color: #BCBCBC"|Recipient
|-
| 1996 || BMI Film & TV Awards || BMI TV Music Award || Timothy Thompson
|-
| 1995 || Primetime Emmy Award
|| Outstanding Individual Achievement in Costuming for a Series || Brenda Cooper
(For episode "Canasta Masta")
|-
| 2008 || TV Land Awards
|| Favorite Nanny || Fran Drescher
|-
| 1999 || TeleVizier-Ring Gala, Netherlands || Silver TeleVizier-Tulip ||–
|-
| 1996 || Young Artist Awards || Best Performance by a Young Actor – TV Comedy Series || Benjamin Salisbury
|-
|}
The Nanny was shown in more than eighty countries worldwide. In addition, several local versions of the show have been produced in other countries. These shows follow the original scripts very closely, but with minor alterations in order to adapt to their respective country's culture. The remake in Russia was so popular that some original American writers were commissioned to write new scripts after all original episodes were remade.
Fran Drescher
Francine Joy "Fran" Drescher is an American film and television actress, comedian, screenwriter, director, producer, author, singer, talk show host, political lobbyist and health activist...
in association with TriStar Television
Sony Pictures Television
Sony Pictures Television, Inc. is an American and global television production/distribution subsidiary of Sony Pictures Entertainment. In turn, the latter is part of the Japanese conglomerate Sony.-Background:...
for the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
network. It first aired from November 3, 1993, to May 12, 1999, and starred Fran Drescher
Fran Drescher
Francine Joy "Fran" Drescher is an American film and television actress, comedian, screenwriter, director, producer, author, singer, talk show host, political lobbyist and health activist...
as Fran Fine, a Jewish Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
native who casually becomes the nanny of three children from the New York/British upper class.
Created and executive produced by Drescher and her then-husband Peter Marc Jacobson
Peter Marc Jacobson
Peter Marc Jacobson is an American television writer, director and producer, and actor. He is best known as the co-creator of the popular sitcom The Nanny which he created and wrote with his then wife actress Fran Drescher, who was the star of the series.-Producer:*What I Like About You Peter Marc...
, The Nanny took much of its inspiration from Drescher's personal life growing up in Queens, involving names and characteristics based on her relatives and friends. The show earned a Rose d'Or
Rose d'Or
The Rose d’Or is one of the most important international festivals in entertainment television. It was founded in Montreux in 1961 and has taken place in Lucerne since 2004. Producers, executives from independent and public service broadcasters and heads of production companies from over 40...
and one Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
, out of a total of thirteen nominations, and Drescher was twice nominated for a Golden Globe as well as for an Emmy. Since the early 2000s the sitcom has also spawned several foreign adaptations, loosely inspired by the original scripts.
Plot
Jewish-American Fran Fine, fresh out of her job as a bridal consultant in her fiance's shop, first appears on the door step of Broadway producer Maxwell Sheffield (Charles ShaughnessyCharles Shaughnessy
Charles George Patrick Shaughnessy, 5th Baron Shaughnessy , simply known as Charles Shaughnessy, is a British peer, and television, theatre and film actor. He is known for his roles on American television, as Shane Donovan on the soap opera Days of our Lives and as Maxwell Sheffield on the sitcom...
) peddling cosmetics, and quickly stumbles upon the opportunity to become the nanny for his three children. Soon Fran, with her off-beat nurturing and no-nonsense honesty, touches the whole family as she gives the prim-and-proper Maxwell and his children a dose of 'Queens logic,' helping them to become a healthy, happy family; a family that she later fully joins when she becomes engaged and then married to Maxwell. She then adds to this family of five when she and Maxwell have fraternal twins.
Other characters include sardonic butler Niles (Daniel Davis
Daniel Davis
Daniel Davis is an American stage, screen, and television actor best known for portraying Niles the butler on the popular sitcom The Nanny and his guest appearances as Professor Moriarty on Star Trek: The Next Generation, affecting an upper class English accent for both roles.-Biography:Davis was...
), and Maxwell's socialite business partner C.C. Babcock (Lauren Lane
Lauren Lane
Lauren Lane is a television and stage actress. She is best known for her role as C. C. Babcock on The Nanny.-Biography:Lane was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and raised in Texas....
), who views Fran with jealousy and skepticism.
Main cast
The Nanny maintained an ensemble castEnsemble cast
An ensemble cast is made up of cast members in which the principal actors and performers are assigned roughly equal amounts of importance and screen time in a dramatic production. This kind of casting became more popular in television series because it allows flexibility for writers to focus on...
, keeping the same set of characters for its entire six-season run. Numerous secondary characters and love interests for these characters appeared intermittently to complement storylines that generally revolved around this core group.
| Character | Actor |
|---|---|
| Fran Fine | Fran Drescher Fran Drescher Francine Joy "Fran" Drescher is an American film and television actress, comedian, screenwriter, director, producer, author, singer, talk show host, political lobbyist and health activist... |
| Maxwell Sheffield | Charles Shaughnessy Charles Shaughnessy Charles George Patrick Shaughnessy, 5th Baron Shaughnessy , simply known as Charles Shaughnessy, is a British peer, and television, theatre and film actor. He is known for his roles on American television, as Shane Donovan on the soap opera Days of our Lives and as Maxwell Sheffield on the sitcom... |
| Niles | Daniel Davis Daniel Davis Daniel Davis is an American stage, screen, and television actor best known for portraying Niles the butler on the popular sitcom The Nanny and his guest appearances as Professor Moriarty on Star Trek: The Next Generation, affecting an upper class English accent for both roles.-Biography:Davis was... |
| C. C. Babcock | Lauren Lane Lauren Lane Lauren Lane is a television and stage actress. She is best known for her role as C. C. Babcock on The Nanny.-Biography:Lane was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and raised in Texas.... |
| Margaret Sheffield | Nicholle Tom Nicholle Tom Nicholle Tom is an American actress, best known for her role as Maggie Sheffield on The Nanny.-Career:Since 2006, Tom has starred in the IFC original The Minor Accomplishments of Jackie Woodman as Tara, an underling at a film production company.Before her fame on The Nanny, she was known for... |
| Brighton Sheffield | Benjamin Salisbury Benjamin Salisbury Benjamin David Salisbury is an American actor best known for playing the role of Brighton Sheffield on the CBS television sitcom The Nanny from 1993 to 1999.-Biography:... |
| Grace Sheffield | Madeline Zima Madeline Zima Madeline Rose Zima is an American actress. She is mostly known for her six years as Grace Sheffield on the TV series The Nanny or more recently as Mia Lewis on the Showtime dramedy Californication and as Gretchen Berg on Heroes.-Early life:Zima was born in New Haven, Connecticut, to Marie and... |
| Sylvia Fine | Renée Taylor Renee Taylor Renée Taylor is an American actress, Academy Award nominated writer and one-time director, best-known for having played Fran Drescher's outspoken mother, Sylvia Fine, on the TV series The Nanny.- Career :... |
| Yetta Rosenberg | Ann Morgan Guilbert Ann Morgan Guilbert Ann Morgan Guilbert , sometimes credited as Ann Guilbert, is an American actress, who played the neighbor Millie Helper in 61 episodes of the early 1960s’ sitcom The Dick Van Dyke Show, and later Yetta Rosenberg, Fran Fine’s doddering grandmother, in 56 episodes of the 1990s’ sitcom The Nanny... |
| Val Toriello | Rachel Chagall Rachel Chagall Rachel Chagall is an American actress, who specialized in comedic roles. She best known for roles as Gaby on the film Gaby: A True Story , , for which she was nominated for Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama , and as Val Toriello on The Nanny .- Life and career :Born as... |
Guest stars
Although largely operating around the main ensemble cast, The Nanny featured an enormous number of guest stars over the years. Notable repeat guests included Lainie KazanLainie Kazan
Lainie Kazan is an American actress and singer.-Personal life:Kazan was born Lanie Levine in Brooklyn, New York City, the daughter of a Russian Ashkenazi Jewish father who worked as a bookie and a Turkish Sephardic Jewish mother, Carole, whom Kazan has described as "neurotic, fragile and...
