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| The Tracey Ullman Show | |
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| Format | Variety show |
| Created by | Tracey Ullman |
| Starring | Tracey Ullman Dan Castellaneta Julie Kavner (1987–1989) Sam McMurray Joseph Malone Anna Levine |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| No. of episodes | 82 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 22–23 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | FOX |
| Original run | April 5, 1987 – May 26, 1990 |
| Chronology | |
| Followed by | The Simpsons |
The Tracey Ullman Show is a weekly all-American television variety show, hosted by British comedian and onetime pop singer Tracey Ullman. It debuted on April 5, 1987 as the FOX network's second primetime series (after Married... with Children), and ran until May 26, 1990. The show features sketch comedy along with many musical numbers, featuring choreography by Paula Abdul. It also produced the animated series The Simpsons. This is the first show produced by Gracie Films and also produced by 20th Century Fox Television.
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Background
By the 1980s, acclaimed television producer, James L. Brooks, (producer of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Taxi, and Rhoda), had left the television industry for the big screen. At the time that he won the Oscar for his film, Terms of Endearment, Brooks began receiving videotapes from Ullman's Los Angeles agent, hoping to get his attention. Ullman, who was already famous in her homeland, England, was already landing a variety of television deals and proposals in America, but none had panned out. These projects didn't suit Ullman's interests. "[They were] shows with morals, where everyone learns something at the end of the show," related Ullman to a television critic for TV Guide in 1989, describing the television show ideas that were offered to her. Brooks was so taken by what he saw in Ullman, that he decided to take the young Brit under his wing and return to television. Brooks was determined to develop the right vehicle to showcase Ullman's talents: acting, dancing, and singing.
Ullman had already had a successful music career in the early 1980s, in the UK, and had a top 10 hit on the American charts. She got her first taste of America and American audiences doing a press tour for the her hit single, "They Don't Know". Brooks decided on a variety show format, something that hadn't been seen on American television since The Carol Burnett Show. Little did Ullman know that upon moving to Los Angeles in 1985, she'd soon star in a hit television series that would kick start a small unknown television network, and spin-off one of the longest running television series in American television history, all while catapulting her to stardom on both sides of the Atlantic.
Format
A typical episode would begin with Ullman giving a brief introduction, ostensibly from her dressing room, leading into the opening titles (the show's theme, "You're Thinking Right", was written by George Clinton). Then two or three comedy sketches would be presented, most designed to showcase Ullman's ability to skillfully mimic various accents. One popular recurring character was timid, slow-talking Kay ("Iiit's... Kaaaaaaaayyy...")
Typically, the final sketch of the night would include a musical and/or dance number featuring Ullman solo or other members of the cast. The final segment saw Ullman, clad in a robe, deliver a closing monologue to the studio audience before ending the show with her catchphrase "Go Home! Go Home!" and dancing as the credits rolled. Ullman often talked about her husband, Allan McKeown, and her daughter, Mabel. Ullman chose the phrase, "Go home," during show's pilot episode because she couldn't think of anything clever to end with. "Oh, you got sore bums... go home!"
The show won three Emmy Awards: for Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Program in 1989 and 1990, for Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program in 1990. Also in 1989, choreographer Paula Abdul won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography for her work [1] Abdul was noted for putting Tracey through strenuous choreographed routines. Ullman had been a trained dancer.
