The King of Queens
Plot
Package delivery truckdriver Doug Heffernan (Kevin James), who lives in Queens with his wife, Carrie (Leah Remini), likes to hang out with his pals (Larry Romano, Victor Williams, Patton Oswalt) in his sports-bar basement where they all kid around and knock back the brewskis. But that all changes when Leah's recently widowed father, Arthur Spooner (Jerry Stiller), moves into Doug's beloved basement. Next, Carrie's actress wannabe sister, Sara (Lisa Rieffel), also moves in. Can Doug deal with it? Filmed in L.A., this series premiered September 21, 1998, on CBS. ~ Bhob Stewart, RoviCast
- Kevin James - Doug Heffernan
- Leah Remini - Carrie Heffernan
- Jerry Stiller - Arthur Spooner
- Lisa Rieffel - Sara Spooner
- Victor Williams - Deacon Palmer
Credit
Lisa Miller Katz - Casting, Michael J. Weithorn - Executive Producer, Andrew Gross - Composer (Music Score), Scott Heineman - Production Designer, Annette Sahakian Davis - Producer, Kerry Boggio - Sound/Sound DesignerEpisodes
The King of Queens: Season 01 (1998)Season one of the CBS sitcom The King of Queens introduces the world to blue-collar delivery truck driver Doug Heffernan (Kevin James) and his white-collar wife, Carrie (Leah Remini), who works for a New York law firm. Comfortably ensconced in their home in Queens, NY, Doug and Carrie are a happy couple -- especially Doug, who in his basement has set up his own private "domain," complete with the 70-inch television that his wife has bought him. This blissful situation evaporates when Carrie's widowed, tactless, constantly kvetching dad, Arthur Spooner (Jerry Stiller), moves in with the Heffernans and immediately takes over the basement, forcing Doug and his buddies Deacon (Victor Williams), Spence (Patton Oswalt), and Richie (Larry Romano) to use the garage as their new hang-out headquarters. Even worse, Carrie's irresponsible sister, Sara Spooner (Lisa Rieffel), a would-be actress, has all but moved into Doug's bathroom (but only for a few episodes, after which Sara disappears without explanation or fanfare). During the rest of the season, Doug begins to grow a bit jealous of Carrie's fast-lane Manhattan lifestyle; more relatives (mostly Doug's) invade the sanctity of the Heffernan home; Arthur tries gamely to be "one of the guys," generally causing more trouble than he's worth; Doug and Carrie attend adult-education classes, with disastrous results; the Heffernans clash with their uptight new neighbors, the Sackseys; and Ray Barone (Ray Romano) of Everybody Loves Raymond fame pays a visit to his friend and kindred spirit Doug. At season's end, and despite worries that their careers won't allow it, Doug and Carrie consider having a baby. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Pilot
- Supermarket Story
- Noel Cowards
- Fixer Upper
- Fat City
- Cello, Goodbye
- Richie's Song
- Paternal Affairs
- Head First
- The Rock
- Educating Doug
- Road Rayge
- Best Man
- Dog Days
- Crappy Birthday
- S'Ain't Valentine's
- Court Date
- White Collar
- Rayny Day
- Train Wreck
- Hungry Man
- Time Share
- Where's Poppa?