as Fran's paternal aunt Freida Fine, Steve Lawrence
Steve Lawrence
Steve Lawrence is an American singer and actor, perhaps best known as a member of a duo with his wife Eydie Gormé, billed as "Steve and Eydie"...
as Fran's never before seen father Morty Fine, Pamela Anderson
Pamela Anderson
Pamela Denise Anderson is a Canadian-American actress, model, producer, author, activist, and former showgirl, known for her roles on the television series Home Improvement, Baywatch, and V.I.P. She was chosen as a Playmate of the Month for Playboy magazine in February 1990...
as Fran's nemesis Heather Biblow, Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
as Yetta's fiancé Sammy, Spalding Gray
Spalding Gray
Spalding Rockwell Gray was an American actor, playwright, screenwriter, performance artist and monologuist...
as Dr. Jack Miller, Fred Stoller
Fred Stoller
Frederick "Fred" Stoller is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and voice artist, best known for his frequent guest starring as Gerard on the CBS sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond...
as the frequently featured pharmacist Fred, and Andrew Levitas
Andrew Levitas
Andrew Levitas is an American painter, sculptor, filmmaker, writer, producer, photographer, and actor,A mainstay at city theatres, museums, and galleries at a very young age, Andrew was surrounded by many of the brightest and most unusual artists of a generation...
as Maggie's boyfriend.
Some celebrities guested as characters in single episodes, such as John Astin
John Astin
John Allen Astin is an American actor who has appeared in numerous films and television shows, and is best known for the role of Gomez Addams on The Addams Family, and other similarly eccentric comedic characters.-Early years:...
, Roseanne as Fran's cousin Sheila, and Joan Collins
Joan Collins
Joan Henrietta Collins, OBE , is an English actress, author, and columnist. Born in Paddington and raised in Maida Vale, Collins grew up during the Second World War. At the age of nine, she made her stage debut in A Doll's House and after attending school, she was classically trained as an actress...
as Maxwell's stepmother, Robert Vaughn
Robert Vaughn
Robert Francis Vaughn, , is an American actor noted for stage, film and television work. His best known roles include the suave spy Napoleon Solo in the 1960s television series The Man from U.N.C.L.E., wealthy detective Harry Rule in the 1970s television series The Protectors, Albert Stroller in...
as Maxwell's father. Others appeared as themselves, primarily in connection with Maxwell's business relations, such as Bob Barker
Bob Barker
Robert William "Bob" Barker is a former American television game show host. He is best known for hosting CBS's The Price Is Right from 1972 to 2007, making it the longest-running daytime game show in North American television history, and for hosting Truth or Consequences from 1956 to 1975.Born...
, Chevy Chase
Chevy Chase
Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase is an American comedian, writer, and television and film actor, born into a prominent entertainment industry family. Chase worked a plethora of odd jobs before moving into comedy acting with National Lampoon...
, Billy Ray Cyrus
Billy Ray Cyrus
William "Billy" Ray Cyrus is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor and philanthropist, who helped make country music a worldwide phenomenon...
, Lesley-Anne Down
Lesley-Anne Down
Lesley-Anne Down is a British film and television actress, former model and singer.Down achieved fame as Georgina Worsley in the ITV drama series Upstairs, Downstairs...
, Erik Estrada
Erik Estrada
Henry Enrique "Erik" Estrada is an American police officer and actor, known for his co-starring lead role in the 1977–1983 United States police television series CHiPs...
, Dan Aykroyd
Dan Aykroyd
Daniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM is a Canadian comedian, actor, screenwriter, musician, winemaker and ufologist. He was an original cast member of Saturday Night Live, an originator of The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters and has had a long career as a film actor and screenwriter.-Early...
, Joe Lando
Joe Lando
Joseph John Lando is an American actor, most recognizable for playing Byron Sully on the TV series Dr...
, Richard Kline
Richard Kline
Richard Kline is an American actor and television director. He is best known for playing the sleazy neighbor and used car salesman, Larry Dallas, on the sitcom, Three's Company.-Early life:...
, Bette Midler
Bette Midler
Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...
and Eydie Gorme
Eydie Gormé
Eydie Gormé is an American singer, specializing, with her husband, Steve Lawrence, in traditional pop music, in the form of ballads and breezy swing. She has earned numerous awards, including the Grammy and the Emmy...
, Jane Seymour
Jane Seymour (actress)
Jane Seymour, OBE is an English actress best known for her performances in the James Bond film Live and Let Die , East of Eden , Onassis: The Richest Man in the World , and the American television series Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman...
, Cloris Leachman
Cloris Leachman
Cloris Leachman is an American actress of stage, film and television. She has won eight Primetime Emmy Awards—more than any other performer—and one Daytime Emmy Award...
, Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor
Dame Elizabeth Rosemond "Liz" Taylor, DBE was a British-American actress. From her early years as a child star with MGM, she became one of the great screen actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age...
, Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, Jason Alexander
Jason Alexander
Jay Scott Greenspan , better known by his professional name of Jason Alexander, is an American actor, writer, comedian, television director, producer, and singer. He is best known for his role as George Costanza on the television series Seinfeld, appearing in the sitcom from 1989 to 1998...
, Lamb Chop
Lamb Chop (puppet)
Lamb Chop is a sock puppet sheep created by comedian and ventriloquist Shari Lewis. In 1957, Lamb Chop, a ewe, first appeared with Lewis on Hi Mom, a local morning show that aired on WNBC in New York....
and Shari Lewis
Shari Lewis
Shari Lewis was an American ventriloquist, puppeteer, and children's television show host, most popular during the 1960s and 1990s...
, Andrew Dice Clay
Andrew Dice Clay
Andrew Dice Clay is an American comedian and actor who played the lead role in the film The Adventures of Ford Fairlane.Clay has been in several movies and has released a number of stand-up albums...
, Lynn Redgrave
Lynn Redgrave
Lynn Rachel Redgrave, OBE was an English actress.A member of the well-known British family of actors, Redgrave trained in London before making her theatrical debut in 1962...
, Hugh Grant
Hugh Grant
Hugh John Mungo Grant is an English actor and film producer. He has received a Golden Globe Award, a BAFTA, and an Honorary César. His films have earned more than $2.4 billion from 25 theatrical releases worldwide. Grant achieved international stardom after appearing in Richard Curtis's...
, Margaret Cho
Margaret Cho
Margaret Cho is an American comedian, fashion designer, actress, author, and recording artist. Cho is best known for her stand-up routines, through which she critiques social and political problems, especially those pertaining to race and sexuality. She has also directed and appeared in music...
, Jeanne Cooper
Jeanne Cooper
Wilma Jeanne Cooper , best known as Jeanne Cooper, is an American actress best known for her portrayal of Katherine Chancellor on the daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless...
, Melody Thomas Scott
Melody Thomas Scott
Melody Thomas Scott is an American actress, best known for playing Nikki Newman on the soap opera The Young and the Restless since 1979.-Early Training:Melody Thomas Scott has been a working actress since the age of three...
, Eric Braeden
Eric Braeden
Eric Braeden is a German-American film and television actor, best known for his role as Victor Newman on the soap opera The Young and the Restless and as John Jacob Astor IV in the 1997 film Titanic...
, Shemar Moore
Shemar Moore
Shemar Franklin Moore is an American actor and former male fashion model. His most notable roles are that of Malcolm Winters on The Young and the Restless from 1994 to 2005, Derek Morgan on CBS's Criminal Minds, and as the third permanent host of Soul Train from 1999 to 2003.-Early life:Moore was...