Credits
Cast
- Dan Castellaneta
- Julie Kavner (seasons 1–3)
- Anna Levine (season 3)
- Joseph Malone
- Sam McMurray
- Tracey Ullman
Guest stars
- Judith Barsi Karen (2 episodes, 1987-1988)
- Mel Brooks a movie director (one episode, 1990)
- Clarence Clemons member of Shopaholics Anonymous (one episode, 1989)
- Glenn Close Virginia Winslow (one episode, 1990)
- Robert Costanzo Big Tony Manetti (2 episodes, 1989-1990)
- Tim Curry rock star (one episode, 1989)
- Anne De Salvo Psychiatric Patient / ... (2 episodes, 1989)
- Fran Drescher sales clerk (one episode, 1990)
- Kelsey Grammer (one episode, 1990)
- Doris Grau Carla, Office Worker / ... (3 episodes, 1988-1989)
- Marilu Henner one of three expectant mothers (one episode, 1989)
- Carole King member of Shopaholics Anonymous (one episode, 1989)
- Cheech Marin a convenience store owner (one episode, 1987)
- Andrea Martin a psychiatrist (one episode, 1989)
- Steve Martin choreographer who has developed some ridiculous moves (one episode, 1987)
- Maureen McGovern a woman who can only sing in the car (one episode, 1987)
- Harvey Miller Fuzzy Bear / ... (2 episodes, 1987-1988)
- Matthew Perry (one episode, 1987)
- Billy Preston member of Shopaholics Anonymous (one episode, 1989)
- Bill Pullman a magazine writer (one episode, 1990)
- Cesar Romero Roland Diego (one episode, 1988)
- Isabella Rossellini Mae / ... (3 episodes, 1989-1990)
- Martin Short Doc the Elvis Presley freak / ... (2 episodes, 1989-1990)
- Steven Spielberg Himself (one episode, 1989)
- Harold Sylvester David Black / ... (2 episodes, 1988-1989)
- Betty Thomas gym teacher (one episode, 1989)
- Michael Tucker a Baltimore resident (one episode, 1989)
- Smith Wordes Dancer (9 episodes, 1990)
- John William Young Jonathan / ... (5 episodes, 1987-1989)
Series directors
- Ted Bessell (unknown episodes)
- Paul Flaherty (one episode, 1987)
- Art Wolff (unknown episodes)
Series writers
- Jeff Baron (unknown episodes)
- Dan Castellaneta (unknown episodes)
- Paul Flaherty (13 episodes, 1987)
- Marc Flanagan (unknown episodes)
- Susan Gauthier (unknown episodes)
- Paul Haggis (unknown episodes)
- Sue Herring (unknown episodes)
- Holly Holmberg Brooks (unknown episodes)
- David Isaacs (unknown episodes)
- Ken Levine (unknown episodes)
- Heide Perlman (unknown episodes)
- Michael Sardo (2 episodes, 1989)
- Guy Shulman (unknown episodes)
- Sam Simon (unknown episodes)
Characters
Tracey performed an array of characters. Most only appeared once, as the sketches concentrated on plot, with characters created to best tell that particular storyline. A handful of characters did however return for subsequent sketches. These include:
Ginny Tillman, the ex-wife of a Beverly Hills proctologist; Francesca McDowell, a 14-year-old girl being raised by her father Dave (portrayed by Castellaneta) and his partner William (McMurray); Tina, a postal employee who is best friends with her co-worker Meg (Kavner); Sarah Downey, quintessential yuppie married to attorney Greg (Castellaneta); Kay Clark, office worker and caregiver to her sick mother (Kay also appeared frequently in Tracey Takes On); Sandra Decker, aged movie actress; Kiki Howard-Smith, professional golfer; Summer Storm, disc jockey; and Angel Tish, a singer who appeared with her husband Marty (Castellaneta).
Among the recurring characters portrayed by other cast members, besides those previously mentioned, were Gulliver Dark (McMurray), singer and rival to Marty Tish, and Dr. Alexander Gibson (Castellaneta), psychiatrist.
In the course of its four season run, Ullman performed a total of 108 characters.[2]
The Simpsons vignettes
The Simpsons family debuted in short animated cartoons on The Tracey Ullman Show before being spun off into their own half-hour series. These shorts, also called "bumpers", aired before and after commercial breaks during the first three seasons of the show.
All of them were written by Matt Groening and animated at Klasky-Csupo by a team of animators consisting of David Silverman, Wes Archer, and Bill Kopp. In the beginning, the drawings appeared very crude because the animators were more or less just tracing over Groening's storyboards, but as the series developed, so did the designs and layouts of the characters and the "Simpsons drawing style" was ultimately conceived. This style evolved even more throughout the first few seasons of The Simpsons and was used more than a decade later on Futurama, another animated series created by Matt Groening.
Dr. N!Godatu
Dr. N!Godatu was another series of animated shorts created by M.K. Brown (and animated by the same Klasky-Csupo team). It originally alternated every other week with the Simpsons shorts, but was dropped after the first season of the show. By this point, Groening's shorts had gained much more popularity and the producers saw no reason to continue Brown's shorts.
References
External links
- The Tracey Ullman Show at the Internet Movie Database
- The Tracey Ullman Show at TV.com
- The Tracey Ullman Show episode guide
- Watch Simpsons shorts Alternative source
- The Dr. N!Godatu web page
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