"The Associates" (1979) TV series 1979-1980

User Rating:

6.3/10   

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

23 September 1979 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

It revolves around three young law school graduates who had just joined the prestigious firm of Bass and Marshall as associates...

Plot Keywords:

Sitcom

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 2 nominations

Cast

Wilfrid Hyde-White	...	Emerson Marshall (13 episodes, 1979-1980)
Martin Short	...	Tucker Kerwin (13 episodes, 1979-1980)
Alley Mills	...	Leslie Dunn (13 episodes, 1979-1980)
Joe Regalbuto	...	Eliot Streeter (13 episodes, 1979-1980)
Shelley Smith	...	Sara James (13 episodes, 1979-1980)
Tim Thomerson	...	Johnny Danko (13 episodes, 1979-1980)

Runtime:

30 min (13 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

John-Charles-Walters Productions

Soundtrack:

Wall Street Blues

Get "Associate"-d....

Here is a rarity: a one season wonder that should have lasted more than one season.

"The Associates", a sitcom about the young lawyers at a prestigious law firm, came from the pen of James L. Brooks, Stan Daniels and Ed. Weinberger, the same geniuses behind the classic "Taxi". But whereas "Taxi" took place in the blue-collar world, this series tackled the white-collar side of the fence.

Short played the Alex Regar-type, the guy who always tried to get things done right but found that things don't always don't work out so smoothly. Every episode found the lawyers faced with dilemmas such as freedom of speech, inner-office romance, fighting to move ahead in the firm, etc. All of this, naturally, handled with the same deft aplomb that Brooks, Daniels and Weinberger gave to taxi drivers.

Consider, too, the fact that such comic pros also were on hand as Regalbuto, as the sniveling Streeter, Thomerson as the hip-yet-loose Danko, Mills as the office cutie Dunn and Smith as the more-sensible female James. Then there was Hyde-White, who played the dottering head of the firm. His constant stream-of-consciousness ramblings were a show highlight.

It's amazing how well I remember this series, not having seen it for so long. But I guess that if a show's that good, it's worth remembering. I'm sure that somewhere in the world, someone is watching "The Associates" and thinking the exact same thing.

Ten stars for "The Associates", good TV worth more than one rerun! Case closed!