, Joshua Morrow
Joshua Morrow
Joshua Jacob Morrow is an American actor and former pop singer who plays the role of Nicholas Newman on The Young and the Restless.-Private life:In 2001, Joshua married his longtime girlfriend, Tobe Keeney...
and Hunter Tylo
Hunter Tylo
Hunter Tylo is an American actress, Author and former model. She is best known for her role as Taylor Hayes on The Bold and the Beautiful. She originated the role in 1990, and still continues to play it today....
; media personalities Roger Clinton, Jr.
Roger Clinton, Jr.
Roger Cassidy Clinton is an American actor and musician and the half-brother of former President Bill Clinton.Roger Clinton was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas , the son of Virginia Clinton Kelley and Roger M...
, Alicia Machado
Alicia Machado
Yoseph Alicia Machado Fajardo is an actress, singer and former Miss Universe. She was the fourth woman from Venezuela to capture the Miss Universe crown.-Career:...
, Rita Moreno
Rita Moreno
Rita Moreno is a Puerto Rican singer, dancer and actress. She is the only Hispanic and one of the few performers who have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony, and was the second Puerto Rican to win an Academy Award....
(who would later play Fran's mother, Dori, on her later series, Happily Divorced
Happily Divorced
Happily Divorced is an American sitcom created by Fran Drescher and Peter Marc Jacobson. Inspired by their experiences, the series, which became TV Land's third original scripted series following Hot in Cleveland and Retired at 35, premiered on June 15, 2011, and revolves around a Los Angeles...
, Jay Leno
Jay Leno
James Douglas Muir "Jay" Leno is an American stand-up comedian and television host.From 1992 to 2009, Leno was the host of NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Beginning in September 2009, Leno started a primetime talk show, titled The Jay Leno Show, which aired weeknights at 10:00 p.m. ,...
, David Letterman
David Letterman
David Michael Letterman is an American television host and comedian. He hosts the late night television talk show, Late Show with David Letterman, broadcast on CBS. Letterman has been a fixture on late night television since the 1982 debut of Late Night with David Letterman on NBC...
, and Donald Trump
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
; and musicians Lisa Loeb
Lisa Loeb
Lisa Anne Loeb is an American singer-songwriter and actress. She launched her career in 1994 with the song, "Stay ". She was the first artist to have a number one single in the United States while not signed to a recording contract.Loeb's efforts now include music, film, television, voice-over...
, Eartha Kitt
Eartha Kitt
Eartha Mae Kitt was an American singer, actress, and cabaret star. She was perhaps best known for her highly distinctive singing style and her 1953 hit recordings of "C'est Si Bon" and the enduring Christmas novelty smash "Santa Baby." Orson Welles once called her the "most exciting woman in the...
, Brian Setzer
Brian Setzer
Brian Setzer is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He first found widespread success in the early 1980s with the 1950s-style rockabilly revival group The Stray Cats, and revitalized his career in the late 1990s with a jazz-oriented big band.-Career:Setzer was born in Massapequa, New York...
, Celine Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
. Rapper Coolio
Coolio
Artis Leon Ivey Jr. , better known by the stage name Coolio, is an American musician, rapper, actor and record producer.-Late 80s:He recorded two singles in the late 80s, titled "Watcha Gonna Do" and "You're Gonna Miss Me"...
, Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg is an American comedian, actress, singer-songwriter, political activist, author and talk show host.Goldberg made her film debut in The Color Purple playing Celie, a mistreated black woman in the Deep South. She received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won...
, Steve Lawrence
Steve Lawrence
Steve Lawrence is an American singer and actor, perhaps best known as a member of a duo with his wife Eydie Gormé, billed as "Steve and Eydie"...
and Rosie O'Donnell
Rosie O'Donnell
Roseann "Rosie" O'Donnell is an American stand-up comedian, actress, author and television personality. She has also been a magazine editor and continues to be a celebrity blogger, LGBT rights activist, television producer and collaborative partner in the LGBT family vacation company R Family...
guest starred as both characters and themselves in different episodes. Two-time "Survivor
Survivor (U.S. TV series)
Survivor is an American version of the Survivor reality television game show, itself derived from the Swedish television series Expedition Robinson originally created in 1997 by Charlie Parsons. The series premiered on May 31, 2000 on CBS...
" Jonathan Penner
Jonathan Penner
Jonathan Lindsay Penner is an American actor, writer and film producer known for starring in The Last Supper and the television series Rude Awakening and The Naked Truth, as well as for appearing on the television show Survivor.-Life and career:Penner was born in New York City...
appeared as Fran's former fiance, Danny Imperialli. James Marsden
James Marsden
James Paul Marsden is an American actor, singer and former Versace model. He is known for playing the superhero Cyclops in the first three X-Men films and for his roles in other commercially successful films such as Hop, Superman Returns, Hairspray, Enchanted, The Box, and 27 Dresses.-Early life...
appeared as Maggie's boyfriend, Eddie, and Telma Hopkins
Telma Hopkins
Telma Louise Hopkins is an American singer and television actress. A member of the 1970s pop group Tony Orlando and Dawn, she later starred in several television sitcoms, including Bosom Buddies, Gimme a Break!, Family Matters, Getting By, and Half & Half...
appeared as Fran's "mother" in the episode Fran's Roots. Scott Baio
Scott Baio
Scott Vincent James Baio is an American actor and television director, best known for his roles as Chachi Arcola on the sitcom Happy Days and its spin-off, Joanie Loves Chachi, and as the title character on the sitcom Charles in Charge....
made an appearance as a rookie doctor who was a former schoolmate of Fran's (Fran was his first patient...ever). Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart is an American political satirist, writer, television host, actor, media critic and stand-up comedian...
portrayed a Jewish love interest of Fran's until it was discovered at a family wedding that the two were cousins; on the June 29, 2011 airing of The Daily Show, Stewart stated he agreed to make an appearance after receiving a personal call from Fran Drescher.
Marvin Hamlisch
Marvin Hamlisch
Marvin Frederick Hamlisch is an American composer. He is one of only thirteen people to have been awarded Emmys, Grammys, Oscars, and a Tony . He is also one of only two people to EGOT and also win a Pulitzer Prize...
appeared as Fran's former high school music teacher, a Marvin Hamlisch look-alike.
Fran Drescher also reprised her role of Bobbi Fleckman from the 1984 film This Is Spinal Tap
This Is Spinal Tap
This Is Spinal Tap is an American 1984 rock musical mockumentary directed by Rob Reiner about the fictional heavy metal band Spinal Tap...
and made a cameo appearance
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
as actor "Fran Drescher" in the third to last episode. Charles Shaughnessy had a double role as a foreign sultan in one episode. Drescher's real-life parents, Morty and Sylvia, initially appeared as a couple in the waiting room of Grace's therapist and made subsequent appearances as Fran's Uncle Stanley and Aunt Rose; her Pomeranian
Pomeranian (dog)
The Pomeranian is a breed of dog of the Spitz type, named for the Pomerania region in Central Europe . Classed as a toy dog breed because of its small size, the Pomeranian is descended from the larger Spitz type dogs, specifically the German Spitz...
Chester
Chester Drescher
Chester Drescher was a performing dog born in 1982 in Queens, New York City, New York, USA; he died in 2000.He was Fran Drescher's Pomeranian. He played C.C. Babcock's dog on The Nanny, who seemed to like nanny Fran Fine better than he did C.C...
appeared as C.C.'s pet in more than a dozen episodes. Renée Taylor's husband, actor Joseph Bologna
Joseph Bologna
Joseph Bologna is an American actor.-Life and career:Bologna was born in Brooklyn, New York. He attended Brown University, where he majored in art history. After a hitch with the marines, Bologna was hired to produce and direct Manhattan-based TV commercials.The actor has a long history in film...