- Art House
- Maybe Baby
Season two of The King of Queens finds blue-collar couple Doug and Carrie Heffernan (Kevin James, Leah Remini) still sharing their small but comfy Queens, NY, home with Carrie's cantankerous and overbearing father, Arthur (Jerry Stiller). Relatively new to the proceedings is Doug's stumblebum cousin Danny (played by series star Kevin James' real-life brother Gary Valentine), who halfway through the season gets married -- forcing Doug, who can't stand the guy, to serve as Danny's best man. Another character who rapidly ascends to the "recurring" category is Kelly Palmer (Merrin Dungey), the wife of Frank's buddy Deacon Palmer (Victor Williams). Highlights of the second season include another of several crossover episodes with Everybody Loves Raymond as Ray and Debra Barone (Ray Romano, Patricia Heaton) pay a visit to the Heffernan spread. Also, a spiteful Carrie takes up smoking when Doug buys a motorcycle against her wishes; Doug manages to get a staple stuck in his groin; the Heffernans have second thoughts after agreeing to serve as godparents for the Palmers' baby; Doug becomes convinced he's a devil with women when a waitress gives him the once-over; Carrie may have to be bumped from Doug's bowling team, but it's Doug who should have been bumped; a high-school reunion leads to a row over a famous "blocked" kick; Arthur moves from the basement to the room across from Doug and Carrie's, giving him even more opportunity to drive Doug crazy; Doug agrees to participate in a charity foot race, even though the strain may do him in; and Carrie forces Doug to "boycott" his favorite Italian restaurant. The final episode finds Doug and Carrie preparing for a cross-country vacation, even though Carrie had wanted to go to Europe (and she exacts a cruel revenge when she doesn't get her wish!). Though not the top-rated sitcom on the CBS docket, The King of Queens did reasonably well, ranking 35th out of 153 network programs. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Queasy Rider
- Roamin' Holiday
- Sparing Carrie
- Net Prophets
- Female Problems
- Assaulted Nuts
- Parent Trapped
- Tube Stakes
- Doug Out
- Get Away
- Dire Strayts
- I, Candy
- Party Favor
- Block Buster
- Frozen Pop
- Fair Game
- Meet By-Product
- The Shmenkmans
- Surprise Artie
- Wild Cards
- Big Dougie
- Soft Touch
- Restaurant Row
- Flower Power
- Whine Country
More blue-collar comedy is served up during season three of The King of Queens, with very little divergence from the basic premise, in which delivery driver Doug Heffernan (Kevin James) and his law-clerk wife, Carrie (Leah Remini), manage to stay happy and reasonably content, even though Doug is driven crazy by Carrie's loudmouthed father, Arthur (Jerry Stiller), who lives with the couple, and Carrie is not overly fond of Doug's capricious buddies Deacon (Victor Williams), Spence (Patton Oswalt), and Richie (Larry Romano). New developments this season include the arrival of Doug's younger sister Stephanie (Ricki Lake), a schoolteacher on the rebound from a punctured romance, who drops into the Heffernans to air her grievances, and the establishment of another recurring character, Carrie's law-firm boss, Mr. Pruzan (Alex Skuby). Halfway through the season, the marriage between Doug's friend Deacon and his wife, Kelly (Merrin Dungey), begins to fall apart (he's been stepping out, but Doug can't bring himself to call it "cheating"). Highlights during season three include Doug's efforts to spice up his love life by adopting the foreign accent and Continental charm of his new co-worker; Carrie's not-so-subtle attempt to get Doug to lose weight, leading to a nit-picky free for all; the Heffernan's efforts to economize when Doug's company goes on a long strike; a Thanksgiving flashback to the first time Doug met Carrie's parents (Florence Henderson of Brady Bunch fame is seen as Carrie's mom); Super Bowl shenanigans involving a high-def TV; and, in the classic episode "Inner Tube," Doug imagines himself and Carrie as the stars of such pop-culture classics as The Honeymooners and Wheel of Fortune. In the season's two-part finale, Carrie finds out that she is pregnant, compelling Doug to take a second job (Nicole Sullivan, cast in this two-parter as a saleswoman in a baby store, would later become a series regular in the same role). Its ratings ever-improving, The King of Queens shot up from 37th to 25th place amongst 157 network shows during the 2000-2001 season. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Do Rico
