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The home mansion in this series was also used in Smallville as Luthor's mansion and in the X-Men adn Deadpool movies as Professor Xavier's castle.

One of the regulars is occasionally called by the nickname "Abercrombie."  The actor had been a model for Abercrombie and Fitch.

Several of the supporting characters from this show have starred or been regulars in at least one associated series.

George

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Well, lots of shows and movies have reused a handful of places, and lots have had a mansion. 

There was a time (before it was cool) when I wore a shirt that had "Abercrombie and Fitch" on it in the Summer. (It was light grey and I like that in Summer.)   When I walked in for Fellowship behind this new guy once, Raf read the shirt, then joked, asking "Who's Fitch?"  I pointed to the new guy. "He is. I'm Abercrombie." 

So, I actually noticed when Roy Harper was nicknamed "Abercrombie" in "ARROW."   Since the Queens had a mansion, that's probably the answer here.

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17 hours ago, GeorgeStGeorge said:

You are correct.  Amazing that you got it from the Abercrombie reference!

George

If "He is-I'm Abercrombie" had been a running gag for you, you'd have gotten it just as easily.  I admit the running gag was unlikely to happen in the first place, except there's a big A + F store in Manhattan, and I used to shop there periodically before it got popular.  (They sold some good colognes at one point.)

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Ok, new spins on old concepts. Name any to take the round.

 

A)This Netflix comedy is based on a similar concept to "Welcome Back Kotter."  In this one, we focus more on the teachers, but there's a few jokes about the students as well.  One administrator would love to run the Drama club- if the students would be willing to go along.  Since he's a frustrated (inept)  singer/actor, it's more about him than about actually teaching and engaging the students.  Actors include Maggie Geha (adult Ivy from "Gotham")  and Jacob Vargas (Mr Roarke from the "Fantasy Island" theatrical movie.)   This show was derailed due to COVID and may be over abruptly.

 

B) This 90s show was based on a similar concept to "the Brady Bunch." A couple remarries and each brings kids into the new family.  Actors include Bronson Pinchot in a supporting role.

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Speaking of steps, my stepdaughter got married Sunday.

So I've been distracted. Meanwhile:

 

Hard to imagine, but true: The star of this family-oriented comedy had drug abuse problems and fluctuating weight issues that became a problem for producers. Liza Minelli helped get her back on track.

In a guest appearance that did not involve her singing, Whitney Houston (then an unknown) made her acting debut.

The lead actress and the lead actor became very close friends. When the lead actor died (after production on the fourth season had ended), the lead actress was at his bedside. His final episode, the season finale, aired three days after he died.

 

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Cut me some slack, I've been busy.

Ok, the lead actress was a big Broadway star. That was punny.

One of the episodes was called "Knock Three Times." That was before someone extremely familiar with that song joined the cast.

 

My last two posts begin with major hints.

 

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Come on!

A new cast member was introduced to "cousin oliver" the show in the third season. The character's first name was the same as the actor's.

The same actor went on to star in four other sitcoms (one smash hit, the others flops to moderate successes) where he had the same first name (as well as others where he had a different first name). He did star in an animated theatrical release as a character named Oliver. No indication that he was anyone's cousin, though.

The show gradually shifted its focus from the original family setting to the relationship between the lead actress and the cousin oliver character.

Edited by Raf
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Seriously?

If that's your deduction, then you "are not conducting yourself in an inappropriate manner."

Cousin Oliver is a TV trope [cliche, common tactic] where they try to invigorate a show, usually a show with kid stars, by introducing a new, even younger kid. The trope is named after a character on The Brady Bunch. 

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Just gonna sum up my non-clue clues...

Oh, for f's sake...

Cut me some slack...

Come on!

Seriously?

 

The title of this show would be right at home on this list.

Remarkably few episodes explored interracial issues.

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15 hours ago, Raf said:

Come on!

A new cast member was introduced to "cousin oliver" the show in the third season. The character's first name was the same as the actor's.

The same actor went on to star in four other sitcoms (one smash hit, the others flops to moderate successes) where he had the same first name (as well as others where he had a different first name). He did star in an animated theatrical release as a character named Oliver. No indication that he was anyone's cousin, though.

The show gradually shifted its focus from the original family setting to the relationship between the lead actress and the cousin oliver character.

The "cousin oliver" is a child actor who is added to a show after a few years, in an attempt to "freshen up" the cast, primarily because the kids in the show are getting older and the show runners want a small child in the show because they think that will bring in the ratings.  Lots of long-running sitcoms have done it, with the Brady's "cousin Oliver" (Robbie Rist)  being the most famous, and therefore the trope namer. 

The animated theatrical release where he may or may not have been a cousin but was Oliver was the eponymous role in "Oliver and Company",  an animal take on "Oliver Twist."   That makes this Joey Lawrence. I remember him mostly for his role in "Blossom",  but he was in other stuff at the time.    Let's see.....

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12 hours ago, GeorgeStGeorge said:

I'm guessing that the "big Broadway star" was a large woman as well as a famous performer.  Not really helpful, though.  "Cousin Oliver" sounds vaguely familiar.

George

It narrows the field considerably.  Large woman, famous performer, family sitcom, Joey Lawrence joined, 80s show.....

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4 hours ago, Raf said:

Just gonna sum up my non-clue clues...

Oh, for f's sake...

Cut me some slack...

Come on!

Seriously?

 

The title of this show would be right at home on this list.

Remarkably few episodes explored interracial issues.

Add in different ethnicities but the show didn't make a big deal about it.   That boxes in the show.  It was "GIMME A BREAK".  The leading actress was NELL CARTER.   Her character helped with a single father raising some daughters- the father was an older policeman played by Dolph Swede who looked pretty old, and passed away during the show's run. 

(I figured he was old enough to have been named "Adolph" before Hitler rose to power, which means he could only be so young, since few people used the name "Adolph" after World War II.  A friend of mine once made a passing comment back in high school about how that name pretty much got snuffed out due to World War II.  One Marx Brother supposedly was "Adolph" in real life, but changed it and has maintained all along he was "Arthur" but has otherwise remained silent on the issue.)

I used to watch the show.  My favorite episode had a scene where Nell had to go to the bank and clear up some computer errors in her records.  Among other things, they had her first and last name as "Nell FONG."  She made a BIG deal about that; "DO I LOOK LIKE A 'FONG" to you?"   "I can't tell. All you Chinese people look alike to me."  She ranted about that a bit.    I still use this scene as an example, however.  If they weren't playing it for laughs, she could SO have been a "FONG."  She could have gotten married to a Mr Fong.  If she was single, she could have kept her married name.  She could have been adopted as a child and have had a name change to match the family that raised her, even if her ethnicity didn't seem to match.  Finally, in the US, you can change your name to most things if you feel like it and care enough to fill all the paperwork and pay the fees.    So, yes, she could have been a "Fong."   I have similar comments about the Seinfeld episode with "Donna Chang", formerly Donna Changstein.  (Such a big shock that she wasn't ethnically Chinese. Why?)

 

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Next show.

This show aired for 8 seasons, not counting syndication.  It ended abruptly, without a proper "final episode", so some of the regular cast weren't in the last episode and didn't find out until later that it WAS the last episode.  It was used for back-door pilots of a few shows, almost all of which either were never picked up or went away fast.  It had some celebrity guest-stars like Muhammad Ali and Mr. T.   It also had a number of "very special" episodes, addressing serious topics like racism, hitchhiking, kidnapping, and child sexual abuse.  Finally, after the show ended, some of the regulars really hit the skids in their personal lives. What was this show's name?

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