, and their son Gabriel Bologna, had minor roles as doctors on the show. Ray Romano
Ray Romano
Raymond Albert "Ray" Romano is an American actor, writer and stand-up comedian, best known for his roles on the sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond and in the Ice Age film series. He recently starred in the TNT comedy-drama Men of a Certain Age.-Early life:Romano was born in Queens, New York to Italian...
appeared as Fran's former high school classmate Ray Barone, linking The Nanny with his comedy Everybody Loves Raymond
Everybody Loves Raymond
Everybody Loves Raymond is an American television sitcom that originally ran on CBS from September 13, 1996, to May 16, 2005. Many of the situations from the show are based on the real-life experiences of lead actor Ray Romano, creator/producer Phil Rosenthal and the show's writing staff...
. Tom Bergeron
Tom Bergeron
Tom Bergeron is an American television personality and game show host, best known as the host of the ABC reality series Dancing with the Stars and host of America's Funniest Home Videos . He was also host of Hollywood Squares and a fill-in host for Who Wants to Be a Millionaire...
appeared as himself, the host of Hollywood Squares
Hollywood Squares
Hollywood Squares is an American panel game show in which two contestants play tic-tac-toe to win cash and prizes. The "board" for the game is a 3 × 3 vertical stack of open-faced cubes, each occupied by a celebrity seated at a desk and facing the contestants...
, in an episode in which Maxwell appeared as a star on the show's board as a replacement for Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
. Tyne Daly
Tyne Daly
Tyne Daly is an American stage and screen actress, widely known for her work as Detective Mary Beth Lacey in the television series Cagney & Lacey and as Maxine Gray in the television series Judging Amy. She is also known for her role as Alice Henderson in television series Christy...
appeared as a fellow nanny facing forced retirement. David Letterman
David Letterman
David Michael Letterman is an American television host and comedian. He hosts the late night television talk show, Late Show with David Letterman, broadcast on CBS. Letterman has been a fixture on late night television since the 1982 debut of Late Night with David Letterman on NBC...
made an uncredited appearance during a fantasy sequence, where Fran describes how she exaggerated her fame to impress a pen pal.
Theme song
The show's original theme was the song "If My Friends Could See Me NowIf My Friends Could See Me Now
"If My Friends Could See Me Now", with music by Cy Coleman and lyrics by Dorothy Fields, is a number from the 1966 Broadway musical Sweet Charity. In the musical, the character of Charity, played in original New York cast by Gwen Verdon, reflects on her charmed life as she spends time with...
", performed by Gwen Verdon
Gwen Verdon
Gwenyth Evelyn “Gwen” Verdon was an actress and dancer who won four Tony awards for her musical comedy performances. With flaming red hair and an endearing quaver in her voice, Verdon was a critically acclaimed dancer on Broadway in the 1950s and 1960s...
from the 1966 Broadway musical Sweet Charity
Sweet Charity
Sweet Charity is a musical with music by Cy Coleman, lyrics by Dorothy Fields and book by Neil Simon. It was directed and choreographed for Broadway by Bob Fosse starring his wife and muse Gwen Verdon. It is based on Federico Fellini's screenplay for Nights of Cabiria...
, but this theme was scrapped after the pilot episode, and it was only heard in the pilot episode in the original CBS run (all syndicated airings of the episode replaced the theme, and removed any mention of it in the closing credits).
The second theme song, "The Nanny Named Fran", which was written and performed by Ann Hampton Callaway
Ann Hampton Callaway
Ann Hampton Callaway is a multiplatinum-selling singer, composer, lyricist, pianist, and actress. She is best known for writing and singing the theme to the TV series The Nanny, writing songs for Barbra Streisand and starring in the Broadway musical Swing!.-Career:Callaway was described by the New...
and her sister Liz Callaway
Liz Callaway
Liz Callaway is an American actress and singer, famous for providing the singing voices of many female characters in films, such as Anya in Anastasia, Odette in The Swan Princess, and Kiara in The Lion King II:Simba's Pride....
, would be the theme song for the remainder of the series (and would replace the former theme in syndicated reruns of the pilot episode). Two instrumental versions of the theme song were used in the closing credits, one that is a direct instrumental version of the theme (used only in a few season one episodes), and another that sounds slightly different from the theme song (although the end of the closing theme features an instrumental portion taken almost directly from the main title theme).
Opening credits
The opening sequence for the pilot featured Fran in front of a white background, getting herself made up going to work as the nanny; at the end of the sequence, it shows Fran heading toward a stroller and a lipstick print appears to the above right.Along with the change of the theme song from "If My Friends Could See Me Now" to "The Nanny Named Fran" came the change of the opening sequence, which like the theme, describes (with the main characters in animated form) the story of how Fran Fine went from being fired from the bridal shop by Danny Imperiali to becoming the nanny of the Sheffield children. The opening sequence remained the same even though Renée Taylor, Ann Guilbert and Rachel Chagall began to be credited as "starring" in the in-show credits beginning in season five. The only change to the sequence was in season six when producer Kathy Landsberg was promoted to co-executive producer of the series as her producer credit was moved to the in-show credits, while the creator credits of Drescher and Jacobson, and the developer credits of Sternin and Fraser were added in its place.
The animated opening sequence begins with Fran Fine walking into the bridal shop, only to be kicked out by Danny Imperalli. Then, she hitches a ride in a cab, crosses the bridge from Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
, New York to Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
and arrives at the Sheffield mansion. Maxwell Sheffield opens the door and observes Fran. Then, he pulls her inside and she falls into the flower pot. Niles dusts her off and puts a cap on her head that reads Nanny. Fran whistles for Maggie, Brighton and Gracie and the four of them form a conga line. C. C. arrives at the door and Fran bumps the door with her hip to close it in her face. Finally, the Sheffields, Niles and Fran gather on the couch for a group picture similar to the old One Day at a Time
One Day at a Time
One Day at a Time is an American situation comedy on the CBS network that aired from December 16, 1975 until May 28, 1984. It portrays Ann Romano, a divorced mother, played by Bonnie Franklin, her two teenage daughters Julie and Barbara Cooper and Schneider, their building superintendent .The show...
series opening.
Development
It was not until 1991 – the same year Drescher decided to visit friend Twiggy LawsonTwiggy
Lesley Lawson née Hornby known as Twiggy is an English model, actress, and singer. In the early-1960s she became a prominent British teenage model of swinging sixties London with others such as Penelope Tree....
and her family in London, England, that the pair came up with early drafts for The Nanny. Inspired by a culture-clash shopping tour with Lawson's teenage daughter which saw Drescher actually functioning in a less parental but "humorous [...] kind of Queens logic, self-serving advice" mode, she convinced her husband starting work of what she called "doing a spin on [the 1965 film] The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music (film)
Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music is a 1965 American musical film directed by Robert Wise and starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. The film is based on the Broadway musical The Sound of Music, with songs written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, and with the musical...
." However, it was not until a transatlantic flight to Paris that Drescher persuaded fellow passenger Jeff Sagansky, at the time president of CBS Corporation
CBS Corporation
CBS Corporation is an American media conglomerate focused on commercial broadcasting, publishing, billboards and television production, with most of its operations in the United States. The President and CEO of the company is Leslie Moonves. Sumner Redstone, owner of National Amusements, is CBS's...
, for whom she and Lawson had starred in the short-lived TV series Princesses
Princesses (TV series)
Princesses was a short-lived American situation comedy that aired on CBS in 1991. The series was produced by Universal Television and only lasted five episodes because of low ratings, likely due to direct competition from ABC's Top 30 hit Family Matters and NBC's Top 40 show Matlock. The series...
, to meet with her and Jacobson when Drescher returned to Los Angeles.
Back in Los Angeles, the pair pitched their idea to Tim Flack and Joe Voci, both in comedy development at CBS. Sagansky brought in experienced producers Robert Sternin and Prudence Fraser, another husband-and-wife team with whom Drescher had worked before while guesting on Who's the Boss?
Who's the Boss?