- Work Related
- Better Camera
- Roast Chicken
- Fatty McButterpants
- Class Struggle
- Strike One
- Strike Too
- Strike Out
- Dark Meet
- Twisted Sitters
- Wedding Presence
- Hi Def-Jam
- Paint Misbehavin'
- Deacon Blues
- Horizontal Hold
- Inner Tube
- Papa Pill
- Package Deal
- Separation Anxiety
- Departure Time
- Swim Neighbors
- Sno Job
- Pregnant Pause, Part 1
- Pregnant Pause, Part 2
Blue-collar couple Doug and Carrie Heffernan (Kevin James, Leah Remini) are still living in their modest but comfy digs in Queens, NY -- and still sharing space with Carrie's tactless, obstreperous father, Arthur (Jerry Stiller) -- as The King of Queens enters its fourth season. The previous season's two-part cliffhanger, involving Carrie's pregnancy, is resolved in a melancholy fashion when she miscarries, though the couple still intends to conceive again sometimewhere down the line. Also down in the dumps is Arthur, whose last friend from his old nursing home has moved away. His reaction to this turn of events is not to moan and kvetch (his accustomed behavior), but to spend his entire day sleeping -- only to wake up full of energy in the evening, just when Doug and Carrie would rather take it easy. This compels Doug to hire someone to listen to, and put up with, Arthur; the person chosen is Holly Shumpert (Nicole Sullivan), a character introduced in the previous season as a ditsy baby-store salesperson named Marilyn. Otherwise employed as a dog walker for Doug's pal Spence (Patton Oswalt), Holly agrees to walk with Arthur three times per week and feign interest in his long-winded war stories (though eventually she comes to genuinely enjoy the old guy's company). In another development, the rapidly unraveling marriage of Doug's buddy Deacon (Victor Williams) and his wife, Kelly (Merrin Dungey), totally collapses, and Kelly moves out with her two children. Highlights from season four include Doug's efforts to break the 951-consecutive-perfect-delivery record at his job; Carrie going on a retreat with her fellow law-firm employees; Arthur's struts and frets as he prepares to undergo heart surgery; Doug and Carrie recalling the events leading up to their wedding, including a "Sign from God" -- and later on, the couple staging an elaborate reenactment of their first date; Carrie driving Doug to distraction as she prepares for a big-time legal case; the unexpected discovery of a generous check from Doug's cousin, and the ensuing consequences; and Doug's dreams of quitting his job and running his own sandwich shop. The season ends with the series' 100th episode, in which Arthur reluctantly agrees to see a psychotherapist about his hilariously uncontrollable anger. The 2001-2002 season saw The King of Queens posting its best ratings so far, finally cracking the Top 20 of network programs. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Walk, Man
- Oxy Moron
- Depo Man
- Ovary Action
- Sight Gag
- Mean Streak
- Friender Bender
- No Retreat
- Tricker Treat
- Lyin' Hearted
- Life Sentence
- Veiled Threat
- Food Fight
- Double Downer
- Dougie Nights
- No Orleans
- Missing Links
- Hero Worship
- Screwed Driver
- Lush Life
- Bun Dummy
- Patrons Ain't
- Eddie Money
- Two Thirty
- Shrink Wrap
Season five of The King of Queens is still set in the titular New York borough, and still revolves around blue-collar delivery driver Doug Heffernan (Kevin James) and his legal-assistant wife, Carrie (Leah Remini) -- not to mention Carrie's cantankerous widowed father, Arthur (Jerry Stiller), who lives with the couple. The most significant plot development during this season is the divorce of Doug's pal Deacon Palmer (Patton Oswalt) and his wife, Kelly (Merrin Dungey). This puts Doug in the position of being the occasional surrogate parent to the couple's children, Kirby (Marshaun Daniel) and Major (Damani Roberts). Highlights from the fourth season include Doug's "temporary bachelor" status when Carrie begins working the night shift at the law firm; Carrie's conviction that her prayers are coming true, and the method by which she louses up this divine intervention; a titillating episode involving a sexy addition to Doug's bowling team