The Ellen Burstyn Show
The Ellen Burstyn Show is an American sitcom starring Ellen Burstyn. The series was produced by Touchstone Television and debuted on ABC on September 20, 1986. The series was canceled after 13 episodes.
| The Ellen Burstyn Show | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Norman Steinberg David Frankel |
| Written by | Robert Bruce Howard Gewirtz Bob Rosenfarb Norman Steinberg Martin Weiss |
| Directed by | Norman Steinberg Dolores Ferraro Sam Weisman |
| Starring | Ellen Burstyn Elaine Stritch Megan Mullally Barry Sobel Jesse Tendler |
| Opening theme | "Nothing in the World Like Love" performed by Rita Coolidge |
| Composer(s) | Artie Butler |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 (1 unaired) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Norman Steinberg |
| Producer(s) | David Frankel Ronald E. Frazier |
| Cinematography | George Spiro Dibie |
| Editor(s) | Andy Ackerman Jimmy B. Frazier |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Ellen Burstyn Productions P.S. 235 Productions Touchstone Television |
| Distributor | Disney-ABC Domestic Television |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | September 20, 1986 – September 5, 1987 |
Synopsis
Burstyn played Baltimore college professor Ellen Brewer, who sometimes had to deal not only with the students she has to tutor, but also with her meddling mother (played by fellow veteran Broadway/film actress Elaine Stritch), her divorced daughter (Megan Mullally) and her 51⁄2 year old grandson (played by Jesse Tendler).
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Ellen Burstyn | Ellen Brewer |
| Megan Mullally | Molly Brewer Ross |
| Elaine Stritch | Sydney Brewer |
| Barry Sobel | Tom Hines |
| Jesse Tendler | Nick Ross |
| Timothy Biggins | Mike Brewer |
Cancellation
The series debuted on September 20, 1986, and ran until November 15, 1986. It was cancelled after eight episodes but returned in August of 1987 to burn off the remaining five episodes. The final episode aired on September 5, 1987, ranking as the third-lowest-rated series on network television (81st out of 83 shows, with a 7.6/13 rating/share).[1]
Episodes
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pilot" | Norman Steinberg | Teleplay by: David Frankel Story by: Norman Steinberg & David Frankel | September 20, 1986 |
| 2 | "Monkey Business" | TBA | TBA | September 27, 1986 |
| 3 | "Where There's a Will" | TBA | TBA | October 4, 1986 |
| 4 | "The Guest Lecturer" | TBA | TBA | October 18, 1986 |
| 5 | "Crime and Punishment" | TBA | TBA | October 25, 1986 |
| 6 | "Sydney's Night Out" | TBA | TBA | November 1, 1986 |
| 7 | "Reading Between the Lines" | TBA | TBA | November 8, 1986 |
| 8 | "Family Affair" | TBA | TBA | November 15, 1986 |
| 9 | "Molly Sings the Blues" | TBA | TBA | August 8, 1987 |
| 10 | "Writer, Wronger" | TBA | TBA | August 15, 1987 |
| 11 | "The Box" | TBA | TBA | August 22, 1987 |
| 12 | "Writes of Passage" | TBA | TBA | September 5, 1987 |
| 13 | "I'm Dancing Faster Than I Can" | TBA | TBA | UNAIRED |