Who's the Boss? is an American sitcom created by Martin Cohan and Blake Hunter, which aired on ABC from September 20, 1984 to April 25, 1992...
in 1985 and 1986. Interested, both couples teamed up to write the script for the pilot together, creating a character with the intention to build off Drescher's image. "Our business strategy was to create a show that was going to complement our writing, complement me as a talent," Drescher said in a 1997 interview with the Hollywood Reporter. As a result, the characters draw deeply on the Drescher family, including Fran Fine's parents, Sylvia and Morty, and grandmother Yetta, who all were named after their real-life counterparts.
Crew
Most of all early The Nanny episodes were shot in front of a live studio audience on Stage 6 at the Culver StudiosCulver Studios
The Culver Studios is a historic Colonial-styled movie studio located at 9336 W. Washington Blvd., in Culver City, California. It was the site of filming for Gone with the Wind, Citizen Kane and other classics from Hollywood’s Golden Age...
generally on Friday nights. During later seasons the taping was no longer performed before an audience due to the complexities of the fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
sequences, costume changes, etc. On Mondays, the cast went through the script as a table read. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, they rehearsed before the series' producers and execuitives. And, on Thursdays and Fridays, the series was shot using a multi-camera set up in front of a live studio audience.
Nearly 100 crew members were involved in the shooting of a single episode. Although Drescher, Fraser, Jacobson and Sternin, the show's only executive producers for the first four seasons, coordinated "pretty much everything" at the beginning, according to Sternin, they eventually found their niche and in the following years, Drescher and Sternin decided to focus on writing story outlines, while Jacobson presided over the writing team, and Fraser observed the run-throughs. The four of them were later joined by Frank Lombardi, Caryn Lucas and Diane Wilk, who served as the series' executive producer throughout the fifth and sixth season respectively.
Humor
The comedy in The Nanny was formulated with many running gagRunning gag
A running gag, or running joke, is a literary device that takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling....
s, which contributed heavily to the success of the series. Much of this formula was character-based, with all major characters possessing a specific trait or quirks that provided a source of parody for other characters. The conflicting elements of each character's own comedy were often played off against one another (Fran and Maxwell, Niles and C.C., Maggie and Brighton). Occasionally the characters would break the fourth wall
Fourth wall
The fourth wall is the imaginary "wall" at the front of the stage in a traditional three-walled box set in a proscenium theatre, through which the audience sees the action in the world of the play...
and comment on the situations themselves, or Fran would comment to the audience or look into the camera. Other running gags are the many references to Beatles songs and the musicals Fiddler On The Roof
Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in Tsarist Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters by Sholem Aleichem...
and My Fair Lady
My Fair Lady
My Fair Lady is a musical based upon George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion and with book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe...
. Most of the humor Fran uses is aimed toward a Jewish audience. She makes references to Yiddish words and teaches the Sheffield children to be stereotypical Jews (to never pay retail price, to go after men like doctors, etc.) Most of this humor stems from scenes including her mother Sylvia.
At times, they would also make fun of the star's previous careers or real life off-screen time. This was noticeable when Yetta saw her reflection in the mirror and thought she was seeing Millie Helper from The Dick Van Dyke Show
The Dick Van Dyke Show
The Dick Van Dyke Show is an American television sitcom that initially aired on the Columbia Broadcasting System from October 3, 1961, until June 1, 1966. The show was created by Carl Reiner and starred Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore. It was produced by Reiner with Bill Persky and Sam Denoff....
(the role that Guilbert played on that long-running show), Maxwell remembering how he wanted to hire a former cast member from Days of Our Lives
Days of our Lives
Days of our Lives is a long running daytime soap opera broadcast on the NBC television network. It is one of the longest-running scripted television programs in the world, airing nearly every weekday in the United States since November 8, 1965. It has since been syndicated to many countries around...
but thought he wasn't "British" enough (a reference to Charles Shaughnessy's former series), C.C. using props to hide Lauren Lane's real-life pregnancy at the time, and Fran meeting her idol—Fran Drescher—who gave her a hint on what she (the TV Fran) was going to do in the next scene in the second-to-last episode in the last season.
More running gags include Fran's frequent references to classic TV sitcoms (Such as Gilligan's Island
Gilligan's Island
Gilligan's Island is an American television series created and produced by Sherwood Schwartz and originally produced by United Artists Television. The situation comedy series featured Bob Denver; Alan Hale, Jr.; Jim Backus; Natalie Schafer; Tina Louise; Russell Johnson; and Dawn Wells. It aired for...
and Bewitched
Bewitched
Bewitched is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for eight seasons on ABC from 1964 to 1972, starring Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York and Dick Sargent , Agnes Moorehead, and David White. The show is about a witch who marries a mortal and tries to lead the life of a typical suburban...
) and her many eccentric family members (some never shown, most of them dying); Fran lying about her age—especially to men; Maxwell fighting through his rivalry with actual Broadway producer Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
; Sylvia loving food in excess; Niles delivering sharp one-liners, often aimed at C.C.; C.C. cold-heartedly reacting to situations that are usually sentimental to others (i.e. the death of Bambi
Bambi
Bambi is a 1942 American animated film directed by David Hand , produced by Walt Disney and based on the book Bambi, A Life in the Woods by Austrian author Felix Salten...
's mother); Gracie psychologically analyzing various situations; Niles getting fired because he embarrasses Maxwell or gives Fran ideas that Maxwell extremely dislikes (like the time when Niles suggested that Max, C.C. and Fran go to the Streisand house); Fran and Val lacking intelligence and obsessing over material possessions (i.e. clothes); Yetta making disconnected comments revealing her senility; Fran criticizing Maxwell's and Niles' reserved and inhibited British nature; Brighton morphing into a hopeless dork; Fran's attraction to Jewish males; Maxwell passing up the incredibly popular musical, Cats
Cats (musical)
Cats is a musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot...
, then becoming upset when such an idiotic idea became a success; Niles' last name never being revealed; C.C. covering her long-unrevealed name (finally given as Chastity Claire in the series finale); C.C. failing to remember the names of the Sheffield children (even convinced by Niles in one episode that there was another child Sydney; note: she didn't have trouble remembering in the early seasons); Sylvia constantly nagging Fran to get married; Fran finding solace in food when she's depressed; Fran's dad, Morty often featured in the series but never actually seen (until portrayed by Steve Lawrence
Steve Lawrence
Steve Lawrence is an American singer and actor, perhaps best known as a member of a duo with his wife Eydie Gormé, billed as "Steve and Eydie"...
in a few later episodes); Morty's only physical trait being the fact that he is bald, in which he is always comically losing his wig, and has several head mannequins to hold different wigs; Niles offering obvious hints to Maxwell and Fran about them realizing they should be together and hints from each other; C.C. pining over her unrequited romantic interest in Maxwell; and Fran obsessing with Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
. There was also the occasional tryst between Niles and C.C., contrasting with their typical open disdain for each other, which was actually love. Season 4 featured a running gag where both Fran and Maxwell kept secret from the other household members "The Thing" (the fact that in the season 3 finale Maxwell tells Fran he loves her, but then in the Season 4 premiere he takes it back). It's also following "The Thing" that whenever Maxwell makes comments denying he has feelings for Fran, she is temporary "paralyzed" (she can't feel her arm, her entire left side shuts down, etc.).