and Carrie's misadventures with a breast-obsessed child; Doug's frantic efforts to cover up an indiscretion -- namely, taking a photograph of his "privates"; two Thanksgiving dinners with no turkeys; Carrie forcing Doug to get professional help for his binge-eating; and various run-ins with the Heffernans' intellectual new neighbors, Mike and Debi Ross (Michael Lowry, Marcia Cross). The season closer finds Carrie going bed-shopping thanks to Doug's carelessness -- and isn't that former "Incredible Hulk" Lou Ferrigno as the Heffernan's next-door neighbor? Though ratings fluctuated throughout The King of Queens' fifth season, the series continued to perform admirably, at one point ranking as America's tenth most popular program. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Arthur, Spooner
- Loaner Car
- Mentalo Case
- Window Pain
- Holy Mackerel
- Kirbid Enthusiasm
- Mammary Lane
- Business Affairs
- Flame Resistant
- Flash Photography
- Connect Four
- Jung Frankenstein
- Attention Deficit
- Prints Charming
- Animal Attraction
- Golden Moldy
- S'Poor House
- Steve Moscow
- Cowardly Lyin'
- Driving Reign
- Clothes Encounter
- Queens'bro Bridge
- Dog Shelter
- Taste Buds
- Bed Spread
Season six of The King of Queens begins by opening an old wound: namely, the argument between blue-collar couple Doug and Carrie Heffernan (Kevin James, Leah Remini) over Doug's weight problem. Ironically, Carrie is not upset because Doug is fat, but because he has shed several pounds -- and now is attracting the attention of various and sundry female onlookers! Though this crisis will be resolved, there is still Carrie's cantankerous dad, Arthur (Jerry Stiller), who lives with the couple, to contend with. Elsewhere, Doug's pal Deacon (Victor Williams) is given the opportunity to reconcile with his wife, Kelly (Merrin Dungey), from whom he's been separated for two years. Among the many highlights of the series' sixth season are a guest appearance by Anne Meara, the wife and longtime comedy partner of regular Jerry Stiller; another guest-star turn by Janeane Garofalo as Doug's ex-girlfriend Trish Flintoff; the trepidations accompanying rumors that the law firm where Carrie works may be laying people off; Doug's dilemma when he recalls "all the girls I've loved before" while coming out of the anesthetic after having his appendix removed; a frenzied attempt to prevent the opening of a rare bottle of wine before Doug can sell the bottle on eBay; and the burgeoning relationship between Doug's friend Spence (Patton Oswalt) and his new girl, Denise (Rachel Dratch). In the season finale, Arthur insists that his walking companion, the considerably younger Holly Shumpert (Nicole Sullivan), move into the Heffernan basement after she is booted from her apartment. Ratings for The King of Queens continued to be encouraging for CBS during the 2003-2004 season, though rumors persisted that the next season would be the last. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Doug Less, Part 1
- American Idle
- Santa Claustrophobia
- Cheap Saks
- Doug Less, Part 2
- King Pong
- Dreading Vows
- Nocturnal Omission
- Affidavit Justice
- Secret Garden
- Eggsit Strategy
- Thanks, Man
- Dougie Houser
- Frigid Heirs
- Switch Sitters
- Damned Yanky
- Multiple Plots
- Trash Talker
- Precedent Nixin'
- Foe: Pa
- Tank Heavens
- Alter Ego
- Icky Shuffle
- Awful Bigamy
- Lost Vegas
- Dugan Groupie
- Furious George
- Entertainment Weakly
- Off Track... Bedding?
- Silent Mite
- Pour Judgement
- Gym Neighbors
- Gorilla Warfare
- Hi, School
- Descontructing Carrie
- Black List
- Van, Go
- Wish Boned
- Ice Cubed
- Catching Hell
- Slippery Slope
- Buy Curious
- Name Dropper
- Awed Couple
- Cologne Ranger
- Domestic Disturbance
- Pole Lox
- G'Night, Stalker
- Raygin' Bulls
- Baker's Doesn't
- Vocal Discord
- Consummate Professional
- Like Hell
- Sandwiched Out
- Shear Torture
- Inn Escapable
- Move Doubt
- Fresh Brood
- Gambling N'Diction
- Apartment Complex
- Buggy Nights
- Knee Jerk
- Present Tense
- Sold-y Locks
- Emotional Rollercoaster
- Four Play
- Hartford Wailer
- Acting Out
- Fight Schlub
- Mama Cast
- Affair Trade
- Moxie Moron
- Major Disturbance
- Ruff Goin'
- Manhattan Project
- Single Spaced
- China Syndrome
- Brace Yourself
- Home Cheapo
- Offensive Fowl
- Mild Bunch
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