IMDb > "Delta House" (1979)

"Delta House" (1979) More at IMDbPro »TV series


Overview

User Rating:
6.5/10   25 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 5% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Writer:
Richard Whitley (one episode)
Contact:
View company contact information for Delta House on IMDbPro.
Seasons:
1 full episode list
Release Date:
18 January 1979 (USA) more
Genre:
Comedy more
Plot:
The raucous exploits of Faber College's Delta House Fraternity in 1962. full summary
Plot Keywords:
NewsDesk:
Director John Hughes dead at 59
 (From Corona's Coming Attractions. 6 August 2009, 2:22 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
This 'House' is condemned. more (6 total)

Cast

 (Series Cast Summary - 13 of 15)

John Vernon ... Dean Vernon Wormer (13 episodes, 1979)

Stephen Furst ... Kent 'Flounder' Dorfman (13 episodes, 1979)

Bruce McGill ... Daniel Simpson Day (D-Day) (13 episodes, 1979)
James Widdoes ... Robert Hoover (13 episodes, 1979)
Peter Fox ... Eric 'Otter' Stratton (13 episodes, 1979)
Gary Cookson ... Doug Neidermayer (13 episodes, 1979)
Susanna Dalton ... Mandy Pepperidge (13 episodes, 1979)
Wendy Goldman ... Muffy (13 episodes, 1979)
Richard Seer ... Larry 'Pinto' Kroger (13 episodes, 1979)

Brian Patrick Clarke ... Greg Marmalard (13 episodes, 1979)

Lee Wilkof ... Einswine (13 episodes, 1979)
Josh Mostel ... Jim 'Bloto' Blutarsky (12 episodes, 1979)

Peter Kastner ... Prof. Dave Jennings (12 episodes, 1979)
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Runtime:
30 min (15 episodes)
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono
Company:
Universal TV more

Fun Stuff

Movie Connections:
Follows Animal House (1978) more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
9 out of 14 people found the following comment useful.
This 'House' is condemned., 10 February 2005
Author: F Gwynplaine MacIntyre (Borroloola@earthlink.net) from Minffordd, North Wales

"National Lampoon's Animal House" was one of those rare films that changed the entire film industry. A huge box-office hit, it spawned dozens (maybe hundreds) of imitations. Naturally, television wanted some of the gravy. In the 1979 TV season, all three U.S. TV networks rushed frat-house sitcoms onto the air. The ones on CBS and NBC were outright crap, and died quickly. 'Delta House', on ABC, was likewise crap, but had the advantage of being the *official* TV version of 'Animal House', due to casting several of the film's actors in their same roles here.

John Belushi, who had starred as 'Bluto' Blutarsky in the film, was (no surprise) unwilling to commit to a weekly sitcom. In this show's one piece of cleverness, a surrogate Bluto was cast in the form of actor Josh Mostel as 'Blotto', Bluto's brother. Josh Mostel is a talented actor: his physical type makes him difficult to cast, but he has a far broader range than his father, the grossly overrated Less-Than-Zero Mostel. (In an interview, Josh Mostel revealed the one and only piece of showbiz wisdom ever imparted to him by his father: 'Just before you go on stage, suck on something red so your tongue will show up.') It would have been intriguing if Belushi had guest-starred in 'Delta House'. Despite his absence, the scriptwriters made running references to his character. In one episode, Blotto announced that he'd received a letter from his brother Bluto, prompting a Delta brother to respond 'I didn't know Bluto could write' and another Delta to riposte 'I didn't know Blotto could read.' We did get to learn a bit more about the characters (and actors) who were carried over from the original movie ... for example, actor Bruce "D-Day" McGill demonstrating his ability to dislocate his joints so that his legs are reversed from hip to ankle!

The most obvious flaw in 'Delta House' was that network television simply could not offer the bawdy humour, drugs references, and obscenity-laced dialogue which had made 'Animal House' so popular. Much as Blotto was a bowdlerised version of Bluto, this sitcom was an antiseptic version of a film which was a hit precisely *because* of its skanky elements. Without any 'Animal House' shenanigans, 'Delta House' fell back on the lowest sitcom humour. A typical gag: in one episode, an attractive co-ed walked through the frat house wearing an army uniform. She went into a room, closed the door, then *immediately* opened the door and came out again wearing a sexy miniskirt and high heels. The laugh track guffawed uproariously, but the unfunny effect was clearly achieved by a very obvious jump cut.

For modern viewers, the single biggest attraction of 'Delta House' is a glimpse of the young Michelle Pfeiffer, early in her career. But Pfeiffer's role on 'Delta House' was extremely small, and she was given nothing to do beyond the standard bimbo bits. Pfeiffer has aged in an interesting way; I find her far sexier the way she is now (as I write this) than as she was at the time of 'Delta House' ... and she's a better actress now, too. The only alumnus of 'Delta House' to graduate with honours is make-up man Michael Blake, who is now the leading authority on the life and career of Lon Chaney. Really, there's nothing much going on here.

Was the above comment useful to you?
more (6 total)

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for "Delta House" (1979)

Recommendations

If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
- - - - -
Animal House PCU "Co-Ed Confidential" High Fidelity Van Wilder
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
Show more recommendations

Related Links

Episode guide Full cast and crew Company credits
News articles IMDb TV section IMDb Comedy section
IMDb USA section Add this title to MyMovies

You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Update' button will take you through a step-by-step process.

You may add a new episode for this TV series by clicking the 'add episode' button