In addition, there is also a great deal of physical comedy
Physical comedy
Physical comedy, also known as slapstick, is a comedic performance relying mostly on the use of the body to convey humour.Physical comedy, whether conveyed by a pratfall , a silly face, or the action of walking into walls, is a common and rarely subtle form of comedy...
in The Nanny including exaggerated falls and chases. Drescher's facial expressions, when shocked or surprised, can also be seen as reminiscent of Lucille Ball
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
's portrayals of Lucy Ricardo and Lucy Carmichael. The parallels were suggested in a few episodes, where an exasperated Mr. Sheffield refers to Fran as "Mrs Carmichael," and asks in another: "Mr. Mooney fire you from the bank again?" Another Lucy reference (in which the family travels to Hollywood) is when he alludes to Fran and "Ethel" stealing John Wayne's footprints, and again when Maxwell says "Miss Fine, you got' some 'splaining to do!" like Ricky Ricardo often said to Lucy Ricardo. The episode that featured a visit from Elizabeth Taylor began with Maxwell and Niles trying to hide the visit from Fran ("Boys, boys, boys. Now do you think my mother gave birth to a dummy 25 years ago?") followed by her gripe "You never introduce me to any of the stars that you know; I've got a good mind to take Little Ricky and... oh. Never mind." Also, there was a reference from the episode of I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy is an American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley. The black-and-white series originally ran from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, on the Columbia Broadcasting System...
called "Ricky has Labor Pains" where, Lucy and Ethel dress up like men and go to Ricky's daddy shower. In an episode of The Nanny, Fran sees a man watching I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy is an American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley. The black-and-white series originally ran from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, on the Columbia Broadcasting System...
on TV and the theme song plays and she gets a sneaky look on her face and she goes to Mr. Sheffield's mens only club dressed as a man. Viewers for Quality Television
Quality TeleVision
Q was a commercial television station in the Philippines and it is owned and operated by GMA Network, Inc. An airtime block agreement between GMA Network Inc. and ZOE Broadcasting Network started its commercial operation in November 2005 using DZOE-TV channel 11 frequency...
calls The Nanny "the 90s version of I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy is an American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley. The black-and-white series originally ran from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, on the Columbia Broadcasting System...
. It was well written and entertaining".
Reception
The show performed poorly its first year. When it was nearly canceled, Sagansky stepped in as its champion. According to Jacobson: "At all those affiliate meetings, he used to say, 'Stick by The Nanny!' He knew it was something special." The sitcom was the first new show delivered to CBS for the 1993 season and the highest-tested pilot at the network in years. The series was also hugely successful internationally, especially in Australia, where it was one of the highest rated programs during the mid-late 1990s.Although soon emerging as a favorite among the company, sponsors questioned whether the writers had ventured too far in terms of ethnicity and Drescher acted too obviously Jewish. The actress, however, declined to change Fran Fine into an Italian American: "On TV, you have to work fast, and the most real, the most rooted in reality to me is Jewish. I wanted to do it closest to what I knew." By contrast, the producers came to the conclusion that to oppose her should be a family of British origin, so "she wouldn't come across as Jewish so much as the American you were rooting for," Sternin explained. "The idea was to make her the American girl who happens to be Jewish rather than the Jewish girl working for the WASP
White Anglo-Saxon Protestant
White Anglo-Saxon Protestant or WASP is an informal term, often derogatory or disparaging, for a closed group of high-status Americans mostly of British Protestant ancestry. The group supposedly wields disproportionate financial and social power. When it appears in writing, it is usually used to...
s."
Ratings
| Season | № of episodes |
Original airdates | Notes | Nielsen ratings | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiere date | End date | Ranking | (in millions) | ||||
| 1 | 22 | November 3, 1993 | May 16, 1994 | #60 | 9.52 | ||
| 2 | 26 | May 22, 1995 | #24 | 12.5 | |||
| 3 | 27 | September 11, 1995 | May 20, 1996 | Included "Oy to the World" animated episode. | #17 | 12.4 | |
| 4 | 26 | September 18, 1996 | May 21, 1997 | #45 | 9.1 | ||
| 5 | 23 | October 1, 1997 | May 13, 1998 | #50 | 11.5 | ||
| 6 | 22 | September 30, 1998 | Six unaired episodes were shown after series finale. | #84 | 9.3 | ||
Note: Ratings for the first four seasons are for household ratings, not viewership figures.
Reunion special
| Name | Air date |
|---|---|
| The Nanny Reunion: A Nosh to Remember The Nanny Reunion: A Nosh to Remember The Nanny Reunion: A Nosh to Remember is a one-hour special that reunited the cast of The Nanny. It originally aired on Lifetime on December 6, 2004. The cast members reminisce about the show and present exclusive blooper footage never shown on television, as well as an update on their current... |
December 6, 2004 |
Syndication
The show began off-network syndication in September 1997, distributed by Columbia TriStar TelevisionColumbia TriStar Television
Columbia TriStar Television was the third name of the television studio Screen Gems, named after its then-current 1991 home video division....
(now Sony Pictures Television
Sony Pictures Television
Sony Pictures Television, Inc. is an American and global television production/distribution subsidiary of Sony Pictures Entertainment. In turn, the latter is part of the Japanese conglomerate Sony.-Background:...
) on various broadcast television networks in the U.S. The show had aired on Lifetime Television from 2000 until 2008. The show can be seen currently on Nick at Nite
Nick at Nite
Nick at Nite is the nighttime Cable network that broadcasts over the channel space of Nickelodeon on Sundays from 8.p.m.-7.am., Monday through Fridays from 9 p.m.-7 a.m. and Saturdays from 10 p.m.-6 a.m. . Though it shares channel space with Nickelodeon, A.C. Nielsen Co...
in the United States, The Hallmark Channel in the Philippines, Super RTL
Super RTL
Super RTL is a Cologne-based German television network operated by RTL Disney Fernsehen GmbH & Co. KG. It was the second German television channel aimed mostly at children...
and VOX in Germany, and Go!
Go! (Australian TV channel)
GO! is an Australian free-to-air standard definition digital television channel launched by the Nine Network on Sunday 9 August 2009.-Origins:...
and TV1
TV1 (Australia)
TV1 is an Australian cable and satellite channel available on Foxtel, Austar and Optus Television's subscription platforms.-History:TV1 launched as part of the original Galaxy lineup. The channel is jointly owned by Sony International Television, Universal Studios and Paramount. The channel shows...
in Australia. On February 8, 2010, Fran Drescher hosted a week-long marathon of The Nanny, titled "Valentine Schmalentine", on Nick at Nite. The success of the stunt led to Fran hosting "Falling for Fran," a similar week-long Valentine's Day marathon in February 2011.
On August 2, 2010, The Nanny began airing on TV Land
TV Land
TV Land is an American cable television network launched on April 29, 1996. It is owned by MTV Networks, a division of Viacom, which also owns Paramount Pictures, and networks such as MTV and Nickelodeon...
, commencing with a week-long marathon. On January 1, 2011, The Nanny began airing on Antenna TV
Antenna TV
Antenna TV is an American digital broadcast television network, primarily featuring classic television series from the 1950s to the 1990s, along with some feature films. It is owned by Tribune Broadcasting, a division of the Chicago-based Tribune Company...
, a new digital broadcast network. On August 16, 2011, "The Nanny" began airing on Logo (TV channel)
Logo (TV channel)
Logo is an American digital cable television channel owned by Viacom's MTV Networks division. Launched in June 2005, the channel's programs are geared towards the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community...
.
International syndication
Outside of North America, The Nanny is broadcast in various other countries and television networks, each with their own schedule for the series. In the United Kingdom, the entire series aired on the digital network Living.In France, the show was broadcast and rebroadcast the same multi-and was a huge success on the channel M6
M6
-In roads:* M6 motorway, a motorway in Great Britain* M-6 , a state highway in the Grand Rapids, Michigan area* Frederik Meijer Trail, formerly the M-6 Trail, a bike trail running along the M-6 freeway in the Grand Rapids, Michigan area...
. The French title is "Une Nounou d'enfer" (A Nanny from hell/wonderful). The character of Fran Fine is very famous in France.
Other countries where The Nanny airs include the following:
{|class="messagebox large-talk collapsible collapsed"
|-
!align="left"| International syndication
|-
|{|
|-
! Country / Region
! Name
! Television Network
! Dubbing
Dubbing (filmmaking)
Dubbing is the post-production process of recording and replacing voices on a motion picture or television soundtrack subsequent to the original shooting. The term most commonly refers to the substitution of the voices of the actors shown on the screen by those of different performers, who may be...
