ONE SEASON WONDERS: All's Fair

On Wednesdays, I take a look at a series that lasted one season or less. Here is a look at All's Fair!

ALL'S FAIR

September 20, 1976 - May 30, 1977

24 episodes

CBS

Starring: Richard Crenna, Bernadette Peters, J.A. Preston 

Created by: Bob Schiller, Bob Weiskopf and Rod Parker

Plot: Richard Barrington (Crenna) is a powerful conservative columnist in Washington D.C. who becomes romantically involved with a much younger and liberal photographer, Charley (Peters). Keeping Richard in line is his assistant, Allen (Preston). 

Brief Pilot Review:

This was one of TV comedy's first forays into politics in a very direct way with the series set in D.C. and dealing with real life figures (there's references to Nixon, Goldwater and many more in the pilot). It certainly had a sophisticated feel and went for the adult audience from the very beginning with Charley seeing Richard naked in the first couple minutes of the pilot. One thing I appreciated about the pilot is it really focused on the relationship at the center of the show instead of political issues. That's a little bit surprising considering Norman Lear was involved and it was centered on politics. But you can't have an audience care about the political debates of the characters without getting to know the characters so this was set up well.

This show had a strong pair at the center of it. It's clear even at the age of 28 that Bernadette Peters is a star. She oozes charm and does it pretty effortlessly. I think one reason the plot isn't quite as icky as it could be is Peters seems very sophisticated despite being much younger than Crenna. Crenna is pretty funny and charming as well and there's decent chemistry between him and Peters. I think another way the show keeps from being problematic is the show puts Richard and Charley on equal footing. She's not his secretary or intern or something like that, she's a fellow professional and that made a big difference. The only real problem is how Richard treats his steady girlfriend (guest star Salome Jens). The pilot smartly focused on the two main characters. Basically, I think it accomplished everything it set out to do.

What Went Wrong:

Norman Lear was on top of the world in by 1976 with many shows on the air and all on CBS: All in the Family, Maude, Sanford and Son, The Jeffersons, Good Times and One Day at a Time. All of those shows dealt with social topics and certainly talked about politics but none were as overtly about politics as All's Fair with its D.C. setting. Early reviews were positive with critics praising the performances of Richard Crenna and Bernadette Peters as well as the fast-paced repartee between the two lead actors. This show seemed certain to succeed and was put on Monday night after three other successful CBS sitcoms: Rhoda, Phyllis and Maude. 

The lineup was not successful though. Rhoda was doing the storyline of her divorce and the ratings started to fall dramatically while Phyllis went from being a Top 10 show to out of the Top 25. The first hour was moved off the night and while The Jeffersons was brought in to help the 8pm hour, the 9pm slot still belonged to Maude, which was past its prime. The series expanded its cast as the season went on, including the addition of Michael Keaton as a fictional aide to Jimmy Carter. Bernadette Peters was nominated for a Golden Globe but the series never caught on with viewers and was cancelled after one full season. While Crenna continued to work periodically until his death in 2003, Peters was just at the beginning of her illustrious career and of course has gone on to many more bigger and better things since All's Fair. 

Tomorrow: A look at Season 3 (Part 2) of Get Smart!

Next Wednesday: A One Season Wonder look at Top of the Heap!