/ Subtitles
Subtitle (captioning)
Subtitles are textual versions of the dialog in films and television programs, usually displayed at the bottom of the screen. They can either be a form of written translation of a dialog in a foreign language, or a written rendering of the dialog in the same language, with or without added...
|-
|
Austria| Die Nanny (English: "The Nanny")
| ORF1
ORF1
ORF eins is an Austrian television channel. It was the first television channel in Austria, started in 1955.ORF eins is one of four public TV channels in Austria. ORF eins broadcasts TV series and featured films, whereas ORF2 focuses on cultural programming and information. ORF Sport Plus is the...
(2005), ATV
ATV (Austria)
ATV is currently the largest commercial television station in Austria and was originally the first commercial station to be aired via transmitters after a long time when commercial broadcasts in Austria were only possible via satellite or cable and the national public broadcaster ORF held a...
(2006–2010)
| German
|-
|
Australia| The Nanny
| Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
(1995–1999), Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
(2008), Go!
Go! (Australian TV channel)
GO! is an Australian free-to-air standard definition digital television channel launched by the Nine Network on Sunday 9 August 2009.-Origins:...
(2009–present), GEM
GEM (Australian TV channel)
GEM is an Australian free-to-air high definition digital television channel, launched by the Nine Network on Sunday 26 September 2010 at 6am...
(2010–present), TV1
TV1 (Australia)
TV1 is an Australian cable and satellite channel available on Foxtel, Austar and Optus Television's subscription platforms.-History:TV1 launched as part of the original Galaxy lineup. The channel is jointly owned by Sony International Television, Universal Studios and Paramount. The channel shows...
| None
|-
|
Belgium| The Nanny
| Eén
EEN
EEN may refer to:* Eastern Educational Television Network, the original name for American Public Television.* Elemental Energy, a Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game booster pack.* Emerald Energy, an oil company...
, Vt4
VT4
VT4 is a Flemish commercial television channel. It is part of ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG.The channel began broadcasting on 1 February 1995. The channel initially had no Belgian broadcasting license and was transmitted via London . The channel now broadcasts legally from Zaventem in Belgium...
, vijftv
VIJFtv
VIJFtv started in October 2004 as SBS Belgium's second channel and a sister channel to VT4. Although the channel's target audience are females, the first thing VIJFtv broadcast was a soccer game. By doing that the station made sure men would set their TV up to view VIJFtv.2005 was a strong year for...
| Dutch subtitles
|-
|
Brazil| Nanny
| Rede Record
Rede Record
Rede Record de Televisão is a Brazilian television network, founded in 1953 by Paulo Machado de Carvalho, also founder of Rádio Record. Currently it is owned by businessman Edir Macedo, founder and bishop of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God. Since 2007 it is Brazil's second largest...
, Rede 21
Rede 21
Rede 21 is a Brazilian television network, launched on October 21, 1996 , now as Canal 21, broadcasting only for São Paulo. Start to change to network in 2003 with the TV Brasília affiliation. Before this, Salvador and Macapá pass to have the 21 signal...
, SET
Sony Entertainment Television
Sony Entertainment Television is a series of general entertainment television channels, owned by Sony Pictures Television. At least 9 International versions of this channel exist:*Sony Entertainment Television Asia...
| Portuguese dubbing
|-
|
Catalonia| La Tata (English: "The Nanny")
| TV3
TV3 (Catalonia)
TV3 is the primary television channel of Catalan public broadcaster Televisió de Catalunya, a subsidiary of the CCMA. TV3 broadcasts programs only in Catalan, with an optional dual track in the original language for some foreign-language series and movies...
| Catalan dubbing
|-
|
Independent State of Croatia| Dadilja (English: "Nanny")
| RTL Televizija
RTL Televizija
RTL Televizija is a Croatian commercial broadcaster with national availability that has been broadcasting since April 30, 2004.RTL Televizija is 74% owned by the RTL Group....
| Croatian
Croatian language
Croatian is the collective name for the standard language and dialects spoken by Croats, principally in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Serbian province of Vojvodina and other neighbouring countries...
subtitles
|-
|
Czech Republic| Chůva k pohledání (English: "Nanny")
| TV Prima
TV Prima
TV Prima is a Czech private television station. Its channel is broadcast from Prague. Its current owner is FTV Prima, spol. s r. o., general manager Marek Singer....
| Czech dubbing
|-
|
Denmark| Alletiders barnepige (English: "Full time nanny")
| TV3
TV3 (Denmark)
TV3 Denmark is a Danish television station.TV3 is one of the channels owned by the Viasat Corporation. The sister channel is TV3+. The channels shows a lot of American and British shows, such as: Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, NCIS, Las Vegas, Bones, Two And A Half Men, Prison Break, American Idol...
| Danish subtitles
|-
|
Estonia| Nanny
| TV3
TV3 (Estonia)
TV3 is a commercial television channel targeted at an Estonian language audience owned by Viasat . It was founded in 1996 after two recent television stations, EVTV and RTV joined....
| Estonian
Estonian language
Estonian is the official language of Estonia, spoken by about 1.1 million people in Estonia and tens of thousands in various émigré communities...
subtitles
|-
|
Finland| Nanny
| Nelonen
Nelonen
Nelonen is a Finnish commercial TV channel. It started out as Helsinki's local television channel PTV in 1989 on the HTV cable network, which name was changed first to PTV4 and then to Nelonen. It started on June 1, 1997. Nelonen, in Finnish, means the glyph of the number four. The channel is...
| Finnish subtitles
|-
|
Early Modern France| Une nounou d'enfer (English: "A Wonderful Nanny")
| M6,
| French
|-
|
Germany| Die Nanny (English: "The Nanny")
| VOX (2002–2010), Super RTL
Super RTL
Super RTL is a Cologne-based German television network operated by RTL Disney Fernsehen GmbH & Co. KG. It was the second German television channel aimed mostly at children...
(2007–present), RTL
RTL Television
Rtl.de' redirects here. For other uses, see RTL.RTL Television , or simply RTL, is a German commercial television station distributed via cable and satellite along with DVB-T , in larger population centres...
(1995–2002), FOX Germany
Fox Channel (Germany)
Fox Channel is a German television channel dedicated to television drama series.The channel started broadcasting on the Arena platform and the Unitymedia cable network on May 20, 2008....
(2010)
| German dubbing
|-
|
Greece| Ntanta amesou draseos (English: "Urgent nanny")
| Mega
Mega Channel
Mega Channel, also known as Mega TV or just Mega, is a major television network in Greece. Teletypos S.A. was founded in 1989 under the name Teletypos Television Programmes S.A...
, Alpha
Alpha TV
Alpha TV is a Greek terrestrial channel . The station features a mix of Greek and foreign shows with an emphasis on entertainment programs. The studios are located near Athens...
, Macedonia TV
Macedonia TV
Makedonia TV is a private television station broadcasting from Thessaloniki, the capital of the Macedonia region of Greece. The network is licensed for national coverage, and is available via analogue UHF transmitters throughout Greece...
| Greek subtitles
|-
|
Hungary| A dadus (English: "The Nanny")
| TV2
TV2 (Hungary)
TV2 is a Hungarian commercial television channel operating since 1997, providing a large variety of programming. It is owned by ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG...
, RTL Klub
RTL Klub
RTL Klub is a television station owned by RTL Group and broadcast in Hungary. It was one of Hungary's first commercial TV channels and was only two days after the main rival TV2 to begin broadcasting.-About RTL Klub:...
, Cool TV
Cool TV
Cool TV is a Hungarian television channel, which migrated to Romania after being threatened with closure by Hungarian authorities. The channel was launched in 2004 in the Hungarian language, and in 2005 it also started broadcasting cool stuff....
|Hungarian
|-
|
Israel| Nanny
| Channel 3
Channel 3 (Israel)
Hot 3 is an Israeli television channel. First introduced as The Family Channel in the early 1990s and later simply as Channel 3, it was one of the very first exclusive channels of regulated cable television in Israel.At first the channel's Program Schedule was mostly made of Dramas, some American...
| Hebrew subtitles
|-
|
Italy| La tata (English: "The Nanny")
| Canale 5
Canale 5
Canale 5 is an Italian private television network of Mediaset, the media branch of Fininvest. Canale 5 was the first private television network to have a national coverage in Italy in 1980, based on a local channel, TeleMilano 58, founded in 1978....
(1995), Italia 1
Italia 1
Italia 1 is an Italian commercial television channel on the Mediaset network. It is oriented especially at young people.Italia 1 was launched in January 1982 and, originally, was owned by Rusconi; after a few months, however, due to the aggressive dumping practices of Silvio Berlusconi's rival...
(1996–2000)
| Italian dubbing
|-
|
Lithuania| Auklė (English: "Nanny")
| TV3
| Lithuanian dubbing
|-
|
Malaysia| The Nanny
| TV2
TV2 (Malaysia)
RTM2, also known as TV2 is a television station in Malaysia owned and operated by the Radio Television Malaysia, a division of the Malaysian Government. RTM2 is now broadcasting for 24 hours a day effective January 2006.- History :...
, Astro
Astro (Malaysian satellite television)
Astro is the brand name of the Malaysian direct broadcast satellite pay television service. It transmits digital satellite television and radio to households in Malaysia & Brunei...
| Bahasa Malaysia
Malay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
subtitles
|-
|
Netherlands| The Nanny
| RTL 5
RTL 5
RTL 5 is the 2nd channel of the RTL Group in the Netherlands. The channel mainly broadcasts American films and hit series but also local productions including Jensen! and Holland's Next Top Model, a Dutch version of America's Next Top Model. RTL 5 recently started airing the Dutch version of...
| Dutch subtitles
|-
|
Poland| Pomoc domowa (English: "House helper")
| TV Puls
TV Puls
TV Puls is a Polish commercial television channel, which was based on Telewizja Niepokalanów with the support of companies such as PKN Orlen, KGHM Polska Miedź, PZU Życie, Prokom and which started broadcasting in March 2001. Due to financial problems, ended broadcasting on April 1, 2003...
, Polsat
Polsat
Polsat is Poland's second biggest television channel, founded on December 5, 1992 and owned by Zygmunt Solorz-Żak.Polsat belongs to the Polsat Group , which also owns other channels:*Polsat HD*Polsat 2 International*Polsat News*TV Biznes...
, TVN7
| Polish
|-
|
Portugal| Competente e Descarada (English: "Competent and shameless")
| TVI
| ?
|-
|
Kingdom of Romania| Dădaca (English: "Nanny")
| Pro TV
Pro TV
Launched in December 1995, Pro TV reaches almost 99% of Romania’s 21.5 million people and has 48% of its broadcast schedule comprising locally-produced programs...
, Pro Cinema
PRO Cinema
PRO Cinema is a Romanian movie channel that is owned by Central European Media Enterprises and launched on April 19, 2004. It was the first Romanian TV channel dedicated exclusively to movies, and as such it attracted a significant audience from its very inception, mainly in the 18-49 urban...
| ?
|-
|
Russia| Няня (English: "Nanny")
| Domashny
Domashny
Domashny or Domashniy is a TV Network which targets female viewers aged 25–60. It was launched in March 2005. Domashny was aimed to deliver programming to capture an attractive audience in demand by advertisers, but traditionally under-served by broadcasters.CTC Media created the Domashny brand in...
, ДТВ
| Russian dubbing
|-
|
Sweden| Nanny
| TV3
TV3 (Sweden)
TV3 is a television channel targeted at a Swedish language audience owned by Viasat . It was founded on 31 December 1987 by entrepreneur Jan Stenbeck as joint Scandinavian channel, but Denmark and Norway soon got their own versions of TV3...
| Swedish subtitles
|-
|
Switzerland| Die Nanny (English: "The Nanny")
| SF2 (2006–2008)
| German
|-
|
Thailand| The Nanny
| Hallamrk
Hallmark Channel (Asia)
Diva Universal is an Asian cable and satellite television channel owned and operated by Universal Networks International. It has been available on most subscription television cable and Satellite platforms in Asia since 1 January 2008.-Operating Channels:...
, TrueVisions
TrueVisions
TrueVisions is Thailand's leading cable satellite television operator, broadcasting largely in English. Now owned by the True Corporation, the company was formerly known as the United Broadcasting Corporation , but it was rebranded in February 2007....
| Thai
|-
|
United Kingdom| The Nanny
| Living TV
| None
|-
|
Canada| The Nanny
| TVTropolis
TVtropolis
TVtropolis is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Shaw Media and Rogers Media.The channel operates two time shifted feeds: East and West .-Programming:...
| None
|-
|}
DVD releases
Sony Pictures Home EntertainmentSony Pictures Home Entertainment
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is the home video distribution arm of Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation. It was established in November 1979 as Columbia Pictures Home Entertainment, releasing 20 titles: The Anderson Tapes, Bell, Book and Candle, Born Free, Breakout,...
has released seasons 1, 2 & 3 of The Nanny on DVD in regions 1, 2 & 4. Season 3 was released on March 17, 2009 in Region 1, almost 3 years after the release of season 2. http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Nanny-Season-3-News/11096
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|rowspan="2" bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|||rowspan="2" bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|||colspan="3" bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|||rowspan="2" bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|
|-
|bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|||bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|||bgcolor="#f2f2f2"|
|-
| The Complete 1st Season || align="center"|22 || July 12, 2005 || August 9, 2005 || July 13, 2005 ||
- Commentary with Fran Drescher
- The Making of The Nanny
|-
| The Complete 2nd Season || align="center"|26 || May 2, 2006 || June 8, 2006 || May 10, 2006 ||
- None
|-
| The Complete 3rd Season || align="center"|27 || March 17, 2009 || March 5, 2009 || March 11, 2009 ||
- None
|-
| The Complete 4th Season || align="center"|26 || TBA || TBA || TBA ||
|-
| The Complete 5th Season || align="center"|23 || TBA || TBA || TBA ||
|-
| The Complete 6th Season || align="center"|22 || TBA || TBA || TBA ||
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Awards
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! style="background-color: #BCBCBC"|Year
! style="background-color: #BCBCBC"|Award
! style="background-color: #BCBCBC"|Category
! style="background-color: #BCBCBC"|Recipient
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| 1996 || BMI Film & TV Awards || BMI TV Music Award || Timothy Thompson
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| 1995 || Primetime Emmy Award
Primetime Emmy Award
The Primetime Emmy Awards are awards presented by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in recognition of excellence in American primetime television programming...
|| Outstanding Individual Achievement in Costuming for a Series || Brenda Cooper
(For episode "Canasta Masta")
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| 2008 || TV Land Awards
TV Land Awards
The TV Land Awards is an American television awards ceremony that generally commemorates shows now off the air, rather than in current production as with awards such as the Emmys. It is presented in a manner that spoofs other entertainment award ceremonies...
|| Favorite Nanny || Fran Drescher
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| 1999 || TeleVizier-Ring Gala, Netherlands || Silver TeleVizier-Tulip ||
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| 1996 || Young Artist Awards || Best Performance by a Young Actor – TV Comedy Series || Benjamin Salisbury
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Foreign adaptations
The Nanny was shown in more than eighty countries worldwide. In addition, several local versions of the show have been produced in other countries. These shows follow the original scripts very closely, but with minor alterations in order to adapt to their respective country's culture. The remake in Russia was so popular that some original American writers were commissioned to write new scripts after all original episodes were remade.